Spontaneous Combustion - writing that first encounter!

News!

Daughters of Persephone, Book Three Reborn, Book Four, Red Demon, was released by Resplendence on the 8th. This is a great cover and you get a two-fer - two fun books in one volume....and you can win a copy from me.

Check out my site: http://juliarachelbarrett.net and find out how to participate in my contest - I'm offering two copies of each of my books!

I'm blogging over at Bookwenches about that dynamic, scorching first encounter. http://www.bookwenches.com/guestblog.htm
I'd love to have you drop by and leave me a comment.
To everyone - have a great weekend! Julia

Movie Night

It’s a rare treat for me to see a movie in the theater. Hubby thinks it is a waste of money and it is a proven fact that the most obnoxious, coughing, chatting, seat kicking person will sit directly behind him! Over the holiday weekend, my daughter and her sig other invited us to go see Avatar. Of course, two of the other six people in the theater sat right behind us and talked non-stop during the previews but my turning around and flashing them the stink eye when the movie started effectively shut them up.

I was completely blown away by this film! I found it intensely sensual and romantic on a multitude of levels. Visually it was beyond stunning. The 3-D was used to enhance the experience, not to shoot images off the screen for effect. The colors, the movement, the richness of details combined perfectly to evoke a deep emotional response.

The story itself was predictable but what surprised me the most was how it explored love with subtlety and finesse. The relationship between Jake and Neytiri, beings about as different as two can be, was built slowly and believably. Understanding, friendship and respect came before any hint of physical love. The spirituality of the Na’Vi people, their love and connection to their planet and the other creatures they shared it with was intensely moving. The relationship that developed between Jake and the Na’Vi warriors, Tsu’Tey in particular, perfectly depicted the love of beings bound together by a common cause. I also completely understood (though I was still glad when he bought it in the end) the passionate emotions of Colonel Quaritich.

Hubby told me he “really liked” the movie – high praise, indeed! I took that as an opening to verbally dissect the nuances of the film until his eyes glazed over.

Tessie

http://www.tessiebradford.com/

A true Southern gentleman...

My husband is a real Southern gentleman. I never catch him looking at other women when we’re out together.

Thank you honey, my ego appreciates it.

However his childhood best friend is incorrigible. When “S” sees an attractive woman his eyes focus like lasers to track her across the room as if he were a stalking wolf. Many women find this intense level of interest attractive. Some run for their lives. “S” has been married four times. I think that sums up how that behavior makes women feel.

I’m just as bad. When the three of us are out in public “S” is looking at women, I’m looking at men and my husband is talking to dogs and petting them.

I have to qualify what I’m looking at. I try not to be creepy but I love studying people. I’m a people watcher. I also love to paint so I’m always on the lookout for an interesting face. If I spot an interesting nose with a bump on the ridge I’m in heaven.

I love little flaws and I do not mean that in a gloating way. I truly believe so-called flaws are marks of merit. For instance I almost have a fetish for men with rough, scarred skin. Something about that look hijacks my eye every time I see it.  I don’t think, “acne scars” I think “warrior.” I got the ultimate thrill many years ago as walked into a health food store. I passed a black, convertible Porche with its engine running a phone, a wallet and an appointment book were set on the seat. I hurried into the store to warn the car’s owner of their foolish oversight. It was that wonderful villain, Robert Davi’s car. He was buying vegetable juice and he was very polite, very tall, very handsome in person and I got a very good look at his sparkling black eyes and rough, rough scarred skin…Lucky me. 

Now if only Clive Owen would come to town and leave his car engine running, I’d sure love another chance to be a good Samaritan.

I’m not just looking at superficial things such as nose bumps and scars. Now that I write I’m also on the prowl for an interesting personality or even an oddly spoken phrase. People watching is like gold mining you have to be patient and sift through a lot of dross but its sweet when it pays off. I’m a fly on the wall and I overhear lots of outrageous stuff. I enjoy listening to people as they pass and then make up the parts of conversation, in my mind, that I couldn’t hear. Sometimes I mentally put words in the speaker’s mouths, “I would have said…

Now that I’ve admitted to being a voyeur and spying on the general public, how do feel about being watched and listened to in public if it’s done in an un-judgmental way?

