Taste of Kiwi: Blog of Author Shelley Munro

Lone Wolf is out today at Samhain Publishing.

Here’s the blurb:

When you fall out of step, that’s when everything falls into place.

R.J. Blake begins a new session tutoring young werewolves in the old ways—before the introduction of the shift-suppressing drugs that allow their kind to live secretly among humans. He expects nothing out of the ordinary. Until sexy, smart, aggravating-as-hell Corey Wilson arrives. Older than the others, son of a powerful Los Angeles pack leader, Corey is an instant temptation he cannot afford.

The last thing Corey wants is three months stuck in the Yellowstone wilderness, followed by the stifling life his father has all mapped out for him. One glimpse of R.J., though, sparks a determination to seduce the older man before he leaves. Yet as R.J. guides him through the sometimes terrifying process of rediscovering his heritage, a deepening respect calls to his artistic soul and fuels a burst of creativity.

When their time comes to an end, Corey senses hesitation behind R.J.’s insistence that theirs was simply a summer fling. Inspiring him to take a leap of faith with consequences neither of them saw coming. A dangerous plot that reaches from the heart of their love to the highest office in the land…

Product Warnings
This book contains a young werewolf intent on seduction, an older werewolf determined to resist said seduction, werewolf politics and brutality, a little spilled blood, and hot, naked manlove in the great outdoors.

So, about the nail polish – this was one of the many questions I thought about while developing my world in Lone Wolf. Today I’m visiting Naughty Boys in the Backseat where I’m discussing nail polish and other things relating to my new release, Lone Wolf.

And continuing the nail polish discussion, I’ve just made an appointment to have my very first manicure. I don’t know why I’ve never had one before, but I thought it was about time I had the experience. I’m also having a pedicure. My second because I enjoyed the first one so much. At present I’m pondering what color polish I should choose to sport on my nails. A siren red maybe?

Do you have regular mani/pedis? What is your favorite color of nail polish?

The recent snow in Auckland hit the news for several days in a row. I’ve lived in Auckland all my life, and have never seen snow here before. I took photos – please don’t laugh. That really is a misting of snow, although it didn’t last long.

Hubby and I took Bella for a walk to the bird reserve, not far from where we live. These proud parents were busy parading their young about for all to see. This pair normally only has one or two, but this year they’ve outdone themselves with seven offspring.

It’s not long until we head off to China. I intend to start packing this week. For once I’m not going to be packing at the last minute.

This coming week sees the release of Lone Wolf and my Virtual Book Tour with Goddess Fish Promotions. I hope you’ll be able to visit some of my stops. Everyone who visits the guest spots and comments on the posts will go into a draw to win a $20 Gift Certificate from Amazon.

My stops are below:

August 22: Book Junkie
August 23: Naughty Boys in the Backseat
August 24: Black Velvet Seductions Readers Blog
August 25: Words of Wisdom from the Scarf Princess
August 26: Sara York the Author of Sexy Books for Smart Women and Men

What did you get up to during the weekend?

Yesterday Mr. Munro and I were listening to the radio while driving down the motorway. Hubby listens to a fuddy-duddy station with lots of chat, but it turned out to be interesting when the discussion turned to bonsai trees.

The lady speaking about them made growing bonsais sound very easy. Hubby and I like projects, so this weekend we’ve done some research.

Although bonsai is a Japanese word, bonsai trees were first known in China back in 1000BC. They were grown as gifts to give to the wealthy and were called pun-sai.

Bonsai are grown in shallow pots and usually kept outside. They should be kept out of direct sunlight because there’s not much moisture in the pots. Quite a few varieties of trees are suitable to turn into bonsais, including several New Zealand natives such as the pohutukawa and kowhai. The lady on the radio mentioned Japanese maples are very pretty since their leaves turn color with the seasons. Basically you choose a seedling or small “junior-sized tree” from the plant nursery. Trim one-third of the roots off the tree and also trim the leaves so you gain a nicely shaped tree. The branches can also be wired to attain an attractive shape. Special soil is required – check at your plant nursery – and of course you need your special shallow pot. Once the bonsai are established, they require yearly root trims and shaping.

We have lots of small seedlings underneath our hedge, and we thought we’d try growing a pohutukawa bonsai.

Here’s a video on how to make your own bonsai tree

Do you like bonsai trees? Have you ever grown one?

