Congrats to Nancy, who won the copy of Stephani Hecht’s Man Down (which was released today)!

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Contests

• Stop by Morning Glow’s blog Novel Addiction tomorrow – she’ll be interviewing paranormal romance author, Frances Stockton, who will be giving away a giftcard to Amazon or Barnes & Noble!

• Lea’s giving away a copy of Tracy Wolff’s steamy new romance, Tease Me, to someone who comments by 7 pm EDT, April 16.

• Largehearted Boy is giving away baseball cards and a $100 Threadless gift certificate. For your chance to win, answer his question in the comments by midnight CDT, April 16.

• Tell Renee about a book that really spoke to you and you could win a copy of Octavia Butler’s classic science fiction novel, Parable of the Sower. Leave your comments by midnight PDT, April 16.

• Not sure I want to tell you about this, because it will decrease my chances of winning… 😉 L. B. Gregg’s giving away an ARC of her forthcoming m/m romance, In and Out (Men of Smithfield). Make sure you read the whole post before you leave your comment! Contest closes midnight EDT, April 18.

• Leave a comment at Renee’s Book Addiction by midnight PDT, April 18, for your chance to win a copy of Carolyn Crane’s recent urban fantasy, Mind Games.

• Blodeuedd’s giving away three copies of Alexey Pehov’s new fantasy, Shadow Prowler. And she’s giving away two copies of Amelia Grey’s new historical romance, An Earl To Enchant. Both contests closes April 19.

• Ralph’s giving away an ebook copy of Heidi Cullinan’s recent m/m romance, Special Delivery. Contest closes midnight, April 19.

• SciFiGuy’s giving away an ebook copy of Teal Ceagh’s paranormal romance, Eva’s Last Dance, to someone who answers his question in the comments by midnight EDT, April 20. (Teal Ceagh is aka Tracy Cooper-Posey.)

• Fill out the form at Fantasy & Sci-Fi Lovin’ Giveaways before May 4 for your chance to win one of three copies of Jane Slayre.

• Take a poll at TechKnitting for your chance to win a $20 gift certificate to the yarn shop of your choice if you respond by midnight CDT, May 15.

• All Things Urban Fantasy had 140 urban fantasy giveaways listed when I looked yesterday.

Reading & Books & Lions, Oh My! (Ok, I made up the lions bit)

• Happy National Library Week!

• All sorts of book news, interview links, new release info, and more: Lily (m/m romance), SciFiGuy (urban fantasy, paranormal romance, etc),  Literary Escapism (urban fantasy, paranormal romance), Smexy Books (contemporary & paranormal romance), and Katiebabs (assorted romance genres).

• Dear Author had lots of good info on ebooks, pricing, taxes, and more in their Tuesday Links post.

• ReadReactReview’s Monday link posts are guaranteed to get you thinking deep thoughts. Anastasia found some thought-provoking links, too. TeachMeTonight ponders what’s at the heart of the romance genre. And Fangs, Fur, & Fey talks about “literary criticism of the non-literary”.

• A neuroscientist comments on digital books.

• The Book Depository is launching an ebook store.

• Open Library might make searching for ebooks easier.

• Dear Author has a really good post about book pricing.

• How’s the iPad for reading books? From TeleRead and Gizmodo.

• Sales of ebooks surpassed the sale of audiobooks last year.

• Do locked-down (vs. open-source) systems actually indicate progress?

• Some thoughts on the global nature of publishing from India Ink.

• Anecdotal evidence suggests that ebook piracy has increased since the launch of the iPad. And the US government’s General Accountability Office thinks that most piracy reports overstate piracy.

• Nicola’s hosting the next Book Worm’s Carnival at her blog, Alpha Heroes, and the theme is Arthurian fiction. You’ll need to put your posts together by May 7 to participate.

• Neil Gaiman reads a poem.

• The Library of Congress is going to archive tweets?!?

• Consumerist thinks this is the saddest book ever written.

