Hey Blog Babes…sorry to announce, but the schedule here will continue to be a bit spotty for a while longer. Thanks for all the notes of support, they mean a great deal. I miss you all and will post when I can.

I wish I could do this with more fanfare, but I wanted to announce that my new release, THE GREAT SCOT, hits the shelves tomorrow. I hope you all will give it a look!

Below are a few of the reviews I received over the weekend…check them out:

THE GREAT SCOT
Donna Kauffman
Brava Books
March 2007
ISBN: 0-7582-1201-1
Contemporary Romance

Erin MacGregor has a fascinating job. She travels the world scouting locations for the American reality TV show, Your Prince Charming; a show that brings twelve gorgeous women and one handsome bachelor together to find romance. She finds the dream date locations necessary to insight romantic notions for the contestants and the viewers. And no other dream location quite compares to the ancient glory of Glenmuir; a clan stronghold nestled in the loving arms of the Scottish Highlands. The atmosphere is undeniable and compelling, almost as compelling as the owner, Dylan Chisholm.

Fighting her attraction to Dylan, and fighting Dylan for the use of his castle, Erin struggles to reconcile her career with the desires of her heart. But can Erin actually hope to live the romance that she normally finds for others?

A fabulous novel, this story has great character depth. The arrogance of Dylan and the quick-wittedness of Erin are wonderfully portrayed. I loved the conflicting choices between career, love and duty to one’s family. A terrific read, I could scarcely put it down!

Reviewed By: Rista Tompkins
Rated: 4 1/2

*************************
THE GREAT SCOT - Donna Kauffman
Kensington Brava
ISBN: 978-07582-1201-1
March 2007
Contemporary Romance

Present Day Glenbuie, Scotland and Glenshire Manor

Erin MacGregor travels the world scouting locations for Your Prince Charming, a reality TV show in which a bachelor is presented with a dozen beautiful bachelorettes as bride candidates. Following up on a lead, Erin finds the ideal location for the next show in a 400-year-old manor set in a remote, scenic area of Scotland. The local people are all for having the show filmed here; the village could use the boost in their economy that the publicity would bring. The only problem is the clan chief, Dylan Chisholm, who owns the manor…and who also happens to be a gorgeous hunk who turns the usually highly efficient Erin to mush.

As a young man, Dylan left home for university, married a beautiful, glamorous society wife and had a successful career in Edinburgh as a stock trader. Now he’s come home a widower ready to take up his duties as head of the Chisholm clan. His first task is to repair the old house enough to open a bed and breakfast; his second task is to discourage the locals from their infernal matchmaking. The last thing he needs is to be pestered by a plain-looking Yank with some daft idea of using his home for a romance show.

THE GREAT SCOT is lots of fun! But if you are already a Donna Kauffman fan you would expect no less. Great dialogue, amusing situations, and strong characterizations are hallmarks of her style. Dylan isn’t called “The Great Scot” by his people for nothing; he’s a broody alpha who has always known what he wanted out of life and in a woman. Ha! He’s not the first man to make that last mistake or to be slow to realize how wrong he could be!

The major conflict in THE GREAT SCOT lies within Erin herself. She was an abandoned baby who grew up in a state home. Everything she has made of herself was made alone. She’s learned the hard way not to let herself believe in or to want anyone else for fear of being let down once again.

The interaction between Erin and Dylan carries the main plotline, but the preparations for the show go on all around them, and minor characters act out their parts. These are made up of the townsfolk — a likable bunch — and the show’s production staff. The premature arrival of a dozen man-hungry “Barbies” gives Erin’s boss an idea.

Ms. Kauffman has had novellas in a series of anthologies featuring Bad Boys. The stories in last March’s BAD BOYS IN KILTS are all hers and tell the tales of Dylan’s three younger brothers, Brodie, Reese, and Tristan. If you missed it, add it to your to-buy list along with THE GREAT SCOT. They can be read in any order, but you’ll want to read them soon.

Jane Bowers

Romance Reviews Today

Tags: Writing by Donna
10 Comments »

I’m unfortunately going to be out of contact for the remainder of the week. My blog will return on Monday, February 26. Don’t forget about me! I look forward to hearing from all my blog babes when I return.