I suffered a bit of an oops with my post for Thursday Thirteen this week and decided to save it for next week.

In writing news, I’ve been busy working through edits for my second Carina Press book. It’s a contemporary mystery with a romance thread (of course!) and, as yet, remains untitled. This story is due for release in Feb 2012.

In puppy news, Bella is a constant amusement to us. She is patiently waiting for a walk, sunning herself on my husband’s comfy chair. She’s not meant to be up there, and she knows it. Last night before we went to bed, I suggested my husband should put a bottle on his chair the minute he stood. (We have two plastic bottles with stones in them. Bella hates the rattle sound they make and steers clear when she sees one). As you can guess, hubby didn’t follow my excellent advice.

We’re looking forward to our visit to China and have new passports and Chinese visas. Our packing is a work in progress. Today I intend to tackle the ironing pile because some of the clothes in there are off on an outing to China.

Last week, I purchased an iPad. I’ve long lusted after one, and I intend to put it through its paces this weekend. I’ve been too busy with edits to do much more than name him Rohan and stroke him now and then. Yes, my iPad is a him. Do you name your computer equipment?

Carina Press author, Cathy Pegau is visiting tomorrow, so I hope you’ll pop back and say hello. Don’t forget every time you comment on my blog you’re in with a chance to win an ebook bundle. I’m also doing a giveaway at Goodreads for The Bottom Line.

As I prepare for my visit to China, I’m thinking about ebooks to read,music to listen to, and iPad apps. Do you have any recommendations?

We have so many negative things in our lives I thought it would be good to focus on the things that make us happy. Happiness is–according to my dictionary–a state of well-being and contentment.

Things that make me happy

1. Taking a walk with my husband and our puppy.

2. Listening to music on my iPod.

3. Getting together with friends and family.

4. Choosing a new book off my to-read pile.

5. Trying out a recipe I haven’t made before.

6. Exploring new places, both at home and overseas.

7. Writing “the end” for one of my works in progress.

8. Eating an ice cream on a hot day.

What is one thing that makes you happy?

I have two special guests visiting my blog next week. On Tuesday, contemporary author Candis Terry will visit. She’s a new-to-me author, and I really enjoyed her new release, Second Chance at the Sugar Shack.

On Friday, sci-fi and fantasy author, Maria Zannini is visiting and talking about promotion secrets. Check out the rest of her Indie Roadshow tour here.

Last week Mr. Munro’s employer told him he had to use up his remaining holidays. After several days of discussion and tossing ideas for holiday destinations back and forth, I said to hubby, “We could always go to China. We could go this year instead of next year.”

My husband took one look at me and said, “We’ll check it out once we arrive home.” (We were walking Bella at the time)

The long and short of it: We’re off to China at the end of August. I’m so excited about this I could burst. I can’t wait to walk on the Great Wall, see the Terracotta Warriors and visit the panda bear reserve in Chengdu among other things.

Our passports run out in February, but most countries require travelers to have a valid passport for six months after their return home. No problem. Off we went to our local mall to have passport photos taken.

There are all sorts of rules these days.
1. You can’t smile
2. Your eyebrows must be visible
3. Face must not be obscured
4. Glasses frames must not be heavy
5. If glasses are worn, there shouldn’t be any reflection from the lenses
6. The background must be neutral

The end result of all this is that my photo makes me look as if I belong in a facility of some sort. It’s the worst photo I’ve ever seen. My sister, who sees quite a few passport photos in the course of her work, says they all look bad. She didn’t make me feel better. I fretted about showing the photo to someone and getting it signed to say it was a true likeness of me. Yep, I’m that vain. I know I’ll hate showing my passport to anyone. The photo is really that bad! Mr. Munro’s photo is a lot better, and he had the cheek to laugh at mine.

Do you take a good photo? If you have a passport, is it a good photo?

Yesterday, Mr. Munro and I needed to purchase a few groceries. Before we hit the supermarket we decided to have a coffee. We were walking side-by-side when all of a sudden something plopped to the ground right between us.

“Ugh! A seagull just crapped. Did it hit me?” I asked hubby. I turned for him to inspect my back.

“Nope,” he said.

“Wow, that was lucky,” I said after glaring at the seagull where it sat on top of a street light.

Hubby shook his head. “It’s meant to be lucky if a seagull hits you.”

