There are a lot of great bands out there today who write some great ballads. So if you’re looking for some inspiration during writing time, or are a reader who enjoys hard rock, here are some recommendations from my own personal playlist.
I got a fever and the only prescription is more cowbell!
Brave Beginnings by Ruth Ann Nordin
I read the first book, Restoring Hope, in Ruth Ann Nordin’s Native American Romance series and was impressed enough by the hero’s sister that I purchased Brave Beginnings, Julia’s story. And yes, I’ll be buying the last in the trilogy, Bound by Honor, Bound by Love.
Here is the blurb: Julia Milton has said good-bye to two men in her life. Ernest who was a part of her safe and familiar world, a childhood friend who shared her background. Then there was Chogan who stirred her passion but came from the Mandan tribe–a man who lived a life foreign to her own.
How can she possibly choose between two good men? Will she choose the safe and familiar path or embrace her passions? And what will happen when the loser doesn’t like her choice?
Buy Links: Smashwords, Kobo, Amazon.ca, Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, and iBooks.
Anishinaabekwe in 1901
When I’m reading, I flip between fiction and non-fiction. Fiction is what I take to bed before going to sleep. While on my lunch hour, I prefer to delve into non-fiction. The MMIW (missing and murdered Indigenous women) is a great problem in Canada. To find out more, I encourage you to visit this web site.
I’ve been reading as much as I can about the MMWI and have three books recommendations for those who are interested.
I did a post on my favourite ’80s power ballads. This time I’m listing the best grunge ballads from number one to twelve.
Get out your flannel…
After doing a post about my favourite heavy metal ballads, I have to include power ballads from the 80s. I’m more of a “b” side kind of lady, so my list isn’t filled with popular songs. I have quite a few, so this is a list of twenty.
I Wanna Rock
Destiny Mine by Janelle Taylor
I’ve been enjoying Janelle Taylor. She has a few books that star an Indigenous heroine. I’m only four chapters into the novel and liking what I’ve read so far.
Blurb: By the age of 20, the maiden called Kionee can ride, fight and hunt better than most men. Yet, she feels a secret loneliness knowing she can never marry or know a lover’s touch. Until an extraordinary vision brings her face to face with Stalking Wolf, the sensual half-breed whose passion will set her free, yet whose love can never be hers.
Set against the majestic Wyoming wilderness, this is the haunting tale of a woman caught between honor and desire. . .and of her gradual awakening to the bittersweet joys of love.
Interested? Here are some buying links: Kobo, Amazon, Amazon.ca, Barnes and Noble, and iBooks,
I enjoy spooky vampire movies. So I thought I’d do a post about the best songs, in my opinion, about vampires and Dracula.
I got a fever and the only prescription is more cowbell!
In my last post about heavy metal ballads, I mentioned the song by Disturbed was a cover. Sometimes a band does such a great job putting their own stamp on a tune that it blows away the original. Here are a few of my faves…
I Wanna Rock
Being a die hard music lover, I thought I’d do something different by listing my favourite metal ballads.
I got a fever and the only prescription is more cowbell!
What’cha Watching?
My last two posts focussed on British and Canadian television. For the third installment, I’m blogging about American TV. I’m in dire need of recommendations because there is only one current series I’m watching. So please help a Canuck out.
Some of the shows from the States I’ve watched faithfully over the years are: Cold Case, CSI, CSI: Miami, Law and Order: SVU, Law and Order: Criminal Intent, Columbo, Murder She Wrote, Quincy, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Little House on the Prairie, and The Love Boat.
Yeah, I have a penchant for murder mysteries and enjoy some sci-fi.
This Widowed Land by Kathleen O’Neal Gear
I discovered a new author, Kathleen O’Neal Gear, a former state historian and archeologist, who writes historical romance about North America’s Indigenous people. Her prose is rich in detail and her descriptions transport you back in time. Currently, I’m reading This Widowed Land.
Blurb: Lovely Andiora is a Huron Indian in seventeenth-century North America. A seeress with a bond to the spirit world, she has beheld a frightening vision-of a blond man in a black robe, whose coming will bring death and despair to her people.
Father Marc Dupre is a French missionary who has come to Quebec to preach Christianity. He is not prepared for his own growing love for Andiora, an attraction she shares with all her heart.
