If It's Tuesday, It's MUST LOVE MISTLETOE Day!!!

I've been looking forward to reading Christie Ridgway's "Must Love Mistletoe" and it's finally available today!

It's Ms. Scrooge vs. the Bad Boy of Christmas Past!

Here's the back cover copy:

Bailey Sullivan can't stand Christmas, even though her family's business is a store specializing in the perfect holiday. But now her hometown's chief supplier of rooftop Rudolphs and treetop angels is in danger of going under—it's up to Bailey to save the shop.

She has it all planned: She'll arrive on December 1 and be gone by Christmas. Plus there's always spiked eggnog to ease the pain. But "Humbug" Bailey's not the only one home for the holidays. Finn Jacobson—legendary local bad boy-turned-Secret Service agent and Bailey's long-lost high-school sweetheart—is once again the boy next door. Only this time he's all grown up, and the sparks are flying faster and hotter than ever!

Bailey believes in true love about as much as she believes in Santa Claus. But as the holiday draws closer, she's starting to think about one thing she'd like to find under her tree . . .

It's sounds delightful and romantic, doesn't it? I predict it will become a Christmas keeper! But you don't have to believe me. Listen to what Romantic Times--who gave it 4 1/2 stars!!--said:

"Ridgway delights yet again with this charming, witty tale of holiday romance. Not only are the characters sympathetic, intelligent and engaging, but the sexual tension between the main characters is played out with tremendous skill. The plot is well constructed and the characters' emotional responses are satisfyingly believable, both in dialogue and in action."

Oh yeah, I'm buying my copy today!

And P.S., Christie's giving away free books at Deadline Diaries this week. Just leave a comment and you're eligible to win!

Cheers!

American Title III - Second Round Voting Is Over!!!

Yes, Second Round voting is over and two finalists have been eliminated.

But you know the drill — if I told you who was eliminated, I’d have to kill you.

Sorry, but rules are rules. (Don’t you just hate that?)

Oh, what the heck! Look, send me an email with your credit card number and I’ll slip you the results as soon as —

Would you excuse me? There’s someone at my front door …

Yes, officer … no sir, I would never suggest that anyone cheat on the American Title results …me, ask for gifts and money? ... absolutely not, sir! … um, I really don’t think those handcuffs are necessary …

Uh, hey everyone, I've gotta go.

Maybe we’ll talk later. (Psst, send me that email!)

You can still read all of the American Title III entries here.

And while you're out surfing, check out the cool contest at Deadline Diaries!! Christie Ridgway is giving away free books to celebrate her latest, "Must Love Mistletoe!" Just leave a comment anytime this week and you could win free books!!

Cheers!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday! I took the week off to spend time with my family. We had lots of laughs and ate too much and had a great time doing it. Hope you did the same!

Today's the last day to vote in Round Two of the American Title contest, so if you haven't voted yet, what are you waiting for??? LOL. Just click on the button over there, the one that says "Vote For Kate!!!" and get 'er done!

Cheers!

ATIII - Why THE KAMA SUTRA CHRONICLES?

Why did I give my romantic comedy such a….well, erotic title?

I get that question a lot.

Well, here's the thing. Even though my story is a romance with humor and a bit of light suspense, it all started with the book.

When Gracie finds an antiquarian (like, really old!) copy of the Kama Sutra in a used book store, she’s intrigued in more ways than one. Obviously, the illustrations are playing havoc with her fantasies, but beyond that, Gracie is a librarian and book curator with expertise in bookbinding. She’s fascinated by the history of the book. How old is it? Which bindery created it? Who was the original owner? How did it travel from 19th century France to 21st century San Francisco?

Who wants to steal it?

But above all the mystery and suspense and history, there’s a romance. So the really big question is, can this librarian and her secret agent live happily ever after?

All will be revealed in The Kama Sutra Chronicles. *g*

Cheers!

ATIII - Just Another Secret Agent Man?

