Episode 8 - Merry Shannon

This episode features the novels of Merry Shannon: Sword of the Guardian and Branded Ann. Andy and Rev highly recommend both of these great books! You can see more about Merry Shannon and her work at merryshannon.com. 

The other two fantasy books we talked about were Banshee’s Honor (http://www.pdpublishing.com/bansheeendpage.html orhttp://www.academyofbards.org/fanfic/s/shaych_banshee1.html) and When Women Were Warriors (http://www.whenwomenwerewarriors.com/). We also had a short discussion about Sea Legs by KG MacGregor. And hermaphrodites. I hope Andy can find that story!

***UPDATE***

Here’s a link to The Gardener! http://xenafiction.net/scrolls/lena_tg.html

We talked about some holiday gift giving suggestions. Here are some suggestions we had:

• L-Book now offers gifting of ebooks – and a free holiday ebook with purchases with short stories from some of their fine authors.
• The Passion Planet has a special holiday goodies section if you’re looking for something more intimate.
• Cafe Press (we picked Colette Moody’s for the link) – lots of merchandise!
• Kiva is a great way to give the gift that really keeps giving.

We wish you the very best of everything this holiday season! Catch you next year!

We were supposed to have Hot Buttered Rum. The Rev tried it the night before recording – didn’t like it. Here’s the recipe for that:

In a coffee cup add

2 oz dark rum
1/2 oz sugar syrup or tsp brown sugar
Pinch of nutmeg
Fill mug with hot water
Garnish with a cinnamon stick and pat of butter

Note: sugar syrup and simple syrup are one and the same. If you want to make your own sugar syrup: in a sauté pan bring 2 or 3 cups of water to a boil, then turn heat down on low. Gradually stir in 2 or 3 cups of sugar, 1 minute to add while stirring, and maybe one more minute to ensure full dissolve. Let cool to room temp and funnel into a empty bottle.

http://www.archive.org/details/CocktailHourEpisode8

Episode 7 - Justine Saracen and Roselle Graskey

The newest episode is up and ready! You can listen or download it at the Cocktail Hour site. We hope you enjoy it!

Episode 6 - Winter Pennington and Allie

We were joined by special guest Sea Breeze as we shared our thoughts on Witch Wolf by Winter Pennington and Open to Persuasion by Allie.

Both stories were enjoyed, even if Rev had to strong-arm Andy into reading Open to Persuasion.

We also launched off on a tangent about Passion and Perfection (http://www.ralst.com/) and all the great fandoms available there. For those of you who have a reader of some sort, check out the archives section on the bottom left hand side for the archives section for loads and loads of compiled stories in several different fandoms: http://archives.kimlys.com/ So if you're looking for some good reading, check these out!

We hope you'll join us for the next show. We'll be reading Life's Little Edge by Roselle Graskey (the online version since the published one isn't available on ebook) and Mephisto Aria by Justine Saracen (published by Bold Strokes and available in ebook.)

Episode 5 - L. J. Maas

This episode, Andy and The Rev are joined by Sue Garrett, Chief Scribe over at http://www.conquerorslibrary.com/. They've even set up a separate section for L. J.'s work: http://www.conquerorslibrary.com/ljmaas.htm.

We hope you enjoy the show! We had lots of fun doing it. And The Rev discovered that gin affects her memory and nearly puts her on equal footing with Andy's menopause related CRS (can't remember shit) Syndrome. We enjoyed Gin and Tonics and, after that, Rev also enjoyed the Gin Rickey.

And Sue solved the riddle of which fic has the big ol' ivory phallus. It's in the Conqueror and Amazon Series by romansilence, Echoes of Darkness. I read the part she told me about and I do believe this is the right story. She ROCKS!

Episode 4 - The Conqueror

That's right, it's all Conqueror, all the time. We love the Conqueror and selected a few of our favorites to talk about. We selected Conquering Heroine by CN Winters & Amy, The Conqueror's Stone by DJWP, Curse of the Conqueror by Enginerd, and The Edge of Nowhere by Annemaart.

And the Conqueror Coffee Cooler was fantastic! Here's how to make it: take 4 oz of cold coffee, 1 1/2 oz of vodka, 1 oz of heavy cream, 1 oz of coffee liqueur, and 1 tsp of sugar and shake 'em together with some ice. Strain it into a large glass and add a small scoop (or dip for those of you who use that term) of coffee ice cream. Stick a straw in it and enjoy! We did.

Check out the Academy of Bards for lots of great Conqueror stories and here's a link to a site that Andy recommends that's all about the Conqueror stories: http://conquerorsite.webs.com/

We also want to share a link to Cas' blogspot - Xena & Ubers. Cas reads, well, Xena and Uber stories. She does a great job so check her out: http://xena-ubers.blogspot.com/. She's also available on iTunes so you can subscribe and listen to some great fic while you're working or driving. Thanks, Cas, for all you do!

Episode 3 - Kim Pritekel

Andy and The Rev talk about all things Pritekel - to include the proper pronounciation of her name.

Her written work can be found at pdafiction.com, The Athenaeum, and PD Publishing. But there's more to this talented writer than just words - she's also a film maker. Check out what she's doing, and has done, at http://www.officialaspfilms.com/. The trailer to her newest project can be seen here: http://www.selfportraitthemovie.info/.

In honor of Bible Thumping (and communion wine) we enjoyed red wine with our chat.

As promised, here's a link to Kodi Wolf's site where you can read her work. http://www.kodiwolf.com/

Episode 2 - Ali Vali

Join us for an indepth discussion of the work of Ali Vali. You can find her work at Bold Strokes Books and for fan fiction at PDAfiction.com or at the Academy of Bards or at The Athenaeum.

The drink of the evening was Orgasms. Yes, they were goooood! Here's how you can make your own: mix equal parts Irish Creme, coffee liquor, vodka, and milk. Either pour over ice or put in a blender with ice for a shake-like consistency. Top with some whipped cream and a cherry, if you like.

Episode 1 - Colette Moody and Creme Brulee

Andy and The Rev talk about Cooking on High by Creme Brulee and The Seduction of Moxie by Colette Moody. We hope you enjoy our first foray into the podcasting arena.

Here's a link for Colette's guest spot on Lara Zielinksy's blogtalkradio show, in case you missed it.