HP6 WIN

Midnight show. Exceedinlgy well-received costume. My friends and I certainly enjoyed every minute of the film. I'd say it was one of the best. The Half-Blood Prince was my favourite of the books as well.
How 'bout you?

Lady Jane's July Edition! August preview!

Lady Jane's Salon. As always, THE place to be.

So (Right to Left below) Anthea Lawson, Dee Davis and Dianna Love Snell rocked the house. Susie Felber gave an amazing tribute to her mother, the late Edith Layton.

Thank you Scandalous Women Blogger extraordinaire Elizabeth Kerri Mahon for providing a fantabulous rundown on our very own Lady Jane's Site.

Thanks Salon co-founder Maya Rodale for the photos!

Here's Dee and good friend and fellow Salon co-founder Hope Tarr!

The incomparable Barbara Vey of Publisher's Weekly was again with us, visit her to see her always-wonderful Drive By Videos- we're so blessed!

Looking lovely with Dianna:

And one of my fave moments of the night: here's me with King Mho Fo. For more on King Mho Fo and his galpal blogger queen Katiebabs, get the whole story...

Now. August. Hot stuffs.

Delilah Marvelle and Anna DePalo

Here's what you need to know about Delilah Marvelle and Anna DePalo. They both rock.

Now Delilah is trying to save her series.

Do your part:

See you at Lady Jane's Salon, August 1st where you can help save the School of Gallantry and hear some great work of Anna's, and Share the Love.

The Strangely Beautiful Tale gets a great review from BookWenches!

This just in:
The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker gets a top rating from BookWenches!

From the BookWenches site:
7/4/09

Reviewed by: Teagan S. Boyd

RATING: 5 - (Excellent. Awesome book! We loved it, and we hope you will too. Here, take it with you...let me know what you thought. Then pass it on to a friend or two.)

Miss Percy Parker is newly arrived at Athens Academy from the convent where she has grown up. Her unusual circumstances as well as her strange appearance have not made life easy for Percy. She is immediately drawn to the enigmatic and mysterious Professor Alexi Rychman, never before has she felt this way. Percy's inordinately pale skin, white tresses, and luminous eyes only add to the strange gift she is vexed with. Percy's life seems to be intertwined with the mysteriously haunting happenings in London. The Ripper is on the loose, and her unfathomable Professor's group called The Guard is trying to rid London of the terrible grip the Ripper holds it in. A Prophecy foretells of the one that will help vanquish the darkness that is befalling London, but everything is not what it seems.
********

"Strangely Beautiful" is an apt name for this enthralling tale. It encompasses many elements that draw the reader into its intrigue. Suspense, mystery, and the paranormal are all rolled into a historical novel with a gothic flair that will entice the reader and leave her wanting more. I was engulfed within the first few pages of the book and couldn't put it down until I was finished. The story is unique, and I was drawn into the world that Ms. Hieber has created with such vivid detail. I felt as if I was right there with the characters in a real world with a paranormal element that makes you believe in the unbelievable. Ms. Hieber's character Alexi reminds me of a dark, brooding Mr. Darcy. How can anyone resist that? His inner angst and dark resolve is the perfect foil to Percy's timid, deeply emotional lightness. Though I usually avoid stories with timid female characters, Ms. Hieber has created a circumstance that calls for this style of character, and it works wonderfully with the plot. I highly recommend this story to anyone looking for a book with substance and outstanding characters. Ms. Hieber is an artist that puts her art into words. I look forward to reading more by her.

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Thanks Teagan! Thanks BookWenches!
More about The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker...

The Strangely Beautiful 30th Birthday of Miss Leanna Renee

Well the big 3-0 birthday party was smashing.

The celebration began with a lovely romp around

one of my favourite places on earth, the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Where I took it upon myself, in my tiara, to become one with the art.

Miss Percy Parker even showed up to wish me happy birthday!

Thanks, Percy! :)

And I even let Destructo be princess for one second.

Before my sweetheart reclaimed me into a Bond babe...

Phase two, my peeps came and went in shifts, keeping with the Art theme by going to Art Bar.

And then on my actual birthday,

I went in to Dorchester to pick up these, my Advanced Reader Copies. See? It looks like a real book!! It isn't just a dream! Best birthday present ever!

