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Congrats to Amanda, who won Cherrypicker (Blue Line Hockey #7) by Stephani Hecht!

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Contests

• At Embrace the Rainbow, LA Witt’s giving away two paperback copies of Static. Not sure when this one ends.

• Tracy’s giving away a copy of The Player and the Prude (Holsum College #4) by Daisy Harris. Not sure when this one ends, either.

• Joder’s giving away an ebook copy of Racing to Love by Amy Gregory. Contest closes 11:59 pm CDT, July 6.

• At Rarely Dusty Books, Abigail Roux is giving away several different different prizes related to the Cut & Run series. Contest closes July 7.

• Jessica Freely’s giving away a paperback copy of More by Sloan Parker. Contest closes 11:59 pm EDT, July 9.

• Joyfully Jay’s giving away an ebook copy of The Auspicious Troubles of Chance by Charlie Cochet. Contest closes 11:59 pm EDT, July 10.

• Go see what books are part of Operation TBR Reduction at Fetch Me My Fainting Couch this month. Closes July 31.

Bookity

• New releases and more: Rarely Dusty Books (m/m romance), Literary Escapism (UF/PNR), Tor.com (PNR), and Book Lovers Inc (romance etc).

• Book and publishing news from Dear Author.

• “10 challenges to innovation in publishing”. (via TeleRead)

• Jenre on promotional blog hops and tours from an author’s perspective.

• Becky Black shares writing linkity with an m/m focus.

• KZ Snow ponders how authors were different before the advent of epublishing.

• Parajunkee on the pros and cons of reviewing a DNF (did not finish) book. (via Fang Fur Fae)

• An abandoned Walmart became the largest single-story library in the US. (Thanks, Bron!)

Ebookity

• This could have implications for ebooks (definitely read the comments) – a European court ruled that it was legal to sell used software, even if it was a downloaded title.

• A hotel in the UK is trying Kindles instead of bibles.

• OneHundredFreeBooks updates hourly with new free Kindle ebooks.

• Your ebook reader might be collecting information on your reading habits.

• Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine is offering free downloads of its Hugo and Nebula nominees. (via Books on the Knob)

Do, Think, Learn, Make

• A short history of condoms.

• How do fireworks work?

• Make sure you won’t get cut off from the internets on Monday.

• The Mary Sue has a nice post about the Higgs boson discovery.

• “Scientists invent mind-reading system that lets you type with your brain”.

• As the gluten-free diet becomes trendy, are we heading into a special diet backlash? 🙁

• Why conventional tomatoes are so often tasteless.

• “A guide to refrigerator safety when you don’t have electricity”.

• Learn the signs of dehydration to prevent heat illnesses.

• Summary of the new US healthcare law.

• “How to get rid of runners stitch”.

• The highest ranked weightlifter in the US is female, impoverished, and heading to the Olympics.

Cookity

• Breakfast nachos. (via The Kitchn)

• Perfect guacamole – make sure you check out the comments for more recipes!

• Cheap and easy chicken curry.

• Rootbeer boiled bacon and beans. (via The Kitchn)

• Sweet potato corn cakes with garlic dipping sauce. (via The Kitchn)

• Sweet corn risotto. (via The Kitchn)

• Tomato and mozzarella potato salad with lemon-buttermilk dressing.

• Broiled tomatoes.

• Dandelion pumpkin seed pesto.

• 20 recipes that won’t heat up the kitchen.

• 15 recipes for summer cookouts.

• 10 summer picnic sandwiches.

• 10 summer cakes.

• 10 crostini.

• No-bake icebox “cake” and 25 other no-bake desserts.

• Nutella rolls. (via The Kitchn)

Drinkity

• Spicy roasted shishito pepper margarita.

• 10 different takes on iced tea.

• 7 different tea cocktails.

Gluten-Free

• Multigrain gluten-free lemon poppy seed muffins.

• Gluten-free corn dogs.

• Grilled vegetable quinoa salad.

• Remember to read labels, because gluten lurks in unlikely places.

Cool

• Black cat optical illusion. (Thanks, Jeanne!)

• 16 things Calvin and Hobbes said best.

• Madeleine/Harry Potter crossover.

• Have you seen what LEGO’s up to in Australia?

• “LEGO” bridge.

• The original 1958 patent drawings for LEGOs.

• Episodes of Sherlock and Dr. Who as tapestries. (via Tor.com)

• Gay sites you might not be familiar with.

• Rooms as seen from above.

• Tentacle wine bottle stopper. (via The Mary Sue)

Cool or Wha…?

• Batmobile lawnmower. (via The Mary Sue)

• “Iconic images redone with Star Wars action figures”.

• Tetris cushions.

• Superhero t-shirts with capes for adults. (via The Mary Sue)

Wha…?

• Gold-plated vacuum cleaners.

• Knitted butcher shop meats.

