The Monthly Herd-- Feb 2015--Can we thaw out now? Please?

We. Survived. February.

Barely.

What a freaking COLD month. I'm ready to thaw out, please! lol

 Blog-wise a pretty good month. Got a lot done, did some good reading, hosted a blog tour and had another one book. So not bad. Home-wise a little rough. My first car finally gave her last gasp. She ended up needing more work than she was worth which was disappointing. And lost a rescue babe. I hate when that happens. Thankfully everyone else is doing well and holding in there but so much suck when a loss catches you by surprise. Have been giving lots of extra loves to the Herd which is helping. Not too much else home-wise. Projects as usual, waiting for warmer weather to do some outside things that need doing. 

Randomly Random--I Mustache You Some Questions--more about the cat herder. *bwahahaha*

Jennifer over at Feminist Fairy Tale Reviews tagged me in this one and why the heck not? A light hearted way to end February :) Discussion questions will be back next weekend! And now...

Four Names People Call Me Other Than My Real Name..

1. AnnaMary
2. Lefty
3. Meeeerrrrow
4. Annabelle 

Four Jobs I’ve Had...

Interview w/ Jim Cangany-- Popcorn addiction, trains & chatting with a male romance author!

Hey guys!! So we have Jim Cangany joining us today. He's an awesome guy we hang out with over on Facebook and totally delighted to have him here today. Oh and...he writes romance. How awesome is that? Check out our chat leave Jim some comment love!  ~Anna

When ordinary guy, E.J. McCarty, crosses paths with not-so-ordinary Annie Wilson, extraordinary things happen. For E.J., it’s the start of a great adventure. For Annie, it’s an escape from colossal failure. But thanks to fate--and Amtrak--they’re thrust together on the cross-country ride of their lives.

E.J. and Annie like each other, so what’s the problem? Rock star/actress Cassandra Lawrence is the problem. Despite their obvious attraction to each other, Cassandra’s history in show biz and distrustful nature conspire to keep them apart.

Can E.J. break down the walls Cassandra has built around Annie? Can Annie learn to trust E.J. enough to let him even try? And what’s with E.J.’s bizarre dreams about the North Star? From Chicago, through the heartland and all the way to the Malibu Pier, they struggle to accept that while faith, hope and love are important, trust is the key to the future.

Amazon | All Romance | Goodreads

Jim!! Hullo and welcome to the herd! So excited to have you dropping by this morning. Thought we'd nosh on some warm cinnamon rolls while we chat. *passes around a plate of yummy deliciousness* So how goes it this morning?

Mmm, those cinnamon rolls are to die for. And in answer to your question, it's going totally fab. Enjoying cinnamon rolls and hanging out with you, what more could a guy ask for!

Oh make a girl blush! lol Alright now, I'm curious about your first book--Fallen Star. If you had 10 seconds to hook someone what would you tell them about EJ and Annie's adventure?

It's time to VOTE!! Woots! Name that song, yall...Come on! Help a girl out :D

Yesterday yall submitted ideas for song title.

Today...you vote! Pick your favorite title to go with the song below!

The King (The Original Sinners #6) by Tiffany Reisz

Cunning. Sex. Pure nerve. Only this unholy threesome can raise him to his rightful place as a ruler of Manhattan's kink kingdom.

Bouncing from bed to bed on the Upper East Side, Kingsley Edge is brilliant, beautiful and utterly debauched. No carnal act or chemical compound can relieve his self-destructive heartache—only Søren, the one person he loves without limit or regret. A man he can never have, but in whose hands Kingsley is reborn to attain even greater heights of sin.

Kingsley's plan to open the ultimate BDSM club—a dungeon playground for New York's A-list—becomes his obsession. His expertise in domination can't subdue the one man who wants to stop him. The enigmatic Reverend Fuller won't rest until King's dream is destroyed, and so the battle lines are set; it's one man's sacred mission against another's…

Type: Erotica, BDSM
Heat:4 out of 5
Rating: 3 out of 5

Amazon | All Romance | Book Depository | BAM | Goodreads

Hrms. You know how you sometimes go into a book expecting one thing and wind up, in a way, getting something else entirely? That was The King for me. I've finally read Tiffany Reisz! I know, I know! I am WAY late on that game and reading out of order *hangs head* but it worked out okay I think. I wasn't blown away by it but it was entertaining.

