Don’t forget to enter the contest for Media Naranja (Other Half) (Petit Morts #16) by Clare London & Jordan Castillo Price! Contest closes 7 pm CST, November 28.

Go enter the contest for Boats in the Night by Josephine Myles! Contest closes 7 pm CST, November 28.

Definitely enter the contest for Private Eye (Liaisons #1) by SE Culpepper! Contest closes 7 pm CST, November 28.

Congrats to Cori and Lilli, who each won copies of Honored Vow (Change of Heart #3) by Mary Calmes! Honored Vow will be released by Dreamspinner Press on November 21.

Congrats to Kelly, who won Texas Winter (The Heart of Texas #2) by RJ Scott! Texas Winter will be released by Silver Publishing on November 19.

Thank you for all the birthday wishes yesterday! 🙂 I took yesterday and today off from work and did absolutely nothing. Tonight, Jeanne and I are going to see The Mountain Goats play at the Fitzgerald Theater – Neil Gaiman is part the event, too.

Contests

• Cecile’s giving away backlist ebooks from Rachel Haimowitz, Aleksandr Voinov, LA Witt, Brita Addams, or Cat Grant. Read the contest directions carefully! Contests close November 18 at midnight, EST.

• Kindle-aholic’s giving away an ebook ARC of Carolyn Crane’s Head Rush (Disillusionists #3). Comment by 11:59 pm PST, November 20, for your chance to win.

• Joyfully Jay’s giving away a backlist ebook from Cat Grant. Contest closes 11:59 pm EST, November 21.

• Ava March, Harper Fox, Josh Lanyon, and KA Mitchell are having a scavenger hunt to celebrate the upcoming release of their Carina Press m/m Christmas anthology, Men under the Mistletoe. Go get the details on how to win a $100 gift certificate to Amazon or the ebook retailer of your choice! Contest closes December 2.

• CRAFT is giving away a Canon PowerShot S100 and a Shutterfly prize pack (cards, photo books, calendars, and more). Contest closes December 6.

Bookity

• So last week’s AJ Llewellyn drama led to a larger discussion of transphobia and transgender issues. For me, this post by Aleksandr Voinov tied everything together.

• Skilled readers seem to create a “visual dictionary” of words, which increases their reading speed.

• Paperback Writer lists ten things women only do in novels.

• Did Jane Austen die of arsenic poisoning?

Ebookity

• While the Nook Tablet has 16gb of memory, 15gb of it can only be used for things you download through Barnes & Noble.

• Nook Tablet review and comparison to Kindle Fire.

• Round-up of Kindle Fire reviews.

• Although the Nook Table may not be rootable, you can root the Kindle Fire.

• You can also sideload apps on to the Kindle Fire.

• Dear Author reviews the Kobo Vox.

• Unsurprisingly, the Big Six opted out of the Kindle Lending Library.

• Pretty sure I don’t want audio and video in my ebooks, thanks.

• “The myth of the bookless library.“

Do, Think, Make, Learn

• Earlier this week, Tumblr mobilized against the PROTECT-IP and Stop Internet Piracy Acts, which are far broader than their names suggest.

• The Department of Justice wants to make it a felony to lie on the internet. *blink blink* Is it just me, or does that sound crazily unenforceable?!

• Five prejudices that permeate today’s movies. (via The Mary Sue)

• Sour candy can be nearly as destructive to your teeth as battery acid would be.

• Apparently walking through a door causes us to forget things.

• New research has discovered that mean people are at a disadvantage on social networks.

• A scientist has captured the activity going on in the female brain during orgasm.

• To improve air quality in Milan, a 10,000 square foot forest is being added – vertically.

• If you have a tangle of cords that keep getting mixed up, you can make tags for them from a milk jug.

• Canada’s phasing out its paper money in favor of plastic money.

• All movies in theaters might be digital by 2015.

• Pecan prices are going to be 22% higher this year.

