The Amazing Adventures of Duck-Dog

My youngest daughter's birthday party was today. Being the creative (insert cheap) mom that I am, I've made my girls' pinata's since they were old enough to hold the bat. I actually enjoy it, it's a creative process. Most of the pinata's go really well and turn out great although I get teary-eyed when the time comes for the kids to beat my beloved creation to smithereens without thought for the hours & hours of work I put into each one. *sobbing*

I've been doing these paper-mache pinata's for 8 years now. I've made characters from Dragon Tales, Garfield, Winnie the Pooh, etc. etc. as well as puppies, and kittens. But this year.... well, this year I made duck-dog.

Duck-dog started out as a puppy for my daugher's puppy party. Once the snout was applied however, I looked at him and realized... he looks like a duck not a dog. I was totally freaked and went on and on to two friends about this duck-dog pinata. And so, in the darkest hours of the night, with the help of friends and a little creative inspiration, an idea was born. What if I take pictures of duck-dog's short but magnificent life? I could create a picture story.

So I fixed the face (I THOUGHT) and left it to dry. The very next morning, my middle daughter sees it and asks if it's for my youngest daughter's puppy party. She then announces that it looks like a duck. I'm horrified. She was in bed asleep when I discovered the awful truth about the pinata so there is no way she overheard me talking about it. AND I had modified the face and thought it looked more like a dog now. I very earnestly explained to her that this is how it's dog-face is supposed to look and even go so far as to pull out the puppy that I'm using for a 'model' to convince her. She shrugs and says it looks like a duck. *banging head on table*

Now it's Sunday evening, and the festivities are done. Duck-dog has nobly sacrificed himself on the alter of my daughters' greed and it is time for the story of the brave and valiant dog that looked like a damn duck.

The Amazing Adventures of Duck-Dog

This is the moment when I first realized that my dog pinata looked like a duck. I blame it on my husband - he looked at it while I held the snout to the face and said that the length was perfect. *snort*
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This is what my middle daughter saw when she inadvertantly confirmed that the dog did indeed look like a duck.

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*Singing ZZ Top song* He's got legs.... He knows how to use them....

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Duck-dog and my youngest daughter (the birthday girl) discussing the issue of names. They both agree that Sally is perfect.

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Whew! Body-shaping complete.

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Duck-dog just kickin' back and relaxing after the grueling tail-shaping process.

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I'm an idiot.

That becomes glaringly obvious right about now. I am decorating the pinata with 1" squares of orange tissue paper. AND I'm doing it the hard way... there are easier ways to apply this tissue paper but it doesn't look quite as good. So here I am, after about 2 hours of 'furring' duck-dog. This is also the point where I say "Screw it" and start doing it the easy way.

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Yes, orange is an unfortunate choice of 'fur' color when the dog already looks so much like a duck. However, in the mind of a 4-year-old, orange is a kick-ass dog color!

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Almost there....

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It's alive... ALIVE!
*mad scientist cackle*
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The tongue was Y's idea. LOL! I think it takes a little of the 'duck' out of duck-dog.
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It's the end of the line for duck-dog.

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Birthday girl taking the first whack (with help).

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Vicious beasts aren't they?
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This next hit breaks the rope hanging duck-dog and he ends up taking a nose-dive into the dirt.
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"That there be a hangin' offense."
Poor duck-dog...

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Duck-dog's last stand.
Bringing out the big guns....
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She's enjoying this just a LITTLE too much!
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The broken carcass of duck-dog dangles as my girls descend like vultures on his 'innards".
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Yeah, because cracking him open wasn't enough! Let's just rip the head off.

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Duck-dog LIVES!!!

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My twisted children....
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THE END

Scent of Darkness by Christina Dodd

Paranormal is a new direction for popular author Christina Dodd. I love almost all romance sub-genres but I'm partial to paranormal romance right now so I was jumping for joy at the prospect of one from an author like Dodd. Her historicals don't interest me anymore but I enjoy her contemporaries and the premise of this series sounded interesting.

Unfortunately, like so many of the new releases I've read lately, this one just didn't do it for me. It is actually the WORST of the three that I've given poor reviews lately. In fact, I'm not even going to spend time to summarize it.

Here's the blurb directly from her website:

A thousand years ago, Konstantine Varinski roamed the Russian steppes. Driven by his craving for power, he struck a terrible bargain. In return for the ability to change from a magnificent warrior to a predator that could hunt down his enemies and kill them, he promised his soul — and the souls of his descedents — to the devil.

Plain Ann Smith loves her handsome, dynamic boss, Jasha Wilde, but her daring plan to seduce him goes awry when she finds a black wolf warming itself before the fire. Before her horrified eyes, the wolf changes into the man she adores. She flees, he pursues, but they can't escape their destinies.

For Jasha is the descendant of Konstantine Varinski and Ann is the woman fated to break the curse that binds his soul. To find heaven in each other's arms, they have the devil to pay.

Now my rant:

First, my biggest problem was with the characters. I just plain didn't like either one of them so I didn't even CARE what happened to them. Ann is wishy-washy and whiny with some TSTL thrown in. Jasha is an arrogant ass. Plus, there was little to no real emotion or connection between the H/h. It was totally flat.

