New Authors and Book Acquisition Success

So last week I was in Barnes & Noble at lunch (again, do you see a pattern here?), with a $20 certificate that was about to expire.  It was a rare week when I was caught up with my favorite new releases, and I just wasn't sure what I needed to acquire.

I decided to try something different.  I had told Ms. Krentz & Ms. Cameron that I don't really buy covers, I buy authors; AND that maybe covers shouldn't be too, too different from the other books in their sub-genre.  So I thought I'd test a theory.  I decided to buy 3 books by authors I'd never heard of.  I thought hey, let's do a contemp, a paranormal, and Regency.  I wanted authors that I hadn't browsed before, hadn't seen any buzz about, hadn't formed any impression of at all.  (not as easy as you might think!)  As I browsed, I added one more rule -- I didn't want to grab anything out of the middle of an ongoing series.  I succeeded!  Here's what I found:

In the historical category, a debut author (bonus points!) with a typical historical cover, maybe even a little racier than usual: Secrets of a Proper Countess, by Lecia Cornwall.

Partial blurb:

If Lady Isobel Maitland is caught even speaking to an incorrigible* rogue like the Marquess of Blackwood, she stands to lose everything she holds dear. Strict rules in her husband's will ensure that if she remarries or even forms friendships her mother-in-law does not approve of, then she will never see her young son again. But one night, in a dark garden at a masquerade ball, Isobel gives in to temptation, and lets an innocent flirtation turn into seduction.

*I bought it in spite of the use of "incorrigible" in the blurb, which is a word that really ought to be limited to badly written Victorian spanking porn by Anonymous. NOT, erm, that I would know anything about that stuff. No, not me.

Next up, Afterlight by Elle Jasper.  I like the title and the author's name-- mind you, I wouldn't reject a book for a klunky pen name, but it's nice when they sound intriguing-- and the cover art reminds me of Marjorie Liu's Hunter Kiss series (which reminds me, I should check on when her next release is due, seems like it should be soon?)

Partial blurb:

There is a reason we fear the night....

As Savannah's most unconvential tattoo artist, Riley Poe* is quite familiar with the local underground scene. She lives and works on the edge of it every day. Now she's about to step over the edge.

When her younger brother is taken by a sinister cult led by centuries-old vampires, Riley discovers a world of shadows and blood-- and those who exist there.

*Heh.  Are those ravens in the cover art?  Betcha they are...

And here's a cozy small-town contemp; I'm thinking Robyn Carr, Sheryl Woods, Debbie Macomber:  Playing for Keeps, by LuAnn McLane. Not a debut author but first in a new series.  Once I looked inside I could see that McLane actually has quite a few titles under her belt.

The blurb:

Olivia Lawson is peeved when Noah Falcon roars back into Cricket Creek* after all these years, thiking he can take the lead opposite her in the community theater's summer play.  When she was his English tutor in high school, she crushed on the hotshot ballplayer, while he barely noticed her.

*anybody else got an earworm now?

Wish me luck in my foray into unknown territory!

Other book acquisition goodness:  I went to Half Price Books the next day or so and totally scored-- Nora Roberts Vision in White, which I have been stubbornly refusing to pay trade paperback price for -- not merely half off but a Supersaver at $4.00. Not only that, but it was the last one I've been missing from the Brides Quartet AND the first one of the series.  So it was a little like getting 4 books to read for $4.00.

Also found the second in Carolyn Jewel's current paranormal series.  I must say I think I like her straight historicals better, but I'm giving these a chance and the first one was good enough to make me impatient for the rest of 'em.

Last but not least, I decided to give Stella Cameron another try and scored the first book in her Court of Angels series.  I dropped her a few years back when she started writing mostly romantic suspense but since we're like BFFs* now AND I've got that whole paranormal addiction going, I figure why not.

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*Slightly exaggerated.  A real BFF would probably pay full price.  I mean, it's not like she bought me lunch or anything.**


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**Kidding, people, I'm KIDDING.