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1. Spotlight and Giveaway: Thunder on the Plains by Rosanne Bittner

Enter for your chance to win Thunder on the Plains by Rosanne Bittner!

Thunder on the Plains Excerpt

Sunny held her chin higher and faced him. “I’ll race you,” she told him.

“What?”

She gave him a daring look, a new boldness in her eyes. “I said I’ll race you. If you catch me and manage to pull me off my horse, you’ve won!” She charged away, and Colt sat there a minute, wondering what she was up to. What was this sudden change in conversation? She was like a crazy woman today, and she had turned his feelings a thousand different ways.

Colt watched her, the way her bottom fit her saddle, the way her hair blew in the wind. Her daring look stirred his pride, and the race was on. He kicked Dancer into a hard run, manly desires stirring in him at the challenge of catching her. He held the reins with one hand and smashed out his cigarette against his saddle horn with the other, tossing the stub aside and leaning into the ride. “Get up there, Dancer,” he shouted to the horse.

Dancer’s mane flew up into Colt’s face as he galloped up and down more sandhills. He noticed Sunny veer to the west rather than north, and he turned Dancer, taking a cut between two more sandhills and emerging near Sunny as she came around the end of one hill. She screamed and laughed when she saw him, and now he knew he could catch her.

He came closer, the determination to reach her now a burning need. It went against all reason, was totally foreign to all sense of maturity. They were like children for the moment, and yet not children at all. The emotions it stirred in him to think of catching her were dangerous, yet he could not stop himself. He came ever closer, and now he was on her!

Sunny screamed when she felt his strong arm come around her. Suddenly, she was free of her horse and sitting sideways on Dancer, a powerful arm holding her. She covered her face and laughed as Colt slowed his horse. “Now you are my captive,” he teased.

She threw her head back and faced him, and both of them sobered. For a moment they sat there breathing heavily from the ride, watching each other.

“We had better go catch your horse,” he finally told her.

“We’ll find it later,” she answered. She moved her hands to touch his powerful arms, ran her fingers over his bare shoulders. “Tell me, Colt. What does an Indian do with his captive?”

For a moment everything went silent for him. Nothing existed but the utterly beautiful woman in his arms, her tempting mouth, her open blouse, her blue eyes, her golden hair. He moved a hand to rest against the flat of her belly. “He takes her to his tipi and makes her his slave,” he answered, his voice gruff with passion.

She touched his face. “That’s what I want you to do with me, Colt. Make me your slave—today, tonight, tomorrow.”

He shook his head. “Sunny—”

She touched his lips. “Don’t say it, Colt.” Her eyes glistened with tears. “I don’t know what’s right and wrong anymore, and today I don’t care. I just want you. I’ve always wanted you.” A tear slipped down her cheek. “It can’t be anybody else, Colt, not the first time. I—”

His kiss cut off her words, a deep, hot kiss that removed any remaining inhibitions. She could barely get her breath for the thrill of it, the ecstasy of his hand moving to her breast, the ache of womanly desires that surged in her when his tongue moved between her lips. Dancer moved slightly, and she clung to Colt. He left her lips for a moment, keeping one arm around her as he slid off the horse and pulled her after him.

Book Information

Title: Thunder on the Plains

Author: Rosanne Bittner

ISBN: 978-1492631200

Release Date: October 6, 2015

Imprint: Sourcebooks Casablanca

Summary

With more than 7 million books in print, RT Book Reviews Career Achievement Award–winning and USA Today Bestselling author Rosanne Bittner pens a historical Western romance filled with dangerous cowboys, capable heroines, and an epic love story that sweeps across the Old West.

IN A LAND OF OPPORTUNITY

Sunny Landers wants a big life—as big and free as the untamed land that stretches before her. Land she will help her father conquer to achieve his dream of a transcontinental railroad. She won’t let a cold, creaky wagon, murderous bandits or stampeding buffalo stand in her way. She wants it all—including Colt Travis.

ALL THE ODDS WERE AGAINST THEM

Like the land of his birth, half–Cherokee Colt Travis is wild, hard, and dangerous. He is a drifter, a wilderness scout with no land and no prospects hired by the Landers family to guide their wagon train. He knows Sunny is out of his league and her father would never approve, but beneath the endless starlit sky, anything seems possible…

Buy Links

Amazon: http://amzn.to/1Vdn1cv

Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/1LAyKkz

iBooks: http://apple.co/1h0y3nP

Author Bio

USA Today bestseller and award-winning novelist Rosanne Bittner is known as the “Queen of Western Historical Romance” for her thrilling love stories and historical authenticity. Her epic romances span the West—and are often based on Rosanne’s personal visits to each setting. She lives in Coloma, Michigan, with her husband and two sons.

Social Media

Website: http://www.rosannebittner.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RosanneBittnerAuthor

Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosannebittner

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/67759.Rosanne_Bittner

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2. Review: Vengeance Road by Erin Bowman

May Contain Spoilers

Review:

I’m so glad my local library received this book so soon after release date!  I actually had an eARC, but a Kindle version wasn’t available, and I could not get the ePUB file to load on my iPad.  Talk about frustrating!  Vengeance Road was probably my most anticipated summer read, and having that broken file on my tablet was driving me nuts.  Turns out the library saved the day!  This book is so good, I urge you to run to your own library and borrow it right away!

After Kate Thompson’s father is killed by the no good Rose Riders, she does what any brave frontier woman would do.  She vows to chase them to purgatory, dresses like a boy, and sets off after them.  She makes a short stop on the way, because she promised her father that if anything ever happened to him, she’d seek refuge with his friend Abe.  Only she learns that Abe’s dead, kicked in the head by a horse.  His sons give her a letter, written by her father, that they had been keeping in case she ever showed up.  Discovering that her parents had discovered a gold cache in the Superstition Mountains before her mother’s death, Kate, pretending to be Nate, loads her guns and heads off in search of the gold.  Where there’s gold, she figures, there will be a thieving, murderous band of outlaws.

Kate gets unexpected company when Abe’s sons, Jesse and Will, stubbornly join her.  They argue that three riders are safer than one, and they can keep an eye out for each other, since they are traveling in the same direction.  They’ll ride with her until they have to veer off for a cattle drive they’ve been hired for, and since she can’t get rid of them, Kate reluctantly agrees that some company won’t be too bad.  Will it?

Kate is one angry young woman.  Her rage consumes her.  All she can think of is riding down the Rose Riders and killing them, slaughtering them as callously as they murdered her pa.  She rebuffs Jesse and Will’s overtures of friendship, afraid that they’ll figure out she’s a girl, and that they’ll cause headaches for her that she doesn’t need.  When the three are ambushed by the Rose Riders, Kate reluctantly fills them in on her missions, and the thought of all of that gold gets Jesse’s attention.  He’s tired of scrabbling in the dry earth to feed his siblings, and some gold would help make improvements to their homestead.  Despite Kate’s reservations, they head off for the mountains, looking for the gold cache and the outlaws Kate wants dead.  What she doesn’t tell Jesse or Will is that she has no regard for her own life; as long as she achieves her revenge, she’ll die a content woman.

Kate is the type of heroine I love. She doesn’t sit back and wait for someone else to solve her problems; she fixes things herself. Even when she makes a muck of things, she still focuses on achieving her goals. Does she let her anger get the best of her? Heck, yes. Is her goal productive, or going to make her happy? Heck, no! But still she charges forward, convinced that her pa’s spirit can’t rest, that she can’t rest, until the Rose Riders are dead.

