Wednesday Words: Night’s Honor

Posted on September 10, 2014 by Silver James

Every once in awhile, a book comes along that makes me sit back and think, “Damn! I wish I’d written that.” That’s the way I feel about the latest addition to the Elder Races series by Thea Harrison. As I mentioned in my review of the book, while I love the series and the world, Ms. Harrison’s storytelling has sometimes been a bit uneven. But she made up for that in spades with NIGHT’S HONOR. You can read this book without reading any of the others but why would you want to miss the fun? As a brief background, Xavier is a former priest, the second son of a Spanish nobleman. His sister fell in love with a vampyre, and was turned, during the Spanish Inquisition. The couple was killed and Xavier sort of lost it. He went to Italy, pledged himself to Julian, King of the Vampyres, and well…he still serves Julian. Enter Tess, a smart girl with a big heart and protective streak that gets her in trouble. She ends up in Xavier’s employ because she’s hiding from a Big Bad–a pariah Djinn. So…

Anyway, here’s a few of the passage that grabbed me and refused to let me go.

Tess, upon being summoned to speak to Xavier:

…as she gripped the door handle, her muscles locked up and she stood frozen, unable to make herself step into the room and yet not able to walk away, while rapid-fire thoughts snapped at her heels like feral dogs.

“A beautiful woman is never irrelevant. She can be the most compelling, most gloriously dangerous creature in all the world.” ~Xavier, speaking to Tess

And finally, Xavier doing some introspection:

Desire might be an old friend whom he had met before, but with her, it came to him wearing a new face, sharp, bright, and joyful.

Happy Wednesday. I’m staring at my edits and thinking, Damn. I suck compared to that. But that’s okay. I have my own voice. And my words may not be as eloquent, but they work for me. Do any of you have words to share?

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Tuesday Treats – Brooklyn’s Syllabub

Posted on September 9, 2014 by Silver James

Cookbook-CarlisleIf y’all haven’t read Kate Carlisle’s Bibliophile Mysteries, you should! Brooklyn Wainwright is a book binder extraordinaire with a penchant for stumbling across dead bodies. In this episode, A COOKBOOK CONSPIRACY, the book she’s working on is a Revolutionary War era cookbook and memoir written by Obedience Green, cook to the English General Blakeslee. Is the book the key to the murder of a world-famous chef? Brooklyn has to find out before her Cordon Bleu chef sister, Savannah, ends up charged with murder.

The fun bit here is that Brooklyn is a notoriously bad cook. She can’t even boil pasta. No. Really. But she perseveres with one of the recipe’s and creates a pleasing “syllabub.” The author was kind enough to supply the recipe, along with several others, in the back of the book. Go read it!

Brooklyn’s Syllabub – Modern Version
1/3 cup coffee liqueur (can substitute other liqueurs like almond or orange, sweet vermouth, white wine, cognac)
2 cups sugar
1 cup heavy cream (whipping cream, unwhipped!)
5 cinnamon sugar cookies crumbled
4 dark chocolate covered expresso beans

Pour liquer in bowl with sugar and whisk to mix. Whisk in heavy cream and whip until it hs thickened but is still soft and billowy (less than 5 minues with a hand mixer)

Crumble 1 cookie into each of four small dessert bowls and spoon the syllabub mixture over the crumbles. Sprinkle remaining crumbles on top and garnish with an esperesso bean.

Refrigerate 1-2 hours before serving.

Easy peasy. And yes, I will be trying this dessert!

What about y’all? Do you find historic recipes interesting or do you run for the hills when presented one?

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Monday Doldrums

Posted on September 8, 2014 by Silver James

funny-pictures-i-know-those-feels-monday-cat Yes, it is Monday. Again. Yes, there was a weekend. I know this because I took Saturday off. I stayed in bed and off the internet. I watched college football–my teams both won. I watched baseball. Yes, my team won–mostly–and remains in first place in their division. I read.

