Maggie Blackbird

Romancing Canada's Indigenous People

Golfer

Fore!

There is no Fantasy Friday today because anyone who is anyone is at Le Golf National in Guyancourt, France for the Ryder Cup.  And what exactly is the Ryder Cup?  An exhibition match that’s been going since 1927, originally played between the USA and Great Britain. In 1973, the Republic of Ireland joined Team Britain. And in 1979, Continental Europe was added. This is when the matches really began to heat up, because CE has some very talented players.

Fueled by rivalry between European and American fans–and even the European and American golfers, the best of the best from the USA and Europe engage in three days of in-your-face match-play (foursomes, four-ball, and singles) golf to claim the prestigious trophy every other year.

Get ready to hear the familiar chants of, “USA!  USA!” and “OléOléOléOlé?!  Olé! ”  Watch for the craziest of crazy outfits worn by fans.  Cover your ears because the roars are intense.  I don’t know who’s more livelier:  The American or European fans.

Being Canadian, I have no dog in this race.  But I will admit I have a soft spot for Team Europe because who doesn’t love an underdog?  And I have a great love for the European Tour.

But with Tiger on Team USA this year, I do want to see him help his boys retain the Ryder Cup.  However, Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy is on Team Europe.  Boohoo.  Who to pick?  My top two fave golfers slugging it out.  I am torn!  All in all it’ll be three awesome days of golf.

Here are the teams:

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Today’s Throwback Thursday: Favourite romance couples in novels.

Maggie Blackbird's avatarMaggie Blackbird

romance couple Love is in the air!

I’m a romance junkie.  I got into romance through Sooner or Later, a young adult tale about a savvy girl in elementary school who falls for a high school senior.  Daring, huh?  It sure was for the time period when the novel was released by Bruce and Carol Harte.

Thirteen and seventeen is a big gap.  Of course Jessie Walters (the heroine) had to lie about her age to win a date with Michael (hero).  Since these two are a given on my top couples list, I’ll move on to other pairings I still think of as ultra-perfect for each other long after I read their story.

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I thought I’d try something different today by posting an excerpt from the current WIP (Work in Progress) that I’m working on.

Redeemed is the second book in the Matawapit Family Trilogy In the wilds of Northwestern Ontario, the secular world challenges the adult children of a perfect Catholic family headed by a full-blooded, domineering church deacon, when a vengeful former lover, an ex-fiancé out on parole, and a seductive family enemy, all dedicated to their Ojibway culture, test the faiths of Emery, Bridget, and Jude.

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WIP Wednesday

I’m doing my second round of edits, and also re-writing the last five chapters.  Have a sneak peek at Bridget’s story.  Keep in mind this is only my second edit pass.  I usually do up to five or six passes.

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Golfer

Fore!

The Fed-Ex Cup comes to an end at the Tour Championship in Atlanta, Georgia at the East Lake Golf Course. Thirty players who survived the last three cuts will slug it out for the prestigious Fed-Ex Cup Trophy and the Tour Championship Trophy.

Across the pond, the European Tour is heading for the Dom Pedro Victoria Course in Vilamoura, Algrave, Portugal.  Stars in the field are two former Masters winners:  Spain’s Sergio Garcia and Danny Willett of England.

In other news, USA Ryder Cup Captain Jim Furyk made his final selection of his four wildcard picks.  The golfer who is joining Team USA in France is Tony Finau.

Team USA’s line-up is officially: Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Justin Thomas, Patrick Reed, Bubba Watson, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, Webb Simpson, who came in on order of merit, and the captain’s picks: Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Bryson DeChambeau, and Tony Finau.

Here are my fantasy picks for the Portugal Masters and Fed-Ex Cup Tour Championship:

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I decided to start Throwback Thursday–A reblogging of previous posts in the archive. This week’s TT is books about rock wives, girlfriends, and groupies. Enjoy

Maggie Blackbird's avatarMaggie Blackbird

Music-Note It’s only Rock ‘n’ Roll

Being a die-hard music fan, I enjoy memoirs and autobiographies by groupies and WAGS (wives and girlfriends)–the lovely ladies who inspired many of the songs we love.  What about those who work in the music industry or became part of the band’s inner-circle?  They’re included, too, because these gals kicked some serious ass.

Have a peek at some of the books I’ve read over the years in case you’re interested in purchasing what kept me awake while I should have been sleeping.

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I did a previous post about the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women of Canada, recommending books I read, along with providing the web site link where further information can be obtained.

