RT 2010: Day 3

So I'm going to continue my little recaps of RT 2010 :) Hopefully, by the end of this week, I'll be done :P

It was kind of weird to be at the convention, because the first two days seemed to go by so slowly. Perhaps slowly is not the right word, but because so much has happened already, I was always surprised when I took a moment to think and realized it was only Thursday. So perhaps more like too much to do. Then, when Friday arrived, time really started going fast...

Friday was another early day. This time, we started off with the Kensington Morning Mixer where we were served these huge muffins, LOL. Many of their authors were present and they all came up on stage to introduce themselves and their upcoming books. Probably the best introduction was Mingmei Yip :) She was extremely funny and I hope her books do well :)

Then, the worshops and panels started. The first one I attended for the day was Top 10 Dead-Sexiest Hero Types by S.J. Day, Lucy Monroe, Erin McCarthy, Dianne Castell and LuAnn McLane (in that order in the pic). Ms Day arrived late, so we just chatted and played a little game where we were supposed to guess the authors' heroes (it isn't as easy to come up with clues as you think LOL). Also, each author introduced themselves and their books... Ms Castell new book, Hot Southern Nights, sounds extremely interesting by the way and I'll definitively be picking it up later this month :P Once Ms Day arrived, we started the panel. Each author chose 2 types of heroes they like writing about and talked about them and asked the audience if they had examples, etc. Ms Castell started off with the loner and family heroes, Ms Day - the reluctant and anti-hero types, Ms McCarthy - the wounded and vampire heroes, Ms McLane - small town and sport heroes and finally, Ms Monroe - the paramilitary and werewolf heroes. It was a fun and casual panel. One reason was that Ms Monroe's husband was present and so she'd stop herself to reassure her husband, kind of. You know, like: "Oh, this person is cute - but not as cute as you, honey" moments :P They definitively have a great chemistry and relationship and it was very heart-warming to see :D By the way, something interesting I learned was that the Fast-Track series by Erin McCarthy is going to have 6 books!


Afterward, I rushed to the Urban Fantasy goes to Hollywood panel with Richelle Mead, Charlaine Harris, Jim Butcher, Holly Black and Melissa Marr and moderated by our own and unique CarolynJean!! :D  With such a line-up, I had to hurry to get a good place. Unfortunately, I didn't have a good view enough to take a picture of the table and panelists. The panel went very well and was very interesting - CJ did a great job as the moderator. Okay, so we all know that Charlaine Harris' Sookie Stackhouse series has been adapted on TV by HBO - True Blood. For those who are interested, IIRC, there will be a season 4 for sure :P Jim Butcher's The Dresden Files series has been adapted on TV as well and the show ran for 2 seasons on Sci-Fi. Holly Black is co-author of The Spiderwick Chronicles which has been adapted into a movie. Meanwhile, Fox has just bought the rights to Richelle Mead's Georginna Kincaid series and Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr has been optioned, but I don't remember which company. All in all, I really enjoyed the panel and just listening to what the authors have to say... especially when it comes to adaptations. I'm going to summarize this panel in another post, so I can share what I heard with you all :) But this was definitively a turning point in the convention, because 1) my first sighting of Elizabeth Vaughan!!, 2) got to see Jim Butcher and Changes signed (yay!), 3) encouraged Carolyn by being there and 4) picture with Richelle Mead :P


Then it was kind of lunch time, but didn't really have time to go get lunch. Luckily, it was the Carina Press Launch Party and they had a mashed potatoes martini bar. I've never seen this, but I thought it was a good idea :P Basically, they put out three different kind of mashed potatoes (white cheddar, garlic and wasabi) and the dressings (sour cream, chives, onions, cheese, etc) and so you filled your martini glass as you wanted :) Like I said, I thought it was a clever idea and at the same time, there was enough for second and third servings and it was filling LOL. By the way, don't you think it looks yummy? Almost, almost like a sundae LOL.


