Obsessed Reader Loves City of the Dead

A lively Live Journal reviewer with the wonderful nom de plume Obsessed Reader just posted a review of City of The Dead:

This is a gorgeous little standalone girls' own picaresque, equal parts Gormenghast, Discworld and the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland. It's a delicious romp with a refreshingly flawed but gutsy heroine.

Well, as the author puts it, "hee" indeed! I will admit to a certain obsession with the Haunted Mansion, having visited in it in both California and Florida. The California mansion remains my favorite, probably because I happened to go through it during a rare torrential downpour and thunderstorm at Disneyland. There's nothing like a crack of real lighting as you're going through the door and realize that you and your companion are the only people left in the line. We got to ride through twice.

The Little White Dog is back for Christmas!

Want the world famous "Little White Dog" bookplate to jazz up your copy of Crypt of the Moaning Diamond? It's back!! Makes a great addition to a gift too!

These free signed bookplates are available to readers who have posted comments about Crypt somewhere on the web. It can be an Amazon.com review, a post on your blog, a comment on GoodReads, or anything else you want as long as other people can see it. What you say doesn't matter.

Gift inscriptions also available. Let me know the recipient's name. Just be sure to give me enough time to get to the post office and have it mailed.

E-mail your bookplate request and the link to your comment to rosemarynovels at aol.com for your own signed copy. Don't forget to include an address!

I send the bookplates via first class mail anywhere in the world that the U.S. Post Office will deliver. There is also a bookplate available for City of the Dead, and I'm happy to send both out at the same time.

Special thanks to Matt Holmes for the cute dog drawing!

NaNoWriMo: let the night witches fly!

Sometime last summer, Nathan Crowder and I began a conversation about the "night witches," the Soviet women who flew combat missions during World War II. We both find their history intriguing and discussed the endless possibilities for a novel.

Nathan wanted to do something historical, a departure from his urban fantasy/mystery novels. I was inclined to the more fantastical, something that weaved Russian mythology and folklore into this piece of aviation history.

So last summer we both pledged to start a novel about the night witches. To give ourselves a deadline, and little motivating competition, we both signed up for NaNoWriMo. You can follow our adventures at the NaNoWriMo website. Find my story "Night Witch" here and Nathan's "Flight of the Black Swan" here.

Want to learn more about the real flyers?

There's a number of articles on the web, including the Wiki article linked above. But for a great read, try A Dance with Death by Anna Noggle. Packed with interviews with the women who flew mission after mission, and returned home alive while many of their companions perished, this book captures the passion, the fear, and the courage of the women who flew to save their country.

Look for some Forgotten Realms authors in this Apex anthology

This new anthology from Apex will include stories from fellow Forgotten Realms authors Erik Scott de Bie and Richard Lee Byers, among others!

Close Encounters of the Urban Kind is due out in June 2010.

Two Out, Wendigo is a bit of a homage to one of my favorite mid-century writers Mary Roberts Rinehart.

Signed books available at University Book Store Bellevue

Big, big thanks to the organizers of the Emerald City Writer Conference Book Fair. Got to the table to find stacks of City of the Dead AND Crypt of the Moaning Diamond. Although City is my newer book, it was Crypt's female fighter cover that attracted the most attention.

Everyone loved it (I do too!) and copies of both books went out the door.

I signed what was left and those books will be available at the Bellevue branch of the University Book Store. Give them a call at 888-335-7323 -- they ship anywhere. But don't wait too long. There were not that many copies left!

Signing at the ECWC Bookfair, Oct. 10, 4:30 p.m.

The Emerald City Writer Conference Book Fair takes place on October 10, 2009 at the Bellevue Hilton. I will be signing copies of City of the Dead and Crypt of the Moaning Diamond.

The event runs from 4:30-6:00 pm in the Skyview Ballroom and includes signing opportunities with more than fifty best selling and award winning authors including Cherry Adair, Susan Anderson, Claire Delacroix, Robert Dugoni, Yasmine Galenorn, Lisa Jackson, Susan Mallery, Bob Mayer, Katie MacAlister, Jane Porter, Christine Warren and many more. This is a free event and open to the public.

The Bellevue Hilton is located at 300 112th Avenue SE in Bellevue, Washington. Their phone number is 425-455-1300.

Getting ready for a book signing at Emerald City Writers Conference

You might not be expecting to find a Forgotten Realms novelist at the Emerald City Writers Conference -- as the conference is organized by the local chapter of RWA (Romance Writers of America). But I'll be there at the Book Fair, happily signing copies of City of the Dead and Crypt of the Moaning Diamond, on October 10.

Over the years, the lines between genres have grown fuzzier and fuzzier. These days, many of the "romance" writers are focusing on and talking about fantasy, science fiction, and, of course, vampires. Blame it on Twilight, Buffy, or Anne Rice, but paranormal is hot, hot, and hot for the publishers, the editors, and the writers in this field. I find many readers also perfectly willing to read multiple genres.

At the EWC Book Fair, you can find cross-over stars like Yasmine Galenorn. Or authors like my friend Phoebe Matthews, whose Mudflat Series is far more urban fantasy than romance (although her hero is one CUTE blonde barbarian).

So I'm packing my bags for Bellevue, making sure that I have extra business cards in the purse, and looking forward to spending a long weekend with the ladies of EWC in October. This year's conference is sold out, but you might be able to attend the Book Fair. Check the website for more information.