* * *

Dear Ms. Day,

I fell in love with the first book I read by you, The Stranger I Married, and ever since then you’ve been on my auto-buy list. In fact, you’ve become one of those authors where I break my neck to get your books but then don’t read them because I’m saving them for a proverbial rainy day – times when none of the other books I have are holding my interest, and are annoying me. At times like this, I pull out one of my rainy-day authors and know I’m in for a treat. So when I first started A Passion for Him, I found I wasn’t in the right frame of mind to read it yet. I had to put it to the side and wait for the right time. A few weeks later, it was time. I picked A Passion for Him back up and devoured in it a matter of hours.

Amelia Benbridge is betrothed to her longtime friend Lord Ware. Amelia knows she is not in love with Lord Ware the way he loves her, but she agrees to marry him because the one she does love passed away years ago. At a masquerade ball, she is approached by a (masked, duh!) man who appears to be taken with her. She is drawn to him as well, though she doesn’t know why. The reader, however, knows this masked man is none other than Colin, the boy she loved long ago, but believed to be dead. Lord Ware eventually steps aside to allow Amelia to explore her feelings for the masked Colin, who reveals his identity.

This summary definitely doesn’t do justice to the book; its not easy to capture the gravitational pull between Amelia and Colin. I thought I might have a problem with the ease with which she left Lord Ware, but in the end, I think Amelia actually liked Lord Ware too much to string him along. There’s a French-spy/intrigue subplot that I could have done without, but that’s mainly because I just wanted the story to get back to Amelia and Colin.

This is the second book in what I guess is labeled the Passion series, and though I haven’t read the first book, I found this story line very easy to follow and it piqued my interest in the previous book, which was already high to begin with. Kudos to you for another great read. B+/A-

~Jay

This book can be purchased in trade paperback or ebook format.

***

Do you have a favorite book? Would you like to share that with Dear Author? Send your review to jane at dearauthor.com. Every Monday we share books that we love to inspire more reading.

Related posts:

1. REVIEW: Ask for It by Sylvia Day
2. REVIEW: A Very Unusual Governess by Sylvia Andrew
3. REVIEW: Stranger I Married by Sylvia Day

***

Dear Jane:

I love the Vorkosigan series. It’s full of adventure and excitement and clashing cultures, romance, mystery, humor, space battles, diplomatic struggles, and the best cast of characters I’ve ever come across. When Memory came out, though, I was almost afraid to read it because the plot essentially assassinates the main character. Bujold is not an author who plays nice with her characters or flinches away from the tough questions. That said, this book is overwhelmingly positive in its inevitable resolution. I can’t recommend it highly enough and it’s my favorite of the series, the one I re-read most often.

Miles Vorkosigan has been living a double life until the events in Memory. In one life, he is an unassuming Vor lord and low-ranking Barrayaran military officer, very visibly handicapped in a society that prizes perfection and has a horror of any sign of mutation. In his other life, he is a galactic hero who leads a mercenary force to spectacular victories utilizing the mental strengths he’s cultivated to compensate for physical weakness. Admiral Naismith, his alter ego, is successful, brilliant, and has the love of Elli Quinn.

But both of his selves are forced to deal with the consequences of his death and revival when lingering effects make him unfit to command. In a very messy and public disaster, Miles has a seizure and injures the party he’s rescuing. Rather than admit his infirmity, he fights to cover up his weakness and his mistake by falsifying the mission report. When the truth comes out, Admiral Naismith is dead and his covert ops career is over. He’s confined to Barrayar and his life as Lord Vorkosigan.

I can’t think of any other book I’ve ever read with a blacker moment. Miles has lost everything – his career, his freedom, his friends and his lover – and if it ended there, it would have been heart-breaking. But that’s the beginning.

While Miles grapples with the issue of his forsworn honor and the loss of his identity, another crisis erupts. Simon Illyan, Barrayaran Imperial Security Chief and Miles’ former mentor and boss, disintegrates into mental confusion when his eidetic memory chip is the target of a peculiar form of assassination. Miles has to intervene on Simon’s behalf and solve the mystery of his collapse to identify Simon’s enemy inside ImpSec itself.

His actions on Barrayar force him not only to resolve his own personal dilemma and forgive himself for his mistakes, but to act as Lord Vorkosigan. It takes killing his covert operation identity to force Miles to integrate his two selves. The result is full of surprises for everyone, most especially for Miles himself.

