Why Read Anthologies? Thoughts & Reviews

I always thought of short stories as short books that were wrapped up by the end like the Edgar Allen Poe classics. In the world of paranormal romance and urban fiction I think of them more as a hodge podge, a buffet of paranormal goodness. Readers can try out new authors they haven't read before to get a taste of their style or you can go back and read favorite authors who may have given side characters from their books their own little story. Some authors will write prequels to one of their series as a short story as well. A reader can't go wrong picking up a good anthology! In the last week and a half I've picked up two new anthologies: Inked and Bitten by Cupid. Let's start with Inked.

Inked
Paperback: 448 pages
Publisher: Berkley; (January 5, 2010)

I bought Inked the week it came out because it had three authors I already liked: Karen Chance, Marjorie M. Liu, and Yasmine Galehorn. Eileen Wilks, the fourth author, is new to me.

Karen Chance's Skin Deep: This is a story about Lia, a feisty, sarcastic gal who has to find her boyfriend Cyrus against the odds since she is recovering from injuries which have made her magic act wonky. I love Karen Chance's writing and her characters. This short story takes place in the same world as her books, so it will give you a glimpse into her writing, her books and her humor. I loved the story, but wondered if Lia was featured in one of her books I hadn't read yet. The answer is in this blurb from her website.

It follows the adventures of Lia, the half-werewolf war mage from our previous short stories "Rogue Elements" (in the Wolfesbane and Mistletoe anthology published last October) and "Vegas Odds" (in the Strange Brew anthology).

Marjorie M. Liu's Armor of Roses is set in the world of her Hunter Kiss books, of which I had recently read the first one, and reviewed it here. This story has Maxine going back in time to her grandmother's generation and we experience The Boys, her demon helpers, in duplicate. It takes place during WWII, and gives a glimpse into a young Jean who is more alone than Maxine; more cynical and dark. I think the story is better after reading the Hunter Kiss books, rather than as in introduction to that world. This is dark fantasy, which for me, always makes me ponder life and the difference we make in our own existence.

Yasmine Galenorn's Etched in Silver is the story of Camille and Trillian meeting for the first time. They partner up to find a bad guy, who's name I've forgotten because I was thinking of Trillian and my mind wandered to words like "sizzle, hot, protective, more sizzle, erotic...". I think you get my meaning. This story is a fantastic introduction to Yasmine's Otherworld series.
Eileen Wilk's Human Nature is set in the world of her Lupus series, which I have not read. The story is about Lily and Rule, weres who are newly mated and need to solve a murder mystery. I loved the story and the characters. Lily is a kick-ass gal and Rule is an alpha who wants to protect her at all costs. I'm buying the Lupus series as soon as I recover from my holiday spending. I can't wait to read the books after being introduced to Lily and Rule!

Inked was just released in January, and it was well worth the money and the read. The stories are urban and/or dark fantasy, mixed with paranormal romance. Fans of the authors involved will love this anthology. If you aren't familiar with these writers, Inked will serve as a great introduction to their writing.

Bitten By Cupid
Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
Publisher: Avon; Original edition (January 12, 2010)
Authors: Lynsay Sands, Pamela Palmer, Jaime Rush

I'll have to confess that I haven't read any of the authors in this anthology, but the cover grabbed me and I bought it. The first story by Lynsay Sands was cute, and funny. For some reason I thought it would be a bit darker, so I kept wait for death and destruction, which weren't part of the equation. I know that fans of her Argeneau vampire series will love this story which features Mirabeau LaRouche and Tiny McGraw. It was a nice introduction to that world, and I'll move the series up on my TBR list.

Pamela Palmer is the author of the Feral Warriors books, which I haven't read. You can take a peek at them on her website. Her story in Bitten by Cupid is a paranormal romance with mystery, romance and sizzle. There are a few glances of the warriors in the story, which is about Julianne and Zeeland. I loved the story and will be running out going out to get her series as soon as possible.

