Here Come The Grooms Winners!

Micah and Mitch (with a little help from Christo) picked a winner for him in this year's Here Come The Grooms! contest -- Dena W from Washington!

Congratulations, Dena. Your copy of Christo's book, One-Night Mistress...Convenient Wife is on its way to you.

Sid the cat has picked Nikos's winner -- Mary Ann D from Michigan. And Liz Fielding (or one of her minions) has picked Kal's winner -- Alison L from Scotland. They, too, will be receiving copies of Christo's book. The books went out this morning.

I've really enjoyed having Christo here to talk a bit while I was busy with the visiting family. I must say that a grandson's grin is a great way to start the day. I was so sad when he left yesterday. When I've downloaded the SD card from my camera, I'll share that grin with you.

And I think Christo may be back to blog later this week because 1) I have a cold and my brain feels like scrambled eggs and 2) my mother is back in the hospital and I've been going up there a lot, but now with the cold I don't dare, so I am trying to orchestrate things remotely (hahaha) and 3) I had George's copyedited ms to go over and what little brain function I did have, is gone.

So Christo, with his legal mind and razor-sharp intellect will be a lot better than me. Trust me.

Great Book Give-Away Week 4

Hey,

Anne is still busy playing with Sol, but she's given me a list of the books that are up for grabs during Week Four of her 25th anniversary Great Book Give-Away.

They are:

Anne McAllister, Antonides' Forbidden Wife

Kelly Hunter, The Maverick's Greek Island Mistress

Nora Roberts, Face The Fire

Liz Fielding, Her Desert Dream (this is Kal's book, by the way!)

Lucy Gordon, Beauty and the Boss

Stephanie Laurens, A Rake's Vow

Candice Proctor, Midnight Confessions

To enter the drawing for one of this week's books, send Anne the answer to the following question (and include your name and snail mail address so she can send your book if you're one of the winners):

Anne wrote a Harlequin American called The Eight Second Wedding, about rodeo bull rider named Channing Richardson and PhD candidate Madeleine Decker who went down the road together from rodeo to rodeo for a couple of months one summer. It was a pretty desperate thing for them to do. Why did they do it?

Remember that even if you don't win a copy of one of this week's books, your entry makes you eligible to win a book any time in March. If you win, please give others a chance and wait an enter again in April.

Our Here Come the Grooms! contest ends tonight. Mitch and Micah and I (and Natalie) will be picking the winner of our part of the contest tomorrow. Stand by!

Christo -- again

Hi, Sorry I've been neglecting my job taking care of Anne's blog. I thought she'd try to sneak back in here and write something because she's sort of a workaholic when it comes to writing. But apparently she meant what she said and I get the blog for the rest of February.

I don't know what Kal and Nikos are up to. I've been up to my ears working. I'm a lawyer in case no one told you. That's how I met Natalie, in fact. I was working for the firm where her father is a partner. She was a summer intern there after her first year of law school.

I noticed her -- who wouldn't? She's bright and funny and a hard-worker -- and beautiful, besides. But off limits. I don't get involved with co-workers.

I didn't get involved with Natalie. Not really.

There was one kiss. Yeah, I admit it.

But only because I was so damn happy when we won that case. It was just a spur of the moment thing. Didn't mean anything. She knew that. Or I thought she knew it.

But then one night I found her in my bed!

I can't tell you any more about it than that. Anne would kill me if I did. She'd say that you have to read the book to find out what happened then. Anne has a flair for the dramatic.

Nothing happened! Nothing!

Excuse me! Hi, Natalie here.

I was going to be quiet and just let Christo talk. But he's out of his mind if he thinks nothing happened!

Something certainly happened that summer. Something happened that night. Not what I wanted to happen. It was the most mortifying night of my life.

I hated Christo Savas after that night! No one would blame me for hating him, either. That summer was the start of my whole life being turned upside down. Not all of it due to Christo, admittedly. But he was a big part of it.

He certainly taught me not to trust my instincts . . .

See? That's Natalie all over. She rushes in where sane people fear to tread. She gets a notion and she just runs with it. She doesn't trust me to tell the whole story.

I don't want him to tell the whole story! Anne already told it! He's just trying to make himself look kinder and more human at the start. He wasn't! Well, he was -- deep down -- but his humanity was so buttoned-down he didn't even know it was there.

