Wanted: Recommendations

[thefourthvine]

Dear, dear people: REC ME SOMETHING, PLEASE. Two things, actually. One for the earthling, one for Best Beloved.

Classical Music

The earthling listens to classical music for about two to four hours each evening; it helps him go through his evening routine and get ready for bed. It has to have certain characteristics:

• It can't be super super slow (because he eats to it, and he tends to suck in time to the music, and evening feedings take long enough without something slowing him way down); kind of slow is fine and even welcome.
  
• It can't be too fast (because see above about eating, plus, this is night-time music).
  
• It can't be too varied (it needs to kind of all go together); no Surprise Symphony or anything.
  
• It needs to have, at minimum, several instruments (like, three or more is fine, but one is not - his attention is just not caught by, say, a piano without any other instruments).

For my sanity, it also needs to have these characteristics:

• It needs to be, overall, pretty long (many individual bits is fine, but they all need to add up to something fairly long).
  
• It needs not to be by Ravel or Rachmaninoff. I’m sorry. It just does.

As examples, here are the three things we listen to:

• Handel's Water Music
  
• Some Schubert
  
• Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons (The earthling really likes the violin in this.)

I have heard these pieces so many times that I find myself walking in time to them when they aren’t even on. I hum them all day long. I wait patiently for the bits I still like, and think increasingly hostile thoughts about Handel and Vivaldi. I realize repetition is good for a baby, but it is making me crazy. And yet I do not know enough about classical music to know what else might interest a baby who likes these three pieces.

So, if you do know about classical music - can you rec me some stuff? Ideally, it will be available via Amazon’s mp3 service, because I can preview it for the earthling there and see his reaction before I buy it.

Romance Novels

I have presented Best Beloved with a challenge: I will pick romance novels based entirely on their titles (usually in themed sets around a certain word or concept - I am nothing if not theme-oriented), and she will read them and review them on GoodReads. This has provided many hours of entertainment in our household. Except. I have apparently done some terrible, terrible things to her with this. I’ve happened upon some good ones (Nalini Singh, for example, or Lisa Kleypas), but I’ve also managed to pick out some things that caused the blood to drain from her face as she stared at them. She’s starting to twitch when the books come in.

So: have you read any good romance novels lately? I just need a few recs, ones I can build a theme around, so that there’s a cookie or two waiting for her in the seas of badness, so her will doesn’t break. (I don’t want them all to be good - the bad ones provide the most entertainment on GoodReads! But, as has been proven, I can find the bad ones without trying at all; it’s the good ones I need help with.)

Unfortunately, I can’t tell you what she likes in a romance novel (although I can link you to her GoodReads account). I can tell you that she does not like:

• Anything with a secret baby. She’s also made geechy by, for example, blackmailing a pregnant woman to get revenge on her dead husband. (The actual plot of one of the ones I found for her. No, really. I was not at all kidding when I said I had no trouble finding bad ones.)
  
• Anything that comes in trade paperack only. Apparently these are...special. One of the early ones she read featured a protagonist with two cocks. It scarred her. She now makes very sad noises when I buy her trade paperbacks, especially if they have warnings on the cover, or those covers that feature Sims-looking people. If you can recommend a good trade paperback one, I’ll get it for her, but I’ll need some help motivating her to read it.
  
• Anything that is really really short and has a title like The Basque Renegade’s Blackmailed Love Child’s Farmer Bride’s Cousin Georgina. I get wounded looks when I get these for her. I don’t know why.
  
• Anything where there’s lots of talk of God and devotion and someone dies at the end.
  
• Anything featuring rape or domination (like, the hero is the master of the heroine, kind of thing) - what she would term “old school” romance.

If you read romance, your input would be greatly appreciated.

Comments

[mir8lle.livejournal.com]

Hmm...music wise, I would suggest Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=kpoizq-jjxs&feature=related) - it was specifically written for children.

I'm a big fan of Tchaikovsky, and heartily recommend the Nutcracker (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Mi_efzYcXGI) and Sleeping Beauty (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=J_oP2ltuNyk) scores - my mother always played them for me when I was little.

Mozart's Eine Kleine Nachtmusik (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Qb_jQBgzU-I) is good and has those violins which if Four Seasons is a favourite might on the one hand go down well, but on the other be a little fast.

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

Darling, have you thought about Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite for the Earthing? Like the whole two hour performance. Also, perhaps some choral music for the Earthling, like the soundtrack from Les Choristes? I actually have Debussy for Relaxtion if you just want me to wing together zip of stuff with me at the moment, let me know.

