Romance and Me: Sex or No Sex? – That is the Question

Hey Everyone!

I have to confess in the past week or so I haven’t been reading any romance novels (I know it’s shocking and I can hear several gasps from you, but I think you’ll understand and forgive me when I tell you that a very exciting urban fantasy kept me busy), so when it came to today’s post and deciding what issue we should discuss today I drew a blank. And the fact that I was in my post-lunch-siesta-lump didn’t help at all… :-/ So I launched an SOS and Susi was dear enough to come to my rescue and rant some:Susi:So Stella asked for my opinion and I’m sure I will totally embarrass myself but here it goes:I’m actually annoyed about this topic very often. Yes we have a distinction between romantic and erotic in Romanceland and even the various eroticas mostly have an additional heat rating to see how hot they are but …

Guestpost: Who Deserves a Happily Ever After? by Bettie Sharpe + Giveaway

Today we welcome to BLI an author whose stories aren’t magical just because of her enchanting writing style, but because she tells the story of princesses and talking cats and wizards and all things you can only encounter in a fairy tale. But wait a second, that is exactly what you’ll find in Bettie Sharpe’s Cat’s Tale: A Fairy Tale Retold, a modern retelling of the classic Puss in Boots tale with a surprising take on the old fable. (You can read Susi’s review here.) So give a warm welcome to Bettie Sharpe and let her tell you about what kind of happily ever after she likes to read about.

Fairy tales are very clear about what kind of heroine deserves a happily ever after. Sweet, patient young princesses who excel at domestic duties deserve …

A whole bunch of winners!

Hey Everyone!

I had a wonderful week. Oh no, do not think work has let up, it was once again crazy busy week from hell at work, but my dad came home for a week. 😀 We had some wonderful quality time, every night family movies (oh yeah, my dad’s favourite movies besides Jean-Claude Van Damme action flicks are Meg Ryan’s Kate&Leopold, and Pride and Prejudice, he’s the biggest fan of Mr. Darcy in the family ;-p lol), and I was spoiled nonstop 😀 My dad is the best! So today he left and I’m a bit blue and it’s about to rain, so I think only a nice happy romance novel can make it better. But for you I have some winners to announce!

Today congratulations are in order for…

The 2 lucky winners of the Laura Bickle giveaway are: …

Review: This Perfect Kiss by Melody Thomas

Format read: eARC provided by publisher through NetGalleyNumber of pages: 384 pages Publisher: AvonFormats available: paperback, ebookRelease Date: 28 June 2011 Purchasing Info: Goodreads, Author’s Website, Amazon, Kindle store, Book Depository

Blurb:

It was the moment she had been dreaming of: a stolen kiss at a masquerade ball with the dashing Camden St. Giles. He may not have known who she was, but Christel would never forget . . .

Nine years have passed since that magical evening. Now Camden, the seventh earl of Carrick, is widowed with a young daughter, a man with a heart in need of healing. And Christel has just stolen onboard his ship bound for Scotland. Neither has forgotten the kiss that had set their hearts ablaze. The longer she remains with him, the hotter his desire burns. But as …

Review: Quarter Square by David Bridger

Format Read: eBookRelease Date: 27 June 2011Formats available: eBookSeries: Book #1 in the Wild Times seriesPublisher: Carina PressSource: review copy provided by publisher via NetGalleyPurchasing Info: Goodreads, Author’s Website, Amazon, Carina Press

Blurb:

English carpenter Joe Walker thinks his life is over when he discovers his wife and best friend having an affair. Restoring an abandoned theatre offers little hope for a fresh start…until he follows a group of strangers through a hidden door into a world he never could have imagined.

In the haven known as Quarter Square, Joe encounters a community of supernatural street performers who straddle the mortal world and the magic realm known as the Wild. Here, Joe finds a sense of belonging he’s never known before—and a chance to uncover the truth behind the frightening visions that have haunted him since childhood. …

My Wishlist: the Absolutely-Must-Read-UF-series Edition – Part 2

Hi Everyone!