The next panel was a Young Adult Authors Chat with Holly Black, Ally Carter, Kelley Armstrong and Melissa Marr :) I was surprised at the turn out, because I was expecting the room to be full, but it wasn't. I'm not complaining - it's better for the people who attend :P There was no moderator in this session, so the authors answered the audience's questions. Again, very relax and casual :) I liked that atmosphere. Personally, whatever the authors have to say, whether it's related to their books, characters, writing process, etc. I'm interested in hearing. This panel was aimed at readers, but I thought it was pretty much the same in the workshops for writers... I don't know how constructive and helpful they were for writers, but as a reader, I enjoyed them :D Anyway, this was another panel I enjoyed and I discovered a new author that I'm definitively going to try out - Ally Carter. I was happy also because I was able to get Tales of the Otherworld signed by Kelley Armstrong and I got a free copy of Melissa Marr newest, Radiant Shadows. 

It was followed by the Vamps & Scamps Reader Party. Of the Vamps & Scamps, Jules Bennett, Toni Blake, Dianne Castell, Donna MacMeans, LuAnn McLane, Patricia Sargeant and Shiloh Walker were the ones present at the party. I'm going to go on a tangent here, but do you know what amazed me the most during this convention? The authors generosity!! Most of these parties and games are organized by the authors with their own money. The food, the prizes and the books provided for the readers all come from the authors for most part, not the publishers. So I really need to thank them for this wonderful convention! Okay, back to the Vamps & Scamps Reader Party :) Most of the hour was spent with authors reading some funny questions and multiple choices they came up with and readers answering them. Those who answered got a prize... and there was also a raffle with many prizes. I won Broken by Shiloh Walker - wooohooo!!  I was quite happy because when we were at Borders on Day 1, Kristie had mentioned it... plus, it's been getting good reviews :) Curiously enough, Jill and Kristie both won something also, so it was fun that all three roommates got something :)

I'd like to say that the rest of the day was more relaxed, but it wasn't really. There was the E-Book, Indie Pub, Multimedia & Graphic Fiction Expo which was basically a signing with all the authors involved in the above media. I wanted to go for L.B. Gregg (our own Lisabea!) and Jim Butcher again. Of course, seeing Kelley Armstrong once again was a bonus LOL. Plus, I kept Delilah Marville company :) I really love that gal, she's awesome! So I went around and found Lisabea and got Gobsmacked, this cool little poster (that Delilah is holding)... and three copies of Welcome to the Jungle by Jim Butcher - it's the graphic novel prequel to the Dresden Files. And yes, three copies: one for me and one for each of my co-worker. It's a good thing I got my stuff signed by Kelley Armstrong and Jim Butcher that day, because at the bookfair signing, their lines were long!! It was fun and gave me a preview of what to expect the next day :P 


Then, there was the Avon's Dusk To Dark Mixer. Wow, the line to this was looooong!!! I think it was the longest line I've seen during the whole convention and it's probably because of all the free books. Basically, this was a signing session with Kelley Armstrong, Jocelynn Drake, Jeaniene Forst, Melissa Marr, Pamela Palmer, Vicki Pettersson, Jaime Rush, Kerrelyn Sparks and Joss Ware and the books were free from the publisher. There were also some snacks (crackers, cheese, fruits, liquid chocolate and caramel) and I was so happy because I was getting hungry. It was a bit chaotic as you have people waiting in line to get all the books, people going to the authors they want and get their books and people who just go from table to table and grab the book ^_^; I was part of the 2nd group, because there were some authors I already had the books and others that I just don't read. The author I was looking forward to was Joss Ware aka Colleen Gleason. I wanted her book because once again, I've heard a lot of great things from Kristie :D At the end of the session, I was able to chat with her and Kristie a little bit. Now, mind you, I didn't remember that Joss Ware and Collen Gleason were the same person - she's changed her hair color and style, so it didn't click either. We're talking and she sees my name tag and she's like: Oh, I know you! Then, she sees my family name and asks me where I come from... and she asks if I have a sister or not, because she remembers sending something to someone to Canada with my last name. And I'm like: Nope, not me... until I realized, that actually, it IS me!! ^_^; It was just funny... and amazing that she remembered :P


