Alyssa Linn Palmer's Blog, page 27

A few lines on a Sunday….

A few lines from my work in progress, THE ORPHEUS:

“Do you always rough people up when you can’t get your way?”

…..

“Ask the lovely Miss Prescott to explain it to you.”

“I will ask her,” she replied. “But I don’t see why you could just tell me.”

He strode the few steps till he was next to her again. His finger raised her chin and she stared up at him, into his dark blue eyes.

“It’s power,” he said bluntly. “It’s how men like me survive. Now get your coat and I’ll take you to see your mother.”

Guest Post: Marquita Valentine

I’d like to introduce the very lovely Marquita Valentine. She writes fantastic stories, small-town romance with a touch of the supernatural. I can’t recommend them highly enough!

Thanks for having me here today, Alyssa!

In my latest release, Third Time’s a Charm, the heroine, Rose Holland, is kinda witchy. I know what you’re thinking-Kinda? Yeah, kinda…In that her witchiness is almost entirely observed by the hero, Sasha Romanov. However, until almost the end of the book, Sasha explains it all away. Poor insulation, predicted bad weather, faulty wiring, or even being lightheaded from chopping wood. Bless his heart.

For example:

“Don’t play dumb with me, Rosebud.” The front door slammed shut, even though no one was around to close it. The fine hairs on Sasha’s arms rose under his sweater.

“Want to try that again?” Rose’s hands fisted at her sides.

The wind gusted and the chimes hanging from the ceiling danced.  Bad insulation—that was the problem. There was always an explanation when it came to the supposedly supernatural events that surrounded the Hollands.

I’m sure bad insulation is the only reason the front door slammed. And it had nothing to do with the fact that Sasha had just ticked off Rose.

Door-slamming and almost electrocuting the hero, aren’t the only things that Rose may or may not be responsible for. But Rose never admits it. Not once. Which (hee!) I love about her character.

And isn’t there a saying that talks about how it’s always the quiet ones you have to watch out for? Poor Sasha doesn’t have a chance!

What’s your favorite book with a hero or heroine that may or may not have supernatural powers?

And here’s the blurb for Marquita’s latest:

Not even Holland Springs’ Most Notorious Resident can stop this Love Spell.




Customers come to Rose Holland’s apothecary shop for three things: to hear her uncanny matchmaking advice, to buy the “magical” hair and skin products she sells, and to accuse her of trying to steal their men. For years Rose has been entirely innocent and almost content with that status quo. But that was before sexy, smooth-talking Sasha Romanov came to town and made her want to use her love potions on him… until he broke her heart. Now corrupt town officials want to seize her land and sell it to an industrial giant, and her only hope for help looks like the one man she can’t trust—or stop herself from falling under his spell.

Alexander “Sasha” Romanov seems like every woman’s dream: charming, handsome and fabulously rich. But while the people of Holland Springs think he’s in town to generously invest in their economy (and possibly one of their daughters), Sasha struggles to save his sick mother from his vicious uncle’s plans by doing everything the greedy businessman wants. And Vlad Romanov wants Rose Holland’s land—at any cost.

Despite Sasha’s vow to get the job done and keep his hands (and everything else!) off Rose, the blue-eyed witch enchants him. But his mother’s life remains in the balance. Sasha must find a way to protect his mother, sabotage his uncle’s plans, and win the woman who’s captured his heart without destroying everything she loves.

“A refreshing, whimsical contemporary romance with complex characters and bursts of emotion that tugs on your heartstrings. Kept me up till one AM reading!”~ Carly Phillips, NY Times Bestselling Author

Marquita Valentine writes small town romances that are anything but small. Lisa Kleypas, Carly Phillips and Rachel Gibson are among her favorite contemporary authors. Marquita met her husband aka Hot Builder at Sonic when they were in high school. She suggests this location to all of her single friends in search of a good man — and if that doesn’t work, they can console themselves with cheesy tater tots. She lives in North Carolina in a very, very small town with Hot Builder and their two children.

You can find Marquita all over the internet:

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15730301-twice-tempted

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorMarquitaValentine

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/marquitaval

Website: http://marquitavalentine.blogspot.com/

Blog: http://ladyscribes.blogspot.com/

Want to pick up a copy of Third Time’s a Charm? Grab it for Kindle or Nook!

Interview!

Today I’m interviewed over at Jenny Lyn’s blog, in advance of the release of the charity erotic anthology FELT TIPS. Kids who can’t afford school supplies and adults who can’t afford work clothes will benefit from the sales of the book. There are tons of great stories, and I can’t wait for its release.

Check out the interview here: http://www.authorjennylyn.com/2012/09/10/meet-alyssa-linn-palmer/

Article: Language is Music (from the New Yorker)

I just read a fascinating article posted in the New Yorker, by Mary Hawthorne, entitled LANGUAGE IS MUSIC. Most of the piece is a response (from various translators) regarding an editorial by Lawrence Summers in the NYT, which opined that, ‘English’s emergence as the global language, along with the rapid progress in machine translation and the fragmentation of languages spoken around the world, make it less clear that the substantial investment necessary to speak a foreign tongue is universally worthwhile.‘

Naturally, there was much disagreement over his points in numbered paragraph 5. Quite honestly, I do think that learning a second (or third) language is something that ought to be done. It needs to be taught properly at the lower grades, when learning of languages has been shown to be easier. There ought to be more opportunities for immersion, as well. Learning another language is learning a different way to think, a different way to view the world. And, as David Bellos states, ‘mastery of a foreign language is a prerequisite for understanding how to use your own.’

