I apologize for no American Idol comments this week, but since I don’t see people coming in droves or even making a comment about the show, I wonder if I’m only talking to myself?  LOL. Probably.

I realized today that the release of my novella, THE OPAL HUNTER, is only days away. And I’ve done very little to shout it from the rooftops.

After some disastrous results with promo for books in the past, I guess I decided that I’ll let the readers find me this time. I write a decent book, the readers buy it, and if they like it, they will come back for more.

However, the one kind of promo I will be doing is giving away a copy to a member of my newsletter group!  And right now that number is quite small, so the odds of you winning a freebie are quite high…it’s a good time to join!  There’s a link on the homepage in the sidebar. Check it out.

I don’t overburden my members with loads of announcements, just so you know. Last summer, I decided to go to a quarterly newsletter, and really the only other time I send out things  is on new release days or when a book becomes available on Fictionwise. That’s it. I promise I will not bombard you with crap.

Once I get through this release, I start rolling through four more book releases in the next three months. Crazy crazy!

Just found out this evening that my sterling romance will be released on March 30th with Liquid Silver Books!

This book has had a long journey to publication and found just the right publisher to appreciate it. Liquid Silver, thank you so much for contracting this story!

This is erotic romance with the story and character development many readers say they want in an erotic romance. I hope you love reading just as much as I loved writing it.

Check the My Books page for a blurb or the Excerpts page for a nice little snippet.

Yes, more unwanted American Idol commentary. But, hey, this is what I obsess over, so I’m thinking I should be writing about stuff like this. Right?

Why is it every year they do a country week and most singers fail? For some reason the majority believe they must sing that country tune LIKE a country singer. Um, no. You are allowed to take a country song and give it your own spin. In fact, I’m usually disappointed if they don’t try.

My top three of the night:

1) Kris Allen. I know! I was surprised by this, too. I think he’s adorable, but rather ho-hum and forgettable. But this week he did very very well staying away from the guitar and just singing the song simply. You couldn’t even really tell it was country…he made it into just a regular ballad, which was nice.

2) Danny Gokey. Yes, the verses were not that great…but the chorus!? OMG, fab. This dude can bring it. And Randy was right, he just needs to learn to support those lower notes. I think he will. Right now he’s going on natural gifts alone, but he needs to start working on the weak areas and improving them. I believe he can do it.

3) Anoop Desai. ANOOP! Thank you so much for just plain singing a song well, without any added entertainment value needed. He’s got a great voice which he doesn’t need to surround with wild dancing and Bobby Brown moves. I’m sure he can do that…but right now America just needs to be assured you can sing well.

Oh, man, the ladies SO disappointed me this week. I’m not sure what was going on. I think Alexis probably did the best with “Jolene,” but she seems to be struggling with her identity. (and they were right, she totally looks like a flat chested Dolly Parton!?)

Lil, please do not reject your R&B self to ‘honor’ a theme week ever again.

Megan, I will give you a pass because of your illness, but figure out what kind of singer you are. Something is not working there.

Adam - WTF, dude? You really should be in the bottom 3, man. But I know there are people out there who think you are great. The screech must go. If you think you must prove your voice goes that high every week, I think my ear will bleed. Not necessary. Just SING. Simon was right. The most self-indulgent performance in a long time…right up there with Constantine doing his creepy eye crap every week…ogling the camera, basically.

And one last thing, I loved Matt Giraud last week. But this week, I just didn’t get it. He was okay. His piano playing was fabulous. But the singing just didn’t work for me this week. I do want him back, though.

My choices for bottom three:

1) Oil well guy, never ever choose a song with only 2 notes in it. If you ever say to yourself, “Hey, that’s a fun song,” immediately scratch from your list.

2) Scott. I liked you a whole lot last week, but repeating the same kind of performance is not the way to get ahead.

3) Allison. I don’t want her in the bottom three, but I have a feeling the other women have their fans. Allison may be an acquired taste and her repeated rocker sound from week to week may be losing its originality.

What did you think?

I watched the “Last Frakkin’ Special” for BSG last night. I am completely in love with this show and so sad to see it go. One reason being, I will miss having an awesome science fiction show to watch every season. There are so few GOOD science fiction things to watch (including movies) that it hurts me.