XXOO Kat

Ignite The Flames

Three books for the price of one! Now in print at Ellora's Cave

Splashing Good Time
Reece Collins craves a no-strings-attached, torrid sexual encounter. Problem? The only person offering is ten years her junior.Nathan Donovan has lusted for Reece forever. One brief encounter leaves him yearning for more, but when she splashes cold water on his plans, he has to choose between walking away or spanking some sense into her.

Ignited
Nikaya is celebrating her birthday with a new Mustang. As she races up the side of a mountain in her new car, a police officer comes out of nowhere. He pulls her over, spanks her then whisks her away to a secluded cabin. There, the officer—and a friend—have a few surprises for the birthday girl.Surprises that include whips, floggers, blindfolds and more.


Research Required
On the run from the mob, the last thing Ethan needs is a distraction like Bailey. She’s sexy and sassy—and he wants to take her where she stands. Of course, Bailey would never have sex with a stranger. Then again, Ethan is her best friend’s brother, so that makes him a friend too, right? And what’s a little sex between friends?

Men, covers, movies. A new cherry!

Hoping you are ready for another devastatingly scrumptious cover, man, and story! WHENEVER WE MEET debuted August 20, launching the new line at Ellora's Cave, BRANDED, stories about marital heat.
My two lovers marry early in the book...and you must come read what happens to them, how they grow and change and what happens whenever they meet!
Enjoy!

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Anytime Darlin' - two great reviews

My favorite romance/suspense!

From Fangs, Wands and Fairy Dust:
http://fangswandsandfairydust.blogspot.com/

OOOOH, I have got to tell you about this great new book, Anytime Darlin'. Yes, it is by my friend Julia and she sent me an e-copy as a gift with no expectation of anything since she knows the scope of my blog. But it was so good, so H.O.T. that I told her I am plugging this on the blog on Friday.

There are two main characters, Jake, a cowboy/emt with parents who own a super profitable cattle-ranch. The girl he happens to get a call on is Devlin, found half-naked, starved, beaten and raped. Something in her eyes bonds them together more deeply than super-glue. Jake is 24, but Devlin is 17, a victim of her uncle's psychopathic rage. Jake knows he is too old for her and spends a few years away. She has no family, some close family friends help her but when she turns 18 she takes off to heal herself. It is a few years before they can get back together.

When I began reading this I thought the writing was outstanding. Super natural; nothing rang untrue or out of character. The story is really quite unusual, sad and sweet with loss and triumph. The heat level is up there past Scotch Bonnet, to Habañero. You know the hottest of the hot peppers. The sex in this made my toes curl.

But really what made me like this the most was the writing, the story and the development of the characters. There is a story with the sex; it is not just sex. Even the supporting characters are well developed. The villainy is complex and interwoven.

I know, I know, this might be hot but it's not paranormal. But the writing is super an it is natural, and it is about love and what is more magical than that?

Anytime Darlin' is available from Bookstrand.com

and from Book Wenches: http://www.bookwenches.com/august10reviews.htm

ISBN: 1-60601-352-1
Length: Novel
Format: Electronic
Genre: Contemporary
Source: P
Sensuality Level: 3
Rating: 5.0

Reviewed by: Teagan S. Boyd

A girl beaten within an inch of her life is found in the backroom of Kmart, and no one knows who she is. With the girl barely clinging to life, a paramedic holds her hand, and she refuses to let go. Aquamarine eyes drag him into her pain and suffering, and he can't resist being there for her.

