Review: BELIEVE IT OR NOT

BELIEVE IT OR NOT

Tawna Fenske

Contemporary Romance

Sourcebooks, March 2012

Premise: Non-believer accountant agrees to run her mother's psychic business while she is in hospital, meets neighbour who runs a bar with male exotic entertainment.

Cover: Title - Belief (what it's based on, how it changes) is the theme for the whole story, so this title makes a lot of sense. Art - Dreadful. Apprentice Writer hoped the cover would change from the Advanced Reader Copy she received, but judging from the Goodread listing it didn't. Blurry background beachy boardwalk has nothing to do with anything, foreground couple look like they spend too much time in a subpar tanning salon, and the tarot card in the woman's hand looks badly photoshopped. AW's unsolicited advice to the author: insist that future covers be done by artist responsible for fellow Sourcebook Author Amy Thomas' debut, which was one of the best ever by this publisher.

What Works: AW liked the premise, which promised much potential in the form of a straight-laced, super pragmatic character who moved across a continent to get away from her new age, paranormal-open upbringing being forced to masquerade as a psychic or risk seeing her mother go bankrupt. Equally promising was the conflict between modern day heroine and hero who makes a living by having men get naked. As novel building goes, the author came up with a great pair of sources for narrative tension.

AW also really liked the hero. Amiable and believable as he strove to build up his business, look out for his naive ex-brother-in-law, and work through some issues leftover from marital breakup. He also got all the best lines:

"You don't understand,"she slurred. "Psychics don't exist."

"Oh. Okay. Well, then, you're a pleasant figment of my imagination."

and:

"Chris is a normal guy. A safe guy. A wholesome, healthy guy," (she said).

"You make him sound like a salad."

What Doesn't: Often in romantic-comedy type stories, the secondary characters are exaggeratedly one-dimensional. This serves a purpose for the sub genre, and AW accepts this. Even so, she had some trouble with how often and persistently both the hero's dates and his exotic dancers were shown as stupid.

She also struggled with some of the heroine's behaviour. AW couldn't quite buy the straight laced accountant heroine drunkenly falling off tables and smacking the dancers on their behinds. Especially when it felt like she was judgemental about the hero's dates having a specific pair of physical assets. It made the former out of character, or the latter hypocritical; either way, it distanced this reader from the protagonist.

What AW Changed her Mind About: AW is not fond of popular culture references in novels. Partly because half of the time she is unfamiliar with it and then spends the rest of the story irked that she's missing something, partly because of how often they make the book seem passé. Her favourite illustration of the latter is a character who wished for a relationship as romantic and committed as Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston.

So when the many glam rock band names and song titles started and kept on coming, she was not impressed. However she warmed up to them more as it because clear that rather than mood-setting window dressing, they were a integral part of the plot.

One of the criticisms of the romance genre is that it relies too much on stereotypes. There is some truth to this, and fans of the genre will laughingly talk about favourite and least favourite

tropes. AW's view is that she gets impatient with seeing the same situations over and over, but adores it when an author manages to tweak it in a new way. One overused standbys involves the heroine stumbling or starting to fall and the hero saving her. AW is DYING for a heroine to catch a stumbling hero, for once, or for the hero to try and actually miss.

So the Gentle Reader can imagine that when this heroine is - wait for it! - saved from a fall by the hero, it was not a high point. However, when the heroine had been in the same type of situation three times by page 40, AW decided this met the criteria of successful stereotype tweak and it moved from "Doesn't Work" to "Works".

Overall: Breezy and lighthearted, this is an example of the kind of story usually described as "romp" with the term "hijinks ensue" attached. If the reader usually enjoys that type of story, including exaggerated secondary characters and physical comedy, then this is a good choice.

Bookish Outposts in Cyberspace: Part I

Where, the Gentle Reader may wonder, does Apprentice Writer go in the Blogiverse when she isn't here at home?

To various bookish landing spots, some well-known and some deserving a wider audience. In no specific order:

Dear Author - this reader-oriented site (as opposed to author- or publisher-oriented) was begun by Jane Litte, a reader whose training is in law. As a result some of the most interesting discussions at the site involve legal interpretation on developments in the publishing industry or legitimacy of various threats made in the kerfuffle du jour. The site is devoted mostly to genre fiction (heavily of the romance persuasion including any and all subgenres), but from that single blogger beginning it has grown to multiple reviewers of widely differing tastes. Authors comment frequently in the threads, there are many guest posts, and publishers regularly hold impressive giveaways. Jane and Sarah of 'Smart Bitches, Trashy Books' also collaborate on all sorts of bookish ventures - the annual DABWAHA tournament (AW will let you google that on your own), commentary in various conferences and workshop panels, and who knows what else. You never know what you find when you visit Dear Author, but it is interesting enough frequently enough that AW keeps checking in.

S. Krishna's Books - this single reader site records the thoughts of Swapna, reader extraordinaire. Every time AW, who considers herself a fairly heavy reader, visits she is staggered by Swapna's readerly output (or perhaps consumption is the better word), mostly in literary fiction with some memoir, women's fiction, and mystery sprinkled in. This could perhaps be rationalized by supposing that Swapna does nothing else but read, however she is also a student and has a spouse, who presumably needs some attention now and again. As if that weren't enough, she looks stunning. AW has tried to hold all of this against her but fails miserably due to curiosity about thoughts on the titles AW is thinking about checking out, and Swapna's special interest in multicultural authors.

A Life With Books - this single reader site talks about daily life and bookish topics in roughly equal measure. Since both kinds of posts, and the ones that mix it all up, are entertaining and laidback, AW enjoys her visits. Jenners has a laid-back yet thoughtful style, an easy-to-read five point book review system, and has a talent of picking up on fun memes from the blogosphere.

More sites to come.

Signs You've Been Reading Too Much Romance

By day Jessica of 'Read, React, Review' is a professor of all things philosophical/ethical/feminist, by night she's a thoughtful blogger of whatever strikes her fancy, which includes voracious reading in genre fiction.

This has resulted, among many other things, in some very entertaining warning lists, the most recent of which was

10 Signs You've Been Reading Too Much Paranormal Romance

It made Apprentice Writer laugh (even though she scored very low on those 10 signs) so she went back to read previous lists also:

10 Signs You've Been Reading Too Much Historical Romance (AW scored higher here), and

10 Signs You Need to Lay off the Scottish Romance (virgin territory for AW)

All funny. Enjoy.

Non-Laughter Review: THE HEIR

THE HEIR
Grace Burrowes
Historical Romance
Sourceboooks, December 2010

Premise: Housekeeper with secrets and responsibility driven heir to an old title develop feelings for one another.

Cover: Title - Short, succinct, ties in well with the next titles in the series (of which 'The Soldier' will be #2). Art - pretty blue, pretty lady, yet attention inexorably drawn to mondo large man-nipple.

What Works: The writing in this novel is a cut above average of what this reader has seen of the genre. There is many a well-turned sentence, deft bit of description, and enjoyable dialogue interchange, so much so that the author can be forgiven for her most overused word: 'lemonade'.

