Readers' Favorite Book Review of Mystery Lady - 5 Stars!

This is the 5-star book review I received for my first book, Mystery Lady. Woo-hoo! Check it out if you like historical romance.

Reviewed by Rabia Tanveer for Readers' Favorite:

Mystery Lady by Anjannette Conner is a romantic mystery that will keep you guessing and falling madly in love. Zachary Chandler’s life was a content one, albeit a little boring. However, that was remedied when he found a raven haired woman who desperately needed help. Found almost dead, when she wakes up, she has no recollection of who she is and where she is from. The only clue about her identity is a pocket watch with the king’s crest on it. She has a British accent, so either she is a spy or someone who fell prey to someone else’s nefarious plans. With constant attacks on her life, Zach is the one who must protect her. He is obsessed with this task and it is during this turmoil that he falls for this beautiful woman. She might be the enemy, but his heart feels as if she is the one. Which one should he trust, his heart or the signs?

Anjannette Conner is one amazing storyteller. This story was wrapped up nice and tight with great writing, an amazing plot line, and wonderful choice of words. Many writers don’t have the gift of choosing the best words to describe a situation, but Conner did it in this novel multiple times. Once you start reading it, you will not be able to put it down. You will want to know what is going to happen in the end and, trust me, you will not be skipping and skimming. You will want to read each and every word because this book is that good.

My Book Review of Immediate Dead by Blue Cole

Immediate Dead by Blue Cole - Reviewed by Anjannette Conner for Readers' Favorite - 5 Stars

In Immediate Dead by Blue Cole, Sandy Cooper, a rookie female homicide detective for the Atlanta PD, has plenty of obstacles to overcome without adding the quirks of her new partner to the list. Dubbed the Reaper by the other detectives in his precinct, Michael Bennett has an aloof demeanor and a strange working style that his cohorts either find intimidating or annoying. Thrown together as partners, they quickly discover their working styles complement each other perfectly, but it doesn't take long for things to get bumpy as they attempt to stop a revenge killer focused on medical personnel. Intrigued by her partner's strange behavior at murder scenes and his uncanny 90% clearance rate on cases, Sandy puts together pieces of a puzzle that lead her to an astonishing secret that could mean the end of Michael's career.

When I read a thriller, I want the book to really intrigue me from the very beginning, and Immediate Dead by Blue Cole did exactly that. I was captivated from beginning to end. The story reveals one critical detail at the very beginning, but the author really makes the reader keep flipping those pages for all the other important reveals. I enjoyed the dynamic between the two main characters, particularly Sandy's "underreaction" to Michael's big secret, and I would definitely love to learn much more about the enigmatic Fred (Michael's friend) in future books. I need the answer to what Sandy "experienced" near the end, so I will definitely be looking for the next book in the series. 

My Book Review of Storm Rising by Kenneth Hoss

Storm Rising by Kenneth Hoss - Book Review by Anjannette Conner for Readers' Favorite - 4 Stars

When a notorious drug kingpin appears to be on the verge of getting away with yet another murder in New York City, NYPD homicide detective Kelli Storm refuses to sit back and watch it happen without a fight. Along with her new partner, she launches an investigation that leads to the shootout death of the daughter of the infamous drug lord her father tried to take down more than 20 years ago before his own brutal murder. Ordered by the DEA to drop the case, she soon gets a taste of the drug cartel's retribution when her Alzheimer's-stricken mother disappears from her nursing home. From the streets of New York to the desert outside El Paso, Texas, Kelli Storm and her ex-husband, Kevin, face down deadly obstacles to unmask the man behind the cartel and make him pay for his crimes.