Vengeance Road is packed with lots of great action, features a vivid Western backdrop, and is full of challenges, challenges, challenges everywhere Kate goes. This immersive story is high octane reading at it’s best.  Highly recommended.

Grade:  A-

Review copy borrowed from my local library

When Kate Thompson’s father is killed by the notorious Rose Riders for a mysterious journal that reveals the secret location of a gold mine, the eighteen-year-old disguises herself as a boy and takes to the gritty plains looking for answers and justice. What she finds are devious strangers, dust storms, and a pair of brothers who refuse to quit riding in her shadow. But as Kate gets closer to the secrets about her family, she gets closer to the truth about herself and must decide if there’s room for love in a heart so full of hate. 

     In the spirit of True Grit, the cutthroat days of the Wild West come to life for a new generation.

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3. Spotlight and Giveaway: Outlaw Hearts by Rosanne Bittner

 

This June Rosanne Bittner’s beloved title, Outlaw Hearts, will be back in print for the first time in over twenty years! To celebrate, we’re pleased to welcome the hero and heroine of the book Jake Harkner and Miranda Hayes, who will be sitting down with us today for a quick Q&A.

Complete this sentence: I knew I had found the love of my life when…

Jake: When she shot me!

Miranda: When he searched for me after he first rode out of my life. He found me dying from a snake bite, and he nursed me back to life and was gentle and respectful and made me feel so safe.

Title: Outlaw Hearts

Author: Rosanne Bittner

Series: Outlaw Hearts, #1

Pubdate: June 2nd, 2015

ISBN: 9781492612810

United by chance, bound by fate, consumed by passion.

Miranda Hayes has lost everything—her family, her husband, her home. Orphaned and then widowed, desperate to find a safe haven, she sets out to cross a savage land alone…until chance brings her face-to-face with notorious gunslinger Jake Harkner.

Hunted by the law and haunted by a brutal past, Jake has spent a lifetime fighting for everything he has. He’s never known a moment’s kindness…until fate brings him to the one woman willing to reach past his harsh exterior to the man inside. He would die for her. He would kill for her. He will do whatever it takes to keep her his.

Spanning the dazzling West with its blazing deserts and booming gold towns, Jake and Miranda must struggle to endure every hardship that threatens to tear them apart. But the love of an outlaw comes with a price…and even their passion may not burn bright enough to conquer the coming darkness.

USA Today bestseller and award-winning novelist Rosanne Bittner is known as the “Queen of Western Historical Romance” for her thrilling love stories and historical authenticity. Her epic romances span the West—and are often based on Rosanne’s personal visits to each setting. She lives in Coloma, Michigan, with her husband and two sons.

 

An Excerpt:

Miranda watched Jake saddle up while she held the two gunnysacks full of supplies she had prepared for him. He gave Outlaw’s stomach a light punch. “Suck it in, boy,” he barked. “You don’t fool me, filling yourself up with air like that.” The horse’s belly contracted, and Jake tightened the cinch. “All I need is to be on a hard ride to get away from some marshal only to have my saddle slip on me.”

Miranda saw him wince, knew he was still in pain. “Jake, can’t you wait one more day?”

Jake kept his eyes on the cinch, thinking about the restless night he had had, lying awake and wondering what Mrs. Miranda Hayes would have done if he had gone out to her cot and planted his mouth on her sweet lips. “No, ma’am. Too dangerous for you having me here, what with that sheriff sweet on you and all. Hard telling when he might show up again.” He let down a stirrup and turned to meet her eyes. Was that a trace of tears he saw there? No. He would not believe that. “If you had any common sense at all, you would stay here and marry the sheriff and let him take care of you.”

Miranda stiffened with indignation, glad he had said something that made her momentarily forget about wanting to cry. “Why do all men think a woman needs ‘taking care of’? I’ll be just fine on my own. And if I did have common sense, you would be sitting in prison or hanging from a tree by now, and I would be five thousand dollars richer.”

Jake grinned. “You’ve got me there.”

Miranda thought how he looked even more handsome now in the morning light. It was the best he had looked since the first day she saw him in the supply store, bearded and mean-looking, then so sick after that. He had a fine, square jaw and dark, wide-set eyes that were perfectly outlined with dark eyelashes. Even his nose seemed perfectly matched to the rest of his face, and when he smiled, his teeth were straight and clean. She surmised that in spite of his cruelty, Jake’s father must have been as handsome as his mother was beautiful, for they had produced a son that was the best of both. How sad that they had never given that son a decent home.

A faint scar on Jake’s left jaw and another tiny one on his upper lip only seemed to make him even more handsome, lending a ruggedness to his looks that was accented by his tall frame and broad shoulders. She found herself wondering how his full, firm lips would feel on her mouth, how a man like Jake Harkner kissed a woman…”

Buy Links:

Amazon: http://amzn.to/1FPCfAZ

Apple: http://apple.co/1BtPgu4

BAM: http://bit.ly/1HI0cs4

B&N: http://bit.ly/1GuvLXI

Chapters: http://bit.ly/1JfKxB6

Indiebound: http://bit.ly/1able78

Kobo: http://bit.ly/1IgvUi3

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4. Review: Under a Painted Sky by Stacey Lee

May Contain Spoilers

Review:

Under a Painted Sky was such a fun read!  The time period is unusual – 1849 America.  The adventurous protagonists, Samantha, a young woman of Chinese descent, and Annamae, a runaway slave, disguise themselves as boys and head west from Missouri, hitting the Oregon Trail and pretending to be prospectors.  I love anything to do with the Oregon Trail, and this book is exciting, suspenseful, and completely engaging.  All I know is that I would never have had the courage to do the things both Samantha and Annamae are forced to do to save themselves after an accident forces them to run for their lives.

Samantha is having a terrible day.  First, she loses everything in a terrible fire that claims the life of her father, then she’s tricked and almost forced to work in a brothel.  Annamae saves her, and they both head west, looking for Sammy’s father’s friend, who headed to California on an unknown errand for Sammy’s father.  The girls run into a group of cowboys, and the boys agree to let them travel with them for a while.  The girls must hide their true identities, learn to survive in the wilderness, and protect themselves from unwanted attention.  Sammy knows that the law is looking for her, and she’s terrified to show her face to fellow travelers on the Oregon Trail.  Andy’s going to be in just as much trouble after running away, but she’s determined to find her older brother, who is somewhere out west.

I loved this book so much.  The details of life on the trail are fascinating and compelling.  Any little mistake can spell disaster or death, and Sammy is like a fish out of water.  At least she can ride, a huge help now that they are traveling with Cay, West, and Peety and their horses.  Andy is given the least well behaved mare, and she can’t ride a lick.  Talk about learning on the fly!  I’ve been riding for years, and I don’t think I could ride all day long, for months on end.  Wouldn’t it be fun to try, though? The  lack of running water or flush toilets gives me pause, though. I like my conveniences too much to reenact a journey on the Oregon Trail.

The fast pace of Samantha and Annamae’s adventures will keep readers on the edge of their seat.  Deep down, though, Under the Painted Sky is really the tale of friendship and grit; both girls face seemingly insurmountable challenges, but they refuse to give up their dreams or each other.  Highly Recommended 

Grade:  B+ / A-

Review copy borrowed from my local library

From Amazon:

A powerful story of friendship and sacrifice, for fans of Code Name Verity

Missouri, 1849: Samantha dreams of moving back to New York to be a professional musician—not an easy thing if you’re a girl, and harder still if you’re Chinese. But a tragic accident dashes any hopes of fulfilling her dream, and instead, leaves her fearing for her life. With the help of a runaway slave named Annamae, Samantha flees town for the unknown frontier. But life on the Oregon Trail is unsafe for two girls, so they disguise themselves as Sammy and Andy, two boys headed for the California gold rush. Sammy and Andy forge a powerful bond as they each search for a link to their past, and struggle to avoid any unwanted attention. But when they cross paths with a band of cowboys, the light-hearted troupe turn out to be unexpected allies. With the law closing in on them and new setbacks coming each day, the girls quickly learn that there are not many places to hide on the open trail.

