Thursday, November 21, 2013

The Best Victim Begins November 26th

If you're like me, there are a few special shows you're so hooked on, you tune in every week and never miss an episode. My next full-length romantic thriller, The Best Victim, will be released in that same fashion, with each weekly episode ending in cliff-hanger fashion, beginning with Episode One's release on Nov. 26th.



Here's the cover copy, to whet your appetite:

You don’t deserve to live.
The ugly words delivered online finally hit their mark. The younger sister of web security specialist Lauren Miller took the taunts to heart—and took her own life. Devastated, introverted Lauren has nowhere else to turn but the arms of a man who shares a similar pain…and a burning need for vengeance.
FBI agent Brent Durant is determined to unmask the Troll King, a vicious Internet stalker he suspects of preying on the weak, goading his victims into suicide. Victims like Lauren’s sister. Working off the grid as a rogue agent, Brent risks it all—even his freedom—to bait the clever killer. But when he involves Lauren in his deadly game, their unexpected chemistry complicates an already tangled web. With his dark obsession all-consuming, can there be any room in Brent’s life for the passion Lauren stirs within him?

What's been fascinating to me, as I embarked on this venture with Amazon's Montlake Romance, is that the serial is nothing new at all. So many of the books we now consider classics were originally published this way, from Tolstoy's Anna Karenina to Jack London's Call of the Wild to a host of Dickens' classics, including David Copperfield. Eager readers followed the story via their favorite magazines and newspapers. Only later were the episodes compiled in a single volume.

These days, serials such as The Best Victim are usually first published electronically, delivered weekly to the readers' Kindle devices for one low price ($1.99, in my case, for all the episodes). Once the novel is completed, usually in about 9-10 episodes, it will then be published (at a higher price point) as a single volume, in electronic, paperback, and audio editions.

Writing the book has been both a delight--I love these characters so much--and a challenge, as I'm frequently composing one episode, doing developmental edits on another, and sometimes also copyediting a third! Fortunately, I plotted the book in detail ahead of time and outlined which events would occur in which sections, which has proven crucial in keeping me on track.

If you're a Kindle reader, I hope you'll consider preordering or jumping in with the episodes at any point. If you'd prefer, however, late April will mark the release of the full-length novel.

Happy reading!

Thursday, November 14, 2013

THE POETS LAUREATE ANTHOLOGY educates, entertains, and on occasion, confuses



As a record of poetry, The Poets Laureate Anthology is groundbreaking, charting the course of American poetry over the last seventy-five years, while being, at the same time, a pleasure to read, full of some of the world’s best-known poems and many new surprises. Elizabeth Hun Schmidt has gathered and introduced poems by each of the forty-three poets who have been named our nation’s poets laureate since the post (originally called Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress) was established in 1937. Poets range from Robert Pinsky, William Carlos Williams, and Elizabeth Bishop to Charles Simic, Billy Collins, and Rita Dove. Schmidt’s spirited introductions place the poets and their poems in historical and literary context and shine light on the interesting and often uneasy relationship between politics and art. This is an inviting, monumental collection for everyone’s library, containing much of the best poetry written in America over the last century. 43 black-and-white photographs

Friday, November 08, 2013

ALL THE TRUTH THAT'S IN ME by Julie Berry is like Speak meets The Crucible


Four years ago, Judith and her best friend disappeared from their small town of Roswell Station. Two years ago, only Judith returned, permanently mutilated, reviled and ignored by those who were once her friends and family.
Unable to speak, Judith lives like a ghost in her own home, silently pouring out her thoughts to the boy who’s owned her heart as long as she can remember—even if he doesn’t know it—her childhood friend, Lucas.
But when Roswell Station is attacked, long-buried secrets come to light, and Judith is forced to choose: continue to live in silence, or recover her voice, even if it means changing her world, and the lives around her, forever.
ALL THE TRUTH THAT'S IN ME will shock and disturb you; it will fill you with Judith’s passion and longing; and its mysteries will keep you feverishly turning the pages until the very last.


Tuesday, November 05, 2013

ELEMENTS OF STYLE by Strunk & White is the best book to have on your shelf


Every English writer knows Strunk and White's The Elements of Style. The book’s mantra, make every word tell, is still on point. This much-loved classic, now in its fourth edition, will forever be the go-to guide when in need of a hint to make a turn of phrase clearer or a reminder on how to enliven prose with the active voice. The only style manual to ever appear on bestseller lists has explained to millions of readers the basic principals of plain English, and Maira Kalman’s fifty-seven exquisite illustrations give the revered work a jolt of new energy, making the learning experience more colorful and clear.


Saturday, November 02, 2013

MARCH Book One by John Lewis aims to get youth politically involved


MARCH is a vivid first-hand account of John Lewis' lifelong struggle for civil and human rights, meditating in the modern age on the distance traveled since the days of Jim Crow and segregation. Rooted in Lewis' personal story, it also reflects on the highs and lows of the broader civil rights movement. 

