Recommend Monday!

Good Monday All

Hope you had a fabulous week last week. Mine was stupendously busy but in a very good way. SWEET JUSTICE is one week from deadline and though there's lots of fixing and polishing, along with some adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing to be done, the glorious end is in sight!

SWEET JUSTICE is one of those books where I had a good idea of my characters from the beginning. But as I wrote them, I fell more in love with Seth and Honor and got more repulsed with the villain. LOL Doesn't get much better than that!

Once this deadline's over, I'll take a few days downtime to see to bunches of stuff that always gets pushed aside during deadlines, like doctor's visits, house cleaning and 1001 other things I try not to think about while on deadline. In between all of these things, I'm going to try to get in some reading. So, though I have no 'I have read these and recommend them' books, here're a few that's at the top of my TBR pile. All sound wonderful and I can't wait to dig in to them.

Surrender of a Lady - Tiffany Clare (Have heard great things about this debut book!)

Virgin River - Robyn Carr (I think I may be the last person on earth who hasn't read these books!)

Ride the Fire - Pamela Clare (Already hooked on her romantic suspense and now getting addicted to her historicals!)

Of course, I can only take a couple of days of downtime because SWEET REVENGE is due early next year. Yes, it's back to work on Jamie and Dylan's story. They've been talking to me lately and I'm sincerely hoping we can all get along better now that I've given Jamie an opportunity to heal a bit.

Once SWEET REVENGE is done, it'll be time to start on Jared and Mia's story in SWEET REWARD. I haven't met Mia yet, but I have to say that from the few glimpses I've had of Jared in SWEET JUSTICE, I am already in love with him. I think you'll love him too!

Last week, in the midst of deadline fever, I received the most awesome news (thank you again, Mary, for letting me know) that LAST CHANCE has been nominated by Romantic Times magazine for Best Romantic Suspense of 2010. I am beyond thrilled for the nomination and am so honored to be on the list with so many wonderful romantic suspense authors. So, no matter the outcome, thank you RT for this honor! Here's the link for the entire list of nominated books: http://www.rtbookreviews.com/rt-awards/nominees-and-winners

Also, I think Thursday, November 11, the December issue of Cosmo magazine is released and within that edition is an excerpt of LAST CHANCE. If you happen to see it in stores, can you let me know? I'll take a deadline break and rush out and get some copies!

Okay, that's it for me for this week. I'm sorry I didn't get to respond to last week's comments and though I probably won't get to comment on today's either, I am reading all the posts and hope to catch up as soon as Honor and Seth are on their way to NY!

Looking forward to seeing what you've been up to and the great books you're recommending this week.

Happy Monday!

Recommend Monday!

Good Monday All!

How was your weekend? Did you have some spooky trick-or-treaters or some really cute ones? Our Halloween here was kind of odd. For some reason our subdivision decided that Saturday was the night everyone should trick-or-treat and not Halloween night. We didn't know this until right before we went out to dinner Saturday night. (I haven't been out of the house to read the posted signs and hubby is just so anxious to get home to me and the girls each night, he didn't notice the signs either. LOL, at least, that was my interpretation.) So we were late getting back and had to stop on the way home and get emergency candy. I waited to buy it. Having bags of candy around too early pretty much ensures that those little trick-or-treaters won't get as many treats. Chocolate in the house + racing toward a deadline writer = massive chocolate gluttony. Final conclusion? I've decided my subdivision has way too much power to just up and decide when trick-or-treating can take place, however, you can be sure we'll read the signs next year!

Since I am so close to deadline, I haven't had a chance to read anything new. SWEET JUSTICE is almost done. I'm in the midst of editing, revising and playing with the ending that's just not where I want it to be yet. I think it was last Thursday that I cried all day. Never sobbed so hard while writing a book before, but never had one that involved what this one involves. I hope you all love it because I gotta tell you, I do think it's the best book I've ever written. Fingers crossed you will agree!

So, unfortunately, no new recommend from me, but I will give a recommendation of one of my all time favorites. Have you read Flowers From the Storm by Laura Kinsale? If you've not read it, I strongly encourage it. Such an absolutely beautiful historical romance full of angst, an unusual hero and heroine pairing, and a love story that will stay with you forever.

