Apr 30 2012
Dear Ms. Rich, I have a love/hate relationship with historical novels. When they work, they can be wondrous – taking me to foreign lands, to different eras, into the rich and complex lives of the characters. Bad ones can seem endless and are worse if I get the feeling that these are just people dressed [...]
Apr 29 2012
Welcome to the Promotional Thread for Authors. What’s this you say? I read quite a few blogs outside the romance blogosphere and many of the big ones have a daily open thread where the commenters drive the bus. The rules for Author Promo Night Open Thread are as follows: The book has to be released [...]
Apr 29 2012
Got a book you want to talk about? Frustrated with a book or series? In love with a new one? Found a buried treasure? An issue that keeps popping up in the books you are reading? Just want to chat about stuff in general? Post away.
Apr 27 2012
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (2008) Genre: Romantic Comedy Grade: C This is a movie I wanted to love, yearned to love, and hoped to love. Unfortunately, I didn’t. First, some background. Back around 2003, a friend of mine who lived in Berkshire at the time, told me about a wonderful bookstore she found [...]
Apr 24 2012
Dear Ms. Griffin, I’ve mentioned before that the reason I don’t read much romantic suspense is that usually one aspect or the other gets shortchanged and I end up disappointed. Your books, however, have usually been the exception. A few little things in them might niggle but I’ve come to expect that in order to [...]
Apr 23 2012
Can the answer to her curse lie in the dreams of the past? When Professor Alex Simon moves to Canyon, Texas from England, he welcomes the opportunity to change his locale. Not only would he be aiding his recently widowed sister, but he would have a chance to forget a failed relationship. Robin Wise is [...]
Apr 20 2012
Charade (1963) Genre: Romantic Suspense Grade: B+ Witty, sophisticated, and elegant – this falls under the category of “they don’t make them like this anymore.” The pairing of Hepburn and Grant isn’t my favorite – he does look a little long in the tooth for her – but … damn, he’s Cary Grant and he [...]
Apr 18 2012
“When the Cleveland Chiefs baseball team signs Kentaro Ikuta as their new star pitcher, they are faced with a man unable to speak English and a media frenzy clamoring for his words. Management turns to the renown linguistics department of Case Western Reserve University for help. Doctoral candidate Claire Ferris is chosen to act as [...]
Apr 13 2012
Peau D’ane (Donkey Skin) (1971) Genre: Romantic Fairy Tale Grade:B+ Last year after I had reviewed a series of Cinderella movies, a friend recommended that I try this French fairy tale called Donkey Skin – or Peau D’ane. I was game and rented it from Netflix. Talk about beautiful European WTFery. Holy heck. This one [...]
Apr 12 2012
“Kathryn West has it all–she’s a confident, bestselling author living it up in New York City. Too bad she doesn’t actually exist, and is only timid Maddie Sawyer’s pseudonym. Determined to attend her high school reunion with a man right out of one of her racy romance novels, she plots to find a sexy bad [...]
Apr 9 2012
And on the One-Thousand-and-Second night, Scheherazade told this story… By day, Taqla uses her forbidden sorcery to move freely about the city of Damascus in the guise of an old sage. Her true identity known only by her faithful servant woman, Taqla is content with the comfortable, if restrictive, life that keeps her safe from [...]
Apr 6 2012
What’s Up Doc (1972) Genre: Screwball Comedy/Romance Grade: A- Judy: Love means never having to say you’re sorry. Howard: That’s the dumbest thing I ever heard. Lots of people have tried to make screwball comedies in the decades after its 30/40s heydays but very few have actually succeeded. Usually, IMO, because they try too hard [...]
Apr 5 2012
Dear Ms. Morgan, Though I’ve made the decision not to read any more Jane Austen fanfic – um, I mean homages to JA extending the lives of the characters she created, I couldn’t pass up this book which not really about any of the books JA wrote but rather about a reenactment society dedicated to [...]
Apr 2 2012
Dear Ms. James, There’s no easy way to say this so I guess I’ll just come right out and get it over with. The bloom is off the rose. The last second basket rattled off the rim. I don’t love this book the way I’ve loved some of your other books. That hurt me to [...]
Apr 1 2012
What’s this you say? I read quite a few blogs outside the romance blogosphere and many of the big ones have a daily open thread where the commenters drive the bus. I thought we would test out an open thread here at Dear Author. On the first Sunday of every month, there will be an [...]
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