I am a big science fiction gal. Since the first Star Trek reruns I saw on TV as a kid, I was hooked. I’m not sure why. They say not a whole lot of women like science fiction. I don’t quite understand it. To me, it’s like any fantasy-based book or movie. Strange creatures, worldbuilding, fantastical gadgets instead of magic, etc. But yet I feel science fiction is more based on the ‘real,’ which makes it all the more appealing. You never know when some of these things may come to pass…in fact, there are quite a few items/ideas created in science fiction that have turned into real things over the decades. I’m still waiting for a phaser I can set on stun, but a taser is pretty close now, isn’t it?

Battlestar Galactica had two great things going for it: characters and realism. This is a bleak future. Nothing clean or perfect or advanced about this except for the technology. But the way people behave and how they form groups and how they react to tension or devastation is still just as human as modern 21st century man. There’s no aliens, but there is an enemy. There’s hardly an inhabitable planet anywhere, much less sources for food, fuel and water.

Yes, BSG, you are quite literally the most fabulous thing on television…and only for ONE more Friday night. Weep!
Ladies, get over your fear of sci fi. I don’t know what you’re worried about or think you won’t like. There’s love and pain and betrayal and hurt. Just like any other great story.

For me, I think it’s a fear I have of space…no oxygen, the vast black nothingness. It’s as inhospitable to human life as a place can be…yet we yearn to find out more about it, tame it, make it into something it will never be.

So, for those who are too afraid to watch science fiction because they think they will hate it, I give you a list of some of my favorites (while leaving out the obvious…Star Wars and Star Trek, for example).

1) Alien & Aliens - Had to have these in the list. Scary, but incredibly gripping with great characters. Ripley has to be the most badass heroine of all time. Quite a bit of gore, but it’s the suspense that shines. (Aliens 3 and 4 are okay…but it’s almost best to stop at number 2)

2) Pitch Black - Okay, I’m guessing most gals have seen this one just because of Vin Diesel. This was probably one of the greatest sci fi sleeper films I’ve seen. At the time it was released, no stars in it really. But really well made, incredibly suspenseful, and it kicks you in the gut so many times…just plain wow. I will watch this whenever it’s on tv.

3) Starman - This is a nice science fiction romance that many younger women may have missed. Early 80s with Karen Allen of “Raiders of the Lost Ark” fame. It’s action, it’s romance, it’s really very very good.

4) Contact - Some people hated this movie. I still don’t understand why…I think b/c they wanted some big alien finale. But I LOVED it. Jodie Foster was great, the whole idea of the thing they construct and how it works was really quite cool. And I actually liked the ending.

5) Event Horizon - Completely disturbing. This is horror that stays with you after the movie is over. So if you don’t like dark and scary and gory, just skip it. For some reason, this movie gives me the chills every time and I can’t stop watching it. Basically Sam Neill going crazy in outer space with some disturbing ideas about life and death and what it all means.

6) Starship Troopers - Okay, this was GREAT. It actually starts out with a bit of a tongue-in-cheek approach to science fiction, but develops into this great war film. Basically humans vs. the huge insects. Also gory, but some great action, great surprises, and some hot dudes.

7) Minority Report - I know, it’s Tom Cruise. But this was a REALLY fabulous movie. Suspenseful and keeps you guessing. I love chase movies…guy on the run type stuff. And this one delivers. Trust me, you will actually be rooting for Tom before it’s all over.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers - I’ve seen both the 1950s version and the more modern ones (not the Nicole Kidman one…I’ve heard it’s atrocious). However, my favorite was the version from 1978 with Donald Sutherland, Jeff Goldblum, and Veronica Cartwright. Very very dark and creepy with some great suspenseful moments. The ending was superb!

9) Enemy Mine. Okay, this is so completely dorky, I know. But for those of use who are mothers, this will make you cry. HUGE tearjerker. Sounds impossible, but it’s true. Dennis Quaid and Louis Gossett, Jr. as the alien.  This is from the mid-80s, so maybe some have missed it. Human and alien crash land on a very inhospitable planet…they are enemies….but are stuck trying to survive together.

Yeah, that’s enough. I was trying to think of the less obvious choices…you know ET, Close Encounters, The Matrix etc.

What about some of you out there? Any favorite science fiction films I may have missed?

I think I’m going to try to do a weekly report on American Idol. I watch the show, I obsess about it sometimes, and I’ve been watching it since the beginning…so I think I have some things to say.

My top three:

1) Danny Gokey. Amazing. I was a little worried about the song choice, but he blew me away. I will buy an album from you, Danny.

