Another HAPPY BIRTHDAY for me!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!  Okay, so my birthday was a couple days ago, but I’m thinking I can make it last a week if I really try :-) Tonight I’m going out with friends to celebrate so I think today should count.

My week didn’t exactly start out on a happy note as I was in a car accident. Luckily, no broken bones and no long term injuries, so I guess that is a gift :-)

I love celebrating birthdays, mine or someone else’s. It means that we have lived another year. It gives us a chance to look back on the last year and think about what we have accomplished as well as think about our goals for next year.

This year for me has been a whirlwind because this is the year I went from an unpublished author to having two books out with Ellora’s Cave, one of which will be in print before 2013 ends (MASQUE), and a third book under contract and due out early next year. This allowed me to work with my very smart and thorough editor. I also had a great meeting with my awesome agent this year. Other highlights included spending time with my role model Jennifer Ashley/Allyson James at a conference in August along with two of my blogging buddies Marie Patrick and Kayce Lassiter. I also met new author friends and had fun with others from my Valley of the Sun writers group. Then in October I made a bunch of new friends at the Ellora’s Cave Romanticon. Wow, what a blast and what amazing people! I met tons of new authors like Karla, Andrea, Tina, Frances, Susana, and Cristal to name a few.

So how do I top this past year with this new year coming up in my life? Hmmm, well I do plan to go to Desert Dreams where I will see all my old writing friends from Arizona. I always love doing that. Then in May I will attend my first Romantic Times Convention. But first, and the best part of the year, I have convinced fellow romance writers to come visit me! Can’t wait to host Marie, Tina, Bev and Cathy in January, February and March. 

Of course, I have lots of writing projects on my to-do list including an erotic romance novella that will start a series as well as a full length erotic romance that will start a different series.

This is why I love birthdays so much. They are like personal New Year’s, full of possibilities and excitement. When is your birthday? Are you excited?

Always, Lexi

Update on "To Be Read" pile

A while back, I lamented the fact that my TBR pile had reached untold heights and was quickly overtaking my little house. I am happy to report that I am slowly catching up on those untold pleasures (having some extra time while I’m looking for work will do that for you). So, in the last eight days, I have read six books, cover to cover….and now, I can’t seem to get enough. Yes, my eyes are blurry and feel like they’re filled with sand but that’s okay. I love my Kindle though. I can make the type bigger so I can keep on reading.

             

So what have I read? I finished Caris Roane’s Burning Skies (love how she writes), Terri Brisbin’s Mistress of the Storm (my first one of hers…there will be more), Kathryne Kennedy’s The Lady of the Storm (excellent); Erin Quinn’s Haunting Beauty (beautifully written), Elizabeth Hoyt’s Wicked Intentions and To Seduce a Sinner (both of which I loved) and I just started Stormwalker by Allyson James.

            

Have I worked on my own books? Not as much as I probably should have (I have a Civil War story I’m working on, but it’s making me pull my hair out) but my TBR pile is shrinking and I am pleased. So, what are you reading? Anything you want to recommend?

As always, happy reading!

Marie

For a chance to win either COWBOY DAD by Cathy McDavid, GRAYSON by Delores Fossen, or BLAZING BEDTIME STORIES VOLUME VI by Tori Carrington and Kate Hoffman, leave a comment and tell Marie what you are reading or what you would recommend :-)

Review: Firewalker by Allyson James

Allyson James has once again captured the essence of magical myth and matched it with some tough characters who don’t know when to quit. This romantic urban fantasy, set in the deserts and mountains of the Southwest, is woven together more beautifully than any Southwestern blanket.

Janet Begay, our local Stormwalker is back, and the first item on her to-do list is to save her dragon boyfriend, Mick. She drags local Sheriff Nash Jones with her because he is immune to magic and she just may need him, but saving Mick is just the beginning.

Janet has no doubt Mick loves her and will do anything to protect her, but as she discovers new powers, she starts to doubt Mick won’t kill her, literally. Of course, he will have to stand in line. There are so many who are fearful of Janet’s burgeoning power, including Dragons, Kachina gods, the Coyote Trickster god, and even a resurrected human, that Mick may have to fight them all off only to find he has to do the deed himself.

But the cast of creatures isn’t limited to a Stormwalker, gods, and Dragon. It includes such magical being as Changers, Witches, Demons, Skinwalkers, a talking Magical Mirror who’s a bi-sexual (if he could have sex that is) and a Null, not to mention some humans thrown in for good measure. After all, humans are the ones who will most likely be hurt if things go south.

