Missing: Leigh Riker

Born in northeastern Ohio and a graduate of Kent State University, award-winning author Leigh Riker began her career writing short stories. But with her first novel, HEARTSONG, for Warner Books, she felt she had found her fictional “home.”

After thirteen books in romance and women’s fiction, her passion for writing is as strong as ever. In summer 2009 Harlequin NeXT will re-issue CHANGE OF LIFE along with a new book, THE GO-TO GIRL, in a two-in-one trade paperback.

Riker is a member of the Authors Guild, Novelists Inc., and RWA (Romance Writers of America). She has served as a judge for the RITA awards, the Northwest Houston RWA Lone Star Writing Competition, the Maggies and the Emily contests, among others.

When not reading, writing, or thinking about writing, she enjoys long walks, travel, movies that make her laugh and cry, digging in the garden, growing orchids indoors, and playing the piano—with gusto if not finesse.

At home in the mountains of Tennessee with her husband and cat, she is working on a new novel.

To read more:

http://rosaromance.splinder.com/post/20259544/

Missing: Leigh Riker

Born in northeastern Ohio and a graduate of Kent State University, award-winning author Leigh Riker began her career writing short stories. But with her first novel, HEARTSONG, for Warner Books, she felt she had found her fictional “home.”

After thirteen books in romance and women’s fiction, her passion for writing is as strong as ever. In summer 2009 Harlequin NeXT will re-issue CHANGE OF LIFE along with a new book, THE GO-TO GIRL, in a two-in-one trade paperback.

Riker is a member of the Authors Guild, Novelists Inc., and RWA (Romance Writers of America). She has served as a judge for the RITA awards, the Northwest Houston RWA Lone Star Writing Competition, the Maggies and the Emily contests, among others.

When not reading, writing, or thinking about writing, she enjoys long walks, travel, movies that make her laugh and cry, digging in the garden, growing orchids indoors, and playing the piano—with gusto if not finesse.

At home in the mountains of Tennessee with her husband and cat, she is working on a new novel.

To read more:

http://rosaromance.splinder.com/post/20259544/

Julia Justiss: When Characters Drive the Story

First, thanks for inviting me to your blog. It's always great fun to chat about my favorite thing--my characters! For me, characters drive the story; their goals, motivations and conflicts form the heart of all my books.

For my AAR Favorite Book winner, "A Most Unconventional Match," the main character, Hal Waterman, was the best friend of the hero of my very first book, "The Wedding Gamble." Hal was unusual; having suffered from a stutter as a child, he grew up saying very little and being thought by many to be not too intelligent, although he actually rather brilliant. A "man's man," he is ill-at-ease with ladies. Having him fight a hopeless battle against his attraction to Elizabeth and eventually finding his way to a happy ending was so satisfying for me.

The characters in my new Italian release of "Rogue's Lady" are also dear to me. Allegra grows up in an unconventional home, secure in the love of her parents. Losing them unexpectedly brings her face to face with the reality of how precarious her position in the world really is. She thinks her savior will be the distant cousin she's always admired; certainly not the much-too-attractive Will, who's almost as destitute as she is. But love has a plan of its own...and the beautiful land of her father, Italy, plays its part in bringing that plan to fulfillment. Julia Justiss

To read more:

http://rosaromance.splinder.com/post/20260309/

Julia Justiss: When Characters Drive the Story

First, thanks for inviting me to your blog. It's always great fun to chat about my favorite thing--my characters! For me, characters drive the story; their goals, motivations and conflicts form the heart of all my books.

For my AAR Favorite Book winner, "A Most Unconventional Match," the main character, Hal Waterman, was the best friend of the hero of my very first book, "The Wedding Gamble." Hal was unusual; having suffered from a stutter as a child, he grew up saying very little and being thought by many to be not too intelligent, although he actually rather brilliant. A "man's man," he is ill-at-ease with ladies. Having him fight a hopeless battle against his attraction to Elizabeth and eventually finding his way to a happy ending was so satisfying for me.

The characters in my new Italian release of "Rogue's Lady" are also dear to me. Allegra grows up in an unconventional home, secure in the love of her parents. Losing them unexpectedly brings her face to face with the reality of how precarious her position in the world really is. She thinks her savior will be the distant cousin she's always admired; certainly not the much-too-attractive Will, who's almost as destitute as she is. But love has a plan of its own...and the beautiful land of her father, Italy, plays its part in bringing that plan to fulfillment. Julia Justiss

To read more:

http://rosaromance.splinder.com/post/20260309/

Update on Italy's earthquake

Since I received four different mails in the last few minute asking me how I was, I believe that the news of the earthquake in Italy is spread also outside the country.

Thank to all people who wrote to me and if you want, my email address is always open to friend, but maybe it's better if I post a little update: I'm fine, I live in the North and the earthquake was in the South.

It was pretty bad apparently, and I'm near to all my friends who live near there. My thoughts are with you.

Update on Italy's earthquake

Since I received four different mails in the last few minute asking me how I was, I believe that the news of the earthquake in Italy is spread also outside the country.

Thank to all people who wrote to me and if you want, my email address is always open to friend, but maybe it's better if I post a little update: I'm fine, I live in the North and the earthquake was in the South.

It was pretty bad apparently, and I'm near to all my friends who live near there. My thoughts are with you.

Man Candy Day: Alberto Apocada

Poor Alberto is in my stable waiting to be posted probably since the beginning of the Man Candy Day appointment. I found him really cute, not the classical model type, but maybe for this reason even more appealing.