We’ll have a Double SHaQ contest next week to celebrate the release of THE GREAT SCOT.

Hugs to all…

Tags: Writing by Donna
12 Comments »

First up…Survivor:Fiji. Yeah, I’m not sure I’m loving this “have-have not” twist. Maybe it’s because of the sour taste still in my mouth from this season of Apprentice. Whatever the case…I’m not feeling as much love. Yet.

So, like last year, we’re sort of pre-disposed to root for the underdogs. But without the passion we felt for Ozzy, Yul & Co. Again, yet. And what is up with all the nicknames? Boo, Mookie, Papa Smurf, Rocky, Dreamzzzzzz…. We learn that Boo is only half a name, Boo Boo would be far more appropriate. Sylvia comes back to Ravu and alienates everyone. Dreamz isn’t completely obnoxious. And Ravu is sucking plant leaves for water.

Ravu (paupers) and Moto (princes) head out to what turns out to be immunity and reward challenge all in one. They are on a roll, but once again get felled by their lack of puzzle solving skills. Shrieking Erica didn’t help matters. (And Erika, eyes on your own tribe, not watching the other team get ahead.) So…the princes win and the paupers go back to starvation and dehydration. I felt for them, I did.

Oh, and I officially heart Earl. Him and his misunderstood dead snake. Love.

Ravu loses and it looks like Sylvia will go home, but Mookie really hated that Erica freaked out, so he and Rocky engineer an overthrow of the heretofor already planned Sylvia ousting and, though not everyone agrees, they get enough votes to send Erica packing. Should they have sent Sylvia first? Yeah. But I haven’t been on the Erica love train since her pouting upon arrival at pauper’s beach. So I’m not all broken up over this.

Next week, Sylvia looks for the idol…and someone on Moto gets sick and thinks he/she is going to die. Bets that it’s Boo, anyone? Just saying.

Oooh, a little Dancing With the Stars gossip/MAC - I saw where two time champ Cheryl Burke has made a love connection with Joey Lawrence’s brother, Matt. Awwwww.

Didn’t have the chance to watch ER…I mean Grey’s Anatomy Sweeps Stunt, aka Ferry Disaster Part II. And no Men In Trees viewing yet, either. Will savor both this weekend.

Now it’s winner time! In this week’s SHaQ Attack contest, I asked you to name the book that featured the secondary character Baleweg. The correct answer was The Royal Hunter. And the winner of the free book this week is….ice cream scoop drumroll…..Jessica E! Congratulations!

Tune in next week for another SHaQ Quest! (And with the holiday weekend, the next blog will be Tuesday.)

Hope everyone has a great weekend - stay safe and warm…and enjoy the sales!

Tags: Writing by Donna
8 Comments »

Have I mentioned it’s Tundra Time here? And, btw, no National Guard guys showed up when I got stuck today, shirtless or otherwise. You guys are slacking off on me now.

So, American Idol finally gets interesting. It’s Hot Seat Night when they bring the final 40 one by one, make them sit in the Sorting Chair, and tell them if they’ve made it or not. (I recognized maybe half of these people from the auditions. Sad, really.)

Making it is…Sunjaya (who was a little too Michael Jackson shy for me), back up singer Melinda Doolittle (yay!), backup singer #2 Brandon Rogers (yay squared!), pink streak Gina Glocksen, Haley Scarnato, Phil (baby daddy) Stacy, Blake “beat box” Lewis (yay3) Chris “Jack Osborne” Sligh (woot!), second chance Rudy Cardena, (I’m officially loving this group so far - but what about the girls?), Paul Kim (love a Korean pop singer, but the barefoot thing? Please.), 17 yr old Jordin Sparks, 5 time auditioner AJ Tabaldo, Stephanie Edwards, Leslie Hunt (? Wasn’t too keen on her), second chance Nick Pedro, Alaina Alexander (another wuh, really?), Chris “Timberlake” Richardson, Sabrina Sloan, Lakisha Jones (love her), Nicole Tranquillo, Jared Cotter, Amy Krebs (like her), Antonella (should have been Marissa y’all), Sundance Head (should have been Tommy - and I like Sundance. But that bodyguard comment? No class, there, Sundance, no class. He’s a great singer, too. Not looking to be your damn bodyguard. Love is dwindling fast for Sundance.)