Book One spans John Lewis' youth in rural Alabama, his life-changing meeting with Martin Luther King, Jr., the birth of the Nashville Student Movement, and their battle to tear down segregation through nonviolent lunch counter sit-ins, building to a stunning climax on the steps of City Hall. 

Many years ago, John Lewis and other student activists drew inspiration from the 1958 comic book "Martin Luther King and the Montgomery Story." Now, his own comics bring those days to life for a new audience, testifying to a movement whose echoes will be heard for generations.

Friday, November 01, 2013

Help Me Celebrate Another Book Birthday: The Colton Heir


I hope you'll help me celebrate another book birthday!

Today's the long-awaited release for my latest Harlequin Romantic Suspense, The Colton Heir.  This book is #5 of 6 in the popular Coltons of Wyoming miniseries, and although it stands alone, I think you'll enjoy the others just as much as I have! It was so wonderful, working with so many talented authors and our amazing editor, Patience Bloom, on these stories.

Book One: The Colton Ransom, by Marie Ferrarella
Book Two: Colton by Blood, by Melissa Cutler
Book Three: The Missing Colton, by Loreth Ann White
Book Four: The Colton Bride, by Carla Cassidy

And don't miss next month's exciting conclusion to the series:
Book Six: Colton Christmas Rescue, by Beth Cornelison

One final note: Today is the release of the e-book edition. Paperbacks should be in stores by Tuesday, Nov. 5th.

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Sweet! CITY OF DARK MAGIC sequel CITY OF LOST DREAMS is coming next month!

Can't wait to dive into this advance copy of City of Lost Dreams, sequel to City of Dark Magic, which I read, loved and raved about last year.

Watch this space for my review and your opportunity to win a free copy from the publisher when City of Lost Dreams drops next month.

Meanwhile, you still have time to read City of Dark Magic, which you can see me highly recommend in this book review photobombed by my dog.






Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Theme Song du Jour: Caroline Savoie covers "Ain't No Sunshine"

This week on Undercover Soundtrack, Roz Morris airs the playlist that inspired my novel Kill Smartie Breedlove.

One of my favorite elements in the process: I formed a collection of covers of Bill Withers' classic "Ain't No Sunshine" as a way of processing and anchoring a major thread for the two main characters, both of whom are widowed. Caroline Savoie's austere acoustic rendition never fails to generate a lump in my throat.



Monday, October 21, 2013

Buy This Book: TJ Bennett's Dark Angel

I've been on a roll lately, reading so many memorable, distinctive books. Among them was Dark Angel, a "Gothic fairy tale romance" by talented historical romance author TJ Bennett.

Dark Angel (Entangled Edge, Oct. 21, 2013) is a lushly romantic retelling of Beauty on the Beast. Only this "Beast," the mysterious, stern lord of an island trapped in the mists of time, is destined to be tried--and tamed--by the beautiful young widow Catherine Briton, the sole survivor of a terrible shipwreck, as well as the only living soul to wash ashore in many an age. With its brooding (and seriously sexy) hero, its towering castle, and its magical secrets, Dark Angel reminded me of the great Gothics I used to love. And since TJ Bennett is (full disclosure) a critique partner of mine, I've been privileged to watch this story come to fruition and highly recommend you check it out!

Thursday, October 17, 2013

Cool new look for a terrific book: EVIDENCE OF LIFE by Barbara Taylor Sissel

A great book - Evidence of Life by Barbara Taylor Sissel - gets a brand new look from the publisher. (Looks like they're branding it with her forthcoming release: Safe Keeping.)

My original review of EOL...

Thursday, October 03, 2013

#themesongdujour Grateful Dead "Touch of Grey": I will get by! (Thanks, Book Gorilla.)

Today's theme music, Grateful Dead's "Touch of Grey" was inspired by a great blurb about my new memoirella, Love & Other Natural Disasters, a starred title today on BookGorilla.com:
"Think "Molly Ivins meets Anna Quindlen to the tune of 'Touch of Grey'...Not your Mama's Erma Bombeck, but the best of “Earth to Joni”, the syndicated newspaper column chronicling family life, politics and culture, and welcoming readers into the Rodgers household, where life is for living, love conquers all, and pancakes are what’s for dinner."
PS ~ Love & Other Natural Disasters free on Kindle this week!

Tuesday, October 01, 2013

Introducing LOVE & OTHER NATURAL DISASTERS (Enjoy a sweet little read on me this week!)

So the Gare Bear and I have been married for 30 years as of this summer. Blows my mind. I've always said it's impossible to be married to the same person for 30 years, because it's impossible to be the same person for 30 years. The best you can hope for is that you will be foolish enough to keep falling in love. That seems to be the case for us.

By way of celebration: Love & Other Natural Disasters (the first in a series of memoirellas based on my syndicated newspaper column "Earth to Joni") offers about a dozen essays reflecting on our somewhat stormy but overwhelmingly happy (and frequently hilarious) life together from the perspective of a month-long power outage that kept the Rodgers neighborhood in the dark after Hurricane Ike.

Download it free this week exclusively on Kindle.