I’m back once again to share with you my endless UF wishlist 😀 There are so many amazing series people keep recommending, so my TBR pile is also near exploding…

So let me tell you about a few of my absolutely-must-read-UF-series!

Stray by Rachel Vincent (Shifter series)

There are only eight breeding female werecats left . . .

And I’m one of them.

I look like an all-American grad student. But I am a werecat, a shape-shifter, and I live in two worlds.

Despite reservations from my family and my Pride, I escaped the pressure to continue my species and carved out a normal life for myself. Until the night a Stray attacked.

I’d been warned about Strays — werecats without a Pride, constantly on the …

Congrats to our Sunday Winners!

Hey Everyone!

Happy Sunday! Though I bet everyone would be just much happier if it were still only Saturday, oh wishing *sighs*

For the past weeks it seems that Sunday means rain and greyness, which let’s be honest makes you want to curl up on the sofa and read or nap. So excuse my shortness, but I’m a bit drowsy. 😉

Today congratulations are in order for…

The 2 lucky winners of an ebook copy of Goddess with a Blade by Lauren Dane are: Jolene and Family and Holls

The 2 lucky winners of a copy of Paradise Found by Hunter Raines are: Jason and Jason!

What are the odds of the two Jason being drawn? But yes, the fates of Random.org were quite adamant, so enjoy! 😀

And since we waited and waited but the original winner of the Vicki Petterson giveaway never replied …

Review: Spiderwork by L.K. Rigel

Format Read: eBookRelease Date: 1 January 2011Formats available: eBookSeries: Book #2 in the Apocalypto seriesSource: review copy provided by author Purchasing Info: Goodreads, Author’s Website, Amazon, Free at Smashwords

Blurb:

Her fate was to hold the world together. His destiny was to tear it apart.

As a child, Durga was chosen by the goddess to save the world from sterility and extinction. Now her eighteenth birthday approaches, and Durga must take her place among the chalices, women made fertile by the goddess to ensure more souls for the universe. Durga’s mission does not include love … but Khai, the scion of Luxor, is unlike any man she’s ever met.

Char Meadowlark once played a role in the goddess’s plans. Now her lover, Jake Ardri, heads an emerging city-state whose enemies covet everything he has built. …

Author Interview with L.K. Rigel + Giveaway

Today we welcome to Book Lovers Inc. sci-fi romance author L.K. Rigel, who pens the epic sci-fi-fantasy-romance trilogy: the Apocalypto series (Space Junque, Spiderwork and Bleeder). Linda stopped by to answer my inquisitive questions and scroll down because now you can get your hands on all 3 books of the series!

(To get a first taste of the stories, you can read my review of Space Junque and Spiderwork here on BLI.)

Stella: Hi Linda, welcome to Book Lovers Inc! Can you please tell us a bit about yourself?
 
Linda: I live in California with my cat, Coleridge. I’ve been a newspaper reporter, a singing waitress, the lead singer in a band, and a court reporter, and I’ve written stories and songs all my life.
 
Stella: Can you describe a typical day of writing? …

Romance and Me: The Ex-Factor

Hey Everyone!

If by any chance you don’t know what I’m talking about I have to tell you until last night I had no clue there was a phenomenon bearing such a name. Last night when I asked a couple of my fellow Book Lovers if they had any romance issues I should talk about, our lovely Susi mentioned the X-factor, and me being clueless asked what that was. (I imagined it being some sort of romance novels centered around some kind of American Idol setting lol) And she informed me she was alluding to the exes in a couple. Ahh, lightbulb moment! And I agreed with her problems about these plots. So I am here today to discuss exes and their new portrayal in romances.

Until this spring ex-husbands, ex-boyfriends, ex-wives and ex-girlfriends were always portrayed as villains: being jealous, possessive and usually crazy.

But this spring I discovered a new trend when at …