Not making it…Ridiculously Tall Anna, Bernard, Eric, pierced lip Tammy, Jimmy (braids) MacNeal (rats!), Errick Johnson, Thomas Lowe (who had been reputed to be a Simon Pick, so quel shock!), Olivia, Tatiana, Monique (none of whom I remember), Jerome Chism, Joelle James, Matthew Buckstein, Princess Johnson, Marissa (grrrr), Tommy (grrr.)

All in all, a very strong field of guys this season. Not as wowed by the girls, but they’re an interesting lot as well. Shaping up to be a great season. I’m just glad to finally have an idea of who all the contestants are. Wonder who will make the final twelve??

Don’t forget to enter this week’s SHaQ Attack contest. Winner announced Friday. See Tuesday’s blog for all the deets.

Tags: Writing by Donna
4 Comments »

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! I’m here in living ice sculpture land, keeping fingers and toes crossed that the power lines stay up and my heat stays on. Hope you all are staying warm, too!

So…last night was Hollywood Week #1 for American Idol. I don’t really have much to MAC on as they just sort of breezed through the individual and group sing moments and wham, we went from 172 to 56. I think. It was a blur really. They spent a lot of time on a few people who mostly ended up getting cut, and no time following up on a bunch of people we got to hear and see during the audtions. It was strangely disconnecting. Moreso than past seasons, at least for me. If we get weeks of stupid bad auditions, it would be nice to have at least two episodes of this. Or a two hour show. Something. This was way too condensed and rushed, and yet it’s the part that is far more entertaining (to me at least) than watching another week of idiots on parade. So cut one of those weeks and give us more of this part of the audition process. I wasn’t connected to any of it.

From the glimpses of the winning rooms, Chris the Curly Haired guy made it, Sundance made it (though why, after his horrendous two auditions I’ll never know) and the younger Indian sibling (Surya?) made it, though we saw nothing of him in Hollywood except at the end when he consoled his sister who didn’t make it.

Sparkly eyed blonde country girl didn’t make it, Shakira wannabe didn’t make it (thank goodness) but pink-streaked hair girl did. (I know no names. This doesn’t bode well. I should remember at least one or two names.)

The rest was really a total blur with next to no followups to people we met during the initial auditions. Most of them we never got to see in this round. Ah well, tonight we narrow it down to 24. I think. 12 girls and 12 guys. Maybe they will stand out more then. I can only hope.

And more Top Design tonight! I’m really enjoying that one. Even Todd was better this last time.

Don’t forget to check out the SHaQ Attack contest this week. Details in Tuesday’s post!

Ice is beating down on my roof as I type. I suppose I should go get some pages done. Just in case. I need hot chocolate.

And don’t forget - National Guard. Cute. Shirts optional. Really, I ask for so little.

Tags: Writing by Donna
7 Comments »

So…I went easy on ya last week. This week? Not so much. I’ve been getting a bunch of mail lately asking when I’m going to write another paranormal (ya never know) so I decided to make it the Scavenger Hunt Question this week.

I wrote five of them a few years back. The Legend MacKinnon, Legend of the Sorcerer, Your Wish is My Command, Royal Hunter, and Charm Stone. What I want to know is…Which one featured a secondary character named Baleweg?

(Hey, it could have been harder. All but one featured a pet/animal of some kind - I was going to make you list them. See? Much simpler, this contest.)

Send your answers to donna@donnakauffman.com with “I Got It!” inthe subject line.

In the meantime, we’re expecting the mother of all ice storms today and tomorrow, so if you don’t hear from me for a day or two, it’s likely I have no DSL. Or power, for that matter. Feel free to send the National Guard. Preferably the good looking ones. Shirts are optional. Thanks.

Tags: Writing by Donna
4 Comments »

Okay, so not all that mondo…but some MAC nonetheless…

Starting with Grease…

They are clearly making it up as they go along, but whatever. We find out which two Danny’s and which two Sandy’s are in the bottom two. And, despite the fact that we voted and someone lost, these two must sing off and, I guess (they don’t really explain much) the judges decide which of the two go home. Again, whatever. For the guys, it’s Second Chance Matt (duh) and Jason. For Sandy’s it’s Second Chance Ashley (duh squared) and Allie. I’m pretty sure it’s the second chance kids going home. So I guess it gets interesting next week.

