Authors Show Us Their DIKs (Desert Island Keepers)

And Yes. Batman is so effing HOT.



A bunch of insane women have been playing a game now for 2 weeks. Desert Island (Hero) Keepers. The ideas is that we each get ONE turn per round to choose a romantic hero for our hut on a desert island paradise (or in my case, a 5 star cabana...class all the way at Club Nose). Once that hero is nabbed by a player, he is gone forever. BUT if you are savvy, you can outwit your friends and then make tradesies. There are 7 rounds....and that's as many turns and mens as you are permitted. Who knew how addictive this thing would become?

The other morning I was driving home from Hartford, 2 large coconut coffees from D&D under my belt..mmmm...and my mind began to race. A little. Bit. I was thinking of Ally Blue, who got dissed and left in the dirt after round one, and of Samantha Kane, who is having a ball playing along. I wondered if anyone else out there in bloglandia, particularly authors, would be interested in playing.

Hi,


Currently 20 women (readers/writers) are involved in a death match over favorite heroes from romantic fiction. It's been going on for about a week and a half and has grown into a behemoth: 20 bloggers; 7 blogs; spectators; pot stirring fiends; 100's of comments a day; squabbling; back stabbing; threats. It's a wicked good time. I know that many of them are curious about who their favorite authors would choose to take with them on their own Desert Island.

I'd like to do a post of Author DIK's (Desert Island Keeper's) as part of the festivities. I'm inviting authors who have either been part of the MLM/NIAB experience (I'm such a dork) or are active participants in my ridiculous site. Monday James Buchanan and I are discussing qualities that make for a good hero in romance...so this will be a prelude to MLM. If any of you are interested in sending along 5 heroes (character,book, author), I'll post them on Friday and link back to your site. Easy Peasy. It's fun. I swear. And best of all, it's requires no work.

lb

Of course I emailed this out. I'm beyond control these days...and here is the excellent response...and a heap of books to give away.. that I received.

In no order what so ever cuz at 11:30 last night I lost this entire em effing post. NOT KIDDING. At 2 am, G said...er..Leeece? It's 2 am! Doh.

My comments are in blue...again, I have no self control.


Laura Baumbach's List

Adrien from the Adrien English Mystery series by Josh Lanyon. He needs cuddled.
Jake from Adrien English Mystey series by Josh Lanyon. He needs talked to, slapped and loved. (and tied down and have kitchen utensils applied to his ass. No?)
Sam Spade, Maltese Falcom by Dashiell Hammett.
Nick Charles, The Thin Man, by Dashiell Hammett.
I know it's weird, but I've fallen in love with Antonio Lorenzo from the story I'm writing right with Josh, Mexican Heat.



Sarah McCarty's List

Phillip from the Lightning that Lingers by Laura London
Wolf from Mackenzie's Mountain Linda Howard (oh. I love this boooook. Love it. Oh Kristie (J) loves it tooo.)
Keegan from Keegan's Lady by Catherine Anderson
Johnny from the Outsider by Penelope Williamson
Alec from The Bride By Julie Garwood (oh how we adore old school romance)





Pepper Espinoza's List
Rhett Butler—Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
Father Ralph de Bricassart—The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough (omg my original manlove crush. lmao richard chamberlain!!)
Nick Andros from The Stand
Bruce Wayne—Because he's freaking BATMAN (so true)
Matthew Spain—Snowball in Hell by Josh Lanyon

(and her own heroes)

Jesse Madding from the Master Chronicles (ok he's a very sweet man)
Jefferson Dering from A Hidden Beauty
Teo Mendez from Fortune's Return
Nathan Pierce from Chasing Silver
Jason Squires from Mad World (Pepper Espinoza)

Vivien Dean's List

My pics of men I didn't write or have a hand in writing:

Jamie Fraser from Diana Gabaldon's Outlander books (sula!!)
Harry Dresden from Jim Butcher's Dresden Files
Corwin from Roger Zelazny's Chronicles of Amber
Rob Fleming from Nick Hornby's High Fidelity
Heathcliff from Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights (mmm....ralph fiennes)