But more than a forbidden union threatens them both. A mysterious epidemic is devastating the Hurons, and vengeful shamans blame the “Black Robes” from Europe, crying out for the priests’ deaths.
Menaced by war and disease, torn between their desires and their sacred callings, Marc and Andiora struggle to find peace and fulfillment.
Interested? Here are some buying links: Kobo, Amazon.ca, Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, iBooks.
What’cha Watching?
I did a previous post on TV shows, featuring the Brits. This time it’s Canada’s turn. Well, I am a Canuck LOL! Over the years, the CBC has produced some good stuff, from Cold Squad and Trailer Park Boys to North of 60 and the Beachcombers.
Canada’s current roster doesn’t disappoint. There are reality shows, period murder mysteries, and contemporary mystery thrillers for your viewing pleasure.
My grandfather, grandmother, father, aunts, and uncles were forced to attend these institutions devised by the federal government and run by Christian churches to assimilate Indigenous people into Western culture. These schools started after 1880 with the last one closing in 1996.
To understand this period in Canadian History, I highly recommend A Knock on the Door: The Essential History of Residential Schools from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.
Buying links: U of M Press; Kobo; Amazon.ca; Amazon.com; Chapters/Indigo; iTunes; and B&N.
Many residential school survivors shared their stories. Although I’m only listing a few memoirs, there are many more available.
Happy Birthday, Canada!
Happy Canada Day!
Today, my First Nations community is hosting a powwow starting at 10:00 AM. Check out this link to find out more about this special day.
Beneath the Shining Mountains by Linda Acaster
I’m really enjoying Linda Acaster’s Beneath the Shining Mountains. I’m halfway through and can’t say enough about her prose, setting, and characters. This is the only Native American book in her backlist. My fingers are crossed she’ll write more.
Here is the blurb:
1830s Northern Plains of America. Among the Apsaroke Crow people Moon Hawk yearns for the love of Winter Man, but why would a man with so many lovers want to take a wife?
Her wry challenge captures Winter Man’s attention and starts a game of tease and spar that threatens devastating consequences to her family and to Winter Man. A story of horse raiding and buffalo hunts, honour among rival warrior societies, and one woman’s determination to wed the man of her dreams.
The book is available at: Kindle ¦ iTunes ¦ Nook ¦ Kobo ¦ All e-formats
The Pony Wife by Beverly Bird
I must say I’m really enjoying Beverly Bird’s Native American historical romances. The Pony Wife is the last in the novels she wrote. I don’t have a web site for her, or any buying links because this book is no longer in print. I had to hunt down a copy on the Internet.
Here is the blurb: They called her Dark Moon, for she was born under the darkened light of a lunar eclipse–and blessed with the gentle gift of healing. As a woman surrounded by superstition, she struggled to gain the trust of her people through kindness and devotion. As a woman of beauty and passion, she was forced to divide her heart between the needs of her tribe and the one man who dared to love her. And as a woman of great power and strength, she vowed to challenge the winds of fate that brought the white man into her people’s world, threatened to destroy it forever. Hers was a special destiny of love, course and pride known only to…The Pony Wife.
This author’s Native American books are worth finding. She breathes life into her characters, settings, and plots.
Running Wolf by Jenna Kernan
I’m still on my Indigenous heroines kick. Here’s the latest book I popped into my old but trusty Sony: Running Wolf by Jenna Kernan.
Rival Tribes…
Running Wolf is a valiant Sioux warrior. During his first raid as war chief, he captures a surprising Crow enemy — a woman! This spirited fighter is unlike any he’s ever met. Her beauty and audacity are entrancing, but threaten his iron resolve…
Rival passions…
Snow Raven must focus on freeing herself, not on the man who keeps her captive. But as she falls deeper under Running Wolf’s spell, she realizes he is her warrior — and she’ll risk everything for him!
This book is available at: iTunes, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Kobo.
What about you? What’s currently in your e-reader?
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.
Love is in the air!
Although I don’t watch a lot of romance movies (go figure because I love romance novels), certain couples grab my attention when I’m immersed in an action movie. There are times when I do pop in a mushy DVD full of romance, and surprise, it’s the secondary couple I prefer. And the other time, it’s the main couple who grab my attention.
So today’s post is about couples who stood out on film.
Maggie Blackbird 