2) Scott the blind guy. (yeah, I’m bad with names) Okay, I didn’t really like this guy during the final 36. I thought he only did ‘okay’ and thought others were more deserving of his spot. However, when he is in front of the piano…wow! To me, he is sort of a Billy Joel type. Adult contemporary music with an uplifting positive feel. And he took a Michael Jackson song and didn’t make it sound like it was Michael Jackson.

3) Matt Giraud. Another GREAT piano performance. He also did quite badly during the final 36, so I was glad to see him behind the piano as well. That dude is talented! I would say he’s actually a better piano player than Scott by a mile. Definitely deserving of a final 13 spot.

Okay, I know what you’re thinking. Where’s the lady love? My back up choice was actually Allison Iraheta. The reason she did not make the top 3? At the end of the program, I listened to the clips without looking at the performers. Amazing what you hear. Most of the women, were not that great. Allison’s performance came across as very harsh and almost yell-singing. She is better than that. (you know who else sounded quite bad? Jasmine. Yeah, I thought she did better this week, too…but when I listened blindly to her…not good, honey.)

You are probably also wondering about Lil Rounds. I thought her singing was good, but the song choice was terrible, and who put her in those awful, awful white pants with PLEATS and narrow bottoms? So so unflattering, and she has a great ‘hourglass’ type of figure. Fie on those damn stylists for making her look like she had 3 kids. Bad!

Another one you are wondering about is Adam Lambert. Yeah, all the judges gushed. The crowd gave him a standing ‘o,’ but, honestly? He was screeching through the whole song. There was very little ’singing’ in that song that I could hang my hat on and say, “yeah, that dude can sing!” When he sang during the final 36, I didn’t really love him, but I could hear the talent, knew why he was there. This time, I was scratching my head and wondering if I was the only one who heard how painful it was. I mean, really painful…I thought he’d burst a vocal cord. I hope he just backs off a bit next week. Methinks not, as he only got raves from everyone, so right now he thinks he’s doing fabulously. Anyone else hear what I did?

At risk to go home: Megan Joy Corkrey (I don’t think people really ‘get’ her different voice…I  like her, but the song was awful, babe.), Anoop Desai (I love this guy, but the song choice was TERRIBLE), Jasmine (for reasons I gave above).

Would love some comments! Go for it.

Kris

Like I mentioned a few days ago, I watch a lot of TV. There are several reality shows I watch…and one of them is “The Biggest Loser.” Ask my family, I have this fascination with watching overweight people get back into shape. I’m not sure what it is…the transformation? or the process of learning they can be physical and an athlete, even after years of sitting on the couch?

The episodes are WAY too long, so I Tivo them and watch them later…fastforwarding thought the heartfelt confessions or the decision process as they agonize over who to send home. Boring.

I just like watching the challenges and the final workout and, of course, the weigh-ins.

Last night, it ticked me off (I tape the later airing on the Fine Living Network) because they made you sit through 2 hours only to leave it as ‘to be continued.’ It’s bad enough they stretch the episodes out like they do….

But yet I come back and keep watching.

So, I guess I should make some more specific commentary on the contestants. I’m horrible with names, sad to say. But here are my thoughts:

1) The models. Jennifer and Tara, I think. Tara is an animal when it comes to weight loss, but she isn’t very supportive of her partner. I think she is the one who made Jennifer believe from the beginning she was the weak one, and Jennifer has played right into that.

2) Sione & the other guy. The cousins. Love them. Seem like nice dudes. I wouldn’t be upset if they stayed until the end.

3) Dad & son. Mike & Ron. Mike is a good kid. I want him to stay until the end. Could he have been any more caring and kind when he gave away his year of free groceries? Wow. Ron, you’ve done a good job. However, I worry about Ron. I know he’s a nice guy, but he’s not losing a whole lot of weight in comparison to the rest of his team because of his knee and other problems. I want him to succeed, but I’m sad that Dane got sent home because Ron was ‘nice.’ Mike needs to stay until the end, and then go home and get his brother into the game.

4) The sisters. Cannot remember their names at all. I love them because they don’t seem like the type to have ever been athletic. They seem like nice moms who do their thing, but never took time for themselves. I’d love to have them (or at least one) stick around for a long time.

5) Older blonde lady. She bugs me. She let her daughter go home, which I thought was very selfish of her. A mom should want the best for her kids…and I don’t care if her daughter was begging to go home, I would’ve made her stay. The trainers were right…the daughter had always been heavy. Mom hadn’t. Who needs the help more? She can get cut for all I care.