Jaime Rush's contribution to Bitten by Cupid is a fast paced, paranormal romance with a couple who both have a secret, and find themselves drawn together to solve a series of crimes. I really can't give any hints as to the plot without spoilers. Let's just say I loved both characters, the romance sizzled, and fit perfectly with the plot. The world is from the author's Offspring series which has two books that were released in 2009. I really liked the story, and from looking at her website I think it's a good introduction to her other books. Her characters are quirky, and she really drew me into their situation. I will be reading her other books as soon as I can place a massive book order after finding all these new authors!

Bitten by Cupid is a great Valentine's Day themed read. All you need to go with it is bubble bath, wine, chocolate and romance:)

~Moonsanity

The Crazy Gals & Snugglepups of the 1920's

Last week I ran across this very cool old photo of what appears to be a flapper from the 1920's. It's not copyrighted that I know of so I wanted to share. As a writer when I see old photos I always wonder what their story is. Since I started writing fiction I find myself looking at the photo and thinking what a cool character the person would make in a book.

Today I was sorting through my emails and found a post from Boing Boing where someone shared a small part of this video, but I found the entire thing on YouTube and it's wonderful! Fast forward about half way through to see the all banjo number and then a couple other lively songs. The band is called The Ingenues and this was filmed in 1928.



I am a fan of steampunk, but when I saw these I had a new thought. What if a paranormal romance was set in the 1920's? What if it set a trend? What would it be called? Flapperpunk, perhaps? Flappers had their own slang during that era too. I so want to use these two words in a book:

snugglepup: a man who frequently attends what back then was called a "petting party". Just like it sounds, it was a part where couples made out. Apparently no one yelled out "Get a room!" back then.

barney-mugging: Can you guess? It's a term for having sex. Yes, my friends, if you were going out to party one night and had plans of seducing someone you'd say to your roommate "I'm going to get me some barney-mugging tonight".

I hope you enjoyed our little trip into the 1920's!

~Moonsanity

Bloggiesta Final Summary

This was my first year participating in Bloggiesta which is sponsored by Maw's Book Blog. I ended up working on my blog for a total of 16 hours, possibly a bit more. Sunday was chaotic with my kids so I worked a little bit at a time. I really accomplished a lot during the entire weekend. Below is what I worked on and finished:

-Removed expire buttons and added new ones.
-Checked Blog roll for inactive blogs and added a couple more.
-I updated my Goodreads widget and posted two reviews there.
-Added a list of blog tours coming up in my sidebar.
-I put on a new background and made a banner.
-I wrote two reviews and joined and posted a new meme.
-I decided to remove my twitter widget, but added a button.
-I added an ABE button. They sell used and out of print books.
-I added a Google Search to the sidebar.

I completed these Bloggiesta Mini Challenges:

1. Copyrights and Footer Info. from Pam from at Bookalicio.us.

2.Backing Up My Blog from Jackie from Farm Lane Books.

3.I made a favicon and a gravatar! I used my little moon avatar and it looks great! This mini-challenge was from Trish from Hey Lady! Watcha Readin’? I did notice that the favicon has changed back to the Blogger orange favicon, so I'll have to go into the template and see what happened. It was there Saturday and Sunday!

4. Emily from Emily’s Reading Room challenged us to sign up for Google Alerts.

I'm happy with what I accomplished, and I'm going to still do these two things that I didn't get finished during the weekend:

My 2010 Book Challenges
-Put up buttons in sidebar
-Put up individual posts for each challenge to update.
-Add books read so far in 2010.

Create a Cheat Sheet from the template given to us by Danielle from There’s a Book. You can see the information here.

The Bloggiesta really motivated me and helped me improve my blog. I will be participating every year!

~Moonsanity

Review: A Song For Arbonne

A Song for Arbonne
Author: Guy Gavriel Kay
Publisher: Roc Trade (November 5, 2002)
Trade Paperback: 512 pages

Summary: Based on the troubadour culture that rose in Provence during the High Middle Ages, this panoramic, absorbing novel beautifully creates an alternate version of the medieval world.