I did so!

Did not!

Did so!

I love it. He never used to argue like this. He'd just close up and do whatever controlled dutiful responsible thing he thought needed to be done. I've humanized him!

Sheesh! I can see there's only one way to stop this. She'll shut up if I kiss her.

Wanna bet?

Yep. C'mere.

No! I -- well, just for a -- ahhhhhhh...

Christo Here!

Hey, I'm Christo.

Anne has given me free rein with her blog for the rest of the month so she can take care of her mother and so I can talk about my book and Natalie and give you a chance to win three great books (mine, of course, being one of them) in the 4th annual Here Come The Grooms contest.

So let's get business out of the way and then we can talk.

Business:

• What the contest is: a chance for you to win a copy of Anne's book about me and Nat and also books from Kate Walker and Liz Fielding. That's a pretty good deal, if you ask me.
• What you have to do: go to all of their websites to find the answers to three questions. Answer them in an email to each of us -- three answers in each email. That means you find all three answers and send them to Kate, to Liz and to Anne. Then sit back and wait.
• When the contest starts: now
• When the contest ends: March 1st the winners will be announced. So get your answers in before that.

• One entry per person, please, at each email address, which gives you three chances to win if you send all three of them an email. Also a pretty good deal.

• KAL'S QUESTION (from Her Desert Dream): Of which literary character did Kal remind Lydia? (apart from Prince Charming!)
• CHRISTO'S QUESTION (From One-Night Mistress, Convenient Wife by Anne McAllister)
  Why is Natalie staying at her mother's house?
• NIKOS'S QUESTION (From The Konstantos Marriage Demand by Kate Walker)
  What name did Sadie use so that Nikos would not know his 10 o'clock appointment was her?
  
  Good luck!
  

Okay? If you have any questions that I didn't answer, email Anne or Kate or Liz.
Don't ask me.

I'm just the hero of a book. I don't know anything about the contest beyond what I've just told you.

So, business is out of the way, yes?

Now we can talk . . .

Got questions about the book or me and Nat -- I can answer those. And I'll be back soon to tell you more about how this all got started between Nat and me. She scared my socks off, if you want to know the truth.

Talk about temptation. . .

But I don't want to get ahead of myself. So for now I'll just say, have a happy Valentine's Day.

Nat and I are celebrating the birth of a very special someone who has made this the best Valentine's Day ever. I'll tell you about him later, too.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Well, it's that time of year again!

I wish you and your beloved the happiest of valentine's days. Me and mine are having cake with our 86 year old neighbor to celebrate. Also taking flowers to my mother who is in transition from the hospital to wherever she goes after she gets out of skilled nursing.

I'm going to be busy over the next couple of weeks because of that and because Sol, my youngest grandson, is coming to visit! He's bringing his parents, too, but he's the main attraction, as you might imagine. He'll turn 8 months while he's here and he's on the verge of crawling.

As the physical therapists I've been talking to ad nauseum lately say, "He has all the motions." Yes, but does he put them together? Not yet, my son says with a sigh of relief. But it's coming. And it may be here by the time he is. So I'm scrambling to make sure the house is baby-proof again.

So it's a really good thing that it's also time for the 4th annual (can you believe it?) Here Come The Grooms contest that Liz Fielding, Kate Walker and I have been doing every February since 2007.

Liz has kept track. Kate and I know just that we've been doing it for a lot of years.

And so later today Christo Savas will be taking over my blog for the next couple of weeks while I deal with other stuff.

Christo, you may recall, is the hero of One-Night Mistress. . . . Convenient Wife. He's a charming guy -- for a lawyer -- and he's absolutely one of the most honorable men I've ever written about. He's also been seriously tempted in his life -- by one Natalie Ross. He . . . well, never mind. I'll shut up and let Christo tell you all about it.

Also, speaking of prizes, the second week's Great Book Give-Away is wrapping up today.

Winners will be notified by email. If you don't hear from me by tomorrow, you didn't win this week, but you might win next week. Your entry is good for the month of February. But I'd love to have you drop by and comment this week (and get another entry that way!).

Week three is posted on my contest page if you click on the 25th anniversary link. Heather will be removing lists one and two and moving three and four to the front sometime this week (she has a life, too).

In the meantime these are the books for week three and what you need to do to be in the drawing.

