K.C. Burn's Blog, page 21

Strippers and Freebies!

And no – not freebies FROM strippers!   I'm guest blogging today at Raine Delight's Book Nook about which strippers make the most money.  Stop by and comment (any time all weekend) – I'll be giving away a copy of MIA Case Files: Blood Relations to a random commenter.

Contest & Freebies!

This Saturday, November 6, if you're in central Florida, stop by Altamonte Mall for Romancing the Holidays! From 2-5 pm there will be over 20 romance authors on hand to meet readers and sign copies of their latest books in support of Central Florida's Adult Literacy League. For more details, check out the CFRW site. And the first 100 book buyers will receive an awesome goody bag! Hope to see you there!

Also, for the month of November, Coffee Time Romance is hosting a contest for me, where I'll be giving away MIA Case Files: Blood Relations and signed copies of MIA Case Files: Wolfsbane. Stop by and submit an entry!

Game Shows

I wouldn't say I'm a game show junkie.  In fact, I rarely watch any.  However, I've recently rediscovered the Game Show Network and reruns of my absolute favourite game show, Match Game.  I'm not sure anyone understands my fascination, not even me.  I don't even think I was alive when it first came out, and when I watched with my grandma, I was too young to understand most of it.

Nevertheless, there's something endlessly entertaining about the celebrities of the day (which included Richard Dawson and virtually everyone from M*A*S*H*) smoking on set, speaking in innuendo, and shocking the tittering housewife contestants.  And to judge from the attention Richard Dawson got, he must have been some sort of seventies Johnny Depp or George Clooney.  To each his own, I suppose.

This made me recall a Canadian game show, Just Like Mom .  The beginning played out like the Newlywed Game, but instead of "How well do you know your spouse" questions, it was "How well do you know your family" questions.  Mostly boring.  It was the final round that made it all strangely compelling.

The final round was a bake-off.  The kids, which I believe were all under thirteen, were provided with various ingredients and were usually charged with making chocolate chip cookies – without a recipe and under a time limit.  The moms had to taste each one and try to determine which sorry offering her own kid was responsible for.  Sometimes the kids would leave out the chocolate chips.  I mean, you might not have a recipe, but one of the ingredients is in the NAME.

Invariably, at least one kid added ketchup.  Seriously.  Ketchup.  In chocolate chip cookies.  The looks on those women's faces?  Priceless.

But in truth, watching game shows may merely be nostalgia.  I spent a lot of time as a kid watching with my grandma, which may be why I still have a sneaking fondness for The Price is Right.

Review – 2010 DIK Reading Challenge – The Dragonriders of Pern

It's that time again… another DIK Reading Challenge review that snuck up on me! This time, I'm reviewing The Dragonriders of Pern. Which I'm taking to mean the first three books, and not all of Anne McCaffrey's Pern oeuvre — because I've read 'em, I just don't want to review them all here and now!

The three books I'm including are Dragonflight, Dragonquest and The White Dragon. Dragons and riders protected Pern from a deadly invasion from the skies: Thread. At the beginning of Dragonflight, it's been 400 years since the last incursion, and not only have dragons and their riders become indolent and lazy, but the people of Pern are beginning to wonder why they should continue to support the riders with tithes if Thread is no longer a threat.

One rider, F'lar, is convinced Thread is poised to return and intends to rebuild the Weyr to fighting strength…. Assuming he can find the right candidate for the queen dragon egg about to hatch.

The trilogy tells the story of F'lar and Lessa (the new queen rider) and their struggles, both within the Weyr and without, to build up a force to protect Pern, as well as develop other ways to effectively deal with the threat.

The world building is stupendous, the characters are incredibly realistic and the telepathic bond between dragon and rider fulfills, I think, most everyone's fantasy to have an unequivocally loyal friend who always has your best interests at heart. The whole being able to fly on the back of a fire-breathing, intelligent dragon is pretty cool, too. In many ways, Pern brings to mind all the fantasy and romance of the age of chivalry, with the dragon riders as knights (but with a little more equality between the sexes).

I've read these books several times over and my copies are falling apart – testament to how much I love them. I don't even think I read them until close to twenty years after the first one was published, yet I maintain that Anne McCaffrey created one of the best fantasy/sci-fi worlds out there, and filled it with timeless, compelling and emotional stories. I would recommend The Dragonriders of Pern to anyone.

It's Release Day AND blogging at Wyld by Nature!

YAY! Today is release day for MIA Case Files: Blood Relations, now out at Loose Id! I hesitate to call it a sequel to Wolfsbane, because I think it could stand alone.  It takes place a couple of years after Wolfsbane, with Cooper, one of Carmichael's colleagues at MIA, in the hot seat this time. Adam and Carmichael both make appearances, though.

