Tag Archives: piracy

Whole lotta linkity goin’ on

I’m going to experiment with this post and I’d like your opinions – is it easier to read linkity posts with or without bullets? Discuss. (And thank you for your input!)

  • J, Kaye’s giving away a $25 US Amazon gift certificate or up to $25 at the Book Depository in three separate contests: Canada, US, and outside the US/Canada. Read the rules carefully! Winners will be announced January 30 and are responsible for checking the blog to see if they’ve won.
  • If you sign up for the 2010 M/M Romance Challenge by January 31, you’ll be entered for a chance to win $15 ebook bucks from All Romance eBooks!
  • Author Marta Acosta has all sorts of fun blog sidebar badges, such as for the Naked David Boreanz Club, the Association for the Admiration of Edward Cullen, the Gerard Butler Is Hawt Society, and the Jacob Black Society for Werewolf Acceptance.
  • Do not click this link if you are easily offended by graphic ice sculpture. Please. I implore you. Yes, I took the featured photo, but you’ll notice I haven’t featured it on my blog. Consider the various book covers I have featured before you click, ok? (It is not a cat picture, if that helps.)
  • Although the experience of reading a physical book is different than that of reading an ebook, does it really matter to readers? (I gotta say that I’m liking reading ebooks more than physical books these days.)
  • TeleRead reports on the most pirated books of 2009The Kamasutra and Adobe Photoshop Secrets held the top spots. The only best-selling authors to make it into the top 25 were Dan Brown, Stephen King, Stephenie Meyer, and J. K. Rowling. None of Rowling’s books have even been released as ebooks, which instead of protecting them seems to be a lost revenue opportunity.
  • Even though I told Trek that I suck at guessing contests, I won not only her guessing contest of some months ago (dollar value of an unknown number of quarters that fit into a particular tea tin), but also Nicole’s recent contest (how many books she’d read by the end of the year). Hmm. Perhaps I don’t suck at guessing contests after all? (Thanks to Nicole and Trek!)
  • This DIY magnetized coffee cozy is very cool and very clever! Heck, I can see the potential for sticking my coffee to my car when I’m rummaging for my keys. (And, wait, I already have a coffee cozy from Caribou Coffee with a mysterious zipper pocket on it – this might actually make the pocket useful!)

Reading Update
Chicken Soup for the Soul, and All That Crap: A Tigers & Devils Short by Sean Kennedy. free ebook short. Very sweet short that takes place while Declan’s recuperating from his surgery.
Warrior’s Cross by Madeleine Urban and Abigail Roux. ebook. Very good m/m romantic suspense about about a waiter and the mysterious guy who sits in his section every Tuesday evening. I cried more than once while reading this. My only complaint is that I wanted just a little more substance (or maybe detail or maybe time) at the ending.
The One That Got Away (Second Edition) by Rhianne Aile and Madeleine Urban. ebook. Excellent m/m romance – I’d read the original version, but who could resist the new version with added scenes? (Although, sad to say, the second edition still has inconsistencies about David’s age – he fusses about how awful his 45th birthday was, but then is referred to as 42 for the rest of the book.) One of the differences I noticed was that Trace’s cat was now named Mabel instead of Gail and and she had an entire enjoyable subplot devoted to her. (Plus she’s a black kitty. Really, what’s not to like?)
Rules of Engagement by L. A. Witt. ebook. Very good m/m romance (that I had a hard time putting down) about a recently divorced guy who finds himself powerfully drawn to a guy he meets playing pool in a bar. Yes, I got sniffly, so you know there was some angst. I think my only complaint was the abruptness of the ending. I really liked this quote from one of the other characters: “If I knew how a lot of my relationships would have turned out, I never would have gotten involved in them…. And I would have missed out on some of the best times in my life.” (Of course, for me, I would also have missed out on some of the worst times in my life – you?)
Uncorked by Andrew Grey. ebook. This m/m romance is set several years after Bottled Up; Sam and Sean of Bottled Up play more of a peripheral role in this one. I’ll confess that while the beginning of this story didn’t really grab me, the middle did, but then I just wanted to smack heads together at the end. Make of that what you will. 🙂
Just Like Scrooge by Clare London. ebook short. Imagine The Christmas Carol redone (and redone well) as an m/m romance set in modern times.
In the Closet by Clare London. ebook short. Cute m/m romance about two feuding guys whose coworkers lock them in the cleaning closet to work out their differences… although maybe the coworkers didn’t expect the form that process would take…
Special Delivery by Cassandra Gold. ebook short. Sweet m/m romance short about a secretary and a delivery guy.
Fantasies: Independence Day by Cassandra Gold. ebook. Good m/m romance about a guy who’s finally had enough of his father running every aspect of his life, so he escapes to work as a waiter at a Hawaiian resort. (Total points for style on that one.)
Reunion by Vic Winter. ebook short. In this enjoyable m/m romance, the ostracized high school nerd returns for his ten-year reunion as a fit, handsome millionaire ready to shove his success in his former classmates’ faces.
Christmas for Gary by Vic Winter. ebook short. Gary’s spending some time with his very active grandmother and her friends, who are determined to find a boyfriend for him, no matter how much they embarrass him in the process.
A-Viking by Kiernan Kelly. ebook short. Ok time travel m/m romance about a Viking who mysteriously washes up on a contemporary Florida beach after his longboat capsizes.
Re-Ignition by A.R. Moler. ebook short. Good m/m romance about a former FBI agent who’s not doing so well after a career-ending injury, until he wakes up hungover, in bed with someone he doesn’t recognize.
When Work Is a Pleasure by Alix Blevins. ebook. While this m/m romance was well done, I had a problem (my very own problem and not necessarily that of the book) with how relatively easily a reporter dealt with his new boyfriend’s career as a pr0n star.
InDescent by K.Z. Snow. ebook. Another very good m/m romance that I had trouble with – this time, it was because of one of the main character being emotionally and physically involved with two other people. Not a menage (which I hate), but still – I kept getting stuck there. However! This was still a very cool story about a wizard/woodworker living in Milwaukee who notices that there’s suddenly an awful lot of paranormal activity in the city… (And really, what’s not to like about a story that has Baba Yaga’s hut in a Milwaukee city park?)


