HelenKay Dimon

Two faithful readers emailed last night to congratulate me on the review of RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW in the newest issue of Romantic Times. My copy has not arrived, but I quickly checked the website and – wowza! – RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW got 4 1/2 Stars and is a March Top Pick!

Here is the review:

In this sassy, witty and fast-paced romance, misunderstandings abound as main characters in undercover government jobs juggle intermingled, rocky but humorous relationships. Dimon combines fresh, solid character voices reminiscent of chick lit with love scenes that sizzle with the passion and intensity of any hot erotica. The result is one comical page-turner.

Huge thanks to reviewer Jennifer Madsen for the kind words. I’m ecstatic!

Now, readers complain about romance novel conflicts that amount to nothing more than easily fixable misunderstandings. I knew that and purposely took the idea of a misunderstanding and tried to flip it around in RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW. Reed (hero) and Gabby (heroine) lie for a living. They actually can’t tell each other the truth. This isn’t one of those if-they-would-only-talk-to-each-other things. They have these constraints and with that background must discover what they really mean to each other. I’ve described it this way: two people who lie for a living must figure out how to tell each other the truth about how they feel for each other…and they never seem to be telling the truth at the same time. Hence the title.

For the Romantic Times readers among you, I was interviewed by the mystery editor, Diane Snyder for this issue. I haven’t read it yet, but it’s in there. Let me know what you think. Also, if you have a subscription, go into the Bonus Content section of the website. There is a Spotlight on me and included with it is an excerpt you won’t find posted anywhere else. It’s a special treat for Romantic Times subscribers.

For the rest of you (all of you, really), go pre-order this one. It comes out February 26th.

Readers often complain about TSTL (too stupid to live) heroines in romance novels. Me, well, I think I have a higher tolerance than most for TSTL characters. In my experience, humans have a never-ending supply of stupidity. It is a scary but very real phenomenon. I often see or hear about people doing some lame thing and have a “you’ve got to be kidding” reaction.

To prove my point I would direct your attention to a Michigan woman, Ann Marie Linscott. This genius tried to hire a hitman using Craigslist. Yep. She went on to the biggest internet bulletin board looking for someone to do a little freelance work – ie, commit a murder – and offered $5,000 to do it. She wanted this freelance person to kill the wife of the married man with whom she was having an affair.

There are so many stupid things going on here that I don’t even know where to start.

Now, is she the dumbest human on the planet? No. Unfortunately there are many people out there who would make this woman look brilliant. See, those TSTL characters may be realistic after all.

I saw the movie Cloverfield this weekend. If you’re not familiar with this one, think of it as A Day In The Life Of A Monster or Let’s Videotape This Monster Until It Kills Us or you can view it as I do, Two Hours Of Trying Not To Vomit On The Moviegoer In Front Of Me. The throwing up was due to the frenetic movements of the camera. Motion sickness is almost guaranteed here. It was a close call for me.

I am a fan of catastrophe movies. Monsters, asteroids, volcanoes in the middle of LA, environmental destruction – I’m in for all of it. The internet campaign for Cloverfield and the Blair Witch Project-like way of telling the story appealed to me. But, really, there’s not a lot to this movie. Bad Monster comes and destroys Manhattan and the attractive, young people living there. That’s about it.

Prior to the movie, during the endless round of ads we are now subjected to as we wait for the previews to begin, there was a “First Look” segment on the upcoming movie, The Other Boleyn Girl. This is based on the book by Philippa Gregory. She actually comes on after the movie clip and talks about the book. I haven’t read it and the movie is not my usual thing, but it looks good and less likely to make one physically sick than Cloverfield.

There is an article on CNN called The Screening Room’s Top 10 Romantic Moments. Sure, those are interesting. Even more interesting is the short list of most cringe-worthy moments. Here are a few of my favorites from the second list:

The English Patient (Anthony Mingella, 1996)
“I’ve watched you – on verandahs, at garden parties, at the races … ” Ralph Fiennes turns stalker in Mingella’s improbable mush-fest. And don’t even start us on the bit where he runs across the desert. As Seinfeld’s Elaine says, “Quit telling your stupid story about the stupid desert and just die already! Die!” [me: Happy to know I'm not alone in my thoughts on this borefest of a movie.]

Titanic (James Cameron, 1997)
Timeless romance? We think not. As Leo slips away, Kate Winslet’s star-crossed lover cries, “I’ll never let go, Jack. I promise.” And then does — scurrying as quickly as her hands will paddle her to the safety of a lifeboat, a warm blanket and a nice cup of tea. Ah, the relief. [me: Okay, that's funny.]

