Book Reviewers

I have to send a shout out to book bloggers/reviewers. I recently wrapped up the first leg of my blog tour for my latest series. It was a whirlwind of an experience, but one I learned a lot from and thoroughly enjoyed. I had the opportunity to work with some amazing people and here's what I learned:

1) These reviewers are serious about what they do and it shows. Their sites are well done, professional, and reader friendly. Don't visit their sites unless you want your TBR pile to grow exponentially. Yeah, they're that good.

2) They're honest. Every writer wants a great review. But I appreciate the negative ones just as much as the great ones because they're honest. Reviewers have to write a fair review, and it might not always be what an author wants to hear. However, these sites are geared toward readers, not writers. It's not an easy task, and I have to give them props for it.

3) They're gracious and fun. The few I did interviews with were a blast. They all asked at least one question that made me laugh, or made me think hard. The guest posts were fun because I was forced to be creative in a different way than I'm used to. All of them had amazing followers that were a joy to interact with. It's not easy to build a community like that, but they have.

4) They rock. They offer their time to read and review books. I imagine it can occasionally be thankless. As a writer, I appreciate the reviews--good, bad or ugly. I've seen writers rant and rave online about a bad review. So unprofessional, by the way. But a review is an opinion. How can you argue with that? They've donated their time, which we all know is a precious commodity.

These amazing reviewers read multiple books per week. Whether they love them or hate them, I can appreciate the time they took out of their busy lives to make those reviews available to potential readers. They help build relationships between readers and authors, and that's priceless (from an author's AND reader's perspective). So I offer my heartfelt thanks to book bloggers everywhere, and especially the bloggers who were generous enough to review my book and host me at their blog (in no particular order):

• Bad Ass Book Reviews
• Paperback Dolls        
• Parajunkee
• One Book Shy of a Full Shelf
• Book Boost
• Romance Junkies
• Inside of a Dog
• Fresh Fiction
• Bewitched Bookworms
• The Qwillery
• Fang-tastic Books
• Other Worlds of Romance
• Heather Book Savvy Babe
• Night Owl Romance
• Literary Escapism
• Happily Ever After Reads
• Louisa Bacio
• Love To Read For Fun
• For What It's Worth
• All Things Urban Fantasy
• Sizzling Hot Books
• A Bookworm's Haven

Read on, my friends.

Bring on the Banned Books

Happy Banned Books Week! It's a fun week to celebrate. Hundreds of books are challenged every year. The people who challenge these books crack me up and piss me off. By challenging books, they only bring more exposure to them. And they also show how narrow-minded, controlling, scared, and... Okay, I'll stop there, but you get my point.

The American Library Association has a page devoted to Banned Books Week. Check it out here. You can see frequently challenged books sorted by year or decade. I'm sure you'll be as shocked as I was to see some of your favorites on the list.

I'm going to try to read one banned book a week through the end of the year. Every one of those books was created from blood, sweat, and tears. The writers poured a part of their souls into those words, and for someone to challenge their right to be on the shelf is beyond my comprehension. The only thing you or I can do is read the books. Savor the words. If the book could be considered inflammatory, be thankful. That writer had the nerve to write from the heart and say what needed to be said. When you're done, recommend the book to friends.

For me, this issue has nothing to do with freedom of speech. It has everything to do with the right to read whatever the hell I want to. Every reader has a different experience when reading a book. You might hate it, I might love it. How dare someone try to take that literary adventure away from another?

I'll step off my soap box now, but I implore you to read a banned book. Know that the story contained in those pages was powerful enough to scare someone into challenging it. You deserve the chance to experience that for yourself.

What's your favorite banned book?