Author Fan Letter Blog Crawl 2011!

Last year a group of bloggers came together to write letters to the authors they admire. This year we decided to do it again, thanks to Kassa at Three AM. From June 1st until July 7th, 37 blogs will post a letter on their blogs. And if you're a blogger, you are more than welcome to join in on the fun and pen your own letter to an author who has brought you joy with their books.

The list of blogs partaking in this event goes as follows:

June 1st http://www.krisngoodbooks.blogspot.com
June 2nd http://www.leontine1976.blogspot.com
June 3rd http://yummymenandkickasschicks.com/
June 4th http://ethanjstone.com/welcome
June 5th http://ataleofmanyreviews.blogspot.com
June 6th Swept Away Again
June 7th http://thebookreadinggals.com
June 8th http://www.bookaddictpatti.com
June 9th http://www.Katidom.com
June 10th http://thebookreadinggals.com
June 11th http://jenre-wellread.blogspot.com
June 12th http://alphareader.blogspot.com
June 13th My Friend Amy
June 14th Tam’s Reads
June 15th http://www.fictionvixen.com
June 16th http://happinessisshy.blogspot.com/
June 17th http://www.seankennedybooks.com
June 18th Smexy Books
June 19th http://www.erotichorizon.com/
June 20th http://www.rarelydustybooks.com/
June 21st http://www.trelainastarblazer.blogspot.com
June 22nd http://www.closetreader.com
June 23rd http://www.kaetrinsmusings.blogspot.com
June 24th http://obsidianbookshelf.blogspot.com/
June 25th http://kbgbabbles.blogspot.com/ *ME*
June 26th http://heidenkind.blogspot.com/
June 27th http://lily-ilovebooks.blogspot.com
June 28th http://www.literaryescapism.com/
June 29th http://bridgetlocke.blogspot.com
June 30th http://orannia.livejournal.com/
July 1st http://www.alphaheroes.blogspot.com/
July 2nd http://wrenboudreau.blogspot.com/
July 3rd http://www.alliwantandmore.blogspot.com
July 4th http://LiteraryEscapism.com
July 5th A Buckeye Girl Reads
July 6th http://MarieSexton.net
July 7th http://kassa011.wordpress.com

Join me on June 25th when I post my author appreciation letter.

If you had to write a letter of appreciation to one of your favorite authors, who would you write to and why?

Kiss of Snow Book Review *Nalini Singh*

One of the most anticipated books this year is Kiss of Snow (book #10) by Nalini Singh. Nalini has come a long way with her Psy-Changeling series. I can still remember the first time I picked up Slave to Sensation back in 2006, knowing I found an author I’d stick with for life. Nalini is an incredibly talented author, and if you’re not reading her books, you’re missing out on something special.

I read Kiss of Snow a few months ago and was on the fence whether or not I should review it. The reason is there are some things I enjoyed reading, while there were other things I found lacking. Kiss of Snow, from the overwhelming amount of reviews posted, is where everyone is head of heels in love with this book. It seems I’m in the minority here. Honestly, it’s hard to  review Kiss of Snow because not only have I met Nalini and chatted with her in emails, but as I said before, I’ve enjoyed the majority of what she’s written. Kiss of Snow was missing something for me as a reader. At one point I had to put the book down and read something else, and then come back to it. I think my problem lies with expectation. This happens from time to time and Kiss of Snow is a perfect example of this.

Kiss of Snow is what the Psy-Changeling fans have been waiting for, especially those who adore Sienna, the young X-Psy refugee, and her love for Hawke, the uber alpha wolf of the SnowDancer pack. These two have been dancing around each other since the moment they met. Hawke’s desire for Sienna has grown to the point where he’s consumed with jealousy and incredible frustration. (The man has a serious case of mega blue balls) Hawke keeps his feeling bottled up inside because he feels Sienna is too young and fragile to take him on. (Sienna is 19 and Hawke is almost 30) Plus Hawke is dedicated to the memory of his mate he lost when he was very young. Very young is the key thing here as in Hawke and the girl he loved never connected on a level together as a grown man and woman. Because of this he feels he can’t mate with any other woman, most of all a Psy, like Sienna.

