Contests
- Jackie at Literary Escapism is celebrating her blogiversary by giving away some very cool PNR/UF prize packs. Contest open until February 26. (Make sure you check back to see if you’ve won.)
- Patti’s giving away three m/m books as part of her M/M Romance Month celebration: College Boys (anthology), Inland Empire (Taking the Odds #2) by James Buchanan, and Love & Loyalty (Faith, Love & Devotion #2) by Tere Michaels. Contest ends February 28.
Bookity
- New releases and more: Lily (m/m romance), Book Lovers Inc (PNR, UF, more), Literary Escapism (UF/PNR), and Smexy Books (various sorts of romance).
- The news that Borders filed for bankruptcy spurred all sorts of commentary: Smart Bitches, Dear Author, and An American Editor.
- Bookity linkity from ReadReactReview.
- Kris shared a great quote that reminded her of the reviews/reviewers brouhaha recently.
- Kassa wondered whether reviews were professional and got some great discussion going.
- A very cool literacy project: The Ministry of Stories (via The Kitchn).
- An artist turns old books into art via 3-D typography. (Not for those sensitive to book maiming.)
Ebookity
- Head over to Kris’n’Good Books to pick up Ally Blue’s unforgettable free paranormal m/m romance, Dead Men Don’t Wash. Um, you might have me to blame for the corpse soap…
- The excellent paranormal m/m romance Without Reservations (With or Without #2) by J.L. Langley is currently free for Kindle and Nook.
- Some thoughts from An American Editor on citing sources from the internet and ebooks.
- Apparently, Borders going bankrupt does not affect Kobo customers or books purchased through Borders.com.
- Are you ready for Read an Ebook Week, which is March 6-12?
Do, Learn, Think, Make
- Global map of alcohol consumption. (Thanks, CursingMama!)
- If red wine or chardonnay usually gives you headaches or migraines, a new yeast could mean you can drink them again (via The Kitchn).
- How good is the internet connectivity in your area? (US only)
- Improve your memory by tapping into your spatial memory sense. (I’m having a flashback to Aristotle here…)
- Sleep can help you commit things to long-term memory. (I figured that out in college – no all-night studying sessions for me!)
Crafty
- Knit headphone cozies. (Although I only seem to know people with earbuds… hmm.)
- Check out Kristi’s free Infinite Scrunch scarf pattern.
- Crochet an amiurumi doll for the Chinese New Year.
- Love this basket woven from paper – the sample is woven from old maps.
Cool
- Seanna Lea put together a simple and delicious looking gluten-free ice cream cake recipe.
Huh
- I bet you’re all going to make cookie-stuffed cookies for dinner tonight (via The Kitchn). 😉
- Can’t decide if this is cool or huh, but a guy took pictures of everything he ate for a year.
- I’ll pass on the giant toasted snacking ants, thanks….
- Bacon toothpaste?! (Thanks, Jeanne!)
LOL
- This might be my favorite Valentine’s comic ever. (Thanks, Jeanne!)
- Although this knitting-themed Valentine’s comic from Franklin is pretty great, too.
- A flowchart to help you decide whether or not you should shave your legs. (Thanks, Jeanne!)
- Are you the insomniac they’re looking for?
- When May did something similar, she fell onto my head. Eeep!
- You’d be surprised (or maybe you wouldn’t) how often this happens around here… 😉
- And probably surprised that this never happens around here.
Teh Cute
- Baby albino sugar glider! Black kittens! Baby polar bear! Ducklings! Pudu! Kittens! Foxes! Kittens! Ferrets! Kitten! Black kitten! Tiger cub!
Reading Update
My Summer of Wes by Missy Welsh. ebook. Really sweet story about figuring out what you want, coming out, first love, and dealing with bullies. (Although I don’t like this cover at all…)
Lessons in Love (Cambridge Fellows Mysteries, Book 1) by Charlie Cochrane. ebook. Very good historical m/m mystery/romance set at a small Cambridge college in the early 20th century. The newest English fellow at the college starts to get under the skin of a repressed mathematics fellow… and then they find themselves working together to help the police try to figure out who is murdering students.
Lessons in Desire (Cambridge Fellows Mysteries, Book 2) by Charlie Cochrane. ebook. Very good historical m/m mystery/romance in which Jonty drags Orlando off to Jersey for the first holiday Orlando’s ever taken.
Lessons in Discovery (Cambridge Fellows Mysteries, Book 3) by Charlie Cochrane. ebook. Very good historical m/m romance/mystery – influenza and amnesia and a centuries-old murder, oh my!
The Back Passage (Mitch Mitchell Mysteries, Book 1) by James Lear. Delightfully raunchy m/m mystery in the best 1920s English country house style. Protagonist Edward “Mitch” Mitchell manages to be endearing as he attempts to solve the mystery… when he’s not distracted by sex.
Hot in Here (Time To Do, Book 2) by Kim Dare. free ebook short. Steamy short m/m interlude that takes place as Brennan and Rigby move into a flat together after graduating from university.
A Thread of Deepest Black by Finn Marlowe. ebook. Very good kinky paranormal m/m romance about a werewolf and a shifter who become involved with each other in a very complicated fashion, even though their people are mortal enemies. Some pacing issues in the first half of the story prevented me from rating this higher.
Dead Men Don’t Wash by Ally Blue. free ebook short. Completely insane (and fun!) short paranormal m/m romance about an octopus shifter and his soap thief lover.
Oscar’s Soul by Missy Welsh. free ebook short. Wickedly funny free short paranormal m/m romance about the devil collecting a soul and realizing he’s fallen in love.
Dinner and a Movie by Alex Marcus-Jacobs. free ebook short. Sweet short m/m romance about a straight guy who’s more than little surprised that the blind date his coworker set him up on is with a guy.
The Queen of Wands by Jenna Jones. ebook short. Good short May-December m/m romance about a guy who’s spent the last 15+ years working as the behind-the-scenes problem fixer for his vast family, atoning for a night he can’t quite remember – the night his best friend drowned. The ending felt a bit too quick and tidy for me.
Whatever It Costs (Whatever You Want, Book 2) by Taylor Lochland. ebook short. Ok short holiday m/m romance about a guy who loses his job, which makes it seem impossible that he’ll be able to afford to take his boyfriend to Ireland for Christmas so his boyfriend can see his grandfather before he dies.
Keeping Secrets by L.D. Madison. ebook short. Ok short m/m romance about an injured police officer who won’t take off his shirt and reveal his dark secret.
A Fated Love by Diana DeRicci. ebook short. Ok short m/m romance about a guy whose vintage car is damaged in a hit-and-run. Fortunately, an attractive stranger was able to snap a few pictures of the accident… I think I would’ve liked this one a bit better if it hadn’t been for all the unclear pronoun references and ongoing editing/writing oddities.
Raising Seth (First Time, Book 1) by Eden Cole. ebook short. So-so short m/m romance about a straight guy whose foster sister dumps her 18-year old ex-stepson on him for a month…
Lemon Kisses: A Yaoi Anthology edited by Augusta Li; A. Steele, Eon de Beaumont, Imari Jade, & B.J. Franklin. ebook collection. So-so collection of yaoi-inspired short stories.
“Oooooooh, shiny!” -Mayhem