My Photography and Poetry: Cherry Blossoms!!! :-)

~*~Cherry Blossoms~*~

Cherry Blossoms, Cherry Blossoms,
Do you know that you’re awesome?
You are so pretty in pink,
And beautiful in white, too,

Whenever I gaze at your loveliness,
It chases away all my Winter blues!
I ♥ Cherry Blossoms!!! ^_^

~ By Jayne Michellane a.k.a Lady Jayne, written on 26 August 2012.
Photos taken at Tea Tree Gully, on 25 August 2012.
 

My Photography and Poetry: The Coming of Spring...

~*~The Coming of Spring~*~

The rain and chill remind me,
that Winter is still here,
But the buds and flowers sing,
that Spring is very near! 
The lovely, barely dressed branches,
Sparkling with glistening drops of rain,
Make me smile for the coming Spring,
And washes away my Winter pains.

 
~ By Jayne Michellane a.k.a Lady Jayne, written on 25 August 2012.
Photo taken at Belair, South Australia, on 18 August 2012.

Quote of the Moment: I do not want to just read books...

I'm back and enjoying the Olympics! ^_^

I'm back from my holidays and hope to be posting more soon, but I just had to share one of the reasons I enjoy the Olympics, particularly the swimming events, so much. ^_^ Go, Ryan Lochte!!!

Bon Voyage, for a bit!

It's time for me to add some pages to my travel journeys so I'm afraid I won't be able to post much, or at all, in the next few weeks. I hope to be reading some while I'm on vacation, and so hopefully, will have some new reviews up upon my return. In the meantime, happy reading, everyone, and remember to be on the look-out for inspiration wherever you are and whatever you do!

 

Funny/Cuteness of the Moment: MeerCat ^_^

Aww...Foiled! LOL

"What? I thought he said, "Mere cats line up here..."

 I'm innocent, I tell ya!"

Inspiration of the Moment: Reading gives us...

Book Covers! Lover at Last (#11 Black Dagger Brotherhood) by J.R. Ward

Love the cover for Quinn and Blay's book, Lover at Last, due out in March 2013!!! Appropriate title, too. ^_^

Quote of the Moment: A great book should...

“A great book should leave you with many experiences, 

and slightly exhausted at the end. 

You live several lives while reading.” 

~ William Styron

REVIEW: Change of Pace by Sofia Essen

4 of 5 Stars

Debut

“Sometimes, it takes leaving everything you know behind to find yourself…”

Change of Pace is charming story and would be a great beach read, or if you want to go on a holiday but can’t quite yet, and want to escape to life in a quaint village in the Mediterranean, just for a little. It’s Winter here in Australia so the latter was more applicable to me.

It is the story of hard-working Anna Cox from New York, who gets dumped by her boyfriend, gets fired from her job of 10 years, and turns 30, all within the span of a week. In her turmoil at these events, Anna decides to jump on a plane to Greece. This spontaneity is so unlike Anna who is usually so predictable and cautious. 

From New York...

To Crete, Greece...

On the plane, she meets Alex Collins, a charming, handsome, blond haired ex-pat from the UK – OMG, a British accent I my head! *swoons* ^_^

Anna blurts out her miserable story to Alex, who listens sympathetically, then kindly invites her to Crete and takes her to a B&B he knows there. The B&B turns out to be an old white-washed stone house with cornflower blue doors and shutters, surrounded by olive, lemon, orange and walnut trees, owned by his mother, Jane, in the village of Drapanias.

Wow, going with a stranger to an unknown village? Either Anna has lost her mind or there’s something reassuring about Alex, and so Anna decides to take a leap of faith.

Anna is welcomed warmly by Alex’s free-spirited, funny, kind and candid mother, Jane. I loved Jane, and not just because we have the same name. She was a hoot!

I also loved Tiny, Alex’s shaggy black stray, who enjoys munching on things. 

Oh, Tiny, what are you munching on now!

Alex, has had many girlfriends and been through many jobs – one of which was as a scuba diving instructor in Langkawi, Malaysia! That made me smile as I’m from Malaysia. His mother, Jane, thinks he is afraid of commitment to a relationship or job, but maybe Alex just needed to sow his wild oats. Alex is sweet and rather romantic and Anna finds herself falling for him.

As Anna settles in to Villa Drapanias, days turn into weeks, then months. Anna spends her time walking on the beach, drinking Retsina (the local white wine), Raki (a strong distilled spirit) and enjoying the local cuisine, and spending time Alex, Jane and the locals.