This beautifully written debut is an exciting adventure and heart-wrenching survival tale. But above all else, it’s a story about perseverance and trust that will restore your faith in the power of friendship.

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5. Chip of the Flying U

Jenn recommended Chip of the Flying U, by B.M. Bower, about a year ago, and that’s probably how long it’s been sitting on my Kindle. I don’t know why I picked it up this weekend, except that the internet in my apartment wasn’t working and I wasn’t feeling enthusiastic about anything I was more familiar with, but I’m glad I did. It’s almost entirely delightful, one of those books that does enough right that you don’t care that much about the stuff it doesn’t. And if you have to be content with a kind of ham-fisted ending, well, everything before that is so much fun that the book has kind of earned the right to fall apart in the last chapter.

The Flying U is a Montana ranch owned by James G. Whitmore, and Chip is a sensitive, artistic cow-puncher. Don’t laugh; it’s awesome. He’s got a square chin and long eyelashes and a horse he loves a lot, and it’s kind of over the top, but in a cute way. Della Whitmore is cute, too. She’s the younger sister of James G., paying an extended visit after graduation from medical school, and she’s got grey eyes and dimples to go with Chip’s chin and eyelashes.

She makes a positive first impression when she shoots a coyote with Chip’s rifle on the way back from the train station, the day of her arrival. The rest of the book is about him being in denial about being in love with her, basically. There’s no reason he should deny it, except that Della writes frequently to a Dr. Cecil Granthum. So Chip mopes, and “the Little Doctor” flirts with him and displays a fair amount of unreasonable behavior. I worry this is meant to make her seem more feminine. But more importantly, she’s good at her job, and he’s good at his, and there’s humor and artistic triumphs and a tiny bit of adventure besides. It’s a funny book and a sweet one, and while I found Della inconsistent, and Chip almost unrecognizable in the final scene, it his enough of the right buttons at the right times that I smiled my way through the entire book.


Tagged: 1900s, bmbower, montana, romance, western

10 Comments on Chip of the Flying U, last added: 9/25/2014
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6. True Grit

True Grit
Author: Charles Portis
Publisher: Overlook Juvenile
Genre: Teen / Western
ISBN: 978-1-4683-0125-0
Pages: 240
Price: $7.99

Buy it at Amazon

True Grit was first published in serial format in The Saturday Evening Post in 1968. The following year it was released as a film starring John Wayne. This Young Readers Edition presents the adapted story along with reader’s guide discussion questions and commentary specifically written for teens.

Mattie Ross is a strong-willed fourteen year-old girl, intent on avenging her father’s murder. After hiring US Marshal Rooster Cogburn to assist her, and finding that Texas Ranger LaBoeuf will be joining them, she heads out into the wilderness to hunt down and convict Tom Chaney.

The idea that a fourteen year-old girl would join these men on such a dangerous mission is preposterous, but Mattie’s pluck and determination, as well as her obvious intelligence, make this story believable. This classic western novel would be a great read for all teens.

Reviewer: Alice Berger


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7. Novella Review: A Cowboy Unmatched by Karen Witemeyer

May Contain Spoilers

Review:

I don’t read many Inspirational romances because I don’t like having the religious aspects shoved down my throat.  I took a chance on A Cowboy Unmatched because the cover is cute, and because it’s a novella.  I figured it couldn’t be too overwhelming considering the length, and there are several other books by the author I am itching to try, but I wanted a less expensive introduction to her writing.  After reading this, I am game to give a few others a go.

 

Neill is traveling the countryside, working odd jobs and saving money to start a ranch with his best friend.  He’s arrived at Dry Gulch in the Texas Panhandle, but job prospects are looking bleak.  Then he finds a note tucked away in his Bible, giving him directions to a job replacing a roof.  When he arrives at Clara’s rundown farmhouse, he’s in store for a surprise.  Clara greets him with a loaded shotgun, demanding to know why he’s on her property.  After explaining about the note and that someone hired him to replace her roof, she reluctantly decides to trust him.  The young widow doesn’t have much choice.  Her deadbeat husband left her with a derelict shack and a baby on the way.  With no money and in no condition to complete the repairs herself, she allows the good Samaritan in town foot the bill for the work.

As Neill works around the homestead, he sees what a ruin the house and property is.  He can tell that Clara is doing her best to take care of things, because her animals are well-tended, but everything else is falling apart.  While she doesn’t have money to hire him, she can give him food and place to sleep, so he stays on, fixing up what he can.  He starts to fall for her during their evening meals together, and learns that her father-in-law wants her baby and will stop at nothing to take it once it’s born.  Her husband only married her to vex his father.  A gambler, he died shortly after their wedding, leaving Clara with no means to take care of herself or their child.  What. A. Loser!

The father-in-law, Mack Danvers, is a wealthy rancher used to getting his way.  He’s irked that Clara is defying him by not agreeing to give up his grandson (he refuses to believe the baby will be anything but a boy), and he’s taken to threatening her to intimidate her into giving up her baby.  He’s a great villain, because you feel just a tiny slice of sympathy for him.  His son and heir died, leaving him no one to carry on the family name or to take over the family ranch.  What you don’t feel sorry for are his underhanded tactics to get what his wants.  No wonder his son was such a spoiled, selfish turd.

I couldn’t put my Kindle down when I was reading A Cowboy Unmatched.  Neill is such an honorable man that I couldn’t help but like him.  He’s hard working, caring, and kind; how could Clara not fall for this guy?  He risks his life to help her and her baby, and you are immediately cheering for this guy.  He’s out to prove himself to his older brothers, but he puts his own dreams for the future aside, and instead makes new plans for himself and Clara, after meeting her.  Yeah!  I really liked Neill.

If you are looking for a cute, sweet read, look no further than A Cowboy Unmatched.  The setting feels authentic, the characters are likeable, and the story moves along at a good clip.  I would like to read more novellas from this collection (A Match Made in Texas) because I enjoyed this one so much.

Grade:   B

Review copy purchased from Amazon

From Amazon:

Neill isn’t sure who hired him to repair Clara’s roof–he only knows Clara desperately needs his help. Can he convince this stubborn widow to let down her guard and take another chance on love?

The post Novella Review: A Cowboy Unmatched by Karen Witemeyer appeared first on Manga Maniac Cafe.

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8. Review: The Last Kind Words Saloon by Larry McMurtry

9781447274575Following on from Elmore Leonard’s Complete Western Stories I decided to give Larry McMurtry a go. Lonesome Dove is one of my Dad’s all time favourite books but I thought I would start with his latest novel which takes on the story of Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday no less.

Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday are household names thanks to countless movies depicting their exploits over many decades. But McMurtry takes a very different approach to these two characters of western folklore. McMurtry depicts them as more name than substance and paints them both as deeply flawed men with little redeeming features. Wyatt Earp in particular is portrayed as a drunk, wife-beater and all round recalcitrant. McMurtry’s writing though keeps you entranced and other parallel storylines and characters keep the novel in balance.

I will definitely be checking out Lonesome Dove at some point (i.e. when I am ready to commit to a big book) and continue my western binge. I think Deadwood is definitely due a re-watch.

