West Houston RWA

Reviewed by Ellen Watkins

Annie MacAllister has never had a second chance in her life. Until now. And when she finally escapes the horrible existence she’s been forced into, she grabs it. Because Annie is, above all, a survivor. And once she comes into her own, she discovers a faith in her soul that she never knew existed. Annie becomes a schoolteacher in a small Texas town in 1885. Her second chance takes her into a wonderful world that she has never known, and she works hard to be worthy of it. She learns, she teaches, and her innate goodness earns her the love of the town and the people she serves. One of those people is John Sullivan.

John is a member of the school board, who has hired Annie sight unseen, and entrusts the children of the community to her care. John is a good man, but his respect for his heritage has led him to become a man he thinks is worthy of his history, without looking into his heart, his feelings, his faith. Annie is so afraid of men in general that she fights her feelings for John. He is so caught up in his history that he’s slow to come to recognize his feelings for Annie. But when he finally realizes that he loves Annie, she is able to admit that she’s loved him almost since they first met. Annie’s faith comes to her quickly, as a revelation, a luxury allowed after living so long just to survive. John’s faith comes later, as a surprise to him, allowing him to be himself and not only the man his history expects. But Annie has secrets, and she’s kept them. Until she can’t.

A secret that must be kept, a precious kitten, a terrible prairie fire on the Texas plain, an unwelcome visitor from the past: all these things come together to create the crucible that make Annie and John finally realize that their love is forever. They also make Jane Myers Perrine’s story unforgettable. I can say only this: Jane gets better with every book.

REAL VAMPIRES DON’T DIET by Gerry Bartlett
Reviewed by Vicky Dreiling

Glory St. Clair is back for more hilarious vampire misadventures.

Glory’s plans for a romantic New Year’s Eve fizzle out like a flat bottle of champagne. Her on-again, off-again hunky highlander boyfriend, Jeremy Blade, must rescue his supposed daughter. Dateless and ticked, Glory decides to spend the evening watching chick flicks to the annoyance of her trusty guard dog Valdez. But even these plans go awry when she learns newbie vampire and rock star Ray Caine is getting drunk. Knowing the booze will lead to the hang-over from Hades, Glory rushes off to Ray’s wild soiree to save him.

A nocturnal boat ride with Ray on Lake Travis turns awry when a hideous siren named Aggie lures them with her call and then paralyzes them. Aggie needs to deliver three vampires to Circe in order to break a curse. Ray manages to sweeten up Aggie by singing to her. Now he and Glory must find three replacement male vamps for Aggie or risk the wrath of Circe. They’re determined to deliver some bad vamps (readers of the other Real Vampire books will recall the evil energy vamps). To do so, Ray and
Glory enter into a faux engagement.

The fourth installment of the Real Vampires series is every bit as fun and fast-paced as the previous
three. New readers will catch on quickly and will want to snatch up the other books as well.

DRIVE ME WILD by PJ Mellor
Reviewed by Robin Haseltine

PJ Mellor’s “Drive Me WIld” demonstrates her tongue in cheek (no pun intended) sense of humor in this engaging hot, hot, hot romp with twins. Three related short stories had me saddened, slavering, and smiling as two sets of delectable twins sort out their relationships with both their siblings and significant others. The author does a great job of putting the reader in a twin’s shoes, helping us to understand the pleasures and pitfalls of seeing your face on someone else.

In “Double Trouble,” twin Ryan swaps situations with ne’er do well brother Braedon. Ryan might take a beating for his brother, but Brae’s fiance, Penny, makes him all better. I stood and cheered when Penny got her man — the right one.

“Double the Pleasure””s Meg and Suz engage in dueling climaxes, a unique take on how sympatico
twins might be, in the dreaded high school reunion setting that has the=2 0reader ultimately cringing and chuckling.

PJ doesn’t leave us hanging, because all the loose ends, in this case the loose twins, tie the knot in
“Double the Fun.” “Drive Me Wild” will leave the reader feeling they’ve gotten triple the fun.

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Fat Nude Writing: Find your Raw Voice and Revel in It! (AM session)

Critically acclaimed novelist and NYT bestselling memoirist Joni Rodgers speaks about stripping away self-doubt, plumping up authentic voice, and producing work that is both personally fulfilling and market friendly. Illustrating with her own adventures in the industry (starting with The Worst Possible Way to Become a Published Author and moving on to Don’t Hate Me Because I’m Beautiful—Hate Me Because I Get Paid!), Joni shares what she’s learned and inspires you to explore the art, craft, and business of writing with lots of laughter along the way.