Finally, the last event of the night was Heather Graham & Helen A. Rosburg's Dinner & Dance Ball. People were invited to dress as vampires and again, there were some amazing costumes. There was also a "play" by the participating authors and Heather Graham's family :D I really enjoyed the songs that were sang! :) There was also food at the ball! Yay! Once again, the dessert was served before the main meal - really weird, but hey, at least, this time, nobody panicked LOL. I had a good time, but once again, I didn't stay long. Seriously, I don't know how people did, staying up so late and starting so early the next day... but I just couldn't. Needed my sleep. Even now, I'm not completely recovered ^_^;

So that was it for Day 3 :D

Happy Birthday and Thank You!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TRACY and ME!!!!

LOL, it's fun to share a birthday :D Makes it easy to remember :P

A very big thank you to everyone for the birthday wishes!! It was great coming home from RT to so many wishes!! Very heart-warming :P

As you can see, I made it home safely :D Home, sweet home!! I really miss my bed!! Spending my birthday at the airport wasn't fun, but it wasn't bad either. At least, the flights were smoother, so I didn't feel too nauseous... I have tomorrow off, so I'll try to write some posts and catch up with everyone!!

Again, thank you :D

RT 2010: Day 2

Let see if I can make this short and sweet :P (Especially since Jill is leaving in a few hours and off the laptop goes with her LOL).

Day 2 started off early again. Seriously, I haven't really slept in at all this week... although, I mean, it's not surprising to me, cos I rarely sleep in. Anyway. It started with the Mystery Chix & Private Dix morning mixer where they serve bagels, yogurts and coffee. There were many authors present: Lori Armstrong, Brett Battles, Juliet Blackwell (aka Hailey Lind), Robert Gregory Browne, Carole Nelson Douglas, Harley Jane Kozak, Julie Kramer, CJ Lyons, Rick Mofina, Brad Parks and Diana Rowland. While we were eating, they each introduced themselves and talked a little bit about their books. Some really sound interesting and I'm planning to check them out :P (I already bought 2 CJ Lyons and 1 Harley Jane Kozak at the pre-signing :P)

Then, Kristie and I made our way to the Read A Book, Save an Author with Toni Blake and Dakota Cassidy (last minute replacement for Julie Anne Long) along with their PR person/assistant. Tessa Dare was also in audience and Sarah dropped by. It was very casual and intimate as there was about 10 persons in the audience... and we simply chat. Basically, the most important is word of mouth. Good reaction or bad reaction, it's better than no reaction. Also talked a bit about Twitter and Facebook, etc. We also talked about how authors should react to bad reviews or even good ones, etc. By the way, Dakota Cassidy has an amazing voice LOL. (Dakota Cassidy is on the far left and Toni Blake, on far right)