My life sucks.” -Chaos

Linkin’ to books, bookin’ to links

Donna’s giving away two copies of John Brown’s new fantasy novel, Servant of a Dark God. Contest closes 8 pm CST, November 29. Plus, check out her post that’s chock full of giveaway and free read info. (Many thanks to Donna – I won a $10 Amazon gift certificate in a recent contest over at Fantasy Dreamer.)

Pat (of Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist) is giving away a smorgasbord of fantasy (including some urban fantasy) books, such as The City and the City by China Mieville, Black and White by Jackie Kessler & Caitlin Kittredge, and an ARC of Kim Stanley Robinson’s Galileo’s Dream.

Former Samhain editor and current Carina Press editor Angela James is having a contest to celebrate her four years at Samhain and new job at Carina. She’s giving away several goodie bags and will draw winners on December 7.

Amazon’s giving away $3 worth of mp3s (your choice, use by November 30) (via Lifehacker).

Don’t miss SciFiGuy’s weekly overview of contests, news, and more.

Dear Author suspects there are some unannounced Kindle book sales going on and provides tips on how to find them.

Some numbers on ebook piracy, again pointing out that ditching DRM and getting ebook buyers used to the idea of buying easy-to-use content is probably the best way to handle piracy.

Top 10 myths about ebooks, from literary agent Nathan Bransford.

Jackie at Literary Escapism (as part of Weekly Geeks) is interested in your lists of the top 10 books you’ve read in 2009. (She has info on how to submit your list.)

Harlequin manages to spectacularly damage their brand with an ill-considered venture into offering vanity publishing services. Whoops.

One reader charts her path from reading m/f romances to reading m/m romances.

Hee hee – a fine bit of book geekery at xkcd.

How good or evil is your blog? Discovered via the more-evil-than-me Kris’n’Good Books. 😉

Aw, look at the cute black kitty, all prepared for the possible pumpkin shortage.

All teh tiem!

Yay! Google Reader added favicon support!

If you’re thinking of shopping on Black Friday (are you crazy?!?), you might want to read Gizmodo’s tips on anti-deals.

