the very best for a lovely holiday and a great New Year!
(I made this ornament in school over 50 years ago.)
Monday, December 21, 2015
Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Today's the day!
My latest medieval romance,
is out today!
From the back cover:
She swore to resist temptation!
Journeying to Dunborough to learn the
truth about her sister's murder, novice Celeste D'Orleau dons a nun's habit for
safety. But seeing her childhood hero Gerrard of Dunborough makes her dream of
pleasures that will be forbidden once she takes her final vows.
Gerrard wrestles with his desire for the
innocent beauty. After striving to redeem his wicked reputation, he won't
seduce a nun. Yet as Celeste's mission draws them closer together, it soon
becomes clear their passion is stronger than any vow!
"Moore ends The Knights’ Prizes
series with an exciting tale of murder, secret treasure and lust between a
saint and a sinner. We love that the heroine is strong-willed and loyal, and
that the hero is a rascal out to redeem himself. There’s great conflict,
authentic setting and enough heated embraces to melt readers’ hearts."
-- Romantic Times
The other books in The Knights' Prizes
series are CASTLE OF THE WOLF, followed by BRIDE FOR A KNIGHT. As with all of my books, SCOUNDREL OF
DUNBOROUGH was written to "stand alone," so you shouldn't feel lost
if you haven't read the first two books, although I hope you have!
(Not available on Kindle until Jan. 1, unfortunately.)
Monday, December 14, 2015
Speaking of movies....
I see In The Heart Of The Sea "bombed" at the box office on the weekend. I don't think their advertising campaign helped.
What did I see in the ads?
Chris Hemsworth, aka Thor. Yes, he's handsome. But who is he in this movie? Some guy on a whaling ship, apparently.
Lots of CGI of a whale (possibly white -- hard to tell on the TV) hitting a ship. Lots and lots of water. Guys screaming and falling.
Not a lot of women and certainly none on the ship. Which is historically accurate, of course, but not likely to entice women to want to see the movie, Chris Hemsworth notwithstanding.
It's based on Moby Dick, the only book to literally put me to sleep. I had to read it for school but was hoping to get more about the characters and backstory than was shown in the movie with Gregory Peck. Instead, I had to read way too much about whaling and zzzz..... So that's no draw for me. Is it for anybody who had to read it in school? Who else reads Moby Dick these days? Clearly not enough to help the box office.
The Gregory Peck movie was about the characters, not so much about the whale. From the ads for In The Heart Of The Sea, I'm thinking that movie is about Chris Hemsworth as a guy on a ship and a big fake whale bashing in the ship. That's certainly not enough to get me to the theater, not when I can see Gregory Peck as one heck of an obsessed captain sending nearly his entire, interesting and diverse crew to Davy Jones' locker for free on TV.
What did I see in the ads?
Chris Hemsworth, aka Thor. Yes, he's handsome. But who is he in this movie? Some guy on a whaling ship, apparently.
Lots of CGI of a whale (possibly white -- hard to tell on the TV) hitting a ship. Lots and lots of water. Guys screaming and falling.
Not a lot of women and certainly none on the ship. Which is historically accurate, of course, but not likely to entice women to want to see the movie, Chris Hemsworth notwithstanding.
It's based on Moby Dick, the only book to literally put me to sleep. I had to read it for school but was hoping to get more about the characters and backstory than was shown in the movie with Gregory Peck. Instead, I had to read way too much about whaling and zzzz..... So that's no draw for me. Is it for anybody who had to read it in school? Who else reads Moby Dick these days? Clearly not enough to help the box office.
The Gregory Peck movie was about the characters, not so much about the whale. From the ads for In The Heart Of The Sea, I'm thinking that movie is about Chris Hemsworth as a guy on a ship and a big fake whale bashing in the ship. That's certainly not enough to get me to the theater, not when I can see Gregory Peck as one heck of an obsessed captain sending nearly his entire, interesting and diverse crew to Davy Jones' locker for free on TV.
Sunday, December 13, 2015
Creed Vs. Rocky
I saw Creed on Friday night. I'm certainly no boxing fan and although I liked the first Rocky movie, I haven't seen most of the sequels. Still, the story line and particularly the relationship between the two leads seemed interesting, so off I went.
What did I think of Creed? Basically, meh. However, it did make me think about the original Rocky movie and why it was so good.
