#barbara hannay

[lurking-latinist]

Unconventional Courtship Generator, tagged as usual.

9)HAVING THE BOSS'S BABIES by BARBARA HANNAY A new arrival – in the office! Like the rest of the staff at Kanga tours, Zoë Heriot is nervous about meeting her new boss – but when Orac walks through the door it’s worse than she could ever have imagined! Zoë shared one very special night with him – but now they have to play it strictly business! But for how long can they pretend nothing has happened? Especially now that Zoë has discovered she’s going to be having her boss’s babies… From city girl – to corporate wife! 

Eye-bleachy until you realize that Orac is a computer and Zoe’s therefore presumably just working on some derivative software.

(Avon might be jealous, though.)

[graphicpolicy]

Kick Off the New Year with a Dozen New Digital Comics

Kick Off the New Year with a Dozen New Digital Comics #Comics #ComicBooks #DigitalComics

ComiXology has you covered on the first day of the new year with a dozen new digital comics that you can get right now. You can start shopping now or check out the individual releases below! Bringing Up Babies Written by Emma GoldrickArt by Megumu MinamiPurchase Hope starts working as a live-in housekeeper as a way of proving her worth to her successful family. Upon arriving at the mansion,…

[scotianostra]

The actor Bill Simpson was born as William Nicholson Simpson on September 11th 1934.

Born in Dunure, Ayrshire Bill began his career as an announcer for BBC Scotland. His only appearance in a movie was as a non-speaking extra (his name was missing from the film credits playing a bridegroom in the first remake of John Buchan's story The 39 Steps, which starred Kenneth More as Richard Hannay, although ne was several TV Movies.

Simpson devoted the rest of his career to television, radio and stage. In 1962 BBC Television adapted Robert Louis Stevenson's novel The Master of Ballantrae in which Simpson played the part of Hastie in six 30-minute episodes. Later that year, he took the role of Mr. Ogilvie in "Appearance in Court", an episode of the popular BBC police drama, Z Cars.

In  August 1962 the BBC began broadcasting its long-running Scottish medical drama Dr Finlay's Casebook, Simpson played the title role of Dr Alan Finlay, and was supported by Andrew Cruickshank as Dr Cameron, his older partner at the Arden House surgery in Tannochbrae, and Barbara Mullen as their housekeeper, Janet. With locations at Callander in Stirling, the show ran for eight seasons, the final episode, being shown on 3rd January 1971. Simpson also starred in 104 audio episodes of the A. J. Cronin  story, made by BBC Radio 4, from 1970 to 1975.

On Hogmanay 1969 he was one of several stars who appeared in Ring in the New, the first colour programme broadcast from the BBC Scotland studios in Glasgow’s Queen Margaret Drive.

After Dr Finlay finished its television run Simpson continued to work for the BBC. In 1973 he took a role as MacNair in the Scottish independence drama series Scotch on the Rocks, which was broadcast in five 40-minute episodes. In 1975 he appeared in one instalment of the BBC TV series Quiller. He played Sir Andrew Kilbrane, alongside Michael Jayston as Quiller, in an episode called Target North, which involved the death of a government minister. He also took the part of Rob Dow in the BBC's Play of the Month series in 1975, in an adaptation of J. M. Barrie's play The Little Minister, in which he co-starred with Helen Mirren and Ian Ogilvy.

Simpson had a part in a 1976 episode of the North East England drama When the Boat Comes In, playing Sandy Lewis.

Back in Scotland Bill Simpson then appeared in The Mackinnons, taking the starring role of Donald, head of the Mackinnon family, who live in the Western Isles  and feel threatened by the influx of new people with new lifestyles into their community. The show only aired for one series featuring 13 episodes.

He next travelled to France and West Germany to shoot the 1979 television mini-series Die Abenteuer des David Balfour , or as we know it,  Kidnapped , a co-production between HTV in England, Technisonor of France and Tele-München of Germany. Simpson played James of the Glens,  David McCallum played the lead role of Alan Breck Stewart.

Bill Simpson had a his history of heart problems, it is perhaps not surprising that he became less busy in the 1980′s. He contributed less to television drama, and more to factual subjects, introducing the TV coverage of the British Open Golf Championship at Royal Troon in 1982, with Peter Allis. 

