I’ve been crippled with a weird stomach bug, but in my illness I have still managed to have the strength to get online and shop. Between trips to toilet to hug the old marble throne, I’ve registered and bought from the eharlequin site. Shit, now that they have that Nocturne line (recommended by Jaynie R), those deals can go to the sort of books I like best– paranormal and fantasy. I know, I know, my determination to spend money on books is astonishing. Did you know they take $4 off your first purchase when you register? And you get like 20% off when you order from the store (the shipping cost does put a dent in my enthusiasm)?

Amber Quill Press has a new gay/lesbian imprint, Amber Allure, which leaves me to ask– where’s the girl on girl action? One stinkin’ novella of the lesbian lovin’ in the WHOLE site? Though, all my bitching aside, I think its a good idea. Now, if you want some manly men making sweet sweet monkey love with other manly men, you can find the genre that you want instead of browsing through the gay/lesbian section looking for a cover that looks like a western or what have you.

Teddy Pig gives us all a lesson on how to organize our ebooks on itunes. Its very neat and he also shows how (with PICTURES) to save your ebooks on a CD. Marvelous!

December Quinn has a great series on choosing publishers up on her blog. Its something that I think that everyone starting out in the ebook business should check out. It could save some heartache later on. Trust me.

Now, my Pretties, I’m going to be sick again so enjoy these tidbits I have gathered for you.

Love Under Siege by Samantha Kane is hot. Really hot. This ebook should come with the warning that your screen will burst into flames and will singe your eyebrows. Not only that, but it has a lot more at its core. Its the story of a women’s (Maggie) sexual awakening that is told with sympathy and honesty (even though in real life, two hot guys wanting to pleasure and treasure you forever doesn’t really happen unless you sold your soul somewhere along the line). And, Maggie isn’t the only one who reaches a sexual maturity and road to understanding. Her two lovers, Philip and Jonathon, go through the same thing as well. That is not to say that Love Under Siege is introspective by any means, but it has a soul to it that is lacking in many erotic romances. You can tell that all three of them love each other and the kinky sex they have doesn’t negate it by any means. This is a threesome written right. Love Under Siege gets an A.

Maggie and Philip have been married for three months and neither are satisfied sexually or emotionally. Philip can’t forget the time he spent in the Peninsula War with Jonathon where they relied on each other and shared everything in order to survive under the harsh Spanish sun. They also shared women. Philip is worried that his naive and virtuous bride would scorn him if she knew of his desires. Yeah, that doesn’t last for long. The plot is very focused on the relationship between Jonathon, Maggie, and Philip with only a few subplots that began and ran in and through Samantha Kane’s other books. Some people might be put off by this, but I thought that the intense focus on the threesome helped make it a real romance. Other threesomes I have read didn’t quite connect all the members of the trio to each other. In Love Under Siege, you can clearly see that everyone is in love with each other. Its like three love stories for the price of one. While the tight focus on the plot was a good thing, I wished that Kane could have woven the subplots a little better into the story. Its not all that noticeable, but it might annoy some readers.

The characters were fun and were a joy to read about. Love Under Siege works well as a stand alone book or in the Brothers In Arms series. If you don’t know, the Brothers In Arms series is about a group of veterans of the Peninsula War who, like Jonathon and Philip, have become very close and may or may not be sharing ladies. She manages to take similar stories and make them all different beyond boy and boy met girl and want to have crazy monkey sex with her. Samantha Kane is good at making characters. I’ve read everything that Kane has written and I have enjoyed them all. Love Under Siege is the best in the series and the best that she has written. Its a great book so if you like menages or historicals then you ought to check it out at Ellora’s Cave. What do you guys think about this book?

Dark Desires by Eve Silver was one of those great old fashioned sort of books with prose that you can sink into. A historical with a good suspenseful element to it, it could satisfy readers of both subgenres. Dark Desires is a Gothic tale that doesn’t pull the punches. I give it an A.

Darcie Finch is on her last leg. She is homeless, family-less, and penniless as she wanders the streets of Whitechapel to find refuge in a brothel. The madam kicks her out and tells her to find employment with a one Dr. Damien Cole. Damien isn’t an ordinary doctor… He practically a mad scientist. Thats what made me love the characters because Eve Silver took chances with them both. Damien seems almost a monster while Darcie still loves him because she takes the time to communicate with him and find out stuff on her own that show him to be a great guy. In the hands of a lesser writer, these characters would have been annoying because, while there were misunderstandings, Silver doesn’t have the characters overreact. Darcie doesn’t flee into the night, almost getting killed, because she sees blood on shirt. She asks about the blood, keeps her suspicions to herself, and remembers it.

The plot and the romance are woven together very well so that neither seems to stick out. There is a murderer on the streets of Whitechapel and Darcie begins to suspect that it could be Damien. She investigates, but not in the usual too-stupid-to-live-way though she does have a few stupid moments which keep her from being a Mary-Sue. Darcie and Damien have flaws and weakness which work with the plot. The story is taut and there seemed not to be an ounce of fat on the book. Every scene and character had a purpose.

One thing that annoyed me was that everything had such a pat ending. Its a happily ever after for everyone, but Silver doesn’t rub it into our faces too much. Dark Desires takes a chapter or so to warm up though after that it grabs you by nose and doesn’t let go.

Dark Desires is a great book. It has great description, prose, and I couldn’t find a historical inaccuracy. Eve Silver is a wonderful storyteller in the Gothic tradition. Dark Desires is published by Kensington for Zebra books. You can find her at evesilver.net.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nIiC5yiNak

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When I saw this I thought of a few vampire heroes in some recent paranormals. This ring anyone else’s bells?

I’m reading Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie and it’s great. I’ll have a review for that and the Virgin Courtesan up soon. Most likely by the weekend. I have a few university matters including a French-Canadian professor and the extreme hard Japanese language to master.

Good News: I already planned out my schedule for next fall.

Bad News: Finals are coming up in three weeks.

Bittersweet News: I ran out of Jellybeans.