Congrats to SueM, who won Knight Errant by K.D. Sarge! Knight Errant is available for $0.99 through July 31 at Smashwords.
Congrats to Susmita, who won Ranger’s Folly (Lost Shifters #12) by Stephani Hecht! Ranger’s Folly is being released by eXtasy Books today.
Congrats to Renee, who won Dark Sun by M.J. O’Shea!
Congrats to Julie, who won In the Shadow of a Hero by Anna Mayle!
Congrats to Amy, who won the Tea and Crumpet anthology, donated by Clare London!
Contests
- Jodi’s giving a $25 Fandango gift card to see the movie Larry Crowne, plus a Larry Crowne t-shirt and notebook. Comment through today (July 15) for your chance to win.
- Leontine’s giving away a $30 gift certificate to an online store of your choice. This is part of Blogfest, so it might just be open today (July 15).
- Tracy’s giving away a copy of The American Heiress by Daisy Goodwin. Contest closes 7 pm PDT, July 21. US & Canada.
- Blodeuedd’s giving away a copy of Pillow Talk by Freya North. Contest runs through July 21. US & Canada.
- Book Lovers Inc is giving away a copy of Liam’s Perfect Woman and a copy of The Hometown Hero Returns, both by Beth Kery. Contest closes July 23.
- Book Lovers Inc is also giving away His Darkest Hunger and His Darkest Embrace by Julianna Stone. Contest closes July 23.
- Joder’s giving away a signed paperback copy of Embraced by Blood by Laurie London. Comment by 11:59 pm, July 23. US only.
- Patti’s giving away an ARC of Maggie Stiefvater’s Forever (Wolves of Mercy Falls #3). Contest closes July 31.
- L.A. Witt/Lauren Gallagher is having a contest to celebrate having released 30 books. Winners will receive their choice of her backlist, and the number of winners will be determined by the number of commenters! Contest closes midnight EDT, August 5.
Bookity
- New releases and more: Literary Escapism (UF/PNR), Book Lovers Inc (romance etc), All About Romance (romance audiobooks), and Katiebabs (various types of romance).
- Strunk & White humor from xkcd. (Make sure you hover your cursor over the comic for additional text!)
Ebookity
- Kim Dare’s posted a free short m/m story based on a photo I took in San Francisco last fall. 🙂
- Read the reviews carefully before you even think about purchasing the new Google Books ereader.
Do, Make, Learn, Think
- See what’s connected to your wireless network with this portable Windows app. (Perhaps this article will inspire you to get the app…)
- Although it looks like the Minnesota state government shutdown is over, it might’ve resulted in beer shortages!
Potterity
- Harry Potter fans hack a road sign. (Thanks, Jenre!)
Cookity
Crafty
Cool
- Yoda toddler hat! (via The Mary Sue)
- The guide to shirtlessness in superhero movies… *ahem* (via The Mary Sue)
Cool or Wha…?
- Weird state foods. (via The Kitchn)
- TARDIS soap. (via The Mary Sue)
Wha…?
- So… you know how we get annoyed when people in romance novels stop to have sex at inopportune times, like when their lives are in danger? Apparently it happens in real life, too…
LOL
- Pick your battles carefully. (Thanks, Bron!)
- Kitten vs. apples… (Thanks, Jase!)
Teh Cute
- Bear napping with fish. (Thanks, Bron!)
- Kittens! Lion and cub! Lion cub! Lioness and cubs! Cat and kitten! Koala! Eleanor (and the source video)! Hedgie! Kittens! Panda! Baby panda! Kittens! Tiger cubs! Tigers! Kittens! Fox and kits! Kitten! Baby cheetah! Kitten and baby otter!
Reading Update
Masochism 101 by Kim Dare. free ebook short, although you’ll need to be a member of the Goodreads M/M Romance Group to read it. The prompt for this excellent kinky short m/m romance was a guy photographed midway through falling in the bathtub…
Trust Me (Cover Me #2) by LA Witt. ebook. Very good m/m romantic suspense about a cop who’s ready to break up with his boyfriend because he suspects his boyfriend has been cheating on him, but what’s really been going on is a helluva lot more complicated. You also get to see how things are going with the guys from Cover Me.