That Raki is strong stuff...

Retsina, the local dry white wine...

The welcoming Cretan villagers...^_^

For someone who was rather cautious and a bit insecure of herself, Anna made many friends, quite easily, in Drapanias. This surprised me, initially, as I couldn’t imagine myself doing that, especially considering myself to be a lot like Anna’s character. But then I thought that as Anna leaped into spontaneity by jumping on a plane into the unknown, this extended to the life she started living one day at a time on Crete. She did develop a routine - hey, a leopard doesn’t change its spots - but she opened herself to this different life and to the people there. Anna is an accepting, kind and approachable person, and so, then, it didn’t seem all that unbelievable that she would make friends so easily.

I really liked Anna. Through life in Crete and some unexpected surprises, Anna learns more about herself and her family. I enjoyed her journey and the honesty she had with herself.

The pace of Change of Pace is like that of life in Crete. It moves along at a slow and steady pace. Sofia Essen’s vivid descriptions of Crete, its culture, cuisine and people, transported me there and made me feel like I was on a free holiday.

Author Sofia Essen was inspired to write this story from her own extended vacation in Crete, lasting three years, thus far, and so she draws from her experiences in writing this book. 

The glorious views in Crete... 

The City of Chania, Crete...

Change of Pace is a first person narrative and Anna has a charming voice with some quirky humour. There is a lot of narrative in this story, though, and while I liked Anna’s voice, I would have liked more dialogue.

It is Chick-Lit, and being a predominantly Romance reader, I would have liked more Anna-and-Alex time; so to be fair to the genre, my rating is based on my overall enjoyment of the book, bearing in mind its Chick-Lit-ness. ^_^

Steam level: Mild, so no worries about blushing or being overheated at the beach. ^_^

4-Stars, from me.

Review copy kindly provided to me directly by author, Sofia Essen, in exchange for an honest review. Thank you, Sofia!

REVIEW: Rainshadow Road (#2 Friday Harbor Series) by Lisa Kleypas

4-4.5 Stars

WARNING: "Thesis" ahead! LOL

‘“Do you think it will make good wine?”

“Probably not,” he said, and laughed.

“Then why have you gone to so much trouble?”

“Because you never know. The grapes might turn out to reveal some attributes of the wine that you never expected. Something that expresses this place more perfectly than anything you could have planned. You have to…”

As Sam paused, searching for the right phrase, Lucy said softly, “You have to take a leap of faith.”

Sam gave her an arrested glance. “Yes.”

Lucy understood all too well. There were times in life when you had to take a risk that might end in failure. Because otherwise you would be haunted by what you hadn’t done…the paths you hadn’t taken, the things you hadn’t experienced.’”

Leap of Faith…

Lisa Kleypas is one of my favourite Romance authors. Her writing is lyrical and full of detail and imagery. After writing Historical Romance novels for over 20 decades, she took a leap of faith when she wrote Sugar Daddy, her first contemporary novel.

Sugar Daddy wasn’t what I expected of Ms Kleypas and it didn’t completely work for me, as I felt that in her search for an authentic contemporary voice, she ended up sacrificing the romance for the story of a woman’s journey, and it became more Chick-Lit. That being said, there were some absolutely beautiful quotes in it and I loved the characters, and I appreciated it more on second read. Ms Kleypas then went on to write two books in the Travis series that I LOVE SO MUCH (Blue-Eyed Devil and Smooth Talking Stranger) and she became more comfortable in her contemporary voice. Through the Travis series, she gave me so many amazing quotes and she gave me Hardy Cates, and Jack and Gage Travis – such strong, sexy, unashamedly masculine characters… who are on my book boyfriend list! Booyah! ^_^

With the Friday Harbor contemporary series, Lisa Kleypas is taking another leap of faith - into Magical Realism. It is very different from the Travis series and is more along the flavour of Emily March's Eternity Springs series, though not exactly.

The introductory novella to this series, Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor, left me feeling all warm and fuzzy and thinking of savouring homemade cookies as I enjoyed gazing at a rainbow over the Friday Harbor. It was a magical novella, even though there was no overt “magic” in it, but was sprinkled with the magic of Christmastime, imagination, hope and love, set against the backdrop of the beautiful and magical setting of the San Juan Islands, Washington.

Rainshadow Road…

In Rainshadow Road, the magical elements are more obvious. Lisa Kleypas sets the scene with these opening paragraphs:

“When Lucy Marinn was seven years old, three things happened: Her little sister Alice got sick, she was assigned her first science project, and she found out that magic existed. More specifically, that she had the power to create magic. And for the rest of her life, Lucy would be aware that the distance between ordinary and extraordinary was only a step, a breath, a heartbeat away.