• It's an interesting book. I'll give it that. But it wasn't quite as much as I expected or hoped for after hearing how amazing Reisz's writing is and how the erotica she writes is like art and beautifully written. It just felt average to me and very much felt like a set up book with flash backs on top of flash backs chronicling how the main characters of the series met and their present day lives came about.

Erika Kelly's Name that Song contest... This is pretty awesome yall!

ENTRIES ARE CLOSED! VOTE HERE!



Soooo. Erika Kelly did something pretty neat. Her hero from You Really Got Me?
He totally wrote a song for his heroine. And Kelly...had it made! It's down below.
Yall check out the video then....enter the contest.

At Wolf Ranch (Montana Men #1) by Jennifer Ryan (@avonbooks)

After years on the rodeo circuit, Gabe Bowden wants nothing more than land of his own and a woman who will claim his heart for more than one night. When he has the chance to buy the enormous Wolf Ranch spread, he snaps up the incredible deal. Everything is set, until Gabe rescues a woman on the deserted, snowy road leading to the property, and the half-frozen beauty changes everything.

Ella Wolf rushes to her family's abandoned Montana ranch after her twin sister is murdered. She knows she's next . . . unless she can uncover a secret hidden somewhere at Wolf Ranch. The last thing Ella expects is to be rescued by a rugged rancher with his own agenda. A man who almost makes her forget how dangerous love can be.

As an unlikely partnership sparks into something so much more, and a killer closes in, can Ella and Gabe learn to trust one another before it's too late?

Type: Contemporary Romance
Heat: 3 out of 5
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Amazon | All Romance | Book Depository | BAM | Goodreads

 Oh...my word....how have I waited this long to read Ryan?! My cowboy loving heart has been seriously neglected. At Wolf Ranch was incredible! Yall know I don't read blurbs so I was thinking sexy winter cowboy romance and instead I got, well, sexy winter cowboy romance but mystery and suspense and a damn fine start to a new series too. Hot dayum but that's an amazing combo of cowboyliciousness.

The quick of it is that Ella witnessed her twin sister's murder and now she's on the run and retracing Lela's last days to figure out what her sister had uncovered that put her in danger and that's now got Ella's life at risk. And that's led her to their family ranch in Montana and a gorgeous cowboy that comes to her rescue in the nick of time and decides to keep her.

Book Deals-- Free. 99cent. $1.99. New Releases-- Feb 24th

To navigate the widget! On the left side are three categories

New Releases

99cent-1.99 deals

and Freebies. 

Just click that link then scroll through. 

There will be a couple of pages for each. You can click on the cover for book blurb then just hit the back button to get to the main list again.  

Let me know if you grab anything! It helps me for picking future 99cent and freebie deals!      ~Anna

Quote-tastic/Review-- Ooo. New favorite word!--Slow Burn by K. Bromberg

Join us every Monday and share a favorite quote that's grabbed ya for one reason or another. 

Everyone's welcome to join in. Authors, bloggers, readers. The more the merrier! Just grab the button and toss up your post :) 

No blog? No worries, just leave your favorites in the comment section.

I finally read my first K Bromberg! And it was pretty damn good. And totally surprised me in having a pretty heavy storyline to go with the yummy heat. Have a couple lines/quotes this week. Just couldn't decide. This first one. Totally have a new favorite word! Woots!

If I didn't know any better, I'd say I'm cockstruck by him, but that's just not possible.  

Word from the Herd: 30? Girlfriend you're WAY too OLD for romance. Mmhm.