Next was the Author Chat with Jennifer Crusie, Lani Diane Rich and Anne Stuart which I attended with Jill. Unfortunately, Ms Crusie was unable to attend due to sickness - bummer. Still had a great time though. I have to say, Anne Stuart is a hoot and she doesn't hold back at all!! You can also see the friendship and connection between Ms Rich and Ms Stuart - they are most certainly best of friends. LOL, I think Lani Diane Rich almost choked one or twice on her water at some of Ms Stuart's comments and she was certainly mortified once or twice as well... especially when Ms Stuart talked about Good Vibrations - or something like that. Basically, Ms Stuart and Ms Rich were asked about the fairy tales collaboration (kind of in the same style as Dogs and Goddesses). Ms Stuart indicated that she along with Ms Rich and Ms Crusie were hoping to get together before the RWA and work on the first draft. In the meantime, she's been doing research by watching Good Vibrations (again, not sure of the title... but from what I understood, it's a porn movie...). LOL, Ms Stuart was so candid about it :P It was definitively awesome to hear her talk. Ms Rich was also great, giving advices on writing - you shouldn't let anyone sway you from writing what you want and do not follow trends - and was very open about the divorce she's going through. She's currently blogging about it on her Lucy March blog. All in all, it was a very nice and entertaining hour :P For those who are interested, Ms Stuart has a new historical trilogy coming out in back to back months this summer, starting in August. Each book will cover a generation, with a free prequel available on e-Harlequin. When she was asked why she was going back to historicals, Ms Stuart answered that she didn't have much choice as it was requested by her publisher - the Ice series haven't "sold" that well. She'll also have a new series (with New American Library IIRC) about blood-sucking angels :P Interesting twist, right? As for Ms Rich, well going through a divorce is not very inspirational when writing romance; however, she'll be back in 2011 with a new release - A Little Night Magic which is a fun, light contemporary romance with magic. By the way, during the whole session, I just couldn't stop thinking how much Cindy would enjoy this talk and how good they'd get along :P

After this, I went to get an ice cream given away during the Red Sage Ice Cream Social. Then, went to have lunch with Kristie - because, well I was starving! LOL. Then, I didn't realize how much time has gone by, I had to rush to the Special Autographing session - many authors had to leave before Saturday so a special signing was organized. There wasn't many people, so it went really fast. I was going to get a book for Cindy, but then the only Anne Stuart book available was Tangled Lies and I think you got that one autographed already, right Cindy? However, I got to get a picture of me standing next to Anne Stuart!! Anyone who's familiar with photoshop and who could put Cindy in there instead of me? :P

Then, I made my way to Bad Boy Bingo hosted by Victoria Dahl, Alyssa Day and Cindy Holby (there might have been a few more authors as hosts, but I can't remember). Sarah from Smart Bitches, Trashy Books was calling out the numbers: Bitches, Indecent, Nipple, Groping and Orgasm. Strangely enough, Orgasm 69 seemed to be called at every game... Coincidental? :P By the way, Sarah did an excellent job, but boy was she fast calling them out!! Oh and Bingo winners had to read hot scenes from selected passages in the authors' books :P Luckily for me, I won the last game when we were running out of time - phew! :P (In the right picture: Sherry Thomas, Carrie Lofty, Courtney Milan, Zoe Archer, Sarah and Kristie)

There was then a little down time - or perhaps not, but I can't remember what I did ^_^; I think Kristie and I and probably Jill went back to the room for a break. Then, I got ready - all dressed up (well not in a costume, but just nice top and jeans) for the Mullet rendez-vous. Yes, at 4.30pm, it was time for Kristie to honor her lost bet... and it was all recorded by a woman who is making a documentary about romance!! But don't worry, you don't have to wait for so long - I have pictures and videos. Also, Kristie had a little surprise for Sarah...

We then attended the RT Book Reviews.com Launch Party - yep, they have a whole new website. There were some prizes drawing and OMG, those baskets were huge and filled of books!! Unfortunately, I did not win... but it was nice. Also ran into Lisabea and Jane again.

Then, at 8.30pm, there was the Faery Dinner & Dance Ball... and wow, some of the costumes were amazing!!! Some of these ladies really go all out!! It's really incredible... My favorites were Delilah Marville and Richelle Mead... and there was food!! Food!! LOL. Although for some reasons, they serve the salad and then brought out dessert... and everyone kind of started freaking out, because we thought: That's it?!?!? Luckily, the main course came out and so we were happy campers :D And I pretty much turned in after dinner, because I was getting a headache... I'm not much of a dancer either. LOL, I was so soundly asleep that I didn't hear Kristie come in... but I did wake up when Jill climbed into bed :P We also talked a little before going to bed, but yeah, I quickly drifted back to sleep. I need my sleep :P

So that's it for Day 2. I'll try to put in the pictures later tonight... or when I get back home. For now, I gotta run!! Later!!

