I Got You Covered

A few weeks ago JR Ward announced the hero in her next book will be Tohr.  I know a lot of us (myself included) were a bit upset.  It seems too soon to let go of Wellsie.  But I'll do my best to read his book with an open mind... I think all us fans do want to see him happy again.

In exciting related news, the title and cover have been released!

I think the title is great!  Lover Reborn is so fitting for Tohr.  And overall, I really like the cover.  It's a pretty golden hue I find appealing, and the cover model is smokin'.  I'd totally go for a guy with that sculpted face and piercing blue eyes.  BUT... (except for looking somewhat haunted and driven) that's not what I imagined Tohr to look like.  For some reason I feel this image belongs on the cover of a book with a Navy SEAL or other military hero.  I was really hoping this cover would be like Lover Mine or Lover Unleashed- those two were HOT!

Why Being an English Major Rocks

Here's the part where I once again rub in your face that I am a college student and probably significantly younger than you.

Ever heard of a book called A Natural History of the Romance Novel by Pamela Regis?  Well, if you haven't here's a brief summary of it taken from RomanceWiki (cuz anything ending in Wiki is so scholarly ;p):

Taking the stance that the popular romance novel is a work of literature with a brilliant pedigree, Regis asserts that it is also a very old, stable form, properly defined as a work of prose fiction that tells the story of the courtship and betrothal of one or more heroines. Arguing that the ending in marriage found so objectionable by critics is hardly the sole governing element, Regis brings to the forefront other, more significant narrative components, such as the reform of a corrupt society and the breakdown of the barrier between hero and heroine. She traces the literary history of the romance novel from canonical works such as Richardson's Pamela through Austen's Pride and Prejudice, Brontë's Jane Eyre, Trollope's Framley Parsonage, and Forster's Room with a View, then turns to the twentieth century to examine works such as E. M. Hull's The Sheik and the novels of Georgette Heyer, Mary Stewart, Janet Dailey, Jayne Ann Krentz, and Nora Roberts. Situating each novel in its own time while interpreting it through the critical vocabulary she proposes, Regis specifies how romance conventions change yet retain the essential formal requirements of the genre.

In other words, this book and this lady are awesome, because she uses academic arguements to shut down all those jerks who say romance novels are nothing but trashy bodice rippers for bored lonely housewifes who sit around eating bon bons.

So why am I so psyched about this book right now?  Because Pamela Regis is a professor at my college, and as an English major next semester I am taking her Popular Romance course!  How freaking awesome is that?!  I was so excited about it I was even willing to take it despite it being an 8am course.

At first a part of me wondered if having to analyze and do as work what I normally do for fun would be a turn off, but then I was like, "Romance novels for homework? Having to write papers about them instead of about boring dead white guys?  Lolz I am sooo there!"  I think I see a senior thesis in my future.

BDB News

Ok, I'm a little late on posting this, so a lot of you have probably already heard this news but I wanted to comment on it anyway.  JR Ward has announced that the next BDB book will be Tohr's!


(Sorry for the off sound and odd subtitles!)

First off, I haven't read Lover Unleashed yet so I can't remark on anything that might have developed there, but I think I read somewhere that he's going to be mating with No'One.  I don't know if this was officially announced, so if anyone knows for sure please comment!  Either way, I have a lot of mixed feelings about this.  It's not that I don't want to see him happy again, but I'm not sure how JR Ward is going to pull this off.  I still really love him and Wellsie and I don't particularly want to see him with someone else (well... maybe Lassiter lol).  I just want him to be less depressed!  The book doesn't come out until 2012 so I have some time to get used to the idea.

And I don't think I'm alone in saying I wish she would just write a book for Qhuinn and Blay instead!

Title Goes Here

I meant to post this as a Sunday recap, but to be honest I just got lazy.

1. My Dad got HBO for us, which is so friggin' awesome because now I can watch True Blood season 3 on my laptop at school!  Not that I hadn't already seen it, but since I was watching it online the quality was awful.  Besides the wonderful amounts of Eric we get in this season (omg omg I cannot wait for next season to start) I am absolutely head over heels in love with Alcide.  I know a lot of y'all are beard girls (and he's starting to turn me into one too) so here's one of my favorite screen caps of him ;)

2. RIP Elizabeth Taylor 1932-2011. You were ARE an icon for the ages.

3. Reading Recap: 

I finished Sabrina Jeffries' A Hellion in Her Bed last week.  While it didn't blow me out of the water, I did generally enjoy it.  I would only really recommend it though if you're already reading or planning to read the whole series.  Nothing about it really stood out to me.  I could set it down for days at a time and not have trouble picking it back up, but nothing compelled me to find out the ending (like I've felt with some of her other books).  3 stars.  I am already reading How to Woo a Reluctant Lady, so it'll be interesting for me to see how Minerva's story compares to her two brother's.  I do like the overall story arc of the siblings uncovering what happened to their parents, and I love Mr. Pinter so I'm eager to read his and Celia's book whenever that is released (especially since I think Gran might disapprove of him!).