Okay so this post is way late coming--this is something I saw on a blog last year--but at the time I was just a little too grrr-argy to actually write the post. I decided though I still kind of wanted to put this out there. This was a guest post by a new romance author on things she'd learned while writing her first romance.

Must Reads (or rather Eats!)-- The Tasty Delights NOT to be missed!

A bit back I was asked about doing some favorites lists. 

Books or authors I think should be on everyone's tbr pile.

And so... Herding Cats & Burning Soup Must Reads! 

This month though...I'm going Must Eats!

I do a lot of cooking here and over the past 3 years some have definitely made my favorites list.

So here's the cooking posts I think everyone should check out AND make!

Have you had a favorite Tasty Delight post? You can find them all HERE!

Bear Attraction (Shifters Unbound #6.5) by Jennifer Ashley (@BerkleyRomance)

As the military liaison between the human Shifter Bureau and Shiftertown, Walker is often stuck trying to appease both sides—and angering both. So when bear-Shifter Rebecca is captured taking a run in a restricted area, Walker comes up with a compromise: if Rebecca helps him find a missing woman—thought to have been abducted by a Shifter—she won’t be charged and executed.

As a bear used to roaming for miles, Rebecca hates being confined, distrusts anything involving humans, and—worst of all—the strong and handsome Walker starts triggering her mating need. They have no choice but to work together but both Walker and Rebecca find it hard not to mix business with pleasure…

Type: Paranormal Romance, Shifters
Heat: 2 out of 5
Rating: 4 out of 5

Amazon | All Romance | Goodreads

Oh Ashley does know how to make a para loving girl smitten! Bear Attraction was the perfect shiftery treat complete with bears, sexy humans, mystery and a wee bit of danger as Walker and Rebecca are forced to team up to find a missing human woman. And...it just made me happeh. :D

Guest Post w/ Catherine Gayle-- a confession... (Cat Thursday)

Morning yall! One of my local ladies is meme-jacking Cat Thursday today. Woots! Catherine's an awesome one. She writes historicals and hockey romances and she's got herd babes! Check out her girlies and leave her some comment love :D  ~Anna

Nicky Ericsson has had a long fight with addiction, and because of it he lost his spot as the Portland Storm's top goaltender. He's on the road to a comeback--both in his personal life and on the ice. He's throwing himself into charity work, recovery group meetings, training...all the things he needs to do to become the best version of himself he can be, and to keep himself clean. He has no other choice.

Jessica Lynch has been running the Portland office for the Light the Lamp Foundation for a few years, so she knows a thing or two about addicts. One of the main things she's learned is that even when they try to turn their lives around, sometimes the addictions get the better of them. Because of that, she takes a hands off approach, keeping her heart out of things.

Nicky's attempts to better himself puts him in directly Jessica's path more often than not, and their attraction is instant and mutual. Can he prove that he won't fall back into old habits, and complete the perfect comeback?

Amazon | All Romance | Goodreads

Hi, fellow cat herders and soup burners! Thanks for having me today.

I’m Catherine Gayle, romance author, hockey-obsessed reality TV watcher, and human to two felines. And I have a confession to make. My cats are freaks.

The Master (The Game Maker #2) by Kresley Cole (@GalleryBooks)

Rich, irresistible politician/Mafiya boss Maksimilian Sevastyan prefers tall, obedient blondes to fulfill his…complicated desires. That is, until the icy Russian encounters a disobedient brunette whose exquisite little body threatens his legendary restraint.

Catarina Marín was a well-off young wife until her world fell apart. Now she’s hiding out, forced to start working as an escort in Miami. Her very first client is beyond gorgeous, but when he tells her what he plans to do to her, Cat almost walks out of the door.

After their mind-blowing encounter burns out of control, the lovers crave more. If they escape the deadly threats surrounding them, can Maksim overcome his past—to offer Cat his future? Only then will she tempt him with what he really wants: her, all tied up with a bow.