Apprentice Writer really liked the ending, and LOVED the hero's brothers. They each have different strengths and challenges to deal with, which will without question be explored in follow up novels, but what this reader liked the best about them was how they supported one another.

And as a former psychology student, AW very much enjoyed the how the process of mental/emotional change in various characters was depicted. It reflected the reality that very few individuals are overwhelmingly 'good' or 'bad'. Most are a mix of both, and can be coaxed one way or another on the continuum depending on stimulus, underlying personality traits, and sheer luck of what they may encounter in any given day.

What Doesn't: This is a story for readers who like character-driven novels. It takes a long time for things to get going, and even at the height of the erstwhile suspense, the action is over pretty quickly. This is not necessarily a flaw - Apprentice Writer quite likes 'quiet' stories, especially when well-written. It was more a matter of there being a fair amount of buildup for the housekeeper's secret aspect such that AW had a bit of a 'That's it?' reaction once it was resolved, intensified by a brief TSTL moment on the part of the heroine.

There is a lot of talk. This can be interpreted both as positive (it's really nice to see how various characters become close to one another) and negative (can verge on 'telling rather than showing'). The characters also seem remarkably insightful about themselves and others. This had an almost humorous effect for AW, as it was the opposite end of the spectrum of how the main characters behaved in the book she had read immediately prior. To be honest, it was kind of a refreshing change.

And finally, the big one: how much the reader enjoys this book may depend on what they define as 'romantic', and/or how skilled they are at division of real life and literature. Because the H/H relationship development is a textbook case of sexual harassment. Given the power imbalance between the main characters, the situations the hero constructs, and the way he tries to persuade to certain courses of action, the fact that there is no physical coercion involved becomes secondary.

It does help that the feelings the couple build for one another are so genuine, and that the heroine is utterly unintimidated by the hero and really makes him work for the happy end. But it could have been a much different (i.e. uglier) situation if she had felt obliged to fake such emotion.

From personal experience, AW is aware that such reality/story division can be achieved. She is personally appalled by infidelity following some instances in her extended family, yet somehow, much to her surprise, she found the characters in 'Same Time, Next Year' sympathetic and the story touching. Go figure. What she is saying is: sexual harassment is a hot-button issue for some people, so the reader may want to evaluate if this is the case for him/her and act accordingly when evaluating whether to read this book.

Overall: A thoughtful, well-written historical romance that will appeal to readers who enjoy exploration of family dynamics. Readers who prefer 'sweet' level love scenes should be aware that these tend to be on the explicit side. AW will look forward to reading the hero's brothers' stories.

/m

Non-Laughter Review: BENEATH THE 13 MOONS

BENEATH THE 13 MOONS
by Kathryne Kennedy
Sourcebooks Casablanca
December 2010 (reissue)



Premise: On an aquatic planet ruled by access to a narcotic root, individuals from opposite ends of the political spectrum have an opportunity to increase their own paranormal talents and influence their whole society if they co-operate.

Cover: Title - Intriguingly worded, accurate of content, and displayed in a lovely purple cartouche with cool font. Art - Sourcebooks' love affair with the nekkid anonymous manchest continues. Though Apprentice Writer despises this fixture of romance covers, honesty compels her to state it gives the potential reader fair warning of what to find in these pages, including the mullet wafting in the breeze. AW personally wished that more of the gorgeous background had been visible. She would have loved for the bakers dozen of moons (obscured by the chest), and the partially submerged trees backlit by diffuse sunlight (obscured by various text bytes), to be shown in full on the back cover or maybe in a stepback. Overall: representative of content.

What Works: Would-be writers are often instructed to start their stories with a 'hook'; situation so fascinating or action so gripping that the reader can't help but read on to find out more and get 'sucked' into the story. This novel takes that advice to heart, opening with a woman so desperate to save her village from a killer fever that has struck down her lifemate and child that she risks all to kidnap a healer only to realize that he is heir to the royal throne and she will likely die en route from overdose of the narcotic she uses to enhance her powers to 'See' through the waters. Definitely not a boring opener or ho-hum stakes.

Even better: the world is marvelous. Thirteen moons that exert different types of tidal pull on the waters, villages and palaces alike built in trees, amazing plant life ( including some you can crawl into with interesting results) and animals, aboriginal beings who can mindmerge and be seen or invisible at will, an entire society built around a controlled substance (much like the spice in the classic 'Dune' series)... A lot of imagination went into creating the setting for the story. It reminded AW a bit of Pandora from the recent movie 'Avatar', if the trees had been surrounded by water and the indigenous people less blue.

What Doesn't: 'But AW,' says the Gentle Reader, 'after that kind of intro, what could possibly have not worked?'

Sadly, multiple aspects. Nothing about this book was average for AW; she kept shooting back and forth between elements she loved that those she unloved. Such as:

WARNING! MODERATELY SPOILERIFIC!

- Pacing. After a rocketing start with high stakes kidnapping (hooray!), the two main characters proceed to spend most of the next 100 pages in a boat feeling physically attracted to one another and covering this with verbal sniping (boo!).

- Writing. One of the most fun and creative things about sci/fi and fantasy is the opportunity to create variations in language and expressions to go along with invented worlds. Here, there were scenes in a remote smuggler village (yay!) where the inhabitants say things like 'sexy', 'get it?', and 'boyfriend' that tore this reader out of the story (boo!). There were instances of cliche, both in word choice (people 'tense' and 'freeze' a lot, garments 'fit like second skins', the hero frequently 'threw back his head', etc.) and in genre stereotype, such as the heroine thinking during a life-or-death pursuit situation how much the hero's eye color and hair swishing make her presumed-to-be-lost sexual desire reawaken. There was one (presumably unintentional) comical instance when the frequent romance genre use of 'paling' of a character's face to signify emotion shown rather than told was applied to an animal. This would have been OK except that his skin is covered in scales.

- Character Development. It's nice when there is some, and when it is roughly equivalent if there is more than one main character. In this case, the reader starts off with pleasant sense of curious anticipation about how the author will bring together a woman who is fiercely independent, resourceful, and talented but poor (yay!) with a man who is fiercely proud, privileged, talented, but not entirely closed-minded (double yay!). In practice, far too much space is taken up with the character's growth stalled at thinking/saying to/about each other that one is a 'water rat' and one is 'arrogant' (boo!).

The hero does start to come around and show notable improvement through his association with her and others of her background, but the heroine took far too long to make not enough mental/emotional progress for this reader. It made what was interpreted as independent spirit and fortitude early in the story look more like pig-headedness and reverse snobbism as the novel progressed. Frex: when the hero says he loves her, she thinks and tells him with absolute conviction that he has no idea what love is - without ever having inquired about his previous romantic involvements. Or, for that matter, non-romantic love experiences. It made her endless accusations to him of arrogance sound like the pot calling the kettle black.