Boxing the Octopus: Eight Strategies for Mastering the Many-Tentacled Beast that is the Writing Life (PM Session)

Literary working girls Colleen Thompson and Joni Rodgers go live with some of the lessons and laughter found on the BtO blog, offering thinky thoughts and hard-learned advice, plus plenty of Q&A on balancing the eight challenges that can punch a writer’s lights out:

• Building the Book
• Managing Research
• Critique Group Dynamics
• Querying
• Agent Relations
• Publishing Process
• Getting Paid
• Artistic Being and Wellbeing

Joni Rodgers’ Bio:

Born into a family bluegrass band, Joni Rodgers grew up on stage and voiced over 3,700 radio and television commercials before being diagnosed with cancer at age 32. She used the chemo downtime to complete her first two novels and place them unagented with small but prestigious literary presses. In addition to her syndicated and national magazine columns, she’s contributed to Family Circle, Rosie, Lifetime, The Houston Chronicle, and other periodicals. Joni’s hilarious memoir Bald in the Land of Big Hair was published by Harper Collins in 2001, excerpted in Good Housekeeping and Chicken Soup For the Soul, condensed by Reader’s Digest, and released worldwide by Bertlesmann and Headline Hodder. She’s since worked as a celebrity memoir guru, ghostwriting the lives of the rich and famous at Random House and Simon & Schuster. Her third novel, The Secret Sisters, was a hardcover released from Harper Collins in 2006.

Colleen Thompson’s Bio:

Former Houston-area teacher Colleen Thompson is the RITA-nominated author of fourteen novels, from American-set historical romances (written as Gwyneth Atlee for Kensington) to her current fast-paced, sensual romantic suspense (written for Dorchester). In addition to writing novels, Colleen is a frequent contributor to magazines such as Writer’s Digest and The Romance Writers Report and habitual workshop presenter. Neither of which gets her out of writing synopses.

Happy New Year! As we ring in 2009, there is a lot to celebrate as we have a double dose ofthe good news. So grab some champagne and give a toast to the following! First up is KERRELYN SPARKS, whose latest release, All I Want for Christmas is a Vampire, passed three weeks on the printed New York Times bestseller list, three weeks onthe USA Today and Borders bestseller lists, and over two weeks on the Publishers Weekly list. Kerrelyn was also interviewed by USAToday, and that can be seen at http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/news/2008-11-05-book-buzz-_N.htm. However, that wasn’t all as Kerrelyn was thrilled to discover All I Want for Christmas is a Vampire was mentioned in Newsweek magazine. Tosee the article online, go to http://www.newsweek.com/id/172558. Thanks to great promo like this, All IWant for Christmas is a Vampire went into its fourth printing within the first month of its release. For info on the next two back-to-back books from the Love at Stake series, please visit www.kerrelynsparks.com.

It’s award nomination time. CHRISTIE CRAIG’s second romantic suspense, Weddings Can Be Murder is a Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice nominee in the Romantic Suspense Category. Chicken Soup for the Soul also reprinted two of Christie’s stories in the Dads & Daughters edition.

Another RT award nominee is KIM LENOX, whose first book in the Shadow Guard series, Night Falls Darkly, has been nominated by Romantic Times Magazine for Best First Historical Romance. Kim also announces the sale of the third book in her Signet Eclipse Shadow Guards Series, currently untitled. Way to go, Kim.

Romance Novel TV nominated SHARIE KOHLER’s novel Marked by Moonlight for Best Debut novel. Congrats and good luck!

With more sale news, GERRY BARTLETT reports that she is happy to have a new contract for book 5 in the Glory St. Clair Real Vampires series for Berkley Publishing. No title yet, but Gerry’s calling it Real Vampires Hate Their Thighs, but doubts that title will stick. The book should be a late 2009 release right after the mass-market release of Real Vampires Get Lucky and Real Vampires Don’t Diet.

COLLEEN THOMPSON’s books are going global. Colleen is pleased to announce the sale of Bulgarian translation rights to two of her romantic suspense novels, Fatal Error and The Deadliest Denial. Her romantic suspense The Salt Maiden sold to Poland and she reports the publication of her second German translation,that of The Deadliest Denial. Also, look for an article in the February 2009 Romance Writer’s Report. "Secrets of Starving Artists" offers financial survival tips for writers, including a number of authors’ own economicsurvival tips—a must for these lean times.

Making her 48th sale, PATRICIA KAY has just agreed to take part in a second Hunt for Cinderella seriesfor Silhouette Special Edition. Hunt for Cinderella II – Seeking Prince Charming will feature the four female “cousins” of the Hunt Brothers, introduced a year ago to SSE readers. The new book has a pub date of February 2010.

In another sale to Special Edition, and to editor Susan Litman, JUDY DUARTE’s next three works of romance sold in a three-book deal for publication in 2010, by her agent Karen Solem at Spencerhill Associates.

Speaking of Susan Litman, JO ANNE BANKER finaled in the "Launching A Star" contest in the Series Contemporary category with her new WIP, This Child is Mine. It’s the first contest try for this manuscript, so Jo Anne is happy that the final garnered her a request from Susan Litman of Harlequin. Jo Annealso reports that although she did not final in the NOLA Stars Suzannah contest, she was pleased with her scores, which were the equivalent of ninety-seven and a half out of one hundred – at least, until she found out that barely got her into the top twenty percent. Contests – you gotta love ‘em.