I don't read romances, so I can't help with Best Beloved, sorry.

[darthfox.livejournal.com]

Of limited helpfulness, but here goes:

Music -- most, if not all, the classical music I can think of is choral, and as such has to do with what Eddie Izzard calls "those pesky God and Jesus fellas". Don't know if that's up your street or not; at least a lot of it is in Latin or German, if that helps. :-)

Romance novels -- I find the works of Nora Roberts in general to be, on a scale of badness, medium-to-not-so-bad. I mean, compared to some of what's out there. It's not Tolstoy, but it's not The Basque Renegade's Blackmailed Secret Master Fantasy or what have you. (The works of her publisher's copy editors, on the other hand, make me weep. But I'm odd that way.)

[darthfox.livejournal.com]

Oh - reading the other comments, I am reminded that I thought of Pachelbel's canon, but suspect it is too slow and quiet (and poss. short). But how about Dvorak's "New World" symphony?

[hetrez.livejournal.com]

My two favorite romance novels are Mr. Impossible by Loretta Chase and The Spymaster's Lady by Joanna Bourne.

For classical music:
-- Scheherazade by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, op. 35
-- String Quartet in G Minor by Edvard Grieg, op. 27
-- Symphony in C Major by Bizet
-- Serenade 13 for strings in G Major (Eine Kleine Nachtmusik) by Mozart, K. 525
-- Symphony 41 in C Major (Jupiter Symphony) by Mozart, K. 551

Everything else I like is either single-instrument or too short. I'll recommend more when I think of it.

[china_shop]

Seconding (thirding?) Jennifer Crusie and Georgette Heyer. Have asked the boy about music because he listens to a lot (a LOT) of orchestral movie soundtracks, and some of those might fit the bill. :-)

Romance novels

[rozasharn.livejournal.com]

Jennifer Crusie published several of her books as romances. Among her older ones, I'm fond of Getting Rid of Bradley, some plot elements (but not the romance storyline) of Strange Bedpersons, Charlie All Night. Not-so-good ones included Manhunting and What the Lady Wants. Do not read Sizzle; it was awful. Anyone But You is a romance with liberation elements and hot sexual atmosphere. Bet Me is her most recent romance; it has several interesting structural elements. Faking It and Tell Me Lies are mysteries with romance plotlines; they're both good. Those latter three all came out in hardcover, then paperback.

Kathleen Gilles Seidel writes good, well-developed romances with almost no sex. My favorite is Again.

Re: Romance novels

[jadelennox]

I would say everything Crusie's published has been structurally romance. Whether it gets marketed as romance or chicklit depends on whether the publishers think they can make more money with a hardcover release first. Which is funny, when you think about how much money the romance industry rakes in.

[labellementeuse.livejournal.com]

Foreword: I am not an authority on any of this, I've just played a lot of violin. Not even very well.

Just about any Vivaldi CD you go and pick up is going to sound much like the Four Seasons, especially violin concertos (of which he wrote zillions: he taught violin at an orphanage). So the Earthling will probably like them, but you may still be driven insane by them - attempt getting some out of the library before you purchase, perhaps, to test?

Something I can tell you (and if you know any of this, I'm terribly sorry for boring you): Vivaldi and Handel are both Baroque composers. What we refer to as "classical music" (orchestral music) is most likely to come from one of three periods: Baroque (Vivaldi, Handel, Bach, etc), Classical (yes, it's tricksy, it's a period within a genre as well as an actual genre; Mozart and Haydn fit in here, and some people put), and Romantic (Tchaikovsky, Mahler, and sometimes Schubert, who is also sometimes a Classicist depending on who's talking and what piece they're talking about.) Baroque music is supposedly decorated or ornamented music, with burgeoning complexity of melody and polyphony; I think one of the things the Earthling likes about it, from what you've said, is that Baroque music usually sustains the same energy level throughout a piece. Classical music was refined, less decorative, aimed for simplicity rather than complexity and often has changing energy levels (i.e. it builds to a dramatic climax and then resolves it); there is more emphasis on dynamics and variety. Romantic music is just what it sounds like, melodramatic. There was a lot of emphasis on moving, passionate melodies.