Week Three:
Comment on my blog this week (any post, but the post must be one I've made this week) and you could win a book! One of the following books will be sent to the winner (one book per winner):

• Anne McAllister: The Santorini Bride
• Janet Evanovich: Naughty Neighbor
• Marie Ferrarella: Cavanaugh Heat
• Elizabeth Rolls: Lord Braybrook's Penniless Bride
• Kathleen Long: Undercover Commitment
• Julia Quinn: What Happens in London
• Jennifer Ashley: The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie

Please Note:

Easy Entry

To enter most of my 25th Anniversary Celebration Contests, send an email containing the correct response(s). Be sure to include your name and address so, if you win, I can send your book.

Rules, Regulations & Deadlines

The great book give-away contests will run for the entire year. While there are few rules, there are some things to note.

Prize wins are limited to one per person per address per month. That means in an effort to be fair once you enter, your entry will be good for 30 days but if you are a winner during 30 days you can only win one book. So there's no need to enter more than once, multiple entries will not insure you win.

Unless otherwise noted, the prize winners will be chosen in a random drawing by various esteemed members of my crew (Mitch, Micah, the dogs, the dh, etc.).

Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery of your prize. Winners outside the U.S. might take longer.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

# # #

Okay, so there we are.

Christo will be along later today. Check back. Talk to him. He's charming. Handsome. Smart. Honorable. And not quite as fierce as Natalie remembers him. But they have a history . . .

Getting a box . . . sort of

It's that time of year again.

I'm gearing up for Demetrios and Anny and so over the past week I was thinking about the book and what I have and what I need, and I remembered Twyla Tharp's advice: Get a box.

Well, maybe she didn't say that in so many words. What she said was that she gets a box whenever she's starting a new project. And she puts stuff in the box that relates to it, inspires it, makes her remember bits and pieces of it. It's a good idea.

Some people do collages. Anne Gracie does wonderful collages. So does Jennifer Crusie. I'm not that visual. So I thought, a box. Yes, I can do that.

And I did. Sebastian and Neely have a box. The trouble with their box is, the box reflects the book I didn't write.

Some of it is the same -- the people, the conflict, the guinea pig, the rabbits, the bloodhound, the kittens.

But not the editor. And not the setting. Though there's still water and a houseboat involved.

So the box is a container, but half the stuff on the outside of it doesn't reflect the book. Even the hero doesn't reflect the man Sebastian came to be.

So . . .

This time the box is going to be a file folder on my computer. It's going to have my hero as its icon. And inside his folder I'm sticking all the Cannes photos and the train schedules and the videos I took and the mementos from the festival hall.

It's got pictures of Anny -- and Demetrios, of course. Thousands of her (because there are thousands of her photos everywhere) and two of his because he doesn't seem to be nearly as visible. No dogs yet. No kittens. No bloodhound. No guinea pig.

There aren't a lot of details coming to me yet. Well, there's a yacht. And a sailboat. And a Greek restaurant. Probably a good thing I don't have a box. They wouldn't fit.

I'm casting off today, steering toward the horizon, wondering where the dragons are and how soon I'll meet them. I hope I at least get out of the harbor!

# # #

The winner of the Here Come the Grooms contest for Santos Cordero from Kate Walker's Cordero's Forced Bride, is Lynn of Florida. Congratulations, Lynn. I'll get PJ's book off to you post haste.

# # #

There really is going to be an update to my website (and eventually the blog). Keep holding your breath. Heather has had an emergency and can't get it finished right now. What I've seen, I love. It will be worth the wait.

# # #

We're going to play a version of I-Ching for Demetrios and Anny.

Tell me three things:

• a weather related item (my mother will be especially good at this)
  
• a color
• a small gift

And let me see what it sparks off in my mind for Demetrios and Anny. The first three ideas that spark off something will win their submitter a copy of one of my backlist titles -- your choice, provided I can find it in the attic.

Coming soon!

I'm back!

Refreshed, revived -- and ready to report that my website is undergoing a major revamp and should be up and ready to go February 1st.

Heather at WeWriteRomance has taken the bits and pieces that were there from an earlier design that got dropped due to circumstances beyond that earlier designer's control, and has done miracles with them. She's got a great grasp of visuals (so not like me!) and can actually translate my babbling and gibberish into things that look great on the page (far better than I envision them, to tell the truth).

