Locus Reviews

I couldn't wait for my subscription to come, so I picked up a copy of Locus at Dreamhaven yesterday. Here are the reviews by Carolyn Cushman:

Tate Hallaway, Dead Sexy (Berkley 978-0-425-21508-1, $14.00, 294pp tp) May 2007. Cover by Margarete Gockel

Murder comes back to haunt Garnet Lacey in this sequel to Tall, Dark & Dead. Garnet first went on the run after Vatican witch hunters killed her coven and the goddess Lilith possessed her and killed the Vatican agents. Now the bodies have been uncovered, and the FBI is on Garnet's trail, so she's forced to turn to her vampire ex-boyfriend for help, while trying to keep her current boyfriend, the vampire alchemist Sebastian, from finding out, not to mention trying to keep Lilith from reappearing and wreaking havoc. And then there are al those zombies turning up around town... Garnet's an engaging narrator, and while the plot occasionally seems a bit over the tope, it's also a consistantly fun, fast-paced romp.

Charlaine Harris & Toni L.P. Kelner, eds., Many Bloody Returns (Ace 978-0-441-01522-1, $24.95, 355pp, hc) September 2007. Cover by Lisa Desimini.

What do birthdays mean to vampires? Thirteen authors come up with as many answers in this amusing original anthology, which tends to the lighter side of vampire fiction, with birthdays frequently tangential to the stories at best. Several stories are part of popular series; among the best are Jim Butcher's Dresden File story, "It's My Birthday, Too," in which Harry Dresden tries to get a birthday present to his vampire half-brother, only to run into some live-action roleplayers facing real vampires in an after-hours shopping mall; P. N. Elrod's lively Vampire Files story, "Grave Robbed," finds PI vampire Jack Fleming taking on a phony medium; in Tanya Huff's Smoke series, "Blood Wrapped" sets Tony and Henry searching for a kidnapped child and for an appropriate gift for Vicki Nelson's 40th birthday; and Tate Hallaway's "Fire and Ice and Linguini for Two" finds wiccan Garnet Lacey (of Tall, Dark & Dead and Dead Sexy) trying to convince her vampire boyfriend that his birthday isn't cursed, despite some chilling encounters. Charlaine Harris's own entry, "Dracula Night," is amusing but slight, a Sookie Stackhouse story that finds the human telepath fortunately on hand when things go wrong during the vampires' celebration of Dracula's birthday. Co-editor Toni L. P. Kelner, a mystery writer, presents a punchy, but touching, tale of a vampire who catches a serial killer while on a nostalgia trip to her own home town in "How Stella Got Her Grave Back." The remaining stories are a mixed bunch, mostly standalones, and some less than satisfying -- possibly because they don't have well-developed series backgrounds to draw on. For fans of the series represented here, however, this is an entertaining birthday party well worth checking out.

My Spaced Out

I decided to try to be one of the cool kids and put together the rudimentary bits necessary to have a my space page. If this sort of thing trips your trigger, go check it out at:

http://www.myspace.com/tatehallaway

Now, I expect I'll be up half the night "friending" people and whatnot. :-)

Revisions Done and New Book Deals!

Exciting news first: my agent just made a deal with my publisher for TWO -- that's right, count 'em, two -- more books in the Garnetverse! Book number four is tentitively titled Dead If I Do (thanks to Plaid Adder for the title suggestion) to come out in 2009, and book five will be Honeymoon of the Dead for 2010.

Whoot!

My 2008 book will be Romancing the Dead, and I'm also happy to report that I sent away the ginormous package containing two paper copies of the revised manuscript yesterday. After much wrestling, I'm actually quite pleased with the final version of Romancing, too. Huzzah!

Toni Kelner sent this along to the contributors of Many Bloody Returns:

First off is Harriet Klausner's review, which is on B&N.com and elsewhere on the web (http://www.alternative-worlds.com/2007/07/26/many-bloody-returns/):

Many Bloody Returns
Charlaine Harris and Toni L. P. Kelner (Editors)
Ace, Sep 2007, $24.95
ISBN: 97804419015221

These thirteen new vampire tales focus on the theme of birthdays (and many happy returns). Although the theme is incredibly narrow and restrictive, the contributors provide fresh interesting tales with no losers and star some of the more famous series characters; this the collection serves as a great introduction (albeit limited) to heroes of the supernatural. The most innovative entry is “Twilight” by Kelley Armstrong in which she insists a vampire’s birthday is the day they convert as that is a rebirthing. The rest of the stories make for a fun compilation with the lively authors being superstars in the undead realm such as Jim Butcher (with Harry), P.N. Elrod (with Fleming), and Charlaine Harris (with Sookie), etc. Still singing happy birthday thirteen times even too many series favorites can become a bit long in the tooth and difficult to blow out the zillion candles for some of the recipients; this reviewer suggests leisurely enjoying the anthology over a few weeks.