All of that being said: I think your best bet is probably to try more Baroque, but if you want some variety test out music from different periods. Bach is Baroque and insanely easy to find, very beautiful stuff, his minuets are lovely; the Brandenburg concerti are super-famous and lovely, I highly recommend those (You can hear some samples here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandenburg_concerto), although to be honest I find some of that a little fast and recordings might be slower). Also try finding some sonatas. Corelli is nice too. In the classical period, I would check out Mozart and Haydn (Mozart especially is supposed to be good for growing brains, although I have no idea if that's true.) Mozart-wise I recommend looking for his chamber music; quartets, quintets, that kind of thing. String quartets and quintets will sound enough like, say, the Four Seasons not to be startling, but still be very different.

I think Romantic music is probably tooo different, but if he likes Schubert, maybe try some! Tchaikovsky is my absolute faaaaavourite, although to be honest I don't think he's very calming.

[starfishchick]

What a great comment.

And, yes, Corelli is nice!

[sevenfists.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure this precisely meets your requirements, but this CD (http://www.amazon.com/Meditation-Classical-Relaxation-Vol-1/dp/B000001VSR/ref=pd_sim_m_3) was my childhood pre-bedtime music.

[paper-tzipporah.livejournal.com]

I really like choral masses by Vivaldi and Mozart, but those vary a lot, in terms of tempo, so probably not so good.

ROMANCE NOVELS, though. I read a DISGUSTING amount of those, mostly the trade paperbacks. Not the creepy ones, though. I usually stick to Avon's Historical Romances, since they're reasonably long (not like those teensy little Harlequins) and tend to have lots of social drama along with ridiculous sex scenes. Anything by Teresa Medeiros is pretty good. I also really liked Kinley MacGregor's pirate series. All the women tend to be fairly spunky, in her books, too. She also writes under the name Sherrilyn Kenyon.

For modern stuff, Suzanne Brockmann has a LONG series about Navy SEALS and terrorism and the women who fall in love with Navy SEALS, or something. And a gay FBI agent. Those are all pretty good, although the first few books drag a litte. Her earlier work is also fun, but much shorter -- less terrorism, more romance.

I also really liked Sophia Nash's A Dangerous Beauty, which is another Avon's historicals.

And I totally agree with everyone who recced Georgette Heyer, even though there are no sex scenes in hers. These Old Shades is BRILLIANT.

[sinsense.livejournal.com]

I read one of Brockmann's SEAL romances, and was really thrown by the gay FBI agent at the end of it discovering his romantic interest was evil in a kind of skeevy way. It seemed kind of moralizing to have the good gay guy not end up with someone at the end. (I can't remember the title, unfortunately, and gave the book away.) Are any of her other stories less negative than that? I love the SEAL plotline, is the thing, and would be happy if the FBI agent eventually finds love.

[merelyn.livejournal.com]

Julia Quinn (http://juliaquinn.com/) is my personal favorite romance novelist. She has a great sense of humor, something I really appreciate. My favorite ones: The Viscount Who Loved Me (http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0749936584/juliaquinnoff-21) and Romancing Mr. Bridgerton (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Romancing-Mr-Bridgerton-4/dp/0749936606/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1229547773&sr=1-7). (So fine, her titles are a bit twee. :)

[dafna]

Seconded. She has some weaker books, but in general most of her stuff is much better written than you'd expect. And the women aren't idiots, which is nice. Many of her books even pass the Bechdel test (granted, the women are usually talking about clothes, servants or dancing, but still.) In addition to the two mentioned, I also really like "Splendid" and "When He Was Wicked".

[winter-elf.livejournal.com]

I love the Peer Gynt Suites. I'm sure you can listen to parts online to see if they'd work.

re: Romance - my favorite romance author is Linnea Sinclair. She writes basically Space Opera. I'll look around for some of the others I've read too.

[wistfuljane.livejournal.com]

I'm repeating some of the recs but:

- As You Desire by Connie Brockway (disability - and treasure hunting in Egypt, not really a trope, but).
- Summer to Remember by Mary Balogh (fake dating).
- Black Sheep by Georgette Heyer (self-explanatory).
- Bridgertons series: The Duke and I, The Viscount Who Loved Me, and Romancing Mister Bridgerton by Julia Quinn (and I enjoyed her recent book, The Lost Duke of Wyndham which was of the long lost relative trope; as for the three Bridgertons series I mentioned, the tropes are as followed, respectively: disability and pretending to date, Taming of the Screw, and double identity as a notorious gossip column writer (what?)).
- Bet by Jennifer Crusie (self-explanatory).
- Until You by Judith McNaught (amnesia/pretending to date)
- Gentle Rogue by Johanna Lindsey (crossdressing/heroine posed as a boy and board a pirate ship).
- Chesapeake series by Nora Roberts (blood/adopted brothers united by tragedy and find love)
- Secret Love by Stephanie Laurens (secret identity).