But this was not the kind of knowledge that made one bold or daring. At least not in Lucy’s case. It made her cautious. Secretive. Because the revelation of magical ability, particularly one that you had no control over, meant you were different. And even a child of seven understood that you didn’t want to find yourself on the wrong side of the dividing line between different and normal. You wanted to belong. The problem was, no matter how well you kept your secret, the very fact of having one was enough to separate you from everyone else.”

The dysfunctional family…

Lucy’s sister’s illness set the Marinn family along a dysfunctional course with their parents letting Alice have whatever she wanted, while piling responsibility and expectations on Lucy, and leaving her feeling insecure regarding love.

While Alice was in hospital, Lucy was watched over by a neighbour, and admiring the neighbour’s glass ornament set Lucy along the path of deciding to be a glass-maker. There, began, her fascination with glass and discovering she had a magical gift of turning glass into something living, like fireflies or butterflies, when she was feeling strong emotions.

I think it’s great that Lisa Kleypas wants to push her boundaries, try new paths and expand herself as a writer. It’s an admirable trait. But has her leap of faith into Magical Realism succeeded? What did the magic add to the story?

The Magical Realism…

I pondered this book and ruminated on my review, for a while, as I had mixed feelings when I finished it, and ended up re-reading Rainshadow Road. Like Sugar Daddy, I’ve come to appreciate it more on second read, and after initially considering rating it 4-Stars, I’m thinking it's maybe more of a 4.5 Stars read, for me.
So what did the magical moments add to the story? This was a question I had in the fore of my thoughts as I re-read it. As a result, I began to notice that the moments when Lucy’s magic manifested itself was when she was feeling particularly strong emotions, and the thing that the glass would transform into were symbolic, and meant to help Lucy to see something see needed to in that moment. Like the fireflies that symbolised an unassuming insect becoming beautiful, light in the darkness, or the butterfly that symbolises change or a new phase. It gave Lucy a focus or insight in those moments, to channel her emotions into something transformative.

These were my thoughts on second read, but this is what Lisa Kleypas had to say in an interview on this book, that I read, recently:

'For me, magical realism allows the heroine to have revelatory insight. It underscores emotions that are already present, and signals her transition to new directions.

To me, it's more that Lucy has repressed her negative emotions since childhood, because her parents constantly emphasized that it was wrong to feel resentful, jealous, or envious. She gives those feelings expression through art and through the magical quality of the art. We all know that being able to express deep emotion can literally save a person's life, and suppressing emotion can kill you both spiritually and physically. That's where the magic comes in: once expressed, Lucy's emotions becomes visible, a part of the material world.

Isn't that beautiful? It's unfortunate, though, that it wasn't so evident or meaningful to me, at first, and I think many readers have questioned what the magic added. There have been mixed reviews on this one.

But there is more to what the "magic" added...

Lucy and Sam…

When Lucy’s boyfriend, Kevin, dumps Lucy for her sister Alice, Lucy feels Alice has taken away something else from her and has finally crossed a line. This story explores Lucy’s reaction to this event, and it sets a change in motion to the Marinn family dynamics. But it is also this event that brings Lucy into Sam Nolan’s world.

Sam, who also came from a dysfunctional family, of two alcoholic parents, is a fascinating mix of rugged good looks, and hot geekiness. He has a penchant for funny geeky T-shirts which make for some entertainment.

Lucy’s magic, which made her feel set apart from others, was an aspect that connected her to the gorgeous Sam Nolan, a vineyard owner and winemaker with a special talent all his own. Sam was the first person Lucy ever shared her secret with, and vice versa. This shared belief in magic allowed Sam to finally believe in the magic of love.

Because of his family history, Sam doesn’t believe in love and long-term relationships, but he does believe in casual relationships prefaced by honesty to the woman that this is all he could offer. And this is all Lucy wants after what Kevin and Alice did to her. That is, until Lucy and Sam connect on so many more levels than either thought possible. They must both learn to take a leap of faith: Lucy, to trust someone to love her, and Sam, to trust himself enough to love someone.

The Romance…

Lucy and Sam’s banter was wonderful and the progression of their relationship from friends, to casual lovers, to more, was realistic. But I’m afraid to say that while I really enjoyed Rainshadow Road, I felt it somehow lacked a little bit in Lisa Kleypas' trademark romantic “magic”, for me, and hence, it was not quite a 5-Star read. I can’t definitively say what the missing ingredient was, just that I felt something was missing.