RT 2010: Day 1

LOL, it's actually quite ironic to me how I am able to squeeze more blogging at the RT than when I was busy at work... What does it say? Although quite frankly, I haven't read at all yesterday and today, so that might explains it.

So here is a little recap of what happened on Day 1 of RT (i.e. yesterday - Wednesday).

As you know, the day started early for me yesterday and I was able to squeeze in some blogging. Then, I headed downstairs. See, in my registration envelope, I got my badge, but not the tickets that would allow me to redeem the registration bag and give me access to the goodies room. So I had to go see registration to ask for them and everything went without a hitch or any complication, question, etc. Then, I joined Kristie and Jill at the RT Welcome Party. It was a morning mixer with coffee and some introductions and a tribute to Kate Duffy. Seriously, I've been on blogland for the past 4 years and I gotta wonder where my head was... I mean, I've heard the name, but never really paid attention to it. It seems Ms Duffy was one heck of a woman who influenced the romance world greatly. It's really a pity that she is gone :( On the plus side, I got to meet Lisabea/LB Gregg :D It's always fun to meet other bloggers, especially when they've become authors :D

Afterwards, I went to The "Twisted Sisters" Tell All which was basically a Q & A session with Lori Foster, Gennita Low and Brenda Jackson (in that order in pic). LOL, it's funny because no workshops/panels seem to be really planned in advance - at least, the ones I've attended. Most of them, the authors simply answer the questions the audience asks. Anyway, The "Twisted Sisters" Tell All was a fun session :D I thought Gennita Low as so cute - love the way she is, very expressive, gestual and funny LOL. They talked a bit of this and that. Ms Foster is up to 80 books and Ms Jackson, 75 books published - wow. So they talked about their experience and how it is to have people around you reading your books, etc. I mean, nice session.

Then, I went to the YA: You Can Really Go Back panel with Richelle Mead, Michelle Rowen, Caitlin Kittredge, Kelley Armstrong, Rachel Vincent (in that order in the picture) and Stacey Klemstein aka Stacey Kade as moderator. LOL, I know that after this panel, I'll be going out to the bookstore to get a few more YA :P I really enjoyed that panel and will try to go into more details in a later post.

I meet up again with Jill and company and we were off to have lunch at the food court with Carolyn Crane!! :D It was a very nice lunch where we talked books :P (CJ, Jill, Mary and Kristie)

Afterwards, we went our separate ways once again and I attended the Spoonful of Frivolity with Sinfully Sweet Authors  with Linda and Mary, the 2 sisters that had taken Jill under their wings last year at the RT convention. Hmmm, this was some experience LOL. I didn't really know what to expect and basically went because there were prizes to be won. Hmmm, let say that these authors know how to turn on the heat LOL. I'm just glad I didn't win the dildo basket!

Then, once again, met up with Jill and Kristie. It's been a lot of split and meet up again. This time, it was for Trivial Pursuit hosted by Jessica Andersen and Hannah Howell. It was fun and surprisingly, we weren't that many. We were split into 2 teams and answered questions. It ended up being a tie :) (Jessica Andersen)