Buy the book here…

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9. Spotlight and Giveaway-Reaper’s Touch by Eleri Stone

 

 

REAPER’S TOUCH by ELERI STONE

Genre: Western Paranormal Romance

Print Length: 280 pages (95,000 words)

Publisher: Carina Press

Publication Date: February 10, 2014

ASIN: B00GKBHIT4

Abby is a Ranger, part of an elite group who defend the border against Reapers—humans infected with a parasite that turns them into mindless cannibals. Rangers are immune to Reaper infection, and as one of the only female Rangers, Abby is expected to settle down and breed more Rangers—a fate she’s keen to avoid. When she’s ambushed on the plains, she’s ready to go out with guns blazing—until a mysterious, handsome cowboy rides to her rescue.

Jake has his own motives for helping Abby, beyond aiding a damsel in distress. He’s a Reaper, and while he’s learned to wrest control of his mind from the parasite, the effects won’t last without a permanent cure. And he needs Abby to get it.

Abby and Jake are natural enemies and unlikely partners. But when their search reveals a conspiracy between Reapers and the rich industrialists who own the mountain cities, they must work together to find the cure—or lose the border, and each other, forever.

Available at:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Reapers-Touch-Eleri-Stone-ebook/dp/B00GKBHIT4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1386544072&sr=8-1&keywords=reaper%27s+touch

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/reapers-touch-eleri-stone/1117366830?ean=9781426897900

Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/reaper-s-touch

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/reapers-touch/id793184925?mt=11

ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-reaper039stouch-1380296-140.html

REVIEWS:

“Stone crafts a dark and delicious tale of cowboys vs. zombies and bittersweet love found in unexpected places. Truly exceptional! I did not want this to end!” —Kristen Callihan, bestselling author of FIRELIGHT

“A thrilling, original romance with the right mix of danger and desire.”—Zöe Archer, award-winning author of SWEET REVENGE

“Stone isn’t afraid to bring on the heat in this twisted tale of life on the range.” —Karina Cooper, award-winning author of TARNISHED

Author Bio & Contact Links:

Eleri Stone grew up in New Jersey, but now lives in the Midwest with her husband and their three children. A lifelong fan of fantasy, she started reading romance as an adult and was instantly captivated by the strong female protagonists, character-driven storylines and guarantee of a happy-ever-after. Writing fantasy and paranormal romance, she is the author of the Lost City Shifters series (cat shifters in the Amazon), the Twilight of the Gods series (Norse demigods in the American Midwest) and the Spellcraft series (adult high fantasy).

Contact links:

Website: http://eleristone.com/

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/EleriStone

Twitter: http://www.eleristone.blogspot.com/

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4193895.Eleri_Stone

Newsletter: https://www.facebook.com/EleriStone/app_137541772984354

TOUR GIVEAWAY DETAILS:

GRAND PRIZE: One $25 gift card to Amazon or Barnes & Noble

RUNNERS UP: Two $10 gift cards to Amazon or Barnes & Noble

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10. Call for Submissions: Manifest West Anthology

Western Press Books is now accepting poems, stories, and creative nonfiction for the next anthology in our series, Manifest West. This year we're calling for submissions of literary work based on the theme of the contemporary cowboy (or cowpoke, if one wishes to use the gender-neutral term). This includes but is not limited to the following cowboy/cowpoke variations, breeds, and assorted stereotypes:

the modern day working cowboy
the rodeo cowboy
the urban cowboy
the weekend warrior cowboy
the arena riding cowboy
the investing-in-ranchland cowboy
the wheeler-and-dealer-at-every-auction-sale cowboy
the country music star cowboy
the I-played-cowboys-and-Indians-as-a-kid cowboy

In addition to focusing on the cowpoke in all her/his glory, remember that our anthology series features literary writing with a distinct Western regional flavor, so that element should be present in your submission. Please send one submission per author at a time. We will accept up to five poems, as well as essays or stories up to 7,000 words. We will also consider previously published works, but prefer unpublished pieces. Authors selected for the anthology will receive one contributors' copy in payment for your work.

Submissions will be accepted from August 20th 2012, through February 20th, 2013, at our Submittable web site.

If you have any questions regarding the anthology, please contact Teresa Milbrodt, editor of Western Press Books, at:

tmilbrodt(at)western.edu
(replace (at) with @ in sending email)

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11. The Virginian

So, The Virginian is apparently the first proper western, if we’re not counting pulps — and apparently we’re not. It’s also awfully good.

Usually, when I try to read westerns, the protagonist shoots someone, or semi-accidentally kills a horse, or somehow makes an enemy of someone — probably someone with a mustache — over a poker game, and then I realize I’m only two chapters in and give up.

The hero of The Virginian actually does make an enemy over a poker game in the early chapters, and, since all of those other westerns are probably imitating this one, I guess I could blame Owen Wister for all those books I couldn’t finish. It seems silly, though, to blame someone for being better than his imitators.

Not that they really imitated him that closely, as far as I can tell from the first couple of chapters of maybe three books — clearly I’ve spent a lot of time on this. The Virginian isn’t really what I expected, which was an adventure story. I mean, sure, there are adventures, but they’re not the subject of the book. Instead, it’s about a person, sort of, and more than that, about a place and a time. And when you look at it like that, it makes sense that the book is slow paced and meandering. The Virginian doesn’t need to be carefully structured and tightly plotted. It is, though. What seems scattered at first — The unnamed narrator’s meeting with the unnamed protagonist, the new schoolteacher from Vermont, the Virginian’s old friend Steve and new enemy Trampas, the peculiar behavior of a chicken — is actually really cleverly woven together. All these storylines — the clashes between the Virginian and Trampas, the capabilities of Shorty, the problem of cattle theft and the changing face of Wyoming, etc. — reflect and depend on each other. It’s pretty cool.

Some parts of the book are better then others. There are bits that think they’re funnier than they are, bits that are boring, and bits that are dissatisfying –  I’d include most of the romance storyline under that heading, mostly because having a man pester a girl until she gives in is about as unromantic as courtship gets. But there are also bits that are kind of transcendent. The obligatory accidentally-on-purpose horse-killing, for example, is horrifying and upsetting and completely gripping. And I don’t want to give anything away, but everything pertaining to the hanging of the two cattle thieves is perfect.

I can nitpick all I want, and there’s a lot of material for it, but mostly this is just a really good book. Everything balances out, and the not-so-great bits are made up for by that bits that are completely wonderful. I suspect I’m still never going to be all that into westerns, but it’s nice to know the genre started off so well.


Tagged: 1900s, owenwister, western 3 Comments on The Virginian, last added: 6/2/2012
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12. Interview with Beth Williamson (Emma Lang), Author of Matthew

Beth Williamson is the author of many romances, many of them featuring my favorite kind of hero – cowboys!  Beth has a new series hitting stores, The Circle Eight, written under Emma Lang.  I asked Beth to drop by the virtual offices to chat about her new smokin’ hot series.

[Manga Maniac Café] Describe yourself in 140 characters or less.

[Beth Williamson] Romance novelist, cowboy lover, dreamer, reader & wordsmith who also writes as Emma Lang. Gluten free, love mac & cheese & Reeses. I’m quirky & a bit goofy.

[Manga Maniac Café] Can you tell us a little about MATTHEW?

[Beth Williamson] MATTHEW is the first book in a new series called The Circle Eight. I’ve set the series in the Republic of Texas, beginning in 1836. Matthew is the oldest of eight Graham siblings, who finds himself responsible for his family and in need of a wife. Hannah marries him knowing full well it is a marriage of convenience. The story is their journey from strangers to lovers to true love.

