QotMBadge.jpgFirstly – It’s Question of the Month time from Mike D’Agostini.  This month:

“Of all the places in the world that you haven’t yet been to, where would you like to go next?”

That’s a hard one, because I’ve been to lots of places.  Some that I might have liked to visit a while ago are now open to tourists, but I don’t need to go.  Climate change and tourism don’t mix, unless you choose overland routes that don’t involve air-conditioned vehicles.  Trains, maybe.  I spotted a 22 day journey from St Petersburg to Beijing by train I could go for (but it’s a flight to or from China) – so maybe a weekend in Madrid by Eurostar, TGV, and AVE. Otherwise, the only two I’d really like are Easter Island and Galapagos, both of which have just too high a carbon footprint for me to consider.

You can hop to other participants in the Question of the Month by clicking the logo above.

If you enter the giveaway below – you’ll have to answer this question in the comments for an entry!

And now…

Jumping Genres in June Givaway Hop

This is one of my favourite giveaway hops from Stuck in Books.  It runs 6th to 19th June and features a genre I don’t normally read.

romance-lettering2_teaser

That’s not something I normally read.  A little bit of love interest in a mystery or scifi or fantasy, of course, but something that actually qualifies as romance?  Not for me.  Then something happened that made me look again.  Authors I like started writing romance!  Although please note I haven’t read any of the prizes… yet.

Bree Wolf, author of Fireflies, the book of the month for the Great Middle Grade Reads Goodreads group, made the conscious decision after examining the stats.  In her interview for the group she said:

After my first MG and YA books didn’t sell, I started researching the industry a bit… About 40% of all books sold are romance books while children’s books rank at about 3%. Shocking, isn’t it? … That is the very simple reason why I switched to historical romance.

You all know how much I like Lindsay Buroker’s Emperor’s Edge books.  They have a hot hero in Sicarius, and a continuing will-they-won’t-they between him and Amaranthe, but they aren’t romance.  Lindsay decided to go in for space romance under a penname, Ruby Lionsdrake – which pleases some people but not others, as you’ll see from her reviews.

Kim Headlee got me hooked on her King Arthur’s Sister in Washington’s Court, but when I looked at her other titles, they looked too ‘romancy’ to me – I could tell by the covers.  Just a tad too romantic for me.

Viggo+Mortensen+Premiere+New+Line+Cinema+Appaloosa+m9EkxeA_hsClYou can tell usually romance novels by their covers (although all these prizes are more tasteful).  Hot bodies, sculpted pecs, it’s a kind of ‘oh no’ for me.  Being old-fashioned, I prefer my men less plastic.  Think Viggo Mortensen.  Do you know how what a difficult time I had to find a photo for you?  This is from zimbio.com. Now pick yourself off the floor and read on.

So my prize for Jumping Genres in June is EITHER:

  • Ruby Lionsdrake’s Mandrake Company books 1-4 (Space Romance) gifted from Amazon for Kindle (worth $9.99)
  • Kim Headlee’s Dragon’s Dove Chronicles (Historical Romance – Arthurian) gifted from Amazon or Smashwords (worth $9.00)
  • Bree Wolf’s Love’s Second Chance books 1-3 (Historical Romance – Regency) gifted from Amazon(worth $7.99)
  • or any paperback combination from these authors up to the value of $16.

Not suitable for children!

Enter via the Rafflecopter giveaway, which closes 11.59 pm New York time 19th June.

Winner picked at random and emailed within 48 hours and must respond within 48 hours or the prize will be void and another winner selected.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This is a blog hop so GO HOPPING!

Jumping Genres in June and Question of the Month

76 thoughts on “Jumping Genres in June and Question of the Month

  • 6 June, 2016 at 2:32 am
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    I admit that though I worry about carbon footprint in daily life, I’ve not yet been willing to give up travel–maybe because I haven’t been to that many places yet. But of all the places I haven’t been, which one do I most want to visit? Geez. Ask me on any 10 days and I’ll give you 10 answers. Patagonia, for sure. The Galopagos islands. There’s a trailess bit of the Sierra Nevada I have my sights on, and on some days I want to hike the Continental Divide Trail. The bottom of the Grand Canyon is on the list, too. And those “sky island” mountain ranges in Utah.

    You get the picture 🙂

    • 7 June, 2016 at 11:04 am
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      Well, as long as you hike down the Grand Canyon, that’ll be okay 😉

  • 6 June, 2016 at 4:21 am
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    I just went on a bike tour of my city’s CBD which you may enjoy. We toured to difference cafes where we sampled gourmet coffees.

  • 6 June, 2016 at 7:50 am
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    Hi Jemima – that train trip across China and Russia sounds amazing .. but I think I’d be the hell in with the train a few days in .. I’d love to travel more here in the UK … and I’ve never been down under – one day … cheers Hilary

    • 7 June, 2016 at 11:06 am
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      We do have the luxury of having some of the best scenery anywhere in the British Isles. And I love train travel!