One of Bill’s last appearance was in the Scottish Television docu-drama Scotland's Story: Mary and an End to the French Connection, playing John Knox; and one more, made in 1986, which he did not live to watch.

On 21st December 1986, at the age of 55, Bill Simpson died from a bronchopneumonia in Mauchline, East Ayrshire. His role as a driver's boss in the TV drama, Shoot for the Sun, was not shown on television until 16th March 1987.

[brokehorrorfan]

All the Haunts Be Ours: A Compendium of Folk Horror will be releaed on December 7 via Severin Films. The Blu-ray box set features Kier-La Janisse's new documentary, Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror (also available separately) plus 19 folk horror movies.

The films include: Avery Crounse's Eyes of Fire (1983), Djordje Kadijevic's Leptirica (1973), Otakar Vávra's Witchhammer (1970), Konstantin Ershov and Georgiy Kropachyov's Viy (1967), Kåre Bergstrøm's Lake of the Dead (1958), Viðar Víkingsson's Tilbury (1987), Mario Andreacchio's The Dreaming (1988), James Bogle's Kadaicha (1988), Ann Turner's Celia (1989), Ian Coughlan's Alison's Birthday (1981),  Marek Piestrak's Wilczyca (1983), Janusz Majewski's Lokis (1970), Ryszard Bugajski's Clearcut (1991), Brunello Rondi's Il Demonio (1963), Mariano Baino's Dark Waters (1993), Ben Wheatley's A Field in England (2012), Chris Newby's Anchoress (1993), Alan Clarke's Penda's Fen (1974), and James MacTaggart's Robin Redbreast (1970).

Also included are various short films, a CD of the Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched soundtrack composed by Jim Williams (A Field in England, Possessor), a CD with Arthur Machen's "The White People" short story read by actress Linda Hayden, and a 126-page book with writings by film scholars, authors, and historians.

All films have been restored in high definition from the best available vault elements. The lengthy list of special features are listed below.

Disc 1:

Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched special features:

Introduction by writer-director Kier-La Janisse

Interview with animator Ashley Thorpe

Outtakes - What is Folk Horror?, Harvest Hymns, Terra Assombrada

Folk Poetry recited by actors Ian Ogilvy Linda Hayden set to Super 8 footage

Trailer

Disc 2:

Eyes of Fire special features:

Audio commentary with author Colin Dickey

Interview with director Avery Crounse by historian Stephen Thrower

Crying Blue Sky - Alternate longer cut restored in 2K from the director’s personal 35mm answer print

Short Films:

The Legend Of Sleepy Hollow (Sam Weiss, 1972)

Transformations (Barbara Hirschfeld, 1972)

Backwoods (Ryan Mackfall, 2018) 

Disc 3:

Leptirica special features:

Interview with director Djordje Kadijevic

Štićenik - 1973 short film directed by Djordje Kadijevic

Interview with Štićenik actor Milan Mihailovic

Devičanska Svirka - 1973 short film directed by Djordje Kadijevic

Iterview with Devičanska Svirka actor Goran Sultanovic

Disc 4:

Witchhammer special features:

Audio commentary by Czech film historian Irena Kovarova

The Womb of Woman Is the Gateway to Hell - Appreciation by historians Kat Ellinger and Michael Brooke

The Projection Booth Podcast on Witchhammer

Viy special features:

From the Woods to the Cosmos - John Leman Riley on the history of Soviet fantasy and sci-fi films

Trailer

Silent Short Films:

Satan Exultant (1917)

The Queen of Spades (1916)

The Portrait (1915)

Disc 5:

Lake of the Dead special features:

Audio commentary by historians Jonathan Rigby and Kevin Lyons

Tilbury special features:

Audio commentary by director Viðar Víkingsson and screenwriter Þórarinn Eldjárn

With Enough Tilbury Butter, Anything Is Good — Interview With Karl Ágúst Úlfsson

Interview with actor Kristján Franklin Magnúss

White Spot in the Back of the Head - 1979 student film directed by Viðar Víkingsson

Interview with director Viðar Víkingsson about White Spot in the Back of the Head

Disc 6:

The Dreaming special features:

Audio commentary with director Mario Andreacchio

Trailer

Kadaicha special features:

Audio commentary with director James Bogle

Audio interview with actress Zoe Carides

Audio interview with composer Peter Westheimer

Behind the scenes footage

Trailer

Disc 7:

Celia special features:

Interview with director Ann Turner

Interview with editor Ken Sallows 

The Rabbit in Australia - 1979 short film

Alison’s Birthday special features:

Interviews with producer David Hannay and actors Joanne Samuel and Belinda Giblin

The Devil Down Under - Video essay by film scholar Alexandra Heller-Nicholas

Disc 8:

Wilczyca special features:

Interview with director Marek Piestrak

Lokis: A Manuscript of Professor Wittembach special features:

Interview with director Janusz Majewski

Disc 9:

Clearcut special features:

Introduction by director Ryszard Bugajski

Audio commentary by scholar Shaawano Chad Uran

Short Films:

The Ballad of Crowfoot (Willie Dunn, 1968) with audio commentary

You Are On Indian Land (Michael Kanentakeron Mitchell, 1969)

Consume (Mike Peterson, 2017)

Disc 10:

Il Demonio special features:

Audio commentary by film historian Kat Ellinger

The Kid From A Kibbutz - Video essay by film historian Tim Lucas

Interview with Brunello Rondi biographer Alberto Pezzotta

Dark Waters special features:

Audio commentary by writer/director Mariano Baino

Deep Into the Dark Waters - Making-of feautrette with cast and crew

Disc 11:

A Field in England special features:

Audio commentary by director Ben Wheatley, producer Andy Starke, and sound editor Martin Pavey

Letterboxd Magic Hour - Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched filmmaker Kier-La Janisse interviews director Ben Wheatley

The Music of A Field in England - Featurette with composer Jim Williams and director Ben Wheatley

Ben Wheatley in conversation with film historian Pete Tombs

Camera tests

Trailer

Anchoress special features:

Lockdown 1329 - Video essay by director Chris Newby

A Short Trip To Shere - Director Chris Newby documentars the location of the real Christine Carpenter’s anchoress cell 

Disc 12:

Penda’s Fen special features:

Audio commentary by James Machin and Matthew Hale, editors of Of Mud & Flame: The Penda’s Fen Sourcebook

The Landscape of Feelings: The Road to Penda’s Fen - Interviews with writer David Rudkin, producer David Rose, and more

Robin Redbreast special features:

Audio commentary by William Fowler and Vic Pratt, authorsof The Bodies Beneath: The Flipside of British Film & Television

Interview with writer John Bowen

Short Films:

The Pledge (Digby Rumsey, 1982)

The Sermon (Dean Puckett, 2018)

Also included:

CD: Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched soundtrack composed by Jim Williams

CD: Arthur Machen's "The White People" short story read by actress Linda Hayden with music by Timothy Fife and Missionary Work

126-page book curated by Kier-La Janisse and designed by Luke Insect with new writing by Andy Paciorek, Stephen Volk, Mitch Horowitz, Dawn Keetley, Sarah Chavez, Stephen R. Bissette, and Dejan Ognjanović, plus archival pieces and a breakdown of all the films in the set

[auswomenwriters]

General Fiction Round Up: August 2019

General Fiction Round Up: August 2019

August was a bumper month for General Fiction with 80 reviews of 60 books.

Petronella McGovern’s crime title Six Minutes featured strongly in the general fiction reviews, as did Sarah Bailey’s Where the Dead Go and Diane Armstrong’s historical novel The Collaborator.

Barbara Hannay’s family drama Meet Me In Venice received three reviews in August, from regular reviewers Shelleyrae @ Book’d Out, A…

[ktienh]