And To All a Good Night (Life Lessons #1.5) by Kaje Harper. free ebook short. Very good short free holiday-themed m/m mystery that takes place a few months after Life Lessons, right before Christmas, as the out teacher continues to recover from his injuries and learns to deal with dating the deeply closeted cop.
Dirty Kiss by Rhys Ford. ebook. Very good m/m romantic suspense about a former cop, now PI, investigating the apparent suicide of a prominent Korean businessman when he becomes fascinated by the businessman’s disgraced cousin. Hopefully there’s a sequel… and I’d love to get more of Bobby’s story.
Again by Mary Calmes. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a guy who was devastated when the love of his life, a CIA agent, suddenly left him for someone else, without knowing that their surrogate was pregnant. It’s five years later when he runs into now-former CIA agent… I have to confess that I wanted to smack Dante more than once – he was such a steamroller! I wanted him to stop and actually listen. 🙂
Accidentally in Love by Jane Davitt & Alexa Snow. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a photographer who’s definitely a player, engaging in a non-stop string of one-night stands. When he rents part of a house from a goodhearted computer geek with crappy self-esteem, he decides to help the geek finally get a guy of his own. So why is he unhappy when his plan works? As others have mentioned, the first part of this book was excellent. The last part of it got bogged down by sex and lack of direction.
Tea and Crumpet by UK MAT. ebook collection. Very good collection of United Kingdom-themed GLBTQ short stories, from contemporary to paranormal to historical. I was delighted to discover that there was a Cambridge Fellows short from Charlie Cochrane! And I absolutely love the cover. 🙂
One Night by RJ Scott. ebook. Good m/m romance about a deeply closeted guy who’s convinced that two men can’t have a loving relationship, only a sexual one, so he’s engaged to be married to a woman so his adopted daughter will have a stable home.
Finding Forgiveness (Poconos Pack #1) by Dana Marie Bell. ebook. Good paranormal m/m romance about a wolf shifter who suffers from debilitating migraines and has no idea why the guy destined to be his mate avoids him at all costs.
Clay’s Challenge by Cassandra Gold. ebook. Good m/m romance about a guy going through a crisis in confidence about how he looks after someone he met online isn’t interested in dating him because he’s “too fem.” So he decides to go on a wilderness adventure and prove to himself that’s not the case. (Main character Clay was actually a minor character in Quinn’s Hart.)
Bicycle Built for Two by Jeff Adams. ebook short. Good short, completely angst- and conflict-free m/m romance about two guys who meet during a charity cycling event to raise money for HIV/AIDS research.
From Pack to Pride (Supernatural Mates #1) by Amber Kell. ebook. Good paranormal m/m romance about a wolf shifter whose alpha brother sends him to stay with a pride of lions in order to keep him safe from a hostile wolf who wants to kill him. (Ok, Tam, you were right – I liked it better than Hellbourne!)
A Prideful Mate (Supernatural Mates #2) by Amber Kell. ebook. Ok paranormal m/m romance about a lion shifter who sees a picture of jaguar shifter on a shifter dating website and knows the jaguar shifter is his mate. Now he just has to convince his mate to stay… and keep his mate alive.
Not in Kansas by R.G. Alexander. ebook short. Cute short m/m fantasy roughly based on the Wizard of Oz.
Salad on the Side by Karenna Colcroft. ebook. Ok paranormal m/m romance about a vegan who doesn’t realize he’s living among werewolves until he’s bitten and changed. These were probably the most long-winded werewolves ever – there needed to be a lot less talking in this book. Hopefully the obviously planned for sequel will be less chatty.
The Male Room by Carolyn Levine Topol. ebook. Ok m/m romance about two best friends, one who’s just been kicked out by his boyfriend and the other who’s just been fired, who decide to start an online GLBT dating service together. I need to remember that this author’s stories are too sugary for me…
Semi Precious Weapons by Clancy Nacht. ebook short. Ok short m/m romance about two models in New York City who hook up and hit it off, but then things get messed up between them. This book definitely needed a bit more editorial care – a couple spots were so tangled that I couldn’t sort out what exactly was happening.