- Internal Logic. The conflict between the main characters hinges on the impossibility of their relationship, given her pariah status and his princeliness. Yet when he arranges their wedding within a day after returning to the palace (royal wedding and true love: hooray!) there is no peep of protest, including from his parents, who promptly disappear again from the remainder of the book (boo!). Wildlings (born outside the royal family with unusual powers) are supposedly 'hunted' as the heroine's mother was, yet the heroine is almost entirely ignored by the palace dwelllers. The hero supposedly has enemies at court, yet after a very long time of doing nothing while the heroine is in proximity, they suddenly make their move through her at a highly unlikely time when she is not, that seems calculated purely to emphasize the romantic connection. Etc.

- Sacrifice of other elements to serve the romance. This was the aspect AW had most trouble with because she so yearned for more description of the fantastical world. For the first time ever, a member of the royal family spends time in a hardscrabble swamp village (hooray!) Yet rather than experiencing it through his eyes, it is summarized as '...these past few weeks, hunting and working with your people, I've come to realize they're my people too' (Boo!) The heroine has succeeded in bringing a healer, thus saving the village from mass deaths, yet apart from her immediate in-law family, there is neither reaction from anyone else, nor interest on the heroine's part on how others have fared under the hero's treatment. The only non-family villagers mentioned are two women who remain nameless, who serve solely to make the heroine jealous of the attention he bestows on them. The couple travel to the palace (hooray!) where the heroine has precisely zero curiosity in what the prince does or where he goes all day (boo!). She learns the aboriginal people and animals have astonishing unsuspected knowledge and powers of the mind, but categorically dismisses their efforts to make contact with her because she doesn't like their encouragement of her relationship with the hero, etc.

END SPOILERS!

AW was desperate for more page time devoted to worldbuilding and less time to the push-pull (literal and figurative) between main characters. The gentle reader may ask: Can a satisfying balance between the two be achieved? Yes! For excellent examples of believable emotion with richly detailed worlds, take a look at Ann Aguirre's sci-fi 'Sirantha Jax' series, Alison Sinclair's dark fantasy 'Darkborn' series, Ilona Andrews urban fantasy 'Kate Daniels' series and rural fantasy 'Edge' series, and the queen of them all: Sarah Monett's dark fantasy 'Doctrine of Labyrinths' series. All excellent at providing relationship-building and believable alternate settings in equal measure.


Overall: Rather than fantasy romance, which was what she had expected, AW would describe this novel as Romance, capital 'R', with some fantasy elements.

Consequently, 'pure' romance fans would probably find it more to their liking than this reader, who struggled with unfulfilled expectations about what fantasy novels entail, and with the cover quote that promised '.....will give adult lovers of Harry Potter the fix they've been missing.'

The only thing that could be considered reminiscent of the Potter world were the rare occasions Harry and Lord Voldemort connected with each other's minds for brief flashes of time. But that occured in such a different way that it is a tremendous stretch to compare the two, meaning AW is at a loss to understand why the Potter parallel was even drawn.

She will, however, watch 'Avatar' again, and imagine how the movie could have been enhanced if the Pandoran trees had been in a swamp with treecats and narwhals, subject to the tidal pull of thirteen moons, if the antagonistic groups had socioeconomic rather than ethnic differences, and so on and on.

/m

Lightning Reviews: FARFLUNG HISTORY

Today, a trio of rapid reviews of farflung historical romantic adventure, from a trio of authors for whom these are second-ever releases, and whose covers all subscribe to the philosophy:

"Torsos essential, faces irrelevant!"

ROMANCING THE PIRATE
Michelle Beattie, 2009

Cover: Great title, luscious color, pose straight out of the final scenes of 'Pirates of the Caribbean 3' - this is one enticing cover, sure to draw in readers who pass by in the store.
Content: Besides hero and heroine finding their way to one another, the story has added layers of lost identity and pursuit of missing family members on top of battles on the high seas. Apprentice Writer enjoyed the dramatic tension, and loved it that the heroine strove for independence rather than waiting around for a man to 'save' her when the chips were down. It was disappointing, though, that after the heroine was introduced with the intrepid profession of blacksmith, so little was done with it. When she boards the hero's ship, for example, there is zero mention of her showing any interest in the weapons and ironware on board - despite the interest a regular passenger on a vessel with a high probability of being attached by pirates could be expected to show - let alone someone who assesses quality of same for a living.

Characters from the author's first title appear, but this second book can be read as a standalone and Apprentice Writer had no problem following along.
Recommended for: Fans of historical romance, POTC devotees, and armchair Caribbean travellers
Author Info: http://www.michellebeattie.com (no info found on upcoming release)


REVEALED
Kate Noble, 2009
Cover: Title a nice follow-up to debut book's 'Compromised', art with very nice color and movement.
Content: AW loved the author's writing style in 'Compromised', and 'Revealed' follows suit. It was all shaping up beautifully - hero and heroine antagonize each other at first, he is NOT socially powerful and well regarded, there is an intriguing, maladjusted brother whom AW very much hopes represents sequel bait, and an excellent bit about a social rival who has unanticipated depths and complexity - so much so that this looked to be a 5/5 star read. The final grade wobbled a little for three reasons: a) there is an episode of 'accent speak' with the particularly unfortunate addition of making one of the words the foreign language speaker utters in his own tongue during an English sentence a ludicrously simple one ('very') which he would have known how to say in English with 100% guarantee, b) suspension of disbelief was shot to hell (that is a pun, for those who know the story) half way through in terms of how a key development took place, and c) when the wronged hero is vindicated, the character doing the 'mea culpa' speech chooses to say it not only in public (which should be utterly out of character with his profession) but in a street in outside a burning building while people and key evidence are trapped inside and chaos is going on (which should be utterly out of character with common sense).

Still: there was enough here, in unusual elements told in an engaging way, for AW to very much look forward to the author's most recent release, 'The Summer of You' , just arrived in stores.
Recommended for: Fans of historical and/or espionage stories, Julia Quinn-like writing, and London season/country houseparty tales.
Author Info: http://www.katenoble.com



HIGHLAND REBEL Judith James, 2009

Cover: Title - Hard to tell if refers to hero or heroine. In AW's humble opinion, the word 'highland' appears in way, way too many titles to signal 'New and fresh story!'. Art - AW will concede that the sky being either of a sunset or burning nature is eye catching, and that the nekkid chestal area is in small mercies framed by some degree of shirt. But oh, what a tremendous, cliche-generic letdown this cover is after the high-impact splendour that was the author's first, 'Broken Wing'!
Content: There is an oft-repeated bit of writing advice that hero and heroine of a story should have diametrically opposed motivations and goals, so as to create dramatic tension. Boy howdy, is this ever the case here. The protagonists are from such different backgrounds, with such different short- and longterm aims in life, that the reader wonders early and often how they will ever manage to reconcile all the forces tearing at them. Those forces themselves almost form a character of their own - AW was very interested to learn of all the real-life historical figures and events which the author wove so skillfully in, and marvelled at the quick wits it took to retain fortune and titles (sometimes, even one's mere neck) in an era when monarchs succeeded one another in revolving door fashion, with courtiers falling in and out of favor between breakfast and lunch.

