From me!

And Mr. Darcy, too!

Labels: holiday, linkage

I have been remiss in linking. Sadness and woe!

Go check out my review for Whisper Falls HERE!

And go check out my review for Eternal Prey HERE!

Oh! And go check out my review of Storming the Castle HERE! I almost forgot about that one. LOL

Wooooooo! See how productive I am sometimes?? It won't continue, of course. Heh.

Labels: 2 cents, book stuff, linkage, TGTBTU

The ladies over at the Book Binge are spotlighting Suzanne Brockmann and you know I loves me some Suz, don't you, peeps. So, of course, when Rowena asked me if I would do a guest post the answer was a great big YUP.

Go forth and read my brilliance silliness, if you dare (LINKAGE). And check back in all month for other Suz spotlight stuff.

Maybe if we all think positive and clap our hands, Holly will change her opinion of all things Suz? Okay...nah, that isn't gonna happen. But the rest of us can enjoy and torment her with the fabulousness of Suz! :-D

Labels: 2 cents, book stuff, cyber friends, linkage

...enough of this bookish-ness (not that books aren't important) and stuff about my boring life (except vacay is coming - WOO HOO!). Let's talk about something even more important:

the NEW TV SEASON!!!





Wow, summer TV is nothing but bad. Pleh. The only thing worth watching was So You Think You Can Dance, says me.



But those long sad days of bad reality shows and reruns are coming to an end, peeps. And I, for one, say YAY!!



Some TV linkage for my peeps:

TV Guide's full fall schedule can be found HERE.

A calendar of season premieres can be found HERE.


Now let's talk about what I'm looking forward to ('cause, you know, it's all about me)...I can't wait for GLEE to come back full time! The sneek peek that aired after the American Idol was such fun! :-D If you have an iTunes account, you can download the GLEE cast's cover of Kanye West's Gold Digger for free right now. You know you want to. Also, this Friday, they are re-running the pilot and the cast will be tweeting along over on Twitter. I'll try to find a link about that later...I read it somewhere online yesterday. Fox is also re-running the Fringe finale this Thursday, supposedly, and the cast will be tweeting along during that, too. Follow @FringeOnFox to read along. However, my cable guide says some football preview is on this Thursday. Maybe that's just local? Yup, I checked...it's a local game. Ah well, I'll be on the road anyway.

What other new shows am I looking forward to, you ask? (I'm not linking everywhere because I'm lazy and the TV Guide pages have done part of it and Google is your friend) FlashForward looks very good, I think. Both because it sounds interesting and because Joseph Fiennes and John Cho are in it. Heh. Lovessss Joseph Fiennes! And John Cho is a cutie. And I'll be checking out Vampire Diaries, although my expectations are low. That's it for the new stuff I'll be setting the DVR for while I'm vacationing.

But what about returning faves, you might be wondering...well, So You Think You Can Dance is coming back for a Fall season, so YAY! And I'm looking forward to Dollhouse's return, as well as Castle (Nathan!!), Fringe, Grey's Anatomy, Gossip Girl, One Tree Hill and a few more shows.

What about you, my peeps? What new shows are you excited about? Any returning faves you can't wait to see? Don't be like this guy...



ETA: This is what happens when you post while under the influence of cold medicine. Don't do drugs, peeps! Heh.

Labels: 2 cents, lazy blogger, life, linkage, lolcat, silliness, tv, upcoming

Heh. Wanna see more? Go HERE!

Labels: cartoons, linkage, silliness

Who doesn't love contests?? *looks at crowd* Exactly! Everybody loves contests! Go forth and enter, peeps:



Yay!

Labels: contest, linkage

My review of The Englor Affair (twas excellent!) is up over at TGTBTU - check it out HERE!

Labels: 2 cents, linkage, review, TGTBTU

I got the idea for this *fanfare* new feature after Tweeting some hippo trivia. I'll do my best to have a new bit of trivia every Friday. I can do that, I'm sure! *determined face*

So here we go - you might have seen this little guy in the news:



So, that led to my brain to this (if your name is CindyS just look away):



And now for a gross fun fact about hippos:

To mark territory, hippos spin their tails while defecating to distribute their excrement over the greatest possible area. Hippos also urinate backwards (are retromingent), likely for the same reason.

Bonus fact: Hippopotamuses (or hippopotami, if you prefer) appear to communicate verbally, through grunts and bellows, and it is thought that they may practice echolocation, but the purpose of these vocalizations is currently unknown.



Want more hippo info? Clickety click!


