Monthly Archives: June 2009

Contests, Linkity linkity link, Reading, Reviewettes

Contests and books and linkiness, oh my! (and abs, of course – duh)

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Sydney’s giving away a copy of the science fiction book Burnout: The Mystery of Space Shuttle STS-281, written by her friend Stephanie Osborn. For your chance to win, comment by midnight, July 6.

Morbid Romantic’s giving away five copies of Carolyn Jewel’s My Forbidden Desire. (I won a copy from Kelly Moran’s blog last week myself.) For your chance to win, leave a comment before 11:59 pm EST, July 12. To increase your odds of winning a copy of this book, A Journey of Books is also giving away five copies. Leave a comment by midnight EDT, July 13, to enter. Not satisfied with your chances yet? Then head over to Seductive Musings before 11:59 pm EST, July 10, where there are another five copies available.

This week, Largehearted Boy is giving away 75 cds (no books). Comment by midnight CDT, July 3, to enter.

Author Nancy Herkness is giving away six skeins of Noro Gisha over on Romancing the Yarn. You have until July 3 to send her an email.

Author Suzanne McLeod is giving away copies of two collections (Mean Streets and The Eternal Kiss: Twelve Vampire Tales of Blood and Desire), plus signed copies of her own books. Leave a comment by the end of the day July 1 for your chance to win.

It looks cool, but I think making an inverted bookshelf sounds like too much work.

Dear Author has links to free Kindle books and the Alice Hoffman Twitter kerfuffle.

What are the ethics behind accepting review copies of books? And how will book bloggers be affected by the FTC’s promised crackdown on bloggers receiving freebies for reviews?

The NYTimes thinks that the smartphone is the future of ebooks. I have to admit I hate reading ebooks on my Palm Tungsten E2 – the eInk display on my ebook reader is much, much nicer (plus the battery life on an eInk device is amazing). What do you smartphone owners think? Here’s the Dear Author guide to using smartphones and netbooks to read ebooks – rumor has it the guide will be updated soon.

Reading Update
True Love and Other Disasters by Rachel Gibson. Solid if unremarkable contemporary romance featuring Gibson’s fictitious hockey team, the Seattle Chinooks.
The Vampire’s Bride (Atlantis, Book 4) by Gena Showalter. Survivor, the Atlantis edition. Eh.
Strange Bedpersons by Jennifer Crusie. Light contemporary romance that includes a black cat. Ok. Not one of the better Crusie books.
Hard and Fast by Erin McCarthy. *fans self* McCarthy can write smokin’ contemporary romance with the best of them. I’m enjoying her NASCAR series far more than I expected.
Shadow Hawk (Harlequin Blaze) by Jill Shalvis. Shalvis writes a decent romance, whether it be a Harlequin or one of her tasty trilogies.
Daring Time by Beth Kery. *more fanning* Very good time travel romance that had me utterly captivated. Be warned – it is very, very, very steamy.
Call of the Highland Moon by Kendra Leigh Castle. Enjoyable paranormal romance about a werewolf from the Scottish Highlands and a woman who owns a romance bookstore.
Edge of Desire (Primal Instinct, Book 3) by Rhyannon Byrd. This series. Argh! It’s well-written and I’m totally sucked into the storyline, but damn, I spend an awful lot of time wanting to smack characters for being so angsty and TSTL.
Edge of Craving (A Prequel to the Primal Instinct Series) by Rhyannon Byrd. Ebook. This explains why all the Markers are hidden throughout the world. It probably makes more sense to read this after reading at least the first two Primal Instinct books. The prequel’s a novella, which was nice because no one could go off into an extended angst-fest. Sadly, while the regular series is well-edited, there are some glaring fails in this ebook (is Alia nearly 24? Or nearly 20? Please, someone, decide).
Touched by Darkness (Sentinels, Book 1) by Catherine Spangler. Solid paranormal romance – I’ll be reading more from this series. (I think it’s interesting that this NK cover shows fine abs, but suggests love handles at the same time.)

