A Little History Lesson - Town Names

If a town ends in “-by”, it was originally a farmstead or a small village where some of the Viking invaders settled. The first part of the name sometimes referred to the person who owned the farm - Grimsby was “Grim’s village”. Derby was “a village where deer were found”. The word “by” still means “town” in Danish.

If a town ends in “-ing”, it tells us about the people who lived there. Reading means “The people of Reada”, in other words “Reada’s family or tribe”. We don’t know who Reada was, but his name means “red one”, so he probably had red hair.

If a town ends in “-caster” or “-chester”, it was originally a Roman fort or town. The word comes from a Latin words “castra”, meaning a camp or fortification. The first part of the name is usually the name of the locality where the fort was built. So Lancaster, for example, is “the Roman fort on the River Lune”.

A Little Book of Language by David Crystal, page 173.

(Now don't you feel smarter?)

A Few More Life Hacks 4.0

Re-released! THE PEARL OF PASSION, an Erotic Urban Fantasy Romance by Carolyn Gregg

Re-released!

The Pearl of Passion

An Erotic Urban Fantasy

by Linda Mooney (writing as Carolyn Gregg)

ISBN 978-0-9914081-6-0

Word Count:  12,785

1.99

Livvy Truitt is a self-confessed nympho.  But she's also a woman savvy about the dangers of dating in this day and age.  Which is why she gets her jollies as often as she can via her toys.

When her current favorite suddenly conks out on her, and the local sex shop doesn't carry anything that interests her, she follows a friend's advice and orders a Pearl of Passion from a new and distinctly different shop online.

She soon finds out her pretty little vibrator is more than unique.  It's also possessed.  And when the president of the company from where she bought it tries to get it back, Livvy comes to discover the true meaning of the words "satisfaction guaranteed".

Click here for excerpt and buy links.

Life Hacks 4.0, Day 4

Life Hacks 4.0, Day 3

Life Hacks 4.0, Day 2

Life Hacks 4.0, Day 1

Bet My Anthropomorphism is Weirder Than Your Anthropomorphism

Happy Memorial Day!

Review - The Matriarch by Kevin Ransom

Glenville Normal School - 1919
Sarah Louisa "Sis" Linn, class of 1877, is brutally murdered in her home on the school's campus. No motive or murderer is found. 

Glenville State College - 2013
Nearly 100 years has passed since Sis Linn's unsolved murder. The school's name has changed, and the story of her death and tales of her apparition have become fodder for frightening incoming freshmen. But a century is merely a moment for a spirit - and less than a blink of an eye for even more sinister entities that endure beyond the grave. Student Janiss Connelly will soon learn that not only are some ghost stories true, but that there are greater things to fear in life - and in death - than ghosts.


This is one damn spooky book.

To say anything about this book would be revealing too many plot points, but let me make a few things clear. 

First, I'm not a big fan of vampire stories because for me that old saw had long lost its teeth. Too many authors simply write the same thing over and over. Or so I thought until I read this book. Mr. Ransom has spun his own unique version of these toothy beings, and he's created creatures who are both believable and who fit perfectly into this modern world. 

Second, you are taken further into the story from the vampire's perspective. You see their side of immortal living, from the pain suffered when they are hurt, to the comforting unconsciousness of lying skin-to-dirt in a grave. 

Third, there are good vampires, and there are bad vampires, and sometimes they fight each other because of what they are, and because of what they believe in. Some are ruthless, portrayed as soulless like their movie counterparts, but others are struggling to cope day to day with their existence.

I bought this book on recommendation, and I'm delighted with what I discovered. Get your own copy. And when you do, throw away any previous beliefs you had about these undead beings, and enjoy!

Re-released! LA PETITE MORT, an Erotic Menage Romance by Carolyn Gregg

Re-released!

La Petite Mort

Erotic Menage, Contemporary Romance
by Linda Mooney, Writing as Carolyn Gregg

ISBN 978-1-941321-11-9

Word Count:  10,118

1.99

Bria had just one wish, one desperate desire, and the only place she would be able to have it come true would be at the annual Midnight Fantasies Masquerade Ball. It would be interesting to see if the hosts truly granted everyone’s wildest fantasies, as they promised, or if it was just meaningless hype. After all, how many women attending were wanting to die at the automated "hand" of a sex machine?

Click here for excerpt and buy links.

Nothing Is More Touching Than a Boy's Love For His Chicken

The Mystery of Blueberries

Someone explain to me why blueberries are blue on the outside...

Purple when you mash them....

But when you peel them, they're green?

What Cities Would Look Like Without Lights

Flower Designs

This is absolute genius, in my opinion.

Re-released! 36 EXPOSURES, a Sensuously Erotic Urban Fantasy Romance

Re-released!

36 EXPOSURES
Sensuous Erotic Urban Fantasy Romance
Music And Press
ISBN 978-1-60435-491-1
Word Count:  11K
1.99

What if you could take a picture of your true soulmate before you ever met her?

It was an innocent roll of film she found on the street. But when Jolee Wiley had it developed, hoping she might be able to find its owner from the pictures on it, she came face-to-face with a shocking impossibility.

Mike Owensby is an Archivist. A Dreams Keeper. The roll of film belongs to him. And the woman who found it may be the lover he has been seeking all his life.

Warning! Contains hot photos, an even hotter photographer, and the hottest night she'll never forget.

Click here for excerpt and buy links.

Live From the Romantic Times Convention in New Orleans! Maggie Mae Gallagher will be my Guest Author Tonight on "Other Worlds of Romance" on Blog Talk Radio!

Live from the Romantic Times Convention in New Orleans! Maggie Mae Gallagher will be my guest author tonight on "Other Worlds of Romance" on Blog Talk Radio! Come listen as she reads an excerpt from her urban fantasy romance, Anointed, Book 1 of the Cantati Chronicles.

Show time is 11 pm et/ 10 pm ct

Live From the Romantic Times Convention in New Orleans! Ana Blaze, Aria Kane, and Constance Phillips Will Be My Guest Authors Tonight on "Other Worlds of Romance" on Blog Talk Radio

Live from the Romantic Times Convention in New Orleans! Ana Blaze, Aria Kane, and Constance Phillips will be my guest authors tonight on "Other Worlds of Romance" on Blog Talk Radio. Come listen to them read from their joint paranormal, magical anthology, One Lucky Night.

(You might even hear about zombies and fairies.)

Show time is 11 pm et/ 10 pm ct

 

 

Live From the Romantic Times Convention in New Orleans! Liz Schulte is my Guest Author Tonight on "Other Worlds of Romance" on Blog Talk Radio

Live from the Romantic Times Convention in New Orleans! Liz Schulte is my guest author tonight on "Other Worlds of Romance" on Blog Talk Radio. Come listen as she reads an excerpt from her paranormal, witchy romance, Easy Bake Coven, Book 1 of the Easy Bake Coven series.

Show time is 11 pm et/ 10 pm ct
Spells are optional.

Live From the Romantic Times Convention in New Orleans! Linnea Sinclair will be my Guest Author Tonight on "Other Worlds of Romance" on Blog Talk Radio

Live from the Romantic Times Convention in New Orleans! Linnea Sinclair will be my guest author tonight on "Other Worlds of Romance" on Blog Talk Radio.  Come listen as she reads from her sci-fi romance, The Down Home Zombie Blues.

Show time is 11 pm et/ 10 pm ct
Ray guns are optional.