First, a quibble to get out of the way: maybe it's because I'm in the midst of a rather messy first draft, but I had the niggling feeling that a subplot got lost along the way, that of the other trainer with the much-tattooed son. It seemed to be building to some sort of importance, then...nadda.
Now to the main event: what Rocky the First Movie had that Creed did not.
In a nutshell, characters I cared about.
It's hard to feel much sympathy for Creed when he throws away a job many people would dearly love to have, and you see the house he lives in with Apollo Creed's widow. Yes, he has Issues, but compared to Rocky's "lifestyle" in the first movie, and the job he has, well...there is no comparison.
And then there's Adrian, a woman who is so mousy and shy, she's nearly mute. Here's the thing about the first Rocky movie: it isn't just about the rise of Rocky from the trash heap to glory in the ring. It's about Adrian's transformation from mouse to lion when she finally stands up to Paulie and goes to live with Rocky.
Maybe it's a (sad) sign of the (Hollywood) times, but Creed's girlfriend Bianca is as gorgeous and talented as Adrian was not. Yes, she has a "problem," one that given her career, could be devastating, yet she simply seems to shrug it off. Not something worth caring about for her, not worth me caring about, either.
This time, Rocky is the has-been who becomes a trainer, but for all his suffering, his portrayal of pain doesn't hold a candle to Burgess Meredith as Mickey pleading with Rocky to let him be his trainer. It's heart-wrenching to watch this old, broken-down ex-fighter talk about his glory days and beg. It's no surprise, after what's happened in the move thus far, that Rocky refuses. But then he goes after Mickey and gives him a second chance, too.
Are we engaged with the characters in Rocky? Oh, you betcha. Creed? Not nearly as much -- and that makes all the difference.
What did I think of Creed? Basically, meh. However, it did make me think about the original Rocky movie and why it was so good.
First, a quibble to get out of the way: maybe it's because I'm in the midst of a rather messy first draft, but I had the niggling feeling that a subplot got lost along the way, that of the other trainer with the much-tattooed son. It seemed to be building to some sort of importance, then...nadda.
Now to the main event: what Rocky the First Movie had that Creed did not.
In a nutshell, characters I cared about.
It's hard to feel much sympathy for Creed when he throws away a job many people would dearly love to have, and you see the house he lives in with Apollo Creed's widow. Yes, he has Issues, but compared to Rocky's "lifestyle" in the first movie, and the job he has, well...there is no comparison.
And then there's Adrian, a woman who is so mousy and shy, she's nearly mute. Here's the thing about the first Rocky movie: it isn't just about the rise of Rocky from the trash heap to glory in the ring. It's about Adrian's transformation from mouse to lion when she finally stands up to Paulie and goes to live with Rocky.
Maybe it's a (sad) sign of the (Hollywood) times, but Creed's girlfriend Bianca is as gorgeous and talented as Adrian was not. Yes, she has a "problem," one that given her career, could be devastating, yet she simply seems to shrug it off. Not something worth caring about for her, not worth me caring about, either.
This time, Rocky is the has-been who becomes a trainer, but for all his suffering, his portrayal of pain doesn't hold a candle to Burgess Meredith as Mickey pleading with Rocky to let him be his trainer. It's heart-wrenching to watch this old, broken-down ex-fighter talk about his glory days and beg. It's no surprise, after what's happened in the move thus far, that Rocky refuses. But then he goes after Mickey and gives him a second chance, too.
Are we engaged with the characters in Rocky? Oh, you betcha. Creed? Not nearly as much -- and that makes all the difference.
Tuesday, December 08, 2015
Tuesday, December 01, 2015
It's Nearly Time!
My newest book, SCOUNDREL OF DUNBOROUGH, will be out on December 15!
She swore to resist temptation!
Journeying to Dunborough to learn the truth about her sister's murder, novice Celeste D'Orleau dons a nun's habit for safety. But seeing her childhood hero Gerrard of Dunborough makes her dream of pleasures that will be forbidden once she takes her final vows.
Gerrard wrestles with his desire for the innocent beauty. After striving to redeem his wicked reputation, he won't seduce a nun. Yet as Celeste's mission draws them closer together, it soon becomes clear their passion is stronger than any vow!
"...an exciting tale of murder, secret treasure and lust between a saint and a sinner. We love that the heroine is strong-willed and loyal, and that the hero is a rascal out to redeem himself. There’s great conflict, authentic setting and enough heated embraces to melt readers’ hearts." - Romantic Times
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