More Congratulations! Kitt, Miller and Wiggs...

Sandra Kitt makes Library Journal's Best Romances of 2007!

Congratulations to Sandra Kitt whose Kimani title CELLULOID MEMORIES was among the titles chosen by the magazine as the best romances of 2007.

Here is what Library Journal had to say:
A writer goes to L.A. to visit her dying actor father, who deserted her as a child, and gains a new understanding of the man she never knew. With her insightful flair, Kitt has written a poignant, thought-provoking , but gently humorous romance that illuminates the black experience within the entertainment industry. (originally a starred review in the 6/1/07 issue)

Wiggs and Miller Chosen by Amazon Among Top Ten for 2007

The awards continue to come for our books in 2007. Amazon’s editors have made their picks for the best romances of the year, and Susan Wiggs and Linda Lael Miller have both been chosen within the top 10!

THE WINTER LODGE by Susan Wiggs was selected and the #1 book in romance for the year by Amazon’s editors.

MCKETTRICK’S HEART by Linda Lael Miller ranked at #7 on the list.

Check out the Best of Romance list and the complete Amazon list.

Congratulations to...

Susan Wiggs and Brenda Joyce for making Publishers Weekly’s 150 Best Books of 2007!

Three thousand books are published daily in the U.S.(!) and PW reviewed more than 6,000 of them in 2007, in print and online. From that astounding number, they've compiled a list of 150 of the best books for the year in several categories. In the Romance category, two of the five books chosen were HQE titles.

Here is what PW had to say:

The Perfect Bride (which I haven't read yet, and am looking forward to! Update! 11/16 just finished it--really enjoyed it & now am linked into the de Warenne Dynasty! Delightful.)
Brenda Joyce(HQN)
Joyce's seventh de Warenne novel is a first-rate Regency with deliciously damaged leads; fluff-free, Joyce's tight plot and vivid cast make for a romance that's just about perfect.

The Winter Lodge (which I have read and really enjoyed. Guess PW knows a thing or two)
Susan Wiggs (Mira)
Complicated, flesh-and-blood characters inhabit Wiggs's idyllic but identifiable Lakeshore Chronicles, weaving a refreshingly honest smalltown tapestry of romance, domestic drama, mystery and generations-old Polish recipes.

I just happened to be in Seattle and got at chance to visit with Susan recently. Here she is at an autographing I got to attend in Pioneer Square--hey, it was at a cool bar/ restaurant and all I have on me is my phone photo, so don't complain.

Susan lives in a totally amazing house on Bainbridge Island--as you know from Allison's previous post the Pacific Northwest is peppered with writers. I think it's the weather. No, I was so busy admiring the house, I totally forgot to take any pictures. I don't think my phone would have done it justice! Here's another nice dark one of Susan for you!

Seattle is the home of...you guessed it, the Seattle Mariners! Yes, and Starbucks. I'm a tea drinker, and a boring one at that (no flavors, no funny business), so this was not a pilgrimage. Still, interesting to see the very first Starbucks, with (I think) the original branding.





It is really nice to have a place to stop and sit down the "third space," but the everywhereness of Starbucks was beginning to get a bit creepy, so I found a lovely no name spot to have a delicious latte and pumpkin brioche. No that is not a typo. And there is a reason there aren't pumpkin brioches year round, but it's not because they aren't delicious.

I love pumpkin, so this is my season and I feel compelled to order everything pumpkin at least once. Yes, I've tried the latte. It's liquid pumpkin pie filling. It's delicious, I lick it off the bowl, but it's a little weird buying a whole cup of it. I worry if I drink too much of it it will give me a disgust of pumpkins. Can't go there.

This amazing fellow was in the Seattle Aquarium. When you see something like this, you realize those incredible creative types at Pixar and Disney really aren't that creative. They just go to the Aquarium and the Zoo and the Botanical Garden. Nature is totally amazing. Look around!


When you go to Seattle, you have to check out the Experience Music...Project? Theatre? and you can't miss the Science Fiction museum, which is attached. I loved it.