Sienna is tortured in every single way. We’ve seen this many times with past Psy heroines. She has the ability to be a true unemotional killer, a weapon much like her Uncle Judd once was. But Sienna is not cold and distant, or in control as everyone around her thinks her to be. Sienna is slowly breaking down inside and can barely keep up her defenses because of Hawke. She wants Hawke desperately and longs to be the one he turns to for intimacy.

These two can hardly be around each other without acting out. The way things have been between Sienna and Hawke has come to an end and new beginning is in store for them. Sienna decides to throw herself in Hawke’s face by acting as if she doesn’t need him. She goes off with her Changeling friends to bars and clubs, while Hawke broods and smolders, his inner beast fighting to break free to claim Sienna as his own. And then finally Hawke can’t take it anymore. All bets are off. Hawke unleashes his snarling wolf and Sienna no longer has a chance because Hawke is finished with the games and wants to play on his terms.

Sienna and Hawke’s passion for one another is combustible. Hawke doesn’t pounce on Sienna right away, but courts her with deadly precision. It’s like he’s going off to war. Sienna wants Hawke in all his forms, but is scared because of what lies inside her. These two take a long time to come together. Kiss of Snow is one big buildup of foreplay where I was frustrated alongside these two. But when they throw all caution aside, their love scenes will scorch your eyeballs when they finally share their bodies with one another.

The majority of the plot is dedicated to Sienna and Hawke, but we do see another, tender side with Sienna’s, innocent in the ways of intimacy, Uncle Walker and the SnowDancer healer, Lara. These two are the complete opposites from their counterparts and their interactions were lovely, so much so I was more interested in them at one point. Also Judd has a great deal of interaction, including Sasha and Lucas, whose happily ever after is in full force. These two are still my all-time favorite couple in the series and I was so happy to see them and their growing family.

With all these wonderful characters and their relationships, you’d think Kiss of Snow would be a perfect novel. It wasn’t for me. I found Kiss of Snow to be more surface reading if anything, the depth was lacking and the focus was off. Many sections were shortened and there wasn’t much action overall. There was a great deal of talking and internal musing, mainly from Sienna and Hawke. I was disappointed how Sienna’s relationship with Kit was played out. I felt that was as cop out, a way to get Kit out of the way so everything could be concentrated on Sienna and Hawke. I was expecting much more with Kit and Sienna, for him to be the catalyst to push Hawke into claiming Sienna, but their relationship was cut off abruptly.

The last fifty pages are explosive. If only this could have been occurred from the very beginning. There’s a secondary story with Judd, his Arrows and a big surprise thanks to the Ghost that you won’t see coming. I have a good idea the Ghost could be one of two characters, one who is obvious, the other way under the radar, and if Nalini decides to go with the one readers least expects, you can bet it will be shocking to the max.

There’s been a great deal of discussion about books being subjective, and for me Kiss of Snow is a perfect example. I realize I’m in the small minority with Kiss of Snow, and although I was less than astounded by what I read, I’m still very much dedicated to this series. Nalini has created a world and a group of characters I’ll never forget. I just wish Kiss of Snow had been that book I couldn’t stop thinking about. Unfortunately it wasn’t. I do look forward to even more Psy-Changeling books in the future and wait with baited breath for her announcement about Kaleb and his book.

You should all keep in mind that Kaleb is mine. *gets downs on knees that Kaleb gets his own book*

If you’re a die hard fan of Sienna and Hawke you’ll want to have babies with this book and will most likely re-read it many times until the next Psy-Changeling book is released. (Berkley)

Final Grade: B-

Other Kiss of Snow reviews:
Book Pushers
Fiction Vixen
Smexybooks

KB's Adventures at BEA 2011 Part 2

Tuesday was the first day of BEA for me. My plan was to get there at 10am and hit up the author autograph signings, chat with the publishers and roam around the convention hall in the hopes I'd know someone. It sounds funny, but so many would zone it at your chest where your badge was to catch your name and affiliation. Lots of name tag chest oogling went on.

I bought 2 bags with me, one being this bright orange bag that I got at RomCon last year. If you happened to see a woman walking about BEA with this bright orange bag, that was me. It's because of this bag I had my first uncomfortable, and I guess some would say, bad experience with an agent.

