Revisiting the Past

My first two books are being re-released in Australia in July as part of the Bestseller Collection. It was a gorgeous surprise and I'm totally in love with the cover - the colours, the sparkly pattern under the titles, the cover model, the tone.

Funny thing - even though it's only been a few years since these books were originally released, it still feels ages ago. I've met several new heroes since Damon and Nico were a daily part of my life, and become friends with other heroines since Lily and Beth. It will be like visiting old friends to see how they're going!

Which makes me think of other things I'd like to revisit and never seem to get around to. 

I have a half-knitted dog blanket sitting in a basket that I haven't worked on for about three years. (I only knit dog blankets because the dogs don't notice or care about the irregularities in the knitting.) I should get that out and do some more, maybe when the TV is on.

I also have a pile of movies on video that I'd like to see again. Problem is I don't have a video player anymore, so I either need to buy them on dvd or rent them. (And what does one do with videos when one's video player has broken and not been replaced?)

So tell me, what's something from your past that you'd like to revisit. I'll choose one commenter and send them a copy of  double book in the picture: The Blackmailed Bride's Secret Child & Claiming His Bought Bride).

Animals in Books

Rachel's CAT STATS
Reading: To Catch A Bride, Anne Gracie
Listening to: Michael Buble
Watching: Dr Who (season 4 on dvd)
Making me smile: my 8 year old nephew, Jai
Hi, I’m Rachel and I’m a cat lover. And a dog lover—yep, a huge fan of dogs. And penguins. And green tree frogs. Oh, and wallabies—I love wallabies (they visit my back yard, very cool).

I also love books. So when I find a great book with a dog or a cat or a frog or a penguin, I’m even more in love with it (though I can’t actually remember reading a romance featuring a penguin…).

Some of my favourites have been (but in no way limited to):

Tom Bradley’s Babies, by Marion Lennox (Harlequin Romance / Sweet). A playboy stuck in a storm suddenly has to deal with a woman giving birth to twins and a bloodhound giving birth to six puppies. Both females pass out afterwards from exhaustion and Tom is left caring for a heap of newborns. Fabulous, fabulous story. (Though I could just as easily have chosen Marion's one with the green tree frogs. Or the one where the border collies fall in love.)

Anyone But You, by Jennifer Crusie (originally Harlequin Love and Laughter, now reissued by HQN). In the foreword of the reissue, Jenny Crusie says people often refer to this as Fred’s Book. I can understand why. I loved Fred – he learns to jump out his apartment window and walk down the fire escape for his ablutions. And he brings the hero and heroine together. Definitely a great dog book.

Naughty Nights in the Millionaire's Mansion by Robyn Grady (Modern Extra / Presents / Sexy Sensation). The heroine owns a pet store and the gorgeous alpha hero comes in to buy a fish. Soon after, the heroine has to make an emergency call out when his fish gives him trouble - it keeps leaping from its tank, trying to commit suicide, and the poor hero is completely baffled. This was very sexy and quirky. I loved it.

His Secluded Survivor (working title) by Nikki Logan (Harlequin Romance / Sweet). This one is yet to hit the shelves (it'll be in a UK-only anthology for 2010 release), and I haven’t even read it, but it holds a special place in my heart already – it stars four dogs: Dougal, Oliver, Fergus and Jazmine. Anyone who knows me (or has visited my website) will know they’re my dogs in real life (in fact that's Dougal decorating my post on the top left). :) Nikki has immortalized them and I can’t wait to read it.

Given my love for animals in books, it’s probably no surprise that I managed to sneak in a dog or two into The Blackmailed Bride’s Secret Child. I gave my mother’s Dalmatian Misty a starring role. Well, she’s more of a minor character, but she gets to run in the park with a little boy, and the real Misty loves doing that. :)

So tell me, do you like animals in stories? And if so, what have been some of your favourites? And if you’ve read a romance that features penguins, please let me know!

I have 10 books to give away (including my first two releases and Robyn Grady's book about the hero and the fish): The Earl’s Dilemma, Emily May (in Fate & Fortune, with A Country Miss In Hanover Square, Anne Herries) Quills / Regency; Marriage Reunited: Baby on the Way, Sharon Archer Medical; Claiming His Bought Bride, Rachel Bailey Desire; The Blackmailed Bride’s Secret Child, Rachel Bailey Desire; Tonight, My Love, Tracie Sommers Spice Briefs; The Rebel King (Suddenly Royal #1), Melissa James Harlequin Romance / Sweet; His Princess in the Making (Suddenly Royal #2), Melissa James Harlequin Romance / Sweet; Naughty Nights in the Millionaire’s Mansion, Robyn Grady Modern Extra / Presents / Sexy Sensation; Back in Fortune’s Bed, Bronwyn Jameson Desire; Stone Cold Lover, Mel Teshco Ellora's Cave