Memories

I'm going to start this post with a couple of quotes, because while these quotes didn't inspire Lost Memories, the book I have coming out this month, it does fit the idea which inspired the book. What would it feel like to lose a chunk of memories?

Everybody needs his memories. They keep the wolf of insignificance from the door. ~Saul Bellow

Memory is a way of holding onto the things you love, the things you are, the things you never want to lose. ~From the television show The Wonder Years


As for the heroine of Lost Memories, Honie, she's desperate to find a way to regain those memories and feelings. She feels lost and disconnected without the memories taken from her.


Did I mention that it releases on September Sixteenth? And that this is it's awesome cover.



Lost Memories Blurb:


Honie is trying to regain the lost pieces of her memory. Escorting a small group of shifters, she finds her mate among the crew and is torn between desire and fury. She can’t deny her body aches for his, but doesn’t know if she can forgive him for leaving her.

Mace believed his mate was dead and is elated she’s alive. He’s determined to break through her anger and uses the journey to reestablish the bond between them. If his words can’t soothe her anger, maybe a little hot sex will help.

Sparks fly between them and searing glances become heated caresses and sated sighs. But their mission takes them into danger and they’ll have to trust each other to survive.

Lost in the Ether

My original !st of the month post failed to materialise, so you may be wondering what the heck I'm rambling about in my 'WHY' coda.

I was recounting the story of a woman who had asked for a Tarot reading last Sunday. To cut a long story short, she was unhappy with her life. Her husband of 20 years (and father of her five children) was having affairs, and wasn't there for her.

Needless to say, the cards just told her to get her act together, decide what she wanted to do, and do it (though not in those terms!).

But once a doormat... I'd like to think she went home and really thought about things, and acted on them. I'll never know.

But so many of the people who ask for readings are desperate for solutions. Once they might have confided in a family member, a friend, or pastor. Now they come to a stranger and a set of cardboard rectangles. It's very sad, and an indictment on our society.

What happened to the Empoyerment of Women?

WHY!

A coda to my last blog, if you will allow -- a survey published today says that a third of teenage girls are or have been abused by their boyfriends. A THIRD!!! And the abuse ranges from bullying through intimidation to rape. What is happening here? This is a whole new generation of battered wives...

It's a very worrying trend. What happened to the New Man? Are we, as romance writers, closing our eyes to the awful truth/ What do you think?

Keep it Real

I know it's the 21st century. I know there are all kinds of wonderful techno-gadgets to make my life easier. Yes, it's true, I couldn't live without my computer and I've become pretty dependent on that hoojigger thingy that goes in my ear while I'm on my cellphone. But really there are soooo many more things that DRIVE ME INSANE!!!

I hate calling a business and being asked to press 17 buttons before someone will actually talk to me. I used to hit "0" until companies realized we were all doing that to get to a human so that's now an "I'm sorry I didn't understand your response" response. But I still have them fooled. If you refuse to say anything or hit any buttons they figure you're too stupid to use their system and someone actually answers the phone ... novel idea people since that's why I called in the first place.

My husband loves this technical age. Every time he's looking to buy something he researches it on the internet. If he's looking to buy a car he'll spend time surfing around seeing which car is the best deal and who sells it the lowest. Me? I'd rather go to the local car dealership, look the salesman in the eye and tell him no BS ... just sell me the car I want for the best deal you've got. I've gotten some really good deals this way (and definitely better service after the sale).

When we wanted to buy a laptop he spent daaaays shopping around on the internet ... why? I have no idea. The computer was for me and since I have special needs with the keyboard and the size of the keys I sure as heck wasn't buying anything I couldn't put my hands on. In the end we made a special trip to Best Buy talked to one of their very knowledgable computer techs who suggested a couple that would fit both my writing/internet and physical needs. We are now the proud owners of a laptop I can actually use.

He'll shop for ANYTHING and this process can take hours ... sometimes days. But here's the clincher folks. We live in the middle of NOWHERE! Which means regardless of how some other store is going to sell it, if the store HERE doesn't have it ... we're SOL. Why bother?

So why this rant? Well, the other day I went to apply for a passport. This requires a birth certificate ... which I knew. I had a certificate of birth, which is not the same thing ... which I suspected. This meant I needed to order a birth certificate. It was Saturday. The man came home and promptly got on the internet to order my birth certificate. Fine, whatever. In the end he found the vital records department of Connecticut where I was born and for $49 ordered a birth certificate. THEN printed out forms which I needed to sign and send with a copy of a photo ID 200% original size and a copy of my marriage certificate (which is buried in the hope chest in my daughter's room) to prove I had legally changed my name ... ummm, 25 years ago. Sooooo not going to happen.