I think we either need to establish a Romance museum or a museum of genre fiction or something. The sf museum was pretty great. It's reading intensive, but there are some fun film clips and interesting history.



I snapped this photo of Dolly, the first clone, in the museum. Isn't she sweet looking?

My aunt is a sculptor and had created a piece called "Dolly Tells All" which we had, so I was really excited to get a glimpse of the "real" Dolly.


Real? Photograph? Sculpture? Clone? Replicant? Is it live...or is it Memorex? And how much and when does it matter? Interesting questions for our time--for any time, for that matter!

I too had a great time in Seattle!

A few more things to share....

Don't you think February should be about Vampires as well as Valentines? May 17, 20006, I posted about a new author, Jennifer Armintrout, you can scroll down on the archives to check what I said about Jennifer's first novel, Blood Ties: The Turning. I had loved the proposal--don't think I'd even gotten a copy of the complete book yet!

Less than a year later, and her second is on the stands, check out Blood Ties: Possession. You can read an excerpt on her website. It's a doozy!

Some Amazon.com reader/reviewer comments:
Possessed reader. Peggy Hanchar 5 stars
"I just finished the second in the Blood Ties series and liked it even better than the first....Although I loved the first book, I thought this book had more depth and advanced a better understanding of the characters and what made them what they are.
"The author's flashes of humor always caught me by surprise and made me chuckle outloud. I'm really looking forward to the next book in this series to see where these characters evolve.... Kudos to the author and her terrific imagination."

Excellent paranormal romantic thriller. Harriet Klausner 5 stars:
"....The key to the second Blood Ties tale (see BLOOD TIES: THE TURNING) is that readers will believe that vampires and werewolves are real species because the cast is solid and deep. The two subplots consistently intermingle and cross. This leads to an electrifying action-packed story line that contains a strong psychological suspense element yet never slows down until the climax, but the audience will not know what to expect until the final collision."

Five intense hours. LeAnna Rankin 4 stars:
"So I was standing in line at Walmart, wishing to get out of there before I could collect my Social Security, and this book caught my eye. I didn't have much to lose so I started reading it in line. I couldn't put it down when it was my turn and so I bought it. When I got home, I sat down and read it straight through until the end, in just a little under five hours.
"I love the style of writing because it feels like you think right a long with them and the way they speak and interact. I was delighted when I realized it was a series and now I have an excuse to go by another book."

The last of Nora's four movies on Lifetime is out Monday, February 19th. You can check out various Nora/Lifetime and moviebilia on the Nora Roberts' Lifetime website. If you missed them, or don't get Lifetime, you can get them from iTunes. Yes, there's a tutorial on how to download stuff. We'll see how that goes. If not, I'm going to Ask Lorie!

Karen Harper's excellent Publishers Weekly review for her January title, Inferno: "Lauren and Brad are full, appealing characters who are easy to care for, and their growing mutual attraction feels organic and unforced. Harper keeps tension high as the insane villain cleverly evades efforts to capture him. And Harper really shines in the final act, providing readers with a satisfying and exciting denouement." Sara Pearce, aka LitChick, of Cincinnati.com mentions the ever fabulous Harlequin Romance Report and local authors Lori Foster and Karen Harper's titles in her Valentine post.


You have to check out the video of NYMPH KING by Gena Showalter, out in February, 2007. And Gena Showalter is on the February 18th Extended New York Times and USA Today Bestseller lists!


THE WINTER LODGE, Book Two of Susan Wiggs Lakeshore Chronicles is on the New York Times, Publishers Weekly and USA Today Bestseller lists. Susan also has started her own blog. You can check out the starred Publisher's weekly review of WINTER LODGE, if you need convincing!

Linda Lael Miller's first in the new McKettrick series, MCKETTRICK'S LUCK is out right now with a great PW review!
And PW has starred review of MCKETTRICK'S PRIDE by Linda Lael Miller. HQN Books, coming out in March, 2007. MCKETTRICK'S LUCK is also on the New York Times, Publishers Weekly and USA Today Bestseller lists. Not bad, eh?