The biggest bummer for me yesterday was that Jim Butcher haven't made it to the RT yet because he and his wife missed their plane. There was an Author Chat session featuring him, MaryJanice Davison and Charlaine Harris. I don't read these two authors so I decided to skip and go to a different panel instead: Five Times a Night? Getting Honest about Sex Scenes with Heather Graham, Kathy Love, Erin McCarthy, Barry Eisler and F. Paul Wilson. It's not something I would attend usually, but the goal of coming to RT is also meeting authors that I read. Plus, I wanted to see Barry Eisler whom Jill, Linda and Mary praised a lot during lunch :P The best moment had to be when the authors were talking statistics... and one of the statistic was that the average erected penis circumference was 4 inches something and F. Paul Wilson found it hard to believe... and Barry Eisler spoke up saying that the previous week, for some reason, he actually measured the tour of his index and middle finger together and it was more than 4 inches. Of course, it just happened that someone in the audience had a measuring tape, so Ms Graham made sure that M Eisler was saying the truth... turns out that it was more than 4.5 inches!! LMAO. Anyway, lots of laughs in this panel. M Wilson brought up the fact that when he talks to romance authors, many of them say that they dislike/hate writing sex scenes. The consensus is because sex scenes are so important to the storyline as they are part and further the relatiosnships, they are hard to write. Another funny moment was when Ms McCarthy was recounting how an editor told her that blow-jobs were passé and M Eisler said, "Wow, I don't want to live in that world." LOL. It's very spontaneous at those panels/wokshops and that makes for a lot of fun. By the way, blow jobs are not passé - in case you were worried :P (Barry Eisler and Heather Graham... measuring :P)


I joined up with Jill, Linda, Marie and Kristy again fo the Intergalatic Bar and Grill event which is hosted Catherine Asaro, Jess Granger, Cindy Holby, Stacey Klemstein, Isabo Kelly, Janet Miller, Karin  Shah, Linnea Sinclair and Jade Lee. It lasts about an hour and there's a "trivia" game going on. The concept is very interesting, but I think there was a bit too many people. (Jade Lee in the pic - we're fighting over a balloon dog)

The two last events of the evening were the Ellora's Cave Party and the Midnight Mad Hatters Historical Tea Party, respectively from 8.30 to midnight and midnight to 1am!! Yeah, talk about a jam-packed day LOL. I got all ready for the Ellora's Cave Party (the theme was red) and then, decided not to go. There were a couple of reasons - I don't read Ellora and I don't dance... but most important was that I wanted to go to the Midnight Mad Hatters Historical Tea Party more and decided it'd be a good idea to conserve some energy. Seriously, midnight to 1am. So what did I decide to do instead? LOL, if you've been on Kristie's blog, you know - bookshopping :) See, I had a 33% coupon on any item for Borders, but it was only valid Tuesday and Wednesday... and it was Wednesday.... so I had to go to Borders and use it, right? Kristie offered to drive me to the bookstore (yay!!), so she could take another look in her car for little Jack. I went on google map, had all the directions written out and off we went :) Well I'm really, really, really happy I did :) I got Changes by Jim Butcher and Tales of the Otherworld by Kelley Armstrong - both hardcovers, The Wishlist by Gabi Stevens, Nothing but Trouble by Rachel Gibson and A Taste of Magic by Tracy Madison. I totally scored because initially, I thought the 33% coupon would go towards Changes... but turns out, Changes was already 30% discounted, so the coupon went on Tales of the Otherworld. Yay!! So the total came up to 60-something$ and I paid with a bill of 100$. I get my change and the cashier is giving me a bill of 50$ and I was like: Hmmm, can I get change please. Then, as I walk out of the bookstore, I'm thinking: "Wait a minute. She said 60-something, so why did I get a bill of 50$?!?" Looked at the receipt and indeed, the cashier gave me the purchase amount instead of the change... I was all super happy, I mean, come on, "Score!!" LOL. Told Kristie... and she made me turn around and be honest ^_^; She said I'd feel better... and perhaps I do, but awwwww.

Anyway, buying books really cheered me up :P Then, as Kristie drove back to the hotel, we were looking for a place to eat. I've really been spoiled living in Montreal, because we have fabulous food courts. If there's one thing I have to complain about RT it's the food, but that's for another post. In the end, we found a pub to eat - the food was okay.