Throughout the whole book, and even in the end, it appears that Jasha wants Ann only because she found the icon and is a key to breaking the pact. Ann has adored Jasha for YEARS but we're not clued into why. He pretty much treats her crappy in small ways from the very beginning. For example: the man ADMITS that he knows she's wanted and loved him from the very beginning and yet he had her send flowers and notes to his various girlfriends and EVEN has her purchase an engagement ring so that he can propose to another woman. Come on... that's just cruel. Especially since he didn't do it specifically to discourage her from loving him or for some other 'noble' purpose... he's just a jerk.

Then there is the plot - it had a vaguely disorganized feeling about it, the pacing was choppy, and it just didn't flow smoothly. There were a lot of unanswered questions too. Like the brother that gave in to the darkness... HOW? What does it mean that he gave into the darkness? What happens then? Is he evil now? Raping and pillaging? Or does he just remain in his animal form all of the time? It's something that can happen to any of them and so is important even to this story - yet we're not told WHAT it means or how it happens. The world-building was just too vague and unfinished in this book.

The suspense was sadly lacking too, which is a bummer but Dodd has had trouble keeping the suspense going and believable in previous books so it's not terribly surprising. In past books, the romance and characters have kept me enthralled even when the suspense doesn't but since the characters and their lack of connection didn't work for me in this one, there was no help from that corner.

I know this is brief and maybe a bit vague but I'm not going to go on and on about why I didn't like this book, that's not helpful and it's a bit cruel to the author since there were so many things wrong with this book, in my opinion. I wish I could think of something positive to say about the book but I'm just coming up empty other than the fact that the premise (the legend, the pact, icons, and the mates whoare the only ones who can break the pact) is interesting. Book #2 is most definitely not on my auto-buy list anymore I'm feeling a bit pessimistic about whether Dodd can salvage the series.

Rating for this book: D

Anyone else who has read this want to chime in? I really want to hear what others think of the book!

I'm getting so frustrated with the poor quality of books that the established authors are putting out recently. The end of June/beginning of July release dates had many books of interest and so far I've been disappointed by 3 out of the 5 that I've bought.

Happy 4th of July!

Freedom comes with a price... thank you to all of the soldiers - past, present, and future - who pay that price so that me and my family can live safe and free!

Have a safe and happy holiday!

Simon Says by Lori Foster

Lori Foster is one of my favorite authors so, of course, I trotted off to the store yesterday to get Simon Says, the latest book in her SBC series.

Simon Says is about SBC trainer/ex-fighter Simon Evans whom fans have nicknamed Sublime because... well, he's totally HOT! Simon decides to re-enter the ring as a fighter and is wholly focused on his training, when Dakota bursts into the gym. He knows immediately that he wants her and he warns the others off.

Dakota Dream (yes, that's her name and no, she's not a porn star!) wants something from Simon. Unfortunately, it's not a fling with a sexy-as-hell SBC legend. Dakota is coerced by Simon's biological father, Barnaby, who is also her step-father, into convincing Simon to meet with him in person. She doesn't hide her intent from Simon but neither is she willing to give-up when he says no. Soon, eveyone, from the crusty Haggerty to the slightly egotistical Mallet, is half-in-love with her and treating her like she belongs. Danger, in the form of Dakota's ex-husband, begins stalking her and despite her determination to handle it herself, Simon (and friends) step in to help.

I liked Simon Says but I wasn't WOW'd by it. I guess my main issue was with their relationship. I just didn't feel the attraction between them. It seemed... flat.

Dakota is a kick-ass character - literally. She is a tomboy who, within an hour of being at the gym, tells Simon's sparring partner how to predict and counter his moves. She also takes down a huge fighter who tries to get fresh without breaking a sweat. But she is just as comfortable and sexy wearing dresses and killer heels, and getting up on stage at the local bar to sing and play with the band. She is independent and sassy and has the big, tough SBC fighters eating out of her hand. She does have a jealousy problem when it comes to Simon and women, which is understandable since women flock to him, but I don't really like the way she handles it.

Simon is OK, not as 'sublime' as I expected but there's nothing really wrong with him. He was just rather unimpressive. I actually felt like I wanted Dakota to end up with her friend Barber more than Simon. Barber was an awesome character and I hope that we see him in the future!

The plot moved at a good pace and held my interest There were a few things that were kind of ick - like the scene where Simon finds out that Barnaby is her step-father - but it was basically solid. I'd give Simon Says a C+ rating. It was good, it just wasn't fabulous.

Dragon Heat by Allyson James

I picked up Dragon Heat which is the first book in a new series by Allyson James aka Jennifer Ashley because I enjoyed her contribution to the Immortals series. Well... that and the fact that there aren't NEARLY enough dragon romances. How can you not love a dragon?

Here's the blurb from Jennifer Ashley's website:

Lisa Singleton has an unusual roomate, a golden dragon, a sexy warrior who has been sent to earth to protect Lisa from harm. Lisa comes from a long line of very special women with very special powers. Witches, black dragons, and demons will do anything to get their hands on her magic and the secret the women of her family have protected through the centuries.

