I’m here to tell you the buzz is for reals, y’all. This book was excellent. I’m a little embarrassed to admit I read it in one sitting. It was that good. The main character is snarky and pissed off with real problems that she doesn’t want to deal with and I don’t blame her. The characters were drawn so realistically. I may be an old lady and it’s been a (long) while since I was in high school but I felt like I knew these people. Or that I’ve known people just like them.

Just because we’ve come a long way technology-wise doesn’t mean that we as basic humans have changed that much. I love reading a good YA book, especially a contemporary (Simone Elkeles, I’m looking at you) and I HIGHLY recommend this one.

And she was only 17 or 18 when she wrote it too. Which means Kody is my hero. I was writing at that age but never took it seriously. I really wish I would’ve…

That is all.

Even cooler? Y’all who missed Forbidden the first time around have gone out and bought it and now it’s landed at number ten on the MBaM chart! Wow! That book came out last November so I’m…shocked. And excited. And so so thankful!

In other news I’m working on my seekrit project and it’s going great. I still love it. I’m torturing my hero and heroine and though that makes me feel evil, it’s necessary.

What are you up to this Monday? Can you believe it’s almost September? I can NOT…

My heroine is staring out this window at this very moment. Feeling trapped and sad that her new husband has left her all alone. The jerk. She’ll show him…

Photo credit: A Summer Song, Susan Kimball, found via black stone heart’s Tumblr.

She should’ve been a romance author.

I think I’m going to sound like a complete lunatic but I don’t care. I gotta throw it out there.

Sometimes I create a particular hero in my own little mind that I end up falling madly in love with. Yes, a fictional character who doesn’t exist anywhere but in my head (and eventually in the book which hopefully will sell and then readers get to fall in love with him too).

This happened with Austin from Forbidden. Oh, how I fell in looove with hiiim. I wrote his story in two weeks. It was as if he whispered in my ear the entire time I was writing and it was pure bliss. I haven’t felt that high and in love with a hero since.

(I want to say that I always give my all with every story and I don’t think my falling in love with the occasional hero means that all the rest of my heroes suck. Definitely not. I love all the characters I’ve written. But yeah, when I do fall madly in love with the hero? The story does benefit. I cannot tell a lie)

It’s finally happened again and I’m there. I am In. Mad. Love. with my current hero. And he only came to me hmmm…last Friday? Thursday maybe? I don’t know but he’s pushing me hard to keep writing and it’s this super seekrit project that I haven’t told anyone about except my agent (oh yeah and my husband). I wrote the first three chapters in three days. I sent them to my agent Tuesday and she already read them and with a few suggested tweaks, she said she likes them and wants me to continue. Wheeee…

But I digress.

I don’t quite get why the occasional hero will really get to me. It just…happens and oh man, when it does, I feel positively giddy. I act like a fool in love. I fall asleep thinking about them (him). I wake up thinking about them (him). I sometimes even dream about them. It’s rather obsessive but when I am in that frame of mind, when they are consuming me I go with it. The words pour out and I’m so wrapped up I have a hard time breaking out of it.

It helps when you have visual assistance.

Meet my new boyfriend Henry Cavill. Good LORD he is gorgeous. And this isn’t even the picture that sends me over the edge. I’m holding on to that one like I don’t want to share it or something. Not that this picture is bad…seriously he doesn’t take a bad picture. And his voice. Dreamy…

I’m warning you now be prepared for more Henry photos because he is just too delicious to be ignored. And he’s so young! God, I feel like such a cougar and I hate that term with a burning hot passion.

Okay I gotta go. A certain hero is calling my name asking me to write his story. And I’m more than happy to oblige…

She always got anything she wanted…

Playing with Fire 3

A teenage crush on her big brother’s boyfriend. It was one of the few times in her spoiled-little-sister life that Alexa had to swallow the word “no”. She got over it, or she thought she had—until her brother’s wedding brings Eric back into her life, as flirty and fun as ever. It never mattered to her that he’s gay. Attraction is attraction.

One illicit kiss, and their reconnection blows her mind and rekindles girlish hopes. Then he sets her away from him and runs like hell.

Eric can’t believe that a woman’s touch arouses him. Not just any woman, but sweet Alexa, and he can’t help but want more. Desperate to come clean, he confesses all to his steady boyfriend, Brandon, expecting anger. But Brandon’s intrigued. He wants to meet the woman who’s tied Eric up in knots. With luck, maybe she’ll relight the spark between them.

Alexa may have lost her chance with Eric, but the consolation prize—a fling with him and Brandon, is too tempting to resist. She never expected to love both men, or to secretly yearn to belong to the one who commands her body like no other…

If you enjoyed the other two Playing with Fire books (Forbidden & Tangled) then you’ll like this one. And there’s one more coming in spring of 2011 so….yeah. I can’t let these people go I guess.

If you read Scandalous, tell me what you think! Good or bad, I can take it.

It’s…scandalous isn’t it? Let me tell you, my jaw dropped when I first saw it. It’s so naughty! Well, that’s fitting because the story is naughty too. Here’s some blurbage to whet your appetite:

She always got anything she wanted…

Playing with Fire 2

A teenage crush on her big brother’s boyfriend. It was one of the few times in her spoiled-little-sister life that Alexa had to swallow the word “no”. She got over it, or she thought she had—until her brother’s wedding brings Eric back into her life, as flirty and fun as ever. It never mattered to her that he’s gay. Attraction is attraction.

One illicit kiss, and their reconnection blows her mind and rekindles girlish hopes. Then he sets her away from him and runs like hell.

Eric can’t believe that a woman’s touch arouses him. Not just any woman, but sweet Alexa, and he can’t help but want more. Desperate to come clean, he confesses all to his steady boyfriend, Brandon, expecting anger. But Brandon’s intrigued. He wants to meet the woman who’s tied Eric up in knots. With luck, maybe she’ll relight the spark between them.

Alexa may have lost her chance with Eric, but the consolation prize—a fling with him and Brandon, is too tempting to resist. She never expected to love both men, or to secretly yearn to belong to the one who commands her body like no other…

You can read an excerpt here if you’re so inclined. I really enjoy working on the Playing With Fire series. There’s at least one more book in the works. Maybe more, I’m not sure.

So I’m looking forward to Tuesday (August 24th to be exact). Are you?

I don’t have blurbage yet. Sorry…

My editor calls the guy on the cover my sexy nerd. Ha! It’s true though. The hero in the book is a sexy nerd. Gotta love those quiet guys who wear glasses right? Hmmm…

My novella is coming out along with Anne Rainey’s A Little Bit Naughty and S.L. Carpenter’s Need You Now. I’m in good company right? That’s what I thought.

Watch for all three of them on October 12th!

So have you discovered Tumblr? Oh goodness. Oh my. I have resisted for a long, long time and finally I caved in. Wasted (no not wasted!) most of my Sunday afternoon searching gorgeous Tumblr blogs and I’m calling it research. Yes, research because so many of the photos and quotes were inspiring. Isn’t the job of a writer wonderful? To call looking at pretty things research? Ha! I can justify anything.

I have my own Tumblr page – here’s the url:  http://karenerickson.tumblr.com/

If you have a page, tell me in comments! Or follow me and I’ll follow you! Yet another site to hang out on right? Oh yeah…

Happy Monday!

School starts this upcoming Monday.

I’ll get back on track come Monday I swear! I have lots of things to share. For one, a new cover! I love cover art…

So see ya next week! I promise!