In the meantime, we get this week’s performances by the remaining D’s and S’s. Again, I guess. Does the sing off song count for the guy who doesn’t go home? I know, I’m being so silly, wanting to know, you know, how the show is supposed to work.

First up we get Max and Laura. This week they’re singing show tunes (which makes MUCH more sense than last week’s pop songs) and we have Andrew Lloyd Weber as the guest judge. As they are singing some of the songs he made famous, just a little pressure.

Max sings Somewhere in Your Heart tonight and does a servicable job. Laura sings Jesus Christ Superstar (no, I’m not kidding) and they showed a clip from rehearsal where ALW tells her she might be the first woman to ever sing the song in performance. Hunh. The live sing isn’t as impressive as the rehearsal clip. Mostly I think it’s because they don’t have the kids mic’d right. The music overwhelms them and I don’t think it’s from lack of vocal power. (And was it me, or did they have her sing this at like double speed?) Judges - ALW pats Max on the back, but gushes over Laura. Jim is Paula. Kathleen wants more swagger from Max, loved Laura. David likes how Max has changed his look and says he noticed Laura for the first time. (Backhanded compliment much?)

Next up, we get Ashley Spencer and Derek. Derek is first with Footloose. He does okay, if not real strong vocally (nice biceps though.) The dancing was more distracting than it was sexy (for me.) AS sings Take That Look Off Your Face. I don’t know this song, but she handles it okay. Nothing wow, but not bad. I don’t remember more except that her green dress matched her eyes perfectly. Judges - Kathleen says they both did well. ALW praises their strengths. Jim was worried during rehearsals, but thought it went great. David gushes.

It’s Kevin and Juliana’s turn. Kevin sings Elvis’s Burning Love. And, uh, he’s no Elvis. He sings it more like a Rat Packer…or something. He sings well, but he’s a few quarts short in the testosterone department and this song demands that. Juliana sings Don’t Cry for Me Argentina from Evita. Yeah, I’m not seeing her pull that off. The rehearsal footage bears that out as well. Don’t get me wrong, she can sing…she just doesn’t connect with the material all that well. Too Minnie Mouse in some ways, but she does better than I thought she would. Judges? David agrees with me that Kevin isn’t leader of the pack material. Also agrees Juliana isn’t emotional enough. ALW feels they both felt short in putting the character in the song. Kathleen wants Kevin to find the show off inside of him and felt Juliana gave it a good shot, but needs to break out more. Jim - whatever.

It was nice to see ALW really involving himself in the process and with the performers. His criticism is constructive and well reasoned. Good guest judge!

The group does a performance from Phantom of the Opera. I know it’s on par with blasphemy, but I’m not a Phantom Phan, so I could have happily fast forwarded through this part. Yawn.

Now we get Chad and Kate with Chad singing My Eyes Adored You and Kate singing Buenos Aires from Evita. Chad cutie patootie was just fine but then all he had to do was stand there and sing and be sparkly eyed. Kate had a tougher road. She really had to perform the song, and, over all, I thought she did a good job. A hair screechy when she went for it too much, but she definitely drew your attention. I like her anyway, but tonight she projected character really well. Judges? ALW tells us that Kevin has the flu, which might explain the understated performance. And he just loved how Kate pulled off her song. I tend to agree. She was the first one who really made me want to watch her. Jim….zzzzz. Kathleen wants Chad to project and loved Kate. David agrees she belted it out. I’d vote for her.

Next? Austin and Kathleen sing their way into our hearts. Well, they want to. Austin is out of his comfort zone, doing a very athletic singing number with a high pitch. He gets Ease On Down the Road (which I love) from The Wiz. He pulls off the dance aspect just fine, but the singing is servicable more than memorable. As with most songs tonight, it ends better than it begins. Kathleen gets ALW’s Memory from Cats. She’s not my favorite and, but she handles this huge song fairly well. A few bobbles, but considering she’s not my fave, I didn’t fast forward through her, which is a start. Judges? ALW said she did better with it than he thought she would. Kathleen thought they both pulled off challenging performances. Jim - drool drool, gush gush. David thought Austin’s was the best Danny performance and thought Kathleen was “special.” Whatever.