Though both excelled in painting memorable characters and depicting sincere emotion, this second title felt very different from the author's first. The third, 'Libertine's Kiss', is scheduled for upcoming release, and AW suspects it will continue to show this author's remarkable versatility.
Recommended for: Fans of straight historical fiction as well as historical romance, afficionados of stories set in Scotland or Ireland.
Author Info:http://www.judithjamesauthor.com/ (Does not seem to have been updated recently; AW wonders if there is some fluctuation going on. First book was published by Medallion Press, second by Sourcebooks, a quick check on Amazon shows a beautiful cover for 'Libertine's Kiss' with a Harlequin logo attached. What's up?)

Non-Laughter Review: UNCERTAIN MAGIC

UNCERTAIN MAGIC
by Laura Kinsale
Historical Romance with Fantasy Elements
Sourcebooks, 2010





Premise: Shy British aristocrat with psychic talent enters marriage of convenience with impoverished Irish aristocrat of infamous reputation and politically risky friends.


Cover: Title - Admirably brief and descriptive of content, possible that it might not stand out among the plethora of titles including 'Magic' these days but that may be irrelevant given the amount of real estate devoted to author name relative to title. Clearly (and very understandably) this book is intended to sell on writerly reputation. Art - in a welcome change from nekkid anonymous manchest (as seems to adorn way too many bookcovers), an embracing couple with the man interested in the embrace and the woman multitasking. Embracing with her arms while either appraising the value of the distant twilit castle in her head, or else planning to put her barefoot status to good use by wading the adjecent river. Purple color, stormish sky and swirl of miniscule starbursts (which Apprentice Writer was very tempted to interpret as dandelion seeds) reflect the drama within. Overall - accurate and attractive but not especially memorable.


What Works: As with the previous two Kinsale novels AW has read, the aspect that stands out the most in this story is quality of writing; this is a much appreciated attribute to someone whose most recent DNF was due to the word 'sardonic' appearing three times in the first ten pages and a paragraph of breathless heroine admiration of the hero's eyes being followed by yet another paragraph of same.

UM has marvelous scene-setting, evocative details that intensified emotion without making it seem hyperbolic, natural-sounding dialogue. All serving to support the heart of the story: the description of how two very (with good reason) guarded personalities reach out to one another and develop their willingness to trust even when events seem to point to the wisdom of doing the opposite. Seeing them move past their preconceived notions and insecurities was a joy, and the scenes where each respectively chooses to stand by her man or his woman in the face of opposition were cathartic.

Inclusion of an unusual animal character has become something of a Kinsale trademark and UM is no exception. Given that the hero and heroine are brought together by mutual interest in horses it would not have been surprising if the special animal character were equine, but AW was delighted to find the recurring cameo role occupied by someone else: MacLasser, the redoubtable piglet. In her view, any author who can incorporate swine into everyday aristocratic life is worth reading.

Also unusual in a historical hero (at least those this reader has met) was Faelan's manner of dealing with stress. Rather than riding or boxing or drinking or playing cards or picking fights with blameless individuals, he plows fields, and doesn't give a damn when his friends tease him about his fascination with planting potatoes and oat crop rotation. AW found it endearing and a refreshing change.

What Doesn't
Writing manuals warn newbie writers against including too much backstory, and exhort them to 'show, don't tell'. In general, AW appreciates that this makes novels more readably streamlined, less clunky. In this case, she wished for a bit more explicit detail. She didn't really understand the motivation of a dubious friend character to take actions that could bring massive destruction on the heads of the local population. While the motivation for the initial destructive interference in the hero's life on the part of the villain was convincing, AW didn't understand why and how the villain engaged in subsequent acts of hero sabotage.

Finally, the heroine repeatedly and for good reason reflects on fears of rejection once her husband learns of her gift in reading the minds and emotions of people and animals around her. By the end of the story, it's clear that he accepts and loves her no matter what, but given the number of times her fear was articulated it left this reader feeling vaguely unsatisfied that the couple didn't actually talk about it.

These are the kinds of things that make AW wish the author could comment on, either to learn where hints were dropped that AW may have missed, or to understand the thinking behind the choices made. Thoughts, Gentle Reader?

Overall
A romantic tale of people overcoming personal, social, and political odds to be together and do the right thing in a time of turbulence. Recommended for fans of romance and light fantasy (i.e. the story has an occasional extraordinary embellishment rather than being primarily about magic and such).



/m.

Review: THE NEXT BEST THING

THE NEXT BEST THING
Kristan Higgins
Contemporary Romance
HQN, 2010


Premise: Young widow seeks to put the past (in the form of her husband) and the present (in the form of a friend with benefits) behind her and find a new spouse.

Cover: This author's covers have become instantly recognizable, as much a part of her brand as her writing style. For the first time, the iconic headless couple are joined by a non-canine - a nice touch, that combines with the red accents to make for a contents-accurate and attractive cover (much, much better than the one for 'Catch of the Day', whose central-puppy-in-basket seemed to signal it was aimed at the tween set rather than an adult demographic). Now that a feline has broken through the doggie barrier, Apprentice Writer is burning with curiosity to see what kind of fauna will feature next - rodent? Reptile? Something with wings?

What Works: By making the heroine a widow, the author has done something courageous. "But Apprentice Writer," the gentle reader may say, "widows abound in Romancelandia. That's nothing new." True - but the literary widows AW encountered to date had either healed from their grief, never loved their husband to begin with (due to forced unions, decrepitude, or general incompatibility), or were married in name only. Lucy, by contrast, was madly in love with her husband, he with her, and continues to grieve though several years have passed since his death. She still blames herself for his fatal car accident, still watches her wedding video to feel him looking at her again, can't bring herself to visit the graveyard where he is buried, creates luscious professional-level desserts which she can't bring herself to eat, has a closet full of luxurious, stylish clothes which she can't bring herself to wear.

Moving a character from such an intense spot to a believable happy end with a new love interest in the space of one slim volume is an ambitious task. Help (of a sometimes questionable nature) along the way is provided by the secondary characters readers have come to love and expect from a Higgins story: a beloved pet (for the first time, a cat, and in a welcome development the heroine maintains affection within non-fanatical bounds), a helpful but very different-from-heroine friend, relatives who keep their eccentricity either up their sleeve or displayed for all to see, and the sights, sounds, and rituals of a small New England town.

In this story, it is the relatives who are most compelling; Lucy's mother and two aunts were likewise widowed young, and have all chosen to maintain that status. They also all work together, creating both a supportive atmosphere but also a lot of pressure to maintain the status quo - both personally, and business-wise. Lucy feels loved but stifled, and needs to find a way out. Or does she? The conversations where Lucy explores why the women wouldn't want to date again, and whether they ever learned secrets they didn't know about their hubands during their lifetimes, were perhaps the most interesting parts of the whole book. From the way parents sometimes treat their chidren, and the way people sometimes treat their sweethearts, Lucy learns two harsh facts: Sometimes love is not enough. And sometimes, love doesn't lead a person to put their own wishes aside, and do the upright thing. Disillusioning, perhaps, but realistic, and worth bearing in mind when one is tempted to spout platitudes about parents always loving all their children equally or love inevitably leading to a noble character. It doesn't always work that way.