I've been seeing some of the pages this past week, and while they won't all go up on February 1st, you should get a flavor of them then. The blog format will eventually reflect that, too, but it may not happen at once. So while we are in transition, bear with us.

Having a new improved website is like spring cleaning -- only better. (I wonder if Heather would come and do the same to my house. Probably not. Sigh.)

Anyway, Heather is fabulous, and I have to thank Kate Walker for passing her name along -- and of course, to thank Heather for being willing to jump into the breach and whip things into shape.

Eventually all the pages should be back and many of the ones that never made it into the revamp of a year ago will actually reappear if not instantly, then over the next few weeks.

I also need to thank PJ for filling in for me this past couple of weeks while I had a bit of a kick-back-and-relax time. It was much appreciated. But that's the sort of guy he is. He stepped up and solved Ally's problem ten years ago. He solved mine this month.

So thanks, PJ. Hope you and Ally have a great time in Hawaii. Keep us posted on the new little Antonides. Let us know when he/she arrives!

O'Kate has come back from O'Dublin and sent me the name of the winner of Santos's share of the Here Come The Grooms contest.

She'll be announcing it on her website tomorrow, I think. And then I can announce it here. We're so glad to have had so many participants.

Thanks to everyone who took the time to answer the questions.

We're looking forward to the 4th annual Here Come The Grooms contest next year. We love to do it together and, as Kate said earlier today, "I always look forward to hearing the groooms' opinions of things." Amen to that.

We Have A Winner!

Hi. PJ here.

We have a winner here -- Karen from North Carolina is the winner of my third of the Here Come the Grooms contest this year!

Her book (MY book!) is already on its way to her. Hope you enjoy it, Karen.

Jago has written to say that Rachel in New Zealand has won his third of the contest, and her book has gone out today also.

Santos is incommunicado right now as Kate and her spouse and he and his new bride have gone off to Dublin (what is it with Santos that he's taking his writer on his honeymoon? Or isn't it the honeymoon? Maybe not. I'm sure Kate will tell Anne to find her book and let me read it so I'll know!)

As soon as they all get back from Dublin, we'll have Santos's winner to post as well.

Congratulations to Karen and to Rachel. And many thanks to everyone who took the time to find out the answers and enter the contest. We were really glad to see so many people turning out to do it!

Stay tuned because Liz and Kate and Anne are already talking about next year's contest. Should be interesting. Anne said maybe Christo would be up for it. All I know is, it won't be me. I'm going to be on my way to Hawaii for a nice winter break with Ally and the new person in our lives.

How old do you think he or she will have to be before I can get him/her on a surfboard?

Grooms Contest -- Last Day

Well, Anne has dropped the ball and can't tell you about Santos (that's him over there on the left) personally because she can't find his book.

This will give you some idea of the state of her office (CHAOS!), and she sends apologies to The Man Himself because she remembers hearing about his story as Kate was writing it (and drooling over him, she says, which I find disgusting, but what can I say?)

Anyway, she will find it, she assures me, and write about it while it is still on the shelves (which it will be until late February). So if you don't win a copy, don't despair. You can go buy one -- and Kate will be pleased.

So will Santos, provided he can be distracted from the right sister who is now his bride!

Today, in case you haven't noticed -- is January 21st. The last day to enter the 3rd annual Here Come The Grooms Contest.

This means that Anne will probably snatch the blog back and send me on my way (not a hardship, though I've enjoyed being here, but I'll have more time to spend with Ally when I'm not writing blogs) -- and we're going to celebrate the news of a prospective little Antonides coming along in a few months (Yiayia will be over the moon -- she likes the notion of great-grandchildren, and the more the better. But mine will be the best looking, she tells me!).

So, details below for entering if you haven't already done so.

There are three questions and to win you have to answer all the questions and email your answers to Anne, to Kate and to Liz. Each of them will pick a winner and that winner will get a copy of each of the these books.

Here are the questions:

1. PJ left New York after he graduated from high school. Where did he go?
2. Who was Santos supposed to be marrying?
3. What scent did Jago recognise?

You'll find the answers in excerpt on Anne's, Kate's and Liz's websites and you've got until January 21 to send in your answers.

Got it? You'll find "contact me" links on Kate's, Liz's and Anne's websites, too. Use those to email them-- all three of them with all three answers, don't forget. Good luck!

