Hittin' the G-Spot

Made you look. ;) I'm the featured author in the November issue of Gracie C. McKeever's "The G-Spot". Gracie is a talented and accomplished author, and it was a pleasure to be interviewed by her. That, and with a name like "The G-Spot", how could I resist? Gracie and I touched on a variety of points, including my approach to the writing process, my current evil influences, the upcoming Blue Ruin series, and the hotness that is Stefan Eldritch. Also featured is a humorous essay by Maggie Toussaint, as well as details on how to win a free book from Gracie! So if you want to find "The G-Spot", look no farther than http://www.authorsden.com/visit/viewnewsletter.asp?AuthorID=623 and be sure to give it a little of your time and attention. ;)

Cheers,
Katrina S.
Romance for the Black Coffee Crowd
http://www.katrinastrauss.com/

E-books and why some folks are going to be left behind

I am cracking up at this endorsement for e-books because honestly, I've wanted to post a few such points myself!

http://www.crunchgear.com/2007/11/21/the-random-endorsement-e-books-and-anyone-who-disagrees-is-a-imbecile/

Cheers,
Katrina Strauss
Proud E-book Author
and purveyor of
Romance for the Black Coffee Crowd
http://www.katrinastrauss.com/

What folks are saying

While I'm still on cloud nine over this glowing review for A Rose of Any Colour - Maledom, particularly after the reviewer cited my contribution Efflorescence as her favorite in the collection, I've recently received encouraging kudos elsewhere that I must share!

Spellbound - Tales of Mischief & Mayhem has received this belated review, but well better late than never, and it was just in time for Halloween so I certainly can't complain about getting more mileage out of Spellbound. This reviewer also cited my story, Grave Desire, as one of her two favorites in the collection, so I seem to be on a roll when it comes to anthologies!

Of course, "official reviews" are all well and good, but it really means something when a reader shares their thoughts. Magenta Metrix made my day when she recently posted these absolutely lovely comments regarding The Eldritch Legacy. Because readers are what it's all about, and feedback like Magenta's is what keeps me going with this crazy writer gig. :)

Though there's another belated review I was just informed of, this one for the first Eldritch Legacy title. The reviewer states "I can honestly say I've never had a desire to be locked in a dank dungeon until I read Secrets Revealed by Katrina Strauss." She knocked off a few points for what she felt were "overly-detailed sections" that she had trouble following and flat-out suggests skipping. (A year ago, one other reviewer took points off for what she described as overly-esoteric dream sequences and awkard transitions between sleep and waking, but well, I'm not sure how to respond to that as my own dreams are overly-esoteric, and waking up from one can be damned confusing...) I might be a tad miffed, but overall, this reviewer says "I highly recommend Secrets Revealed to readers who like their erotic romance touched by magick and spiced up by the addition of a well handled whip. You will not be disappointed." And she requested the other two books for review, saying she can not wait to read them.

In other writing news, yesterday I turned in edits on Some Kind of Stranger. My editor says I should have cover art before the winter holidays, with a tentative release date of January 15th! So yay for good reviews, and yay for upcoming releases! :D

Cheers,
Katrina S.
Romance for the Black Coffee Crowd
http://www.katrinastrauss.com/

5 Flutes and a Bottle of Champagne from Cocktail Reviews!

The first official review is in on A Rose of Any Colour - Maledom, and it's fabulous for a few reasons! ;) Cocktail Reviews' scoring system is based on 1 to 5 "champagne flutes", rather than stars. In the event the reviewer feels a story surpassed five flutes, the story receives the distinct honor of being given one whole champagne bottle. In the case of anthologies, each story is rated individually, then averaged for the book's overall score. Well...A Rose of Any Colour has received five champagne flutes overall, which is fabulous! This is based on the fact that five of the six stories received either 4 or 5 champagne flutes, and then guess whose story received one whole champagne bottle??? :D Which is beyond fabulous, and I am positively on cloud nine here! The reviewer also states that she is not involved with the BDSM lifestyle, so it really says something for her to have rated all of the stories so high!

Here are some of the reviewer's comments on Efflorescence and why she felt it warranted one whole champagne bottle! (And this makes four readers now who have said my story made them cry!)

"I will not forget this tale in a hurry. The combination of Hannah revisiting her past and recalling the tale of her youth and the mention of a rare blue rose brought me to tears. The elderly are sometimes perceived as just that—elderly. That they didn’t experience life, or have a youth is sometimes forgotten. Efflorescence crushes that misconception fabulously. Ms. Strauss has written such a fine tale that I’m very interested to read any other works she may have.

"Efflorescence was my absolute favourite out of a fine set of tales because of the richness of the wording, the way the tale weaved through the character’s emotions, and the setting—no blips in the historical aspect that I could see. Whizzing back in time is always fascinating, but this historical tale has topped any that I have ever read so far. Tremendous!"

And of the collection overall, again, my fellow contributors each received 4 or 5 flutes, and the book has received five flutes overall! Did I mention that I find this fabulous? I am very proud to have my story featured alongside the work of such talented authors! :D

To indulge in a bit o' the bubbly and see what struck such a chord with this reviewer, you may view her comments in full here: http://cocktailreviews.wordpress.com/2007/11/07/a-rose-of-any-colour-book-2-maledom-freyas-bower/