Since that post, I located more books on the MMIW that I haven’t had a chance to read, but plan on adding to my ever-growing TBR pile.

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Footprints

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As an author for eXtasy Books, I am a member of The Book Carousel, a Facebook Group playground where authors of eXtasy Books and Devine Destinies host parties, giveaways, and interact on a daily basis with readers of our books.

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We are gearing up for a grand re-opening and want to include everyone in on the fun.  So be sure to JOIN the group, because from September 21st to the 23rd, we got plenty of fun and game for readers.

Golfer

Fore!

The PGA Tour is taking a break from golf this week, so I have no fantasy picks for the Golf Channel and PGA.

But across the pond, the European Tour is in full swing (pun intended!) as the Race to Dubai continues to heat up.  Everyone who is anyone is heading for Spjik, Netherlands to tee it up at The Dutch, a championship course designed by Scotland’s star golfer Colin Montgomerie.

France’s Romain Wattel will defend his title at The KLM Open. Unfortunately, the Netherlands’ star golfer Joost Luiten is sitting out his home tournament because he is recovering from much-needed wrist surgery. Joost, a six-time winner on the European Tour, will be very much missed.  I know I’ll miss him.  Joost is one of my favourite golfers!

Here are my fantasy picks:

European Tour – KLM Open

Andy Sullivan (England)
Søren Kjeldsen (Denmark)
Paul Dunne (Ireland)
Jorge Campillo (Spain)
Li Haotong (China)
Erik Van Rooyen (South Africa) *****

These five gentlemen have been high on the leaderboard as of late, so my fingers are crossed they’ll perform just as well at the KLM.  As for Eric, he’s ready for a win, so he’s my captain.  Let’s see if I can FINALLY rank a little bit higher on the fantasy points list this time.

tv

What’cha Watching?

I’m a sucker for period dramas and mysteries.  I should be because historical romance is my favourite genre to read.  Since I’m on good ol’ satellite TV and not hip to Netflix LOL, I naturally gear up for the fall TV season.  Mind you I don’t watch a lot of shows, but when I do find one I love, I become a rabid fan!

For this post, I am happy to say that CBC is airing the twelfth season of Murdoch Mysteries and the second season of Frankie Drake Mysteries, starting Monday night, September 24th.

I did a previous post about Frankie and the girls, so be sure to check it out.  As for Murdoch, read my other post about Canadian TV shows, because Murdoch is included.

Murdoch commenced in Victorian era Toronto, but with the passing of Queen Victoria, the setting is now the Edwardian period.  Frankie and her merry gals are solving mysteries during the roaring twenties.

Both shows not only tackle murder mysteries, but also social problems during their respective eras.  There is also some nice romance going on for viewers who enjoy a serving of the stuff.

Murdoch Mysteries is based on author Maureen Jennings‘ novel series.  She recently released Let Darkness Bury the Dead, the eighth novel in the series.  The books have a darker feel to them than the more lighter TV series, and I highly recommend reading them.  Maureen is a brilliant writer who brings the city of Toronto and the characters to life.

What about you?  What shows are you looking forward to?

Golfer

Fore!

With the Ryder Cup Team wildcard picks made by Captain Thomas Bjorn on the morning of Wednesday, September fifth, qualifying for Team Europe is finished.

A big congrats to those who made the team on order of merit:  Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland), Justin Rose (England), Francesco Molinari (Italy), Thorbjorn Olesen (Denmark), Tommy Fleetwood (England), Alex Noren (Sweden), Jon Rahm (Spain), and Tyrell Hatton (England).

As for the wildcards, Thomas Bjorn chose some solid veterans to round out a very rookie line-up:  Ian Poulter (England), Henrik Stenson (Sweden), Sergio Garcia (Spain), and Paul Casey (England).

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romance couple

Love is in the air!

Previously, I did two posts about my favourite romance couples in novels, and my favourite romance couples in film.  Today, I’m covering TV.  I’ll be dedicating this post to only one couple, but stick around, because there will be a Part II for TV.

During my teen years, I always enjoyed racing to my boyfriend’s house to watch re-runs of Little House on the Prairie.  While everyone else rooted for Laura and Nellie, loving their squabbles and endless drama, or cheered for Albert’s latest mischief-making, or adored Pa Ingalls’ wise talks, I was drawn to eldest daughter Mary of Charles and Caroline Ingalls.

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Attention!