💡 Book Review 📘 The Happiest Little Town ✒️ Barbara Hannay 🎭🎭🎭🎭 Isn't it just the cutest book cover!? And that title, I feel that I'm guaranteed an easy, light-hearted, and uplifting read which my mood tells me I need these days. It did not disappoint; The Happiest Little Town certainly made me happy. I find it always touching when 3 generations of women are brought together. I love to see the effect they have on each other. In this novel, the mix of Olivia's wisdom, Kate's generosity, and Tilly's grief made a lovely cocktail of lasting friendship. I am in Kate's age group so while I was rather frustrated with some of Tilly's decisions and actions, they are rather understandable considering her loss. I am in awe of Kate's heart and her generosity... it's not Tilly's fault that she is who she is but golly, Kate was just so very kind. While the story revolves our 3 main protagonists above. There were bits and pieces about other residents of this town that made it The Happiest Little Town. They may not be that relevant to the plot as such but they do make the town more 3-dimensional. And what's a town without its people? The Happiest Little Town's residents may not be happy aaallll the time as each of them have either had difficult pasts or are still struggling to come to terms with those pasts. However, they do know to pick themselves back up and let's just say it's a happy ending all around. Such a comfort read and truly, I just want to give this book a cuddle - that's how much I enjoyed it. Thank you @penguinbooksaus for paperback copy of this book in exchange of my honest thoughts #TheHappiestLittleTown #BarbaraHannay #contemporaryfiction #womenslit #aussiereads #AussieAuthors #australianwomenauthors #ausbookstagram #ausbookstagramer #bookandcup #bookandflowers #cutecovers https://www.instagram.com/p/Ch6U8N5LRd7/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[hoezannay]

week 3

(it says a proposal proposed by Nina smith and Zoe Hannay but it was mostly by zoe Hannay cos I hadn’t seen Nina all week and made this the night before

class feedback

basically people liked the design and colours but found it confusing but that’s okay because it didn’t actually make much sense to read.......i wish i could tell the chick with the black pen that repetition is actually a literary device but unfortunately i have to let that one go for as long as she remains anonymous

group-2-group feedback

this was the most useful feedback because the critique was thorough and not glib like the class feedback tends to be. i ended up with zara and hannah which was nice because i know them both but not enough to be like ‘hey, show me your whole thing let me read it all and steal your ideas’ which i didn’t steal their ideas it was just nice to see what i was actually supposed to have done

their feedback super useful - their main point was that it wasn’t entirely clear what the aim of the idea was.....was it for the benefit of the community or the individual themselves?? was it to combat stress or get people to socialise? i said yes, good points, i think you are echoing the general sentiment of the class members who wrote on my sheet

then later i had the thought that maybe the demographic should be narrowed?

back when nina and i used to be in the same class at the same time, we once made this user profiles sheet that was very fun to make but now that i look at again is very broad

seems like these people are mostly on the young side of middle aged, perhaps we will have to kill barbara off.

mark feedback

lastly, i got mark feedback. this was useful as he made me feel better about how little i had done and complemented the design work. he also said to be wary of using ‘loaded images,’ make the message and content stronger and i was like okay i can do it ! then he left and i was like oh no i’m all alone and this is due next week i can’t do it, so i drew some pictures instead

donald feedback

donald liked my pictures.

[respectingromance]

Romances set outside the US or England/Scotland

… well, mostly.

Recently I put out a call for romance novels set outside the United States, England, or Scotland – for extra difficulty, you could suggest ones without American or English main characters.

We ended up with a decent list! Because I have not personally read most of these, I can’t guarantee that every one has an HEA. If I suspect or know that a book doesn’t have a happy ending, I’ll note so with an ***. 

The notes below are a mix of comments from the contributor and my own research.

Contributed by @honeybeeshepherd

***The Bronze Horseman by Paullina Simons. Set in the Soviet Union during WWII. The first book does not have an HEA, but @honeybeeshepherd says the series ultimately ends happily.

Contributed by @lizabethstucker​

Shoma Narayanan (author). Writes Harlequin-style romances set in India. Her top-rated romance, Take One Arranged Marriage…, has a 3.55 rating on Goodreads.

Haveli by Zeenat Mahal. Set in 1970s Pakistan, this one has a funny, snarky heroine.

Hidden Husband by Shikha Kaul. Set in India with Indian main characters.

Contributed by @jamjamque

Juliet by Anne Fortier. Set in Sienna, Italy. @jamjamque says there’s no sex in this one.

Contributed by @sequinedably​

@sequinedably​ says Mary Balogh has a book set in Venice, Italy. I don’t doubt this at all, but after spending a not-insignificant amount of time trying to find the title, I gave up.

As You Desire by Connie Brockway. Set in Cairo, Egypt in 1890.

Contributed by @diehard-fangirl​, @not-your-average-romance​, @lucyreadsromance​, and @customerservicebotdolores

Basically everything by Jeannie Lin, whose books are all set in historical China. Specific recs were for The Lotus Palace and Gunpowder Alchemy.