In doing a little research before I started writing this review I looked for a summary of A Song for Arbonne and was astounded at the complicated, pseudo-intellectual descriptions I found. I realized that in itself might frighten a lot of readers off. I've read most of Kay's books and loved them all for different reasons. His writing is rich, vivid and historical in it's subject matter. However, he is also an awesome storyteller. He brings the characters to life for the reader and I would hate to see someone pass up his books because of praise that makes them sound high brow or over complicated.

Actually, I almost didn't read A Song for Arbonne because I'm not a fan of most things French, including literature or history. After reading the prologue I still wasn't convinced, but it was becoming interesting so I read further. Chapter one introduced me to Blaise, the cynical mercenary who doesn't have time for "useless chaff of a patently silly culture". I liked his attitude, so I read on and the story captivated me from then on until the end.

Guy Gavriel Kay writes in a style much like authors such as Mary Stewart, T.H. White and Morgan Llywelyn. A Song for Arbonne has romance, betrayals galore, swords, battles, and an ending that wraps it all up while the reader thinks "Man, I DID NOT see that one coming!". The twists and turns in a society based on France during medieval times is full of intrigue, twists and turns.

A Song for Arbonne doesn't slap the reader in the face, instead it caresses us with a promise of more to come. The writer lures us farther into the story until we can't stop reading because we NEED to find out how it ends. Kay's words cause the reader's emotions to sway from anger, to sadness, back to anger, and finally to a realization that all ends as it is suppose to.

I recommend A Song for Arbonne for fans of historical romance, sword and sorcery and fantasy books. I read the last couple of chapters over before writing this review and found myself drawn into the story again as the author's words worked their magic. I think you will feel the same way if you decide to read this book.

You can learn more about Guy Gavriel Kay at the Bright Weavings website.

Soundtrack Saturday (On Sunday)

I just found this meme at Rating Reads and thought it was SO cool that I had to join in even though it's Sunday. The rules for this new meme are:

-Take your current read or recently finished book.

-Find at least one song that fits the story, characters, whatever.

-Post the book title and song(s) on your blog with a brief explanation of your picks.
I just finished reading Inked this afternoon, and I'll be reviewing it tomorrow. The song I chose with the help of my 16 year old Pseudo Emo Teen is Beast and the Harlot by Avenged Sevenfold. I chose this song because there are some nasty evil chicks in the Inked stories. I can't give-away who, or in which stories, because my blog is a No Spoiler Zone, but let's just say "When the shoe fits, the bad chicks wear it." *snicker*

I don't believe in fairy tales and no one wants to go to hell.
You've made the wrong decision and it's easy to see.
Now if you wanna serve above or be a king below with us,
You're welcome to the city where your future is set forever.

She's a dwelling place for demons.
She's a cage for every unclean spirit, every filthy bird
and makes us drink the poisoned wine to fornicating with our kings.
Fallen now is Babylon the Great.

Copyright DARKNESS COATS US PUBLISHING; EMI APRIL MUSIC INC




Check out Rating Reads for more Soundtrack Saturday posts!
~Moonsanity

First Read of 2010: The Iron Hunt

The Iron Hunt (Hunter Kiss, Book 1)
Author: Marjorie M. Liu
Publisher: Ace (June 24, 2008)
Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages

Summary: Living tattoos: demons of the flesh, turned into flesh, the only family demon hunter Maxine Kiss has left—and the only way she can survive, and fight, the imprisoned demonic army waiting to destroy humanity.

I've had The Iron Hunt by Marjorie M. Liu on my To Be Read shelf since November, and just got to it last week. Ms. Liu's books are new to me, so I just dived in knowing nothing about the plot or characters. First, I wish I had found her books sooner because she is a unique, talented writer. Her ability to describe a world so different from our own is incredible. At different points in the book she tells the tales of women from three different generations, and does it in a clear, concise manner so full of emotion that I felt as if I was there with the main character, Maxine Kiss.

