CJ's Desk Diary » Must Love Books

I’m Giving Away Books Tonight

CJ — Fri, 11 May 2012 22:08:47 +0000

If you live in Calgary how about coming to the Chapters at 9631 MacLeod Trail tonight-Friday May 11? From 7 until 8:30 p.m. I’ll be speaking with six fellow authors (Lecia Cornwall, Pamela Yaye, Vivi Anna, Michelle Beattie and Lauren Hawkeye) about Surviving Today’s Publishing World. (Hint: it isn’t easy!) I’m bringing 25 books to give away as freebies. There will be other books available for purchase, refreshments and time for chatting and questions.

If you love books, writing, or just want a fun night out, come and visit! By the way, this gathering is in part due to our Chapter organizing for a big workshop on Saturday. We have Michael Hague speaking to our RWA Chapter and we’re all very excited.

What Would You Read…

CJ — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 20:16:06 +0000

…if you had one week to laze around on a beach in Mexico?

My smart guy found a terrific, extraordinary, amazing deal on a week holiday to Manzanillo, and we couldn’t resist. Besides bathing suits and flip flops, I’m packing my next book in Louise Penny’s Three Pine series, The Cruellest Month, and also Jodi Picoult’s Sing You Home, which I started and am anxious to finish.

Of course I’ll be reading the next book in the Bandit Creek series, as well. Any other recommendations on a good beach read? How about cocktails? (Warning, I’m partial to coconut and rum!)

Welcome to Bandit Creek

CJ — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 17:35:57 +0000

A group from our local writing chapter, the Calgary Romance Writers of America, is launching a new series today. The idea was to write and self-publish a series of connected stories. Some are contemporary, some historical. All genres are included, too, from mystery to romance to paranormal. The first story, Lost, by Viva Anna, Carla Roma, is available at Amazon right now!

Lost

Visit the website for more details about this innovative project. By the way, my book for the series will be available on December 15, 2011.

Beyond Her Book

CJ — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 22:51:18 +0000

Receptionist Under Cover was recently reviewed in Barbara Vey’s Blog in Publishers Weekly: Beyond Her Book. It’s great to see that the Fox & Fisher Detective Agency books are still finding new readers. I love checking out the reviews in this blog–I’ve found many good books this way. Thanks Sheila for adding another one of mine to the list!

Million Dollar Dad

CJ — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 17:52:01 +0000

Can you imagine a widower’s surprise when he discovers, a year after his beloved wife’s death, that she was the daughter of a multi-millionaire and now he is in line for a million dollar legacy?

A few years ago I wrote a novella with this premise. It was a prequel–something like a teaser–to introduce my Gray Brother’s trilogy. The novella was available as a free read on eharlequin…but now it’s in print, packaged as a bonus read along with Sarah Mayberry’s The Best Laid Plans and Nancy Robards Thompson’s Accidental Heiress. Check it out at Mills and Boon.

It’s fun to think this story I wrote several years ago is finding new readers today. A great way to start the New Year! I hope your New Year is off to a good start too. Thanks for dropping by…and don’t forget to enter my contest this month!

Cheers from CJ

Publisher’s Weekly

CJ — Thu, 13 May 2010 00:10:28 +0000

Guess what? PERFECT PARTNERS was featured in Barbara Vey’s PW blog, Beyond Her Book. Check it out: http://blogs.publishersweekly.com/blogs/beyondherbook/

The Road–A Must Read

CJ — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 16:45:26 +0000

It is possible to read Cormac McCarthy’s The Road in less than one day, but you will find yourself dwelling in the world he creates (or should I say destroys?) for days, weeks, maybe years to come. I read the final pages with awe. The book, in my opinion, is a masterpiece. The last time I was so completely swept away by a literary work was when I read Michael Cunningham’s The Hours. (Also a Pulitzer Prize winner. Hm.)

I was surprised that I liked this book so much. It took an accummulation of courage for me to buy this book, after all, I’m a romance novelist, and postapocalyptic novels do not promise the cozy, fireside read that I often crave.

But since I believe it’s important to stretch my creative and intellectual mind, I did buy the book and I did read it, and I’m so glad, because sandwiched between scenes of a destroyed, burning, horrific earth are conversations between a father and son–on the road, searching for some warmer, more hospitable portion of the planet– of such tender humanity, love and courage that you can’t help but feel hope for the future despite the apparent futility of their quest.

I loved the way this book was written…the tight, meaningful, beautiful, masterful wielding of words. In their voyage, father and son carry knapsacks containing their essential possessions. The same holds for the words, and even the punctuation, in this novel, each carefully selected for precise meaning and powerful impact. It begins… “When he woke in the woods in the dark andthe cold of the night he’d reach out to touch the child sleeping beside him. Nights dark beyond darkness and the days more gray each one than what had gone before.”

Interestingly, the apocalyptic event which destroyed planet earth remains in the background leaving the focus on the boy and his father and their elemental relationship based on a melding of survival and love, both instincts that appear to be bred in the bone. The book offers little hope for long-term survival, though, for there are things that can “not be made right again.”

Still, there is something here to warm the heart afterall. “We are the good guys, right?” the boys asks his father, and we, deep in our hearts, believe that they are, that we are.

Take a Trip…Or Read a Book?

CJ — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:01:38 +0000

On my return flight from Mexico, I was struck with the similarities between taking a vacation and reading a great book. Both provide an escape from everyday living, and both–when finished–leave you feeling vaguely disoriented as you attempt to return to real life.

Of course you can always combine these two pleasure…take a trip and read a book at the same time! On my recent trip to Ixtapa I picked a real winner of a book–The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield.

This is a story steeped in gothic atmosphere, with a little mystery, a little romance, and a lot of beautifully written prose. It helps if you are a fan of books written by the Bronte sisters, particularly Jane Eyre, as this story is written in that tradition.

I believe it was on the Tuesday of our holiday, that I took this book, sank into a hammock, and read until the sun went down…

Celebrate with 16 free books

CJ — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 20:04:37 +0000

Harlequin is celebrating 60 years of publishing by offering a selection of free downloads…don’t miss out on this opportunity to sample some wonderful stories.

Here is where you go to download your free books: HarlequinCelebrates.

Happy Reading!

Resolved: Read More in 2009

CJ — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 00:27:15 +0000

Would the world be a better place if people read more books? I think it would. This year I challenge you to:

Read a book to learn more about another part of the world. Recently I enjoyed The Book Thief about a young girl’s experiences in World War II Germany.
Read a book on a non-fiction topic that you think is important. Read about the economy. The environment. Breaking health issues. Whatever you care about.
Read a historical novel. I’ve chosen Ken Follett’s The Pillars of the Earth which is set in the Middle Ages.
Read a book of poetry and rediscover the beauty and power of words. My daughter gave me Leonard Cohen’s Book of Longing as a Christmas gift and I’m planning on savoring the poems and drawings.
Read a book that reminds you of all the good things there are in the world. Read a romance and remember that love is the greatest gift.

May we all be wiser and kinder people a year from now.