"Slightly Dangerous" - Mary Balogh - 2004


If Darcy had 5 siblings and Lizzie was a widow...(of course I love it).

Same face, different takes...



...and again.


















These two have a very 70's Barbie feel about them.
Must be the saturation.











                                and the big hair....

"Portrait of My Heart" - Patricia Cabot (Meg Cabot) - 1999


I truly hope someone will stumble upon this in Goodwill and love it, because it has some nice moments and charm, it's just not a keeper for me...

Motivation Needed...

Why is it that on days where I have no tattoos, and nowhere to be, I have the energy to do nothing more than read a book?  And I justify it by saying I need it.   How do you find the balance between working and relaxation?  

Society gives us two days, then back to the grind.  But art does not follow the same path - they say you should be working, working, working and only by working will you be ready for opportunities and inspiration.  So when is it okay to relax?

I love my lazy Sundays, but they still involve laundry.  I love my Monday's off, but they still involve work/drawings/etc for the week.  There is always a count down and your free time is ticking away. 

CONES show (5/17/12) was great.



"The Last Waltz" - Mary Balogh - 1998


 For someone who doesn't really like the xmas season in real life, I sure do like Mary Balogh's version of it in her novels.  Unfortunately, "The Last Waltz" felt a bit repetitious in it's Christmas traditions, and I didn't like the hero/heroine or plot very much at all.  "The Last Waltz" was her final short-form Regency romance, moving on to write several hugely popular historical romance series, a few of which I love, so no regrets about the end of Regency's from me...

"Educating Caroline" - Patricia Cabot (aka Meg Cabot) - 2001


  Meg Cabot is best known for her Princess Diaries series and tons of other YA novels, but she wrote quite a few romances, published under the pen name, Patricia Cabot.  I've only read a few, as they're a little hard to find these days.   I'd place "Educating Caroline" among the wallpaper variety of historicals, it feels altogether too modern, just look at that cover design, come on.  However, Cabot's wit and a lovable hero leave you charmed enough to look past all that.

"The Hathaway Series" - Lisa Kleypas


I read these two out of order, but I had read them before...  No matter that I was just too lazy to stop and look for 'Married by Morning' (it was on the kitchen table) so I just started 'Love in the Afternoon.' Which is the final book in the series, and a little bit anti-climatic.  Beatrix is the most developed character when she finally gets her own love story, because she's featured in everyone else's stories, too. Her story is very much "Shop Around the Corner"/"You've Got Mail" inspired, and truly the letters were the best part of their story.



I remember being pretty disappointed in Leo and Marks' story the first time around, but that was due to some lofty expectations.  This time it didn't bother so much.

Overall, Lisa Kleypas is so good at what she does, even her mediocre output is better than most romances published today.  It's just that sometimes, what she puts out is amazing, so you want it all to be as good...