And to celebrate, I'm blogging today at Belinda McBride's Wyld by Nature for her werewolf party! Okay, that was totally coincidental.  I'm talking about my favourite werewolf movie – if you follow me on twitter, you know it's probably not the best one out there! Anyway, stop by and leave a comment — you could win some cool prizes.

My editor was fabulous (again), and Croco Designs did an awesome job on the cover art (again)! I'll post an excerpt shortly.

Vampires vs. Aliens – blogging at Flirty Author Bitches

I'm blogging today at Flirty Author Bitches with another romantic cage match – vampires vs. aliens. Which do you prefer? Commenting at FAB enters you into a draw for some fabulous monthly prizes! And check out Belinda McBride's Wyld by Nature… she's doing a werewolf party everyday until Halloween, with a chance to win some awesome prizes. I'll be blogging there on Oct 26th about my favourite werewolf movie.

YAY! Cover Art!

YAY!  I just got my cover art for the next MIA Case Files book!  I think it's awesome – Croco Designs did my cover art, and I couldn't be happier.  It's supposed to be released soon, so I've posted a blurb below.  No excerpts yet, but I hope to be able post one shortly.

MIA Case Files: Blood Relations – coming Fall 2010 from Loose Id

Blurb:

Agent Cooper Wallace doesn't expect meet the love of his life while hunting an Umbrae-possessed vampire.  Nor does he expect a scorching one night stand to lead to a lasting relationship.  Meeting Frazer Nyland changes a lot of Cooper's expectations, though.  Unfortunately, Cooper also doesn't expect his investigation of missing men to lead him to Frazer's home town and the discovery that the disappearances can all be connected to Frazer.

The police suspect Frazer is a serial killer.  Cooper's agency suspects Frazer is a vicious, bloodthirsty vampire.  Cooper is determined to prove them wrong, despite an obsessive cop who'll stop at nothing to take Frazer down.  But the clues mount up, and Cooper begins to believe Frazer might be the vampire.  The realization comes too late, because Cooper's already done the unforgivable – he's fallen in love with an Umbrae.

If Cooper does his job and closes the Umbrae's portal, at best, he will destroy Frazer's memories of their love.  At worst, Cooper's action will kill Frazer.  Can Cooper do what's right and save the lives of nameless, faceless innocents if the price is the death of the man he loves?

To Scare or Not To Scare – guest blogging at Whipped Cream Reviews

Today, I'm guest blogging at Whipped Cream Reviews about horror as a theme.  Hey, it's October, and I bet no one else has thought of it!    Clichéd or not, please stop by and tell me what's your favourite horror movie/story.

Review – 2010 DIK Reading Challenge – Happy Ending

For this month's DIK reading challenge review, I read L.B. Gregg's Happy Ending, the second in the Men of Smithfield series. It features two very different men, Seth and David, who get to know each other under rather difficult circumstances. Happy Ending started with a humorous scene, very typical of L.B.'s quirky, fun writing style. We're immersed immediately into Seth's arrogance, but it's the arrogance of a self-confident, self-assured man, and his attitude is almost endearing. David, on the other hand, doesn't find him endearing at all.

Quickly though, we discover Seth's arrogance is often a façade to help him deal with his emotional upheaval and the almost bewildering lifestyle change imposed on him by his sister's death, resulting in guardianship of his six year old niece. David, in Seth's eyes, is mercurial and irresponsible, but dealing with a blackmailer, a kidnapper and a persistent ex makes Seth realize there's no one else he can rely on like David, even after discovering the truth about David's closely guarded secrets. Although Seth can hardly believe how much he wants David, he doesn't deny that he does.

This story kept me guessing with unexpected twists and turns, and made for a pretty decent suspense story. But the main driving force was the developing relationship between Seth and David on the backdrop of Seth discovering new depths about himself. I'd hesitate to say he became a different person over the course of the book, but he definitely became more accepting, and his hard edges softened. Both characters were extremely appealing, but so vastly different it was hard to believe, even near the end of the book, that they could possibly make a relationship work. Somehow they do. Seth and David find their own improbable and yet entirely believable and satisfying happy ending. I was very pleased with this follow up to the entertaining Gobsmacked.

My Hellhole Apartment – blogging at Flirty Author Bitches

I'm blogging today at Flirty Author Bitches about my first apartment and how it served (and still serves) to provide inspiration… when it wasn't scaring the crap out of me.  No, wait, that was still inspiring!  Anyway, please stop by.