As I was walking to the Javits center listening to the new NKOTBSB album I downloaded from ITunes that morning (I'm not ashamed to admit it) a woman came up to me and asked if I got my Harelquin bag at BEA. I told her that I got it elsewhere and asked if she was going to BEA. She said yes and I told her I was going to BEA because I was a book blogger and an author who writes romance. The woman had the audacity to roll her yes and said in great detail how I should stop writing romance. Apparantly she doesn't have a high opinion about the romance genre. I asked her if she was an author or worked for a publisher. She's an agent of literary fiction and university press books. I bit my tongue, wished her well and went on my merry way before I said something I might regret.

Even before I entered the convention hall, I had my first critic of romance. I just hoped that didn't set the mood for the rest of the day.

First banner sighted!

No words needed for this one

As soon as I picked up my badge, I scoped out the hall and headed toward the author autograph signings. But I didn't get far when I saw a familar face. I saw RT Web Editor, Morgan Doremus and more importantly Harlequin that had one of the biggest booths at BEA.

Schedule of Harlequin authors signing and the lines of people waiting there

The bag Harlequin gave away

To the author signings!

The first author I met was the lovely Ilsa Bick, who was signing Ashes (Egmont, September). Ashes is a Dystopian YA about an electromagnetic pulse sweeps through the sky, destroying every electronic device and killing billions. Yes, that's Mho on my right. He was hanging out of my bag trying to escape.

Next was Alma Katsu, a debut author signing, The Taker (Simon and Schuster, September 6th). The Taker is about an immortal woman involved in a two-hundred-year love triangle with a Puritan settler and a Hungarian count. The blurb was the reason I went to meet Alma, who was incredbly sweet and excited to meet all those waiting in line for her book. I do hope The Taker takes the book world by storm.

The longest line I waited in was for Ally Carter and I was the last person to get a copy of Uncommon Criminals (Heist Society #2) (Hyperion, June 21st) one request for a friend who was dying to get this bok. Uncommon Criminals is a YA featuing Kat Bishop, a thief, whose asked to steal the infamous Cleopatra Emerald so it can be returned to its rightful owners. Ally has a contageous smile and was also very friendly.

Jennifer Harlow is a debut author with her book, Mind Over Monsters (A F.R.E.A.K.S. Squad Investigation #1) (Midnight Ink, October 8th. The cover and the blurb for Mind Over Monsters caught my attention and I just had to meet Jennifer. Mind Over Monsters is a YA about Beatrice who can move things with her mind and joins a top secret branch of the FBI to fight all those nasty things that go bump in the night.

Jennifer Lynn Barnes is a YA author of the popular Raised by Wolves series. She was signing the second book, Trial by Fire (Egmont, June 14th). Trial by Fire is about Bryn, the leader of the Cedar Ridge pack of werewolves and helping a battered teenager, Were, Conner while handling her Were partner, Chase. And Jennifer knew me by reputation because of my blog. That was a nice thing to hear.

At the Harlequin booth, Kathleen O'Reilly was signing Just Surrender... (Harlequn Blaze, May 1st). Just Surrender... is about a straightlaced surgeon and a punk, funky, fly-by-night cabbie who gives him a ride of his life while in NYC. Sounds very hot.

Gena Showater was signing Lord of the Vampires (Royal House of Shadows, Book 1) (August 3rd). Lord of the Vampires is about Nicolai the Vampire, renowned for his virility and wanton vampire summons Jane Parker. When it comes to a Gena S. romance, you can expect steam to rise up from the pages.

I really wanted to meet Tahereh Mafi, the author of Shatter Me, but HarperCollins was kind enough to put out copies of Shatter Me. I was able to grab two, one for me, one for a contest I'll have here. I do believe Shatter Me was one of the most hyped books at BEA (behind Leanna Renee Hieber's Darker Still from Sourcebooks). I read Shatter Me when I got home from BEA that night and fininshed it in under 3 hours. Shatter Me will astound the YA reading community when it's released in November. I want to have babies with Shatter Me.

I stopped by MLR Press's booth where the owner, Laura Baumbach was. We had a nice chat about the rise of MM fiction and how MLP Press is now accepting submissions for YA, both straight and GBLT.