My pics of men I had a hand in writing:

Gideon Keel from The Master Chronicles (Oh my my my my. My my.)
Nathan Pierce from Chasing Silver
Macaulay Jensen from Time in a Bottle
Mathias Larsen from Mercy of These Bones
Jason Randolph from Under a Rogue Moon

The last two on that list are Vivien Dean titles. And Macaulay is the hero in a short novella we have coming out in July, though we've just started a novel-length story that will follow up on it. That's probably why I'm so in love with him right now, lol.


Treva Harte's List

Wolf Mackenzie -- Mackenzie’s Mountain by Linda Howard (he's fricken awesome)
Kyle Donovan – Jade Island by Elizabeth Lowell
Michael Fury – Finding the Dream by Nora Roberts
Cain, Lord of Radnor -- Bond of Blood by Roberta Gellis
Frisco – Frisco’s Kid by Suzanne Brockmann (and these seals, they are for you, Treva)

All oldies, but have definitely stood the test of time for me.

Ally Blue's List

Swamp Thing, naturally. It's not drugs, it's POTATOES! Kind of...(tater tots!)
Edward from the Anita Blake series. I would SO spread for Edward. My GAWD the dangerous-killer thing makes my girl-parts all tingly. Is someone bringing Jean-Claude? Because those two are just gagging to do each other. (i heart u)
Ford Prefect (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy). He's not only The Smart One (relatively speaking), he's The Fun One. So, yeah. I always kind of wanted to be Ford Prefect, with the towel and the book and the slightly skewed world view. Hey, did you know there's HGTTG slash out there??? Very eye-opening, that O_O (lmfao)
Hell from Jet's Heaven Sent books. He's so awesome! I swear I want to keep him in my basement and pet him and brush his hair and dress him up in little outfits. Why are you looking at me that way???
The Doctor. Hey, if Jules can have a Torchwood guy, I can have THE Dr. Who guy. He and I will escape in the Tardis if the island gets boring :D

Josh Lanyon's List

Ralph Lanyon, The Charioteer by Mary Renault ( I need to read this book!!)
Donald Strachey, Ice Blues by Richard Stevenson
Tarzan, Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs (well, I want to get off this desert isle alive, after all) ( such a swinger)
Belimai Sykes, Wicked Gentlemen by Ginn Hale (I need to read this book!!!)
Sir Anthony Fanshaw, The Masqueraders by Georgette Heyer

Hey, I'm trying to be eclectic here!



Jet Mykles' List

Damn, that's a hard list to come up with. Here's my shot

Luc from my Purgatory (ok. Totally dig this dude.)
Radin from Dark Elves (what can I say, I LIKE my guys!)
Bruce Wayne/Batman (soooo popular)
Jean Claude and Nathaniel from the Anita Blake series ( hey.is that cheating?)
Nathaniel and Galen from the Merry Gentry series are a toss up.

Meljean Brook's List

Daemon Sadi, The Black Jewels Trilogy, Anne Bishop
Nicholas Daventry, NO GREATER LOVE, Katherine Kingsley
Batman ( I DID NOT SEE THIS ONE COMING! heh. mwha)
Joscelin, KUSHIEL'S DART, Jacqueline Carey
Ysidro, THOSE WHO HUNT THE NIGHT, Barbara Hambly

Bam's List
LMAO



Jules Jones' List

Lord Peter Wimsey, Dorothy Sayers
Miles Vorkosigan, Barrayar series, Lois McMaster Bujold (though he might be just a bit too *bouncy*) (bouncy can be good)
Ianto Jones, Torchwood (and before anyone says anything, let me point at the tie-in novels) (heh.heh. heh.)
Jack Fleming, the Vampire Files, PN Elrod

And I'll pick one of my own -- Richard from Spindrift, who is an absolute sweetie (unlike some of my heroes, whom I'd probably end up throttling within the week if I was trapped on a desert island with them).