My thoughts:

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I didn't LOVE it, but I really liked it. I should come up with a rating system, I guess. If I were to use an letter 'grade' for this book I'd give it a B-.

The first few chapters are a bit rocky... they just didn't flow as smoothly and the main characters do some things that don't seem to fit with their personalities. Once past the beginning chapters it gets much better and the author has done an excellent job of world-building for this new series. I found the powers, classifications, and stereotypes about the different types of dragons to be very unique, as well as entertaining. It created opportunities for amusing barbs and exchanges between the hero (a golden dragon) and a black dragon, who is portrayed as sort-of a bad guy in the beginning but ends up being more neutral.

The 'heat' level wasn't as hot as the Allyson James books normally are but it was definitely steamy. I couldn't really get into the love-scenes in this book because they felt a bit rushed but I'm a bit cranky today so I'll have to say it's possible that I just 'wasn't in the mood'. LOL! Also, I don't want to give away any spoilers but there was a scene of them mating in Dragonspace that was both intriguing and confusing.

This wasn't a 'dark' paranormal romance but neither was it 'light'... I guess I'd have to call it gray. Suspense and danger were a part of the story but there was also playfulness and humor.

The next book in the series, The Black Dragon is due out in November.

Be prepared to take a cold shower after reading this one!

Erotic romance author, Lila Dubois is igniting reader's fantasies today on her blog!

The post entitled: "Monday Poetry Train - Sex Excerpt" is a flaming hot sex-scene from her upcoming book, Savage, which is book 2 of the Zinah series.

To be honest, I shouldn't have read the damn thing - excerpts always increase my impatience for a book and this one was SO SMOKIN' HOT that I feel like morphing into freaky-book-stalker-Ange and stalking the author until she gives me the book NOW just to shut me up!

*sigh*

Alas, the book will be released later this summer and I will have to wait - unfulfilled - until then.

For those of you that haven't yet read book 1 of the Zinah - it is available for purchase in e-book format at Liquid Silver or print on Amazon.

A less well-known but GREAT book!

I'm in re-read mode waiting for the July 3rd releases - and the wait is KILLING ME! I have no patience when it comes to waiting for books. So I've been re-reading some older favorites. Here is one that I was reading yesterday. It's not on most of the 'popular' lists, but I really enjoy it.

Many people love Charlaine Harris' books but they just don't appeal to me. I'm a die-hard romance reader and I rarely, if ever, stray from the genre (unless I'm researching something, of course) plus, I despise first-person POV.

However, Ms. Harris has written one story that I adore. It was a one-shot deal with Harlequin and, I believe, her only foray into the romance genre called Dancers in the Dark and it's part of the Night’s Edge anthology.

I'm not normally a huge fan of anthologies because shorter stories often seem to be missing something but I picked this one up because it was only $1 on the clearance rack and I sometimes enjoy Maggie Shayne who was one of the other authors in the anthology.

I absolutely LOVED Dancers in the Dark. The only reason this book even made it to my keeper-shelf was because of that story - not that the others were bad, just not good enough to rate a spot on my shelf.

Rue (Layla) is working hard trying to make her way through college and keep a low profile to escape her past. She joins a dance company that needs vampire/human dance teams and meets Sean, a 300 year-old vampire. Rue chooses Sean as a dance partner mainly because he appears indifferent to her looks and doesn't give off any overtly sexual vibes, which her past has made her wary of. They develop a friendship in addition to a partnership which then morphs into love. When a man from her past becomes a threat, Sean is determined to protect her.

Rue and Sean were great characters. Both outside of the 'norm' for a vampire/human love story. Rue is not the typical 'tragic figure'. She is strong, realistic, and a bit stubborn. She does not fold under pressure nor act like a total wilting flower when danger stalks her. She reacts much like you or I might. Her violent past experiences impact her relationship with Sean but it doesn't overload the story with fearful prose.

Sean is not the typical vampire either. For one thing, he has bright red hair and freckles. Yep, FRECKLES! Also, he is not a powerful, massively wealthy vamp (although, I do enjoy those kinds of vampires!). Sean was a valet before his 'master' turned him and while not really poor, he is humble enough to work for a dance company. To give you an example of his character (and because I love this part) when Sean tells Rue that he loves her, he does not turn all theatrical. He simply says "I'm yours" but the intensity of his declaration isn't dimmed by its simplicity.

Dancers in the Dark has a great balance between the main element of romance and the secondary suspense element. It flows very well, I didn't feel like I missed anything or like it moved too fast (which sometimes happens in shorter stories), the pace was great. I DO wish it had been a full-length book, because I loved the characters so much though.

Layla (Rue) and Sean have a cameo in All Together Dead -for those of you that read Charlaine Harris books- and according to FAQ on her website, she would like to write more about the characters of the dance company but current series obligations make that a far off event. I'm willing to beg though: Ms. Harris, Please PLEASE write more romance! Judging by this book, you have an AMAZING talent in the genre!