  • 6 June, 2016 at 8:19 am
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    Would love to visit Australia some day!

    • 7 June, 2016 at 11:07 am
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      Yes, it’s a grand place. Don’t miss out on brumby watching in the Snowy Mountains. 🙂

  • 6 June, 2016 at 10:10 am
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    I admire your ethics but, like the commenter above, I still travel. As you know! I think I’d like to explore Europe more, including the rest of the U.K. I’ve done quite well with Scotland now, but there are many areas of England I’ve missed, I’ve barely touched Wales and never been to N Ireland at all.

    • 7 June, 2016 at 11:09 am
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      Well, you can do most of that by train, which is what I’m aiming to do. I haven’t done nearly enough of Ireland, north or south, although I have done the Giant’s Causeway and Mizen Head, which are pretty much north-east and south-west – just not much in between.

      I am sadly lacking in my European travel experience, but I reckon it’ll still be there next year:D

  • 6 June, 2016 at 11:33 am
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    hard question….Scotland is tempting me

    • 7 June, 2016 at 11:11 am
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      Yes, a fascinating place. I’m not sure I need to go there now, though.

  • 6 June, 2016 at 3:32 pm
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    I would like to visit Ireland.

    Judy Cox

    • 7 June, 2016 at 11:12 am
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      Good call, Judy. My favourite part is Co Cork, but then I haven’t done the west coast yet.

  • 6 June, 2016 at 3:52 pm
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    I didn’t know those stats about romance books either. That is shocking. And I haven’t read much romance either.

    • 7 June, 2016 at 11:14 am
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      It is, isn’t it, but I expect it’s skewed by the Cartland/Mills & Boon statistics

  • 6 June, 2016 at 4:15 pm
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    A weekend in Madrid would be lovely. 🙂

    • 7 June, 2016 at 11:16 am
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      It’s a place full of contrasts, but my trip on the River Kwai was unforgettable, for many reasons.

  • 6 June, 2016 at 8:33 pm
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    I would love to visit Ireland or Scotland!

    Thanks for the great giveaway!

    • 7 June, 2016 at 11:16 am
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      Hope you get to either, or both, sometime soon, Jess!

  • 6 June, 2016 at 9:19 pm
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    I could have certainly visited Galapagos when we went to Ecuador, but my wife has no interest in going there. She’s from Ecuador and lived there into here 30’s and never went to see Galapagos. She’s a city girl and not much a fan of the wilds unless it’s viewing them from the comfort of our vehicle.

    Arlee Bird
    Tossing It Out

    • 7 June, 2016 at 11:18 am
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      Well, I can understand that! Then again, we are often unaware, or dismiss, the wonders on our own doorstep.

  • 6 June, 2016 at 10:39 pm
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    I would like to do some train travel but I’m sure it would seem too restrictive after a day or so. There are too many wonders in the world to ever get to see them all.

    • 7 June, 2016 at 11:20 am
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      Yeah, you do need to have the chance to get out and experience some of the things, rather than just have them rush by. But at least you get a sense of space, and the vastness of the prairie/steppes/deserts rather than just flying over them.

  • 7 June, 2016 at 9:39 am
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    Aloha from Hawaii. I discovered today about 20 comments from the A to Z Challenge 2013 that were in my spam folder in Disqus. Yikes. This prompted me to review all of my comments and see if I had reciprocated the ones from the 3 A-Z Challenges. Oh my. So, I’m visiting today to say thank you. Courtney – Maui Jungalow blog.

    • 7 June, 2016 at 11:21 am
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      It’s horrible when you find stuff like that lurking in the depths of the computer! Not to worry – glad you’ve found me now!

    • 7 June, 2016 at 11:25 am
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      Yeah – funny. I’ve never considered them dangerous. Need for alertness in some places… but that’s the same anywhere, with the possible exception of New Zealand, and they’d say that’s changing. As a traveler, the best thing I ever did was read the Lonely Planet Guide to my own city. It gives you a benchmark for other descriptions.
      I remember stopping in El Paso (on a trans-US train ride in 1989). I wandered from the youth hostel into the centre in shorts and tee, then went back and put my one-and-only-skirt on. Safety first.

  • 7 June, 2016 at 7:17 pm
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    I would like to visit Scandinavia ♡ Thank you

    • 7 June, 2016 at 7:50 pm
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      I recommend it! I’d like to see a lot more of it 🙂

  • 8 June, 2016 at 1:30 am
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    Haiti or France and thanks for the giveaway!

    • 10 June, 2016 at 9:54 am
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      Hmm, Haiti sounds interesting! Thanks, Alexis 🙂

  • 8 June, 2016 at 2:42 am
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    I want to visit Canada.

  • 8 June, 2016 at 8:03 am
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    Going on a book cruise in February that will take me to Honduras, Belize, and Mexico.