[Manga Maniac Café] How did you come up with the concept and the characters for the book?

[Beth Williamson] I love to write series about a family, traditional or non-traditional. I wanted to create a new family series in a timeframe. I decided on the Republic of Texas, an important time in Texas history and one that required you to be as tough as the land itself.

[Manga Maniac Café] What was the most challenging aspect of writing the story?

[Beth Williamson] I haven’t written anything in the 1830s timeframe. I had to do a significant amount of research to make sure I was true to the historical period. Creating the right mix of grit and realism, courage and hope.

[Manga Maniac Café] What are three things you would never find in Matthew’s saddlebags?

[Beth Williamson] I love this question!  You would never find apples, a deck of cards or peppermints. He doesn’t like apples, likes peppermints too much and never learned to play cards.

[Manga Maniac Café] Why do you think romances are so popular? Why did you decide to write them?

[Beth Williamson] Romances have been popular for a hundred and fifty years. Why? Because they allow the reader to become someone else and fall in love. The reader feels right along with the hero and heroine – the joy, the anger, the heartache and the triumph. They appeal to the romantic in all of us, just like romantic movies, only better. :) I enjoy reading romances immensely, and when I decided to write books, romances were my genre of choice.

[Manga Maniac Café] What makes cowboys so sexy?

[Beth Williamson] I think it has to do with how a cowboy was the ultimate gentlemen, by word of mouth of course. Helping stranded women, damsels in distress, being a hard man that lived and worked hard. I like a man that puts everything he has into what he does. Cowboys remind me of modern day knights &nda

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13. Interview with Elysa Hendricks, Author of This Heart for Hire

Elysa Hendricks is the author of several romances, and her latest book, This Heart for Hire, just hit the Kindle.  Elysa stopped by the virtual offices to chat about her new western romance.

[Manga Maniac Café] Describe yourself in 140 characters or less.

[Elysa Hendricks] Elysa Hendricks is 5′6" tall. She has brown eyes and curly hair. She’s a reader, a writer, a daughter, a wife and a mother. All else is subject to change without notice.

[Manga Maniac Café] Can you tell us a little about your book, This Heart for Hire?

[Elysa Hendricks] THIS HEART FOR HIRE is a gritty western historical romance. A convent reared innocent, and a gunslinger with no memory are thrown together during a perilous trip across the west Texas frontier in 1870.

[Manga Maniac Café] How did you come up with the concept and the characters for the story?

[Elysa Hendricks] I was weaned on TV westerns like Rawhide, Wagon Train, The Rifleman and Have Gun Will Travel, John Wayne movies and the myths of the old west, so when I first started writing romance I was drawn to the American western frontier time period. Since each character I create represents a small bit of me, Christina Goodwin the heroine in THIS HEART FOR HIRE reflects the innocent girl I once was. I enjoyed watching her struggle and grow as she faced and conquered the hostile, wild environment of the Texas frontier. It kind of reminded me of surviving junior high school.

[Manga Maniac Café] Why do you enjoy writing romances?

[Elysa Hendricks] I’m a total believer in the power of love. Watching two people struggle against the odds and the obstacles that life throws in their paths to find love is rewarding. While in "real" life Happily Ever After’s are often scarce and fleeting, in a romance I can live the fantasy. And in writing romance I can help others do the same.

[Manga Maniac Café] What was the most challenging aspect of writing the book?

[Elysa Hendricks] All the research I needed to do and finding a way to incorporate it while not overwhelming the story. I was fascinated with how the reality of the old West both differs and at the same time is the same as what I learned in history class and watching TV and movies. I wanted to convey to the reader a true sense of time and place while providing them an entertaining escape from reality. A difficult and challenging task.

[Manga Maniac Café] What are your biggest creative influences?

[Elysa Hendricks] The world around me is so full of interesting stories and fascinating people it’s difficult to pinpoint just one thing or person who influenced me to attempt being a writer. But if I had to name one person it would be my high school English teacher, Mr. Olsen. He taught me how to diagram a sentence (something I no longer remember how to do) and to love the written word.

[Manga Maniac Café] What three things do you need in order to write?

[Elysa Hendricks] An idea, writing material (pen and paper or my computer) and time.

[Manga Maniac Café] If you had to pick one book that turned you on to reading, which would it be?

[Elysa Hendricks] I’ve been reading since I was about five-years-old, so I can’t say which book sparked my interest in reading, but I do know that The Flame and The Flower by Kathleen Woodiwiss turned me on to romance, especially historical romance.

[Manga Maniac Café] What do you like to do when you aren’t writing?

[Elysa Hendricks] I love to read. I garden and enjoy doing creative crafts.

[Manga Maniac Café] Thanks!!


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14. So what do we think? The Wild West: 365 days

 

 The Wild West: 365 days

 

 Wallis, Michael. (2011) The Wild West: 365 days. New York, NY: Abrams Press. ISBN 978-0810996892 All ages.

 Publisher’s description: The Wild West: 365 Days is a day-by-day adventure that tells the stories of pioneers and cowboys, gold rushes and saloon shoot-outs in America’s frontier. The lure of land rich in minerals, fertile for farming, and plentiful with buffalo bred an all-out obsession with heading westward. The Wild West: 365 Days takes the reader back to these booming frontier towns that became the stuff of American legend, breeding characters such as Butch Cassidy and Jesse James. Author Michael Wallis spins a colorful narrative, separating myth from fact, in 365 vignettes. The reader will learn the stories of Davy Crockett, Wild Bill Hickok, and Annie Oakley; travel to the O.K. Corral and Dodge City; ride with the Pony Express; and witness the invention of the Colt revolver. The images are drawn from Robert G. McCubbin’s extensive collection of Western memorabilia, encompassing rare books, photographs, ephemera, and artifacts, including Billy the Kid’s knife.

 Our thoughts:

 This is one of the neatest books I’ve seen in a long time. The entire family will love it. Keep it on the coffee table but don’t let it gather dust!

 Every page is a look back into history with a well-known cowboy, pioneer, outlaw, native American or other adventurer tale complete with numerous authentic art and photo reproductions. The book is worth owning just for the original pictures.  But there is more…an index of its contents for easy reference too! Not only is this fun for the family, it is excellent for the school or home classroom use too. A really fun way to study the 19th century too and also well received as a gift.  I highly recommend this captivating collection! See for yourself at the Litland.com Bookstore.

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15. Graphic Classics Vol. 20: Western Classics


Featured stories:

  • Out Where the West Begins by Arthur Chapman
  • Riders of the Purple Sage by Zane Grey
  • Knife River Prodigal by Robert E. Howard
  • The Right Eye of the Commander by Bret Harte
  • The Holdup by Clarence E. Mulford
  • La Perdida by Gertrude Atherton
  • The Last Thundersong by John G. Neihardt
  • El Dorado by Willa Cather

Illustrators:  Al Feldstein, Cynthia Martin, George Sellas, Reno Maniquis, Dan Spiegle, Arnold Arre, Ryan Huna Smith, John Findley
Publisher: Eureka Productions
Genre: Western
ISBN: 978-0-9787919-9-5
Pages: 144
Price: $17.95

Graphic Classics Website
Buy it at Amazon

This latest Graphic Classics volume features westerns. It contains a nice mix of stories, from the comical Knife River Prodigal, to the drama of Riders of the Purple Sage, the Native American The Last Thundersong, and even some Spanish influence in The Right Eye of the Commander and La Perdida.