• Blood of the Muse reported in from a Jim Butcher book signing event.

• Charles Stross on misconceptions about book covers. Meljean Brook shares the step-by-step development of one of her book covers. Rick R. Reed on the step-by-step development of one of his book covers.

• Smart Bitches had a contest to mock up a fake book cover and the results are hysterically awesome. (Find out who won here.)

• Lea had a great post on a book lover’s hierarchy of needs.

Learn Things, Make Things, Do Things

• If you or someone you know follows a gluten-free diet, you should participate in the FDA’s survey on gluten-free shopping habits.

• Have you voted in the Webbys yet? Goodreads is nominated in Websites – Connections – Social Networking… and voting closes April 29. Thanks for the heads up, Ralph!

• *blink blink* Touching money can reduce pain?

• *blink blink blink* Each black hole might contain a smaller alternate universe? And our universe might exist inside a black hole in a larger universe?!

• Check out this visual representation of how many servers Google owns. Yikes.

• Lifehacker has some ideas on how you can declutter your digital life.

• Want to turn your print books into ebooks? $20 will set you up to do so.

• Lily found some great facts about coffee.

• If you’ve ever been curious about how much musicians earn online…

• Consumerist has some great tips to help you spot fake online reviews.

• Make your own inexpensive freezer packs for your lunchbox/bag.

Things That Made Me Happy or Amused Me

• Colin. Really. You must read it.

• Oh, Hyberbole and a Half, how I do love thee! Favorite recent quote: “As a grammatically conscientious person who frequents internet forums and YouTube, I have found it necessary to develop a few coping mechanisms.”

• Typo humor.

• Some Mental Floss, courtesy of Jeanne: cats playing in the bathroom (see the human cat perch! watch Orca go nutso on the TP!) and a very clever April Fool’s math class.

• Do you read Indexed?

• What have you learned from watching soap operas?

• The iPad – so simple, even your cat can use it!

• Anyone who has cats and knits will relate.

• Apparently Hell is fluffy.

• Basement Kitteh tries a different strategy.

• Heh – kitty packaging fail.

• Whoops – signage fail…

Ewww

• Badly located bedbug billboard…

• Baby’s first… cubicle?

Squee!

• A spooked black kitten.

• A yawning kitten.

• Cute kitten.

• Kitten siege.

• Two tabby kittens.

• Lots of kittens.