I get to come back and announce the winners, so you haven't totally got rid of me. Ally might come, too. Go for it.

Meet Ally

Hi. PJ still here.

Anne is enjoying her week or so off. She did pass along to me an email from Janet who said she would like to see a pic of Ally. Hey, no problem. Always glad to share pics of my wife.

This was taken not long after I first met her. She was working at Benny's, which was a diner sort of place near the beach in Hawaii. I used to buy my plate lunch from Ally. She was a college student at the time, under the thumb of her dad who definitely thought he Knew What Was Best for her -- including who she should marry and what she should major in.

He had her whole life mapped out.

Ally had other ideas. But she needed a little help then in order to realize them. Once we got married, she managed just fine. Took off. Lived her own life. Made a success of things.

Sometimes marriage just sort of jump-starts things for you.

Trouble is, I had some very strong memories of a wedding night I didn't think was going to happen. But once it did, well, a guy doesn't forget that.

I wasn't sure Ally remembered it, though. Not until she came back. And even then she came back saying she figured it was time we got divorced.

I didn't think so.

Anne is still looking for Santos's book. She promises to find it. She'd better. The contest ends this week! Don't forget to enter.

If you don't win, Santos's book will still be on sale in February.

To Christo and Natalie

PJ here.

Anne just sent up a flare telling me that Christo and Natalie have left England headed for the copyeditor in Canada. So . . . no more revisions!

Whew.

Anne is pleased. I'm pleased -- because that mean I can get back to my once-and-forever wife, Ally, now. And, of course, Christo and Natalie are vastly relieved.

Break out the champagne!

Really glad to see all the entries for the Here Come the Grooms contest coming in. Remember, if you haven't already entered, you can do so until January 21st. The questions are below. Keep scrolling down.

I'll be back to tell you about Jago's book, Wedded in a Whirlwind. I can see what he means about Manda having a kick like a mule now. But, given the circumstances, I reckon he deserved it.

The book kept Anne up until 1:30 this morning. She thinks it's dynamite. She gave it to me this morning so I could read and "understand" Nick Jago.

Well, I don't know about that. But it's a good book. I'll be back tomorrow and tell you a bit more.

Anne . . . flattened

Hey. PJ here.

Anne says to tell you she's been flattened by a bus. Or it feels that way.

She was up all night with Christo and Natalie and she's gone to bed with Burn Notice and isn't coming out until either Christo and Natalie come back for more revisions or she's seen all of Burn Notice or I run out of things to say.

She's hoping for the second alternative, praying like mad that Christo and Natalie stay gone (though by 7 a.m. this morning she could be heard muttering, I think it tracks. I think it tracks. I think it tracks. But how would I know?) .

Christo says it tracks and he got to spend a lot of time in the bedroom, so he's happy. Natalie says it tracks and they got a happily ever after so she's happy. And she just poked Christo and he said he's happy about that, too. And from the look of him -- a little tattered around the edges, but definitely grinning -- he's telling the truth.

Anne figures Burn Notice will be a nice distraction. And she's sure I have plenty to say -- especially since I've seen that Nick "prop me up on an altar and give me a bottle of booze" Jago is making crap out of me and Santos on Liz's website.

I would defend my honor -- and the marriage I've had to put out of my head -- but Jago is so far off the mark that I can't even dignify his comments.

As Santos is on the same island at least, I'm going to let him take care of things for both of us!

Just let me say that he's darned lucky to find a woman like Manda who will put up with him. And since he's saying things like "cancel the honeymoon" -- though God knows what he means -- I want Manda to know I've got a kid brother, Lukas, who might be just the man she's looking for. Truly.

If you get fed up with Jago, Manda, give me a shout. I'll muster up Lukas and introduce you.

Aside to Liz: how did you put up with him?

Don't forget, people, if you want copies of Santos's book and mine -- and the one where Jago is an idiot -- answer the questions in the Here Come the Grooms contest piece. Send your answers to Anne and Liz and Kate by January 21.

You'll be glad you did.

One Groom . . . Introducing Myself

Hi. PJ here.

Anne is up to her eyeballs in revisions. So she's giving me free rein at her blog while she works. She says she has to be done by Monday, and that Christo and Natalie are NOT cooperating, and she's going to wring their necks.

Makes me glad she was a lot better humored when Ally and I were the couple of the month.