Each of the artists portrays the stories in their own unique manner. Some choose a more realistic approach, while others use a comic-book style, all perfectly suited to the stories they illustrate.

These Graphic Classics books allow us to read classic literature that we may never have been exposed to be before. I know very little about the western genre, yet I enjoyed reading this compilation of adapted works. If you enjoy westerns, this volume would be a wonderful addition to your collection.

Reviewer: Alice Berger


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16. Utilizing the Body to Address Emotions: Integrative Body-Mind-Spirit Social Work

medical-mondays

Integrative Body-Mind-Spirit Social Work: An Empirically Based Approach to Assessment and Treatment, is the first book to strongly connect Western therapy with Eastern philosophy and practices, while also providing a comprehensive practice agenda for social work and mental health professionals.  The authors argue that integrative body-mind-spirit social work is indeed a practical therapeutic approach in bringing about tangible changes in clients.  In the excerpt below we look at just one technique and one patient, Rebecca.The authors are highly regarded researchers from both Asia and America.  Mo Yee Lee is a Professor in the College of Social Work at The Ohio State University.  Siu-man Ng is an Assistant 9780195301021Professor in the Department of Social Work and Social Administration and the Associate Director of the Centre on Behavioral Health at the University of Hong Kong.  Pamela Pui Yu Leung is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Social Work and Social Administration at the University of Hong Kong.  Cecilia Lai Wan Chan is a Professor in the Department of Social Work and Social Administration, the Director of the Centre on Behavioral Health, the Associate Director of the HKJC Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention at the University of Hong Kong.

Rebecca was a lady in her thirties.  When she first came to the therapist’s office, she talked with a soft and weak voice and seemed afraid of looking directly at the therapist.  She did not clearly express what she wanted.  She gave the therapist the impression that she was a timid, little girl instead of a woman in her late thirties.  After building rapport, she shared with the therapist that she was thinking about changing careers but was not certain about what she could do.  She hoped the therapist could help her develop self-confidence so that she could take charge of her life.

In the first few sessions, the therapist helped Rebecca to explore and clarify what she wanted.  She wanted to make some changes in her life, but she was afraid of the uncertainty that would go with the change.  She realized that she was stuck because she was used to staying with the familiar and not taking risks.  Rebecca also discovered that she had made herself psychologically dependent on others, her father in particular.  This dependence had developed into a pattern so that she always relied on others to make decisions for her.  Though there was an inner voice calling her to meet a new challenge and attempt a new job, she dared not, as her father did not support the idea.

During the fifth session, the therapist revisited the treatment goal with Rebecca and tried to help her to make a choice for herself regarding her pattern of being dependent on others.  The therapist said, “You told me that your goal is to take charge of your life.  Now you realize that you have developed a pattern of being dependent on others.  What are you going to do with this pattern? Do you want to keep it, or change it?”  Rebeca promptly responded that she did not want to keep the old pattern, but having been used to relying on others for so many years, she felt uncertain of what sh

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17. Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder

On her way home from school, Sophie Amundsen finds two notes in her mailbox. On each note is written a simple, yet infinitely profound question. "Who are you?" and "Where does the world come from?" These questions are the humble beginnings of Sophie's very own basic course in Philosophy being taught by a mysterious nameless philosopher. As Sophie progresses through the History of Western Philosophy, strange things begin to happen. Sophie gets letters intended for Hilde, a girl with the same birthday as Sophie. To unravel the mystery behind the letters, and the other strange events which occur, Sophie must use philosophy. However, the inevitable truth is unfathomable until it is finally revealed.

Sophie's World is a thrill ride. There is no other way to fully describe Sophie's World in such simple terms. Right from the beginning, the reader begins to ask themselves the same questions being faced by Sophie. Who are you? and Where does the world come from? are just the beginning. Sophie's anonymous teacher takes her from the Pre-Socratic natural philosophers, through the famous Greek trio of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, up to Descartes, Spinoza, Hume, Hegel, Kant, Marx, even Darwin and Freud. These are just to name a few. The wealth of knowledge in this book makes Bill Gates look poor.

The most remarkable thing about this book? It pulls you in. It fascinates you. It makes you hunger and thirst for more. You cannot put it down. Ever heard of food for thought? Well this is a feast, only not just a feast. It induces a kind of intellectual high too. It's like flying. The mind is opened up to such a multitude of things. You're left feeling weightless, capable of anything. You feel all this, right from the beginning. Right from chapter one until you close the book, the intensity rises, the fascination grows. About two-thirds into the book, the most dramatic twist I have ever seen in any piece of literature occurs. From then until the end, the puzzle pieces begin to fit together into a big picture. It is impossible to summarize the twist, or its effect on the already mounting tension. Simply put, it is mind-blowing, earth-shattering, and totally wicked!

I give Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder 5 out of 5 daggers.






It is quite possibly the best book I've ever read.

Yours in wonder and awe,
Gabriel Gethin


P.S. I apologize in advance for sounding like a screaming schoolgirl in the front row of a Jonas Brothers concert for the majority of my review. The fact of the matter is, this book is just fantastic. I loved it. Therefore, it is impossible to separate emotion from my own personal reading experience.

4 Comments on Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder, last added: 12/3/2009
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18. The Horses of Half Moon Ranch


Every 11-12 year old-girl I've ever known, including me, has gone a little horse crazy at some point. What is it about young girls and horses? In my case, I was fortunate to have a friend down the street who had a horse. She taught me how to groom her horse, how to muck out his stall, the basics of riding, and the best way to feed and water him. I learned that taking care of a horse is an awesome responsibility and one that does not disappear when you start to lose your interest.

I always thought it would be fun to live on a ranch for a summer. In the newly re-published series, The Horses of Half-Moon Ranch, Kirstie Scott does not have to imagine what life on a ranch is like. She lives on the ranch. Her mom, her brother, and a small group of dedicated hands have brought her grandmother's ranch back to life again and they take in guests during the summer.

In both Wild Horses and Rodeo Rocky, the first two books in the series, author Jenny Oldfield creates a satisfying mix of horse lore, mystery, and local color. Not surprisingly, Kirstie is the most fully developed character but there are plenty of memorable characters, even if a little heavy on stock characters of the old crusty trusted ranch hand and heart-of-gold, hermit in the woods kind.

For many readers there will be much to learn about in these stories including how wild horses are tamed and trained and what a rodeo is like. But the thing that shines through both of these stories and rings most true is the love and connection that Kirstie has for these horses. By caring for them and loving them, she learns much about herself and the world around her. A very enjoyable read.

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19. Dun, Done, Dun, Done!!!

So, it's Tuesday night here in ol' Woodbury, Minnesota and I'm about as excited as a fella can get. I'm completely rested up from our mad-dash weekend of filmmaking and I'm so pumped about how things turned out, I just can't stand it.

My new film (written and directed by yours truly) is called High School Drifter and it turned out 800x better than I ever expected. Seriously. We raised the bar on this one and I feel like I'm ready to do another one next month if I have to.

We had all the right gear and everything. I have a bad haircut.

So...if you've been following the rules and stuff about the 48 Hour Film Project, you'll know this about the movies:

1. We didn't know the genre until Friday night.
2. It had to contain 3 elements that will be present in all of the other entries as well.
3. We had exactly 48 hours to get it done.

Here's what we knew beforehand and what we had lined up to work with:

1. A location: In this case, a high school in St. Paul.
2. 13 actors. Seriously. I think we overdid it on the talent front. 13 actors in a 7 minute film? Crazy.
3. I wanted there to be ninjas in my movie.
4. One of our actors REALLY wanted to do action-y stuff. Plus, he can crack a bullwhip.
5. Somehow, I wanted to have a custodian in the movie who could kick some butt.

