Jane Litte's Blog, page 942

REVIEW: At Last by Jill Shalvis

Dear Ms.Shalvis,

At Lastis the fifth book you’ve written set in the small Washington State coastal town of Lucky Harbor. I’ve read all five and, as I began this one, I wondered if the charms of that happy hamlet might finally begin to pale for me. They did not. In fact, inAt Last, Lucky Harbor is an extraordinary place to live—everyone there seems to have enough money to live safely, health care is available to all, and, even though there are only two places to go out to eat, the Love Shack ba...

Friday Midday Links: YA fiction permeating every area of publishing

2012 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award (ABNA) winners – Amazon and Penguin Group (USA) Name Alan Averill and Regina Sirois Winners of 2012 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award Contest. Both receive publishing contracts and a $15,000 advance from Penguin Group. A shortlist is compiled byauthors, agents and editors and the customers of Amazon voted for the winners.

Regina Sirois was born and raised outside of Kansas City. She minored in Creative Writing, but never found the right inspiration for a stor...

Friday Film Review: Bridesmaids

Bridesmaids (2011)

Genre: Comedy/Romance

Grade: B+

“You kind of stole all the crazy.”

“I out-crazied you.”

Okay, the fact that I reviewed “Bad Santa” last year should tell y’all I have no shame about watching and recommending gross-out movies. Still I hesitated on this one awhile before deciding to give it a shot. The critics’ reviews were pretty good but when a friend told me about the “intestinal distress while in bridesmaids dress situ” scene, I wavered. Did I really want to watch a film where...

Daily Deals Post: New Style

In a book called The Art of Choosingastudy performed by a behavioral psychologist recounts how shoppers who have large number of choices are paralyzed and end up choosing nothing. Reduce the choice to a few and people take action. The result of the experiment is that too much choice inhibits action. In the past, I’ve tried to post all of the deals for books, but I’ve come to believe that this posting is not as helpful as it could be.

Based on this theory, I’ve decided to post just four deals a...

REVIEW: One Moment by Kristina McBride

Dear Ms. McBride,

I’ve been in a reading slump lately. It’s probably the result of a speculative fiction overdose. I love these genres but sometimes a girl needs a change. When I saw your novel offered up on NetGalley, I decided to give it a look. I always say I need to read more contemporary YA. And while your book isn’t perfect and I had a few major gripes, I’m glad I gave your work a try.

[image error]Maggie has always been one of six close friends who’ve known each other since childhood. Their junior ye...

Thursday Midday Links

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Short Sharp Science: Double rainbow all across the sky – seen from space – “This satellite image shows both “glories” – the rainbow-like lines stretching diagonally through the centre of the image – and von Karman vortex clouds. We can see the Pacific island of Guadalupe in the top right corner in this image from NASA’s Aqua satellite taken on June 20 this year.” New Scientist

News Corp.’s Board Approves Split in Principle – WSJ.com – “One company will house entertainment businesses like 20th...

REVIEW: His Heart’s Obsession by Alex Beecroft

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“Kingston, Jamaica, 1752

Robert Hughes, a lieutenant–and rogue–in the British Royal Navy, is in love with his gorgeous fellow officer, Hal Morgan. Hal only has eyes for their captain–a man who’ll never share their inclinations. Night after night aboard the Swiftsure, it kills Robert to listen to Hal’s erotic dreams of a man he can’t possibly have. Determined to protect his friend, Robert stages a seduction.

But Hal demands proof of love before he will submit to the rakish Robert.

Mission accepte...

REVIEW: Scandal Wears Satin by Loretta Chase

Dear Ms. Chase:

The very nature of this series presents a problem or at the very least requires a huge suspension of disbelief of the reader. The first book, Silk is for Seduction, portrays the romance between a dressmaker and a Duke in England. The second book pairs another dressmaker with an Earl. Needless to say, this is akin to lightning striking the same spot twice in one storm.

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Yet, I’m willing to move beyond that incredulous platform because your work, for me, has been so stellar. Your w...

Debut Print Book: Can’t Buy Me Love by MollyO’Keefe

I’ve had some concerns by readers who are primarily print readers that the coverage at Dear Author has been too focused on ebooks. When I asked the readers what they were interested in seeing, they responded that they would like to know more about print debut authors. We developed a little questionnaire and every Wednesday at 10:00 AM CST (as long as we have content) we’ll post the questionnaire answers along with links to the author’s site and a buy link to her book. I hope this helps people...

Wednesday Midday Links: Libraries search for better deals to provide digital lending to customers

Califa Lands $325,000 in Funding for Ebook Ownership Project; Deal Close With Smashwords — The Digital Shift – “The San Mateo-based Califa Group, which is the largest library network in California, has made major strides in its project to create an ebook ownership model along the same lines as the Douglas County Libraries in Colorado. Califa has substantially increased its funding for the project from an initial $30,000 to $325,000, and Contra Costa County Library is going to be the pilot lib...