More bookcase photos…

“Mom, why did you move our toy basket?” -Mayhem

And *gasp* – a bookcase photo with no cat bits?!


Hmm. No live cats, at least! Can you spot the cat in this last picture?

“Doopity doopity doopity do…” -Chaos

Reading

Contest: Win a copy of Eternal Lover! (Contest Closed)

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Welcome to the last week of what turned out to be a June filled with book contests! This week, I’m giving away two copies of the collection Eternal Lover (containing stories by Jackie Kessler, Lynsay Sands, Richelle Mead, and Hannah Howell), and one of the copies has been signed by Jackie Kessler. Two winners will be selected by random number and the first will receive the signed copy.

For your chance to win, simply leave a comment on this post letting me know that you’re entering the contest. Please make sure your spam filter allows email from stumblingoverchaos.com and that you left a valid email address in your comment. (Leaving it in the email line of the comment form totally counts.) The contest will run through 7 pm CDT, Friday, July 3, and the winners will be announced on Monday, July 6. Good luck!

(Why, yes, that is NK on the cover. Nope, you’re right, that is not one the better pictures I’ve ever seen of him.)

“Why am I sitting here again, Mom? Who’s Vanna White?” -Mayhem

“And why are you giving away more books that don’t have black kitties on the cover?! Who wants books that aren’t all about black kitties?! Silly Mom.” -Mayhem

Tales of the Neighborhood

Scenic summer in the city

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Congrats to fellow Minneapolitan, Carolyn of the Thrillionth Page, who was lucky number 59 and won the signed copy of The Highwayman. (And since it turns out that Carolyn lives eight blocks north of me, on the same street even, I think I’ll be delivering her book in person!)

Stop back Monday for another book contest! I’ll be giving away two copies of the collection Eternal Lover (containing stories by Jackie Kessler, Lynsay Sands, Richelle Mead, and Hannah Howell), and one of the copies has been signed by Jackie Kessler.

Pirate sun?! Or Old Man Winter?

I love this picture. No Camping – in a spot of greenery about four feet wide along an extremely busy commuter trail. Perhaps it’s meant in jest?!

Here’s a picture of the front of the garage behind the No Camping sign, if that helps you assess the location as a potential camping spot:

And a picture from the garden beside the garage – temptation, anyone?

Remember the picture of the egret at Lake of the Isles from last week? I took a second picture of that egret a few minutes later. Notice  the lump in its neck? That would be a frog or small fish, I’m guessing.

“Yo, woman, bring me a beer!” -Chaos

Contests, Linkity linkity link, Reading, Reviewettes

Bookcase flash! (and some other book stuff, of course)

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Congrats to the winners of my Contest of BABEL – Margy, Cindy, Chris S, Cristina N, and Kimmy L! Since I can’t resist accumulating cheap and good books from the library withdrawn store and the thrift store, I’ll definitely do this again sometime.

If you really wanted to win Larissa Ione’s third Demonica book, Passion Unleashed, in the Contest of BABEL, head over to Morbid Romantic’s blog – she’s giving away five copies! Leave a comment by 11:59 pm EDT, July 5, for your chance to win.

Largehearted Boy’s having a Largehearted Housecleaning and is giving away a 50 book + 50 cd prize package! Leave a comment by midnight CDT, June 26, for your chance to win (and cause your mail carrier or UPS driver to hate you forever).

Quite the kerfluffle over Amazon’s mysterious DRM book download limits for Kindles. And an interesting take on Amazon and ebook DRM, which points out that Amazon’s mp3 store is DRM-free and focused on working for any device, but not so with ebooks…

Extremely link-filled and very informative article about ebookstores, readers, and more at the Know Something Project.

Customize your Sony Reader!

Dear Author has a nice article about the components (correctness, stlye, taste) that shape a reading experience.