J.L. Langley's List

Khan and Sobehk from Morgan Hawk's Fallen Star~(totally no brainer) 2 cocks a piece one pierced all to hell, both dominant alpha males (oh my god. that's a lot of pole dancing for our island. JL's going to need some sunscreen.)
Reese from Jet Mykles Purgator~he can do mathematical equations to try and get us off the island (of course with all those guys I'm not sure we'd wanna leave) and he can paint and make the place pretty
Leon from Ally Blue's Untamed Heart~he's a bad ass and can kill people so easily. So no one would piss me off with him around
Devon from LM Prieto's After Dark and After Midnight~I love his sense of humor and he's a werewolf. and I love ww's.


OK so there you have it folks.
I'd like to welcome JenB to bloglandia. Today is the grand opening of her new place. And I have a bag of treats to distribute at will. I'm so excited! I'm just going to randomly distribute books. Like the book fairy! See my wings!


Thanks to all my author pals for playing and thanks to Sam Kane who totally gave me this idea. She's my new bff. But not really (that's Adrien).
Books Up For Grabs:
Jules Jones winner's choice out of Dolphin Dreams, Lord and Master (which are the two recent novels), or both Spindrift books
Meljean Brook, Demon Night, (and may I add that Charlie is one of the best ever female characters. Ever)
Jamie Craig has two books to give away:a print copy of Chasing Silver and a print copy of Master of Obsidian
Sarah McCarty's HOT OFF THE PRESS Running Wild that Lisabea covets. Covets.
Josh Lanyon's collection....which means I have one of each to give away.The Adrien English Mysteries,The Hell You Say, Arresting Developments, Snowball in Hell, Partners in Crime, Man Oh Man, and Dangerous Ground. Heh.

Now leave a comment!

Not Much Going On

Desert Island Play to resume later today at Katie/Kristie (j)'s

Tomorrow? Author Desert Island Hero Picks AND free books. Now that's what I'm talking about!

Nate is Great

Today, Round 5 is at Christine's. In the interim last night, CJ and I struck a deal...and while I did have to make a bit of a Sophie's choice....I have NATE. This past round I was able to plant two, yes 2, of my fave mens in teh hut: Nate (the great) & Jake Romero (With Caution, JL Langley). Adrien (English, Josh Lanyon) and Colin (Ames Beaumont, Meljean Brook) must be a bit nervous. Heck, I'm a little nervous...

So. Question: Should I remove my unsportsmanlike post and dire cat threat from yesterday?

I didn't think so.

And can you believe that Thea, in a moment of sheer brilliance, selected none other than the Dark Knight, Batman, for her hut? Best.Choice.Evah. I'm so impressed.

Good morning. Maybe some day soon we'll talk about something other than the DIK.

Captain DikHead (aka ceejay)

I hate games.

Now, in the face of losing Jake Riordan AND NATE. NATE. MY FAIR FUCKING CAPTAIN, I must reassess both my strategy (which is admittedly not much of one) and my friendships. Nate. MY Nate. I may have to email J.L. Langely for permission to steal him back. Like a NOTE from MOM saying that, yes, Nate BELONGS to LISABEA 2getha 4evah.

OMG, the pain. It burns.

I will review and see who needs to be tossed from my hut. No one is safe until Nate is home where he belongs. I should have picked him first. But. But. I thought I was the only one!

Well, ok, Adrien is safe cuz by all the coconuts on this island I'd love to see those two under the same palm frond.


I have a locket of her hair...by the pricking of my thumb, Miss CeeJay....

ManLove Monday: Jet Mykles

EdNote!!! Woot for JenB! You Won the $10 Jet Mykles Gift Certificate Of M/M Reading Fantabulosity!


MLM and the DIK continue to suck our time....today we will meet over at MK's place. I mean. Jeepers Creepers I will have my man today or heads will roll...

Meanwhile here at my luverly site, I'm rocking out with the fabtabulous Jet Mykles. And Sula has a mini-review of Key To Me from the Ties That Bind Anthology.