This is how Devlin and Jake meet. Two people who form a bond one fateful day. When the terrible secret of Devlin's life the last two years comes out, Jake wants nothing more than to see the monster that did this to her dea, and to take care of her forever. But Devlin is young, and Jake realizes he must walk away and let her heal. When they meet four years later, has their love withstood time? The man of her nightmares has never been caught . . . will Devlin ever be safe?

********

Wow. This book blew me away. I expected romance, and I received so much more. This is a story with true heart and grit, and the spectacular romance just puts icing on the cake. I was drawn in immediately within the first few words and found that I was not able to put it down for a minute. The characters will be impossible to forget, and I wouldn't even want to.

I truly enjoyed that this story had so much "meat" to it. I got a bit of some of my favorite things: romance, suspense, and superbly written characters. The romance is sweet as well as spicy. The suspense kept me wondering what would happen, and my emotions were in full drive throughout the book due to the evilness of the villain. The characters are simply wonderful.

Devlin has a strength we all wish we had. She is a victim, yet we also see that she embraces her strength in order to overcome being a victim. I enjoyed her both as a teenager as well as a woman. Ms. Barrett brought her to life.

Jake is any woman's dream man. He is hardworking, sexy, and his compassion is almost as welcoming as his passion. I felt like cheering him on at times for his chivalry, yet he wasn't a softy pushover. The combination worked extremely well.

I must also mention the secondary characters. While they were very important, they didn't overshadow the main characters, they added superior depth to an already outstanding story.

Ms. Barrett has an uncanny ability to get my emotions in high gear, and her descriptions and stories come to life. As I have said before, she has a fan in me, and I will be waiting impatiently for more of her wonderful stories.

Thanks ladies!

Thoroughly Insulting insults!

My father just sent me this email and I realize it may have been making the rounds and you may have already heard these gems but just in case you haven’t, I’m posting them here today. 

The exchange between Churchill & Lady Astor:


She said, "If you were my husband I'd give you poison."


He said, "If you were my wife, I'd drink it." 



A member of Parliament to Disraeli: "Sir, you will either die on the gallows or of some unspeakable disease."


"That depends, Sir," said Disraeli, "whether I embrace your policies or your mistress." 



"He had delusions of adequacy." - Walter Kerr 



"He has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire." - Winston Churchill 



"I have never killed a man, but I have read many obituaries with great pleasure."  Clarence Darrow

 

"He has never been known to use a word that might send a reader to the dictionary." - William Faulkner (about Ernest Hemingway). 



"Thank you for sending me a copy of your book; I'll waste no time reading it." - Moses Hadas 



"I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying I approved of it." - Mark Twain 



"He has no enemies, but is intensely disliked by his friends." - Oscar Wilde 



"I am enclosing two tickets to the first night of my new play; bring a friend.... if you have one." - George Bernard Shaw to Winston Churchill 
"Cannot possibly attend first night, will attend second.... if there is one." -  Winston Churchill, in response. 



"I feel so miserable without you; it's almost like having you here." - Stephen Bishop 



"He is a self-made man and worships his creator." - John Bright



"I've just learned about his illness. Let's hope it's nothing trivial" - Irvin S. Cobb 



"He is not only dull himself; he is the cause of dullness in others." - Samuel Johnson 



"He is simply a shiver looking for a spine to run up." - Paul Keating 



"In order to avoid being called a flirt, she always yielded easily." - Charles, Count Talleyrand 



"He loves nature in spite of what it did to him." - Forrest Tucker 



"Why do you sit there looking like an envelope without any address on it?" - Mark Twain 



"His mother should have thrown him away and kept the stork" - Mae West 



"Some cause happiness wherever they go; others, whenever they go." - Oscar Wilde 



"He uses statistics as a drunken man uses lamp-posts.. . for support rather than illumination. " - Andrew Lang (1844-1912) 



"He has Van Gogh's ear for music." - Billy Wilder

 

"I've had a perfectly wonderful evening. But this wasn't it." - Groucho Marx

Slightly snippy but very inspiring…

XXOO Kat