    • 10 June, 2016 at 9:56 am
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      Well, I hope it’s a small ship that doesn’t do stupid things like anchoring in fragile reef ecosystems, but enough of my foibles – have a great time!

  • 8 June, 2016 at 3:24 pm
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    Romance, not so much. Vigo Mortenson, absolutely. He is a definite hunk. I’ve been to the Galapagos – we took the family and had a memorable time. The islands, flora and fauna are incredible, and not such a carbon footprint from here. Hubs and I plan to take a riverboat trip from Moscow to St. Petersburg sometime soon – next year we cross Canada by train to celebrate our 5oth. I was a child bride, BTW.
    Love “Jumping Genres in June!”

    • 10 June, 2016 at 9:56 am
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      Of course you were a child bride – using that oldfashioned ‘promised at birth’ etc 😉

  • 9 June, 2016 at 3:16 am
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    It’s really hard to consider going to all of these amazing places, knowing, as you say, what the carbon footprint ends up being. I still want to go to Europe if I can at some point, but I’ll wait until there’s a necessity for me to be there to couple a vacation with it.

    • 10 June, 2016 at 9:57 am
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      Yeah, make the most of it when you have to travel 🙂

  • 9 June, 2016 at 6:33 am
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    I want to go to New Zealand. Beautiful country and neat geography.
    Thanks for the contest.

    slehan at juno dot com

    • 10 June, 2016 at 9:57 am
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      You’re welcome. Of course, I’d love to visit Alaska 🙂

  • 10 June, 2016 at 5:05 am
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    I would love to visit Italy.

    • 10 June, 2016 at 9:59 am
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      Went for the first time in a zillion years (when I last went skiing) last November – a train trip to Venice. Awesome place and totally lived up to expectations.

  • 10 June, 2016 at 11:18 am
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    That is true, with climate change now a days it would suck to end up some place nice yet be sweating to death the whole time. Especially with a ton of other tourists. Another reason for me to stay put, thanks lol

  • 10 June, 2016 at 2:20 pm
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    Beijing would be so cool to visit!

    I’m a visual artist – that’s what I teach. So much of traveling is just seeing the surroundings, taking in their differences, and looking at the art. I say that, but when we went to New Mexico I grew tired of the art museums. I think it’s just because I had two little boys (ages 4 and 6) with lots of energy, and a husband that wanted to SLOWLY look at the art. I was the middle person. I tried playing games, like I spot my favorite art piece; can you guess what it is? Then we went too slow for my husband. I gave up.

    I have a few blogger friends from Singapore. That would be neat to go to just because I’ve seen some of what’s there through them blogging about it.

    • 13 June, 2016 at 10:43 am
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      I recommend the art galleries in Melbourne and Brisbane – the latter has some fascinating art in a mixture of styles, and I enjoyed watching the schoolkids answering questions about one of the paintings that looked like a dragon-island 🙂

  • 12 June, 2016 at 5:06 am
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    Well I’ve never left the US so anywhere would be an adventure. I really want to say France so I can go to Paris but I think maybe Norway or Sweden. If I go to either of those, I could see where some of my ancestors lived and maybe find out more about them. I’d go to Germany but I would have no idea where to start.

  • 13 June, 2016 at 3:51 am
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    I really would love to go anywhere but maybe the South Pacific, Tahiti or Bora Bora.

    • 17 June, 2016 at 10:45 am
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      Oooh, yes. Tahiti (or rather, Moorea next door) is everything I imagined in a Pacific island.

  • 13 June, 2016 at 4:02 am
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    I’d love to go to Iceland. My dad lived there when he was very young and I want to see all the places I heard stories about.

    • 17 June, 2016 at 10:46 am
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      I think that would be great. My dad lived in Africa, and I don’t want to go for the same reason – I think it’s changed too much from the stories he told 🙂

  • 14 June, 2016 at 11:20 am
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    I would love to go to France ❤❤🗼 so I can visit Paris, one day, one day 😊

    • 17 June, 2016 at 10:47 am
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      Paris is a wonderful city. I had a particularly memorable midnight walk, thanks to my friend who lives there. Sightseeing with locals is best!

  • 17 June, 2016 at 11:32 am
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    I’ve always wanted to visit Australia.

    • 19 June, 2016 at 10:00 am
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      If you go once, you need to go back to see more of it! Just saying…

    • 19 June, 2016 at 10:00 am
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      Germany’s a great place and much under-rated on the scenery front, too.

  • 19 June, 2016 at 1:25 am
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    always wanted to see italy

    • 19 June, 2016 at 10:01 am
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      Yes I’d like to see more of Italy, but at least I’ve done some mountains, and ticked Venice off my list at last 🙂

  • 20 June, 2016 at 2:11 am
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    Chile

    • 20 June, 2016 at 10:02 am
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      I love your just-in-time approach! Chile is well worth a visit 🙂

  • 20 June, 2016 at 11:35 am
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    Thank you so so much!!!

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