Reading Update
Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx. A bit more literary m/m than what I’ve been reading. No HEA (happily ever after) or even HFN (happy for now) with this one. But y’all know that already.
A Really Nice Prom Mess by Brian Sloan. I’m pretty sure this young adult novel plays homage to the shenanigans in all those teen movies like Sixteen Candles. The narrator, Cameron, is going to his senior prom with his boyfriend… sort of. Funny and heartfelt – it’s not often that a book has me alternately laughing and sniffling.
Shady Ridge and the Neon Sky by Chris Owen. ebook. Good m/m romance about two cops in a small-town in Texas. Bit of a rough start, but fortunately the menagey bit wasn’t ongoing. 😮
Carbon and Ash by Chris Owen. ebook. This was a short but sweet m/m romance about slowing sliding into something other than friendship without being fully aware.
Cheek to Cheek (911, Book 2) by Chris Owen. ebook. Another sweet m/m romance from Owen, this time about ballroom dancing firefighters. 🙂
Collision Course by K.A. Mitchell. ebook. Wow! Really well done m/m romance about a social worker and a paramedic who has a lot of issues with social workers. Recommended. I’m definitely picking up more K.A. Mitchell titles. (And yes, I now know that I should’ve read Diving in Deep first, but darn it, Samhain sure doesn’t make that clear on their site…)
Inking Aaron by Cheryl Dragon. Ok, very weird that there was an Aaron Chase in Collision Course and now in this book… Sadly, while the premise of this m/m romance was intriguing (a seemingly uptight hotel manager gets involved with the guy who owns the tattoo shop in the lobby), the writing was extremely choppy (transitions aren’t a bad thing, really). Additionally, it seemed like the story needed to be fleshed out more. And then there were the unclear pronoun references, which I’ve mentioned is a very bad thing in m/m romance.
Lord and Master and Taking Work Home (Lord and Master 2) by Jules Jones. ebooks. Comfortable m/m romances about a PhD student working as a research and personal assistant for the owner of a London company. A nice break from the usual high angst of many m/m romances! (“Lord and master” refers simply to being the boss…)
Out of the Past by Sean Michael. ebook. Hmm. This one’s hard to summarize. Ten years ago, Andy was in a bad car accident and when he woke up in the hospital, a lawyer told him that his boyfriend Steven didn’t want to see him anymore because of his injuries and scars. However, Steven was told that Andy died – went to his funeral and everything. Quite the surprise when they run into each other again…
Making Your Own Luck by Sean Michael. ebook. Fun short m/m romance about Friday the Thirteenth and trying to break a string of very bad luck. (Here’s a good place to confess that I get squicked out by tooth injuries. Stephen King and The Tommyknockers, I’m looking at you!) But hey, there’s a gigantic black cat named Demon in the story, too. It’s all good, right?
Quarterback Sneak by Pepper Espinoza. ebook. Touching m/m romance about two pro quarterbacks in a decade-long relationship who are outed.
Kegs and Dorms by Stephanie Vaughan, Tory Temple, Jane Davitt, & Kiernan Kelly. ebook. The title of this m/m romance collection does it a disservice. It is about guys in college, but the stories are much better than one would guess from the title!
Hemovore by Jordan Castillo Price. ebook. This paranormal m/m romance was definitely a cracktastic read (as in completely addictive and will keep you up too late). What if vampirism was caused by a virus? A really, really contagious virus? There’s a reason Price is on my must-read list!
Payback, Vertigo, Manikin, Tainted, & Rebirth (Channeling Morpheus, Books 1-5) by Jordan Castillo Price. ebooks. All five of these paranormal m/m ebooks probably equal one regular paperback, so don’t get too excited about my reading five books here! These are the first five books in the raunchy adventures of vampire Wild Bill and non-vampire Michael, which continue with the Sweet Oblivion series.


“Sheesh, now you want me to move so you can wear the socks? I grow weary of your unreasonable requests, Mom!” -Mayhem

For those in the US, have a happy Thanksgiving tomorrow! To all, this is the last post until Monday, November 30. 🙂

Mayhem’s Lap Ennui, plus links! And books! And exclamation points!!

Donna (Fantasy Dreamer) is giving away a copy of Diane Pharaoh Francis’ new urban fantasy, Bitter Night. Leave a comment by 8 pm CST, November 8, for your chance to win.

Lisa at Knitnzu won a copy of Show No Fear in my contest last month, but received two copies from the publisher. Of course she’s having a contest to pass on that second copy. 🙂 Leave a comment by the evening of November 6 for your chance to win.

Beth Kery’s giving away a copy of Erin McCarthy’s first NASCAR romance, Flat-Out Sexy. Leave a comment at Beth’s blog by November 6 and make sure you check back on the the 6th to see if you won!

Author blog Fangs, Fur and Fey is having a three-year anniversary contest and the grand prize is a Kindle. Contest closes 11:59 pm EST, November 13.

Wow – check out all the paranormal and urban fantasy releases over at Donna’s! )Don’t miss her weekly book news and more.) SciFiGuy lists the paranormal, urban fantasy, and scifi book releases for November. He also has his usual excellent weekend round-up of interviews and contests.

Looking for more reasonably priced ebooks for your reader? Amber Quill Press is offering three ebooks each day (one from each of their lines – fiction, er0tica, GLBT) at 75% off.