Finally, it would not be a Higgins book without exploration of adult sibling dynamics. In this instance, Lucy's sister chooses to respond to premature death of her father, uncles, and brother-in-law by becoming an out-of-control safety freak with respect to her husband and newborn daughter. It was a massive relief when she finally got a (figurative) smack upside the head, from the correct person, alerting her to the very real possibility that her constant haranguing could cost her her marriage. Lucy's (figurative) smack upside the head was longer in coming, but also satisfying and delivered by the correct person. AW was also happy that the disconnect of one son of an Italian family being named Giacomo and the other Ethan was not only explained, but a part of the story.

What Doesn't: By nature of the content, this story doesn't have quite the same ebb and flow of humorous vs. serious moments as previous Higgins stories. Consequently, the pacing felt different than what this reader had come to expect. If she had approached this story as, say, a women's fiction novel, it would have felt completely right. As it was, it took a bit of reflection after the book was done to understand that the steady, consistent tone throughout was appropriate to the subject matter, and that the pacing for a romantic comedy would not have worked.

That being conceded - Lucy cries a lot. This makes sense, it being a story of a grieving widow and all, but that was something this reader had to actively remind herself of at times when her kneejerk reaction to more tears was 'Again?' Lucy also says 'Sorry' a lot. It reminded AW of recurring phrases or scenarios which prompt some reviewers to create drinking games. Since her beverage-while-reading choice is black tea, THE END arrived on a strongly caffeinated wave.

Overall: A thoughtful, emotion-laden entry into the author's canon delivering the trademark small-town atmosphere, close-knit but idiosyncratic family members, and love interest who is present all along but whom the heroine needs to see with new eyes.

Learn more about the author here.

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Laughter Reviews - Keeper: IMPROPER RELATIONS

IMPROPER RELATIONS
Janet Mullany
Historical Romantic Comedy
Little Black Dress, 2010

Premise: Regency 'He Said / She Said' love story.

Cover: Title - Can be applied to content on several levels = well done. Art - loved it. From the unusual lack-of-people approach, to the magenta and robins-egg blue coloration, to the cursive script, to the whimsically retro parasols and curlicues. Beautiful, and in keeping with the previous title done in chocolate and robins-egg blue. Excellent work, Little Black Dress!

What Works: When Apprentice Writer first heard the term 'Regency Chicklit' she wasn't sure what to expect. Now she can congratulate the author on founding such a delightfully entertaining subgenre.

What did she like? The alternating first-person present tense format was surprisingly successful. The heroine sections really did have the feel of how Bridget Jones would write in her diary had she been born a century earlier, and it was very entertaining to 'see' things from the male point-of-view. Also working was the fact that although many 'traditional' Regency ingredients were present - special licence, mistress, compromising situation, misunderstanding, servant-handling - how the protagonists behaved and spoke in conjuction with them was utterly unpredictable. The way the duel scene ended, especially, will pop up whenever AW encounters another (literary) duel.

"Rules of Gentility", the first Mullany title AW read, was memorable among other things for venturing into territory that is usually glossed over in historicals - at least, the ones AW has come across. In the case of RoG one such subject was water closets (since then also delved into, if that is the right expression, by Eloisa James). In this case, there was some exploration of how expectations differ along class lines, and also the matter of what happened with the natural consequences of a lady (rather than the man) entering marriage with experience, as it were.

But what worked best of all for this reader was the author's style. Breezy, funny, conversational, compelling. Judge for yourself:

"...He wears plain black...but on this man it looks as though he intends to fight a duel and possibly conduct the funeral service over his unlucky opponent all in the same day. His dark hair is unruly...but in a way that, along with this unshaven chin, suggests he has but recently risen from his bed.
Goodness.
He is lean, dramatic handsome as the devil, and I suspect the bed was not his.
A rake!
Will my reputation fall around me in tatters if I approach him?
....I arrive in front of him as he looks up - ...and gazes straight at my bosom.
He yawns."

"I don't believe I'm more or less clever than any of the hopeful young ladies paraded in the marriage mart. I speak some dreadful French, embroider with a minimum of bloodshed, produce lifelessly correct watercolors, have several easy pianoforte pieces at my disposal for the drawing room and occasionally I read something other than the fashion pages. In truth, I am quite accomplished."

" 'Who is that?' I ask.
'Mrs. Gundling.'
'Does not Mr. Gundling care for the park?'
He looks at me, possibly for the first time that day, with a long, thoughtful look. 'I believe Mr. Gundling to be legendary.'
'Indeed? Legendary in the sense that he may not exist?'
'Precisely, ma'am.' He flicks his whip and the greys break into a canter.
'Is she your mistress?'
'That's a very indiscreet question to ask on our wedding day.'
I shrug. 'Very well. I'll ask you tomorrow.'


What Doesn't: Apprentice Writer is still trying to work out how she feels about the last page, which for obvious reasons she cannot reveal. It is not that she disliked it - she didn't. It is more that it was unexpected - from point-of-view, from closing action, and from lack of hint of what came next. This, of course, may simply be a sign of how well-trained she is in forecasting a more typical type of historical romance genre ending - meaning that one that departs from the usual is an innovation, and as such, to be commended. AW will therefore congratulate the author once again, for pioneering an unforeseen ending to go along with the new subgenre.

Nevertheless, AW would personally have liked having a bit more of an idea of what happened to the characters beyond THE END. She is a reader who loves epilogues, as a way of getting a more lingering farewell to characters she has come to like. Perhaps readers will find out what happend to Charlotte, Shad, et al in a follow-up title?

Overall: Apprentice Writer is very pleased to find proof that rather than being dead, chicklit has metamorphosised (is that a word?), and is alive and well in a new form. She will now go forth and find the author's previous 'Rakish Regency' title, A Most Lamentable Comedy, and enjoy her very funny blogpost on genre tropes all over again here: Regency Hotline.


BUT DOES IT MAKE YOU LAUGH? Absolutely
'Improper Relations' has taken up a spot on AW's Keeper shelf. It is available from bookdepository.com with free shipping anywhere in the world.

Learn more about the author here and here.


The Fine Print: AW received a copy from the author - and she's very glad she did.

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New Release: JULIE JAMES

Got a case of the winter blahs? Grey skies making you blue?

Apprentice Writer recommends: self-medicating with a funny story. One candidate is Julie James latest, with a blah-busting hit of unabashed magenta. Pretty spring-like, you'll probably agree.

Release date is 2 March, and AW is curious to see if she will enjoy it like the author's previous two titles.

Learn more about the author here.

Non-Laughter Reviews: SCOUNDREL'S KISS

SCOUNDREL'S KISS
Carrie Lofty
Historical Romance
Zebra, January 2010


Premise: English scholar battling addiction and warrior-turned-monk battling inner and outer foes are thrown together in the complex environment of medieval Spain.