Contributed by @not-your-average-romance​

Rise of a Queen by Chanta Rand. Set in Ghana in 1071. Fair warning: It’s pretty clear from the book summary that the heroine rapes the hero. Rand has also written other books set in Africa.

Mystic Cove series by Tricia O’Malley. Set in Ireland. First book is Wild Irish Heart.

Contributed by @lobsterhug​

Jillaroo by Rachael Treasure. About a lady farmer in Australia.

Contributed by @raspberriesandbumblebees

Victoria Holt (author). Specific recs were The House of a Thousand Lanterns (Hong Kong), The India Fan (India/France), The Pride of the Peacock (Australia), and The Road to Paradise Island (Indonesia). @rasperberriesandbumblebees says these were written in the 60s/70s and none are steamy.

Contributed by @thecrankyagnes​ and @yuubisensei

Hell Squad series by Anna Hackett. Currently at 12 books, all set in post-alien-invasion Australia. First book is called Marcus.

Contributed by @theduchessapproach​

A Company of Swans by Eva Ibbotson. Set in 1912, a significant portion of the story takes place in Brazil.

Magic Flutes by Eva Ibbotson. Set in Austria in 1922.

Contributed by @mariaslozak​

The Gladiator by Carla Capshaw. An inspy set in ancient Rome. The author has others.

The Gladiator’s Honor by Michelle Styles. Set in ancient Rome.

MacEgan Brothers series by Michelle Willingham. Set in Ireland in 1102. First book is Her Warrior Slave. 

Forbidden Vikings series by Michelle Willingham. Set in Ireland in 875. First book is To Sin with a Viking.

***The Forbidden Wish by Jessica Khoury. Set in Middle East. This is a YA Aladdin retelling.

Heart of Flame by Janine Ashbless. Set in 9th century Arabia.

Storm Winds by Iris Johansen. Set in France during the French Revolution.

Dance by Judy Cuevas. Set in Paris, France during the Belle Epoque.

A Midnight Dance by Lila DiPasqua. Set in France. First in Fiery Tales series, others also set outside US/UK. Fairy tale adaptations, this one is Cinderella.

Maiden of Fire by Deborah Johns. Set in France in 1331.

The Wind Dancer by Iris Johansen. Set in Rome, Italy during the Renaissance. 

The Prince of Cups by Gayle Feyrer (or Yves Fey). Set in Florence, Italy in 1493.

Shadowheart by Laura Kinsale. Set in medieval Italy. Heroine was raised in England.

The Thief of Poompuhar by Nila Iyer. Set in India. 

Mistress to the Yuvraj by Sanyogita Rathore. Set in India.

Ghazal in the Moonlight by Alessandra Shabaz. Set in India.

Sonali Dev (author). The book of hers that most fits our parameters is A Change of Heart, although all three of her books feature Indian characters.

Contributed by @alexbookpages​

Anna and the French Kiss and Isla and the Happily Ever After, both by Stephanie Perkins. Set in France. YA romance.

***Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel. Set in Mexico.

Contributed by @meags09

Natasha Anders (author). According to the contributor, she writes romances set in South Africa. I couldn’t confirm settings for her books, the closest I came is A Ruthless Proposition, which includes a one-night-stand in Tokyo.

Contributed by @elenajohansen​

Escape to New Zealand series by Rosalind James. Obviously, set in New Zealand. First book is called Just This Once.

Contributed by @mariesbookblog​

Bound to Be a Groom by Megan Mulry. Set in Spain in 1808.

Contributed by @maddie-grove​ and @mariaslozak​

A Bed of Spices by Barbara Samuel. Set in Strassburg, Germany in 1348. Hero is Jewish. Apparently has a sexist subplot, according to one contributor.

Contributed by @maddie-grove

The Raven and the Rose by Doreen Owens Malek. Set in ancient Rome.

The Iron Rose by Marsha Canham. Set in the Caribbean with a French pirate heroine.

Truly by Mary Balogh. Set in Wales.

Blood Moon Over Bengal by Morag McKendrick Pippin. Set in 1930s India. Hero is half-Indian.

Contributed by @iartiyochi

***Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak. Set in Russia. If the book is anything like the movie, there’s no HEA. (Great movie though.)

Contributed by @romancetherapy

Rock Hard by Nalini Singh. Set in Auckland, New Zealand.