Welcome, Jet! Happy ManLove Monday!

Jet, let's just get right down to it: Heaven Sent. Delicious. I hope you don't mind my calling them snacking good food. We all love 'em. What's coming up for the boys? Any new releases?

Thank you! I don't mind at all. I know the stories are light-ish and aren't terribly deep. As you discovered, I wrote them to have a manga/comic book feel. I'm thrilled when people actually get that. Once you do, I think the whole HS experience is more fun.

Truthfully, I don't have any immediate plans for the boys themselves. They've got 9 stories published--5 books and 4 shorts--and that's what I'd originally set out to write. However, at the very least, Brent and Hell will feature in my next rocker yaoi-boy series, the Indigo Kni ghts. They'll be producing Rabin Squire (he appears in book 5) and his band (the Knights). I expect the other HS boys will make appearances as well. I'm due to start the first IK book later this year. The current plan is at least 3 books in that series, maybe 4.

BTW, that's not to say that I'm against writing more about the HS boys. I just don't have any plan to do so at the moment.


Do you have a personal favorite of the group?

I have to admit that it's Luc. (mee toooo!) Always has been Luc. I love them all, truly I do, but I want Luc so badly it's not even funny. It mainly had to do with the fact that he's loosely--VERY loosely, like hardly anything resembling except the basic feel in my mind and plays the same instrument--based on my favorite rockstar, the one I've been drooling over and dreaming about since I was 14. (John Taylor, Duran Duran) So, yeah, Reese hooking up with his rock idol kind of hit close to home for me.


I wanted to say congrats (again) on the Eppie. Has that win instigated any changes in your life...say...hair color?

Thanks! It was awesome. I'm so glad that I went to the con. I totally didn't expect to win. Hoped, yes, but didn't expect it. Especially since I really wasn't supposed to have written that story. It was a prompt from my editor, who needed a story for the Rated X-mas anthology at Loose Id. It's m/m/f, an off-shoot of the Leashed series.


I went to your website (**explicit**), as a good fan does, and wowie wow wow, there's some nekkid hot computer art over there. Are all the photos related to your own work? Which comes first: a vision of the character? Or the written word? And who the hell is Pet? OMG.

Thank you! I've been doing the artwork since 1998 and it's lot of fun.

Some of the images are related to the written work. In fact, the Dark Elves started as a series of images that I finally put into prose. The DE ebooks are even illustrated by yours truly. With my Leashed series and the Fox and Dragon story, there are images as well. I haven't done but one of the HS boys but that's because I covet and obsess over PL Nunn's artwork so my own artwork couldn't possibly compare. Of course, Anne Cain's now done covers for DE and Leashed and I die over her artwork so it almost gets confusing to do my own versions sometimes LOL

As for who comes first... depends. Used to be the images came first but in the last year or so the written word has been taking precedence. The boys in the Dark Elves and Leashed series in particular don't tend to be real until I can "see" them. There are a bunch of other images in my gallery of characters I'd love to write about but I haven't figured out a story yet. Toy and Pet are two of those. Aren't they adorable? I love them, especially Toy. He's such a sweetie. Pet's a bit more pouty but I think that's because he kind of likes being punished :)

Jet is there a sub genre of erotic romance you DON'T write? Holy smokes. Looking at Loose-id there's so much to choose from! What's your fav genre or series...andmay I add that those liquorice elves are hot...

"licorice elves"! LOL Well the skin's rather special, y'see. it's rather tough but satiny to the touch and the elves naturally provide their own "lubrication", thus the glossy :D

Hmmmm, what don't I write? Haven't done f/f yet, but I've got a bit of an idea for one. Haven't done a historical, mainly because of the fear of getting the details wrong. I finally did a vampire story so I can't say I haven't done one of those. I've only done the one sci-fi and I'm not looking to go back there soon. The HS boys are supposedly contemporary but, tbh, I see them more as fantasy. I mean really, 4 hot guys in the same band and they just happen to figure out that they're gay? And they don't get flack for it? Yeah, right. But it's a nice dream world.