We finally made it to the hotel and ran into Jane from Dear Author and Sarah from Smart Bitches, Trashy Books. Went up to the room, left all my new purchases and then, it was time to go to the Midnight Mad Hatters Historical Tea Party. I thought I'd have time to rest by going to the bookstore, but not really. The event was nice and seriously, there were some gorgeous hats and the authors were beautifully dressed :)

(Victoria Alexander, Heather Graham, Sally Mackenzie and Carrie Lofty)

And after this, I finally got to go to bed :P So yes, it's really been a full day. The schedule is quite busy... and that's why it took me 2 days to write this post!! LOL. Hopefully, I'll find time to write more... but no promises :P Pictures to come later... (no time to figure this out)

Re-Read: Through a Crimson Veil by Patti O'Shea

Amazing the things you can do when you wake up early enough. Plus, when you type quick enough :P Showering, blogging, answering emails, going through my Google Reader... reviewing :P The only thing I don't think I'll have time to do is commenting, but I'll catch up on that once I'm back home.

In the meantime, here is my re-read for this month: Through a Crimson Veil by Patti O'Shea. This is part of the multi-authors Crimson City series published by Dorchester and Through a Crimson Veil can definitively be read as a standalone.


Through a Crimson Veil by Patti O'Shea

published by Dorchester Love Spell in October 2005

Los Angeles. Once, it was the City of Angels. Now, it’s Crimson City, whose inhabitants know nothing of Heaven. The tentative peace between the species—werewolf, vampire, human—teeters on the brink of collapse. Sides are being chosen. Yet the peril is greater than any imagine. There is a power here that longs for release, an ancient darkness held captive too long. Below, beneath, beyond, it seethes. And there are those who would see it freed.

Mika herself seeks freedom. She’s come to Crimson City looking for the key. But that key’s keeper is a killer, an outsider, a mercenary with a poisoned past. To her kind, he has meant only death. No matter that Conor McCabe’s pale green eyes hold a hint of lust, the glint of a bond never to be broken; the path ahead lies in shadow. In a city like this, death can come by fire or fang, by claw or kiss. And the moment of truth must come…

Genre: Paranormal romance
Series: Crimson City, Book #3 (I think)

The Story: Mika is a half-demon from a weak branch (i.e. not very powerful, not very dark) - who can manipulate air and is very playful. As a half-demon, she has the ability of crossing the veil that separates the human and demon worlds while other demons have to be summoned. Because of this particularity, Mika is asked by the Council to fullfill a mission... Mika has every intention of refusing it, until she sees the picture of Conor McCabe, a fellow half-demon and her vishtau mate. Being a half-demon, she never really expected to have a vishtau mate (soulmate). However, how can she go around his back and complete the mission while gaining his trust? Add in a few very evil demons and a pair of hitmen who are after Conor... and it gets very interesting.

My Opinion: I really enjoyed this book the first time around. It was my first Patti O'Shea book and it really got my attention and put Ms O'Shea on my favorite author radar. I pretty much enjoyed everything: the writing which is engaging, the characters - I like Mika's playful side and Conor gruffy one; it's a bit the "happy-go-lucky heroine thawing up the stuffy hero" theme that I enjoy so much, there was also plenty of action and it was hot :) So seriously, what's not to like about this book?

This is not my first re-read of the book and it won't be my last either. What grabs me everytime is how much I like the characters :) Like I said, Mika is fun and she likes to push Conor's buttons. As soon as she meets him, she gets protective of him and tries to help him any way she can. The most important is that she helps him accepting his demon side. As for Conor, he doesn't know about the vishtau bond, but he can't help but being attracted to Mika and go all protective on her. They really complement each other very well... And seriously, I really have a thing for characters who sacrifice themselves for the other LOL. In a way, it's just so romantic right?

Ms O'Shea also has a writing style that suits me a lot. Even if the plot is not as engaging, her writing just pulls me in. It's fast and to the point. Ms O'Shea also puts a lot of scenes, time and efforts to build up the connection and chemistry between the H/H. She does have the perfect balance between the action and the characterization.