Next? It’s bottom four time. (My parrot loves the crowd cheering. He’s certain it’s all for him.) Each of the four must sing Tears on My Pillow (oooh, the Tap The Shoulder song. Vicious.) I hope they don’t tap their shoulder tonight. Cruel. Jason is first, then Matt, then Ashley, then Allie. Wow, they have them stand in a line, then just step forward and sing. Jeez. No pressure or anything. Jason is fine. I like him anyway and was surprised he ended up in the bottom. Matt steps in, and while he has improved a great deal, he should go home. Allie takes over and emotes emotes emotes, then Ashley finishes up. She also does much better. I think she should be the one to go. (Note to producers: Don’t bring back people you already kicked off, k? Waste. Of. Time.)

Who goes home? Matt and Ashley. (Duuuuh.)

Which means Jason and Allie have to go perform their songs for the night. (Why couldn’t they just explain this up front?) Jason gets Buddy Holly’s That’ll Be the Day. You know, he does come out with the swagger and he does have the singing chops, but for a big square jawed guy, there is just something effeminate about him. I think that’s what put the audience off. He should be all Sam the Plow Guy but he comes off more like Sam the Plow Guy’s mani/pedi technician. For whatever reason, they judge Jason by himself. Judges? David says he needs to get a lot better. Jim wastes air time. Kathleen says he’s skilled but too superficial. ALW says he thought the transformation was successful. Huh? Whatever. Allie’s turn.

Allie comes out all belting out I Don’t Know How to Love Him From JC Superstar. She has a classic voice, but she looks very plastic blonde. Which is perfect for Sandy, really. But this song? I’ve had so many men before? Yeah, that was convincing. But they’re not casting her in Jesus Christ Superstar. (Lucky for her.) Judges? Kathleen thinks she should be more vulnerable and less perfect blonde. David says the same. Jim drools. ALW thinks she’s one of the best actresses and can go a long way, but should draw on all the help she can.

Aaaaaaand, show. Vote. I’m not compelled to just yet. Right now, I think Kate, with Laura a close second, but my vote is still out on the guys. The judges picks? David? Austin and Laura. Kathleen goes for Derek and Kathleen. Jim says Max and Laura. But what I’m most interested in is ALW…and he goes for Derek and Laura.

More MAC….

It’s Survivor: Fiji. They make them build a luxury camp, then send the woman who helped them build it to Exile Island with a bunch of poisonous snakes AND make her come back to the losing team who get sent to purgatory beach camp. She did get immunity that week, but sheesh. Makes a person want to not play the game and just sit back. Anyway - interesting group so far. I love Yao Man. And lots of guys who don’t like to wear shirts. Hey, you watch for your reasons, I watch for mine. But I find myself missing Yul and Ozzy. Just sayin.

Tune in tomorrow for the next SHaQ Attack contest! Also - see my reader letter on my home page (link in the column to your right) to find out about the contest I’m running there. Good luck!

Tags: Writing by Donna
4 Comments »

Winner first. This week I asked you to tell me which one of my heroes you’d like to have as your own personal Valentine. I loved seeing who everyone would choose. There were a few heroes who got multiple votes, but the Valentine pool was pretty widespread! Nice to know so many of my guys have made memorable impressions.

The winner this week is our fabulous blog babe, Angie T, who chose Burke Morgan as her own personal playmat–uh, Valentine. Yay, Angie! Just send me your address and some title choices (in case I’m out of your first pick) and I’ll add your prize to my next mail out batch!

Tune in next week for another round of SHaQ Attack madness.

Now, a little bit o’ MAC.

So, my sleep patterns are all screwed up and I watched Grey’s at about 2 this morning. It was gruesome, y’all. Just gruesome. I don’t watch Grey’s for gruesome. Especially at 2am. I just got done with four days of my own personal gruesome, so relentless massive ferry fatalities, crushed people, and dying children was not my idea of entertainement. And, apparently, we get a few more episodes of gruesome, too. Yippee. One positive note - I did like the chief’s new look. That’s about it. Pretty slim, I know.