Harriet Klausner

Then we've got this one from Romantic Times BOOKreviews

MANY BLOODY RETURNS
4 1/2 stars (Out of 4 stars, which makes this "FANTASTIC--Keeper")

In this highly readable and memorable anthology, 13 top fantasy writers tackle the subject of vampires and birthdays. This is a must-buy book for genre fans, and a fantastic introduction for new readers to some of the best-known writers in the field, including Harris, Jim Butcher, Tanya Huff, Kelley Armstrong, and P.N. Elrod.

SUMMARY: Thirteen authors have 13 very different takes on birthdays and vampires. Highlights include Harris' "Dracula Night," in which Sookie Stackhouse finds herself the only human in attendance at Dracula's birthday party; Elrod's Jack Flming striking a blow for honest mediums everywhere in "Grave-Robbed,; and Butcher's "It's My Birthday Too," where Harry Dresden finds himself in a sururban mall with a bunch of live-action role players and a few vampires out for revenge--and blood.

Natalie A. Luhrs

And from a web site reviewer I've never heard of (http://darquereviews.blogspot.com/2007/08/many-bloody-returns-anthology.html), but now revere because she liked the book:

Many Bloody Returns (Anthology)
Tales of Birthdays with Bite
Edited by Charlaine Harris and Toni L. P. Kelner
ACE – The Berkley Publishing Group
September 4, 2007
ISBN# 978-0-441-01522-1

Dracula Night by Charlaine Harris shares a tense night at Fangtasia as Sookie Stackhouse and her supernatural friends celebrate with a birthday bash for Dracula.

The Mournful Cry of Owls by Christopher Golden is Donika’s sixteenth birthday and a night for revealing a past secret that leads to a surprising future.

I Was a Teenage Vampire by Bill Crider tells the tale of how Carlton’s young life changed the night of his sister’s birthday party.

Twilight by Kelley Armstrong takes Cassandra DuCharme on the yearly hunt she needs to extend her vampiric life.

It’s My Birthday Too by Jim Butcher follows Harry Dresden and his assistant to deliver a birthday present when things turn dark and dangerous.

Grave Robbed by P. N. Elrod has PI Jack Flemming intervening when a woman is desperate to contact her deceased husband and the séance appears to be a con.

The First Day of the Rest of Your Life by Rachel Caine is Eve’s eighteenth birthday in Morganville, and the night she’s expected to sign away her future.

The Witch and the Wicked by Jeanne C. Stein brings Sophie to the Deveraux home where she caters a vampire’s birthday filled with surprises.

Blood Wrapped by Tanya Huff has Henry on the hunt for Vicki’s birthday present when he’s influenced to do a good deed.

The Wish by Carolyn Haines shares Sandra’s forty-third birthday and the painful tale that leads her to live and die on her own terms.

Fire and Ice and Linguini for Two by Tate Hallaway celebrates Sebastian’s birthday with more surprises than Garnet had planned for the evening.

Vampire Hours by Elaine Viets is Katherine’s birthday to face the reality of her current life and make the decision to have the future she dreams of.

How Stella Got Her Grave Back by Toni L. P. Kelner travels along with Stella and Mark as they set out to solve the mystery of a Jane Doe.

Many Bloody Returns is a carefully crafted anthology that envelopes readers in the dark and often humorous world of the paranormal. A fabulously fun visit with the characters, both old and new, of some of the best paranormal fiction authors in print today.

Kimberly Swan, Darque Reviews

LOCUS Bestseller!

My agent just informed me that Dead Sexy is the Locus List #4 bestseller in the trade paperback catagory. Whoot!

Carolyn Cushman at Locus also did a review of both Dead Sexy and Many Bloody Returns (and, apparently, *GASP* she mentions my story!!) Those aren't available on-line, however, so I'll have to wait impatiently at my mailbox to see what she says.

Two New Reviews

First, my relatives in Indiana sent me a copy of a review from the Indiana Post-Tribune for Dead Sexy by Scheffie Sarver. It's HUGE. The nicest thing Sarver said might be this: "One of Hallaway's strengths is the way she weaves Garnet's tale. Garnet is human enough for the reader to sympathize with, but her circumstances are outrageous enough to give the reader a good chuckle. In one scene, hungry zombies chase Garnet into the confines of a garage. She vows to go on a diet when her hips get stuck in a window frame as she's escaping. We've all similarly vowed to start dieting, just perhaps not with a pack of zombies hot on our heels."