The July 7 Berekley Crime mystery releases are posted at Darque Reviews.

BookSeer is pretty cool – you fill in the author and title of a book you just finished reading and it suggests other titles you might like.

Twenty signs that you might be reading too much romance. This was my personal favorite: “You clip the covers off your romances and make a mantitty wallpaper collage.”

Reading Update
Even Demons Get the Blues by Maree Anderson. ebook. This was a well-written and steamy novella. More detail at Fang-tastic Books.
Sins and Shadows: A Shadows Inquiries Novel by Lyn Benedict. Very powerful urban fantasy about a PI dealing in the supernatural. No vampires, CarrieK! 🙂 Plenty of gods (Greek, Christian), witches, and even an ancient being of riddles… My only real complaint was that it dragged a bit near the end. Well, that and that I sort of wished it was a paranormal romance, so I could get the HEA I wanted for the ending.
Pandora’s Box by Natalie Stenzel. Totally reading these out of order – this is the first book in Stenzel’s series about the puca brothers and associates. I’m sure I would’ve picked this up sooner if the cover was as, um, enticing
as those of the sequels!
What Happens in Vegas… After Dark by Jodi Lynn Copeland, Lauren Dane, Kit Tunstall, and Anya Bast. Excellent and scorching hot collection about the paranormal side of Las Vegas. *fans self* Oh, you’ll have to click through to see the cover – bit too scorching! Review at Fang-tastic Books.
The Highwayman (Silhouette Nocturne: Wicked Games) by Michele Hauf. This title might sound familiar. 😉
Heart of the Dragon, Jewel of Atlantis, and The Nymph King (Atlantis, Books 1-3) by Gena Showalter. The Greek gods created Atlantis to house their mistakes: vampires, demons, gorgons, nymphs, harpies, humans who can turn into dragons, and more. Although the two entrances to Atlantis are protected by veils of mist, humans manage to find the mythical land and Atlanteans occasionally make brief forays into our world. This is another good series from Gena Showalter. Of the first three books, The Nymph King was definitely my least favorite (I thought it was a bit weak), although I can’t fault the cover! 😉 I also read The Amazon’s Curse, which is an ebook novella that takes place after the fourth book, which I haven’t read yet. Whoops. Hey, it was on my ebook reader and I’d forgotten The Nymph King at home. Be warned that The Amazon’s Curse does contain spoilers for the fourth book.
Just One of the Guys by Kristan Higgins. Nicely done contemporary romance. I cried a bit. In fact, my only real issue with the book (and I’m beginning to suspect this is just part of the author’s formula) is the main character’s obsession with her ticking biological clock. Also, please note that the dog on the cover in no way resembles the dog in the book, other than that they’re both dogs.
Too Hot To Handle by Robin Kaye. Another nicely done contemporary romance, featuring a male lead who’s a bit less alpha arrogant than in many romances.

Of course, what would be a bookcase flash from my place without a cat in the picture?

“Birds! Birds! Birds! There are birds out the window, Mom! Birds!” -Mayhem

Knitting

To appease the restless knitting knatives…

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So I couldn’t help but notice in the comments yesterday that some of the knitting knatives are getting a bit restless over my lack of knitting. I’m not sure that my most active project is going to appease anyone… Behold, the boring sock.

Pretty impressive for, um, five or six weeks of work, eh? 😉

“That’s it?! I have to admit, I was hoping for something a little better than Meilenweit Cotton, Mom.” -Mayhem

Contests, Reading

Contest: Win a signed copy of Michele Hauf’s forthcoming release (Contest Closed)

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Many thanks to Minnesota author Michele Hauf for donating a signed copy of her June 24th release, The Highwayman, for this contest! This well-done paranormal romance is set mostly in Minneapolis (you know how I love that) and a cat shapeshifter is one of the main characters. It’s the first in Michele’s new Harlequin Nocturne miniseries, Wicked Games, which is set in the same world as her Bewitching the Dark books. (Don’t forget that you can download one of the books from that series, Kiss Me Deadly, for free.) Plus, Michele has a great picture of her black kitty Maxwell with the book, too. 🙂 Michele also provided some additional information about her books in the comments below.