It was a given that there was no way I was sleeping after watching that horror show, so of course I needed a little Men in Trees to send me off to la la land with some semblance of hope of dreaming about something lovely. Men in Trees has lots of lovely. I really like that about them. And at 3am, I was downright wildly appreciative.

And then they go and break up Jane and Plow Guy!! What is wrong with these people??? The one cool relationship on the dang show. Sigh. (DEEP, unhappy sigh.) Sure, sure, they give us Orlando Bloom as George, who I really enjoyed. And, ch-yeah, we get new guy, Cash, who…well, he can pitch his little tarp covered tent anywhere in my general vicinity and work on my house for as long as his little six pack abs desires (he packs a wallop at 3am, let me tell ya) and well, so, okay…I’m not happy about poor, heartbroken Sam, but it was a good show. But did I mention that Jack is losing his hotness factor for me? He’s turning into kinda wimpy guy for me. He can keep Lynn. And their new $900 stroller. (Loved that Marin finally admitted she didn’t want to be friends and could she please just leave now. Worked for me.) I do like that Marin is trying to figure things out on her own. And I’m perfectly happy to let her figure things out with Cash for awhile. Mostly because this selfishly allows me to enjoy Cash for awhile. Hey, after the ferry disaster, I need all the eye candy I can get. Did I mention he can take a bath in my tub, too? Sigh.

Okay, nose back to the grindstone here…I have Black Sheep to play with and things are starting to get downright interesting on that horse farm. (So, okay, some days my job does not suck. )

Look for some Monday MACfest with my views on the new Survivor and perhaps an update on Grease as well. (I’m so optimistic today. Amazing what a few hours of sleep….and Cash…will do for a girl!)

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Tags: Writing by Donna
4 Comments »

That Survivor: Fiji starts tonight?? That’s how out of it I’ve been. So…yay! Nice to have one of the MAC staples back. Of course it has to be on a Thursday, the one night there is already good television on. Figures!

Nothing got watched last night and I’m afraid tonight’s TiFaux’d fare will be kept on menu as well, but hopefully at some point this weekend, when I’m not frantically making up the work hours I missed getting personally acquainted with counting every tile in my bathroom over the past couple of days (437 if you’re interested…I’m still not sure how it came out to be an odd number, but I could have been hallucinating at some point. Three days with no sleep will do that to a person…) I do hope to be able to put aside a few hours to catch up. Maybe we’ll have MACfest Monday! Maybe.

At this point, I’ll be happy just to have Upright Thursday.

Don’t forget to enter this week’s SHaQ Attack contest. Details in Tuesday’s blog post. Winner announced tomorrow!

Tags: Writing by Donna
No Comments »

…but forget about most of American Idol. They visit San Antonio on their last stop and, I admit, I just fast forwarded through most of it. I’m just done with the crap singers. I paused for the good ones, which means the entire viewing time was maybe ten minutes. If that. I thought Fun Ruben was good. Blonde Barbie girl was sparkly and the judges are right, she is very marketable. Hoochie clothes girl was just average but deserved to go on. Dionne Warwick strange face girl, I think they made a mistake putting her through. Her second song wasn’t all that great. But she’ll get weeded out in H-wood and when they brought her back for a second shot, they kinda had to put her through then. It would have been too cruel to shoot her down twice. And that was pretty much it. For me, anyway. Tonight is blessedly the last of the audition shows, and is a compilation of the worst we didn’t see (really? More?) and some of the good ones we didn’t see (which, since we’ve only seen maybe 5% of who they’ve put through gives them a lot to work with.)

I’m more looking forward to Top Design. Maybe this week Todd Oldham will have practiced and it won’t sound like he’s reading from the Cue Card Reading School of Fake Enthusiasm. Otherwise, I thought it was a kinda cool show.

Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest. See Tuesday’s blog for details!

And thanks everyone for your get well wishes. I’m still recovering — who knew bad shrimp could level a person so quickly and for so long? — but am definitely on the mend.

Happy Hump Day!

Tags: Writing by Donna
No Comments »