You see, in my mind, it's all fantasy. The elves would be one extreme in a totally made up world and the HS boys would be the other extreme in a mostly realistic world with a judicious twist. I love stories with extraordinary elements, having grown up on Mercedes Lackey, Frank Herbert, Anne McCaffrey, etc. Then I discovered Anne Rice and realized that you really could show the sex along with all the rest. it took me some years to get the courage to actually write a story for publication, but the boyfriend finally nudged me enough to get me going.


Your crit group (wait. is that what fiction/friction is? should i call them something else) talks about how you never cheat your characters. Can you explain to us what they mean? They say it with such, er, reverence.

Those are, indeed, my cps at FWF. You're welcome to call them that.

They also call me The Protector because I don't tend to be as... abusive to my characters. They're all for torture in the name of a good HEA. I guess I've done that too but doesn't seem as extreme LOL At least not physically.

As for the cheating, the heart of that lies in that my stories are ALL about the characters. So my characters all have very full lives, including things that happen off camera. I've tried to cheat and just tell what goes on in my story but it rarely works out well. When I go the distance and make them real, that's when the story sings.

OK the big dork question: how did you get into this? What's your background and why would you ever ever leave a lucrative future in theatre (snort gasp I have the same degree)?

Ah yes, the theatre *strikes a dramatic pose and listens to crickets chrip in mostly empty audience* Went to college for 4 years for that and never had a professional audition. Why? I LOATHE auditioning. Adore acting, can't stand parading in front of other people doing the "pick me pick me" thing. It's so much different with writing. Somehow less personal and scary to me.

As for the how, the professional writing started with the elf pictures. I posted them on a site called Renderotica and people kind of got into them. As I went along, I started posting snippets of a story. What ended up happening was that I pretty much wrote what later became the first 2 books of Dark Elves (the basis, at least). I'd finished most of the first story and was well into the second when a marvelous lady, one Angela Knight, contacted me and said I should write it up and sub it to epubs. I knew very well who she was, having read her books, and was floored. I figured it AK thought it was good, then maybe I had something after all. A few months later, the lovely ladies at Loose Id bought the story. It's been downhill/uphill ever since. That was at the tail end of 2004.

My background... Well, there was the acting thing. I attribute most of my characterization to that and don't regret a minute of it. After college, I started working in computers and have been there ever since. Not something I love but something I've been relatively successful at. I was doing the artwork and writing on the side. Recently I "came out" at work because I'm finally able to work part time at the EDJ to devote more time to writing!!


What's coming next?

Next story to be released is One For the Team. This one's odd for me. Completely contemporary. About a girl who's got four male best friends. She just got dumped and is wondering what's wrong with her. Her friends proceed to convince her that there's not a thing wrong with her... rather intimately. It's a story I've had half written since before DE1. I figured I'd expose it to the light of day finally.

DE5 is due out in August. If I'm good, DE6 may make it out before the end of the year.

I've got another m/m short story that comes out around November, I think, from MLR Press.

There's a shapeshifter anthology that I'm going to be in with the cps, also from MLR press, but I'm not sure that's coming out this year.

I've got another yaoi (not HS or Indigo Knight related) due out from Loose Id later this year too.

Wow. Lot's going on for Jet. I want to thank Jet for taking the time to stop by the wee blog. And, how cool is this? Jet has prize for one lucky commenter here on ManLove Monday: a $10 gift certificate to Loose-id! I'll pick some one later today, or, er, you know how that can drag out for me......ADD thing....


So everyone now knows that I get a variety of fine looking pictures delivered to me by my FOTB (friends of the blog). I can't use them all, of course, but I do like to share the love. This one is from Bridget Locke....Warning, hot pic ahead...click here

Ah.The Weekend.