Thoughts on ebook piracy from Dear Author and from author Carolyn Jewel. And something else to think about – music pirates actually buy more music. I wonder if this holds true for ebook pirates?

This sounds cool – a four-part series about reading on Canadian television.

TeleRead reviews the new 5″ Astak EZReader. (I have the 6″ EZReader.) Here’s a quote from the review: “This may be the first e-book reader I’ve run across that is actually worth the purchase price.”

Oh oh – did B&N misappropriate intellectual property with the Nook?

Has anyone tried this ebook price comparison site yet?

Largehearted Boy has a nice list of the best books of 2009 lists that are already available.

There’s an iPhone app that claims it can double your reading speed in five days.

I would’ve needed stitches if I’d tried this.

Not surprisingly, last week was a good week for basement kittehs over at lolcats.

So Chaos. Switch the glass of milk for a soy mocha and this could be my place.

Lucky me – I won a $25 gift certificate to Fictionwise.com during Romance Reviews Today’s blogiversary contest. Thanks, RRT!! And many thanks to Cecile – I won Supernatural dvds in one of her many October contests!

Reading Update
A Stroke of Magic (Gypsy Magic, Book 2) by Tracy Madison. I was lucky enough to win a signed copy from a contest at Anna’s Book Blog a few months ago. This is the sequel to Madison’s delightful paranormal romance, A Taste of Magic. If you’re looking for some sweet paranormal romances without a vampire or demon or shapeshifter in sight, I highly recommend this series. The only thing I didn’t like about this was the cover – it’s very striking, but on first impression? I would’ve guessed the main character was a makeup artist, not an artist/painter. Or maybe that’s just me?!
Second Time Around by Bobby Michaels. ebook. Pretty sappy m/m paranormal romance that “drove me nuts” with “excessive quotation mark use.”
Snow Angel and Angel Heart by Sharon Maria Bidwell. ebooks. Nicely done m/m romances that spend more time in the characters’ headspace than most do.
Sursein Judgement by Jet Mykles. ebook. Hmm. This m/m romance isn’t that easy to classify. Possibly as steampunk with paranormal and manga elements?! It was good, whatever it was exactly. 🙂
Personal Demons by James Buchanan. ebook. Good m/m romantic suspense about an FBI agent and an LAPD officer who team up to track down a voudon killer.
The Good Thief by James Buchanan. ebook. Very good m/m romantic suspense about an LAPD officer (are you sensing a theme here yet for the James Buchanan books?) and a burglar who get involved, despite their best intentions. James Buchanan is definitely on my must-buy list.
One Shot by Rowan McBride. ebook. Decent m/m romance about people affected by the side-effects of a new universal flu shot, some of which include gaining or losing several inches in height!
Finding Home by Cameron Dane. ebook. Solid m/m romance about a security expert who’s in love with his straight best friend/roommate. This is told in snippets over a ten-year period, which actually worked better than I expected.
I Spy Something Wicked by Josh Lanyon. ebook. This m/m romance is a respectable sequel to I Spy Something Bloody. Apparently it’s hard getting out and staying out of the espionage business.
Deeper Blue by A.J. Llewellyn. ebook. So-so m/m romance that was choppy, uneven, and had too many wtf moments for me, such as characters behaving oddly, but the behavior wasn’t ever explained, etc.
Bridge Over Trouble Water by Vivien Dean. ebook. Ok m/m paranormal romance about a homicide detective who hates and fears vampires, but needs the help of a very special vampire to solve a case.


“I guess this lap business is ok, but it’s pretty boring compared to having the windows open! Why won’t you open the windows for me, Mom?!” -Mayhem

Um, maybe because the high today is only supposed to reach 45F?!

Halloween Linkity Horror Show! Eeeeeek!!

Vampire Wire’s giving away a copy of Bound to Shadows, the ninth Riley Jenson paranormal by Keri Arthur – that contest closes the evening of October 29. Anna also has a copy to give away – her winner will be announced October 31. Donna (Fantasy Dreamer) is giving away a copy, too – that contest closes 10 pm CST, November 1.

Largehearted Boy’s giving away a copy of Kids Go!, which is a book and DVD put out by They Might Be Giants. Winner will be announced midnight CDT, October 30.

Cecile’s curious whether you prefer bad boys or knights in shining armor. Let her know by October 30 for your chance to win a DVD of Supernatural.

Author Julie James is giving away a copy of Nalini Singh’s Slave to Sensation (Psy-Changelings, Book 1) and Colleen Gleason’s The Rest Falls Away to someone who comments before 10 pm CST, October 30.

For an assortment of fun prizes from Linda Wisdom related to her Hex series, stop by Night Owl Romance before October 30.