Um, YMMV, but I enjoyed reading them.

[sienamystic.livejournal.com]

I *th the suggestion of Bach, although I'm fond of the cello suites which are one-instrument. I also grew up with Peter and the Wolf, and still randomly find myself humming it. I also listen to a lot of early music (the Tallis Singers, etc) and find it good music to write a paper to. It might not be good feeding music, but maybe good bedtime music? Unless he doesn't like soprano voices.

For romances, I adore Georgette Heyer, Mary Stewart, and Jennifer Crusie. Particular favorites from those three are Heyer's Faro's Daughter, Frederica, and The Grand Sophy, Stewart's Nine Coaches Waiting, The Ivy Tree, and The Gabriel Hounds, and for Crusie I especially love Fast Women, Faking It, Bet Me, and Crazy for You,

Music recs

[vonnie-k.livejournal.com]

Mozart. Can't go wrong with Mozart concertos or symphonies -- brisk but not breakneck, gorgeous, interesting but still adherent to the classic tradition.

Off "Mozart" and "MP3" search on Amazon, I'd recommend:
The Clarinet Quintet & Concerto (http://www.amazon.com/W-Mozart-Clarinet-Concerto-Quintet/dp/B00173FWKC/ref=sr_f3_5?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic&qid=1229547566&sr=103-5), which are beautiful
Piano Concertos (http://www.amazon.com/Piano-Concertos-Nos-24-25/dp/B000QQTWZM/ref=sr_1_38?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic&qid=1229547756&sr=1-38)
Sinfornia Concertante (http://www.amazon.com/Mozart-Sinfonia-Concertante-Orchestra-Concerto/dp/B0013AT1UG/ref=sr_f3_2?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic&qid=1229547850&sr=103-2)
Any of the Mozart Symphony recordings by Sir Charles Mackerras & the Prague Chamber Orchestra (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0019BHAWA/ref=dm_dp_adp?ie=UTF8&qid=1229547954&sr=103-5)

Annoyingly, a lot of the Amazon MP3 albums are missing various tracks. Bah.

I also second the rec for Bach's Brandenbourg concertos. I have the English Concert version directed by Trevor Pinnock (http://www.amazon.com/Bach-Brandenburg-Concertos-Orchestral-Suites/dp/B000VHOC0G/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic&qid=1229548220&sr=1-5), which is AWESOMESAUCE.

If the Earthling likes Handel, he might also like Corelli's Concerti Grossi (http://www.amazon.com/Corelli-Concerti-Grossi-Op-6/dp/B000VHPYBC/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic&qid=1229548324&sr=1-3).

And possibly my single favourite piece of classical music: Bach's concerto for two violins (http://www.amazon.com/Bach-Vivaldi-Concertos-Two-Violins/dp/B00138KOW2/ref=sr_f3_2?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic&qid=1229548437&sr=103-2)

[brynwulf]

Okay, does it have to be current authors/titles? Because my secret guilty pleasure/shame is Rosemary Rogers. Particularly the Steve and Ginny Morgan trilogy. *hides face in hands*

Sweet Savage Love
Dark Fires
Savage Desires

I KNOW I KNOW! The titles are enough to put you off, but Virginia kicks ass back in a day when that wasn't found very often in romance novels (we're talking late 70s/early 80s). They're sort of my comfort food of trashy literature.

[thisisbone.livejournal.com]

HAHAHA I remember those. Ginny watched a horse fuck another horse and got a good long look at its good long dong and got all hot and bothered. Remember that?

[clare-san.livejournal.com]

Someone already mentioned the Brandenburg concertos (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandenburg_concertos), and I second that! They are awesome, though you will probably want to skip the slower movements.

For finding more things you like:

- If you like The Four Seasons, you will probably like other violin concertos by Vivaldi, like this (http://www.amazon.com/Vivaldi-Violin-Concertos-Itzhak-Perlman/dp/B000002RN1/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1229545574&sr=1-5). A lot of this stuff that I've listened to has roughly the same 'feel'. Composers that you like is generally a good way to go. I'm also fond of Bach and Mozart. If you want to branch out a bit, a list like this (http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~mn200/music/composers.html) or this (which is by era) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_classical_music_composers) might help.