The Tension…

‘When the plastic was discarded, Sam paused at the sight of a bruise on the side of her knee. He traced the edge of the dark blotch, his touch so light it was nearly imperceptible. His head was bent, so Lucy couldn’t see his expression. But his hands went to the mattress on either side of her hips, his fingers digging into the bedclothes. A deep tremor went through him, desire splintering through restraint.

Lucy didn’t dare say a word. She stared fixedly at the top of his head, the span of his shoulders. Her ears were filled with the echoes of her heartbeat.

His head bent, the light sliding across the dark layers of his hair. The touch of his lips was soft and searing against the bruise, causing her to jerk in surprise. His mouth lingered, drifting to the inside of her thigh. His fingers tightened until he gripped the covers in handfuls.’

*shivers*

Oh, yeah, some great tension here! 

Secondary characters…I don’t want to talk about Alice, Kevin or Lucy’s parents except to say, “Grrrrrr!!!”

I really liked Justine and Zoe, Lucy’s good friends who own the Bed and Breakfast called Artist Point, and Duane and the Hog Heaven bikers. Sam’s bulldog, Renfield, was adorable! It was really great seeing Mark Nolan and Holly again but I felt that when Maggie was in a scene, she didn't feel really present, to me, which made me sad as I loved her with Mark and Holly in Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor so much. I was sad to see Alex’s decline

Renfield

Final thoughts…

The Travis series is grittier and with sexy alpha heroes. The Friday Harbor series is more lyrical with a mixture of magic and realism, and more beta heroes. While I've enjoyed the first two stories in this new series, it hasn't reached the love I have for the Travis series.

That being said, I’m really looking forward to Dream Lake, because tortured Alex Nolan and the curvy and lovely Zoe, and the effects her amazing cooking has on him, has already piqued my interest in this one!

Inspiration of the Moment: Ode to Can

I watched, and listened to, an ad by the Commonwealth Bank of Australia on TV, recently, of the "Ode to Can" as read by the talented Aussie actress, Toni Collete, and I just love it and find very inspiring, so I wanted to share. But wait... an ad by a BANK that's inspiring??? Say, what??? But... true story, here! ^_^

ODE TO CAN

There’s a four lettered word
As offensive as any
It holds back the few
Puts a stop to the many.
You can’t climb that mountain
You can’t cross the sea
You can’t become anything you want to be.
He can’t hit a century
They can’t find a cure.
She can’t think about leaving or searching for more.
Because Can’t is a word with a habit of stopping
The ebb and the flow of ideas
It keeps dropping
itself where we know in our hearts it’s not needed
And saying “don’t go” when we could have succeeded.
But those four little letters
That end with a T
They can change in an instant
When shortened to three.
We can take off the T
We can do it today
We can move forward not back
We can find our own way.
We can build we can run
We can follow the sun
We can push we can pull
We can say I’m someone
Who refuses to believe
That life can’t be better
With the removal of one
Insignificant letter. 

(Beautifully written, in only a few hours, by 

M&C Saatchi Creative Director, Andy Flemming, 

for the CommBank Can Campaign) 

Here's the link to the Ad, if you want to watch it:

http://www.bestadsontv.com/ad/45400/CommBank-Ode-to-Can  

 

REVIEW: Night Sky by Jolene Perry

3.5 Stars

I’ve been in the mood for YA reads, lately. I saw this book on the blog of Nyrae Dawn, author of What I Boy Wants which I'd read and loved, recently, and the blurb of this one sounded good and the cover is pretty and intriguing.

Night Sky by Jolene Perry is about Jameson a.k.a. Jay who has been in love with his best friend, Sarah, for 3 years, and he never told her. But Sarah has a boyfriend now and Jay meets Sky, a Tlingit from Alaska, who has just moved into his street. Sky attends college and she is very candid - something that takes Jay by surprise as he comes to appreciate her "honesty approach". He finds himself incredibly attracted to Sky at a time when he is grieving the loss of his best friend to a guy he thinks is a jerk. Then, when his family life gets turned upside down, Sky is there for him; they form a connection and she changes him.

I was really looking forward to reading this… but I don’t know… I liked it but I didn’t connect strongly with the characters or the writing.