• People actually post public Instagram pictures of their credit and debit cards?!

• Hoodie pillow.

• Talking urinal-deodorizer cakes.

• “The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has issued a definitive statement on mermaids.“

LOL

• Whoops! (Thanks, Jeanne!)

• Find out how the Bloggess surprised her husband on their 16th anniversary…

• Best patriotic autocorrects for the Fourth of July.

• Cake decorators have a lot of trouble with fireworks…

• School sign FAILs.

• Amazon packaging FAIL.

• Spiderman advertising FAIL.

• Home organization…

• The meaning of “meow”.

• SO very Mayhem. Also very Mayhem.

• SO very Chaos.

Teh Cute

• Tiger and baby! Baby tigers! Baby leopard! Lioness and baby! Tiger! Fennecs! Baby fennec! Kitten! Baby snow leopards! Baby raccoons! Baby snow leopard! Baby skunks!

Reading Update
The Isle of… Where? by Sue Brown. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a technical writer from Michigan who’s on the Isle of Wight to scatter his best friend’s ashes, but he’s having a hard time doing so. A very sweet, cute, and somewhat overwhelming guy steps in to offer support… I was surprised at how much I liked this, and at how much it pulled me in.
One Small Thing by Piper Vaughn & MJ O’Shea. ebook. reread. Very good m/m romance about a guy, working as a bartender while he goes to cosmetology school to be a stylist, who finds out that his singular “girl-speriment” has left him a father. If only his shut-in writer neighbor would take care of his infant daughter while he’s at school, he just might make things work…
A Fresh Set of Eyes (David Lloyd Investigations #2) by Liz Strange. ebook. Very good m/m mystery in which David agrees to look into a case that’s been closed for a decade, as the evidence that sent three young men to jail for killing two boys was flimsy and circumstantial. In a shocking development, I figured out who the real killer was the first time said killer appeared in the story!
Good Company by JL Merrow. ebook short. Very good short m/m story about a young man hitchhiking to Glasgow who’s picked up by a guy driving a Mercedes. HFN.
Stronger Where It Counts by JL Merrow. ebook short. Very good short m/m story about an IT guy working in a small Southern town for a week who gets dragged to a (straight) strip joint by his clueless client. The evening doesn’t seem so bad after he sees the hunky (and vaguely familiar) bartender… This has an HFN ending – I’d actually like to read a followup story about these two!
Graceland by Ally Blue. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a nursing assistant and a slightly overweight Elvis impersonator who isn’t managing his diabetes very well. Definite bonus points for breaking out of the perfect white male mold of so many m/m romances – not only is the Elvis impersonator a bit overweight, he’s Cherokee and the nursing assistant is black.
Equilibrium (Superpowered Love #1) by Katey Hawthorne. ebook. Good paranormal m/m romance about two friends and roommates, one straight, who have some extraordinary abilities that they need to keep hidden from regular people… whoops.
Jealousy: A Love Story (Superpowered Love #1.1) by Katey Hawthorne. free ebook short. Good short paranormal m/m romance in which Sam gets jealous because another guy is blatantly pursuing the oblivious Hansen.
Best Gift Ever (Superpowered Love #1.2) by Katey Hawthorne. free ebook short. Good short paranormal m/m romance in which Sam and Hansen celebrate Christmas together while working through some rough spots in their relationship.
Riot Boy (Superpowered Love #2) by Katey Hawthorne. ebook. Ok paranormal m/m romance about a bookstore clerk who becomes fascinated by a mysterious and flighty punk rock bass player. This one just never really pulled me in.
Nobody’s Hero (Superpowered Love #3) by Katey Hawthorne. ebook. Good paranormal m/m romance about a charming salesman who’s very attracted to the quirky new computer programmer at work. He never expects to be at all tempted to share the secret of his extraordinary power…
At Least in the City, Someone Would Hear Me Scream: Misadventures in Search of the Simple Life by Wade Rouse. Wade and his boyfriend Gary bought a cabin in rural Michigan and left behind their lives in the city. This is a humorous look at their attempts to reconnect with nature, themselves, and each other. While I did enjoy this overall, I also found Wade to be pretty annoying at times.
Running Wild (Northern Shifters #4) by Joely Skye. ebook. Ok paranormal m/m romance about a college student who’s rescued from some bad guys by a strange black horse, then left at an old man’s farm, with his rescue seeming more like a dream… Besides a major plot hole (what, wolf shifters can’t read, only sniff?), this seemed to drag a bit.
Incongruent Angel (Liquid Sin #1) by Cherie Noel. ebook short. So-so short m/m romance about two members of a popular band who have a messed up personal history. A photo shoot and a car accident combine to bring things to critical mass.  This just felt like it was all over the place and then it ended abruptly.

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*streeeeeeeeeeeeeeetch* -Mayhem