Thanksgivity

• 5 no-bake Thanksgiving desserts

• 10 mini Thanksgiving desserts

• 10 snacks for holiday travel

• 20 sweet and savory Thanksgiving recipes

• Bacon-blanket herb-roasted turkey. (via CRAFT)

• Pumpkin chiffon pie.

• Pumpkin buttermilk biscuits. (via The Kitchn)

• Pumpkin butter rum.

• A range of Thanksgiving recipes from the major food blogs.

• You could try a diner-style Thanksgiving this year.

• Make turkey meatloaf in a pumpkin.

• Thanksgiving plate cakelettes. (via The Kitchn)

• Links for a gluten-free Thanksgiving.

• Crochet a small pumpkin pie.

• William Shatner wants to teach you Thanksgiving turkey fryer safety.

Cookity

• Snickerdoodle “brownies”. (via A Caffeinated Yarn)

• Snickerdoodle cake. (via The Kitchn)

• Bake brownies in eggshells. (via The Kitchn)

• Leaf print cookies. (via CRAFT)

• No-bake Nutella peanut butter cookies.

• Gluten-free pecan pie muffins. (via The Kitchn)

• Coffee liquer (has gift potential!). (via The Kitchn)

• 8 fudge recipes

• 15 brunch recipes

Crafty

• Knit a Death Star.

• Crochet a Jane Austen inspired sweater from Austentatious Crochet: 36 Contemporary Designs from the World of Jane Austen. (via CRAFT)

• Crochet simple ornaments. (via CRAFT)

• Use up fabric scraps by making fabric pinecones. (via CRAFT)

Cool

• ThinkGeek’s response to anti-math t-shirts for girls and women.

• Portraits of pets shaking off water. (Thanks, Seanna!)

• Superman and Young Justice battle Brainiac… in LEGO. (via Gizmodo)

• Battlestar Galactica cross stitch. (via CRAFT)

• Weapon-shaped pillows to enhance your pillow fights.

• Snowmen vs. gnomes.

• How to use regular holiday cookie cutters to make Star Wars cookies. (via CRAFT)

• Sunken pedestrian bridge.

Cool or Wha…?

• What’s inside a LEGO minifig…

• There’s a live-action/CGI hybrid LEGO movie in the works.

• Superhero underwear and hoodies.

• Carbon fiber stormtroopers.

• 24 hours worth of printed Flickr uploads.

Wha…?

• As Bron noted, the Bieber Burger is not an acceptable use of bacon. (Thanks(???), Bron!)

• A woman sat in McDonald’s eating her burger while her car burned in the parking lot… then punched a cop.

• A man bought a used minivan from Thrifty and discovered that it contained a half million dollars worth of cocaine.

• Gold-infused cheese…

• A pepper so hot it will make you hallucinate…

• Wedding dress made of hair.

• Purple fashion fail. (possibly NSFW)

• Boar’s head balaclava. (via CRAFT)

• Power line poles shaped like demented clowns.

LOL

• I share their sentiment on the shoulder pads.

• Did you know Humphrey Bogart played Frodo in 1944? (Well, no, he didn’t, but the mockup is alarming…)

• The office life of the Ringwraiths…

• A mash-up of Cheers and Star Wars.

• Autocorrected cravings……

• Where citations come from… (make sure you hover your mouse cursor over the comic for additional text)

• What your favorite map projection says about you. (again with the hovering)

• Can you identify a cat person’s home from outside?

• Excellent hiding place.

• I would not put pajamas on either of my kitties, but especially not Chaos…

Teh Cute

• Do you know the name of the official mouser at 10 Downing Street?

• Pygmy falcon! Kitten! Baby giant otters! Kitten! Duckling! Kitten! Buns! Cat and kitten! Tiger and cub! Kitten! Leopard! Lion paw! Puma! Tiger! Tiger cub! Serval and cub!