The first person narrative of Jameson (a.k.a. Jay), senior high school student and star swimmer, was quite engaging but I thought he spent too much time thinking about kissing and touching Sky - way too much (but not in a creepy/pervy way, just in a repetitive way). I know teen boys are known to be “horny teens” and this is likely a realistic portrayal, but the amount of time in the book he thinks about this took away from my enjoyment rather than building the tension. There is a balance to be made between the authenticity of the male voice and the storytelling and tension-building, I feel, and this balance was a bit off, for me.

I know I shouldn’t be comparing, but in comparison to such great Boy Point-of-Views (POV) like that of Alex Fuentes in the alternating POVs of Perfect Chemistry and Sebastian's sole POV in What a Boy Wants, Jay’s “voice” just felt a bit awkward, didn’t flow quite as well, and was repetitive. Jay’s character was very nice and sweet, though; his first date with Sky was very romantic and thoughtful; and there were some other really good moments in here. I really liked Jay and appreciated his growth throughout the story.

Sky’s initial forward behaviour perplexed me; and even more so after I found out her tragic backstory. I guess it just went to show how much she trusted Jay, from the beginning, because of his kind eyes and the eyes being the windows to the soul and all.

' "How can you even be with me? Why did you get in the car the night we met?" Now that I know her history, the comfortable way she is around me, doesn't make any sense.

"You have kind eyes." She breathes out the words, not moving.

"That's it?" My eyes?

"That's everything." Her arm tightens around me.

I run my hands through her hair and down her arms. Her body relaxes against me. There's nowhere in the world I'd rather be, and nothing else I'd rather be doing. It's all right here.'

I still felt like I was missing something with Sky, though; that I didn’t get a full grasp of who she was. But considering that Jay didn’t fully get to know her until the end, because of secrets she kept, that may have been why.

Night Sky was a nice read. It just wasn’t great, for me, especially coming off the back of a really great Boy POV book I’d just recently loved.

I loved this moment when Jay actually WASN'T thinking about kissing Sky ^_^:

'I'm suddenly afraid to touch her. My fingers touch the edges of hers and she slides our hands together. I scoot toward her, so I can take her in my arms. I don't think about kissing her or touching her. I just want to hold her, protect her. It means so much more now.'

My Jay (Edilson Nascimento) and My Sky (Orianka Kilcher)

REVIEW: Skin Deep (I-Team After Hours #1) by Pamela Clare

5 Stars!

Governor of Romancelandia Declares Pamela Clare Model “Prisoner” But Won’t Release Her

Author, Pamela Clare, made headlines when more readers became confirmed I-Team-oholics after reading Unlawful Contact, the third I-Team book, starring the dangerously gorgeous Marc Hunter and the sweet and strong Sophie Alton (now Hunter).

It was books such as that one that resulted in Ms Clare being charged with the following:

“Charge 1: Causing addiction to a book series through grippingly suspenseful, sensual, emotional, engaging, and thought-provoking writing.

Charge 2: Creating to-die-for heroes who steal hearts, and who induce immense longing for “Unlawful Contact” with said heroes.

Charge 3: Risk to personal safety by writing scenes which induce heart palpitations, breathlessness, sudden swooning, hot flashes and the melting of panties.”

To read the judgement of The People of Romancelandia v Pamela Clare [2010] SCRR 6996 (31 October 2010), click here.

Justice Isabith McHardup of the Supreme Court of Romancelandia found Pamela Clare guilty of all charges and sentenced her to write amazing stories, with to-die-for heroes, for life.

Ms Clare’s recently released, and self-published, I-Team After Hours novella, Skin Deep, featuring Marc Hunter’s baby sister, Megan Hunter, has been a roaring success amongst I-Team-oholics and is just another prime example of Ms Clare’s addictive and satisfying writing.

In a statement released by the Governor of Romancelandia, following the steady flow of raving 5-Star reviews upon the release of Skin Deep, the Governor stated: “Ms Clare has been a model “prisoner” by continuing to write wonderful stories, and thus, I’m afraid I cannot release her from her sentence to do so, for life. Her I-Team-oholics need her stories. Bravo, Ms Clare, for keeping them out of mischief by keeping them happy! And for self-publishing!”

Readers will be delighted with the tightly-written novella which features a scarred heroine and hero – Megan, scarred by the traumas in her past from sexual abuse and addiction; and Nate, a former Marine in Afghanistan, turned Colorado rancher, physically and emotionally scarred from an explosion, while in the service of his country. When Megan’s life is threatened outside the community kitchen she volunteers for, and to which Nate and his father donate ground Angus beef to, Nate comes to the rescue. Thus, begins, a beautiful story of the healing power of love.

