Reading (mostly) romance books down under
Ann Gracie as Dame Barbara Cartland (RWAus 2010 Cocktail Party)
Last night I attended my first ever Romance Writers of Australia conference event: the Harlequin-sponsored cocktail party. What? You thought I was going there to work? No, no, I signed up for all the parties!
The cocktail party is a themed event and this year it was ‘Fantasy Island’. Never say that writers aren’t a creative bunch because some of the costumes were pretty amazing. Anne Gracie was awarded the best costume prize for her fabulous Barbara Cartland.
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Keri Arthur (left) and Tracey O'Hara
For the first time that I can remember, Galaxy had TWO paranormal authors in to sign books. And they brought a New York agent. And a soon-to-be-published debut author. And a partridge in a pear tree. OK, maybe not that last one.
The gathering at Galaxy was nice and informal, so we got to spend some time chatting with Keri Arthur and Tracey O’Hara while they signed our books.
The cover for the second book in Tracey’s Dark Brethren series, Death’s Sweet Embrace, has been redone and I think it looks better this way. Its style is more like the Night’s Cold Kiss cover, so I think the new cover ties the books together as a series better than two differently styled covers.
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Infinity by Sherrilyn Kenyon (Chronicles of Nick, Book 1)
If you’ve read (or are planning to read) the Chronicles of Nick, these are cheat sheets you won’t want to miss. Decadence summarises what we know about Nick Gautier from the Dark-Hunter series. You can read the first two parts here and here.
Noir is a first generation offspring of the Source, making him the closest thing to the source of creation short of the source itself. For some as yet unknown reason (maybe just because he is the source god of darkness?), he turned against the Source and tried to take over as the major power.
The source gods had the Sephirii as their security, so Noir created the Malachai as their natural enemy to wipe them out. Despite setting traps that reduced Sephirii numbers, they were poised to decimate all the Malachai, until they were betrayed by their leader, Jared.
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Infinity by Sherrilyn Kenyon (Chronicles of Nick, Book 1, US hardback)
If you’ve read (or are planning to read) the Chronicles of Nick, these are cheat sheets you won’t want to miss. Decadence summarises what we know about Nick Gautier from the Dark-Hunter series. You can read part 1 here.
In short, one of the most powerful beings on the face of the planet.
When the Source of creation’s darkest power known as the Mavromino turned against the Source and tried to end the world, he created the Malachai to wipe out the Sephirii (companions to the first order of gods, and soldiers who upheld the original laws of the universe and kept its fabric from unravelling, they’ve been likened to fallen angels) who opposed them. But although many of the Sephirii flew into the Mavromino’s traps, they looked set to destroy the Malachai until they were betrayed by one of their own, Jared, and the battle ended in a truce.
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Infinity by Sherrilyn Kenyon (Chronicles of Nick, Book 1)
If you’ve read (or are planning to read) the Chronicles of Nick, these are cheat sheets you won’t want to miss. Decadence summarises what we know about Nick Gautier from the Dark-Hunter series.
Nicholas Ambrosius Gautier (pronounced Go-shay, the Cajun way) was born to 15-year old Cherise, whose rich parents disowned her when she fell pregnant with Nick. Without a complete education, she became an exotic dancer to support Nick, but never resented him for the direction her life had taken. Cherise used to take Nick to the clubs with her so that she could remind herself why she did her job and find the will to keep doing it. She was a loving and nurturing woman who even tried to feed Acheron while she worked as Sanctuary’s chef and bartender.
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In case you missed her announcement, Bronwyn Parry is no longer working on her third Dungirri book. If there’s one thing I admire in an author it’s knowing when to let go of a book or series. The good news is that Parry seems to have a new book in the works, so yay for her and for us readers!
I noticed that our friends over at FANGtastic Fiction have decided to stop selling books directly but have become a kind of portal for book recommendations. If you love your books with a touch of the supernatural, it’s worth checking out the site.
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The Australian Romance Readers Association is hosting a book signing event at the Romance Writers of Australia later this year. The book signing will be on Friday, August 13 at the Crowne Plaza in Coogee.