But the world James builds is more than simply creatures in a harsh setting. This story has great action, intellectual puzzles, smart dialogue, hot sex, and good humor. It keeps you on the edge of your seat from the very first scene. The individual characters are flawless in their uniqueness, the magic superb, the plot fascinating, and the ending completely satisfying.

The only downside to this book is it’s the second in a three part series and now we have to wait for the third, Shadowwalker. My suggestion is buy Stormwalker and Firewalker and read them very slowly (if you can) so you won’t have to wait too long for Shadowwalker (coming in June). Trust me. Even if you’ve never read urban fantasy, you will really enjoy this action romance.

Alexis

STORMWALKER by Allyson James

Allyson James delivers again with a suspenseful, breathtaking, romantic ride in her new release, STORMWALKER, on bookshelves now. A fascinating combination of paranormal urban fantasy and romance, this story will have your heart from page one.

Janet Begay is a young, Harley riding, Native American with the ability to harness the power of storms, but the consequences for doing so are harsh unless she can release her magic into another magical being. Janet is in Magellan, Arizona to find a missing woman and to confront her goddess mother from the Beneath. Not an easy task. It’s a good thing she’s got help.

Her ex-boyfriend Mick shows up after five years and takes her out of the police station where she’s being questioned about an accident. Though Mick is shot, he quickly heals and takes the magic Janet must release, reveling in it. Mick has never told Janet what he is, but she assumes he’s some kind of Firewalker since he controls fire. She isn’t even close.

The cast of characters is fascinating, from Coyote, a trickster god, to Jamison the changer, (both were introduced in the novella “A Little Night Magic”), to a talking bi-sexual magic mirror. Also included are Sherriff Nash Jones who is an Unbeliever, but appears to be exceedingly powerful without even knowing it plus there's a cast of powerless humans. You never know who will show up next but will be anxiously awaiting them. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed.

Trouble follows Janet wherever she goes, but then again, so do her companions . . . eventually. Mick is hotter than hot, while Nash seems to find a way to blame Janet for everything. Coyote is his usual undependable, cryptic self. Between Nightwalkers, Skinwalkers, and motorcycle druggies, Janet has her hands full, but when she recognizes another power within herself, separate from her storm abilities, she realizes how dangerous she can be to those she cares about. In the end, she must make a choice between complex opposites.

In STORMWALKER, Allyson James has built an earthly world with wonderful characters that is easy to follow. Each character is unique and interesting, and as a reader, you can’t help pulling for the “good guys,” once you figure out who they are. I’m thrilled to know that this story will be followed by another entitled FIREWALKER. If you like a conflicted, but strong heroine with a hunky hot protector, and lots of special powers, you’re going to love this series!

STORMWALKER has just been released and I highly recommend getting this one immediately! Check-out the series at:

http://www.allysonjames.com/index.html

Alexis

Huge Book Signing This Sunday

This weekend a huge book signing is taking place on Sunday April 17th at the Chaparral Suites Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona, located at 5001 N. Scottsdale Rd. I will be there to buy all my favorite authors, but what’s even more exciting, as a writer myself, I will have the opportunity to visit with these fabulous ladies (and gentleman) and learn all I can from their great workshops and events. Below is a list of the authors signing, and if you live nearby come on over. This event is open to the public from 5:45pm to 7:00pm. Below is a list of all the authors signing books.
Drue Allen, Ada Anbar, Jennifer Ashley, Christie Walker Bos, Rebecca L. Boschee, Vee F. Browne, Eileen Carr, Jerri Castronova, Toni McGee Causey, Stacy Connelly, Kerrie Droban, Anita Ensal, Diane Gabaldon, C.C. Harrison, Marie Harte, Donna Hatch, Robin Lee Hatcher, Katherine Atwell Herbert, Jennifer Hoffman, Sharon Hooper, Christy Hubbard, Allyson James, Glynna Kaye, Kathryne Kennedy, Gini Koch, Deborah LeBlanc, Annette Mahon, Lynne Marshall, Cathy McDavid, Mackenzie McKade, Linda Lael Miller, Pinkie Paranya, Peggy P. Parsons, Erin Quinn, Eileen Rendahl, Cassie Ryan, Sharon Sala, Vijaya Schartz, Laurie Schnebly, Brad Schreiber, Linda Style, Jodi Thomas, Vicki Lewis Thompson, Kris Tualla, Michele Venne, Jody Wallace, Kim Watters, Carrie Weaver, Susan Yarina.

Next week my guest will be Donna Hatch, and she will discuss what she learned about pirates while writing her new release THE GUISE OF A GENTLEMAN. Stop by and comment for a chance to win a copy of her book!