- The other way to search for good things is by performer. Itzhak Perlman (http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_dmusic?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-music&field-keywords=perlman&x=0&y=0) is a great violinist, and makes really good recordings if you want more violin music. Other performers to look for: Anne-Sophie Mutter (http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_dmusic?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-music-track&field-keywords=mutter&x=0&y=0) (violin), James Galway (flute), Glen Gould (piano), and I don't listen to many cello pieces, but Yo-Yo Ma is the first name that comes to mind. You can also search by orchestra/quartet/group or by conductor, if you have things you already like.

- And above already talked about the periods, which was going to be my last suggestion about narrowing things down!

[stillane.livejournal.com]

Musically, I'd add myself to the Bach group, second the Scheherazade rec, and also put in a bid for some of Copland's Appalacian Spring. Some of it might be too much, but much of it is also very... comfortable, in a swelling, classical way.

And... well, okay, it's completely not what you asked for. Like, at all. But: Hem is a band with some very baby-friendly, kitchen/dinner music. They've got a handful of albums full of songs that flow rather nicely from one to the next, and the singer's voice is quiet and sweet, and there is often a mysteriously appearing oboe in their work. Also, they have a song called "Horsey." If I had babies, I'd be subjecting them to this music, is what I'm saying; as it stands, I just subject the critters while I cook.

Um. Sorry. That wasn't particularly helpful, was it? :/

[flambeau.livejournal.com]

I'm fond of tinkly Baroque stuff myself. Some Corelli or Tartini, maybe? Or Bach, as everyone else has said. Bach is happy-making. :)

[flambeau.livejournal.com]

Also, not a big romance reader, but my favorite Crusie is Fast Women.

[macey-muse.livejournal.com]

My favourite of all time piece of music is the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto; it is /so pretty/. The first movement's about 60 bpm, (one a second) which is a reasonable speed, although the second is slower and the third faster, but not by too much. I love it, but I don't know if it's ideal earthling-music. Mendelssohn's E minor violin concerto might be a better bet, on the violin front. The Bach violin is also very good, and Bach is a good composer for the sort of thing you're looking for - very steady. You should look up his double violin whilst you're at it - in fact, have a look at more baroque music, maybe? It sounds close to the earthling prefers. Of course, as a clarinetist, I have to recommend the Mozart clarinet concerto. It's pretty (and /so/ much fun to play ^.^ although you can't use it for anything, because everyone knows it and so knows the mistakes you make ^.^') Also, Pletnev's transcription of Beethoven's clarinet concerto is great, too.

I have copies of all of those, if you want anything uploading - I'm a long-term orchestra geek, so. I also have the Mozart Requiem, if Earthling wants to give choral a try?

[janne-d.livejournal.com]

I've always adored the Pachelbel Canon as a piece of classical music, though it isn't very long.

The Mozart Horn concertos are fun. And I like the cello concertos by Elgar (Concerto in E minor) and Dvorak (Concerto in B minor).

[sasha-davidovna.livejournal.com]

I skimmed earlier comments because I have to go get my son from school pretty shortly, so apologies if I repeat too much.

Bach is definitely good. I haven't seen anyone rec Yo Yo Ma's Inspired by Bach (http://www.amazon.com/Bach-Cello-Suites-Inspired-Six-Part/dp/B0000029YB/) cello concerto CD yet, which is the first thing that leaped to my mind. They're very pretty and generally mellow, though a few might be a little too slow.

Here is some more stuff that came immediately to mind:

* Massenet's Meditation from Thais - gorgeous, gorgeous violin music
* Moonlight Sonata - possibly too slow?
* Allegretto movement from Beethoven's 7th symphony
* Andante from Mozart's piano concerto #21 in C major - beautiful piano
* Chopin's Nocturne in E minor, Op. 72 - more beautiful piano
* Mendolssohn's Violin concerto in E minor, op. 64 - parts might be too lively, but it's too pretty to leave off
* Debussy's Clare de Lune
* Brahm's Lullaby
* Strauss's Blue Danube Waltz

Some of the sad tenor arias might be okay too, if you want to get him started on opera. Bizet, say: Je Crois Entendre Encore or the Flower song from Carmen.

[gwyn-r.livejournal.com]

I have a couple of collection albums that were around in my childhood that I fell in love with. They had such lovely pieces, a lot of which sound like they might fall in line with what you're looking for (and that others haven't already mention; Peter and the Wolf is one of my faves as well). One I can find on Amazon, the other is this weird collection that took me years to track down and it's not quite the same as the old vinyl.

