Spotlight: Budapest Romance by Rozsa Gaston

by CarolNo Comments
Excerpt: How could she not notice being noticed? Floating in a thermal bath pool at a spa hotel in Budapest, Kati discreetly eyed the rugged blond man lounging in the next pool. He had glanced in her direction several times over the past two days. She was mourning the death of her father the month before, and was in no shape to be looking at the opposite sex. But the man's shaggy, blond hair had caught her eye that first evening in the pools; it had wandered down over his shoulders and powerful chest as well. Béla Dunai would have forgiven her, she knew. At that moment, the man lifted his head and looked directly at her. Immediately, she pretended to be studying the clock on the wall behind him. She hoped he was too far away to notice the blush that had sprung onto her face. She wanted to pass for a sophisticated European woman while in Hungary. But here she was, blushing...
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Reindeer Dust by Kate Dwyer

by Carol4 Comments
Christmas is my favorite time of year - even if I hate the cold. So today, as part of A Month of Favorites, I thought I'd share a review of a new Christmas picture book I received this year. A Month of Favorites is hosted by Girlxoxo, Traveling with T and Estella’s Revenge. Today we’re linking up at Estella’s Revenge. When Amber was little, we always put out milk and cookies for Santa, but she's always been an animal lover, so we couldn't forget about the reindeer. They got carrots, but I bet they would have preferred reindeer dust. This is a cute story. Santa's got so many presents to deliver that he doesn't have time to feed his reindeer and, to make matters worse, it's a foggy night. Happily, William has been watching the weather reports and comes up with a plan to help Santa find his and his friends' houses - reindeer dust. Don't worry, the recipe's included in the book. I...
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Character Guest Post: Riella from Tom Stacey’s Exile

by CarolNo Comments
I'm happy to welcome Riella to my notebook today. Riella is a character in Tom Stacey's Exile and she's got a lot to say about women in historical fantasy. I should have my review of the book up soon. From Riella Historical fantasy used to be something only men did. Only men wrote it or only men read it or only men enjoyed it. It used to be that women were relegated to helpless perfumed maidens in castle towers or filthy old hags that had only wisdom and stink to offer. Sure, sometimes we were allowed to fight: we got given elegant looking blades and revealing armour that was more likely to kill you through cold than stop a blade. If we were allowed to stand up for ourselves at all it was only on their terms, as objects for them to gawk at. Perhaps more men do read historical fantasy than women. After all, they’ve always been obsessed with maiming and killing,...
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