Type: Erotic Romance
Heat: 3.5 out of 5
Rating: 4 out of 5

Amazon | All Romance | Book Depository | BAM | Goodreads

*pants* Cole...totally had me swooning <hard> over a mob boss and an escort as the two hooked up, flipped each other's worlds upside down and had a battle of wills all while having oodles (and omg I finally got to use oodles) of toe-curlingly delicious sex. Oh yes. Cole will have you fanning yourself and begging for more!

So. The quick of it is that Maksim is an escort hobbyist but his current, erm, date, had to call in sick and Cat ended up taking her place. She's desperate for money so she can escape her past and one night in Maksim's bed...will get her well on her way to a new life in another city. But he might just decide to keep her instead. Ahhh. Yes. Lots of sexy angsty deliciousness abounds! (did I mention that already? lol)

Hungry Like the Wolf (SWAT #1) by Paige Tyler

The Dallas SWAT team is hiding one helluva secret . . . they're a pack of wolf shifters.

The team of elite sharpshooters is ultra-secretive—and also the darlings of Dallas. This doesn't sit well with investigative journalist Mackenzie Stone. They must be hiding something . . . and she's determined to find out what.

Keeping Mac at a distance proves impossible for SWAT team commander Gage Dixon. She's smart, sexy, and makes him feel alive for the first time in years. But she's getting dangerously close to the truth—and perilously close to his heart...

Type: Paranormal Romance
Heat: 3 out of 5
Rating: 3 out of 5 (was real close to a 4.5 until the end)

Amazon | All Romance | Book Depository | BAM | Goodreads

There were so many fantastic shiver-worthy things about Hungry like the Wolf. I was freaking LOVING this read. I mean, hello, a SWAT team made of werewolves! Loves! But there was one big issue kept this book from knocking it out for me and oh made me so angry. And that was...the heroine which was a shame because it was a killer start to one helluva exciting series other than her.

Alright the quick of it is that the Dallas SWAT team has a major secret, you know, being they're all wolves and such. And now a reporter is poking around trying to uncover the secret behind the SWAT team--she's sure they're on drugs or something--and exposing them for what they are even though they do an amazing job and everyone adores them. If she can break a story on them it'll make her career! Hrms.

Book Deals-- Free. 99cent. $1.99. New Releases-- Feb 17th

To navigate the widget! On the left side are three categories

New Releases

99cent-1.99 deals

and Freebies. 

Just click that link then scroll through. 

There will be a couple of pages for each. You can click on the cover for book blurb then just hit the back button to get to the main list again.  

Let me know if you grab anything! It helps me for picking future 99cent and freebie deals!      ~Anna

Quote-tastic/Review-- So that's how it is, huh?-- Diary of an Accidental Wallflower by Jennifer McQuiston

Join us every Monday and share a favorite quote that's grabbed ya for one reason or another. 

Everyone's welcome to join in. Authors, bloggers, readers. The more the merrier! Just grab the button and toss up your post :) 

No blog? No worries, just leave your favorites in the comment section.

I'm still pretty new to McQuiston but man is she winning me over. I always have a little moment of oh no I am NOT going to like this character but whew she changes my mind and really wow's me in the end. The hero of this one is a poor struggling doctor/inventor and the heroine is part of Society Miss who has her eyes set on a Duke before she meets the hero one day after spraining her ankle.

Randomly Random---the wee Lovely Blogger ;)

Mornin' luvs. So. I thought we'd do some random today. Two fab bloggers--Jorie at Jorie's Reads and Ki over at Doing Some Reading tagged me in the One Lovely Blog meme and I'm always up for sharing some random with yall. Basically you share 7 facts about yourself then pass it on to the next blogger :) So I'm gonna double my facts. One set for each. Here goes!

Tag: The Cat Herder (edition 6)

I get tagged, tweeted, private messaged all the time with variations of... "omg this so reminded me of you!" or that book you're reading! which...okay...at this point...kinda makes me nervous. lol

And I thought it might be fun to start putting those random and wonderfully weird things people think just scream...me. This one won't always be, erm, family friendly. Heh.

✽●✽●✽●✽●✽●✽●✽●✽

Yups. That's weed infused lube.