Joy & Pain by Celia Kyle. free ebook short. Ok kinky short m/m romance about a stripper who meets and is attracted to an older big bear of a man. This book needed better proofing: “illicit” instead of “elicit”, “spurn” instead of “spur”, etc.
“You know what would hit the spot right now? A crunchy bug. Yum!” -Mayhem
Haha Potter Chan kicked ass and kitten scared of apples were just awesome
A recent post from blodeuedd..Review: Sword of Fire and Sea – Erin Hoffman
Oh dear…Smart Bitching is talking about a Dutch cover fail 0.0 and rightfully so!! I can say my attention is all over your post. Great convo’s around the web this week 🙂
Have you already read Amy Lane’s Living Promises? I had to get it the moment it was up at DSP!! I really liked the gritty subjects, which i think was handled with grace by AL but was it me or was there more swearing than usual??
Anyway…I’m looking forward to next week when JP Barnaby releases VANISHED. And will you cheer me on as I have to go to a job interview? I have butterflies the size of birds in my stomach…I wants this job so bad!! To distract myself I’m reading, knitting and baking -> right now its a banana bread, later on I’ll do some cup cakes 🙂
Have a great weekend, Chris 😀
PS: Smart Bitching…huh?? Such typo fail *sigh* It’s of course Smart Bitches! 😀
A recent post from Leontine..Blogfest: Dear iPad
The ginger terrors, George especially, have perfected the art of catching and eating house flies over the past couple of weeks. To the extent that if there’s an annoying bluebottle disturbing my reading I go and seek George out to sic on the fly. it’s a bit gross but better than fly spray or paper!
Glad you liked Tea and Crumpet!
A recent post from Jenre..Review: Tinseltown by Barry Brennessel
Have you seen the cross stitch that says “Bless This House” and then has Hugh Laurie stitched below it? I don’t remember where I found the pic, but Joey went CRAZY over it=D
You know something, I bet you could simply take any commercial cake batter, prep it up as if for the oven and simply sizzle it on the griddle or in your waffle iron. French Vanilla, Devil’s Food, Lemon, Spice, or any other flavor!
I love linkety Fridays! The timing of this last Harry Potter movie is very timely – as my daughter just discovered the books. We can enjoy the fun stuff surrounding the series even though she’s younger.
A recent post from Jennifer..And on the other arm
Interesting about the endoscopies. I know that it took more than one for me.
Much to my delight, I’ve discovered that a lot of the substitutes celiacs use in cooking – rice, garbanzo, and potato flours for example – are available in the ethnic food aisle at the big grocery store by my place. No more going to the bulk food store and paying through the teeth…
A recent post from Brigitte..So It’s Really Been Awhile…Whoops
Chris- I’m sure the Tardis soap would clean alot. You could time travel while in the shower.
A recent post from Lorraine..Pass The Woolite
Will be sending the who is connecting on your wifi home – a certain person is convinced that every time our system goes down it’s because of someone hooking in. That our modem is crap doesn’t seem to always enter into the equation.
A recent post from Mary Lou..No Swag, Just Germs
Sunshine and bugs! What could be better.
A recent post from margene..So, I Sewed
Saw the new HP movie yesterday – it was great!
A recent post from Cheryl S…Oh no!
Ha, ha! I thought the subversive cross stitch was hilarious, but then I saw the even more funny hammock house with boob tower. 😀
And your cat likes to eat bugs, too? Ours will eat roaches (when he’s not grabbing birds off the feeders), and then he always throws up on the back patio!
A recent post from Val Kovalin..Weekly update with patriotic table ornament
May is just doing her part in protecting the household when she eats those bugs.
Love the Strunk & White comic!
Thanks for the tip about Jenny’s number.
Love the cross stitch! Wish I could do that.
I read Cover Me last night and plan on starting Trust Me today.
A recent post from Eyre..All of Harry Potter Reenacted by Cats
linkity linkity lalala!
Loved Potter Chan!! LOL
As soon as I read the bit about Jenny’s number, that song popped right into my head. I haven’t heard it in ages, yet it’s still embedded in my brain.