49th Floor series by Jenny Holiday. Set in Toronto, Canada. First book is Saving the CEO.

Contributed by @lucyreadsromance

Patchwork Paradise by Indra Vaughn. Contemporary m/m set in Antwerp, Belgium. One hero is half-American but raised in Belgium.

Roman Crazy by Alice Clayton. Majority set in Italy. The heroine is American but the hero is Italian.

Chocolate Cake for Breakfast by Danielle Hawkins. Set in New Zealand.

The Raven by Sylvain Reynard. Paranormal set in Florence, Italy. 

Finding It by Cora Carmack. NA romance with backpacking heroine, set mostly in Ukraine, Croatia, and Spain. 

Prince of Deception by Valentina Luellen. Set in St. Petersburg, Russia in 1716.

Contributed by @sonya-heaney

This contribution was a list of authors without specific books mentioned, so I went through their most popular books on Goodreads and picked the first one that fit the rules.

Sarah Mayberry (author). The Other Side of Us is set in Australia, at a beach, if I’m not mistaken.

Karina Bliss (author). What the Librarian Did is set in New Zealand.

Amy Andrews (author). No More Mr. Nice Guy is set in Brisbane, Australia.

Nicki Edwards (author). Intensive Care is set in rural Australia.

Bronwyn Parry (author). As Darkness Falls is set in rural Australia.

Barbara Hannay (author). Zoe’s Muster is set in North Queensland, Australia.

Rachael Johns (author). Jilted is set in rural Australia.

Stefanie London (author). The Rules According to Gracie is set in Australia.

Contributed by @linotte-melodieuse 

***The Oracle Glass by Judith Merkle Riley. Set in France.

Thanks for the contributions, everyone! Happy reading!

[cherylmmbookblog]

It Had To Be You by Nikki Logan and Barbara Hannay

It Had To Be You by Nikki Logan and Barbara Hannay

To celebrate finding their Man of the Year 2016, Courtenay Hayles, Mills & Boon have published It Had To Be You, which contains two lovely romantic stories.

Molly Cooper’s Dream Date by Barbara Hannay and Shipwrecked with Mr Wrong by Nikki Logan.

Two completely different stories about love.

Whether you are looking for the careless sun-swept feel of Logan’s story or the more practical approach to…

[theredmargaux]

The Cattleman's Adopted Family (a book by Barbara Hannay)

At the launch party organized by Amy Ross, an exceptional woman with an exceptional physique, was a sudden rush of police looking for her informing her that her best friend  Rachel Tyler, was found dead on a car accident on her way to that very launch. Now, since she is Rachel's "next to kin", she has to take the responsibility of little Bella, the two-year-old baby left by Rachel, whom Rachel declared as a daughter of a rich cattleman, Seth Reardon.

The PROLOGUE. Oh, yes. The prologue. The first part that you have to do to be able to hook your readers is to have a great & enticing prologue and truth be told, I was definitely enticed. Barbara Hannay emphasized the details and it was like I am in to that very scene where Amy Ross was. I felt like I'm also invited to that party sharing the shock & grim in every guest's eyes and also the feeling of being terrified. I even caught myself asking, "Police?! Oh, for crying out loud! Why would there be a police? Is this Amy Ross who's considered to be an exceptional woman a criminal or a gangster?" And oh, for crying out loud, I was mistaken, she was actually searched by this old man in blue for her bestfriend was found dead.

The romance that was brought by Barbara Hannay on the story was marvelous. The romantic scenes during Seth & Amy's first kiss was very much detailed that it gave me goose bumps. LOL. It also brought me into another world that I didn't even notice that our professor dismissed us early & my friend poked me, "Hey! Dismissals? Hello? You aware?" and yes, I stood up & walked still with this book on my hand. READING WHILE WALKING :D And mind you, it's not the first time that I was poked by a friend because of pouring my heart on this book! Twice, I believe. (Or even thrice if I've lost count!)

Nevertheless, I found the epilogue not that interesting as the prologue was. (And I should not spread what the epilogue is! Hahahaha, you should figure out yourself! READ IT!) But in general, oh, I ended up craving for a guy like Seth Reardon. Nyum! But I doubt if there's still a guy like him left in this world. Ugh.