So. The DIK is at rest, and who isn't just a little bit glad about that? I have never been more competitive over imaginary friends in my life. OK there was this Dead Stars Luau we had in grad school once and we had to compete dressed up as our favorite dead star....and I really wanted to win. There were three Andy Warhol's and they sort of ganged up on us....and there was a lot of alcohol involved...oh and this gorgeous couple dressed up as Lee Majors and Farrah Fawcett and I kept sluring "Your not dead yet."

Ah. Good times.

Monday for ManLove the ever creative Jet Mykles will be here for an interview. We will be giving a PRIZE. Ohhhhhh.


And then the DIK resumes. I'll hook you up. No worries.

Have a GREAT Saturday and get some rest. And do not even consider taking my MAN onto that island. Mmmmm....you know who I'm bringing to MY island hut.

Looking for DIK?

ATTENTION FoolishFiendishFRIENDS
NO PLAY FOR FRI/SAT/SUN
Round 4 will resume (ManLove)Monday


You've come to the right place. Welcome players to round freaking 3 of

DIK Hero Whatnot and Mindsuck!!
WOOT!

I'm suggesting, for the love of sanity, that we all FORCE ourselves to check in occasionally( constantly) to see if our turn is approaching.Jobs? What jobs? We don't need no stinking jobs! If you need a proxy vote: email me! Oh. My comments are in blue.

noseinabook@live.com

Easy Peasy.

Okay, island dwellers. We have our books. But what heroes will we bring? Not everybody can personally bring Dain. Or Roarke. Or Z! But somebody needs to!
Below: A list of the women who brought their six books to the now massive DIK library last week (did I miss anybody?) and their round 1 hero picks. See rules below.

LET'S DOOOO EEEEET!

Step 1. Find your name. That is the order you choose in.

1. Tracy - Zsadist (sniff. Lover Awakened, JR Ward), Phineas Tucker ( OHHH I LOVE HIM!!! Welcome to Temptation, Jennifer Crusie), Dorian (Psy/Changeling Series, Nalini Singh)

2. Thea - Jamie Fraser (Outlander, Diana Gabaldon) Joscelin Verreuil (Kushiel's Legacy series by Jacqueline Carey), Jacob Black ( Twilight Series, Stephanie Meyer)

3. Sula - Rhage (Lover Eternal, JR Ward) Asa McIntyre (Yay for my other BFF! Promises Linger by Sarah McCarty), Dain (Lord of Scoundrels, like one of the bestestest romances ever told!, Loretta Chase)

4. Shannon - Sam Donovan (Mr. Perfect, Linda Howard) Sam Starrett (Suzanne Brockmann Troubleshooters series), Max Baghat (Trouble Shooters Series and now I'm not speaking with you, Suze Brockmann. o yeah. she rulz)

5. Sarai - Jake Riordan (lisabea is so not ok with this. Adrien English series, Josh Lanyon) Rejar (Rejar by Dara Joy),Vaughn D'Angelo (Oh. Things are tense in this hut. I can't imagine Jake sharing his personal space with these people. He is not amused. Visions of Heat, Nalini Singh)

6.. Samantha Kane - Doyle/The Queen's Darkness (Laurell K. Hamilton, Merry Gentry Series) Cat, a young pirate (Windfall by Laura London),Chief of Police Jack West( All U Can Eat, Emma Holly) It is evident that this is a must have. Holy Coxpuppets.

7. Naida - Edward Cullen (Twilight, Stephanie Meyers) John Atlantis (Kathleen Dante's 'Entangled'), Frederick Wentworth (Persuasion, Jane Austen) Old School!

8. MaryKate - ROARKE (JD Robb's In Death series) Lucas Hunter (Nalini Singh's Slave to Sensation), Max(imillian) Pesaro,( Gardella Chronicles, Colleen Gleason) Yum. Yum.