The Romance Writers Association of America had a booth there. This is Dorien Kelly, the current president of RWA. They had many author signings there during the week that I went to.

Among my travels at BEA I met Marnie from Absorbed in a Book, Lillie from Read My Mind and Noa from Paperback Dolls all the way from Israel.

It seems BEA was very heavy promoting YA, specifically Dystopian YA. Romance had a big presences, mainly from Harlequin. Also, the big six publishers had massive booths with so many books to give out.

I had another uncomfortable interaction with a publisher. When I told them which publisher I write for, they proceeded to tell me that my publisher's quality of books aren't that good and they don't have a great reputation. I stood there stunned, because essentially by saying such a thing about my publisher to my face is insulting my reputation as well. I thought that was really uncalled for and walked away feeling out of sorts about it.

From the amount of books and people I met, it was a productive day with a few bumps along the way (The rude agent and feeling insulted as another publisher put down my publisher). The total price for the 14 books I got on Day 1 of BEA equals $220. Not bad for the day.

Next on Day 2 of BEA is more books, author meetings and another experience with an agent that left a bad taste in my mouth. I really think agents should also watch what they say because their behavior could hurt their clients. We hear about bad author behavior and the same rules should apply to their agents as well.

Stay tuned for more...

KB's Adventures at BEA 2011 Part 1: YA Teen Carnival Monday

This past week was a fun filled one for me since Book Expo America (BEA) was in NYC. BEA is a great place for anyone who loves to read and are involved in the publishing industry whether you're a book blogger, both aspiring or a published author or work in publishing. Since I'm a book blogger and an author, it would make sense that I would go to BEA.

This week on my blog, I'll have a day by day report about my experience at BEA and all the people I met. Overall, I had an amazing time, introduced myself to my fellow bloggers I've been dying to meet, including both debut and established authors, plus the publicists for the various publishers at BEA who went out of their way to make so many feel welcomed. Most of my reporting will be shown through the pictures I took with some commentary. Also, there were a few things I wasn't happy with, including some rude and snide remarks directed to me and immature behavior I saw and heard of at BEA. But in all, this year's BEA week exceeded my expectations and one I'll never forget.

My BEA badge. As you can see, I had to write in my better known on-line name. At one point when I introduced myself as Kate to someone, they said that I wasn't Kate to them, but Katiebabs. :)

BEA didn't officially start until Tuesday. But Monday was the beginning for many people who were invited to some breakfasts and lunches hosted by the publishers. HarperCollins and Simon and Schuster come to mind,  especially for YA bloggers. One person I spent my Monday with is one of my favorite blogging people in all of bloglandia and a close friend, even though there are far too many miles between us. 2 years ago I went to Cambridge, England to meet Ana, and this time I got to see Ana from the Book Smugglers again. She has been to NYC before, but never to a great restaurant I recommend you all go to called Serendipity 3.

Serendipity 3 has been around since 1954 and is well known for one of the tastiest creations ever created- The Frozen Hot Chocolate.

You don't even want to know how many calories and fat is in this thing.

Some movie trivia you may not be aware of: Parts of the 2001 movie Serendipity starring John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale were filled at Serendipity 3 where the two share a Frozen Hot Chocolate together.

Afterward, Ana and I roamed the streets of NYC until we made out way to Mulberry Street Library where the 3rd Annual Teen Author Carnival took place.

Mulberry Street Library

The library was packed with so many people who attended the Teen Author Carnival. It saddens me that libraries are constantly having their funding cut. Imagine if the Mulberry Street Library was closed because of lack of funding. Events like the carnival where authors chat about their books and enable people to buy them wouldn't be possible.

Books sold at the Carnival, thanks to Barnes and Noble

People getting ready to listen to the panel of authors

There was standing room only at one point and the air conditioning wasn't on, or it didn't feel like it. Your poor KB had to stand and deal with a packed room that grew very uncomfortable because of the humidity.