Monday, November 15 is my deadline for SWEET JUSTICE, so other than Recommend Monday, I'll be offline for the next two weeks. If you need to get in touch with me, drop me an email at christy@christyreece.com or you can message me on Facebook or Twitter. I'll do my best to get back to you within a day or two.

Looking forward to hearing about your great read recommendations.

Have a wonderful first day of November everyone!

Winner of Fabulous Fall Freebie Friday

Happy Saturday All!

Thanks so much for playing yesterday. Everyone mentioned some great villains and I picked up a couple of book, movie and television series recommendations too!

Congrats to Linda, the winner of the 'grab-bag' prize package! Linda, email your mailing address to Christy@ChristyReece.com and be sure to let me know which LCR book you'd like to have included in the package.

I hope everyone has a safe, wonderful and spooktacular Halloween weekend!

See you back here on Monday for Recommend Monday!

Fabulous Fall Freebie Friday

Good Fabulous Friday Everyone!

Hope you've had a good, productive week. My week has been busy but oh so very good. The first draft of SWEET JUSTICE is almost finished. Once that's done, it's time for major revisions and edits, but then it'll be headed to my editor. Yayayayay!

Today, in honor of Halloween this weekend, we're talking favorite fictional villains. You know those really, really bad people we love to hate. Even though we despise these people and what they stand for, they are an important and integral part of the story. Not only do they give the story conflict and excitement, villains also make the hero look even more heroic. What would Superman be without Lex Luthor? Sure, he's strong, got some great super powers and is a genuinely nice guy, but how would we know just how heroic and strong he is if he didn't have to battle Lex and his evil minions? Villains bring the excitement and angst. They give you someone to hate and as a result, provide you with someone to root for--the hero.

Over the centuries, fiction has brought us some evil, devious and just plain mean villains. Usually when I think of memorable fictional villains, I don't think of those evil soulless characters who kill people willy-nilly--Halloween's Michael Myers, Jason in the Friday the 13th movies or even the demons or the devil in the Exorcist. To me those people or entities aren't as much villains as they are simplistic killing machines, without conscience or the ability to reason. The villains I love to hate and find much more memorable are those who can reason. They know the difference between good and bad and for whatever reason, choose to be bad. Those kinds of villains I find fascinating. I love to know what makes them tick or what made them into the evil, twisted people they've become.

We won't limit the list to just books. There have been some uber creepy villains in movies and television that are just as memorable. Who are your top five favorite fictional villains? Do you have five that you can remember hating so strongly that you couldn't wait until they got their comeuppance?

Not in any particular order, here are my top five:

Hannibal Lecter from Silence of the Lambs (Yes, I know he's a serial killer and a cannibal, however, he's a psychiatrist who knows the difference between right and wrong and man oh man, he doesn't just choose to be bad, he chooses to be very bad!)

Jim Beckett from Lisa Gardner's The Perfect Husband (He's a cop--supposed to be one of the good guys, one of the guys you root for, not a mean, sadistic killer. Creepy, scary guy!)

George Foyette aka The Boston Reaper from Criminal Minds (Cunning, devious and so very creepy. He outsmarted and out-manipulated so many, and in the end, did something so dastardly evil that when he got his just deserts, I was standing the middle of the room, my hands fisted and wanting to get in a couple of punches myself.)

The villain from Karen Rose's Have You Seen Her (Mentioning the name would be a spoiler, but I love the surprise and sheer audacity of who this villain is and how Rose keeps you guessing. By the way, if you haven't read Karen Rose, I highly recommend her...she's absolutely incredible!)

Carol Janes, the villain in Linda Howard's Dream Man (I think the fact that he was so ordinary and unexpected, that when you see his evil, it's even more chilling.)

Okay, now it's your turn. And if you can't think of five, feel free to give fewer.

One random commenter will win a 'grab-bag' prize package filled with all sorts of goodies. I'll announce the winner tomorrow.

Hope everyone has a fabulously spook-tacular weekend! See you back here on Monday for Recommend Monday!

Recommend Monday!

Oh my, I'm up way too early this morning. Thunderstorms started around 3:00 AM. My girls can't sleep during a storm and are quite insistent that I shouldn't either. Hopefully we can all grab a nap later.