I just. Yeah. My lady bits are good. Thanks.

Blogger to Author (4)--When is it OKAY for an author to comment...

Blogger to Author is a bit of an advice column for authors with tips and suggestions about working with bloggers, blogging in general and making the most of the platform.

After 3 years of blogging I've noticed trends and methods I think can help or harm authors and their goals and wanted to put something together to hopefully create better author/blogger relations and give some insight to authors who may not be bloggers themselves. It's all based on interactions that have happened here on herding cats & burning soup over the years. 

Alright so a maybe kind of touchy subject today. Authors and commenting on posts! Eeps! In the last couple months I've had 4 authors tell me they were told to NEVER (ever) comment on a blog. Not just a review post. But ANY post. Spotlight, guest post, interview, etc. And gotta say I completely disagree with this train of thought.

Guest Post w/ Anne Barton--Crushing on Your Brother's Friends...

Lady Olivia Sherbourne isn't shy about speaking her mind, except when it comes to James Averill. For ten long years he has been her brother's best friend and her heart's only desire. But when Olivia hears James will soon set sail for an expedition to Egypt, she knows the time has come to make her move. It's now or never . . .

James has always found Olivia bewitchingly attractive, but what kind of gentleman takes up with his best friend's sister? Not that he's thinking particularly gentlemanly thoughts when she appears on his exploratory trip—three hundred miles from home!—and incites a tavern fight. No matter what the devil she's doing there, it's his duty to see her safely back to her family. But how safe will she be when every starlit night brings wicked temptation . . . ?

Amazon | All Romance | Book Depository | BAM | Goodreads

Growing up, brothers present a unique set of challenges. They’ll read your diary, pull your hair, and leave their smelly shoes everywhere.

But brothers also come with a perk. Friends.

If you grew up with a brother who happened to have a good-looking friend, you probably know what I’m talking about. And if you didn’t have a brother, you might have crushed on your best friend’s brother, which is pretty much the same phenomenon.

Why is this so common, you ask? See if you can relate to my list of…

Cat Thursday--Oh. Oh no. I just..I..achooo!

Welcome to the weekly meme hosted by The True Book Addict that celebrates the wonders and sometime hilarity of cats!

Join us by posting a favorite LOL cat pic you may have come across, famous cat art or even share with us pics of your own beloved cat(s). It's all for the love of kitteh!

 Because it's too...damn...funny.

Rescue Me (Second Chance Ranch #2) by Catherine Mann

Detective AJ Parker left undercover work in Atlanta to join a small-town Tennessee police force, hoping for an easier workload and the solitude of his cabin. But the scars left by AJ’s previous work are more difficult to escape than he thought…

Mary Hannah Gallo works with the Second Chance Ranch Animal Rescue to train therapy dogs for traumatized patients. It isn’t easy, but her life is under control—until she meets the broodingly sensual AJ, who rattles her composure all the way to her toes.

After an assignment confiscating dogs from a backyard breeder reveals a dangerous drug operation, AJ must work with sexy perfectionist Mary Hannah to train an abused rescue dog—a dog now named Holly. While Holly proves to these two very different people that opposites can, in fact, attract, she also knows more than a few explosive secrets that could heal—or divide—the entire town.

Type: Contemporary Romance
Heat: 2.5 out of 5 (very limited)
Rating: 3 out of 5

Amazon | All Romance | Book Depository | BAM | Goodreads

Rescue babes, a sexy cop and a likable heroine. All things I adore in my reads. And I did enjoy Rescue Me even though it didn't blow me away entirely as Mary Hannah and AJ both work on a meth house bust in different ways. He's there with the police force and she's there with the animal rescue to get animals out of the house.

The characters--I liked both AJ and Mary Hannah. They'd hooked up a little while back on a one night stand then realized they were going to be neighbors of a sort. I always love that storyline. They were a little awkward but still sweet as they worked through that. They could be a little touchy and over reactive now and again but I liked them. Especially how much they each cared about what they did--he's a cop, she's a therapist that specializes in therapy animals-- and the people and animals around them as well.

