Readers n'Ritas 2013

I'm not exactly an avid convention or conference attendee. To be honest, leaving home for more than twenty-four hours takes months of planning and logistical skills any engineer would be proud of. So, when something close to home pops up for a weekend and the hubby is okay with letting me loose, I run as fast as I can to get there.

This event is a small, intimate reader's convention with a cap of about 200 people. That means all weekend readers get to rub elbows with authors and spend some one-on-one time with many of them at different events. 

This year one of my all-time favorite authors attended, Sherrilyn Kenyon. I've met her before but she is always awesome. I simply couldn't resist going to see her.

Sherrilyn wasn't the only draw. I've also gotten to know some wonderful readers the past two times I attended and was very happy to see them again. Of course, the costume contest, pajama party, and bachelor auction were definite incentives as well.

  

Those were just a few things keeping me busy this past weekend. I met a lot of new, friendly faces and generally had a blast. I'm hoping to attend next year as well since by then I'll have three new releases. 

 

After all, where else can you find Ms. Frizzle doing the cupid shuffle? Or books by three of the most marvelous authors made out of cake?

 

Then there were all the great costumes at the masquerade ball. I didn't dress up this year. I wouldn't have been able to compare to the ones who did.

  
 

  

Character Review #6: Queen Adara

First off, let me apologize for the tardiness of this post. Character Review #6 was supposed to run along the same schedule as the first five reviews. However, Mother's Day arrived and with it a day of decadent laziness highly encouraged by my hubby. So you see, it's his fault (don't tell him I said that). I do normally write the posts on Sunday (usually at the last minute) and schedule them to post first thing Monday morning for your viewing pleasure. Well, as I said, with Mother's Day falling on this past Sunday I did nothing but read all day long and by the time I was ready for bed there was no getting any writing out of me.

But alas, here I am, only a few days late and ready to tell you all about Queen Adara of Taagaria, the abandoned wife of Christian of Acre, in Kinley MacGregor's Return of the Warrior. First off, even if you've never read Kinley MacGregor you may have read her. She is the alter ego of Sherrilyn Kenyon, better known for paranormal romance than historical. One thing both authors have in common is hot, strong men and their equally strong women. That is something that draws me back to her work time and again. Off the top of my head I don't think I've ever read a TSTL (too stupid to live) heroine in any of her work. Queen Adara absolutely doesn't fit into that category either. She is a queen after all. She is noble, beautiful, brave and strong...and has the balls to travel through hostile lands to find her husband.

In this installment of the Brotherhood of the Sword series, we meet Christian of Acre. He is a wounded hero wanting nothing more than to fulfill the moral obligations he placed on himself when imprisoned alongside other brave men. They formed the brotherhood to stay alive and aid each other, and now nothing and no one has his loyalty but them. Until he steps into a room to find a beautiful, naked woman claiming to be his wife. He refuses her but decides to help return her to her kingdom through harsh, dangerous lands. Adara is no fool. She quickly realizes she is in serious danger of not returning home in one piece. She also decides not to give up on the tormented warrior she married as a child. She shows strength of will as well as true courage and feminine stubbornness. She easily became one of my favorite female characters.
Though she is cunning and fighting for the strength to care for her people, she isn't an over-the-top, kick-ass heroine. She knows when to hold back and let the hero have his pride.

Do you prefer the kick-ass heroine that takes over from the start? Or is the more subtle femme fatale more to your reading taste? Tell me in a comment below or just recommend a female character that stayed with you long after the story ended. One reader will win a slightly used (but in VERY good condition) copy of Return of the Warrior. Be sure to include your email addy.