Sounds like recipe for an absolutely terrible movie, doesn't it?

Big J, Lo-Ol, and I went to the kick-off event which, ironically enough, was in the same building I used to work at before taking my new job. On our way there, we stopped at Ragstock, which is a 2nd hand clothing store. It's where all the cool alternative kids buy their clothes. We wanted to find a jumpsuit for our custodian. We spotted one and not really knowing what size he wore, held it up to me. It looked like it might be a bit long, but we bought it anyway. $5.

A new breed of action hero. Riki is Mr. Perkinson. Call him 'Perk.'

At the event, we learned that there were 89 other teams competing. Imagine that. 89 other crews were out burning the midnight oil and slaving over their little films the same time we were. How friggin' cool is that? At one point, Big J (my producer) looked around and said to me:

"I don't like filmmakers."

I can't help but agree to a certain point. A lot of filmmakers in Minnesota act like they've gotta have a gimmick or something to make them stand out. We saw all sorts of goofballs in really dumb sunglasses, 'arty' t-shirts and piercings that just looked awful.

All I cared about was picking a good genre. We got stuck with 'Romance' a couple years ago and I just didn't want that one again. Yuck.

Well, after what seemed like forever, I got in line to pick my genre out of a hat. I pulled out the piece of paper and unfolded it.

Musical/Western

I was heartbroken. The category is forgiving in that you can pick one or the other, but still. A western in a highschool? What were we going to do? I trudged back to our seat and showed J and Lo-Ol what I picked. Their faces sank.

"We're screwed," I said, envious of the people who picked Comedy or Action/Adventure.

We then waited for the 3 elements that all 90 films must contain. They were:

Character: Mr. or Mrs. Perkinson, a subsitute teacher. (we got lucky with that one!)
Prop: A fish. (great.)
Line of Dialogue: "You look very familiar."

Mr. Saucy yells at Jenny who just wants to be a princess.

With that info, we took off for our meeting at our location, the school.

There, almost all of our actors were waiting in earnest to hear what genre we picked and to hear what kind of movie we were going to make. It was a little intimidating. I'm not a shy guy, but standing in front of about 20 people (cast and crew) and telling them what my plan was made me kind of nervous. Plus, the A/C was off.

"So, hi everyone," I said. "I'm Thomas and I'm going to be directing this mess."

(a couple cheap laughs)

I introduced everyone in my crew and we went around and had the actors introduce themselves, too. After that, it was all eyes on me.

"So, we picked musical/western," I began. "And I'm pretty sure musical is out the door. I don't think it's possible to write and score a bunch of goofy songs and make it good. Plus, I'm not sure how many of you want to sing."

I looked around at the expectant faces and I felt like a general about to lead his troops into a deadly and brutal skirmish. I took a deep breath and said:

"So, I think we should do a movie about a janitor who fights an elite ninja death squad and he can do all kinds of cool moves and say funny things."

The looks on the actor's faces were priceless. I was almost positive that a few people would leave and even more would refuse to show up the next day for filming. Their jaws dropped. Someone cleared their throat. One girl raised her eyebrows like it was going out of style.

A member of the elite ninja death squad rides a small bike.

"How is that a western?"

I explained to them that they didn't expect us to build a wild west set and bring in some horses. We would include elements of a western into the mix. There would be a showdown. The main character would say western-y things. Also, there might be a cowboy hat in there.

Anyway, we waded through other suggestions and ideas and some of them were downright impossible. I told them that I had a plan and that as ridiculous as it sounded, I wouldn't just make a big pile of crap for a film. I sort of had a vision.

I think.

After we came up with some very vague character ideas and stuff, we told them what to bring to wear. We assigned our big actress a the part of Ninja Death Squad leader and our action-guy was to be our hero, the custodian named Mr. Perkinson. We sent them home and Big J turned to me.

"Write, Troupe," he said. "You have like 2 hours."

I sat down and was looking over all my elements. Fish, students, ninjas, school... Good lord, what was I doing???

After 2 and a half hours, I had a script. I printed it off and handed it to my crew and they sat down and read it. It was quiet. Too quiet. No one was laughing at first. All of a sudden, a woman who was married to our camera guy and our go-to person for the location laughed. I was sure everyone else thought it sucked.

The ever patient 'students' prepare for music class.

Big J looked up after he finished it.

"It's too long."

He did this to me before, when I wrote the script for our film from a couple years ago. He didn't say he liked it or hated it, simply that it was too long.

I told him he backed me into a corner, having 13 actors/actresses to work with. I said that if we planned it out right we'd be able to do it. For some reason I was completely confident about the whole thing.

At about 1am, I e-mailed the script to our actors and we prepared for what would be a long weekend.

Saturday was an early morning. We had about 4 hours of sleep and had to do some grocery shopping before getting to the set. We bought all kinds of crap to feed our talent and keep 'em happy. We had our main star try on his jumpsuit and...

It fit like a glove!

We got cracking with filming and literally went from 8am until almost 9pm. All of this for a 7 minute film. I won't bore you with the details, but here are some exciting things that happened during the shoot:

- A girl who played a student was locked into one of the lockers. She was claustrophobic and I had to calm her down so I could direct in how to get herself out.
- I invented a way to launch fake fish guts against a wall.
- Only one actress proved difficult to work with.
- Our grip got his car stereo stolen from his van during the shoot.
- A toilet mysteriously started flushing and wouldn't stop for 15 minutes.
- We had the guy who did the voice of the HOM Furniture commercials play the principal.
- I wanted breakfast sausages to fall out of a character's mortal wound during a pivotal scene. It worked.
- There were tornado sirens going off as we packed up at the end of the shoot.

Playing an insane science teacher is hard work. Just ask Clint.

All things considered, our shoot went amazingly well. We did our best not to waste anyone's time and no one got too angry with each other. There was no yelling really at all. That's a rare thing for people who are tired, cranky and stuck in the same place with each other for a long time.

But...that was only half of it.

At 11pm or so, we arrived at Big J's work to edit the thing down. We had 3 guys sitting around me so I could tell 'em what to cut and where. It was surreal. For so many of the projects I've worked on, I had to wear so many hats. Writer/director/camera guy/special effects/craft services... To be sort of the guy everyone was asking was pretty cool. Not that I like to be bossy or anything, but it's like they knew it was my movie and my vision and wanted to make sure I was down with what they were doing.

We worked around the clock. A couple of us had to sleep for a bit. I stole a 2 hour nap. I literally walked into one of the offices in the building, sat in a chair, put my Nintendo hat over my eyes and didn't wake up until my arm fell asleep....2 hours later.

A couple dudes working with us didn't sleep at all.

Oh...the really cool thing? A local band called Sherbetty came in to see some of the footage and they sat in another room and recorded a soundtrack to the movie. How sweet is that? They asked what we were looking for and I described our main character and the western feel the whole thing should have. After about 4 hours, they laid down a bunch of tracks and took the movie to a whole different level.

Anyway...we had an edit put together sometime around 3am and we all wanted to cry. The movie clocked in at around 11 minutes. It could only be 7 minutes in length. 8 minutes with the credits. I was ready to jump out the window.

One of our editors didn't even flinch. He sat back and clipped off little chunks that were unneccesary. We were convinced that he was only chipping away seconds that wouldn't amount to much. After a couple hours, he had it trimmed down to a lean and mean 6 minutes and 56 seconds.