A landmark day in a landmark year!

For those who wish to in some way be a part of the celebration, well, you could always preorder The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker... :)

Blessings!

Demons! 30 whole days of them!

Join me over at the fabulous Cynthia Eden's blog to help celebrate her 30 Days of Demons!
Today it's my turn as I talk about what appeals and what creeps me out about demons and why I use sinister, demon-informed characters in The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker. (Plus you'll get to meet them in a little snippet!)

PLUS I'll be doing my first ever PERCY PARKER GIVEAWAY! My Advanced Reader Copies are coming in and so I'll be giving away a signed one. Be sure to comment to enter your name!

Cross my Genre! Blogging today at Popculturedivas...

Pop on over to Popculturedivas and talk to me about what you do to stay in (or out) of your Genre. And since I can't stop talking about how much I love Star Trek (seen it 3 times) and particularly Mr. Quinto's Spock, I can't help but mention it as an example... Come and tell me your strategies.

BEA and Lady Jane's Salon!

WOW what a past few days.

I got an inside look at the publishing industry at Book Expo America, got thoroughly overwhelmed and walked away with some fabulous books. I saw dear friends, made new friends, one of them a total and immediate kindred spirit, and learned a lot. And, yeah, schmoozed.

Here's the kindred spirit/BFF/Diana to my Anne and vice versa, NYT Bestseller Alethea Kontis. I just hijacked this picture from her blog. (I never remember to take a camera anywhere). Let's just say we were finishing each other's sentences by dessert and jinxing. We knew every reference the other one made. She even noticed that the red matter from Star Trek was the big red ball of mass destruction from Alias. She too is Spock over Kirk and a mutual devotee of The Rickman. That, my friends, is love.

When one is so busy in one's own rat race, it's so nice when the cosmos steps in and says: "You need to know this person." Happily noted.

In the sphere of journalism greater than mine, there's BEA and LJS-tastic coverage at Barbara Vey's fabulous Beyond Her Book blog, also I got some quality time with the fabulous ladies of RomanceNovel.tv who also have great stuff to say about BEA and Lady Jane's Salon. We appreciate their support so very much.

Thanks to blogger extraordinaire Kwana for this great photo of another blogger extraordinaire Katiebabs and I at the larger-than-life Harlequin booth.

Because of the fabulous talent in town, we had a fabulous Lady Jane's Salon on Monday night replete with the above bloggers all in attendance and giving their own wonderful renditions.

(Thank you as always RT Webmaster Rob for being my photo hookup, check out his rundown of the event) From Left to Right: NYT Bestselling Author Wendy Corsi Staub, NYT Bestelling Author Marjorie M. Liu, Award-winning authors Diane Gaston and Amanda McCabe / Laurel McKee.

Each of these talented authors read from four very different books and each of them brought something compelling and delightful to the table.

It's what I love about Lady Jane's Salon; we get to showcase the huge range of fiction that falls under our wide and welcoming umbrella. Founders Maya Rodale, Hope Tarr, Ron Hogan and I just sit back and go... "Wow"

What I love just as much are the fabulous supporters we draw constantly, readers, authors, the RWA NYC posse, and my dear friend from college Biz Urban who is an awesome photographer. Authors? Actors? Publishers? You need her to shoot your photos.

Brenda Novak's online auction to benefit Diabetes Research closed this week, my Strangely Beautiful gift basket including a signed copy of Dark Nest had many bids and raised $57! The total raised from all the wonderful donations was $270,611! Way to go Brenda and all the industry professionals who donated their time and talent!

In my whirlwind few days I now find myself in Ohio and relaxing at my childhood dinner table. I'm getting ready to attend the Lori Foster Reader and Author Get Together, a great event that also serves local charities back in my hometown of Cincinnati (Really I live north of Cinci in the middle of nowhere but people don't know where that is)

Because my parents are awesome, when I got in the car they asked if I wanted anything. I thought a moment, then replied; "Ooh! Soy Jerky!" I've been a strict vegetarian for years now but I do miss beef jerky and so Tofurkey Jerky is the super-best. When we walked into the big Health Food store, we saw this Golden Arches irony:

Welcome home, Ohio.

See you after the Get Together!