To prove that secret agent Cane Winslow, my hero from The Kama Sutra Chronicles, is not just another secret agent man, I tried to schedule an interview with him. But he gave me one of those disparaging raised eyebrow looks, then said he didn’t have time for this b*llsh*t and raced off to--I don’t know, reconnoiter, or...whatever.

So instead, here are straightlaced Librarian Gracie Sinclair’s first impressions of the man...

...He looked rugged and wild and more than a little pissed off. Gracie didn’t know why he was scowling at her, but it didn’t detract from the rough beauty of his mouth, which was wide and firm, with the bottom lip slightly fuller than the top.

She loved that in a mouth.

She was staring, knew she was blushing, but...wow. It might’ve been a long time since she’d been properly kissed, but she had a feeling a mouth like that would be up to the task.

And that would happen any day now, just as soon as hell froze over. Still, it couldn’t hurt to look. The man was hot with a capital “H.”

Blinking her way back to reality, she realized he was staring right back at her. His dark eyelashes were ridiculously long and full, yet completely masculine. His blue eyes continued to pierce Gracie with an intensity she’d never experienced, and in that moment, she felt as if she were the most important person in the entire universe.

She didn’t get that a lot.

So what was a man like him doing in the Fairview University Library at ten o’clock on a Wednesday morning? Besides causing tremors and tingles to shoot through her system like a wayward pinball, setting off bells and whistles and fireworks and ripples of pleasure in every part of her body?

Oh, for God’s sake, Gracie, the man just wanted a book.

Thanks, Gracie!

Cheers!

American Title III - Rabble Rousers and Straightlaced Heroines

There was plenty of ranting and raging and rabble-rousing out here in Blog Land yesterday, and it had nothing to do with the first line of The Kama Sutra Chronicles, “Crotchless panties?” (Oops, I said it again! *g*)

No, this time the controversy revolved around a few of the comments made by the American Title judges regarding the appeal—or lack thereof—of sniper heroines and firefighter heroes. The finalists who received those negative comments are lucky to have good, loyal friends who took up the fight on their behalves.

So yes, there was lots of good old-fashioned protesting going on! It warmed my crazy radical heart to see it happening. Plus, it’s always nice to see friends standing up for their buddies.

And while all this was going on, who was there to defend my heroine Gracie? Who took up the sword to defend straightlaced Gracie’s honor when she was denigrated and ridiculed and called *gulp* prim! And repressed! Hmph!

(By the way, these photos of Helen Hunt represent my vision of Gracie!)
Okay, I’ll admit it’s all my fault. I called Gracie straightlaced when what I actually meant was, she’s all business. She’s the librarian and book curator for a small, prestigious university and she takes her job very seriously. And yes, she’s a bit of a bookworm.

But repressed? No!

Repressed would better describe her ex-boyfriend Hubert, Dean of the School of Engineering. He's the one who fell asleep when all Gracie wanted to do was, er, explore the mysteries of the Kama Sutra. She thought Hubert would enjoy the various, er, possibilities, because after all, he’s an engineer. She thought if she appealed to his intellectual appreciation of movement in space…

As The Kama Sutra Chronicles begins, Hubert is history. And Gracie’s about to join an online dating service…

Stay tuned!

Cheers!

What The Judges Said

That's right, they're ba-a-a-ck!!

Yesterday, the American Title III contest judges, Flavia Knightsbridge, Hilary Ross and Leslie Kazanjian, revealed their impressions of our descriptions of our Hero and Heroine.

What did we learn about our judges this time around? Well, Flavia brought new meaning to the word "snarky" and made it clear why she's playing the Simon Cowell role. She's the judge we love to hate! Everybody truly loves Leslie in her role as the kindhearted Paula Abdul, while Hilary's comments are generally down-to-earth and practical and occasionally tough, much like Randy Jackson's on American Idol.

Here's what they had to say about The Kama Sutra Chronicles' Gracie Sinclair and Cole Winslow.

Flavia Knightsbridge -- Are we still casting librarians in the prim and repressed light? And another secret agent man ... snore.

Hilary Ross -- The hero and the heroine sound like they are good foils for one another.