6) Mom & Daughter. Kristin & ?. I love these two. Especially since Kristin was the largest female contestant they’d ever had. As the weeks pass, I can see a beautiful girl emerge. Someone she probably has never seen in her entire life. I want her to make it to the end and find out how pretty she is under all that extra weight. She also is an animal when it comes to exercise. For someone that size, it must be tough, but she has no qualms about pushing herself. I find it interesting that some of these contestants find out they really were athletes all along.

I think that’s everyone. I know it’s a silly show to obsess over. But for some reason I do.

Just got all three of my Wicked covers tonight for my Arctic Heat series (yes, that is the final series name, I promise). The first one comes out April 17. Check out the hotness:

These are all super hot books that take place within the same ‘world’ of shifters. Check out the My Books page for blurbs on each book. (I am still apologizing for how messy that page is…I need to find time to fix it…)

Kris

I think last night’s American Idol had probably the worst group of singers out of the 36. There were a few bright spots, though. I have four who I believe should advance (I’ll pick my three plus a back up).

1) Lil Rounds. I think pretty much everyone would say she deserves to be in the top 12. Amazing talent. So comfortable on stage. How did this woman NOT find success before this show?

2) Ju’Not Joyner. Loved him. Such a great understated performance. He also seemed very comfortable on stage, and I think he’ll do interesting things with the music each week. He is one who’d know how to create a ‘new’ version out of something.

3) Felicia Barton. Why oh why did they not originally pick this girl for the final 36?  It boggles my mind. She is very very good. Great look. Great vocals (maybe a bit flat or screechy in some places). She did Alicia Keyes proud with that rendition of “No one.”

4) Kristen McNamara. She is my iffy 4th person. I don’t particularly like the girl, but she’s got a voice and she can sing. I think her outfit was very babydoll strange, and she does have a tendency to do some karaoke styled moves. But she was in tune, sang pretty damn well, and isn’t bad to look at. She just needs a stylist desperately.

Jorge Nunez probably should be in there somewhere, too. I didn’t particularly like him in the earlier Hollywood rounds or even in his audition. But he did pretty well with “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me.” And, Simon, DON’T encourage him to sing with a heavy accent!  Eeek. I could still hear a bit of one in his singing, but not so much that it made the lyrics unintelligible. If Jorge wants to showcase why he is ‘different,’ he should sing a song that has both Spanish and English lyrics. There are quite a few of those. Look at the successful Latin artists in America and play off of that. Because you’d probably fit very well into that group of successful singers.

Curious to see what happens tonight with the voting. I didn’t participate this week. If I’m particularly moved, I will sometimes dial the phone. But this week, I think the people I like are safe…particularly Ju’Not and Lil Rounds. If I’m wrong, well, you can blame me!

One note, I felt particularly bad for Scott, the blind guy. I didn’t think he sang all that well, and I think the judges high praise was condescending and awful. Look, just because you might feel badly because he’s blind is no reason to oversell his performance and praise him for what would’ve been mediocre if performed by anyone else.  Scott would not want you to lie or make him feel better. He’s probably dealt with that his whole life…people compensating for what they believe are his shortcomings.

So, what did you think?

I’ve been a big “24″ fan since its very first season. Admittedly, not every season is a winner, but I still have this need to watch Jack Bauer in action. I love his over-the-top interrogation techniques and the odd relationship he has with Chloe, nerdy tech girl.

This season was a bit of a strange one for me. Started out interesting with Tony as the ‘bad guy,’ but then they seriously disappointed me by making him ‘good’ in the end. I would’ve really liked some soap opera explanation as to how Tony became (and stayed) bad throughout most of the season. Like brainwashing or some mind control gone wrong or coma-with-memory-loss. Anything better than: “Oh I’m really working undercover.”

But, they got me again last night. With the action on the boat (yay for a kick ass FBI chick who leaped, swam, and ran her way through the episode) and then the invasion of the White House, it made me love that show all over again.

The President is hostage, Jack let down the country by opening up that security door (although the Pres. pretty much forced him to), and Aaron’s back in this thing!

And judging by the previews for next week, it looks like a whole lot of nutty crap is about to happen. Hoo-ah!

I’m not sure how much longer Jack can keep going. The premise is starting to show its age. I’ll never forget that very first season and how different and new the concept was. I’d miss Jack a lot if he ‘retired,’ but I’m worried that this show won’t be able to deliver like it used to.

For now, though, I’m satisfied.

Rock on, Jack!