Frankly, I couldn’t see where luck came into it, but I didn’t argue. Fast forward half an hour, and we’re walking through the supermarket. I happened to walk behind Mr. Munro. I started laughing. “The seagull got you.”

Mr. Munro immediately went off to buy a lotto ticket.

I’m not sure I buy into the lucky element. After all, I was the one who ended up with extra washing because of the seagull. How lucky is that?

What do you think? Is it lucky or unlucky if a seagull craps on you?

During the last six months, I’ve noticed a lot more ads on TV targeted to men and their personal grooming. I found it quite interesting, and it made me start thinking. Cue theme music from Sex in the City and a voice over by Carrie Bradshaw…

Are our men ready to embrace cosmetics and skin care? Are man hides about to become a thing of the past?

I started my investigation close to home. Hubby is very conservative in this area, although he does use a moisturizer every day. It’s a no-frills one from the supermarket, and I have to say he doesn’t look anywhere near his real age. Hubby wasn’t actually much help. He screws up his nose at the idea of skin care products, but I think it’s more a case of time and cost rather than worrying about what other people might think.

During our recent cruise, I attended a lecture about shaving, given by the spa. I thought that since I wrote male characters, the information might prove interesting, and I was right. Some of the men, including my husband, used soap for shaving. Soap doesn’t soften the hair and the alcohol in the soap actually dries out the skin. Special shaving foam does soften the hair, which leads to a closer shave. The razor should not always be stroked with the grain of the hair, but sometimes against the grain or across the face to help prevent ingrown hairs.

At the lecture they announced a special for their Shave of All Shaves treatment. I decided to persuade hubby to have the treatment while I watched and took notes for research purposes. Unfortunately, at the last minute, they said I couldn’t watch. I’ve no idea what they thought I was going to do since all I intended was to sit quietly, watch and take notes. In the end, hubby took mental notes for me. Watch for a shaving scene in one of my upcoming books.

His shave included the following: hot towels to soften the facial hair and prepare the skin, a cleanse, a shave with foam and a second shave with oil. Next came hubby’s favorite part – a peel off mask made with donkey’s milk. A recovery mask followed and last of all was moisturizer. As part of the deal, he also received hand, arm, scalp and a face massage.

His skin felt really smooth when he finished and the shave was so close, he didn’t need to shave for two days. Just quietly, I think he actually enjoyed the process, even though I had to talk fast to persuade him to have the treatment.

On our arrival home, I bought him some good shaving foam, and he admits it’s way easier to shave with the foam.

Is your man a bit like mine and reluctant to use anything remotely “girlie” during the grooming process? Does he use soap, shaving foam, moisterizer?

My sister rang me two nights ago. “Guess what I saw when I was driving home?”

“Uh, rain?” We’ve had lots of rain recently, and on this particular day, the rain came with thunder and lightning.

“An emu,” she said.

“What have you been drinking?” I asked because we don’t have emus in New Zealand.

She laughed and explained further. After her initial shock passed, she stopped and put on her hazard lights. It turned out the emu belonged to a petting zoo just up the road. The thunder and lightning had scared the emu, and it had escaped.

Hubby and I have seen lots of weird things while driving through foreign countries. In Harare, Zimbabwe we actually saw the road through the bottom of the cab we were driving in. I was pleased to arrive at my destination. Driving in Cairo, Egypt was interesting. It was like being in the middle of a dodgem car arena. In India there were elephants, camels, trucks decorated and colorful, buses crammed full with people hanging from doorways and windows, female road gangs just to mention a few of our sightings. In Fiji one thing that sticks in my mind are the numerous clothes lines full of freshly washed laundry.

What strange things have you noticed while driving around the countryside?

During the hotter summer days we make our puppy an iceblock. It not only keeps her cool but also helps keep her amused if we have to leave her alone for a few hours. You have no idea how much mischief one puppy can get up to if they’re left to their own devices!!

To make an ice block you need:

1 x plastic container plus lid.
an assortment of doggy treats.

We use margarine or ice cream containers. For the treats we use meat scraps, chopped sausages, cubes of cheese etc. If we have them on hand we also use meat juices/stock to flavor the water.

Method: chop up treats and place in plastic container. Fill container with water and place in freezer. Once the ice block is frozen, tip it out of the container and give to your dog on a hot day. The treats tend to sink to the bottom so you might like to fill your container up halfway, freeze, then add some more treats and water so you have treats in the middle of the ice block.

Do you make any special treats for your pets?