Veterinarian and epidemiologist Dr. Jennifer McQuiston works for the CDC, and is currently in Sierra Leone helping to combat the Ebola outbreak there. You might recognize her name because she also writes romance novels.
McQuiston's Facebook page is serving as a brief dispatch travelogue as she works there for six weeks.
She was also interviewed for Colorado Public Radio on how scientists detect and combat diseases. (Thank you to Anna Richland for the link.)
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I'm a guest at Amazon Kindle Love Stories this week, discussing scary romances for Halloween:
There are a couple different kinds of scary for me. There's the suspense of Whatever is about to happen is not going to be good but I can't stop reading, and then there's the Every light in the house needs to be on and the dog stays with me while I'm reading kind of story. I'm not always a fan of being scared by what I read, particularly when that fear stays with me long after I finished the book, but when I'm craving a little fear with the happy ever after, I have a list of go-to titles.
If you feel like heading over there to comment, I would love to know what romances have scared the poodle out of you.
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Amanda is over at BookRiot with her Romance 101 series, talking about a subject near and dearest to my reading catnip: beta heroes.
Betas are usually a more mild-mannered type of hero. No bursts of unwarranted jealousy from these guys. For the most part, they’ve got their stuff together, and their relationship with the heroine is more complementary instead of built on constant conflict. Betas are comfortable with themselves and where the heroine is at in her life. They’re just sweet, considerate guys who you want to bring home to mom and dad.
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York, you have been holding out on us.
From Bhetti, who is traveling there currently, comes this amazing photograph: Romance Chocolate.
It seems York is a city known for it's chocolate, or, as their site says, and I had no idea:
One of York’s claims to fame is its illustrious chocolate connections. The evocative names of Rowntree’s and Terry’s of York are synonymous with the city. Think Smarties, All Gold, Aero, Chocolate Orange and Kit Kat (6 million of which are produced in York every single day), all familiar names from childhood still going strong today. In 1781 eight confectioners were in production. 19th-century York gained economic stability via its booming chocolate industries whose success hinged on the exceptional railway service.
As someone who is also frequently connected to a piece of chocolate, I'm really excited about this (though I wish the collection came in dark chocolate, too.)
If you're thinking, “I must have these NOW!”, you can find them on Amazon. Thanks, Bhetti!
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I found this list on NPR's All Songs Considered supremely useful, and wanted to share. Stephen Thompson's Music For When you Need to Concentrate playlist is a lot of instrumental that works to calm the Jack Russel Terrier of Inattention that inhabits my brain when I need to focus on something. I particularly like the Jurassic Park theme slowed down 1000%.
What do you listen to while you work?
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Finally, speaking of things to eat, I mentioned that I'm headed to the Surrey International Writers' Festival this week. If you've been there, or you're familiar with the area, any recommendations of places to eat? Things to see? Things to eat and see at the same time? I welcome all suggestions, and thank you!
Jennifer McQuiston: certified badass. Excuse my while I go buy all the rest of her books (I loved Summer is for Lovers).
I went to university in York, and in my second and third years my cycle home from campus involved crossing the River Ouse on the Millennium Bridge, and some nights, as I rode over the bridge, the smell of chocolate biscuits from from the factory was just so heady and lovely.
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Man, now I want a chocolate biscuit. Or some of that ‘sweet surrender’ chocolate. Or both.
York is also known for VIKINGS! (so the fact that it is also famous for chocolate has moved it way up my travel list).
Wow, total respect for Jennifer McQuiston. I too loved Summer is for Lovers. Here’s hopping she stays safe.
What a great collection of links! I am definitely adding York to the itinerary when I someday make my bucket list trip to England to see literary sites.
And all the best to Jennifer McQuiston. Bless all those who are out there educating others about diseases.
You had to mention Aero bars. I miss not living near the Canadian border any more where strong tea and Aero bars were the order of the day. Where I live now, they eat Rocky Mountain oysters and drink Cheladas. (Beer mixed with Clamato Juice. I kid you not.) *whimper*
Summer is for lovers was 1.99 at zon when i went to check her out. Thought i’d share! BC…what DPR said.
Thanks for the post on scary books. I’ve been resisting reading The Shadowy Horses because of disliking Mariana by the same author, but if you say it’s creepy, I’ll check it out. I left a comment over there with a couple recs.
I wish you a good conference, but Surrey is not exactly known for it’s good food. Or good anything really. If you have time, just hop on the sky train and head into Vancouver.
I was at work the other day (I work at Books A Million) and we have some awesome new bookmarks in that list fifty of the most popular books in a given genre. The romance one is a mix of lit and ACTUAL ROMANCE – Loretta Chase, Kathleen Woodiwiss, among others, are listed! I was disappointed at first glance, since it looked to be all of the “respectable Literature” romances – P&P, Jane Eyre, etc. But a second glance revealed actual romances. Woohoo! It’s $2.99 – check the bookmark displays next time you’re at BAM!
Like so: Magnetic Romance Bookmark
Jennifer McQuiston is not only a badass, she’s a Fire Breathing Unicorn. (For those who don’t know, each year’s Golden Heart class chooses a nickname. The rest of the group went with something charming and professional-sounding. The rebels are FBU’s.) We’re all thinking about Jennifer and very proud of her efforts on behalf of millions to find a cure/halt the spread of Ebola.
Did I mention that her books are wonderful as well?
York is a fabulous city, it’s much more interesting than Bath.Has fab shopping, great medieval streets… The Shambles is amazing. And it has the BEST ghost walk ever !
And the Terrys chocolate is to die for. Right.. off to open that box of All Gold I’ve been hiding in the freezer 🙂