There are over 40 authors expected to be at the signing, including some big names in Australian romance. Entry is free for ARRA members and RWA delegates. It’s also open to the public for a $5 registration fee. If you’re planning to attend, it’s best to register in case the event is booked out. Check out the flyer below and click here for details.
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A Local Habitation by Seanan McGuire (October Daye, Book 2)
Toby Daye is sent by her liege, the Duke of Shadowed Hills, to the County of Tamed Lightning to check on his niece, the reigning countess. Toby thinks that this will be an easy job, but once she and her assistant Connor arrive, she finds it more complicated than that—people are dying and their souls aren’t being carried away by shades, the traditional soul bearers of the fae.
Toby has grown from the previous book, and it shows—I liked how her character didn’t remain static and bitter. She has become more stable, has found herself on more solid footing. She even has girlfriends and goes on night outs. Her situation (explained in the previous book, Rosemary and Rue) sucks but she’s learnt to deal with it better. She’s still a strong character and you can’t help but barrack for her.
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The finalists for this year’s Romance Book of the Year (R*BY) Awards have been announced. Congratulations on the finalists and good luck!
Long Romance Category
Mistletoe Magic by Sophia James
Mastered by Love by Stephanie Laurens
Temptation and Surrender by Stephanie Laurens
Wicked Little Game by Christine Wells
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It’s a mix of genres this month in the Mixed Bag, which includes Deborah Locke’s memoir—a must-read for fans of Underbelly.
Dont Bargain With The Devil by Sabrina Jeffries (School For Heiresses, Book 5)
When Lucy Seton discovers that famous magician Diego Montalvo plans to build a pleasure garden next door to Charlotte Harris’s finishing, she’s determined to thwart his plans. But he’s sneaky and charming and continually makes Lucy forget her vow to be the paragon of propriety. Diego has ulterior motives, however. He intends to return Lucy to her long-lost grandfather even if he has to kidnap her.
Don’t Bargain With The Devil is the kind of book I might have enjoyed when I was just discovering historical romance, with its over-the-top dashing hero and the heroine who tries to be a good girl but can’t help herself in the hero’s presence. But I’ve been reading historical romance for a long time, and this one didn’t stand out above the rest. I skimmed bits of it, and while Jeffries comes up with some good lines here and there, the most interesting bit about the book is the mystery of who the hero in the final book of the series will be.
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(The Drakos Baby, Book 2) Books like this are the reason I stopped reading category romance in my mid-20s. I hope I don’t come across too many more of them in the near future. DNF.
(Pregnant Brides, Book 2) There’s nothing earth-shattering about this story. I didn’t hate the hero or the heroine, but that might be damning with faint praise.
This book proves that finely tuned character development and emotional honesty can turn even the most maligned clichés in romance fiction not just into an enjoyable read, but a story worth savouring.
(Elder Races, Book 1) The Elder Races series has become my BDB replacement. It’s totally cracktastic.
A satisfying romantic suspense with a capable heroine. The romance lacks intensity, but a decent mystery plot keeps the pages turning.
(The Bennetts, Book 5) Sexy, angsty and deeply moving, this story is everything we love about category romance. Oh, and the heroine? She’s the tycoon. This one’s a keeper.
Mills & Boon conventions aside—yes, he’s a tycoon, she’s totally hot and they don’t use a condom—the heroine and hero of this book are rarely predictable. I only wish it could have been longer.
Twilight lends itself to the shoujo manga format much better than in prose or in film. Young Kim’s renditions of the characters are disarmingly gorgeous, but even they can’t redeem Stephenie Meyer’s story of destructive co-dependency. And then there’s the font.
(Scarabaeus, Book 2) Not quite as compelling as the first book and the romance is underdeveloped, but still a satisfying conclusion to the Scarabaeus duology.
(Iron Seas, Book 2) It’s rare in romance to find an uncompromisingly strong heroine and even rarer to find a hero who understands how to love such a woman. This book gets it just right.
Special thanks to BOOKSELLER+PUBLISHER for keeping us abreast of what's going on in the Australian book industry, and particularly to Tim Coronel, who patiently explains to us the intricacies of book publishing in plain Tweet-lish.
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