Second, Paula Chaffee Scardamalia reviewed Tall, Dark & Dead for BroadUniverse's BroadSheet. You can read it here: http://www.broaduniverse.org/broadsheet/0707pcsth.html

Okay

In case anyone is seeing the news about the collapsed bridge in Minneapolis, we're okay. If there are other Minneapolis/St. Paul SF/F writers or fans you're worried about, there's a check-in set up here:

http://community.livejournal.com/mnstf/

If anyone thinks someone might be worried about them, they are encouraged to post an OK with Mnstf. Oh, and if you don't have an LJ account the person managing the site has kindly offered her email address laurel@tvpicks.net for check-ins.

Cthulhu Origami

I think this is a whole lot of awesome. Thanks to Shawn for sending it along to me. Check out the instructions at http://spinflipper.com/blog/

Nerds No More!

The July 27, 2007 issue of Entertainment Weekly had an article about Comic Con in which, although they mentioned Klingons and Renaissance costumers, they referred to us as a "blog-savvy army of early adaptors..."

What I like about that phrase is that it evokes pocket-protectors and horn rim glasses, while actually making us sound kind of cool and hip.

Ms. Silly Pants

There I was, minding my own business at my favorite hang-out Amore Coffee when this guy came up to me. He was probably not much older than me, say in his fifties, and he had a touch of what I like to call "the fabulous accent." Anyway, he said, "I just want to compliment you on your cut-offs."

I looked down at my paint-stained, obviously homemade cut-off shorts and thought, "Is this guy being a jerk?"

Apparently sensing my concern, he went on. "No, really," he said. "They're genuine, you know? Not like those fake ones all the kids are wearing. If you're going to wear jeans old jeans they should be really old. Otheerwise why not just wear brand-new?! I mean, just look at yours! They have paint splotches and uneven cuffs. I have an old pair of jeans like that and they're precious."

I'm still not sure if he was putting me on or what. But I feel like I got a taste of what my life would be like if I lived in Southern California, ie people thinking I was making some kind of fashion statement with my slovenly, lazy ways.

More Writing Woes

Romancing the Dead continues to kick my butt. I've written about my latest struggles over at the Wyrdsmith's blog.

I'm sorry to keep putting all the good stuff over there, but all my energy is being sucked out by this book. I will report that Mason and I saw two new license plates at the Mall of America... Alberta and another consul plate. This time I realized I had to take note of the alphabetical prefex and it was "TG" -- which, according to wikipedia, is the designation for Canada. When I told Shawn about this, she said that it might have been the same car as the one we saw at Minnesota Historical Society, since someone there is married to the Canadian consul. So mystery solved?

Still no West Virginia

Seven days to Mason's birthday.

Writers' High/Writers' Block Survey

A friend of mine, Rosanne Bane, is writing a non-fiction book about writers' block/writers' high and she's looking for writers (at any level in their career) to fill out an on-line survey. If you have the time/inclination, please check out: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=_2bxhgsIhnjrOxgQ_2bRPD7x2Q_3d_3d

The Book That Ate My Brain

Just a quick re-direction pointer. I wrote a whole long complaining song, as Pooh would say, about my experiences with revision on Romancing the Dead (or, as I call it in my own head, Dead on Arousal) on the wyrdsmiths' blog. Check it out, if you're interested.

Sale! Sale! Sale!

Once again, Amazon.com is running a "Bargain Price" on Tall, Dark & Dead, so if you're like me and you think that it's outrageous that anyone charges $14.00 for a book, now's your time to order. TDD is available for only $5.49. The Barnes & Nobel sale was over very quickly, so dare I say it? Act now!

I should warn y'all, though... I ordered a bunch of books when B&N had their sale and they were clearly books that were marked to be returned by the bookstores. They all had a black marker line on the bottom of each book, so they no longer would qualify as "new." However, given THEIR price (B&N was giving the books away at 4.00 a piece, which is way cheaper than my publisher sells them to me), I was okay with that. I've never ordered these bargain price books from Amazon.com, but given that they don't have any brick and mortar stores that would be returning books, I suspect they won't be marked up.

Also, any authors, editors, booksellers, other industry professionals or people with an insider track on the business out there reading this blog? Because I'm wondering why Tall, Dark & Dead is getting such discounts from the booksellers. Is this a good thing? I mean, I suspect it is, given that they are trying to sell them and not, say, returning them to the publisher. But... this is the third time the book has been deeply, deeply discounted (first at Amazon.com, then B&N, and now Amazon is doing it again.)