Welcome to the Dark Side

A lot of romance readers dip into YA fiction, myself included.  Some of my favorite books have ended up being YA-romances, which were much more complex than I expected.  I was intruiged today when I saw the article The Dark Side of Young Adult Fiction in the NYT's.  It's not an article really.  It doesn't take a side but presents a serious of opinions about why so many dark themes and dystopias reoccur in YA-fiction.  It made me take a moment to look at my TBR list and sure enough books like "The Hunger Games" and "Matched" were on there.

However, unlike some of the op-ed pieces, I don't think these are *new* themes to YA-fiction, but inherent to the genre.  I can remember being 13 and loving books like "The Giver" and "Z is for Zachariah".

Whatever your take is on YA-fiction and its various themes, the piece is well worth taking a look at.

Look! Look!

Hey check it out! The New York Times has an article this morning about the booming sales of romance e-books.  And best of all, it treats the romance genre with respect!  The growing trend of positive representation of romance in the news is something I love to see.  Talk about a great start to my morning.

Here's the link: Lusty Tales and Hot Sales: Romance E-Books Thrive.  It's not a long read so hop on over there.

Ok, back to writing my final paper for my Grammar and Usage class.  Sounds fun right?  It's on gender biases in the English language and due at 1pm today.  I still have quite a bit to go.  Ek!  Wish me luck?

Time Goes On

I feel so bad for staying out of the loop for so long. What has it been now- seven months? Wow, just two more months and I could have had a baby!

No, I was never preggers, if you're wondering if that's what kept me from the blogosphere. Rather I was consumed by transferring colleges, the world's worst waitressing gig at Ruby Tuesday (never eat there!), a series of disappointing flings followed by the break-up from hell. Seriously, I need some vodka in me just to remember this guy. I think I'll be sticking to my tried and true romance heroes for a while now, thankyouverymuch.

However, despite the insanity that comes with being 20 and alive, I did manage to squeeze some enjoyable reading time in there. Anyone who is friends with me on Goodreads may or may not have seen any books I recently posted. I unfortunately didn't have time to get a review up for "Lover Mine" but there was definitely some sqeeing involved when I read it.

I wish I could promise some more regular postings, but as it stands with my class load, and already horrible organizational skills, I don't know. I'll try to pop back from time to time, skip around to say hi on all of your blogs, and keep people posted of any projects or news.

The Loss of a Treasure

Anyone who lives in Delaware or the DC metro area has (hopefully) heard of Lambda Rising. To sum up: for 35 years Lambda Rising has been Washington's premier LGBT bookstore, with one of the largest collections of fiction, erotica, memoirs, nonfiction/history, and tons of other odds and ends. They have some of the most wonderful and knowledgeable staff and has created a real sense of community.

That being said, I was upset to learn that both Lambda Rising stores are closing. Lambda Rising has always held a special place in my heart. It was where I bought Sweet Lips by Mel Smith and first discovered homo erotica five years ago. Since then I've developed a soft spot for the genre, though the bulk of my reading is still mainstream romance. I felt slightly better when I found out that it is closing because the owner is retiring, not because they are going out of business. Still, it won't be there anymore.

The second thought that crossed my mind: OMG yay a sale!

It was so awesome to walk in there and find all books 40% off! Despite having a $20 cash limit, I was able to walk away with some goodies.



It took me quite a bit of time to settle on one piece of erotic I wanted to buy. I ended up sitting in the middle of one of the aisles with my friend, flipping through a stack of books trying to pick one. I narrowed it down to three and with my friend's advice picked this one. The plot sounded fairly interesting, I liked that it's a historical, but mostly did you see that cover! Best. Erection. Ever.

Speaking of erections, this book was irresistible as well. I've been flipping through it and never realized until now just how much thought goes into a blow job. There is also this awesome chapter for guys about etiquette and considerations for your partner. Fellatio has never been so equal! The other reason I just had to get this is because my friend bought The Ultimate Guide to Anal Sex for Women. Maybe we'll switch when we're done reading our own.

I had the funniest cashier when checking out. The ridiculous cover of The Price of Temptation lead to some witty banter about the absurdity of many Harlequin covers and Nathan Kamp's abs. His exact comment was "I don't like a guy to be too ripped. I don't want to get rug burn just from going down on him". FTW!

Pimpin other news

It was to irresitable to keep from spreading this on the interwebs: the Harlequin Presents Asshat Hero has come to life!