How was your weekend? Did you do anything fabulously fun? Any Halloween parties? If so, what was your costume?

Thanks to the great comfort reads you gave on Friday, I've now started a whole new list. In my mind, if it's a reread, then it's definitely a must read. Looking forward to delving into more great books!

This Friday, in honor of Halloween, we're going to be talking about favorite villains. Since most of us read romantic suspense, there's got to be some memorable bad guys and gals who've given you the creeps over the years. And we won't limit it to books. We'll talk villains in movies and television series too. So start putting your list together and we'll share our top five on Friday!

SWEET JUSTICE is racing toward the end. Seth and Honor are in the midst of a nightmare and none of us know how it's going to turn out. Very worried about these two! And with a deadline looming, it's getting even tenser!

Even though I was consumed with Honor and Seth's difficulties, I did manage to read a couple of great books. They've been recommended here many times. However, I wanted to give my own hearty recommendations to Pamela Clare's Surrender and Untamed. They were fabulous, and my oh my, those MacKinnon men! Whew! Looking forward to Connor' book!

So what about you? What great books did you read last week you're dying to tell us about? Tomorrow's a big release day. What books are you looking forward to going out and getting this week?

Don't forget to come back on Friday for a discussion of your favorite villains.

Have a great week all!

Winner of Fabulous Fall Freebie Friday

Happy Saturday all!

Thanks to everyone who posted yesterday. Wow, looks like there's a whole new list of books I'm going to be adding to my TBR pile. If it constitutes a reread, then it's definitely a must read!

Congrats to Jackie P. She is the winner of the 'grab-bag' prize package! Jackie, please email me at christy@christyreece.com with your mailing address, along with the LCR book you'd like to have.

Don't forget to come back on Monday for Recommend Monday. And I will have one. Yay!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Fabulous Fall Freebie Friday

Good day all! Hope your week has been wonderful. The trees here in Bama are peaking and are absolutely gorgeous. The brilliant colors, combined with the flawless sky, has a breathtaking radiance that brings tears to my eyes. Oh, I do love October!

Last week was so much fun, talking about our favorite fall foods. The recipes look out of this world. Today, we're going to talk about comfort reads. You know those few books that you have to read at least once a year.

If you've read my Dear Reader letter on my website or my biography, you know that I started reading at an early age. I still remember (and I've heard this from so many avid readers) taking a flashlight to bed with me and the instant the house settled down, I was clicking the flashlight on and reading well into the night. Reading has been my comforter and friend for years, taking me to far away places and easing my own worries. I would be desolate if I had to do without it.

What does this have to do with today's blog? A lot! Every year, often when the weather turns cool and I'm wanting to snuggle up with my girls and a good book, I will turn to a tried and true favorite. With my reading time so limited, why do I reach for a book I've read before, probably many times? For me, these kinds of reads are the literary equivalent of my mom's chicken and rice or my late mother-in-law's Swiss steak. Delicious and familiar, they comfort me and take me to a place I've been before and loved. (LOL, wouldn't you know I'd have to bring food back into the conversation?)

I have about five books that I read every year. Sometimes I'll read the entire book, other times just certain chapters or the ending. Usually, in reading a story, it's all about the journey. For me, a comfort read is all about the destination--getting to that place in my mind I like to go when I reread a certain book. It's all about the predictability. I know exactly what's going to happen and that brings me comfort.

Here's a list of my must reads each year. I'm just listing five. I have many more rereads in a year, however, these are the ones I will return to again and again.

1) Almost Heaven - Judith McNaught

2) It Had To Be You - Susan Elizabeth Phillips

3) I'm Watching You - Karen Rose

4) MacKenzie's Mountain - Linda Howard

5) The Bride - Julie Garwood

I know there are some people who refuse to reread a book. As soon as they finish, even if it's one they loved, they'll give it away or take it to a UBS and get another book. Are you one of those or are you like me and love those comfort rereads?

If you have rereads, list your top five. Remember, one random commenter will win a 'grab-bag' prize package. And be sure to come back on Monday for Recommend Monday. Who knows, we might see some of today's rereads on Monday's recommended reads. Wouldn't that be SWEET!

Happy Friday all!