To win the signed copy of The Highwayman, simply leave a comment on this post letting me know that you’re entering the contest. Please make sure your spam filter allows email from stumblingoverchaos.com and that you left a valid email address in your comment! The contest will run through 7 pm CDT, Thursday, June 25, and the winner will be announced on Friday. Good luck!

*sneakity sneakity* -Mayhem’s paws

*sniff sniff sniff* -Chaos

“Hmph. Why is it always books we find on the floor now? Where’s the yarn?!” -Mayhem

“I mean, books make ok pillows and sometimes they have black kitties on the covers, but they just aren’t as cushy or tasty as yarn.” -Mayhem

Contests, Tales of the Neighborhood

A few pictures from Lake of the Isles, with contests

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Because of the complicated way I’m awarding prizes in the Contest of BABEL, I don’t have a list of winners to post yet. Next week, hopefully, if I communicate successfully with each winner. (Please make sure your spam filter allows email from stumblingoverchaos.com and that you left a valid email address in your comment.) Stop back on Monday for a your chance to win a signed copy of Minnesota author Michele Hauf’s forthcoming release, The Highwayman. (And many thanks to Michele for donating this prize!)

It’s time for Ali’s Summer Knitting Goals Contest! List your goals on your blog and leave a comment for Ali by midnight, June 21, for your chance to win some pretty nifty goodies. At the rate I’m knitting, my goal is just to finish the pair of Meilenweit Cotton Fun socks I’m knitting right now before fall. I’m past the heel (barely) on the first sock and I’ve been working on it for… five or six weeks.

Morbid Romantic’s giving away five copies of Billie Letts’ novel Made in the USA – leave a comment by 11:59 EDT, June 28, for your chance to win. (From the description, this may or may not be an audiobook. YMMV.)

I did manage to take pictures around Lake of the Isles last weekend before I messed up my foot. First up, make way for ducklings!

Lake of the Isles is the lowest I’ve ever seen it – you can easily see where the water line should be in the picture below. We had the driest May since 1934 (hmm… wasn’t that during the Dust Bowl?!).

Not quite as easy to tell the water’s low in this egret picture, but it isn’t usually that muddy/mucky near the shore. (You’ll see another picture of this egret next week.)

“Did someone mention… birds?!” -Mayhem

Contests, Linkity linkity link

In which one of Iowa’s top tourist destinations is revealed

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Wenat has a gift for creating lace scarf patterns that show off the pooling power of Wollmeise. Make sure you follow the link in this post to her other pattern.

The intersection of craft and technology can result in some amazing projects!

Image sharpening can really help improve a slightly blurry picture. I don’t have Photoshop – I just use Picasa.

Llama ennui?

For your chance to win a very, very steamy paranormal ebook, leave a comment over at Romance Junkies.

Random picture that amused me. I wonder how many people wondered why I was laughing in the parking lot and taking pictures of a bumper?

Why?! Why?? Who likes beans that much?!

Um, no. No cats in hats, please. Chaos would kill me in my sleep. Although this kitty seems ok with hats, doesn’t he?

This is why I don’t have curtains! How many of us can relate to this?

If you find all the smartphone options as confusing as I do, Gizmodo’s comparison might help. (I keep looking at the cost of data plans and deciding that I don’t need to be that connected.)

Lifehacker links to ideas for no-equipment exercise.

Speaking of exercise… Thanks, everyone – my foot is much better! Probably time to dust off my bike and give my feet a break.

Lovely – the Twin Cities are #5 in the US for road rage.

According to futuristic movies, we have exciting times ahead.

If your dad drinks coffee and you need a last-minute Father’s Day gift, this photo frame coffee sleeve is pretty clever. (Curses. My dad doesn’t drink coffee.)