I guess we're the couple of the month again now -- at least our book is. If you don't mind a bit of shameless self-promotion, I'll just tell you that it's called Antonides' Forbidden Wife.

I figured they ought to have called it Antonides' Absent Wife. After all, I hadn't seen her in five years!

It was a heck of a shock when she came waltzing in the door. It was an even bigger surprise when she said she wanted a divorce.

Divorce?

Seems to me that if you're married, you ought to at least give it a shot before you call it quits. Try telling Ally that, though.

Well, I did try, in the book. Pretty successfully (if you don't mind me spoiling the ending). But Anne says the interesting bit is how we got there.

Maybe. But I like the end result a whole lot better.

If you like the process, though, answer the questions in the last blog or on Anne's contest page and you might win a copy of the book (and Santos Cordero's book and Nick Jago's book).

Anne says if you've already read mine, you can win Sebastian's book, Savas' Defiant Mistress, because she actually got copies the other day.

If you have questions about Antonides' Forbidden Wife, fire away. I'll be here through the end of the month.

Aloha,
PJ

Here Come The Grooms . . . Again!

It's back!

The 3rd Annual Here Come The Grooms! Contest starts January 7, 2009 and runs through January 21, 2009.

What does this mean to you?

Depends on if you want three chances to win three new books.

For the last three years Kate Walker, Liz Fielding and I have had Grooms come and take over our blogs -- not to mention our lives -- in January. It all began when we all had books out in February 2007, and they all had the word "Bride" in the title.

We thought our brides would like to host a "Here Come The Brides" contest on our sites. And they did.

But they had so much fun that the grooms decided they'd get into the act, too. So they pretty much hijacked the month. They ran their own contest -- and their successors, the 2008 grooms, came back and did it again last year.

Not to be outdone, PJ Antonides (my guy) from Antonides' Forbidden Wife, Santos Cordero (Kate's guy) from Cordero's Forced Bride, and Nick Jago (Liz's guy) from Bedded in a Whirlwind, have been lurking around waiting for their turn.

It's here.

We'll be introducing you to each of them in the next few days.

And they'll be along to blog. At least I'm sure PJ will.

I suppose Jago and Santos will be, too. In the meantime, PJ says that he has his question ready and you can find it and the answer to it (if you're in a hurry) on the contest page of my website. The other grooms' questions are there, too.

Just click on the tab there and answer the questions (look in the excerpts or on our blogs for the answers) and you will be entered in PJ's drawing which will be after the contest ends January 21. Do the same thing on Liz's and Kate's websites and you have THREE chances to win.

PJ says that if you have already bought his book (which he hopes you have), and you win, he will either send you a backlist title of your choice (providing he can find it in my attic) or a copy of my upcoming Savas' Defiant Mistress when the first author copies finally arrive.

That's if you're into delayed gratification, he says. As he has had to wait ten years for his wife to turn back up in his life, PJ understands all about delayed gratification.

He'll be back later this week to blog.

Send in your entries now!

99 Things

As we are looking forward these days, I was just given this meme by a fellow blogger. It made me stop and think about what I've done and what I'd still like to do. What about you?

Let me know if you do this on your blog. I tag any and all readers -- and if you do it, send me a link or link back here. I'd like to see what everyone else is up to.

THE 99 THINGS MEME

Things you've already done: bold
Things you want to do: italicize
Things you haven't done and don't want to - leave in plain font

