October Wrap-Up

Well, this is kind of an abbreviated wrap-up, as I'll explain below.  October started out with a bang and ended with a whimper...

What I read (I stopped keeping track around the middle of the month but this is what I remember reading):
1.  Seduction of a Highland Lass by Maya Banks (3 stars)
2.  Never Love a Highlander by Maya Banks (4 stars)
3.  If I Tell by Janet Gurtler (4 stars)
4.  Drink Deep by Chloe Neill (4 stars)
5.  Legend by Marie Lu (4 stars)
6.  Sold to the Highest Bidder by Donna Alward (3 stars)
7.  A Novel Seduction by Gwyn Cready (4 stars)
8.  Darker Still by Leanna Renee Heiber (4 stars) (review tomorrow)
9.  Long Time Coming by Scarlett Parrish (4 stars)
10. Fifty Shades of Grey by E L James (5 stars)*
11. Fifty Shades Darker by E L James (5 stars)*
12.  Forever Mine by Elizabeth Reyes (3 1/2 stars)
13.  Come Monday by Mari Carr (3 stars)
14.  Home Sweet Home by Bella Riley (1 star)
15.  Sins of the Highlander by Connie Mason (3 stars) (review to come)

*I know this series is a bit "controversial", but I loved both books (apparently it was originally Twilight fanfic, and while I could point out the similarities, it's definitely it's own story)!  Were there some problems?  Sure there were, but it's been a while since I read something that grabbed my attention and held it as I breathlessly turned each page, waiting to find out what was going to happen next. For that reason alone I gave them 5 stars. Christian is my latest book boyfriend.  Yes, he's fifty shades of fucked up, but man he's sexy!!!  Can. Not. Wait. for the next book, Fifty Shades Freed, out in January.

Pam reviewed:
1.  Lethal by Sandra Brown (4 stars)
2.  Riversong by Tess Hardwick (4 stars)
3.  Caressed by Moonlight by Amanda Greene (3 1/2 stars)
4.  Unleashed by Sara Humphries (3 1/2 stars)

I did a character interview with Chloe Neill - Merit's grandfather, Chuck Merit.  That was my first "character interview" and it was fun...

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(me, Janna, Leontine)

GayRomLit came to New Orleans in October, and while I did not go to the conference, I did get to meet some of the bloggers who came into town!  First I met the lovely Leontine (Leontine's Book Realm) and Janna (Rarely Dusty Books), who came in from the Netherlands a week early.  We spent a day running around the French Quarter and I took them out to a Barnes & Noble just for kicks.  We found a little bookshop I'd been wanting to visit - Faulkner House Books.  They filled my kids with candy and then we parted ways :)

The next weekend the rest of the group came in:  Kris (Kris n' Good Books), Chris (Stumbling Over Chaos), Kassa (three am), Tam (Tam's Reads), and Tracey (Tracey's Place).  I met them for drinks Thursday night at Lafitte's in Exile, where we were treated to drinks made by Jimmy, a most excellent bartender, and naked and semi-naked guys on the bar.  Saturday night I met the ladies at the GRL wine and cheese party, then headed out to the gay bar crawl.  It was a bit unorganized, and we didn't stay with the group for long...and ended up back at Lafitte's.  There might have been too many alcoholic beverages consumed, and someone might have been sick the next day, but I'm not telling *winks*...  It was such an awesome experience to meet these ladies - they were all so lovely and I had a genuinely good time.  For someone who gets very anxious in social situations, that's saying a lot.

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And lastly, I announced that after 2 1/2 years, I'm shutting down the ol' blog.  As I mentioned in my post, I do have a few books left to review, but I think I'll have everything wrapped up by the end of December (with a LOT of help from Pam...she's a lifesaver, truly).  It's not one specific thing, but a lot of little things - basically what it boils down to is that I can no longer juggle work, family, and the blog - something had to give and giving up work and/or family was not an option.  (If I ever win the lottery I'll be back in action, lol)   So....I'm still very sad about it but it is what it is.

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I've got some great reads coming up this month that I'm pretty excited about.  

What are you looking forward to in November?