If I were to decipher a lesson that I have learned by this book, it would be the "EAGERNESS TO TRUST LOVE & DESTINY", if both of you are meant to be, it will be. Let fate decide :)

To Barbara Hannay,

I'm dying to be like you, an author who pours herself into her piece that inspires people & brings them into that very scene they're reading. Hope I'll be, SOON.

[ktienh]

The Happiest Little Town by Barbara Hannay -a review

The Happiest Little Town by Barbara Hannay -a review

The Happiest Little Town by Barbara Hannay Happiness has a way of catching up with you, even when you’ve given up trying to find it. Tilly doesn’t believe she can ever be happy again Fourteen-year-old Tilly’s world is torn apart when her single mother dies suddenly and she is sent a million miles from everything she has ever known to a small country town and a guardian who’s a total…

[quotingfiction]

No doubt thousands of e-mail exchanges ended when one person fell silent.No doubt the world was filled with thousands of broken hearts.

Expecting Miracle Twins by Barbara Hannay

[katydidinoz]

#ausbooks #aww2012 Barbara Hannay: Rancher's Twins: Mom Needed

Overarching thought: are category romances more issues-based than single title?

Most of my review work - scratch that, allof my review work is in single title novels, so I love things like Aussie Author Month, because it's a great excuse to delve back into the category romance where I cut my romance reading teeth. Like with Barbara Hannay's Rancher's Twins: Mom Needed, a Harlequin Romance that's nominated for a RITA award this year.

So, Gray was married to this woman, and they had twins together, but she couldn't hack the Outback life, so she took the kids and moved back to NYC. Then she had a brain aneurysm and died - in front of her kids. Anyways, they go and live with their cousin Holly who agrees to take care of them until Gray can get from his ranch to New York. It takes a bit longer than expected as Gray attempts to ford a flooded stream and ends up breaking his ankle.

Fast forward three months, and Holly is doing pretty well. The kids' PTSD is getting more manageable, and she loves having them around. So when Gray arrives, she's got all these feelings and emotions and stuff all churning around, plus, you know, he's totally hot, so that doesn't help.

Long story short: she ends up going back to Australia with everyone on a very short-term basis to help the kids settle. Also Gray has a big secret he's not sharing and Holly is determined to niggle it out of him.

Then: it's time for her to leave, but he doesn't want her to, but he can't possibly ask her to stay 'cause it's really selfish, and she doesn't want to go, but she wont' stay unless he offers her more than just a nanny position with his kids, and...

Well, I won't spoil the ending, but you can probably guess where it goes.

The bottom line is this is a very sweet little story, and to be honest, it's utterly innocuous as well. I can't imagine anyone not liking it, because there is absolutely nothing not to like.

However, what was more interesting to me is Gray's great problem. Readers get an insight pretty early on that Gray is functionally illiterate, and has managed for a long time to not only successfully manage his business, but fool everyone around him. Holly eventually finds out, and one of their greatest bonds is created as she helps him to learn.

When I was telling my husband about this story, he asked, 'why would she fall in love with an illiterate hero?', which is a non-romance reading point of view, but it did highlight that category romances often feature 'issues' as part of their overarching story in a way that single titles often don't. In fact, in my experience, many category romances have external barriers to the HEA, as opposed to internal, which is more common with single titles.

But I'm not nearly as well-versed in category romance as I am in single title, and this is an impression rather than a solid conclusion. So tell me, those of you who are more involved with category romances: do I have the right end of the stick here?

[verbvixen]

Blind Dates and Other Disasters

 Blind Dates and Other Disasters- Ally Blake/ Fiona Harper/ Barbara Hannay

The book contains three separate contemporary romance tales.  Based on the title and cover, I was expecting some funny reads.  What we got instead were standard romance reads.

The first story by Ally Blake focuses on how we get in our own way. Holly and Jacob's passion is evident on every page and they have the sort of antagonistic chemistry that makes you smile. A-

The second tale by Fiona Harper got off to a rocky start for me.  I disliked the first guy so much that I couldn't get past that.  I could never root for him or be on his team.  The plot goes into some deep and difficult scenarios and was less of the light read I was expecting.  B

The last story in the book is outback girl come to the big city.  It's cute and cheesy but also full of cliche. I'm not sure that it added anything new to the genre but it was a classic romance read. B

Overall: B

You can order a copy here.

eGalley provided gratis by Harlequin UK via NetGalley