Did you read Heather Cochran's Red Dress Ink title, MEAN SEASON? I did, and really liked it. Her second is coming out in MIRA in March and is reviewed by PW, titled THE RETURN OF JONAH GREY. Haven't read it, but nice to see PW likes it!


Also in March is Sherryl Woods A SLICE OF HEAVEN if you want to check out the rather nice PW review. It sounds really appealing, and I've signed up to participate in one of those readathon blog post thingys, and the competition is fierce! I have not been reading fast enough and checking out some of these excellent reviews & knowing the authors is really inspiring me to "start my engine!"


This just in--Sherry's , STEALING HOME, out right now, just hit the March 3rd New York Times extended list! What a way to launch the Sweet Magnolias trilogy--Congratulations Sherry!

Things You Might Want To Know

• Go watch the Nora Roberts movie Monday, January 29th on Lifetime at 9:00. It's Angels Fall and there will be three more, Montana Sky, Blue Smoke and Carolina Moon, for the next 3 Mondays! Though none of them are Silhouettes (sniff) they are all Nora's, so they are wonderful stories. We not only should support our very own national treasure, we need to show Lifetime there is a real audience for stories that deliver a feel-good experience. Consider it your job.

• Angela Bassett and her husband Courtney B. Vance wrote a book, FRIENDS: A LOVE STORY, detailing the story of their lives, courtship, marriage and the recent birth of their twins. It's coming out this February--Black History month and Valentine's, is that perfect or what?

• I got a chance to read the proposal and found it opened a window into a intriguing world I knew little about. Mavis Allen, their Kimani editor, found the final story "a fascinating and intimate look at two highly talented, complex artists' emotional, spiritual and romantic journey. It gave me a glimpse of two very public people's private world. I found it riveting."

• The book will be published on Valentine’s Day, Feb 14th, 2007.

Yes, St. Valentine's Day is coming up--are you ready? I use the inspiration of sending a Valentine to send all the thank-you notes I haven't gotten around to sending yet (!) and as a way to say "I love you" to all the people in my life that are precious to me for so many reasons and in so many ways.

Intimate Moments becomes Silhouette Romantic Suspense.

Susan Wiggs has launched her own blog. Before you go and say hello, go to your bookstore and grab a copy of THE WINTER LODGE, Book two of Susan's Lakeshore Chronicles. But before you do that, click here for a $1.00 off coupon, Valid 1/30/07 to 2/4/07, also available on her website. You can check out the starred Publisher's weekly review, if you need convincing! Then check in to the lodge that was the inspiration for her novel--a wonderfully writer and reader friendly place to be.

There are some great bundles of eBook bundles, some delicious and sizzling ones from Susan Mallery!

Seth Godin talked about how cool MJ Rose's initiative for THRILLER--a collection of stories from fabulous thriller writers--is on his highly popular blog...how cool is that? He talks about her initiative: "MJ Rose points us to http://www.150thrillers.com/ and talks about the power of writers pooling their resources.

• For those who don't bother to click:"There are some real insights here. The first is that having 'competitors' band together to gain attention is really smart and really rare...By using the Net to coordinate their audiences, they all win.

• The second brilliancy is that the only people who want to win the prize are the people who'd like to get the newsletter... Instead, what they've done is created an easy way for one thriller reader to introduce the newsletter to another... "hey, I know you like Stuart Woods, check this out...

• Wanna bet that newsletter subscribers end up buying more books?"

• MJ is highly websavvy--check out her blog Buzz, Balls and Hype. I think she occasionally offers courses.

Linda Lael Miller's first in the exciting new McKettrick series, MCKETTRICK'S LUCK is out right now with a great PW review!

• PW has starred review of MCKETTRICK'S PRIDE by Linda Lael Miller. HQN Books, coming out in March, 2007.

February launch of Everlasting Love, two books a month: check out DANCING ON SUNDAY AFTERNOONS by Linda Cardillo and FALL FROM GRACE by Kristi Gold.

In February, Harlequin Romance will combine the best of both the Harlequin and Silhouette Romance stories in a six title a month line.