Ugh – some of these recalls are a bit scary, like that Starbuck’s coffee grinder. Eww.

“I wouldn’t recommend moving that arm, Mom.” -Chaos

Contests, Linkity linkity link, Reading, Reviewettes

Midweek Bookity Break

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Nicola of Alpha Heroes is giving away five copies of the upcoming Naamah’s Kiss by Jacqueline Carey. Leave a comment by June 24 for your chance to win.

Largehearted Boy’s giving away a set of David Wellington’s vampire novels. Leave a comment before midnight CDT, June 19, for your chance to win.

Do vampires have hearts? Answer that question in your comment at Fang-tastic Books for your chance to win a pdf copy of Susan Blexrud’s book Love Fang.

For a chance to win a book from Shiloh Walker’s backlist, leave a comment at Literary Escapism by midnight, June 23.

J. Kaye’s giving away the audiobook Testimony by Anita Shreve. For your chance to win, leave a comment before June 27 and then stop by after June 27 to see if you won.

Check out the free ebooks available from eHarlequin, including titles from Stephanie Bond and Michele Hauf.

Scary thing. If I hadn’t gotten divorced (one year marriage, one year separation), this would’ve been my 20 year anniversary.

I’m honored that Nicola of Alpha Heroes was inspired to do a post of book reviews in my, um, succinct style.

Dear Author had a nice look at the week in ebook news.

Weigh in with your perception of ebook quality. Then go read an amusing (scary?) review about an ebook that seems to embody all the worst that you’ve heard/read.

Interested in DRM-free ebook publishers? Here’s a list.

The New Yorker interviewed Nora Roberts – go, Nora!

Could Amazon be moving to non-Kindle ebooks?

Curious about the new, larger Kindle? Gizmodo reviewed the Kindle DX.

Reading Update
Twice the Temptation by Suzanne Enoch. Half historical, half Samantha and Rick contemporary. Heck, if all of Enoch’s historicals are as much fun as the first half of this book, I could be swayed. But I still like Enoch’s straight-up contemporaries better.
Familiar Vows by Caroline Burnes. Mystery, romance, and a black cat sleuth! Too bad the main character has a bad case of TSTL for the first half of the book. Cute story, but I’m not interested in reading any others in this series.
Too Good To Be True by Kristan Higgins. I spent the first part of this book sort of annoyed with most everyone in it, but I thawed a bit in the second part.
Three Brides for Three Bad Boys by Lucy Monroe. Hopefully no one got hurt from all the eye rolling over the title? Very steamy set of three interconnected novellas.
In Darkness Reborn, Redeemed in Darkness, and Darkness Unknown (Paladins of Darkness, Books 3-5) by Alexis Morgan. Favorite quote, from Darkness Unknown: “But as far as she knew, they’d never made a show about a woman who raised alpacas, spent her evening hours knitting, and had no social life at all.” Not only are there hunky Paladins fighting evil, there are alpacas! Spinning! Knitting!
Turn Coat (Dresden Files, Book 11) by Jim Butcher. Amusing abs quote from this book: “He might have been just a little bit smug, the bastard. His abs looked like they were added in with CGI. My abs just look like I can’t afford to feed myself very well.” Ah, Harry. We love you anyway! But I really, really, really hated how this book ended. I was traumatized.
The Nymphos of Rocky Flats by Mario Acevedo. Felix Gomez didn’t come back from fighting in Iraq with post traumatic stress disorder or Gulf/Iraq War Syndrome. Nope. He came back as a vampire. Now he’s a PI, investigating an outbreak of nymphomania at the former Rocky Flats Nuclear Weapons Plant. Well-written and I deifnitely wanted to see how things would end, but I doubt I’ll read more of the series, because I just didn’t care about Felix that much.

“Legs? Who needs legs? Go away and quit bothering me. Look! Over there! It’s Mayhem, doing something stupid cute.” -Chaos