The first panel was Kick Ass Females in YA: And Why It's A Big Deal To Have Them

Moderator: Lisa Desrochers
Authors:
1. Malinda Lo
2. Andrea Cremer
3. Michelle Zink
4. Courtney Allison Moulton
5. Carole Estby Dagg
6. Elizabeth Scott
7. Michelle Hodkin
8. Kirsten Hubbard

There was a great deal of discussion about YA heroines being kick-ass to the point that was all the authors talked about. Yes, YA has kick-ass heroines, but I was hoping for a broader discussion about the YA genre and the books each of these authors have written. It was still a very informative discussion and other authors mentioned were Cassandra Clare, Stefanie Meyer,, Suzanne Collins and Laurell K. Hamilton (complete surprise to hear LKH during a YA panel).

The second panel I went to was Debut Author Showcase: The Journey to Publication
Moderator: Lenore Applehans
Authors:
1. Carole Estby Dagg
2. Amy Fellner Dominy
3. Kirsten Hubbard
4. Bettina Restrepo
5. Michelle Hodkin
6. Nick James
7. Scott Tracey

I was so happy to have finally meet Lenore, who I know very well from her blog, Presenting Lenore. Lenore is set to have her debut YA book, Level Two (Simon and Schuster) out next year. Lenore knows how to rock a scarf even in an overheated room. She was an incredible moderator for this panel.

Each of the debut authors read a short excerpt from their novels and discussed how long it took them to get published. Carole Estby Dagg took over 15 years to get published, while it took Michelle Hodkin a little over a year.

I got such chills when Michelle read from read from The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer. This is the first book Michelle has ever written and it went to auction. The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer (Simon and Schuster, September 27th) has a nice Gothic feel to it and I can see it being the one YA to watch for the fall. The synopsis doesn't give away, but yet, I'm more than intrigued to read.

Synopsis: Mara Dyer doesn't think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.

It can.

She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.

There is.

She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love.

She's wrong.

Another author on the panel who peaked my interest is Scott Tracey, the author of a paranormal featuring a gay protagonist in Witch Eyes (Full, September 8th). Scott mentioned how a few editors wanted him to change his main protagonist to a female or get rid of the homosexuality of his main character with Branden. He refused and stuck to his guns with the story he envisioned and wrote. I wanted to stand up and applaud him for that.

Synopsis: Braden was born with witch eyes: the ability to see the world as it truly is: a blinding explosion of memories, darkness, and magic. The power enables Braden to see through spells and lies, but at the cost of horrible pain.

After a terrifying vision reveals imminent danger for the uncle who raised and instructed him, Braden retreats to Belle Dam, an old city divided by two feuding witch dynasties. As rival family heads Catherine Lansing and Jason Thorpe desperately try to use Braden's powers to unlock Belle Dam's secrets, Braden vows never to become their sacrificial pawn. But everything changes when Braden learns that Jason is his father--and Trey, the enigmatic guy he's falling for, is Catherine's son.

To stop an insidious dark magic from consuming the town, Braden must master his gift—and risk losing the one he loves.

All the other authors on the panel were great. I met Bettina Restrepo before her panel as we waited to use the ladies room. She's very nice and excited for her release. I was excited for her.

After the panel ended, I chatted with a few familiar faces I've interacted with on-line such as Linda, who runs the Optimistic Pessimist blog (we had a wonderful discussion about our love for JR Ward and Team Qhuay) and Grace, who runs Livre De Amor. My pal, Stacey (@nystacey) also stopped by and Thea from Book Smugglers.

A bunch of us started talking about Feed by Mira Grant and speak of the devil, Mira was there! Sneaky woman just popped up. She joined us until she had to go to dinner. Mira may or may not have talked what's in store for Toby Daye, for those who enjoy her writing as Seanan McGuire. Tybalt and Toby may have been mentioned at one point. *KB zips lips*

And that ended my Monday and my experience at the YA Teen Carnival. My next post will be about Day 1 at BEA and how an agent rolled her eyes at me and said I should stop writing romance when I told her I'm a romance author.

Stay tuned for more...

WTF Or Not? You Decide

I think I've outdone myself this week with today's WTFckery...

1. Team WTFckery has done me proud! Have I got some awesome WTF covers thanks to Wicked Little Pixie and Spaz Pam.

The curse of the constipated big headed sword wielding men

Massive man boobs versus flat as a board freakishly pointed chin elf with frizzy hair

The titles are self explanatory:

"Explicit, hardcore, and sure to leave you begging for more, this one is not for the faint of heart, and may cause you to explode all over. Get the tissue ready!"