1. Started your own blog.
2. Slept under the stars.
3. Played in a band.
4. Visited Hawaii.
5. Watched a meteor shower.
6. Given more than you can afford to charity.
7. Been to Disneyland/world.
8. Climbed a mountain.
9. Held a praying mantis.
10. Sang a solo. (absolutely no way)
11. Bungee jumped. (ditto)
12. Visited Paris.
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea.
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch. (Does Jezzball count?)
15. Adopted a child.
16. Had food poisoning.
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty.
18. Grown your own vegetables.
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France.
20. Slept on an overnight train.
21. Had a pillow fight.
22. Hitch hiked.
23. Taken a sick day when you weren't ill.
24. Built a snow fort.
25. Held a lamb.
26. Gone skinny dipping.
27. Run a marathon.
28. Ridden a gondola in Venice.
29. Seen a total eclipse.
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset.
31. Hit a home run.
32. Been on a cruise.
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person.
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors.
35. Seen an Amish community.
36. Taught yourself a new language.
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied.
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person.
39. Gone rock climbing. (but they weren't really big rocks)
40. Seen Michelangelo's David in person.
41. Sung Karaoke.
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt.
43. Bought a stranger a meal in a restaurant.
44. Visited Africa.
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight.
46. Been transported in an ambulance.
47. Had your portrait painted.
48. Gone deep sea fishing.
49. Seen the Sistine chapel in person.
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. (well, as high as they would let us go that day.)
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkelling.
52. Kissed in the rain.
53. Played in the mud.
54. Gone to a drive-in theatre.
55. Been in a movie.
56. Visited the Great Wall of China.
57. Started a business.
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia.
60. Served at a soup kitchen.
61. Sold Girl Scout cookies.
62. Gone whale watching.
63. Gotten flowers for no reason.
64. Donated blood.
65. Gone sky diving.
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp.
67. Bounced a cheque.
68. Flown in a helicopter.
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy.
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial.
71. Eaten Caviar.
72. Pieced a quilt.
73. Stood in Times Square.
74. Toured the Everglades.
75. Been fired from a job.
76. Seen the Changing of the Guard in London.
77. Broken a bone.
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle.
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person.
80. Published a book.
81. Visited the Vatican.
82. Bought a brand new car.
83. Walked in Jerusalem.
84. Had your picture in the newspaper.
85. Read the entire Bible.
86. Visited the White House.
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating.
88. Had chickenpox.
89. Saved someone's life. (If someone around me needed their life saved, I would hope I'd be able to do it. But I'd just as soon no one did)
90. Sat on a jury.
91. Met someone famous.
92. Joined a book club.
93. Lost a loved one.
94. Had a baby.
95. Seen the Alamo in person.
96. Swum in the Great Salt Lake.
97. Been involved in a law suit.
98. Owned a cell phone.
99. Been stung by a bee.

Right now I'm close to finishing the revisions. That's what I really want to have done.

Watch this space in the coming week for the 3rd annual Here Come The Grooms contest when Liz Fielding, Kate Walker and I turn our heroes loose with their questions -- and you get a chance to win copies of our books!

Housekeeping

I know I should have done all the housekeeping stuff before the holidays. But when you're going to be spending it with several little and not-so-little-anymore boys -- and their dog -- there really isn't much point.

It was lovely. We had a very good time. Now I am cleaning up.

And while I'm doing that, I am cleaning up loose ends on my desk as well. Some of them have to do with winners of books which will be sent out, weather permitting, tomorrow. Avi and Gina, your books will be on their way first thing. And Mallory, who won 3 Antonides books at the eharlequin open house, yours will be out the door, too.

My apologies for not getting them sent earlier, but the ice, snow and lines at the post office didn't cooperate. The lines are gone now. And, barring major ice, I'll be at the p.o. tomorrow.

Speaking of winning books, it's almost time for the 3rd annual Here Come The Grooms contest which I've been doing with Kate Walker and Liz Fielding. We're getting ready to do it again. So check back for details.

PJ has already agreed to come and blog, which is a very good thing, as I'll be deep in Demetrios's story by then.

Stay tuned.

We Have Winners!

Flynn, Tom and Raul are delighted to announce the winners of the second annual Here Come The Grooms! contest --

• Flynn's winner is Carol Woodruff of New Jersey
• Tom's winner is Jane Squires of Missouri
• Raul's winner is Alison Bond of Manchester, UK

Congratulations to you all!

And many thanks to everyone who took the time to enter. The guys were delighted that so many of you took part in the contest. They hope you enjoyed it as much as they did.

I'm sure Flynn will be back this month to blog a time or two.

Stay tuned for tomorrow's blog. It's Mother's Day in Britain -- and for all I know other places as well, so we'll doing a drawing on comments tomorrow for all the mothers.

But mostly we will be celebrating a new suitor for Abby Green. A new Eamon -- a US version -- has reared his woolly head and asked to be introduced. You'll meet him tomorrow -- and a very special photographer as well.

Happy St David's Day

No, I'm not in Wales where I could say that and not get odd looks.

But before I got married I had a reasonably common Welsh surname and a father who insisted that somewhere, generations back, we really were Welsh (what part of us wasn't Choctaw, French, Scottish, German and English).