I waited until Monday and got the number for the town office where I was born. Got the wrong department, but the woman that answered the phone giggled and forwarded me to the office of records. There an equally sweet young woman explained that I simply needed to send their office $10 (note the price), a written request for a full form birth certificate, and a regular sized copy of my driver's license. That's it. Done.

I love people. I hate computer services. Yes, I do shop the internet for promo items, but I've found talking to customer service often times gives me better deals. I won't buy clothes or such from the internet. I want to touch it, feel it, know what it looks like on me before I buy. I don't have the patience to buy 2 different sizes in everything I want just because I never know how something is cut and which size will fit better.

I'm not sure I'll ever have both feet fully in the 21st century. I need the interaction. Because let's face it ... I like talking to people just too darn much!

If you're not too tired of being on the internet you can stop by Nina's website and find out all about the books she manages to write in between her conversations.

My love affair with cowboys

They're hot. They're macho. They're sexy. They make my heart beat faster. With their worn denims clinging to those sexy muscles and their Stetsons pulled low over their foreheads, they make me melt even on a cold day. I guess that's why I write about them so much. I can't remember the first rodeo I went to, but watchign the bull and bronc riders and the roping contests only made my love affair with the cowboy that much stronger.

I guess that;s why my upcoming Ellora's Cave release, Rodeo Heat, is so special to me. Who but a rodeo cowboy was better suited to help Grace Delaney break out of the shell of her "safe" existence. To lead ehr on erotic dance that could only have the best ending.

Rodeo Heat debuts September 9 at Ellora's Cave (http://www.jasminejade.com/). Please come and meet Grace and Ben. I promise you the ride of your life.

It could have been the animalistic heat of the rodeo, or the pin with special powers that the old woman had all but forced her to buy. But whatever it was, within seconds of meeting rodeo rider Ben Lovell, Grace Delany safe world crumbled in a voluptuous explosion of lust. Every night was something new. From the handcuffs to the intriguing sex toys to the taking of her virgin ass, , Grace gave in to it all, relishing her body’s. As Ben Lowell led her from one earth-shattering climax to another, as her body softened and opened to him, her juices lubricating the way, all she could do was hang on for dear life and follow his lead. But when it was over, could she really walk away from the man who had taken her on an outrageous journey of sexual self-discovery where there were no limits or boundaries?.

Excerpt
He moved his mouth over her body as if drawing a map with it, tasting every nook and crevice, seeking her pleasure spots and dwelling a long time on them. His open-mouthed kisses on her heated skin sent shafts of electricity through her, igniting nerves already snapping and firing.
His cock pressed against the soft skin of her inner thigh and her hands suddenly itched to touch it and hold it. Pulling Ben’s head up from its drifting path down to her pussy, she smiled at him. “Stop.”
His eyebrows raised. “Stop? Am I doing something wrong? Something you don’t like? Just tell me—”
“No. You’re doing everything just right. But I want to play too.” She pushed at his shoulders.
“And just what is it you want to do?” he asked, his eyes bright with curiosity as he rolled onto his back.
“This.”
Wondering where this spurt of boldness had come from, she shifted onto her knees next to him, her gaze riveted to his erection which pointed directly at her. Tentatively she reached out a finger to touch the bead of fluid sitting like a viscous marble atop the slit. Rubbing it back and forth along the velvet surface, she watched the thick stalk bob under her touch and saw Ben’s thigh muscles tighten.
She hadn’t done this since Joe’s death. The few men she’d had sex with hadn’t appealed to her this way at all. Sometimes she wondered if they really appealed to her in any way. Worried that maybe she just wasn’t a sexual person.
No. Wait. Then she wouldn’t be where she was doing what she was. Right?
Inquisitively, she bent her head and licked the surface of the purple head with the tip of her tongue, swiping it back and forth two or three times, loving the slightly salty taste of the fluid and the sensation of the soft skin against her tongue. Her fingers barely wrapped around the thick length of him but she felt the steel beneath the supple covering. She unclasped him and ran one finger the length of the heavy vein, feeling the blood pulsing through it.
“Am I doing this right?” she asked, her voice tremulous, unable to look at him as she waited for his answer.
“Are you kidding?” Ben asked in a strangled voice, one large hand coming up to squeeze her buttocks. “I think you’re trying to torture me.”
Grace’s laugh held just a hint of uncertainty. “Just finding out what you feel like. How you feel.”
His hand moved in slow strokes on the cheek of her ass. “Surely this isn’t the first one you’ve ever seen or felt,” he joked.
“Believe it or not, the first in bright light. At least for longer than I want to remember.”
Because the others didn’t bear looking at. Except for Ben.