So, should I put a Christmas countdown in my sidebar, peeps? It's just around the corner, s'all I'm saying. :-D

Labels: Friday fun fact, linkage, silliness

Greetings to all the peeps that aren't away watching the new Batman movie! Are you craving some new, fun entertainment-like fabulousness - from the king himself, Joss Whedon?? Hie* yourself to Dr. Horrible.com!! Oh, all parts are also available for download at iTunes. You know, if you want to put it on your iPod or iPhone. ;-)

*hie - pronunciation: \ˈhī\; function: verb; definition: to strive, hasten; to go quickly



Also, a reminder (yes, I've been sadly lacking in my Suz news updates - but a countdown is right there under my blog header, for crying out loud): Into the Fire comes out Tuesday, peeps! All I can say is Barnes and Noble better have it on my porch when I get home from work...oh, I'm taking off that day for an unrelated matter. Duh. B&N, if they truly appreciated my business, would have ITF on my porch when I get home from work Monday. Talk about the best gift evar!

I'll be updating the "Patience is a Virtue" section later, too. And I almost forgot, I have joined the lemmings and am now Twittering. LOL I'm c2s over there so feel free to follow me through my incredibly boring days.

Labels: book stuff, entertainment, linkage, lolcat, silliness, Suz, tinkering

...(you know who you are). I don't know if you are familiar with Woot! but, if you aren't, it might be time for an intro - you can check it out on your own. I want to direct you to Shirt.Woot - every week they have a Shirt Derby. The Woot Rulers decide on a theme and accept submissions from anyone. Wooters (those who have purchased something from Woot) can vote on the submissions. Then the top three are offered for sale - #1 on Friday, #2 on Saturday and #3 on Sunday.

Why should you care, my Canadian peeps? Because this week's theme is CANADA! To celebrate our Canadian friends being welcomed into the Woot-age, of course. So, go on over and check it out. If there is something you really like, let me know and I'll vote for it. Voting closes Thursday at noon, I think.

:o)

Labels: cyber friends, linkage, silliness

...from the very popular Lisa Kleypas.

A Christmas novella that is connected to the Wallflowers series. W00t! Details are HERE. The hero will be the Bowman girls' brother Rafe, plus we'll get to revisit our old friends. Cool!

Labels: book stuff, linkage

I've got a list of cookie recipes up over at TGTBTU! Sybil and the gang were nice enough to invite me to play along during their Duodecimal Celebration. :o)

Labels: cyber friends, holiday, linkage

...so I'm taking a break from my tree-ing, peeps. And I thought I would let you know (I meant to do this weeks ago) that if you aren't watching Torchwood on BBC America - you should be! Any British peeps who might be lurking out there already know what I'm talking about and have seen the whole first season (fiends!).



It was spun off from Dr. Who. Now, I've never been a DW fan but I'm loving Torchwood so don't let that stop you from checking it out. Yes, if you start watching now, about half the season is over but BBC America is usually pretty good about marathons leading up to season finales so there will be a chance to catch up, most likely. And the DVD set of the first season will be out in January, too.

In other news bits, in case you didn't hear, AAR has the new Top 100 poll results up. I'll be comparing my list with the final results and reporting back in soon.

ETA: I counted up - 24 of my top 100 made it onto the big list and I've read about 74 (some I couldn't remember, one way or the other...so it may be more like 70). Eeek!

That's all for now, later, peeps!

Labels: 2 cents, book stuff, entertainment, linkage

...or how paranoid, depending on your point of view.



So, I was thinking about what a horrible thing it is too lose all your bookmarks, if your computer crashes, etc. And I always forget how to transfer them to a new computer. Plus, you know...I'm lazy. Whatever.

Anyhoo, I have a handy-dandy screen capture widget on my Dashboard and it occurred to me that if I opened up my "show all bookmarks" tab on Safari, I could capture it and save it as a document. Excellent!

I don't know if there is a Windows equivalent, especially in terms of ease, but capturing all my bookmarks took about, oh let's say, 2 minutes. Tops. Another reason Macs rule?? Yup, pretty much.

Wanna see an example?? Okay! :-D (Sorry it's kinda small - click it for BIG.)



Sure, there may be a gazillion other people who thought of this first but allow me to bask in the glow of my mighty brainpower for just a second before bursting my bubble. ;-)

Speaking of who may or may not rule...I love this commercial:



Kitteh from ICHC, of course.

Labels: computer stuff, gadgets, linkage

So, peeps, do you consider Harlequin/Silhouette stuff "erotic pulp"?? Because our friends at NPR do. Click --->here for the more. Yikes.




In other news:




Yup, I'm right there with you ICHC. Mundayz are teh pleh.

ETA: Polling starts today over at AAR for the 100 best romances EVAR. I'll add linkage in a bit. Here you go, peeps! Clickity-click!

Labels: book stuff, linkage, lolcat

First of all - remember Banned Books Week starts today!

Now my thoughts on


Hey, did you notice the cover changed from when I put it on my sidebar (I'll leave it there for a little while) to when it reached the stores? Hmmmm...I wonder why? Anywho, I'll try not to spoil anything here.

I tried to avoid all the spoilers and reviews until I read the book (difficult since everybody got it early except me!) but I've gone back and read a few now and I can see why people were unhappy with some of the things in the book but it still seems as if some of the criticism is a bit much. Things didn't end up like you expected them to? Well, after all the kudos to JR Ward for being different, do you really think you should complain about her coming up with some creative solutions to V's situation? I'm just sayin'...