Cover: Title - Short, references author's previous 'What a Scoundrel Wants' title, blessedly free of words 'wicked', 'sin' and 'Duke' = not bad at all. Art - Will Scarlett is surely revolving in his literary grave. Here it is, the rich, saturated red that should have graced his own story's cover, one book too late. So while the actual elements give a true picture of what to expect (cover lady's complexion convincingly British-pale, cover man's complexion convincingly mixed extraction, his grip on her equally interpretable as lovingly passionate or monumentally frustrated), the irony is uppermost.

What Works: Carrie Lofty is a fearless author. Not only does she choose unusual time periods and places (Robin Hood's Sherwood Forest, Spain at a time of uneasy back-and-forth control between Christian and Moorish forces), she makes her heroines stand far apart from commonplace historical female characters. Meg (of the author's wonderful debut book) was smart, resourceful, and seeing-impaired in a world without benefit of Braille or seeing eye dogs. Ada, her sister, made a none-too positive first impression in Meg's story (based on her treatment of Meg) and opens her own story grimly negotiating with an unsavory character about terms of payment for the opium she needs to stave off imminent withdrawal symptoms. An addict heroine? Can she be believably redeemed to the point the reader roots for her happy end?

She can and is, but not before some very dramatic moments for herself and the aspiring monk tasked with curing her as a condition for his ultimate acceptance into the order. Gavriel is a wonderful figure, made up of opposites that threaten to tear him apart even before Ada complicates his life: born of two worlds and fully accepted in neither, possessing a strategist's brain but denied all education but that intended for warfare, struggling to atone for past actions by pursuing a spiritual path yet having nigh insurmountable roadblocks and temptations thrown in his way. Ada, who first acts with disdain towards others and denial about her own condition (with the reader unable to yet distinguish if these are features of her own personality or a symptoms of her addiction) becomes like a fuse to his powder keg: she will, without question, speed him either to heaven or hell. Apprentice Writer's favorite scene between them was when he kicked a very specific psychological crutch out from under her, forcing her to make a choice without any excuses or pretense that she does not know the consequences of each potential decision before her.

What Doesn't: AW had the good fortune to visit Spain (including Toledo, which makes an appearance) and fell in love with the country - meaning she couldn't wait to plunge into the story. To her delight, a wealth of small details skillfully woven into the narrative provided a glimpse of a fascinating place and time, where the pressures and realities of frontier life and opposing world views battling for dominance led to the easing of social rules practiced more strictly elsewhere. AW confesses to longing for more; she felt greedy for a greater taste of the Spanish backdrop. The fact that this hunger was not satisfied is not a flaw of the book; it rests with two unalterable facts: 1. Commercial fiction operates within strict (*cough* stingy *cough*) wordcount parameters, and 2. If the back blurb and title didn't give it away, the clinch cover certainly would; this is not historical fiction. It is historical romance, with emphasis tightly on the relationship.

AW will have to resign herself to the options available for her Spanish fix: a) seeking out more historically oriented fiction, b) petitioning publishers to increase future wordcounts for Ms. Lofty, and c) daydreaming within the pages of tourist brochures. She'll get right on all three.

Overall: Another entertaining and emotionally satisfying foray into a fascinating pocket of history as seen through the eyes of a unique author. With Ms. Lofty soon branching out into the apocalyptic genre and holding craft workshops all over the place, Apprentice Writer hopes there will be time in her busy schedule to tell the stories of Jacob, Ada's erstwhile Jewish travel companion with hidden depths, and Blanca, the appealling young Spanish woman whose rescue of Ada leads to her own first taste of independence.

Learn more about the author here , here, and here.

The Fine Print: Apprentice Writer purchased her copy of 'What a Scoundrel Wants', and won a copy of 'Scoundrel's Kiss' from 'The Season' blog.

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Q & A: Laura Kinsale

(For review of 'Lessons in
French', see previous post)




Today, Apprentice Writer is delighted to welcome historical author Laura Kinsale to the blog.

Ms. Kinsale was kind enough to take time from promoting her long-awaited new publication to give readers here a glimpse inside the writerly life.





First things first: the cover. Did you choose the title, and did you have input about art?

I did choose the title. I was looking for something that would evoke the lightness of the story, and since Trev did once give Callie lessons in French (and a lot more!) it seemed appropriate.

I gave some general ideas for the cover, and asked that it be colorful. I think it is quite lovely.

What comes to you first? The hero? Heroine? Ending? One-liners?

The characters always come to me first, although usually it's a general concept of a character in a situation. In the case of LESSONS IN FRENCH, I knew I wanted to have a very shy wallflower for a heroine. Depending on which I start with, hero or heroine - and I've started with both - I then work out the opposite lead. The idea of a wallflower suggested the opposite - a roguish, adventurous hero. And that's definitely what Trev turned out to be!

My favorite scene is any where Trev is trying to lighten Callie's or his mother's mood. He has such a flair for outrageous, self-deprecating banter that both ladies can't help but be charmed even while understanding perfectly well what he is trying to do. What was your favorite scene?

Well, my very favorite scene is at the end, but that would be a spoiler. I think my second favorite would be the scene where Trev explains to Callie and his mother why Hubert the bull was hiding in his mother's kitchen. As the duchesse says, after Trev has finished his convoluted excuses, "Well done, Seigneur. Our brains are quite cooked, now."

Yes! Those are two excellent scenes! I loved Trev's luggage comment and Callie's reply.
How does a typical writing day for you look? Has it changed since Book#1?

I have absolutely no typical writing day. Unlike many writers, I have never been able to maintain a schedule of any kind. A typical day, at the moment, starts with heading to the barn to ride. Then I often do a short hike with my dog, or take him to the dog park - and by then, I'm pretty tired! It's very easy at that moment to sit down and start wasting time at the computer. But when I'm interested in the work in progress, I'm happy to write on it. That's really the key for me. I have to be in that 'zone'. And don't ask me how to get there, because I don't know! I do know that Twitter and email are not the way.

I very much look forward to telling my husband that in order to succeed as an author, I will require a barn, horse, and dog. He thought all he needed to provide was moral support!
How does your family feel about you being an author?

My dog thinks we should live all day at the dog park, and resents all my time at the computer. Other than that, I have my family's unqualified support.

Your best writing habit? Worst writing vice?

Hmm, that's an interesting question. I don't really think of myself as having writing habits. I guess the best 'habit' I have is to visualize myself from inside the heads of my characters - feel what they feel and see what they see.

My worst vice shows up when I'm tired. I think to myself "I'll take a short break" and then I end up wasting a lot of time and not getting back to work.

Social networking: Wolf in Sheep's Clothing or Blessing in Disguise?

Definitely a wolf - I saw through the sheep's costume from the start. Not that it helps!

Who is your writing idol and why?

SF writer C.J. Cherryh. I love her characters, her stories and her writing style. Also she's prolific, which I wish I were.