It also rained Saturday. I love the rain. Just in case y’all didn’t know that. I especially love fall rain–wet leaves, cooler temperatures, boots, sweaters…*happy sigh*

Sunday was errands. This whole going to the grocery store once a week (because it’s a pain to drag the Sprout in his car seat) thing requires a great deal of organization. This is NOT my strong suit. 😆

I worked on the wiki/series bible for the Moonstruck books. I’m almost up to book 4, WOLF MOON. By rereading all the books, I’m seeing where they need improvement and now I can’t wait to get started on the “omnibus” versions. I plan to take two books at a time, combining and expanding them with new material. They’ll be available in digital and print both. I’m hoping to get my butt in gear and have the first one, MOONSTRUCK: SECRETS available before the end of the year. There’s a whole lot of “MAYBE!” when I say that, depending on time and edits for the Harlequin books, but with luck, BLOOD MOON and BAD MOON will be combined and y’all will get to find out what happened in the ten years between the books. And holy cow! The revelations that came with writing BLUE MOON that will translate into MOON SHOT, the next book in the series, that transitions into the Hard Target series. Yes, there are Wolves in Hard Target. 😉

Oh, in case you’re interested, the “omnibus” versions will be:
MOONSTRUCK: SECRETS
MOONSTRUCK: LIES
MOONSTRUCK: BETRAYAL
MOONSTRUCK: RETRIBUTION

So that’s pretty much where I am. Focused. Ready to get BLUE MOON ready for release. I’ll reveal the cover as soon as I have it. The Only is working on it. Keep your fingers crossed that it’ll be out by October 1st.

What did y’all do this weekend? Did your teams win? How’s your weather? And be sure to come back tomorrow. I have a fun recipe to share!

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Friday Sinema: Call Me Dolphin-Military Style

Posted on September 5, 2014 by Silver James

Yes, this song is an earworm. Yes, it’s been “done to death.” But this one was too funny not to share. The Miami Dlphin Cheerleaders did a video. And a military unit in Afghanistan matched their video. Here’s the side-by-side version. Those guys rock! #realheroes

Have a great weekend!

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Thursday Thoughts: Universal Working Speed

Posted on September 4, 2014 by Silver James

universe When this little gem dropped into my inbox, I was tempted to laugh. I am working slow because I’m easily distracted but I totally blame the Magic Bean Sprout for that. He’s hit the “motorboat chasing dolphins” stage–making motorboat noises followed by dolphin-like screeches. When he sleeps, I work. Sometimes I can work through the noise but I’m at the very end of this WIP. The scenes are emotionally…delicate. They have to be nuanced just so and any distraction pulls me out of the correct headspace. Even so, I love the little dickens. So…in the words of the Universe:

Should you ever hear that voice inside exclaim that you’re working too slow, are too easily distracted, or that you should take life more seriously, please rest assured, dearest Silver, that it absolutely, positively is not me.

I’m the one saying, “You totally rock!” –
The Universe
© http://www.tut.com ®

We’re still trying to figure out how you get dressed so quickly in the morning, Silver.

That’s not to say that I won’t be doing a happy dance when Only and Baseball Boy get off the waiting list and Sprout is in day care. I’ll miss him, but I’ll be happy dancing. 😉

So what’s your voice saying?

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Wednesday Words: Good Morning from the Universe

Posted on September 3, 2014 by Silver James

Original bigstock-Idyllic-Cliffs-of-Moher-at-sun-30481949 (1)When this popped up in my inbox, I was struck dumb by the beauty of it. So these are my words to share today:

I so love mornings. All of earth’s energies are zipping, zapping and crackling in alignment. The stars have been tucked in bed. The nightingales begin dreaming their dreams. And the sugar plum fairies try hard not to be seen.

But best of all, Silver, I love mornings because it’s when the “Giants” return to earth – stretching, yawning, squinting and rolling – remembering without quite remembering, sometimes for just the flickering of a second, that all is right in the world and that their greatness has never needed to be proven.