Forbidden to Love the Duke (The Fenwick Sisters Affairs #1) by Jillian Hunter

Lady Ivy Fenwick is desperate. Since her father’s fatal duel, she and her sisters have sold off every valuable possession to make ends meet. With the manor stripped bare, Ivy has one last resort: Apply as governess to the Duke of Ellsworth’s wards.

James should have known better than to hire the desirable lady who had fallen on hard times—and who tempts him at every turn. As her employer, he tries valiantly to remain noble and not let a kiss they shared as strangers years ago entice him. Yet the more he learns of Ivy’s secrets, the more he wants her. And when another suitor proves aggressive, James is confronted with a challenge: Surrender Ivy or fight for the woman he’s come to love against all odds, knowing that it takes a scoundrel to trump a scoundrel.

Type: Historical Romance
Heat: 2.5 out of 5
Rating: 3 out of 5

Amazon | All Romance | Book Depository | BAM | Goodreads

Second chance romance, a little taboo romance of a Duke and his governess, quirky family members and a little mystery and intrigue. Forbidden to Love the Duke...was a charming start to the Fenwick Sisters Affairs.

• I liked the set up. These two met briefly years ago but then life happened and it wasn't until 5 years later when their paths crossed again when she was in need of a position and he was desperate for a governess for his niece and nephew.

• I loved the characters. Lady Ivy and her sisters are spunky, tough broads who have survived scandal and heartache and stuck together no matter what was thrown at them. And James is one sexy Duke. He's back from war and just wanting to cut loose and have some nekkid time with his Mistress but lands himself with the

Book Deals-- Free. 99cent. $1.99. New Releases-- Feb 10th

To navigate the widget! On the left side are three categories

New Releases

99cent-1.99 deals

and Freebies. 

Just click that link then scroll through. 

There will be a couple of pages for each. You can click on the cover for book blurb then just hit the back button to get to the main list again.  

Let me know if you grab anything! It helps me for picking future 99cent and freebie deals!      ~Anna

Quote-tastic/Review-asking permission is so verra sexy! Hero by Samantha Young (@BerkleyRomance)

Join us every Monday and share a favorite quote that's grabbed ya for one reason or another. 

Everyone's welcome to join in. Authors, bloggers, readers. The more the merrier! Just grab the button and toss up your post :) 

No blog? No worries, just leave your favorites in the comment section.

My first go with Samantha Young...pretty damn good. Broody pain-in-the-ass hero, smart-ass heroine, Scorching sexy. Fucked up family history. Yep. Had a good time.

I had a devil of a time picking a quote this week so went with 3. These first two are from early on when the two were just starting to have to deal with each other. Just made me smile.

The Monthly Herd--November 2014--better way the hell late than never...

Bwahaha. So. Yeah. I totally didn't have my shit together back in November. *takes a bow for her total blogger badassery* But I like having a monthly recap that I can easily jump to when I'm looking for a particular post. Easier to have 12 posts to check than 550+ for the year. So. Now you get November 2014. ::snort::

Oh one fun thing in Nov! I got interviewed by NetGalley. That was a lot of fun. Thanks everyone who came out to visit! Yall rock and are just the most awesomest of followers :D

Tasty Delights--Chocolate Cream Pie

Tasty Delights and Dazzling Disasters is all about playing in the kitchen and having some fun.

I'll share my delights or my disasters. Yall feel free to join in and create your own posts, share your favorite recipes, what have you. 

So. I was in the mood for pie! And I didn't want to go to the grocery in the middle of the night so I searched the pantry and landed on making a Chocolate Cream Pie.

Yums! It was so dang easy and really tasty too!

Word from the Herd: Are there just *too* many books? What's keeping YOU from buying more books?

So. Here's the thing. Once again a post went by my Facebook feed bemoaning Amazon and Kindle Unlimited. And I gotta say. Totally makes me twitch when I see these types of posts.