Leslie Kazanjian -- The straightlaced librarian and the cynical secret agent sound like a classic case of opposites attracting, but after reading the Kama Sutra, Gracie might bring a whole new meaning to "raising Cane"! These two will likely make an adorable, appealing pair.

Once again, one word bounced right out and smacked me in the head. You guessed it. "Snore." Ah well, that’s the name of the game, right? And really, despite the snoring, their comments were much nicer than I expected and way nicer than the comments some of the others received.

To check out my character descriptions as well as all the finalist entries, and to read more snark, race right over to http://www.romantictimes.com/news_amtitle3.php

Cheers!

I Made It To Round Two of American Title!!!

I'm thrilled to announce that I've advanced to the next round of the American Title Contest! I owe it to all of you out there who voted for me and I'm so grateful for your support!!

And now I'm shamelessly begging you to vote again! *g*

In this round, your vote will determine the Best Description of the Hero and Heroine.

My straightlaced heroine, Gracie Sinclair, is a librarian and book curator who discovers an antiquarian copy of the Kama Sutra in a used book store and is intrigued and excited by the elegant illustrations. Her fantasies are running a little wild, but the same can't be said for eligible men in her life. Her girlfriends recommend an online dating service, so Gracie decides to join. After all, what's the worst that could happen?

She'll soon find out!

To vote for me, just click on the button over there on the sidebar. The one that says "Vote for Kate!!!" It's a direct link to an email form and all you do is hit "SEND!" It's easy!

And check out all the finalists' entries at http://www.romantictimes.com/news_amtitle3.php.

Finally, sadly, two of my fellow finalists have not advanced to this next round, Cathy Pegau and Sally Stotter. But as American Title finalists chosen by Dorchester for the contest, we're all winners, right? Who knows? Maybe this time next year, I'll be buying their books!

Thanks again for your votes and your support!!!

Cheers!

Tagged

Okay, I was tagged by Dana Diamond and Maureen Child , and then when I wasn't looking, Christie Ridgway nabbed me again. So I guess it’s time to 'fess up. Here are five strange, unique and/or funny things about me.

1. I drank beer with Paul Newman. Years ago, I was invited to a small dinner party honoring a visiting White House press secretary. I was sipping on a beer when Paul Newman walked up and asked me where he could get one of those. I showed him the bar and we talked for a while, until more guests showed up. The hosts had just spent a week at the Pritikin Center so the menu featured brown rice and yams. Good thing there was plenty of beer.

2. I spit water at Chuck Barris. Many times, in fact. I worked on the Gong Show and the staff was expected to perform on the show. I was part of a three-girl singing group called The Whispers, only we didn’t sing, we didn’t do anything, we just stood on stage until Chuck finally walked out and said “Don’t just stand there, do something.” So we spit water at him.

3. Speaking of Chuck Barris, I was also a Dating Game chaperone. I took Snow White and her date to Hong Kong, and I took Daniel Boone’s son and his date to Switzerland. It was a tough job but somebody had to do it.

4. I have a pair of socks given to me by the Doobie Brothers. Hey, they were nice socks, and brand new, too! I interviewed the group at their studio for a show I was working on. They liked me. They gave me a pair of socks.

5. My grandmother was California women's golf champion through the 1920's, ‘30’s and ‘40’s. She continued to play and win tournaments up until her death at age 86. She has a golf tournament and a luncheon salad named after her at the Los Angeles Country Club. Yes, the next time you're at the country club, you can order my grandmother for lunch.

Now...tell me something strange and interesting about you!

I Took A Little Break......

But I'll be back tomorrow with my TAG list! I got tagged by Dana Diamond AND Maureen Child. I'm not sure I can come up with all that many interesting things about me...that I can mention in public, anyway. *g*

Meanwhile, be sure to check out Maureen's list of strange and interesting things about herself. (Can you believe she did that to Cary Grant??)

And stay tuned...Monday I reveal the results of Round One voting in the American Title Contest!

Cheers!