Camy Tang/Camille Elliot discussion

Hi guys! Sorry I went AWOL, I was on deadline for a book. I just turned in the manuscript for the second book in my Protection for Hire series. (The first book is out in December.)

Anyway, I did some light reading to celebrate and picked up a book I've been wanting to read for a long time, The Bartered Bride by Erica Vetsch. It was a good read, sweet and short with a good ending.

Reading the book also made me realize that I love bartered bride plots, where the heroine is sold to the hero has his bride. In Erica's book, the characters are betrothed and not yet married, but I also love plots where they get married and then fall in love with each other.

So what are some of your favorite plots?

I like the mail-order brides

Im not really sure. I like lots of different one but the mail order brides are interesting and plots like you mentioned Camy. read Marrying the Major and Marrying Miss Marshall and both have the plot where they have to marry. they were not sold to marry.

Oh I love mail order brides, too! Maybe I just like the married couple romances. LOL

Marrying the Major was awesome still need to read Marrying Miss Marshall

I have Marrying Miss Marshall on my TBR pile!

Its really good. just finished two LI of Lyn Cote and they are really good too.

Welcome back, Camy.

My favorite "bartered bride" book is Deanne Gist's A Bride Most Begrudging. Love that book! It's not set in a time period I normally read, but it's so good.

I like any plot that causes a plucky, strong-minded heroine to clash with an equally strong-minded hero.

I like marrieds that must fall in love too, Camy.

I also like second chance romances and romances in which the public perception of the individuals differs from who they really are, and they are able to see past the perception to the real person.

I really love stories where they're good friends and start to fall in love--usually when one of them is dating someone else! :)

Missy wrote: "I really love stories where they're good friends and start to fall in love--usually when one of them is dating someone else! :)"

me, too, Missy. I love those books. I watch When Harry Met Sally all the time because of that.

Miranda wrote: "Missy wrote: "I really love stories where they're good friends and start to fall in love--usually when one of them is dating someone else! :)"

me, too, Missy. I love those books. I watch When Harr..."

Yes! There are so many cute movies with that premise!

so I have to ask, Missy. Will you be writing a best bud love blossoms book soon?

Miranda wrote: "so I have to ask, Missy. Will you be writing a best bud love blossoms book soon?"

I would love to! I just don't have one planned right now. Hmmm... Will have to work on that! :)

yeah!!

Ausjenny wrote: "Its really good. just finished two LI of Lyn Cote and they are really good too."

Lyn Cote is one of my fav LI authors. She always writes a good book and she's really nice in person, too!

Sandra wrote: "Welcome back, Camy.

My favorite "bartered bride" book is Deanne Gist's A Bride Most Begrudging. Love that book! It's not set in a time period I normally read, but it's so good.

I like any plot th..."

You know, I've heard so much about that book but never read it because I didn't care much for the setting. But it's on my TBR pile somewhere.

Patriciaw wrote: "I also like second chance romances and romances in which the public perception of the individuals differs from who they really are, and they are able to see past the perception to the real person. "

OMG I love both of those too!!!! I love the Regencies where the heroine is blamed for some scandalous past but she's innocent, or the hero is suspected of something illegal but he's innocent.

Missy wrote: "I really love stories where they're good friends and start to fall in love--usually when one of them is dating someone else! :)"

I like the good friends into lovers theme, too,although I admit I don't care for the ones where one of them is dating someone else at the start of the book. The switch of affections is a bit difficult for me since that happened to me (my boyfriend switched affections pretty fast).

Miranda wrote: "me, too, Missy. I love those books. I watch When Harry Met Sally all the time because of that."

I might be the only person on the planet who didn't care much for that movie. :P

Camy wrote: "Missy wrote: "I really love stories where they're good friends and start to fall in love--usually when one of them is dating someone else! :)"

I like the good friends into lovers theme, too,althou..."

Camy, I can see that. I think what I really enjoy is watching the falling in love with your friend part--where they both fight it. And for that to work for me, the one they've been dating needs to be a bad situation (or broken up already). I'll be sure to keep what you said in mind when writing them, though! Note to self: break them up before story starts. :)

Aw, thanks Missy! That's very kind of you.

Camy wrote: "Patriciaw wrote: "I also like second chance romances and romances in which the public perception of the individuals differs from who they really are, and they are able to see past the perception to..."

I like those too, Camy. Mistaken identity romances. Also the romances where the hero or heroine is supposed to be with one person--according to law or family edict or some such thing--but their heart falls for someone else, someone seemingly impossible to be with.

Camy wrote: "I might be the only person on the planet who didn't care much for that movie. :P"

Uh, no. Didn't work much for me either. Love Billy Crystal in general, not so much in movies. As much as I love the stoyrtelling in the Forget Paris movie, he drives me nuts.