Of course, the story is a bit less exciting on re-reads because you already know what's going to happen... but that's what happens with the action-packed book :) But I really enjoy it every time I re-visit Mika and Conor :) They're just great :D

My Grade: B+

Re-Read Challenge 2010: April

It's 6.42am in the morning. I should be sleeping, resting, gather my energy for the long day to come... but seriously? I can't anymore. I woke up at 4.30am and then at 5.30am... at 6.30am, I decided to throw down the towel and just not try anymore. Obviously, my mind is awake - either because it got enough rest (doubtful) or I'm just to excited for today (more likely), but I figured either way, let's take advantage of it. As a result, I'm sneaking on Jill's laptop and writing this post.

So obviously, since the time I wrote my last post and this, nothing has happened... except the three of us going to bed LOL. Ah well, actually... Jill and I are sharing a bed - these are tiny double bed, seriously. I have a single at home and this is not much bigger... and Jill was warning me that she pees a lot at night. Well LOL, as long as you don't pee in bed, I'm fine gal!

By the way... did I mention the other convention going on at the Hyatt Regency Columbus... so in addition of the RT, there is an undertaker convention!! So weird to have the two together. Obviously though, it's easy to know who's attending which convention :P

Okay, Re-Read Challenge. This is the end of the month. This post is going up a little bit early, but I figured since I have time, should do it. Who did their re-read this month? Just feel free to post a review link in the comment section if you did :) And I'll probably have a prize for this month's participants from the RT convention!! :D So this gives everyone a few days to re-read a book and review it :D Let say you have till I get back home (May 3rd) to make it!!

Have fun re-reading :)

Ms Moonlight: Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

Hilcia: Three Sisters Island trilogy by Nora Roberts
Nath: Through the Crimson Veil by Patti O'Shea
Ames: Irresistible by Mary Balogh
Leslie: Blue-Eyed Devil by Lisa Kleypas

RT 2010: Day 0

Hello everyone :D

Just to let everyone know that Jill, Kristie and I made it safely to Columbus :) I don't know how often I'm going to be able to blog... so I'll take this opportunity to blog a little...

Day started early for me, 5am to be exact. Luckily, I was all packed. The most difficult was actually choosing which books to bring with me on the plane. I got a case of "nothing appeals to me." Sigh. I finally brought Savor the Moment by Nora Roberts, Warprize and Warlord by Elizabeth Vaughan and Iron King.

My flight was delayed because they had to defrost the plane ^_^; Did I mention wet snow? However, I had  3 hours lay-over, so I was safe. The funniest thing happened to me though in Toronto while I was waiting for my 2nd flight. I was sitting there, waiting... and the two ladies next to me started talking and one mentioned Lori Foster signing. Then, I looked over and she had a Sony e-reader... so I asked if they were going to Columbus and if yes, RT convention... and they were!! One lady was an editor for Samhain, the other was... Michelle Rowen!! I got a nice little bookmart - my first freebie even before getting to Columbus! By the way, both ladies were very nice :) The connection is not just between bloggers, but even author-reader! Oh... and the flight from Toronto and Columbus? Ugh. I still feel nauseous from it... it was such a small plane!

Jill was already waiting for me when I got to Columbus airport and we shared a cab to get to the hotel. Kristie joined us about an hour later and after some rest, we headed out for some snack. Then, I went to the RT Virgin for some tips :)

The coolest thing though was that we were meeting with Mollie from Book Fare Delights - a Columbus native - for dinner at 7pm. The group suddenly expanded when Jill's friends joined us as well as author Delilah Marville! We had a really great time during dinner just talking about books, blogging and etc. :) So far, it's really been great. There's an insane amount of people this year - apparently, they're expecting 1200 attendees!! Can you imagine? That's just a lot, lot, lot of people! And everyone is just so friendly. People just come up to each other and start up conversation.

Anyway, so far it's very cool and relax... the next few days will probably be a lot, lot, lot busier :D But I'll still try to blog. Pictures to come later. I haven't figured out how to upload them ^_^;