And I do like daffodils. And the name David -- gave it to my eldest son, actually.

So I figure I'm entitled to celebrate.

I'm also celebrating because I did a guest blog at Liz Fielding's the other day (Liz lives in Wales) -- and it's still up so you can go visit and check out an excerpt from the new book (yes, I know it takes place in Ireland, but you can't have everything; besides Ireland was lovely).

I'm happy to report that Seb's book is coming along nicely at the moment. A whole 10 days of well-behaved hero . . . hard to believe. I do sense a bit of white water ahead (though hopefully not a waterfall). It's a matter of figuring out the 'dramatic structure' now.

Not my forte.

Not the planning of it, anyway. Gut reactions, yes, I can do those. So I guess I'll go try to come up with some stuff that I can have gut reactions to and either keep it and work on it or throw it out. At least I'll be getting somewhere.

The contest is over. Flynn will be picking the winner today -- unless Gunnar manages to convince him that he should do it instead. Stay tuned!

And many thanks to all of you who entered.

Last Chance!

The grooms -- Flynn, Tom and Raul -- are about to take their contest and go home. The last day to enter their "Here Come The Grooms!" contest is February 29th.

So if you still haven't entered (and you enter three times -- once on my website, once on Kate Walker's and once on Liz Fielding's -- links on my sidebar), drop by and enter NOW!

Raul, Flynn and Tom will be glad you did. And you might be, too, if you win a copy of each of their books.

All you have to do to enter is answer three questions:

From Tom: What colour silk did he become intimately acquainted with?

From Raul: What's his full name and the name of his heroine (and no, it's not the name on the back cover of the book)?

From Flynn: What story was he covering when he went to Montana six years ago and met Sara McMaster in the first place?

The answers to Flynn's question is on my blog and in the excerpt on my website. Tom's is on Liz's website, and Raul's is on Kate's website. It doesn't take an advanced degree to figure out the answers.

And to be honest, Theo and Max and Domenico (last year's grooms) think you guys have it easy. They asked three questions apiece! They have been giving Tom, Raul and Flynn a hard time about it ever since they put up the contest. They say this year's grooms are 'lowering the standards.' So you better turn out and prove them wrong!

On Thursday I'm going to be blogging at Liz's -- so drop by and say hi if you want. You can win a book there, too. Or you can go out and buy one. What a novel concept! They're on the shelves now, except at Wal-Mart where Chris lives. There is a chance, I suppose, that they may have sold out. But my money is on them never having made it to the shelves in the first place.

So if you go looking and don't see it at your favorite store -- ask! Say, "Where's One-Night Love Child?" I'm sure they'll know precisely what you're talking about!

And if they don't, you can tell them. Thanks!

The Bride's Baby

I've mentioned Tom, Liz Fielding's groom in The Bride's Baby whenever I've mentioned our Here Come the Grooms! contest. Tom has even done a bit of blogging on Liz's site.

But mentioning Tom and reading his blog isn't the same as having read his book.

Last night I finished reading his book.

Of course I was expecting another warm, wonderful Liz Fielding read. Does she do any other kind? Well, yes, she does funny and moving and soul-touching and sometimes ironic, but you know what I mean. They are always worth waiting for -- and worth reading whenever one comes along.

But Tom -- what can I say about Tom?

He's a great hero. He's the quintessential 'wounded' hero. He has wounds so deep and so lasting that you wonder if he's ever going to make it past them.

Of course, at first he simply thinks he won't have to bother, that he can 'go around' them and get what he wants without having to confront his past head-on.

Bad idea, Tom. You should know better.

And, of course, being a Liz Fielding hero, he learns. Mostly he learns from Sylvie, who is an absolutely wonderful heroine. A woman with wounds of her own, she hasn't had the perfect life Tom imagines she's had. But she hasn't let it stop her, either. Mostly.

In The Bride's Baby Tom and Sylvie have awareness and passion to begin with. But before it's over, they have something more. They have helped each other grow, have given each other the strength to confront their respective pasts and move on -- together.

I loved this book. I didn't want it to end. Thank you, Liz -- and Tom and Sylvie -- for giving me so much pleasure as I read The Bride's Baby.

The Bride's Baby will be coming out as an April book in both the US and UK.

Now, what I want to know is: when's the next Liz Fielding book hitting the shelves?