Maxine is a Hunter, a protector of the Earth. Her tattoos cover her body from the neck down, and they come alive at sunset with her small warrior demons she calls The Boys. The Iron Hunt is a dark fantasy, or at least that's what I would consider it, but The Boys are often a source of comic relief though they are dangerous and sly. This scene had me laughing, and was the first of many:

"They sat beside me, all in a row, legs too short for the leather seat. In unison, they swung their clawed feet, hands clasped in their laps. Deceptively prim. Little smart-asses."

The Boys are family to Maxine and she's known them all of her life, even before they became part of her skin. Maxine also has Grant Cooperson on her side. He's her comfort, the only person that makes her feel close to safe, but she knows one day it's going to kill her. She's not suppose to count on anyone or anything, except for The Boys, and even they have moments where they seem to leave her on her own.

I love Ms. Liu's style of writing. It's dark, descriptive, often sarcastic and sometimes philosophical. Her characters are quirky and sometimes not what they seem. Fans of Vicki Pettersson and Jeanne C. Stein will love this book. It's a gritty, enthralling read. I loved that the author gave us glimpses into the lives of two previous Hunter generations, so we learn about Maxine's mother and grandmother as the story progresses.

There are elements of "romance" in The Iron Hunt as Maxine reveals her feelings about Grant, but there aren't any sex scenes. Honestly, though I won't deny a need to learn more about Grant and Maxine's private moments, it's not necessary in the book. Ms. Liu does a wonderful job conveying the emotion and need between them without the sex scenes.

The Iron Hunt has been put on my To Be Read Again shelf, which is a good thing. I'm ordering the second book in the series, Darkness Calls, this weekend. I will also have a review up soon for Inked, (released January 2010) an anthology which includes a Maxine Kiss novella.

You can read excerpts of The Iron Hunt and find out all kinds of other nifty information on Marjorie M. Liu's website here.

~Moonsanity

The 2010 Bloggiesta

I've decided to participate in the annual Bloggiesta, despite coming in late. I need some organization folks! I'm hoping this will get me going in the right direction. Since I'm starting late, my goals for today aren't too big. I have been working on some of this earlier before deciding to officially join tonight.

Friday's Goals: 8 p.m. - 11:30 p.m.

Clean up and revamp sidebar

-Remove expire buttons. Add new ones.
-Check Blog roll for inactive blogs.
-Add online bookstore links that I use. (1/2 done)
-Update Goodreads widget.
-Add a list of blog tours coming up.

(I also put on a new background and a header, which I need to lighten a bit yet.)

I think this is about all I can try and get done tonight.

Saturday's Goals: 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. then again in evening. (approx. 7-11 pm)

More...
-Write at least 3 reviews (2 done)
-Participate in 3 or more mini challenges.
-Make a graphic button for blog.

Bloggiesta Mini Challenges:
1. Copyrights and Footer Info. from Pam from at Bookalicio.us. Info. Here FINISHED!

2.Backing Up My Blog from Jackie from Farm Lane Books. Info.Here FINISHED!

3.I made a favicon and a gravatar! I used my little moon avatar and it looks great! This mini-challenge was from Trish from Hey Lady! Watcha Readin’? Info.here. FINISHED!

4. Emily from Emily’s Reading Room challenged us to sign up for Google Alerts. Information is here. FINISHED!

Sunday Goals: 9 a.m - 3 p.m. then again in evening.

2010 Book Challenges
(moved from Saturday)
-Put up buttons in sidebar
-Put up individual posts for each challenge to update.
-Add books read so far in 2010.

More...

-Write 2 more reviews.
-Participate in 2 or more mini challenges.
-Update my Profile on Blogger

Today's Mini Challenges:
1. Create a Cheat Sheet from Danielle from There’s a Book. Info.Here

~Moonsanity