Book Junkie’s giving away a copy of the cookbook Chocolate, a Love Story. Contest closes 11:30 pm EST, October 30.

Sara at Urban Fantasy Reader is giving away a copy of Ann Aguirre’s great urban fantasy, Blue Diablo. Contest closes midnight EST, November 2.

*blink blink* Ok, there’s an entire book of kitty wigs, called Glamourpuss. Moderncat’s giving away a copy on November 3 – stop and leave a comment before then if you’re interested. Or you can just go look at the kitty sweater costumes

Donna (Fantasy Dreamer) is splitting her weekly news into new releases on Tuesday and contests/interviews/etc on Wednesday. SciFiGuy.ca posted another great news/interview/contest roundup over the weekend.


This is a dangerous week for kitties, especially for black kitties. Moderncat has some Halloween kitty safety tips.

Zombie kitteh!

Basement Cat knows what scares you

Aren’t these kitty jack-o-lanterns cool?

Dear Author thinks this is a good time to buy an ereader; TeleRead disagrees. (Don’t forget that there are other readers besides the Sony, the Kindle, and the Nook out there!)

Dear Author brings up an important point that has been very neglected in the world of ebooks: readers have rights under copyright law, too.

An interesting post on book piracy from the MLR Press authors’ blog. Remember that not all pirated books are pirated from authorized ebook editions – in France, 95% of pirated ebooks were not from authorized editions (so were from scans, etc).

Completely drool worthy cover here…

Amy of A Closer Look at Flyover Land visited Uncle Hugo’s and Uncle Edgar’s last week and took some great pictures of the interior.

Jackie at Literary Escapism desperately needs submissions for the Urban Fantasy stop of the Bookworms Carnival before October 29.

Reading Update
Knit the Season (Friday Night Knitting Club, Book 3) by Kate Jacobs. Review copy from publisher. So, um, I didn’t actually read more than 1.5 chapters before I realized that I had pretty much mentally finished with these characters after the second book. It happens. But! If you didn’t feel that way, Knit the Season will be out November 3. Oh yeah, among the recipes at the back, there’s one for gluten-free pumpkin muffins. 🙂
Becoming Us by Anah Crow and Dianne Fox. ebook. Wow. This m/m romance really took me by surprise. Very steamy, yet sweet, too, it’s the story of two guys in college – one out, one whose family with disown him if they found out he has a boyfriend. The only thing I didn’t like is that it felt like the book was building toward a big emotional crisis that never materialized. Weirdly, that was disappointing.
The Happy Onion by Ally Blue. ebook. I must confess that I avoided this good m/m romance for quite a while because I hated the name. The Happy Onion is a bar and vegan restaurant owned by one of the main characters.
Love, Like Ghosts (Bay City Paranormal Investigations) by Ally Blue. ebook. Very good m/m romance that takes place ten years after the events in An Inner Darkness. Bo and Sam’s son Adrian is at college, but remains distanced from those around him as he works to control his telekinesis.
Life or Something Scary Like That by T.C. Blue. ebook. Good m/m romance that totally sucked me in – enough so that I left a comment for the author asking whether there was going to be another book featuring one of the characters. (Hopefully, but not yet.)
The One That Was Lost by T.C. Blue. ebook. Decent m/m romance that takes place during and after The One That Got Away.
Mexican Heat (Crimes & Cocktails, Book 1) by Laura Baumbach and Josh Lanyon. ebook. Intense m/m romantic supsense – I thought I had it figured out, and I did, but only to a point. Recommended. Looking forward to a sequel!
Snowball in Hell by Josh Lanyon. ebook. Historical mystery and m/m romance. This very well done mystery was set in Los Angeles during World War II, when being outed could lead to being imprisoned or being committed. As CJ and I have both wondered, why the heck isn’t Josh Lanyon more widely known and available in my public library system?
VGL Male Seeks Same and NEG UB2 by Rick R. Reed. ebooks. Good m/m romances about a lonely guy in his forties who, in the first book, tries online dating, and in the second book, begins to blog. These definitely had a bit more substance than many m/m romances that I’ve read.
Cheating Chance and Inland Empire (Taking the Odds, Books 1-2) by James Buchanan. ebooks. Very good m/m romantic suspense about a closeted cop and a not closeted agent of the Nevada Gaming Commission who meet at a goth convention and then become entangled on a case. Highly recommended – I’m definitely looking forward to the third book, which isn’t out yet.


Basement Cat has his eye on you and he knows if you’ve been nice or naughty…” -Chaos, acting as Basement Cat’s agent…
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