Am I biased? Yes, probably. I would have loved to have decent instruction in French when I was younger, but the teachers I had most years barely knew any more than their students, having (I’m guessing) drawn the short straw or had the free period needing filled. (And, alas, my parents chose not to put me in French immersion schooling, though I think I would have done well.) So now I plod along, working haphazardly to learn a bit more French. To be honest, properly learning a foreign language is a lot of work. With everything else that I do, I just don’t have time to devote hours every day to study.

Still, I’ll keep at it, though progress is slow. In the meantime, I’ll continue reading French works in translation, and maybe someday I’ll know enough French to read Simone de Beauvoir’s ‘L’Invitée’. I have a copy, and it’s waiting for that moment.

Finished!

I finished the first draft of my gangster novel tonight! Of course there’s lots more work to be done (hello transcribing, editing, and the inevitable rewrites.) Here’s the blurb:

THE ORPHEUS is a tumultous tale of gangsters and flappers in 1925 Chicago. Cecilia is a desperate young woman that finds a job as a taxi dancer and meets the love of her life: Nell Prescott, the moll of a top Italian gangster lieutenant named Franky. To evade Franky and in order to be with Nell, she has to pretend to be in love with another, up-and-coming gangster, the Irish-American Patrick Sheridan.

Pride!

I’ll have a proper post later, but here’s a quick pic from today’s Pride celebrations in Calgary!

The awesome Jade Buchanan and I hanging out at the Pride festivities!

Oh my goodness. So busy!

This month has been one of extremes. Too hot outside, and too much work.

I have my fulltime day job, my freelance editing, and then writing on top of that. Plus three cats to snuggle with (fortunately my latter two jobs have some room for cat snuggles).

But there’s a light at the end of the tunnel! I’ve had a few days between editing jobs, and I’m writing fiendishly, trying to get the first draft of my novel THE ORPHEUS finished. Of course then I’ll have to transcribe it, but still, it’ll be brilliant to get it finished.

And that is all. I promise to get back to more regular posting soon.

I’m planning a trip.

It’s still in the very (very!) early stages, but the first thoughts of a trip are starting to slither around in my brain.

I love this stage, where everything’s still possible, and I don’t have to think about how much holiday time it’ll take up, and how I’ll get there, and where I’ll stay. (Though the latter is fun to ponder, especially later in the evening when I’m browsing VRBO.com.)

I like to travel in the spring, before the craziness of summer holiday travel sets in, and before the weather in most of the northern hemisphere gets too hot, although if I’d known that Chicago was going to be almost 100F while I was there, I might have picked another weekend…

And where am I going? Let me give you a hint…

Book review: Skybound, by Aleksandr Voinov

Skybound by Aleksandr Voinov


My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Set in Germany in 1945, Skybound brings us Felix, a young Schwarzer Mann, an airfield mechanic with a great admiration and love for flying ace Baldur Vogt. It’s near the end of the war, and the German aces (Experten) are fiercely trying to defend Berlin as the Allied forces attack.

I was immediately intrigued by the premise of this novella, as I don’t think I’ve ever read a book set in this era from a German point of view. Most fiction (and film) addressing this period tends to be from the Allied POV, and the reality of German soldiers, pilots, etc. is not even considered. I’d also known that Aleks had a thing for WWII history and I wanted to see how his interest translated onto the page.

As a result, I inhaled this novella, reading it in one sitting. It is at once poignant and bitter, heartening and harrowing. And it was thought-provoking, portraying a different mindset than what is often assumed of all German forces–the virulent Nazi beliefs are not shared by all. I love this novella for its story, but also for what I have learned, and I was especially delighted to learn some German terms (aided by the helpful glossary at the back). I would love to read more WWII-set stories from Aleksandr, and I hope he releases some more in the near future.





View all my reviews

Come to the When Words Collide convention!

If you’re in Calgary this coming weekend (August 10-12th, 2012), come check out the When Words Collide convention happening at the Village Park Inn (1804 Crowchild Trail NW).

I’ll be on a panel on Sunday morning at 10 a.m., talking about ‘Romance and Sex Through the Ages’. My fellow panelists are CaRWA members Michelle Beattie and Jade Buchanan, and we also have well-known novelist Kelley Armstrong, too.

And if you plan to stick around all weekend, check out some of the other excellent presentations and panels. I would recommend Saturday morning’s ‘Dead Men Still Talk’ presentation by Det. Sweet of the Calgary Police Service, the readings and Q&As by guest authors (Jack Whyte, Kelley Armstrong, et al.), and the live slush readings. Lots of the presentations and panels are geared towards writers, but if you’re a reader, there’s lots for you too.