The Sexually Assertive Woman

What is it with men these days? Or perhaps it is just the ones in my neck of the woods. I am proud to say that I am a sexually assertive woman. At the age of thirty-six I know what I want from my partner and I'm not afraid to ask for...no, to demand it. I know what excites me, what gets my motor running, and I have even...(dare I admit it) masturbated. Gasp. I know. Not saying that for shock value just trying to convey that I know my body very well.
We no longer live in a society where women are to be chaste and pure while men are free to play. Or do we? Is there still that core value that sees a woman who is sexual as a whore? Slutty? Cheap? And who is really giving us this label? Men? Or other women?
I remember my twenties fondly. But I was far from the woman that I am now. I was easily intimidated and shy. I was never happy with my body, my appearance, my anything. I was far from assertive. But I lived. I experienced life and learned from it. Did I make mistakes? You bet, sometimes more than once. But they all brought to where I am now, to who I am now. So I regret nothing.
I was married for twelve years and although it ended sadly in divorce, I dont' regret it and will hold love for him somewhere inside always. He is the father of my children. I have dated. I have loved. I have walked away unscathed and I have walked away deeply wounded. I have even succumbed to the occasional booty call.
My original point was that I am a sexual woman. I love sex, every facet of it. I am confident and secure within myself and that changes how I behave in the bedroom...or wherever. Call me what you will but when it is all said and done, I never fake anything. I don't have to.
Men may be intimidated because they actually have to prove what they claim. I'm not some naive school girl that is going to be wrapped up in pleasing him. I'm a woman and I'll tell you what I like, what I don't, and what I'd really enjoy. Just maybe we'll both walk away with a smile...or even better, we won't have the strength left to walk at all.
So women don't be afraid to embrace your sexual side. It is more than okay to know what you want and to demand it. Don't settle. NEVER FAKE IT! And men. There is a lot to learn from a woman who knows her body. Explore it with her, listen, and you just might walk away a much better lover for it.
I am woman. I am Goddess. Hear me roar. More importantly just hear me!

Lacey Thorn
It's your world...unlaced.

Birthdays are wonderful...until you get past 12! But today is a great birthday!

And yesterday I got my birthday present...

Dictated by Fate
was just released from Resplendence Publishing!

My third release, and my first from Resplendence, this is a full length novel about two lonely people who find themselves in situations that can't be remedied without help...and when Fate steps in to help, you can bet things will heat up quickly! Between Fate and erroneous assumptions, things get pretty rocky pretty fast!

Chris

Facing eviction and being homeless is not quite the most humiliating thing that has ever happened to her...not quite. Her short and disappointing marriage to a gorgeous guy who never bothered to mention that he was gay took top honors in that division! But finding another affordable place will be virtually impossible if she has to move out within the week!

Tonio

A man on a mission...a mission to find a very temporary wife to meet the requirements of his father's will. He has no desire to be saddled with a "'Til death do us part" relationship, but where can he find a woman who is attractive enough to convince his family and the lawyers that he is in love, without that woman sinking her claws into his hide and fortune? He only needs her for 24 months...and she must be willing to walk away with no strings at that point. The ideal candidate is a woman who has no interest in him as a man...who will be willing to let him go after 24 months...and who won't try to take his fortune when she does leave!

Assumption #1

He is utterly gorgeous, yet he has to find a wife to satisfy some legal requirement within his family? He can get any woman he wants! Why plain, dumpy Chris? He has to be gay...just like her ex! He obviously needs a showpiece wife to make his family believe he is straight. There can be no other explanation! What a waste! Will she never find a man who wants her for anything other than a facade? Is there a sign on her forehead that reads "Stupid and desperate"?

Assumption #2

A woman who is disinterested in Antonio Rodriguez? The maddening red head doesn't seem to find him in the least attractive, and she acts as if his touch is repellent! She must be a lesbian...after all, she was married to a gay man. Of course, she is exactly what he needs...except that he has never met a woman who didn't fall all over him and cling to him like a limpet. Too bad she doesn't like men...

But you know what they say about that odd little word ASSUME...right?

I am running a contest to win a FREE copy of my book on my website at:

http://www.franleeromance.com

It will end August 31, 2009.

Drop in and enter...there are also dozens of secondary prizes as well.

Fran Lee
http://www.franleeromance.com