Who knew a thong could be so droopy?

"While attending a college party looking for some late night fun, Kelly gets more than she bargained for when not one, but five guys, service her every hole."

2. As I read Mira Grant's Deadline, I find myself wishing I had a zombie proof house because the zombie apocalypse will come happen at one point in the future. From All That Is Interesting:

“The Safe House,” designed by KWK Prome

“The most essential item for our clients was acquiring the feeling of maximum security,” begins the designers’ website in the summary of the structure.The house, with its movable walls, has only one entrance, which is located on the second floor after crossing a drawbridge."

I wonder how many "guests" this house can hold? I better put my name on the waiting list now before the undead rising of 2012 happens.

3. I think I may have a new llama fetish thanks to Fiction Vixen. She'll get a real kick out of this and hopefully you will too. From IO9:

Llama poop was the secret to the success of the Inca civilization

"The most powerful civilization in South America before the arrival of Europeans was the mighty Inca empire, which ruled much of the continent's Pacific coast from their home in the Peru highlands. And it's all thanks to copious llama crap.The archaeological record also reveals a sudden upswing in the number of manure-eating oribatid mites, which in turn implies that there were tons more big animals pooping in the highlands. That means llamas were creating tons of natural fertilizer, and that was the real engine of the crop's success in the highlands."

4. This has to be the most disgusting piece of jewelry ever created. Say hello to the pimple ring. Thanks to Chris from Stumbling Over Chaos for making my stomach churn for the rest of the day.

5. Because we all want to have multi-colored poop at one point in our lives. From Ego TV Online:

I find this blue velvet cake beyond gross. Can we say crushed up Smurfs?

"Eating a bunch of blue velvet cake will turn your poop BRIGHT BLUE. Most foods contain dyes that make them look appetizing, and some of those dyes don’t get broken down by your body’s natural digestive process. The bright blue dye that’s used in Blue Velvet cake (and the red that’s used in Red Velvet cake) doesn’t get absorbed by your intestines, so it passes through just like it came in: bright blue."

6. Can someone explain me to me how they would get a good night's sleep on a roller coaster bed?

7. Got to love the Rule 34 in fan fiction. If you played with Barbies of G.I. Joes, this shouldn't be so shocking when it comes to LEGOS:

8. We should feel sorry for this woman whose house flooded when her husband "accidentally" shot up her washing machine. Right? From Gizmodo:

"Officials are investigating a weekend incident during which a man indicated his wife fired an AR-15 rifle at a target inside a master bedroom closet, missing the target and blasting holes in a washing machine.

When deputies on Sunday entered the home in the 5700 block of Spanish River Road, they found "a lot of water on the floor covering most of the residence," according to recently released St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office records.

The 21-year-old woman said she and her husband are divorcing. She said her 33-year-old spouse called on Saturday, asking whether they could "get together.

As deputies watched the husband, he said, "About the arguing, she just grabbed the gun from the safe and started shooting and punching holes in the walls. The house then flooded so I went inside to clean it up."

9. A dog on riding a scooter is WTF, but awesome at the same time.



10. And your WTFckery Regretsy isn't highlighted there, but should be because it so full of awesome WTFckery. Warning you, this is a bit shocking so you may want to avert your eyes.
.
We've heard about women bedazzling their magic hoo has, so it makes sense that men may want to bedazzle their warrior of love. From Unicornbooty:

Pejazzle me with your Michael Jackson glove on my love tool! Bringing back the days of Studio 54 with this disco ball... erm... well you know what I mean.

"Vajazzle.me, the good folks who made applying rhinestones to your vagina a worldwide sensation, are proud to announce something for the fellas. Pejazzling is logically Vajazzling for men.

How about the Pejazzle Cross Gold & Black Design? (The £6-£9 stickers come in barbed wire and geometric shapes, but an iron cross and red lips design have proved the most popular.)

The Vajazzle kit contains 1 Crystal Tattoo, 1 alcohol prep pad (to clean the area before application).

Pervy author, Jess Haines gets a shot out for sending me this one.

I hope you have enjoyed this week's foul, disgusting and in all things, WTFckery.