"Yes!" I yelled, all punchy and delirious from lack of sleep. "We did it!"

We spent the rest of the time plugging the music and sound effects into the movie. I sat in the sound studio and picked which licks from Sherbetty we wanted to use and where. We selected over-the-top sound effects for the fight scenes, really gross noises for the gratuitous violence, and just had a blast doing it. Of course, I could barely keep my eyes open come Sunday afternoon, but I managed to see it though to the end.

Big J delivered the movie to the drop off with about 5 minutes to spare. We all agreed that we were going to do something like this again and soon...maybe not in just 48 hours, though.

So...that's that. My new film High School Drifter (get it? it's sort of like High Plains Drifter, except it's in high school) is going to premiere at the Riverview Theatre on Thursday, June 19th at 6:30pm. It's stuck in there with a bunch of other entries in the festival. I think HSD will play 3rd from the end.

If you live in the area and want to see it, totally come on down. The judges will pick their top 3 and the audience gets to vote for their 3 favorites as well. Call me optimistic, but I think we're gonna give them a run for their money.

I made a western. Who woulda thunk it?

Man...if only my work consisted of writing books and making films. How sweet would that be?

6 Comments on Dun, Done, Dun, Done!!!, last added: 6/20/2008
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20. Into The Woods: The Oxford Companion To Fairytales

One of the best things about working at Oxford University Press is finding older books you didn’t know about. A couple of days ago I came across The Oxford Companion to Fairy Tales: The Western Fairy Tale Tradition from Medieval to Modern, edited by Jack Zipes. I decided to put the volume to the test. Would it have the modern musical interpretation of fairy tales? It did! Below is the entry about one of my favorite shows, Into the Woods.

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21. Cibolero by Kermit Lopez - a review

I'll start by going out on one of my habitual limbs to say I'd nominate this one for the Premio Aztlán Literary Prize. No, I don't think it's as passionately written as last year's winner, Across a Hundred Mountains by Reyna Grande, but hell, she raised the bar so high, authors are going to be scrambling for some time to catch up with her.

To quote from Kermit Lopez's website, Cibolero "is a tale of sorrow and terror, hope and triumph, set against the backdrop of 1800's New Mexico. Antonio Baca, a former cibolero, or buffalo hunter, pursues his daughter's kidnappers in Post-Civil War era New Mexico and Texas. Cibolero is a fictionalized account of the Hispanic experience before and after the conquest of the Southwest by the United States." (Go to the publisher IUniverse website for a more extensive account.)

Press like that made me want to read Cibolero; it sounded intriguing. But I confess I soon grew more intrigued by the historical references the author used to develop his story. In truth, there's such a wealth of this, the novel should more rightly be categorized as historical fiction.

Cibolero proves that you Chicanos've come a long way, Bebé. Categoried on the back cover as a "Western"--rather than some "ethnic" labeling--it's got all the elements that once accompanied John Wayne on the screen. Cowboys, Indians, horses, shoot-em-ups, cross-prairie chases--the Western culture in detail by an author who knows his history, even researching his own family's history to lace into this novel.

Anyway, as a Western it's got your bad guys, the Texas Rangers, and then your real evil bad guy, Calhoun, son of a wealthy slaveholder rancher; the hero, Antonio Baca; and the quest, to rescue his daughter Elena, Captain Travis Russell, the head of the Rangers is a mixed-up gringo with some morals who won't go along with all the rape and pillage ideas of his men and is the only thing standing between Elena and a gang-raping or two before certain death. His role raises the gringo to co-protagonist with the Hispanic Baca, something we don't usually get from raza writers. I loved that.

The whole cibolero backdrop to the novel introduced an aspect of our history I'd never known. The high plains of New Mexico, el Llano Estacado, serves as the principal scenario, adding to the novel's unique perspective. Likewise, Lopez gives us extensive insight into the plains culture, including details about the omnipresent cibolero lance used to hunt the buffalo, now destined to serve a different purpose.

Using the back-story to Antonio Baca, as a typical New Mexican Hispanic, Lopez interweaves most of the significant economic, historical and political events of this part of the Southwest. Of course, it's a story with plenty of ugly parts, some still denied by the apologists of U.S. history. Especially the parts about los pinches rinches, the Texas Rangers.

There's not many problems with this book; I found the prose, dialogue and plot enjoyable. My initial reaction to the opening was that it felt "slow," especially given how much I think I already know about New Mexico, history, etc. I finally came to the conclusion that Lopez couldn't avoid it: the pace of that writing reflects the time, place and culture he's sharing. A New Mexico tale is not something to be rushed. At least, that's my take on that.

[image courtesy of the author's website)

The only historical bone I've got to pick with Lopez is that Anglos from Texas are referred to as "Texans." Texicans is what they loved to go by before 1836 and some time after; of course, maybe it's there, and I just missed it.

Now for the bad news: Lopez's historical accuracy may be what keeps his book from reaching a wider audience. In a county where the majority don't notice that their President's WMDs wear no clothes, how popular can the truth be? Readers who read Westerns assumedly are looking for escapist literature. (Readers of historical fiction might not be so much.) Being confronted by the ugly truth of what your ancestors did to the Southwest--Mexican citizens, the indigenes, the buffalo and the land--probably won't let them escape enough to enjoy the story. I'd recommend the publishers reclassify and rewrite press about the novel to attract more an historical-fiction audience.

Okay, so the Premio Aztlán committee is probably going to ignore my opening remarks (Amazon has one reviewer who gave it five stars), but today at least you can easily purchase a "Western", some escapist literature, written by one of us. Remember the old days when you couldn't? To boot, you'll get a more realistic account of los pinches rinches than you get in Texas public schools.

Lastly about the book, several times when reading it, I had flashbacks of Tell Them Valdez Is Coming. It always bothered the holy pinche out of me that Kirk Douglas portrayed such a cowering Bob (sic!) Valdez who, yes, later became the shoot-em-up hero, but still--. Hollywood has yet to fully make that up to us, and giving Lopez an option would be a good way to start. (N.B.: the only redeeming value to that movie was Lancaster's response to what did he used to hunt: "Apache, before I knew better.")

About the author's name: I had the same questions you do: is this his nom de plume, did he legally change it, or, what were his parents smoking? That's some not-so-critical info I'd like to have seen on the author website. Also, a historical bibliography and way to contact the author would be nice. It does have a short streaming video on the book that's worth checking.

Rudy Ch. Garcia

6 Comments on Cibolero by Kermit Lopez - a review, last added: 11/13/2007
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22. SFG Old West: A Western Fairy Tale









These are four pages from a comic book short,"Out in the West" I did for Dark Horse Comics. The art is all black and white airbrush. I wanted it to have a Howard Hawks/John Houston feel to it. There are references to a lot of Western stories, some fiction and some fact in it, which prompted one critic to refer to it as a "Western fairy tale". However the title is a tip of the Stetson to "ElPaso" by Marty Robbins. The other four pages include a page that mirrors the one here of the Sherrif that features a outlaw who is more in the spaghetti western mode. If anyone would like to see the entire story, I'll scan the other four pages and post them. When he saw the rough sketches I was doing for this Chris Warner wanted to title it, "Slap leather!"

2 Comments on SFG Old West: A Western Fairy Tale, last added: 8/7/2007
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23. Tex

Here's a little 'ol illustration I did for an unnamed (howdesign.com) forum. Never could keep my mouth shut. Anywayz...this is Tex. I'm not sayin Tex is me and I ain't sayin he's not.

1 Comments on Tex, last added: 2/27/2007
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