are these books all the same, or is it just me?

Sigh.

I picked up the first of a new urban fantasy series on the weekend. You probably know the one. It comes out every few months in different guises, by different authors and with different titles, but you'll know the one when you see it. It's had a lot of hype. It's got fancy packaging, sassy cover art and kick-ass blurbs. It's had gushing reviews, everyone says it's new and original and a fresh twist on the genre and the BEST thing EVA.

You pick it up in the store, and hairs lift on the back of your neck. The cover's stunning. The cover copy sounds fantastic. The premise sounds fresh and interesting and full of yummy potential. The characters and the world don't sound quite like anything you've ever read before. Excitement tingles your skin, and you can't stumble to the counter to buy it fast enough. You rush home with a dopey grin on your face, itching with anticipation to read something different.

Finally, you curl up on the couch and begin to read.

And by page five, your delight is shattered. The heroine is the same wisecracking kick-ass creature-hunter you've read a million times before. The hero is generic and alpha, dark and handsome and freakishly sexy and the same as every other frickin' hero you've seen the last eight hundred books. The writing is fine, sure, but the dialogue is tired. The characterisations are bland and old. That magical fresh premise is wasted on boring characters that could have come from any UF book.

In short, the book is nothing new. What you thought could be your new favourite book of the year is the SAME. OLD. STUFF.

Sigh. Disappointed. I'm not going to name names. But this was a DNF for me.

On a brighter note, I did finish an ARC of a cheeky fantasy mystery called The Sword-Edged Blonde. Now THAT was something different. Crazy goddesses, psychotic crippled dwarves, ruthless kings and murdered princes and a baffling mystery -- and most gratifyingly, NOT your standard fantasy hero. Mr Eddie Lacrosse, witty, smooth and clever, seriously kick-ass, but with this shy little wounded heart that just charmed the socks off me.

I'll have the author, Alex Bledsoe, here tomorrow to show off his book. Please drop by and say hi.

week, thou art full of awesome

I'm going to Sydney for a writing workshop this weekend. It's by Robert McKee, screenwriting expert and author of Story.

If it's anything like the book, it'll be truly awesome. My Inner Outlining Geek is already salivating.


In other news, behold the following, from Publishers Marketplace:

Erica Hayes's SHADOWSONG, in which a knife-wielding banshee gangster's quest for revenge on the assassin who ruined her life is interrupted when a deluded fairy sorceress steals her magical song, again to Rose Hilliard at St. Martin's, in a two-book deal, by Marlene Stringer of the Stringer Literary Agency (World).

Yeah, that's my series, now to be a glorious four books long. Mighty pleased, I am...

link lurve

 Some folks have been kind enough to feature my books on their sites. Thanks, guys! You rock!

Tez Says

SciFiGuy

Literary Escapism

the cover art fairy

Well, I'm excited.

Is this hot or what? It's for SHADOWGLASS, book 2 in my Shadowfae Chronicles series. 

Fairies, magic mirrors and mayhem. In Melbourne. You know you want to :)

 

Book 1, SHADOWFAE, is out 13 October 2009. You'll have to wait for April 2010 for this little yellow baby, though there's a sneak peek in the back of book 1.
 

Here's a blurb for SHADOWGLASS:
 

A seductive magic mirror, deep in a demon's lair. A simple warning: don't stare at the glass. A light-fingered fairy who can't resist.

For Ice, a compulsive fairy thief, life is a wild party of mayhem, fae trickery and magical confidence scams. She's never cared about rules or warnings, so when she filches a demon's beguiling magic mirror, she can't resist taking a peek.

Malicious enchantment strikes, and Ice can no longer tell a lie. If she can't undo the spell, she'll have to turn respectable. Two words: no way.

It sounds simple, especially when Indigo, a frosty metalfae thief, agrees to help her, as he too has fallen foul of the mirror's mischief. But when the mirror's victims start turning up dead, it seems someone doesn't want Ice or Indigo cured. As they draw closer to answers — and to each other — Indigo remains stubbornly silent about the nature of his enchantment. Is he the killer's target? Or does he harbour a more chilling secret?

Bwa-ha-ha-ha. I love this story. I love this cover. I'm all fulla love.

Right. Now I can get back to work.

true blood. meh. rant.

I just finished watching the HBO series True Blood on my PVR. (Ranty spoilers ahead, for those who don't want to know.)

Hooray! for vampires on mainstream tv. We need more of it.

That's where my delight in this series ended. Two words: WHINY HEROINE.

God, she's awful. I just wanted to punch her from scene 2, ep one, and it didn't get better. I'm sure she can't be like that in the books, or they wouldn't be such a hit.

TV Sookie invades people's privacy and then complains like a squashed skunk when people do the same to her. She complains all the time without a thought for any one else's problems. And even though she's almighty perky (my, is she perky. TV Sookie: hey, bar patron whom I so clearly think I'm better than, can you see how perky I am? No? Can I push my titties out just a little more? See now? No? How's about I wiggle my tush? Get it now? Great. kthxbai) if a guy should find her attractive, that's a mortal sin. What a be-yatch.

TV Sookie is the Thought Police. News flash, Sookie: people are entitled to think what they like, even if it offends your virginal little sensibilities.

Oh yeah. Did I not mention she's a virgin? Riiiiight.

And she's so self-absorbed. Everything has to be about her. Example: ep 2, where Bill tastes her blood for the first time.

TV Sookie: "Do I taste different to everyone else?"

Spew. I was so hoping Bill would say, no, actually, you're common as dirt, girl :)

And what's with dressing up in a white nightie and running out into the forest? What a princess.

However.

The series wasn't a total loss. Redeeming features:

1) Bill. He's a clumsy fool, but he's kinda cool. This actor makes a much better vampire in Ultraviolet, btw. See:

 

2) Eric. Cool, built, wears muscle shirts (!), takes no shit, makes fun of Bill, thinks Sookie is a waste of space, girly hair that I adore. Nuff said.

 

3) Lafayette. Sassy. Alas, he's no more.

4) Rene being the killer. I like Rene. Pity he didn't kill Sookie too. Stay in the grave, Sookie.

Rant over. I was disappointed. I'll get over it. And, I'll probably watch Season Two. Even if just to see Eric in that muscle shirt again.

That's enough outa me -- what did you guys think of this series? Hit or miss?

tonight, my love

A shout-out for my friend 's newest release: Tonight, My Love from Spice Briefs.

It's an eerie, sexy little tale with a killer twist. Here's the blurb:

"Tonight, my love, the choice is yours," Andrew Campbell tells Isabelle as they ride through the streets of Whitechapel to select a prostitute to join them in bed. Her choice: Franny, a pretty young girl hesitant to go with the genteel couple with Jack the Ripper on the loose.

Yet the lure of money and food is too strong for Franny. Before long, she is in their bed...with Andrew and Isabelle fulfilling their promise to take Franny to the height of sexual ecstasy.

But once their pleasure is complete, Andrew and Isabelle have another surprise in store for her....

tweet me, baby

I've joined Twitter!! 

Yeah. Because there were just too many hours in the day.

Come chat with me @ericahayes.

Because, you know. You can.