Star Wars: Episode II — Attack of the Clones (George Lucas, 2002)
“I’ve been dying a little bit each day since you came back into my life.” Any scene featuring Hayden Christensen’s moody teen has us wincing, but he’s most awkwardly shown up against Natalie Portman, who struggles nobly through Lucas’ plodding love-lines. Georgie, please, leave out the romance. We’re begging you. [me: I'm too busy being annoyed with the whole changing of the movie titles thing to even discuss how much I hated this Star Wars installment. The first movie became the fourth, the second became the fifth...it gives me a headache.]

I was poking around on the Romantic Times website today and saw a feature I previously missed. It a section called Top 20 Books Rated By Readers. While looking at the list I had one reaction: what the hell are these books? Sure, I recognized some of the titles but others are not even a little familiar. And some of the ones chosen…uh, are these really reader favorites? I’d love to know who many people have voted so far just to get an idea of how much of a consensus these books have.

I’ve read exactly one from the Top Ten:

-THE THIRD VICTIM by Lisa Gardner – I’m a Lisa Gardner fan. I’d expect her to be more on a thriller “best of” list than this one, but she’s certainly deserving.

I read a few more from #11 – #20:

-RANSOM by Julie Garwood – I love Garwood and liked this book, but I would not pick this as one of her best. I’d go for THE BRIDE or THE PRIZE or THE SECRET…I could go on and on.

-HARVEST by Tess Gerritsen – Read it. Liked it. Preferred GRAVITY, but I get why this one is on the list. Like with Gardner, I was a bit surprised to see her here. This is not a knock against either author. I think they are both extraordinary and extremely talented. In fact, I’d love to sit down with Gerritsen and talk to her about the business because I think she’s pretty insightful. It’s just that I thought romance readers as a whole would pick someone a bit more romance than suspense. Guess not.

And that’s it. I read romance all the time and I’ve read three. Guess that means I should vote. Has anyone else voted?

Kensington editor Kate Duffy (who happens to be my editor) is blogging over at the Brava Blog today. The topic is the kindle. This is Amazon’s wireless reading device. One of the benefits, I think, is that the screen looks like actual reading pages instead of like a screen you’d see on your word processing program on your computer. It’s a bit expensive and I’m a hold-the-book person, so I haven’t tried the kindle. Anyone else give it a try yet?

I am blogging over at Access Romance about…wait for it…Fabio. Check it out.

And while you’re looking around the internet, it’s time to vote for the Brava Contest reader favorite. Go cast your vote.

And while you’re voting, AAR’s Reader Poll continues. Go vote for your favorites. Huge thanks to those who have voted for YOUR MOUTH DRIVES ME CRAZY. It’s a special thrill to see it on the Best Contemporary list.

I’ve mentioned before that I am interested in true crime. One of the first books I ever read in the genre was Fatal Vision by Joe McGinniss. I’ve read pretty much read every book he’s written since then. His style works for me.

So, when I received a copy of The Delivery Man by Joe McGinniss, Jr - son of true crime author Joe McGinniss – I was intrigued. Joe Jr. writes literary fiction. There’s a great deal of buzz for his book. The movie rights have been optioned for big money and the book is getting terrific reviews, including a recent one from the New York Times. And, from what I’ve read and the few emails we exchanged, Joe Jr. seems like a good guy. We also share a history of working in politics and wanting to get out of careers we didn’t love.

He was interviewed in Washingtonian this month. He says:

Unsure about a new career, he started a Master’s in public policy at American University.

“Every semester, I’d tell my wife, ‘I gotta get out.’ he says. “So I started writing short stories in the mornings before class.”

After graduation, he took odd jobs – from academic counselor at AU to working in dog daycare – but kept writing. Now he writes full-time.

I’m betting that trajectory sounds familiar to a bunch of people out there. It’s also a good lesson in wanting something and going for it. You make the time and put in the work. It’s that simple.

Now let me tell you a bit about The Delivery Man. The idea is this:

The Delivery Man is an exhilarating debut—a fast, frightening, and eye-opening portrait of today’s lost generation. It is a love story set against the surreal excess of Las Vegas—and the artificial suburbs, gated communities, and freeways that surround it—where broken lives come to seek new beginnings and casinos feed the lust of tourists and residents alike. Ultrasophisticated local kids grow up fast and burn out early. After attending college in New York, Chase returns to Vegas and is drawn into the lucrative but dangerous world of a teenage call-girl service with his childhood friend Michele, a beautiful Salvadoran immigrant with whom he shares a tragic past. Over the course of one extraordinary summer they will confront the violence and emptiness at the heart of the city and their generation. At once stark and electrically atmospheric, horrifying and hopeful, The Delivery Man is a powerful indictment of a society in which personal responsibility has been abandoned, lust is increasingly mistaken for love, and innocence is an anachronism.

Works for me. Has anyone else picked this one up?

Watching the Chargers play the Patriots today. Hoping for a miracle.

(Photo from the Chargers Website)

UPDATE: No miracle. Boo!

Okay, today I’m guest blogging over at Bam’s website. The topic still is strippers, and it’s still not racy. I swear. Go check it out.