Reading Update
Stay the Night by Scarlett Parrish. ebook. Very good m/m romance about Kit, an awkward and antisocial computer programmer who is extremely attracted to his new housemate, but manages to push him away at every turn. Kit reminded me all too much of myself…
Boats in the Night by Josephine Myles. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a guy who’s not really doing so well since his boyfriend left him a month ago. He’s dealing with a hangover when he hears a bunch of noise at the base of his garden and discovers a broken-down narrowboat, with a most fascinating owner…
True Colors by Clare London. ebook. reread. (Totally reusing my original reviewette here!) This turned out to be a very good and intense m/m romance after a sort of shaky start – I almost put the book away because there were so many different people introduced in the first few pages and I couldn’t figure out who was important and who was peripheral. But in the end? Totally redeemed, because Clare London deftly tied in those seemingly extraneous introductory bits.
Where You Least Expect It by M. Durango. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a straight guy whose unlikely friendship with a cyclist he almost ran over has him very confused about his sexuality.
Closet (Todd Mills #1) by RD Zimmerman. ebook. Very good m/m mystery about a prominent and closeted tv reporter whose boyfriend is murdered… and he’s being set up to take the fall. As a bonus, it’s set in Minneapolis in 1995. 🙂
Reclamation (Dominion #2) by Lissa Kasey. ebook. Very good m/m paranormal romance in which Sei’s seeing a Dominion-ordered psychiatrist to help him work through the events of the last book, but he seems to be getting worse instead of better. I would definitely have enjoyed this book more if I hadn’t read the prologue – it made me too anxious to really settle into the story.
Consequences (Dominion #2.1) by Lissa Kasey. free ebook short. Good short m/m paranormal romance about Gabe messing with Sei a bit after Sei gets caught out while shifted.
Touching Wood by Kim Dare. ebook short. Steamy kinky short m/m scene about a dominant and submissive reconnecting with each other in their playroom.
Wight Mischief by JL Merrow. ebook. Good m/m romance about a guy who goes to the Isle of Wight to research ghosts with the self-absorbed journalist friend he’s fancied himself in love with for years… a fancy he reevaluates as he keeps running into a sexy and reclusive author with a creepy, domineering guardian.
Drive Safe by Sean Kennedy. free ebook short. Cute short m/m romance about a guy driving home through the outback who stops to help a drag queen whose car has broken down.
Congratulations Lucky Winner by LB Gregg. free ebook short. Madcap short m/m story about a hotel manager charged with storing two very unusual awards that are to be given out at conventions in the hotel.
Speed Dating the Slow Way by Chris Owen. ebook short. Steamy short m/m romance about two guys who become briefly reacquainted during a charity speed dating event, then reconnect some time later.
Pulled Long (Long Shots #3) by Christine d’Abo. ebook arc. Pretty good m/m romance about Ian, a coffee shop owner who’s been fascinated by and flirting with a handsome customer for months… until he found out the customer was in the process of getting divorced. As he didn’t want to be some straight guy’s rebound, he backed off. I was annoyed by the whole martyr thing that Ian had going on – that’s a trait that drives me nuts. If that doesn’t bother you as much as it does me, you might enjoy this more than did I.
Between You and Me by Willa Okati. ebook. So-so m/m romance about two guys who’ve been best friends since college and now, in their mid-thirties, are starting to realize why neither of them have found “the one”. This just never came together for me – the language was convoluted and the whole beach in the rain scenario… *shakes head*
Stroke the Demon by Eden Cole. ebook. Meh kinky m/m paranormal menage about an orphaned 18-year old who discovers that the mysterious benefactors who’ve been paying for his school and living expenses are demons, and that he was basically bred to be their sex toy. This was one of those stories that had way too much sex for the tiny amount of plot.
Love Revisited: Nash & Paul (Nash & Paul #2) by HC Brown. ebook short. I read this out of sick fascination to see if it was as bad as the first book. It was. Maybe worse. It’s hard to quantify levels of badness at this level.
Saving Tate by Will Banks. ebook short. This m/m short was just bad, from using the phrase “gay lifestyle” to the clumsy writing to the excess of poorly executed plot crammed into too-few pages. Not recommended at all.

A classic picture of Chaos from early 2004! How would you caption it? 🙂