Keira: Which do you like more: finishing a book or starting a new one?

Heidenkind: Probably finishing a book, because I like to think about what to read next.

Keira: Which historical romances do you prefer more and why: Classical Novels or Current Regency Based Novels?

Heidenkind: Contemporary novels set in the Regency era tend to be an easier read, so I'd have to go with those.

Keira: Jane Eyre is one of your top favorite novels. What are some other ones you consider too good to miss?

Heidenkind: The Age of Innocence, The Silver Metal Lover, The Ivy Tree, The Queen of Attolia, Archangel, and Captives of the Night, just to name a few.

Keira: Which author occupies the most space on your bookshelf? Why do you love him/her?

Heidenkind: Well, that depends... by "my" bookshelf, do I include my mom's books, too? It's close race between Mary Stewart, Lisa Kleypas, and Christina Dodd.  I love Dodd because she writes the kind of books where you can become totally immersed in the story; Kleypas is great because her romances are very intense, emotional, sexy, and intelligent all at the same time; and I grew up reading Stewart, so her books are my comfort reads.

Keira: What is your favorite and/or least favorite plot, character type, or literary device?

Heidenkind: I really hate it when the h/h instantaneously start lusting after one another.  It tends to lead to my second-least-favorite device, where there heroine refuses to acknowledge she's attracted to hero for no reason other than to drag the book out.

Keira: How do you define love?

Heidenkind: Love is what knits us together despite logic, annoyance, money, reason, intellect, anger, proximity--it just is.  I always think of a quote from The Butcher's Wife: "Love is the leap that cannot be denied."  I'm not sure if that's true, but I think leaping is a big part of it.  Also that quote is very poetic.

Keira: You began Heidenkind’s Hideaway in 2009. What is your favorite aspect of blogging and what are some of your favorite posts that you’ve written?

Heidenkind: I love being able to discuss books with other readers, and the whole book blogging community is just full of wonderful people.  That's probably my favorite aspect of it, although I do really enjoy being able to dissect a book and why it worked for me and why it didn't.

Most of my favorite posts are the ones no one read.  Haha!  There was a post I did last May called An Immortal Soul that analyzed a random comment on the TV show The Mentalist--I really liked that one, because that's pretty much exactly how my mind works on a day-to-day basis.  I think Drood is one of better reviews I've written.  There's also a post called Reading By Type where I talk about how nearly every main character in books is a reader.  I didn't even realize how true that was until after I had written the post--now I can't escape it!

Keira: What tips would you give to readers who want to read more books?

Heidenkind: Ask Meghan from Medieval Bookworm, that would be my tip.   I'm honestly a pretty slow reader.  I suppose I would say turn off the TV, computer, stereo, and just concentrate on the book for a while; and if you're not liking it, stop reading it.  But then I would have to follow my own advice.

Keira: For you which character makes or breaks a romance novel: the hero or the heroine?

Heidenkind: It could go either way--but at least one of them better be interesting, or the story won't be going anywhere.

Keira: As an art historian does the cover of a book sway you toward impulse purchases? What do you like/hate about the current cover trends?

Heidenkind: Hmm, interesting question.  I admit I've bought books just because their covers were beautiful, and YA is definitely where it's at in cover design right now.  I like going to that section of the bookstore just to look at the covers (that might also be why I subscribe to a lot of YA blogs...).  The only trend I don't like is "Twilightizing" the covers of classic novels like Wuthering Heights.  Not because I don't like Twilight, but because: 1. I hate same-y covers; and 2. I think good novels like that deserve more original cover design because they can, and should, stand on their own merits as great novels.  I have also bought books just because they have a painting I like as the cover--like Swan Witch.  I think I bought that book twice, actually.

Keira: Is there anything you’d like to share or talk about that I missed?

Heidenkind: I recently (like last week) changed the name of my blog to Truth, Beauty, Freedom, and Books--I think that reflects the whole feel of the blog better.

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age of innocence, annoyance, archangel, bookshelf, butcher, captives of the night, Character Type, christina dodd, classical novels, Heidenkind, heroine, historical romances, intellect, ivy tree, jane eyre, Lisa Kleypas, mary stewart, other ones, plot character, silver metal lover, Tasha