First of all - man, this book is huge! 500 pages! Not that I'm complaining...why can't all the authors I like write books that long? And she's said that Phury's book (more on him later) will be long, too.

To continue - now, yes there were some things that I was less than happy with. The thing with Jane that led to the dilemma (talking in circles...who me?) just seemed so random, you know? Things were going along in a certain direction, or so I thought, until about 400-odd pages in and then POW! Could it have been handled differently? Maybe. Was it necessary? Only JR Ward knows for sure. And who I am to question the direction she takes her characters in her series of books? Certainly, if it were completely outside of everything we had seen up til now, I would feel justified in a bit of whining. ;-) But I didn't feel that way with this book. In a weird way it all fit in with the world she's building, I thought. I mean, it's a paranormal series, for crying out loud. The only person who knows what is and isn't possible in an alternate reality in the person building that reality. And that's not me...I just get to visit every once in a while.

Was I completely happy with LU? No. Even though I love Phury, I thought he took up a bit too much of this book (still excited about his book, though). Did I really understand all the stuff with the Scribe Virgin? No. But I've never really gotten that character and maybe I'm not supposed to.

Now, to end my ramblings on an up note - the things I liked: I thought the explanation/resolution of the relationship between Butch and V was excellent. I thought V's emotional awakening (for lack of a better word) was completely believable. I liked the glimpes of the John/Blay/Quinn (Quhinn?? whatever) friendship - they're the next generation of Brothers, aren't they? I liked that the Lessers were around less (heh! that one was too easy to pass up); for me, they are usually a bit too dominant...do I really care why the bad guys are bad, if they aren't going to the redeemed at some point?? No.

And finally, a thought from someone on a bulletin board somewhere that is quite valid and deserves pondering. Since it has spoilers, I'll hide it. Highlight if you want to read it:

Someone offered the thought that having Jane be a ghost is the only way V will ever be able to touch her without worrying. If she was alive, he would always have to be careful of his hand. Since that issue is off the table, he can just be with her. And really, to me it is less that she is a ghost and more that she happens to not have a corporeal form (at least, not without concentrating) and that isn't an issue for her around V so, really, all the things are resolved nicely. Plus, since she loves genetics, don't we think she will play a large role in figuring out why there are so few babies born and so few survive? Since she's already dead, she can research for as long as she needs to.

Final grade from me: B (at least, that's my first thought and I'll stick with it)

Okay, that's it for me and my 2 cents. I think I need to find a nice, upbeat historical to read next. My palate needs cleansing. :o)

Labels: 2 cents, book stuff, covers, linkage

...guess what I have in my hot little hands, peeps?

Yuppers!



Yippee! Between finally getting this book (story to follow) and the new TV season finally starting, I'm a happy C2! :-D

The story - so I go to my B&N after work (after being unsuccessful in my hunt for Vishous this last week) and I still can't find it. Grrrr. I looked in all the "New Releases" sections, I looked in the Romance section, I looked on the end caps, I looked at all the dump displays...nothing. No V! So I asked at the desk and the lady looks it up on the computer and it doesn't say anything specific, blah blah blah, but she remembers someone calling about it earlier. Finally, a very nice trainee offered to go look for it for me and I'm all "Sure, great, thanks." And he is gone and gone and gone. But then - TA DA - he comes back to the front of the store with the book in his hand. It was still in the back, he said. Now, did I mention this was after work? After 5:00 pm CDT on the day of release and it was still in the back?? What's up with that?! There were book carts all over the store with books to be put out but guess what was on those carts...new stuff for the Bargain Books tables. WTF?! *calm blue ocean, calm blue ocean, calm blue ocean*


Also, thanks to the Smart Bitches, I learned that I missed National Punctuation Day, darn it! And Banned Books Week starts Saturday so get your reading plans in order. Remember, peeps, censorship is bad.

Labels: 2 cents, book stuff, linkage

Could it be Talk Like a Pirate Day?? Why yes, I believe it is! Wednesday is the day to join the Pirate Brotherhood! So put off your land legs, you lily-livered landlubbers! Break out your eye patches and peg legs, ye scurvy dogs! Avast ye, says me! (Who am I?? The Dread Pirate Rusty Hook, o' course!)












































Want more info - go --->HERE

The cats are from our friends at ICHC, of course.

Labels: linkage, pirates, silliness

...an audio excerpt from All Through the Night has been posted at Brilliance Audio. Just click -->HERE and then click on the "listen to an audio sample" link.

The narrator for this audio book is Michael Holland (not the duo that usually narrates Suz's audio books). He is a singer/actor that Suz loves and the voice that she hears in her head for Jules so yay! It has to be very cool for her to get to hear the real voice read the character's thoughts and dialogue, don't you think?



My next post won't be about ATTN, I promise. I don't want anyone to be tired of hearing about it before it comes out, after all. :o)

Labels: book stuff, linkage, Suz