But this first, Nocturnes, might work well -- slow but not too slow and don't let the subtitle (music for a romantic evening) worry you, I don't think it will inspire the earthling to run out and start snogging anyone (except you). http://www.amazon.com/Nocturne-Music-Romantic-Evening/dp/B0000058FR/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1229549879&sr=1-1

No MP3s but I would happily zip up both albums for you and send them to you, and then you can test them on the babe and see how he reacts, and throw away what doesn't work. No harm no foul, and I'd love to be able to help you out. On the one I can't find online, the Meditaion from Thais is one of my favorite pieces to instill calm in myself, and I'm pretty much a big baby most of the time. ;-)

[thisisbone.livejournal.com]

Bach! Fugue in G Minor (http://www.amazon.com/Fugue-G-Minor-little-Bwv578/dp/B0010X02ZO/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic&qid=1229547772&sr=8-2) is my favorite. It's not long, but it sounds like it might meet your other requirements. The link takes you to a place where you can listen to a sample.

I've read approximatey a kajillion romances. I go back and re-read Night Magic (http://www.amazon.com/Night-Magic-Karen-Robards/dp/0446692484/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1229547696&sr=1-1) by Karen Robards, Sandra Brown's Mirror Image (http://www.amazon.com/Mirror-Secrets-Heaven-COMPLETE-UNABRIDGED/dp/B000J1NMDM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1229547726&sr=1-2) (the link takes you to a 3-in-1 collection with "Best Kept Secrets" and "Slow Heat In Heaven"), and Linda Howard's...oh,shit, what's the name of that stupid book... Shades of Twilight (http://www.amazon.com/Shades-Twilight-Linda-Howard/dp/0671019716/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1229547666&sr=8-2). I also loved Elizabeth Lowell's Too Hot to Handle (http://www.amazon.com/Too-Hot-Handle-Elizabeth-Lowell/dp/1551668955/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1229547605&sr=8-16) because it was the first book I read that placed its emphasis directly on the COCK, where I feel it rightfully belongs.

And if Best Beloved likes things a little spicier than that, I am embarrassed to admit just how many times I've read Emma Holly's Strange Attractions (http://www.amazon.com/Strange-Attractions-Berkley-Sensation-Holly/dp/0425205037/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1229549596&sr=8-1). I tend to skim over the physics and the trapeze sex, but the central triangle works like a stevedore. M/M, M/F, M/F/M, all among consenting, lusty adults who actually give a shit about each other. I heartily approve.

PS -- I defriended your other LJ. No, not that one, the other one, because it hadn't been updated for so long, but I will never defriend YOU. :)

[imkalena.livejournal.com]

I'm grabbing Strange Attractions!! It's in trade paperback, but hey. :)

Susan Elizabeth Phillips' Natural Born Charmer is a hoot (contemporary). Not all of her stuff is as good. I have an entire RAFT of paranormal romance authors from one of the women at work who devours them. Here are the ones I like as well. If Best Beloved likes Singh, she'll like a lot of these:

Rachel Caine
Maggie Shayne
Karen Chance
Keri Arthur
Patricia Briggs (almost no sex, faugh)
Heather Graham (writes a lot of regular suspense, also)
Lori Handeland
Sherrilyn Kenyon (HUGELY popular with patrons, along with Christine Feehan, but for my part, meh for both of them)
Christine Warren
Eileen Wilks

I'd say any title by any of these women would be good, but some write in long series I prefer to read in order.

[aynatonal.livejournal.com]

Maybe Gorecki's Third Symphony? It's got a solo soprano voice in parts, but otherwise, it's instrumental. Less than an hour long, alas, but really dreamy and compelling, I think. You can preview here (http://www.amazon.com/Henryk-Gorecki-Symphony-Sorrowful-Songs/dp/B000005J1C/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1229550099&sr=8-1), on the off chance that he's got something against Dawn Upshaw, or that I'm way off base. If you like it, I can upload it for you.

[buddleia.livejournal.com]

Music:
Ravel's Bolero would probably drive any Brit over the age of twenty over the brink (TORVILLE AND DEAN HOMG (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=t2zbbN4OL98)), but it might be good for you.
Satie's Gymnopedies are wonderful and I love them too much to be objective. Might be a bit too slow. (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=WSxDjW9bLCQ)
Romance: No clue? I get all my romance fixin's from lj!