Funny, most Canadians simply say RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police).  At least everyone I know does.  But to the rest of planet earth, people say “Mounties.”  When I read Grass Dance by Kathryn Imbriani, her book made me want to read and research about the Northwest Mounted Police, as the RCMP was known way back in the day.

I even began to wonder if I could write a romance starring an Indigenous woman and a Northwest Mounted Police constable.  So I added a few more books to my already growing pile of research essays and books, LOL, just in case I could dream up such a plot.

Here’s what I’m recommending…

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Golfer

Fore!

On this side of the pond, the Fed-Ex Cup is in full swing.  The second event is the Dell Technologies Championship at TPC Boston in Norton, Massachusetts.  On hand, are the PGA big guns such as the USA’s Tiger Woods, Justin Thomas, Dustin Johnson, and Brooks Kopeka.  As for the Europeans, Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland, Justin Rose of England, Henrik Stenson of Sweden, and Jon Rahm of Spain will be providing fierce competition to claim the trophy at the end of the tournament and move on to the next match in this series.

Across the pond at The Silkeborg Ry Golf Club in Silkeborg, Denmark, the Made in Denmark tournament is the last chance for top notch players from the European Tour to battle for a spot on the prestigious Ryder Cup.  Watch local Danes such as Lucas Bjerregaard, Søren Kjeldsen, and Thorbjørn Olesen fend off the competition to earn a spot on the Ryder Cup captained by fellow dane Thomas Bjørn.

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alert

Heads Up!

As noted in my previous posts, I enjoy reading about Indigenous heroines.  So when I came across Robin Deeter‘s Paha Sapa Saga series, I had to click on the buy option.  According to her Goodreads page, Ms. Deeter is planning twelve books for the series.

Available for purchase are:  Sacrifice and Reward, Winter Moon, The Bear – Part One, and The Bear – Part II.  I ordered Sacrifice and Reward.  Her site says you can purchase directly from the author, and although I tried to, I had to order them from Amazon.ca.

Here is the blurb for Sacrifice and Reward, courtesy of Goodreads:

Which will be the victor: hatred or love?

Mid-18th century North America is a hotbed of unrest between many Native American tribes, who are feuding over territory. By this time, most of the Kiowa bands have been pushed west by the Lakota, who are on the move southward from the Great Lakes region. These invaders from the north want the game-rich, lush pasture lands of the territory for themselves.

However, one small Kiowa band is determined to remain in their early homelands in the region of what will be one day known as eastern South Dakota. These two enemy tribes are brought face-to-face through the vision of a young Kiowa medicine man.

Sky Dancer, a beautiful, Kiowa widow, and proud Lakota warrior, Dark Horse, are forced to marry in order to create an alliance between their peoples. Right from the beginning they clash in a test of wills, loathing each other on sight, making a happy marriage seem out of the question.

Will the sacrifice that is asked of them save their tribes? Can these two enemies overcome their initial hatred to find love in unlikely place or will distrust keep them from the reward they both crave?

Buy Links:  All books sold through Amazon.com.

Golfer

Fore!

Across the pond, the European Tour is in Prague, Czech Republic at the Albatross Golf Resort with the players battling for a spot on the Ryder Cup Team, and also fighting to earn enough points to compete in the prestigious Race to Dubai play-offs that begin on November 1st in Turkey.

Meanwhile, in the USA, the Fed-Ex Cup is off and running.  This week, one hundred and twenty-five golfers will slug it out at Ridgewood Country Club in Paramus, New Jersey.  Why is this event so important to these golfers?  Because twenty-five will be cut and unable to compete in the remaining three events for a chance at winning the Fed-Ex Cup.

Trust me, nobody wants to be sent packing.  These guys want to go on to compete in the third tournament.  Here are my picks for the fantasy games…

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Anishinaabekwe in 1901

I did a previous post about the novels–contemporary and historical–I’ve read, was reading, or planned on reading that starred Indigenous heroines.  Today, I’m blogging about more books I’ve discovered.  It doesn’t matter if the continent is North America, South America, Australia, or wherever else.

As a matter of fact, after watching Mighty Cruise Ships by chance, I fell in love with the MS Paul Gauguin as the ship cruised around French Polynesia for fourteen days.  I kept conjuring up a romance between a gorgeous captain falling for a Polynesian beauty.  Anyone willing to write that one for me?

Anyway, not to get sidetracked, here are some books in my TBR list, or that I’ve recently read:

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