I didn't post him before since I had the impression, that Alberto is not a professional model, I really don't know nothing about his private life, but I think he modelled for Jeff Brewster more than to do a favor to a friend than for a real interest in a modelling career. So probably I wouldn't have never posted him if not for the fact that artists seem to find Alberto (and Jeff Brewster's pictures) a source of inspiration; I have already found two different painters that rendered one of those pictures in a paint, and it's not like I have a huge knowledge of the art world, so I bet there are more out there.



( more pics )

Alberto Apocada is a middle twenty old Texan of Latin-American origin, who didn’t think himself to be model-material. Luckily Jeff Brewster though otherwise. Over the past 3 years, Alberto has not only become one of Jeff’s most anticipated models, the two of them are also best of friends.



( Alberto Apocada's rendering by Yuliang Wu )

( Alberto Apocada's rendering by Cody Furguson )

@BeautifulMag - Jeff Brewster
@BeautifulMag - Jeff Brewster
@BeautifulMag - Jeff Brewster
@BeautifulMag - Jeff Brewster

Man Candy Day: Alberto Apocada

Poor Alberto is in my stable waiting to be posted probably since the beginning of the Man Candy Day appointment. I found him really cute, not the classical model type, but maybe for this reason even more appealing.

I didn't post him before since I had the impression, that Alberto is not a professional model, I really don't know nothing about his private life, but I think he modelled for Jeff Brewster more than to do a favor to a friend than for a real interest in a modelling career. So probably I wouldn't have never posted him if not for the fact that artists seem to find Alberto (and Jeff Brewster's pictures) a source of inspiration; I have already found two different painters that rendered one of those pictures in a paint, and it's not like I have a huge knowledge of the art world, so I bet there are more out there.



( more pics )

Alberto Apocada is a middle twenty old Texan of Latin-American origin, who didn’t think himself to be model-material. Luckily Jeff Brewster though otherwise. Over the past 3 years, Alberto has not only become one of Jeff’s most anticipated models, the two of them are also best of friends.



( Alberto Apocada's rendering by Yuliang Wu )

( Alberto Apocada's rendering by Cody Furguson )

@BeautifulMag - Jeff Brewster
@BeautifulMag - Jeff Brewster
@BeautifulMag - Jeff Brewster
@BeautifulMag - Jeff Brewster

The White Knight by Josh Lanyon

The Dark Horse was the first book I read by Josh Lanyon... yes I know, I haven't read the Adrien Mysteries series, at least not from the beginning, and I know that is wonderful, too many people keep saying it to me, but at the time, I was more hooked by that story on a movie star and the detective who helps him against a crazy stalker. Probably I was expecting hot sex behind the scenes and the usual media scandals, maybe even the classical Hollywood scene of the red carpet where finally the actor admits his love for a man... and instead I found a couple in the aftermath of something huge, the stalker is already dead, the two heroes started a not simple relationship, and apparently Sean, the actor, is becoming crazy, if he wasn't yet crazy even before.

In the previous book we discovered that Sean is not imagining things and that there is another stalker in his life, someone he would never suspect. Dan again becomes his hero, but at the same time he is his worst enemy: Dan is not accepting that Sean is playing the role of the perfect balanced man. Sean has problems, bigger ones, he is in denial; he faces them in his own way, forcing himself to accept things that his mind is trying to refusing, like sex with a man, and running away when faced with the true.

The second book starts with Sean who is another time in danger, but this time he is far from Dan... he ran away, as usual, with the excuse to filming a movie in Galles. Even if before leaving he played the role of the lover who couldn't understand why Dan wasn't accepting, it's quite obvious that it was the perfect chance for Sean to not face again the truth; it was unthinkable for Dan to leave his work for more than three months, and Sean made everything possible to put Dan in front of an accomplished fact. Now in Galles Sean was victim of an accident, or maybe of an attempt murder, and he lost his recent memory; the only thing he remembers is that he loves Dan and he wants him near him, and Dan arrives, without questions or delaying.

Sean is again all sweetness and words of undying love, but Dan this time doesn't buy it all; I like this double face of Dan, strong an unyielding in front of Sean, wanting from him to admit his mistakes and take measures for them, but at the same time protective and gentle, never leaving him alone. One of the fault I probably found in the previous book was that Sean and Dan's outside images were sometime stronger than their private side: this was maybe the reason why I felt the need to read something more on how they met and fell in love, and the reason for why they decided to live together. The second book fills completely that void, giving to Sean and Dan's feelings and reasons a main role, and letting the mystery in the background, almost nonexistent.

During Sean's recovery, he replays in his mind two different timeline of his life with Dan: their first moment together, before the events that took place in book 1, and the aftermath of that book, when they tested their living together and Sean's inability to admit that he needed help. Don't get me wrong, it seems quite like Dan is the perfect knight in shining armor and Sean a shrinking violet who needs a shrink (pun intended); it's not exactly like that, Sean has only had very bad and negative experience with the doctor professional category and he needs time to trust them again. Dan on the other side is the perfect partner, supportive and attentive, with the right dose of protectiveness; maybe he should have more faith in Sean, and doesn't worry too much if the man goes 3 months away for work. But also Dan has to have some faults, a too perfect hero would be too much boring, so he is instead a knight in shining, and a bit cracked, armor, that is even better.

Again the book is not what I was expecting (no big Hollywood scenes) but nevertheless a book that got me hooked till the end. And this time for me it's complete, not loose ends, the love story is full, developed and nicely tightened up.

http://www.loose-id.com/prod-The_White_Knight-911.aspx

Series:
1) The Dark Horse: http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/72908.html
2) The White Knight

Reading List:

http://www.librarything.com/catalog_bottom.php?tag=reading list&view=elisa.rolle