Patriciaw wrote: "Also the romances where the hero or heroine is supposed to be with one person--according to law or family edict or some such thing--but their heart falls for someone else, someone seemingly impossible to be with. "

I love those too, because I'm always wondering how the author will get them together! Some of them have very creative, clever resolutions.

Patriciaw wrote: "Camy wrote: "I might be the only person on the planet who didn't care much for that movie. :P"

Uh, no. Didn't work much for me either. Love Billy Crystal in general, not so much in movies. As m..."

I didn't like it because I don't care much for Meg Ryan as an actress. Not sure why, because she's not a bad actress or anything like that. I think her characters tend not to resonate with me personally.

Camy wrote: "Miranda wrote: "me, too, Missy. I love those books. I watch When Harry Met Sally all the time because of that."

I might be the only person on the planet who didn't care much for that movie. :P"

Camy not the only one. I think I watched it once but thats it. not into these movies as much.

Ausjenny wrote: "Camy not the only one. I think I watched it once but thats it. not into these movies as much. "

Yeah, you know I haven't enjoyed the romantic comedies much after I hit 25. I'm not sure why.

I am not a big fan of these I watched PS you've got mail and once was enough!

I've never seen When Harry Met Sally. I like You've Got Mail, which has that "girl falls for impossible new guy when she's dating another" romance, but my favorite (contemporary) romantic comedy is While You Were Sleeping. Otherwise, give me the romantic comedy movies from the forties--clean and goofy.

OMG I LOVED While You Were Sleeping. Sandra Bullock was amazing. I also like to use it as an example to our church youth group because the character "fell in love" with a guy without knowing him but then got to know his brother and really fell in love with him instead.

I, too, loved While you Were Sleeping!

Sandra Bullock was great, but Bill Pullman had some terrific scenes, too, like when he was drawing cards with his unconscious brother to see who gets Lucy--and he loses! Makes you want to laugh and cry at the same time.

I remember that scene! That was hilarious!

While You Were Sleeping and You've Got Mail along with Princess Bride are probably the movies I watched most.

I watched Princess Bride so much during college that I used to have most of it memorized!

Camy wrote: "I watched Princess Bride so much during college that I used to have most of it memorized!"

Inconceivable!

ROFL! I saw the actor on a couple episodes of Eureka and the writers snuck in "Inconceivable." It was hilarious!

A bit off topic, but not. Jerry & I went to a conference last week for Proteus Syndrome. A rare condition he has. We just received the YouTube links. Jerry had asked to speak Saturday morning as he is one of the oldest patients alive, there is one more known older than him. While there I just kept thinking about these wonderful kids (at 51 that means the 27 year old was a kid to me.)
People miss out on special people because they see if they look different or speak different they must be mentally disabled...WRONG! I know a young man in a wheelchair. He is crippled up and don't speak well but when you listen...truly listen you can understand Michael, a very intelligent young man.
Sandra Orchards... Deep Cover.. has a young girl with Downs Syndrome. I complimented Sandra on Lori's character as it showed her as the human being she is. So maybe it's not to do with plots but I notice more books are telling of people who may have a disability and in a book you can see them and love them. I just read several books by Ruth Ann Nordin, one the man was a mute and treated as he was also mentally ill and the other book the young man was blind and it showed how well he could live like that. Another book I read had a school for the blind and it showed how they treated the kids normally and had them doing all kinds of chores, it also showed the importance of pushing the kitchen chairs in and not moving furniture or leave things in a pathway. I hope these types of books will help people to treat real life folks with disabilities as the wonderful loving people they are. As one girl who was 13 said something like this: Proteus is something I have, not who I am.

If anyone wants to hear my husbands talk or the kids. Or if you are just interested in the syndrome, message me and I'll send the link.

That's a really good point, Judy. I do think it's really good when authors like Sandra write characters to make us realize how we might treat others.

Hey Judy I recognise the books with the blind school it was good. also read one where one of the sisters has down syndrome and how honest she is and so good with children. We have a mentally challenged lady who we saw grow up. she would help in the creche at the craft group and there was one child that cried and hardly slept except when at the creche cos this lady had no fear she would cuddle the child and it would sleep. no one else could calm the baby but its cos they have a special way about them.
I like books that show people with disabilities are normal and often trapped in a body that lets them down.

I did not feel like looking up the title before but the book with the blind school is...
Book 3: Lone Trail Home by Vickie McDonough

Yuletide Defender by Sandra Robbins also has a special needs character but I have not read it yet, it is one of those books staring at me from across my computer on the bookcase :-)

Oh, I have that book on my TBR pile, too!