Best piece of advice for aspiring writers?

Observe everything. Look for details about everything you see, about people, places, news, sentences, word choices, plot twists. Details are things like the way shadows of streelights pass under your car as you drive along a highway at night. Be interested in life. Read, but don't limit your experience to reading or online. Live in the real world and notice how it feels.

Good advice. It's all to easy to spend huge chunks of time online in the name of learning about the biz. Anything else you'd like to share with Apprentice Writer's readers?

Yes, I'll share a quote from Elizabeth Law, the publisher at Egmont Books, when she was asked about Author Promotion at the Shrinking Violets blog:

"Just write your heart out. I promise you that's what matters. I would much, much, much rather find a great, unusual, distinctive book by a phobic writer covered in oozing sores who lives in a closet than a decent but not amazingly original book by the world's best promoter. I could sell the former a lot better too!"

Point taken, though I'm not dedicated enough to acquire oozing sores. Will compromise by spending more time in my closet and checking out the Shrinking Violets blog.

Thank you so much, Ms. Kinsale for your time and insights.

To learn more about the author, go here.

m.

Laughter Reviews - Keeper: LESSONS IN FRENCH

LESSONS IN FRENCH
Laura Kinsale
Historical Romance
Sourcebooks, 2010

Premise:
Introverted rural heiress and disenfranchised French duke with a shared history meet again, burdened by personal and political events since their parting.

Cover:
Title - Very good. Short, memorable, relevant to content on multiple levels. Art - the trend of lady with bared leg culminating in flexed foot continues. Altogether kind of middle-of-the-road: not heinous, but not especially striking either. Was her gown supposed to be French Blue? If so, it needed more gray in the mix - however, Apprentice Writer concedes that French Blue is a hue better suited to walls than gowns.

What Works:
How much did Apprentice Writer love LIF? Let her count the ways:

1. The heroine. So introverted, yet so resourceful when the situation called for it (and boy, did the situation ever keep calling for it.) So mortified by her inexplicable thrice-jilted state, yet so shrewd in how to take the personalities of those around her into account to achieve results desired. So fixated in her self-image as a non-descript mouse, yet quietly drawing the positive regard of all who mattered (and some who didn't.) Readers who enjoyed Olivia "What Happens in London" Bevelstoke's habit of composing lists to work through her frustrations (AW certainly did) will be likewise entertained by the daydreams Callie concocts to combat feelings of impotence and anger created by the restrictions of her daily life.

2. The hero. Tormented, too charming for his own good, made almost disastrously reckless by jealousy, utterly steadfast in his own way. A fascinating mix of impulsiveness and principles. AW wants to say 'lovable' except that makes him sound like a puppy, or perhaps one of the bull calves that keep cropping up, and AW doesn't think that puppies or bull calves are as passionate or dashing as Trev. Then again, what does she know? The book is dedicated to a hound. One imagines there must be a good reason for that.

3. The secondary characters. Regular readers of this space know how important they are to AW. She was pleased with both human and animal ones. The gravely ill mother - wonderful! The antagonist - went from irredeemable to creating odd flashes of sympathy and hope that something might be done with him. The bull - loved him, though AW has never been a bovine person regardless of how unendingly cute baby Norman was in 'City Slickers'. Were all believable and uncliched.

4. The writing. It flowed so well. No spots that jarred with anachronisms, out of proportion emotion, dragging introspection, questions about the mechanics of how something just happened. And the dialogue - oh, the dialogue! AW desperately longed to have someone to talk with like that.

5. And finally, the big kahuna: The funny. AW's copy is overwhelmingly dog-eared with little gems. She will limit herself to a few:


"She had wrestled with the question (of what could be wrong with her to be jilted three times) herself. Indeed, she and her father and her sister and their acqusaintance and all the local gossips and probably two or three of the wiser village goats had spent a good deal of time dissecting the matter. No satisfactory answer had been agreed upon.

Her father had attributed it to the general decline of British Manhood into Riot and Villany. Her sister Hermione felt that Callie showed a deplorable lack of respect for the fashion in caps. The gossips largely blamed it upon Napoleon. During the French wars, they had blamed everything on Napoleon, and even five years after Waterloo he had not outlived his usefulness in that regard. The goats, being commoners, very properly kept their opinions to themselves."

And:
"...Are you a great heiress, then?"
"Well, yes," she admitted..."After the last settlement, it toted up to quite a sum."
"How much?" he asked bluntly.
"Eighty thousand," she said in a smothered voice.
"Good God."
"So you see," she said, lifting her face, "I'm hardly an object for compassion."
"May I make you the object of my violent and unrestrained ardor?" He made a motion as if to loosen his neck-cloth. "I'm a bit tired, but perfectly willing."
"My calling hours are from twelve to three, if you wish to importune me violently," Callie said, dropping a quick curtsy, "but now I must see to your mother."

And this, the phrase that will join Joanna Bourne's expression of strong emotion ("God's avenging chickens!") in AW's hall of fame:

"...he cried havoc and let slip the hens of war."

Top that!


What Doesn't;
Callie and Trev did not have sufficient foresight to provide siblings who are both alive and single, dashing the possibility of re-entering this world through their books. Perhaps some obscure cousins could pop up and provide a reunion with Callie and Trev in future pages? Perhaps Callie's sister can become a widow? Or couldn't an author of this calibre transform the antagonist into a convincing hero of his own story?

Overall:
This book is destined for the Laughter Keeper Shelf, but it will need to wait to take up its place there. First AW is going to read it again.

But does it make you laugh? YES, YES, YES!
The last time a historical made AW laugh so consistently from start to finish was when she discovered Lindsey Davis' "Falco" series of imperial Rome. Giving LIF to someone feeling down or disheartened would be humanitarian service.


COME BACK TOMORROW FOR Q & A WITH THE AUTHOR!

The Fine Print: AW received an Advance Reader's Copy from Sourcebooks - and she's so glad she did.

M.

Page 1: MR. FITZWILLIAM DARCY, LAST MAN IN THE WORLD

“In a moment, when we leave the trees, you will be able to see the house,” said Mr. Darcy. “There it is, across the valley – Pemberley House.”

Elizabeth smiled at him dutifully, then looked out the window of the carriage where he was pointing. The house was large and handsome, even at this distance, and its situation on a rising hill above the water was lovely. Of course, she had expected as much, having heard its praises sung by Miss Bingley as well as Darcy himself. In other circumstances, she might have been delighted by it."

Abigail Reynolds

Tomorrow: Review of 'Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, Last Man in the World' and giveaway!

Day after tomorrow: Interview with the author, and another giveaway!

Laughter Reviews: THE DEVIL'S CUB

The Devil's Cub

by Georgette Heyer

Historical Comedy
Sourcebooks, 2009



Premise: Bored sprig of nobility meets someone who doesn't bore him.

Cover: Gorgeous. Apprentice Writer has a weakness for covers showing detail of classical paintings. This one is perfect - she looks somewhat bemused, he's commanding the situation (in velvet coat, lacy jabot, shiny boots, and faultless hair despite having travelled to this tete-a-tete(a-tete, if one includes all participants) by horse. Who looks just as curious as the lady in what the lordling will do next.