9. Lisabea - Adrien English (MY BFF!!! Na na na na boo boo Sarai. Adrien English series, Josh Lanyon) Michael (Guardian Series, Meljean Brook) Sa`weeeet! I HAS HIM!! I DO. OH sweet mystery of life at last I've found yooooou~, Colin Ames Beaumont (Demon Moon, Meljean oh holy moly I loves her Brook), Colin Ames Beaumont, Hot Sex on a Stick (Demon Moon Only The Best Romance Ever, Meljean Brook)

10. KristieJ - Derek (Dreaming of You, Lisa Kleypas) Dax Silverbrake (Sky Pirate by Justine Davis) Ciaran Tamberlane (My Forever Love, Marsha Canham)

11. Katie(babs) - Alexander (The Bronze Horseman, Paullina Simons) REHVENGE aka REVH James Diaz (Cry No More, Linda Howard)

12. JenB - Vane Kattalakis (Night Play, Sherrilyn Kenyon) Angel (Johanna Lindsey's gunslinger shoot-em-up romance ANGEL) Rule, (The Demon You Know, Christine Warren)

13 Ciaralira - Ethan McCabe (Demon Night, Meljean Brook) Hugh Castleford (Meljean Brook's Demon Angel) Westley (The Princess Bride, William Goldman)

14. Christine - Acheron (Dark Hunter series, Sherrilyn Kenyon) Qhuinn (JR Ward's BDB series ) Vishous (Lover Unbound by JR Ward)

15. Carolyn Jean - Eric Northman (CJ will share: spirit of friendship and all that rot. Sookie series, Charlaine Harris) Joe Morelli (Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich), Ranger (Stephanie Plum, Janet Evanovich) Oh you ARE Stephanie Plum and if this list doesn't just scream lisabea I don't know what does. Well my list...it does..too.

16. Sarah - Clay (Women of the Otherworld series, Kelley Armstrong) Nathaniel (Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Series unless Sarah tells me different!)Barinthus ( Meredith Gentry)

17. LesleyW - John Matthew aka Tehrror (Dark Lover etc., JR Ward) Jeremy Danvers (Kelley Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld series), Vayl (Jaz and Vayl series, Jennifer Rardin)

18. Tumperkin - Mick Tremore (The Proposition, Judith Ivory) Michael McNeil (Patricia Gaffney's Wild at Heart),Christian, Duke of Jervaulx (Flowers from the Storm, Laura Kinsale)

19. Ana - Bowen MacRieve (Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night, Kresley Cole) Sebastian St. Vincent (Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas),Royce Westmoreland A Kingdom of Dreams,Judith McNaught) Oh that's such an oldie but a goodie.

20 Bridget Locke - Mr. Jules Cassidy (All Through the Night, Suzanne Brockmann) Bones (One Foot in the Grave and Halfway to the Grave by Jeannie Frost), Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy (as played by Colin Firth???? Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen)

You knew that was going to happen...I mean, hello! Lisabea's blog, right? That's so hot.

Step 2. When it's your turn, “Call” ONE hero in the comments. (Anybody from all of literature, but you can’t have somebody who is already picked! Who will you pick? Bridget gets to start. Bridget, leave your hero’s name in the comments. Then Ana gets to go. And so on. After this round, everybody will have two heroes, and draft round 3 will start (at lisabea's). At the end of 7 drafts, everybody will have a group of 7 heroes to bring. Yes, trades are permitted.Don't worry about obsessively monitoring this thing. If you don't call your hero in 24 hours, we'll skip you.

RULES:• No picking out of order. Once the woman above you has chosen, it’s your turn. (Not before!)• Trades are permitted, but be clear about announcing the results in the comments or email so your host doesn’t have to play sleuth.• If it’s your turn and we don’t hear from you for 24 hours, sorry, you’re skipped. But you can email your host ahead of time with your pick.•

Latecomers: SORRY, we wish everybody could play, but there has now been a moratorium placed on add-ons, due to the record-keeping nightmare this will soon become.

There will be 7 rounds! We’ll each have 7 heroes to bring!

ROUND 3: Hosted at lisabea's.

ROUND 4: Hosted at MaryKate's

ROUND 5: Hosted at Christine's

ROUND 6: Hosted at Katie(babs) & Kristie(J)'s

ROUND 7: Hosted at sula's