Hooray for DONNA MALOY, who won first place in the YA category of the 2008 On The Far Side contest. The contest is sponsored by the FF&P (Fantasy, Futuristic and Paranormal) chapter. Her entry, a dark Victorian fantasy for young adults, is called Enshadowed — a made-up word she felt had lots of "atmosphere." She was going to purchase that domain name, just in case, but found out somebody else had the same idea; Enshadowed belongs to the World of Warcraft online gaming colony! But she still thinks it will make a great book title.

In another contest final, SARAH CASTLEBERRY’S new story Notorious finaled in the RWA-East Texas Chapter Southern Heat Contest, Single Title. The manuscript now goes to an editor with Harlequin/MIRA. Sarah has also sent a partial of Notorious to an editor at Dorchester who requested at Nationals. Crossing our fingers for good news!

REE RENZI or as the West Houston RWA knows her, Gerri Hanten, received First Place in the sensual category with River Time from the Ohio Valley RWA 2008 Summer Sizzle Contest.

In non writing, but still impressive honors, the Clear Lake Area Chamber of Commerce conferred Diplomat of the Year on HBA member CHUCK EMERSON at the Chamber’s annual Chairman’s Ball, held Nov. 1 at South Shore Harbour Resort. Diplomats perform host and welcoming functions at most Chamber functions. As a memento this year (his third win in the last four years), Chuck received a sterling silver and 14k goldkey ring and fob. Chuck reports he “was so happy just to be able to finally get out of the house after last year’s broken ribs and surgery.”

Those interested in learning more about Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire portrayed by Keira Knightley in the recent film, DUCHESS, can get the real scoop at CHERYL BOLEN’s website, www.cherylbolen.com. For a comprehensive article on Georgiana, check out Cheryl’s article in the section on "Articles on the Regency." This first appeared in the Regency Plume. For a shorter article, check out Cheryl’s review of Amanda Foreman’s book, GEORGIANA, DUCHESS OF DEVONSHIRE, which is listed under "Cheryl’s Reviews ofGeorgian/Regency Reference Books." The movie was (very loosely) based on Foreman’s 1999 best selling book.

Speaking of books, TERA LYNN CHILDS received ARCs for her second book, Goddess Boot Camp and reports they are just beautiful.

A big hip hip hooray to JO ANN ROBISHEAUX, whose first book was released Dec. 12. She had her firstbook signing on Dec. 21 at Katy Budget Books. Fresh Start can be purchased at Katy Budget Books and theusual online merchants. Jo Ann’s pen name is Claire Sanders. Her next book signing will be held at Brazos Bookstore on Feb. 7, 11:00 am – 5:00 pm!

P.J. MELLOR is pleased to announce an RT rating of 4 1/2 stars for her upcoming January 2009 release, Drive Me Wild, from Kensington Aphrodisia.

And a big congrats to TERI THACKSTON whose paranormal romance Final Words has finaled in EPICs Eppie contest!

Finally, and I’m sure to repeat it in upcoming columns, be sure to look for a story by JODY PAYNE in the March issue of True Love Magazine. Congrats Jody on your sale.

And tooting my own horn a little, MICHELE DUNAWAY (me!) has been asked to be a featured speaker atthe JEA/NSPA National Spring Convention in Phoenix in April. The committee selected Michele based on her being both an award-winning journalism teacher and a published author. I have no clue what I’m going to talk about, but I have to write a 30-minute speech to present in front of what could be 200 people. Eke!

West Houston RWA is very proud to announce the finalists of The Emily
2009 in alphabetical order:

Single Title

• Desperate Situations by Angela Abderhalden
• Missing by Christine Barth
• Something Old, Something New, Something Dead by Cher Gorman
• Kingdom on Fire by Yvonne Harris w/a Leslie Lacoste
• Tuesday’s Child by Dale Mayer
• How Internet Dating Ruined My Life: A Love Story by Vivi Andrew

Paranormal

• Carpe Diem by Pamela Callow
• Touch of Twilight by Clarissa Ellison
• Ghost Planet by Sharon Fisher
• Deyrolle by Lark Howard**
• Jinn and Tonic by Kay Hudson**
• Better Dead by Pamela Kopfler

Historical

• Hidden Beauty by Tiffany Chalmers
• Vigilante’s Bride by Y.L. (Yvonne) Harris
• Border Laird’s Bride by Allison Withers

Series

• This Child Is Mine by Jo Anne Banker**
• Witch Ever Way You Can by Deborah Blake
• Second Chance For a Family by Kim Grooms
• The Lawman’s Baby by Lyn Wagner
• Where There’s a Will by Kimberley Wenger

The Emily 2009 winners will be announced at our Emily Awards ceremony on
February 14th, 2009. Best of luck to all our finalists!

** Denotes WHRWA members