In Storm Rising by Kenneth Hoss, Kelli Storm tackles some extremely difficult challenges, both personally and professionally, but she refuses to accept defeat. She deals with personal tragedy and her mother's worsening Alzheimer's symptoms by focusing on putting away the bad guys, and she isn't afraid to break a rule or two along the way to do it. This enjoyable and entertaining story has plenty of twists and turns for readers who enjoy a fast pace, and it even offers the beginning of a rekindled love story as Kelli works closely with her ex-husband to save her mom and bring down a drug lord. This is the first book in a series, and I'm definitely looking forward to finding out where the future books take Kelli Storm.

Hot New Release Alert!

Get it while it's hot! Defying a Duke, the first novel in the Regency Heroes Series, is on sale now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple iBooks, Kobo, Smashwords, and Scribd.

Cover Chaos

Finally! The new website is finished, and I can check one thing off my monster to-do list. At this point, I'll take every accomplishment I can get. As to the rest of the book marketing and promotion I need to do, well, one bite at a time, right?

The most challenging issue that requires immediate action is the creation of a new cover for my book. This is a challenge that I obviously thought was resolved, but I was completely wrong. Apparently, my lack of experience bit me on the booty, and I'm enjoying a "live and learn" moment. Okay, so "enjoying" is a really strong word. The problem is the catch-22 related to cover design for a brand new author. To compete against thousands (pages and pages) of other books and actually sell books, it's critical to somehow stand out and tempt buyers into clicking on your book title. After all, the best blurb in the history of the world won't sell a single copy of the book if no one ever finds it and reads it.

For new authors with no name recognition, that means the best way to attract attention is to create (or buy) an eye-catching book cover. This is where I steered dramatically off course. The book in question is a historical romance, and anyone familiar with the genre knows that a huge chunk of book covers for historical romances include a man and a woman entangled in a passionate (or at least compromising) embrace. Second and third place numbers probably go to a lone woman in a gorgeous gown or a lone man in a striking pose, possibly (Gasp!) shirtless. You find the occasional scenic photo on a historical romance cover, but it's certainly not the norm.

In a quest to avoid the "typical" cover styles, I pondered some of the key elements in my book, trying to come up with image ideas that would make a captivating cover. The result was the purple eye that appears on the first version of my book cover.

 

I thought the eye was perfect. Originally blue, I changed the color to represent the unusual violet eye color of the heroine in the book. Beyond that, the overall look of the design was edgy and seemed to fit with the mysterious theme implied by the title.

Yes, well, I started communicating on Amazon message boards with some more experienced writers in the historical romance genre to find answers to a few questions I had, and many of them pointed out that my cover didn't indicate to the reader that the book is a historical romance. Due to the edgy look, the consensus was that the cover indicated a thriller or paranormal novel or something in the young adult category. Yikes! Talk about bursting my bubble. I knew the cover was edgy, but I certainly didn't mean to create the impression that the book was a completely different genre.

Once it was so blatantly pointed out, I could easily see that maybe I went a bit too far. So there it was, the nasty catch-22 of creating a cover. I need a cover that deviates from the norm and stands out from the crowd, but the cover still has to say, "Hey, I'm a historical romance!", or my potential readers might skim right past it, regardless of an eye-catching cover, because they assume it's something else.

I'm running ad campaigns that I'm afraid could suffer because of the poorly chosen first cover, so I have created a temporary revised cover that fits the theme. I say temporary because it's an embracing couple that might not really stand out, but at least readers will know it's a historical romance. I suppose it's better than nothing while I wait for inspiration to strike on something remarkable and unique…and historical. Sigh… Feel free to offer advice.

Saturday Humor

As if wading through a mountain of marketing information isn't enough to lay me low, I have now added website creation to the list of monsters weighing me down. I have officially decided that it might be worth it to spend every dime of (future) profit on marketing services. Who needs luxuries anyway? I just want to pay the bills and then pay someone else to do all the yucky stuff so I can WRITE! Sigh… Here's a little humor for today. LOL!

Just for Fun

I'm still up to my eyeballs in marketing mania. No time for deep, thought provoking prose or even lighthearted banter, so here's something just for fun.