Pamela Clare has created yet another to-die-for hero in Nate West who is strong, courageous, protective, honourable, attentive, HOT, tender, patient, kind and understanding. Readers with a weakness for scarred heroes are sure to love him.

Former Marine, Nate West, while on leave at Cimarron Ranch, before the explosion

The right side of Nate's face and body were severely burnt in Afghanistan

Lady Jayne, the complainant in Ms Clare’s trial in 2010, had this to say about Skin Deep: “While the relationship did develop quickly, I loved how Nate tenderly and sensually, with such understanding and great perceptiveness, awakened Megan’s desires, and helped her heal from the traumas of her past. From their sweet,  kisses, sizzling explorations, and the trust they had in baring their souls and bodies to each other, which was significant given both their scars… It was just beautiful! Even though time-wise it may have been fast, it didn’t feel rushed to me, at all, but made complete sense. I loved how Megan saw beyond Nate’s disfigurement, and saw the precious hero within. My chest tightened when she kissed his burn scars. I just loved honourable and brave Nate and it was so wonderful to see Megan get her happily-ever-after with a worthy hero, after all she'd been through! Nate was just wonderful with Megan's daughter, Emily, and so was his dad, Jack - Aww...” 

Sweet, willowy redhead, Megan Hunter, gets her HEA

Megan’s daughter, Emily, and Nate’s father, Jack, are also heart-stealers, and the snow-covered Colorado ranch setting made the novella extra special, indeed. 

The West's ranch, Cimarron Ranch, is a picturesque ranch mansion

The Wests take pride and care in their horses and family ranch

Four-year old Emily falls in love with the horses

For a novella, which tend to leave Lady Jayne a bit unsatisfied, due to the short length, “Skin Deep was engaging, hot, sweet, suspenseful, heart-warming and just satisfied on so many levels. It was just SO GOOD! There was nothing lacking in this novella!”

In usual amazing Pamela Clare style, Skin Deep was not only entertaining, but brought to readers’ minds important issues. In this novella, the great service and sacrifices that soldiers make for their country, the effects of Post-Traumatic Stress for soldiers and victims of sexual assault, were highlighted deftly in the story. It is clear that Ms Clare took great pains to portray them with sensitive and thoughtful realism.

While the novella can be read as a stand-alone, as Ms Clare does reveal what happened to Megan in it, it does contain some spoiler-ish content for Unlawful Contact. Lady Jayne said that she would encourage new readers to read the series in order, to truly appreciate the interactions between the characters and their stories.

If you haven’t read the series, START. READING. NOW!

The novella is not all Ms Clare gifted her dedicated readers with. Included with it is a bonus short story titled “Marc and Julian Make a Beer Run”, which features all the past I-Team heroes and heroines, and while it dealt with a scary but all too real issue, was also humorous and an enjoyable read.

“I just love the bromance between Marc and Julian. Heck, I love the way all the guys relate to each other! And that many hotties packed into one great short story? YOWZA, SWOONS!” squealed Lady Jayne.

She admitted to being very happy to see Reece, from Extreme Exposure, the first book in the series, featured in this short story, as she said she hardly sees him and he has a special place in her heart. Though, Marc Hunter is the one who has truly stolen her heart away.

It is no wonder that the Governor refuses to release Ms Clare. Though, considering that Ms Clare is able to serve out her sentence in the beautiful Colorado landscape, and gets to create more swoon-worthy heroes, to warm her and her readers’ days and nights, it’s a sentence she could probably live with.

Image Credits:

1. Sean Sullivan by Photographer Rick Day

2. Sean Sullivan by Photographer Gregory Vaughn (converted to B&W for dramatic effect)

3. Model and Photographer Unkown

4. The Home Ranch, Colorado from http://newfinmysoup.blogspot.com.au/2012/01/coming-home-again-our-week-at-home.html
5. Photographer Unknown
6. Photographer Andrew Dierks

Otter Cuteness!!

My Poetry and Photography: Caught in Autumn's Web

Caught in Autumn's Web

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

I'm caught in Autumn's web,

Enraptured by its lustre,

The fiery leaves that swirl and dance,

Unchoreographed in a bluster;

The carpet leaves like vibrant petals,

In hues of scarlet, bronze and gold,

Ignites a spark deep within,

And it makes me ever bold;

The vibrant tints of Autumn, 

Never fails, my soul, to lift,

In its warmth I am revived,

There's nothing like the Autumn gift.

~ By Jayne Michellane a.k.a Lady Jayne, 8 May 2012