Like you, “Big Foot” –
The Universe
© http://www.tut.com ®

Now, Silver, to work on remembering this for the rest of the day…

Yes…remember this for the rest of the day. You’re welcome.

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Tuesday Treats – Hot Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Posted on September 2, 2014 by Silver James

Spinach-artichoke dipSee this? This is the dip we ordered at a family favorite restaurant last night. The James Gang gathered to celebrate anniversaries and birthdays and this dip is always on the Must Get Appetizer list whenever to go to Nomad’s. After some fiddling and a lot of trial and error, here’s my close approximation of the very yummy stuff.

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
1 medium onion chopped (approximately 1 cup)
2 10 oz. packages frozen chopped spinach (thawed and drained!)
1 14 oz. can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1 8 oz. package cream cheese
1 8 oz. tub sour cream
1 cup total shredded Monterrey Jack cheese (3/4 cup and 1/4 cup)
1 cup total shredded Parmesan cheese (3/4 cup and 1/4 cup)
1 teaspoon sea salt
Corn chips or crackers

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook until soft. Stir in spinach, artichokes, cream and sour cheeses, salt, and 3/4 cups each of Jack and Parmesan. Stir until well blended and heated through. Pour mix into a 1/2 quart casserole dish and top with remaining shredded cheeses. Bake in 350 degree oven until cheese starts to brown, about 10 minutes.

Warning, this stuff is addictive, which is why I make it in big size–about four cups. It can also be made with low fat/no fat cream cheese and sour cream. I may have to make some as comfort food to get through to the end of BLUE MOON. See the word counter? Yeah…I’m over 30K. And somebody dies. Shhhh. shifty-eyes-ani2faster

No. I’m not talking…. *zips lips*

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Monday – The Day of No Labor

Posted on September 1, 2014 by Silver James

This is what I feel like doing:

Jamie Fraser

This is what I AM doing:

BeAWriter

Have a great holiday for those of you who are off. I hope y’all save some beer and BBQ for the rest of us!

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Friday Sinema: Hot Time Tonight

Posted on August 29, 2014 by Silver James

You never know what goes on in a firehouse when no one is looking…

Enjoy your Friday and have an awesome weekend!

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Thursday Thoughts: Universal Perspective Part 2

Posted on August 28, 2014 by Silver James

universeLast week, I had two quotes from the Universe about putting things into perspective and how sometimes, one needed to change their perception. Yeah, the Universe is still talking about it, but this time, it’s all about finding what works best. I know last week, I was all about the disciplined work ethic and slapping words onto paper. Then I read this:

Tell me, when you think of taking consistent action in the general direction of your dreams, Silver, do you imagine discipline, stamina, work, sacrifice, monotony, courage, and strategies, or are you thinking adventure, discovery, new friends, excitement at the crack of dawn, magic, surprises, fun, laughter, and, on occasion, the Macarena?

Cool! Me too, “HEY!”
The Universe
© http://www.tut.com ®

Your chosen perspective, Silver, changes everything.

I’m at almost 20K words on BLUE MOON. I’ve found my rhythm. And I might just make the Wolves dance the Macarena because…Hey! Macarena! Okay, okay. Mac is shooting me a dirty look, Sean’s crawling under Drover (my Highlander) with a suspicious looking package, Nate’s scowling, Lightfoot is cleaning his sniper rifle, and Danny’s all “Heck, yeah, let’s do it!” Antoine? Antoine’s a little busy at the moment, claiming his mate. I don’t anticipate the others will see him and DJ for awhile. 😉

So, y’all pick one of the fun things above and figure out how to change your perspective with it. Me? As soon as I get the dang song out of my head, I’ll be figuring out what Sean can blow up next because…adventure! Crack of dawn! Surprises! And Sean sure has fun doin’ it. 😉

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