HelenKay Dimon

Here’s my release schedule for 2010. It’s a bit of a moving target, but I think this is right:

March 1st: LEAVE ME BREATHLESS (Brava) – A stand alone single title about a hottie superstar judge and the disgraced former FBI agent heroine sent to protect him.

March 16th: UNDER THE GUN (Harlequin Intrigue) – A woman wanted for murder and on the run turns for help to the man she dumped right before their wedding. Explosions. A fire. Gunplay. I had to take a nap after writing each scene.

May 18th: A PROPER SEDUCTION (Samhain) – This is a short story about a woman trying to rebuild her sexual identity after a crappy marriage. It’s also my first attempt at writing a short and writing for an epublisher. I really love this story. I also want you to buy it. Just thought I’d mention that.

June 1st: THE GIFT OF LOVE (Berkley) – This is a charity anthology put together by Lori Foster. The hero is a dad and kind of cluelessly adorable. This is a sweet romance because, well, did I mention the charity part?

June 15th: NIGHT MOVES (Harlequin Intrigue) [Now available for pre-order!!!!] – A brilliant scientist gets dragged into a huge mess and has to rely on the one man she hates for help. Lots of “must escape death” happening in this one.

October 4th: KISSING SANTA CLAUS (Kensington Brava) – This is the mass market reissue of this year’s Christmas antho and includes Ted Greene’s story. He has a small role in two of my other Hawaii-set romances and is completely lovable. Also, my story is in Cosmo. On that fact alone you should buy the book. How’s that for coming right to the point?

November 1st: IMPULSIVE (Kensington Brava) – This is another Hawaii-set romance. It picks up about 6 months after HOLDING OUT FOR A HERO and features prosecutor Eric Kimura. He’s a level-headed guy who never makes a mistake…and then he meets her. Poor Eric.

I’m going to give a bit more detail about each book over the next two weeks. If you’re thinking: “Gee I wonder if that means she’s on deadline and has limited time to blog?” Why, yes. You are correct.

By the way, I know that seems like a lot of HelenKay, but it’s really not. No, really. You should pre-order all of these because they’re all different. I swear.

This:

Rachel Bailey may seem like just a beautiful newcomer to most of Reidsville, Colorado, but Sheriff Wyatt Cooper knows she’s much more. Through a twist of fate, Rachel is the inheritor of a very valuable commodity: control of the railway that keeps the isolated mining town connected to the world. That is, she will be, if she agrees to the surprising stipulation in her benefactor’s will-that she marry Wyatt.

Rachel has no choice: refusing the marriage could put all of Reidsville in the hands of an outsider-and not just any outsider, but the cruel tyrant she has come here to escape. Yet living with Wyatt will be her greatest challenge. For he has a tempting way about him that makes Rachel forget theirs is a marriage in name only-until her frightening past shows up to remind them exactly how much they have at stake…

I don’t read much historical romance and even fewer westerns, but I’m loving this one. Marriage of convenience is one of my favorite romance plots. Needless to say, I don’t see it much in contemporary romance, which is a good thing. It’s really well done here. In fact, everything about this book is well done. The romance unfolds naturally. The subplots are interesting. The hero is a witty hottie. Good writing, characterization, pacing and plotting.

I am a happy reader today.

UPDATE: Finished this book and am sad it’s over. Loved. It.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!

Readers, friends, family, fellow authors and everyone who stops by here regularly or just now and then – have a safe and happy holiday season. Thank you for your support, continued friendship and comments throughout 2009. I am truly grateful for much this year, including authors who wrote some fabulous books and readers who exercised their considerable book buying power.

Now, go enjoy whichever holiday you celebrate…and be grateful you don’t pay the electric bill on this:

The hubby and I were watching HGTV’s House Hunters the other evening. The woman looking for a house talked about the end to her 33 year marriage and how buying a new house in a new city was the first decision she had made in decades. This caused the hubby and I to have this conversation:

Me: I am not breaking in a new husband in my 60s. After 33 years, you’re stuck. Don’t even try to get out.

Hubby: I didn’t realize I could get out now.

Me: Good thinking. Go with that.

A well-trained husband.

The end of the year means it’s time for “Best of” lists. I have a list of sorts I thought I’d share. These are not the only books I liked this year. I actually had a good reading year. These are the ones that popped into my head while I was writing this blog. How’s that for a scientific way of coming up with a list?

Book That Made Me Want To Write For Harlequin Intrigue: CRIME SCENE AT CARDWELL RANCH by B.J. Daniels

I read it and thought, “I want to do that.” Then I did. BJ is the Queen of Intrigue (or one of them). She’s writing something like six Intrigues for 2010. That’s a huge number. This one has former lovers, a ranch, a killer and a marshall hero. I totally got sucked in. Even loved the cover.

I should note that I read about 40 Intrigues before I tried to write one. I enjoyed some more than others, but I really appreciated every book in the line. The mix of romance and suspense in 200 pages impressed the beejesus out of me. People think these books are easy to write. Hah! Try to write and sell one.