Reading Update
The Prayer Waltz by K.Z. Snow. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a writer who returns to the Wisconsin town in which his lover had been a priest (before he left the church), looking for understanding and closure, but finding so much more. A gorgeous and highly recommended read.
The Darkling Thrush by Josh Lanyon. ebook. Very good m/m fantasy romance about a finder of magickal books who’s interning in England from the American Confederation and gets drawn into something more complex than he realizes. I did spend the first quarter of the book with my usual “I am reading a fantasy” frustration of trying to remember all the specialized details, but I enjoyed the story enough that I got beyond that. Recommended.
Colliding in Free Fall by Vivien Dean. ebook. Good m/m romance about a closeted Midwestern firefighter who, in his early 40s, wants to keep doing his job, no matter what the doctor thinks.
Of the Clan O’Grady by A.M. Riley. ebook. Good m/m urban fantasy about the (male) banshee of the Clan O’Grady who befriends a naive young fae lost in New York City.
Son of a Gun by A.M. Riley. ebook. Very good m/m romantic suspense about a writer who returns to the small Texas town where he grew up. He’s there for the funeral of his best friend, but why won’t anyone give him a straight answer about what happened? Highly recommended.
The Nest by G.S. Wiley. ebook. Good m/m romance about a young man struggling to take care of his three younger siblings and keep them out of the hands of Social Services while living on the wrong side of the tracks.
Mightier (The Seven of Swords) by G.S. Wiley. ebook short. Good m/m romance about a writer who’s staying at a friend’s Irish cottage trying to get past his writer’s block.
Heart Song by Sara Bell. ebook short. Nicely done m/m romance about a guitar player who’s forcibly outed and the impact it has on the rest of the band. What I really like about Sara Bell? She can write a sweet story without making it sappy.
The Lovers by Sara Bell. Another good m/m romance from Sara Bell about a soap opera star whose drug addict mother threatens to out him unless he pays her off (again).
Making Lemonade by T.C. Blue. ebook. A sweet m/m romance about a guy whose partner just died, but whose blossoming friendship with his partner’s nephew helps ease his grief.
In Hot Pursuit by Kate McMurray. ebook. Good m/m romantic suspense about a closeted NYPD cop, whose boyfriend was killed by a shot meant for him and who has been working too much in the years since then, is sent by his captain to a timeshare in Tampa on vacation to avoid burnout. Oh, the excitement he finds on his vacation…
Lynx by Joely Skye. ebook. Pretty good paranormal m/m romance about Trey, a werewolf who hides his nature and works for a blacks ops group in the US government. When running as a wolf in the Canadian Shield, he encounters a giant lynx shifter, and life will never be the same for either of them. While I enjoyed this book, I had trouble with how large, critical parts of it occurred offsides… and it distanced me from the story. The author’s note at the end of Lynx actually explains the offsides bit. Trey has been in Skye’s books Monster, Zombie, Minder, Marked, Feral, and The Strength of the Wolf and it was finally time for his story. Since Lynx was occurring at the same time as those books, with much of the critical stuff happening in other books, it ends up being sort of an odd read.
Bi Now, Gay Later (Perfect Timing, Book 5) by Kim Dare. ebook. Good m/m romance about a dominant who doesn’t believe that bisexuality exists, which causes a problem for his bisexual submissive.
Sandalwood and a Potato by Andy Slayde & Ali Wilde. Enjoyable m/m romance about two guys who work at a mall – one owns a New Age shop and the other’s a banker who’s sworn off relationships. The best part? Finding out how the potato fit into the story!
Finding Chandler (free), A Test of Love, Switching Gears, and Stardust (The Solitary Knights of Pelham Bay, Books 1-4) by Claire Thompson. ebooks. These m/m romances are decent reads and remind me quite a bit of a Carol Lynne series. The Solitary Knights of Pelham Bay are a group of extremely cynical guys who’d given up on love and get together to bitch and moan about fools who believe in love. Then the bartender issues them a challenge…
Balance by Zahra Owens. ebook. So-so m/m romance about a desk jockey whose fascination for being tied up leads him to an introductory session at a kinky club, at which he meets a very intriguing tattoo artist.
Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by M. King. ebook. Interesting m/m romance about a guy working in advertising who becomes involved with a guy who works in the adult film industry. Usually this particular dynamic feels completely unrealistic to me, but in this book, it felt more plausible because it addressed the emotional complexity of the situation.
The Perfect Pumpkin Pie by Aaron Michaels. ebook. Cute m/m romance about a guy whose obsessive roommate keeps sending him to the store for very specific items – good thing the assistant manager of the store is so helpful, hmm?
Finding the Words by Terry O’Reilly. ebook. Ok m/m romance about a speech therapist who finds himself increasingly drawn to one of his patients.
One Good Turn (Turner & Turner, Book 1) by Amber Green. ebook. M/m romantic suspense that’s really too complicated for me to even attempt summing up. Not sure if it was my state of mind while I was reading or what, but this felt disjointed. Plus I really disliked the abrupt ending – I think this book needed to be longer or more tightly edited or both. (Yes, very good, that is Candy Cane Guy with the smiley face!)
Never Say Goodbye (Slippery When Wet, Book 3) by Jenna Byrnes. ebook. Ok m/m romance about an ex-con who’s been hired as a live-in lover by a wealthy and unscrupulous man. Had the insta-love thing, which is never a favorite of mine.

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*bathing in the sunshine sounds* -Chaos