What Works: Apprentice Writer believes this is what is called a 'Comedy of Manners'. A huge amount of the story rests on the lengths to which people will go to preserve the appearance of social expectations, while seeing just how close to the edge they can skate in terms of not actually behaving accoridng to those expectations. There is a lot of scheming about arranging the setting and timing of one's actions so as to force the hand someone else, and how to evade someone else's efforts to force one's hand. All very entertaining and somewhat exhausting-sounding for the reader, but AW supposes that people had to come up with some way to amuse themselves in the days before Twitter, Wii, and Youtube.

AW had some fun waiting to see how the author would make her come to like various characters she initially was not so sure about, most notably, the cub himself. Wildly indulged, extravagantly wealthy, insufferably competent and of course good-looking, Vidal spends most of his life proving to everybody (meaning his legendary father) that he Doesn't Give A Damn. This doesn't-give-a-damning reaches such intensity that he gets kicked out of the country. So, we have an egocentric spoiled only son, the mother who helped create the monster by hearing and seeing no wrong where he is concerned, and the father who likewise helped create the monster by being so legendary and, apparently, taunting his son with his pwn youthful exploits.

Good lord - what poor heroine would want to get entangled with such a family? Yet when she comes along, she holds her own magnificently, most notably in a scene that showed AW that one of her favorite authors, Ms. Loretta Chase, must be a Heyer devotee. The scene where Jessica demonstrates to Dain that she is decidedly unhappy about his treatment, impressing the hell out of him (fans know EXACTLY what this means) is one of AW's favorite moments of her entire reading career - and seems to be a homage to a superb scene in this story. For that alone, this story is worth reading. But fear not; there are many other wonderful bits as well, not least, how the cub's parents come around to making the reader like them after all.

What Doesn't: Yes, there is a highway robbery scene, and yes, there is a duel. But these are very brief bits of action in what is essentially a lot of talking and sitting around. Inside houses, at gaming tables, in carriages, on boats, with bottles - but all, unarguably, sitting around. Readers who like action and variation of setting may feel numb after awhile. Though the story supposedly winds its way through such places as the English Channel and Paris, it could just as well have been across some loch and into the next village. The reader gains no real sense of the various settings, neither landscape nor people nor food nor weather. It's all about the dialogue. Which is entertaining, and keeps changing up depending on who is in the scene, but it takes a certain type of reader to appreciate that, and readers who like more scene-setting and variation may find it wearing.


Overall: A wonderful read for those who love historical fiction, comedies of manners, and stories where it's all about the banter that brings a pair of opposites together. With the beautiful cover, this would make a lovely gift for the holiday season.

BUT DOES IT MAKE YOU LAUGH? Yes!
This is Heyer at full force, with two generations of her memorable characters playing off each other. AW shall enjoy reading the prequel, 'These Old Shades', the story of the cub's parents' more youthful days.

m.

Triplet Reviews: ANTHOLOGIES, Part 2

Hello and welcome to Part 2 to of the Anthology Triplet Review. For Part 1 ('Must Love Hellhounds' & 'Queen in Winter') please scroll down.

Moving on to the third antho in the bunch:


FOUR DUKES AND A DEVIL (Historical Romance, 2009)
Cover: Liked the small details that came together to make something more than the first impression of somewhat bland house at twilight suggested. The devil's tail in the title was nifty, the red color contrast with deep blue twilight eye-catching, the smoke in the sky kind of cool.

The Irish Duke, Cathy Maxwell
Premise: Spinster who makes her living advising ton families on matches warns against suitability of Irish dukes, and is taken to task by one such.
Writing Style: Did not appeal to this reader.
World: Didn't engage, therefore didn't care to make an effort to suspend disbelief.
Prediction: Probably wouldn't seek out more from this author.

Catch of the Century, Sophia Nash
Premise: Governess travelling with three young charges is stranded on the road; passing Duke acts as Good Samaritan.
Writing Style: Drew AW in.
World: This story was trundling nicely along, looking to be AW's favorite in the bunch, when disaster (readerly speaking) struck. WARNING! SPOILERS!
Hero and heroine are chugging away in their mutual but unacted-upon attraction, when she leaves the ducal manor to go in search of the boys who are exploring the grounds. The Duke happens upon her (quelle surprise) and agrees that it would be good to find them given that there is a lake nearby. Then the pair of them in effect say to themselves "But oh, wait, before we go check if they are busy drowning themselves, we have just enough time for our first nekkid encounter!" END SPOILER WARNING!
These are people the reader is supposed to relate to, sympathize with, root for? AW thinks not. Clearly the heroine is an abysmally bad governess, and he apparently believes in some version of "I'm a Duke, so above other people that I needn't concern myself the potential of contributing to three premature juvenile deaths by negligence since I did my duty earlier in not leaving a young lady by the side of the road." This little bit of 'What the hell???' made this book almost turn into a wallbanger right then and there, but that would have been unfair to the remaining authors whose stories were not yet read.
Prediction: AW is utterly conflicted about this. On the one hand, the egregious plot development. On the other, she had enjoyed the story up to that point. On a glass half full basis, AW would do a ten page test of another work.

Charmed by her Smile, Tracy Anne Warren
Premise: Debutante seeks the assistance of one man to manipulate another.
Writing Style: Didn't engage.
World: Wasn't drawn in, felt impatient both with the heroine's manipulativeness and the hero's being attracted to her.
Prediction: Will probably not seek this author out again.

The Duke Who Came to Dinner, Elaine Fox
Premise: Island resident and newcomer are brought together by canine antics.
Writing Style: Pleasant, easily readable.
World: Was refreshing to have a contemporary thrown in the mix (the Duke in question is a pet), and the story was sweet, but ultimately, not especially stand-outish enough to make AW rush off to her local bookstore to keep the reading experience going.
Prediction: There was enough here to warrant a ten-page test in a longer work to see if it compelled more.

Devil to Pay, Jeanine Frost
Premise: Loner vampire comes to the aid of a human trying to commit suicide to protect others from his actions when he is demonically possessed.
Writing Style: Flowed well enough.
World: Though the trouble the hero finds himself in was certainly compelling and roused sympathy, somehow, didn't quite believe in how fast the couple made a connection and didn't quite get drawn in to the story. As with the Singh story in MLH, this was a case of writing that was good but not good enough to surmount AW's aversion to vampire stories. Fans of this genre would probably like it a great deal more.
Prediction: Will probably not seek out more from this author unless she were to begin writing about another type of character.

TALLY
# of authors AW will definitely seek out based on these short stories,
(in brackets, # AW would give benefit of the doubt in form of a ten-page test of another book)

Must Love Hellhounds - 2 of 4 (plus 1)

Queen in Winter - 2 of 4 (plus 1)

Four Dukes and a Devil - 0 of 5 (plus 2)




Read an anthology lately that AW should try next?

m.