Most Memorable Romantic Suspense of 2009: CRASH INTO ME by Jill Sorenson

First, let me say that I know Jill. We are in the same local RWA Chapter. Honestly, that has nothing to do with why I liked her book. The book is well written and very suspenseful, but it’s greatest strength is in its uniqueness. I didn’t feel like I was reading the usual serial killer suspense plot. The heroine and hero are these imperfect and truly believable characters. A difficult teen, a former big shot surfer hero and a FBI heroine – yeah, it’s awesome.

Jill’s second title, SET THE DARK ON FIRE, is also great but there’s something special about CRASH INTO ME. I suggest you buy both.

Author I Glommed Onto in 2009: Lauren Dane

I knew Lauren from online (mostly twitter) before I ever read her. I actually picked up one of her books because I liked her online presence. She struck me as opinionated (in a good way – as in, not afraid to speak her mind and able to do so respectfully), straightforward and honest. I wanted to see how that translated in her books. The answer is that it translated well because I really enjoy her stuff. So much so that I’ve bought all but two of her books, and I plan to get those remaining ones soon. Lauren writes much sexier than I do. I pick up her books, fall in and read through in a rush until done with as little stopping as possible.

My favorite of hers is RELENTLESS. It’s an alternate universe book and reading it made me want to write one. If an author can grab my interest on that level, I will follow her anywhere.

Favorite Thriller Of 2009: Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith

This book is ridiculously good. It takes place in the Soviet Union (remember when it was called that?) and follows a former war hero turned State Security Force officer. He believes there is a child murderer on the loose, which is a tough sell in a country that insists crime doesn’t exist. The hero is very damaged. His wife…ah, his poor wife. The setting is so compelling that it feels like a character. It’s the book I wish I would have written. I read it and had one of those “why do I bother to write when I can never write something this good” moments. If you like thrillers, read this. The combination of history and suspense is terrific.

Best Book Of 2009: COLUMBINE by David Cullen

This is about the Columbine. About teen killers Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold. What is so compelling about this book is how it examines the difference between who the killers really were versus who the media packaged them up and portrayed them to be. We all want to think of these kids as so obviously twisted and odd on the outside that if we were to see them in our schools we would recognize them as dangerous and stop them before they started killing. The reality of who they were, how they manipulated people and all the clues they left in their wake leading up to the killings is chilling.

Today is my hubby’s birthday. Happy Birthday, baby!!!

I recently read a contemporary romance that’s getting rave reviews and all kinds of buzz online. I hated it. Thought the plot was ridiculous and the heroine just…well, not good. It’s okay not to like a book that others love. I get that. Just as I don’t expect everyone to love my books, I don’t expect to love every book I pick up to read. Man, I wish I did, but it’s not realistic. Taste is subjective.

None of this takes away from how thrilled I am for this author that other people love her book. I hope she sells a huge number of copies. I cheer for her even as I experience a “don’t get it” reaction to this book and hope to connect better to her next one. She writes contemporary romance and so do I, so if her editors love her and people buy her then that’s great for the contemporary romance genre. Win!

I do wonder if part of my disconnect with this book comes from the fact I write contemporary romance. Like, I read through and can’t stop the “I would have written it a different way” thing. I’m not sure. I do know that I wanted to love this book. Maybe next time.

Another author imploded over the last few days. By that I mean she got a one-star review on her book at Amazon and fired back…and then completely unraveled. She refused to leave it alone. She said things that don’t appear to be true [notice my tactful word choice here]. She insists the FBI is now involved [insert eyeroll here]. Basically, she fell apart in public and continues to add to the mess by repeatedly posting and spinning her story out of control.

I don’t know this author. I can say that seeing her increasingly nasty and odd posts makes me concerned for her. I guess she doesn’t understand how insulting she’s being to readers and the fellow authors who have posted and tried to get her to stop. Worse, she doesn’t seem to recognize how she is coming off in this fight.

Which brings me to my point…authors need honest friends. We all need those people who will step up, call, email, text or visit and say “knock it the hell off” before we self-destruct. I don’t know where this author’s friends are, if they’re trying to come to her rescue or if she would even listen at this point. I do know that I have several folks – hubby, family, long-time friends, published friends, unpublished friends, aspiring writers and reviewers – who would rush in and tell me to stop acting like a dork. I’m thinking some folks I don’t know all that well but with whom I chat online frequently would chime in privately and tell me to stop. And I am grateful. It’s easy to get emotional about reviews and the ups and downs of publishing. Unfortunately, it’s even easier to wreck your reputation by acting dumb and taking public shots at readers.

So, thank you to Wendy, Kassia, Stef, Jill, Mica and those who would rise up and tell me to get a grip. Maybe someone will get through to this complaining author soon. Clearly she is not willing to take responsibility for her actions, but I’m hoping she’ll finally listen when the right person tells her to stop engaging and back away from her keyboard.

I have been married 11 years today. Happy Anniversary to the hubby!

Fabulous author Ann Aguirre is hosting several authors on her blog this week. There are giveaways and holiday messages from romance authors. Today is my turn. Hop on over to Ann’s blog and say hello. If I were you I’d stick around to see what goodies she’s giving away.

And that’s not all…

Access Romance is doing a holiday giveaway during the month of December. Today is my day. You can win some Hawaii goodies and a copy of HOLDING OUT FOR A HERO. Go enter.