Thanks so much for the Giveaway mentions Chris! I so appreciate it. 🙂
I LOVE the lego links. We went to the Lego store in NYC and it was simply amazing. I didn’t take any pictures in there and I should have. Love the bat cave..
The link from the Beta Reader was excellent.
As Alwyas, I’m in awe of your reading line up. 🙂
I hope that bug comes your way Mayhem!!
Have a good weekend Chris!
A recent post from Lea..Getting Ready To Go To NYC!!
Pottermania!
A recent post from lisa..still snow!
Why do I check my reader if you post all the good stuff here?
except the crunchy bug thing..eweeee
A recent post from cursingmama..The Slide
I really want to make butter beer for my friends. I’m just not sure if I have extra heavy cream with two ice creams left to make. It would be so wonderful though.
A recent post from Seanna Lea..c’est fini!
The HP links were cool.
Aww, loved the baby in the Yoda beanie. So cute! 🙂
Wow, those two ‘sex in a garage” thieves belong in America’s Dumbest Criminals.
Jenny’s number is an interesting idea although I’m sure I’d forget it when they asked. 🙂
Haven’t read any of those books tho I’ve got a few on my tbr/wish lists.
Hope you have a great weekend!
A recent post from Lily..2nd Annual Author Blog Crawl… my turn to share the love
I LOVE that lego bike helmet – not enough to get on a motorcycle or anything, but it made me giggle.
Yikes at the HP cakewrecks!
The kitten and the apples were hilarious! 😀
Loved the things I’m not allowed to do at Hogwarts list – will be sharing with the boy children. 😀 Also, Kentucky needs a better sense of humor. 😉
A recent post from Bronwyn Green..Goodbye to my old friend.
Great linkity! I forwarded the lego helmet to my motorcycle-riding family, and the yoda hat is sooo cute!
A recent post from Patti (Book Addict)..What do I remember from the month of June?
Ohhh, lots of linkity – thank you!
Again sounds….interesting 🙂
May’s found a sun spot!
A recent post from orannia..Nalini Singh
How did I miss this post on Friday?
Okay, that giant chicken story was priceless. I laughed out loud more than once. Also reminds me I could use more towels.
Glad you enjoyed the shifters. One was better than two, we’ll see how three goes.
I’ll have to check out Clay’s challenge, I did like Quinn’s Heart. Haven’t really read many of the others.
A recent post from Tam..In a slump … so lets check out the man-flesh
Thanks for the link, Chris!
Oh boy… generally I don’t think it’s a good idea for authors to reply to reviews. I’m probably biased by academia, but it usually doesn’t turn out well; if someone’s being an ass, stooping to their level isn’t a great move.
Those granny square cookies are so cute! I’m much more concerned with how things taste than how they look when I’m the one doing the work, though.
Love the cut leaf art. I hadn’t heard of a derecho either.
LOL at the boob tower and hammock house, and the giant metal chicken.
May I’m sure your mom will let you have all the crunchy bugs you can find.
Love the linkity 🙂 Especially the kitten and the apples.
Thanks very much for the mention 🙂
Awesome linkity 😀
I’m still laughing at autocorrect and the metal chicken.
Also, I do hope the list of things you’re not allowed to do in Hogwarts is more like guidelines ‘coz some of them sound too tempting.
Am forever grateful for the link to shirtlessness in superhero movies – specifically for the chance to read this bit o’snark:
The X-Men trilogy
Who gets shirtless? Mostly Hugh Jackman. But he gets shirtless enough for everybody, really.
Now THIS is what I came for! Atlantis was off the coast of Scotland!! Far-out. (Yes, that’s what I got out of it, why do you ask? lol)
A recent post from Carrie#K..Well. That was a Week That Was and Doesn’t Have to Again.
I love you, I do, but you are so damned hard on my wallet. lol There are at least 5 books (probably more) that I now HAVE to read. Where will I find the time? And the money? 🙂
Go Mayhem!
A recent post from Tracy..TBR Challenge Review: My Most Excellent Year: A Novel of Love, Mary Poppins, and Fenway Park by Steve Kluger
This may be your most awesome linkity yet… *swoon* So. Much. Awesomeness. I dint know where to start.
A recent post from Nicole..Magical Musical Mondays (and a contest!)