Thanks to my previous history, I'm terribly gun-shy about things like this, so if anyone has information that would assuage my freakage, I could really use it.

Sometimes I wonder how anyone ever lasts in this business.

Podcast!

My alter-ego and I did a podcast with Shawn Ferrell that is available at http://adventuresinscifipublishing.com/ today. Go check it out, it's free!

I Should Be...

...working on revisions, but instead I stumbled across the Ghost Reseach Society's Ghost Photographs.

A lot of the pictures are pretty spooky, but this one in particular scares me.

New License Plates (still no WV)

Mason and I continue to play the license plate game, even though we have not YET seen West Virginia. Today, we saw to brand new ones (yes, there are still more to see). First, just outside our usual coffee shop, we saw the Creek Nation (Okalahoma Native American) and then at the Minnesota Historical Society on our way to see the Capitol Wind Ensemble at Rice Park, we saw a diplomatic plate. Alas, I did not realize that I needed to write down the first letters so that I could identify what country the consul was from so that's a mystery.

And, the other day I saw what probably this one... a temporary tourist plate from France. Mason's magic is strong indeed.

New Review: Many Bloody Returns

Monsters and Critics reviewed Many Bloody Returns and GUESS WHAT?! They mentioned me by name!! Whoot!

Here's what they say:

This compilation of brand new vampire themed tales, penned by some of the top names in the genre including Tanya Huff, Tate Hallaway and Kelly Armstrong is much like visiting old friends. The majority of stories feature characters and settings from previous novels while putting a different spin on birthdays in general.

Editor and author Charlaine Harris starts things off with “Dracula Night” that finds Sookie Stackhouse from the Southern Vampire series attending Dracula’s birthday party. Hosted by vampire sheriff and entrepreneur Eric Northman, this proves to be a party to remember when the guest of honor shows up and considers Sookie part of the entertainment. Eric may suffer from a serious case of hero worship but Sookie does not intend to become dinner and will do whatever it takes to stay off the menu.

Return to P.N. Elrod’s gritty noir series as vampire PI Jack Fleming agrees to aid a young woman in revealing an unscrupulous charlatan before he can fleece her sister in “Grave-Robbed.” Christopher Golden conjours up a delightfully different coming of age tale with “The Mournful Cry of Owls” that finds a young woman growing strangely restless as her sixteenth birthday draws near. When her mother reveals the secret of her birth, everything changes and perhaps, not for the best.

Fans of Jim Butcher’s The Dresden Files will enjoy further adventures of Harry the wizard and his apprentice Molly as they go up against a revengeful vampire of the Black Court in the suspenseful “It’s My Birthday, Too”. Eve Roser is having a bad birthday, not only is she in a car accident but worse, now that she’s turned eighteen she is expected to sign a loyalty pledge that will forever bind her to a psycho vampire in the further adventures of Rachel Caine’s Morganville Vampire series entitled “The First Day of the Rest of Your Life”. From Jeanne C. Stein comes “The Witch and the Wicked”, a fresh tale of an unlikely blending between witch and vampire as the result of murder by incineration and a desire for youth and beauty goes terribly awry.

Each of the authors lend their unique perspectives ranging from humorous to melancholy, fiendish to hopeful making for a thoroughly enjoyable take on vampires and birthdays. Editors Toni L.P. Kelner and Charlaine Harris have done a fine job of cooking up a toothsome collection of birthday treats you will not want to miss.

New Review - Dead Sexy

A new review of Dead Sexy from Paranormal Romance Writers.

Here's the salient bits:

"This story also involves Parrish, Garnet's ex-boyfriend and Gabriel, a hot FBI agent. Dead Sexy is the 2nd in a series but can be read alone. I found myself liking the characters so much that I plan on reading Tall, Dark & Dead also. Tate Hallaway did a wonderful job with interweaving this story and the previous one together. I found the story fascinating and it kept my interest through til the end. I hope Ms. Hallaway will continue to write more Garnet Lacey Books."

Basement Bargin Prices

Just in case you've somehow neglected to purchase a copy of Tall, Dark & Dead, Barnes & Noble is selling it for a low, LOW price of $3.98 (for non-members/members it's even cheaper.) Do you have a great-aunt Tillie who reads romance? At these prices you can afford a little familial love!

Also, although I'm hardly what you could call a regular blogger, I'm probably going to be even spottier of late. I just got my revision letter from Anne, my editor, and I've got some serious work to do. Remember all my whiney posts about how much it sucked to write this one? Well, brace yourselves for a whole lot more whiney posts about how hard it's going to be to unravel and rebuild this sucker.