This book does the impossible and does it so brilliantly that it makes my jaw hang open. When I grow up, I want to write like this. It’s amazing, wonderful, profound, entertaining, thought-provoking, and the kind of book you want to save from a burning building. Buy it, read it, and read it again. You won’t be sorry.

Charlene Teglia

This book can be purchased in mass market or ebook format.

***

Do you have a favorite book? Would you like to share that with Dear Author? Send your review to jane at dearauthor.com. Every Monday we share books that we love to inspire more reading.

Related posts:

1. GUEST REVIEW: Cordelia’s Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold
2. REVIEW: The Sharing Knife: Beguilement by Lois McMaster Bujold
3. REVIEW: The Sharing Knife: Legacy by Lois McMaster Bujold

***

The nicest thing my ex-SIL ever did was introduce me to Nora Roberts books. She gave me a box of her castoffs with the warning that they were formulaic but fun. Included in the box was Holding the Dream, the second of the "Dream" trilogy, published in 1997.

If they are formulaic, it’s a formula that works. The Dream trilogy is the story of Margo, Kate and Laura – three women bound not by blood but by upbringing, friendship, and love. Each of them had achieved the dreams of their youths, only to find their present world rocked by scandals. Now each of them has to find a way to survive, a new path, and in the process a new dream.

From the back cover:

Surrounded by the sweeping cliffs and beauty of Big Sur, Kate Powell treasured her life at Templeton House-and the family who raised her like one of their own. Although Kate lacked Margo’s beauty and Laura’s elegance, she knew she had something they would never possess – a shrewd head for business. Driven by ambition, Kate measured her life’s success with each soaring promotion. But now faced with professional impropriety, Kate is forced to look deep within herself – only to find something missing in her life-and in her heart.

Perhaps because I read the second book in this series first it has always been my favorite. Or maybe it’s because Kate is no typical romance heroine. She’s hard-working and driven and seems like someone you might meet the next time you need your taxes done.

Nora Roberts paints vivid pictures of her characters, but not by simply telling us how they look. Instead we get to see them through the eyes of other characters. In Holding the Dream, the hero Byron isn’t bowled over by Kate at first sight, but he is intrigued:

"I assumed you were cold, prim, rude, annoying, and self-involved. I’m not ordinarily that far wrong with people."

She jerked the ribbon into a knot, snipped off the ends. "You’re not this time, either. Except for the prim."

"No, the rude and annoying probably stick, but I’ve been reevaluating the rest."

And later:

She was flushed and rumpled. Her short hair stood in spikes, those long, slim legs pale gold beneath the hem of his shirt. She had no figure to speak of, was more bone than curve. The little mascara she’d bothered with was smudged under her eyes. Her nose was crooked. Had he noticed that before? The nose was slightly off center, and her mouth was certainly too wide for that narrow face.

"You’re not beautiful," he said in a quiet statement that made her brow knit. "Why do you look beautiful when you’re not?"

"How much of that wine did you drink, De Witt?"

"Your face is wrong." As if to prove it to himself, he came around the counter for a closer look. "It’s like whoever put it together used a couple of spare parts from someone else’s."

"This is all very fascinating," she said impatiently, "But-"

"At first glance your body looks like it belongs to a teenage boy, all arms and legs."

"Thank you very much, Mr. Universe. Have you finished your unsolicited critique of my looks?"

"Almost." His lips curved a little as he skimmed a hand along her jaw. "I love the way you look. I can’t figure out why, but I love the way you look, the way you move." He slipped his arms around her, drew her in. "They way you smell."

"This is a novel way to seduce me."

It certainly seduced me. I not only found and devoured the remaining two books in this series but embarked on what has been a decade-long Nora Roberts addiction.

The story is pure Roberts with just the right blend of believable conflicts and obstacles to success – no willful misunderstandings or contrived plot twists in sight. Though there is an overall storyline that ties all three of these books together, each has a satisfying resolution of its own. Can anyone really find fault with Nora Roberts writing? If so, it’s not me. Nora Roberts has become the ideal to which I aspire in my own writing, particularly with regard to characterization. There is nothing cookie cutter about her characters – each is fully developed and rich and when I close the book on the last page, I typically feel as if I’ve said goodbye to good friends.

Perhaps that’s why I’ve carried this book across the world with me from my ex-SIL’s garage in North Carolina to Egypt. I never have been good at saying goodbye.

Jenyfer Matthews

This book can be purchased in mass market or ebook format.

***

Do you have a favorite book? Would you like to share that with Dear Author? Send your review to jane at dearauthor.com. Every Monday we share books that we love to inspire more reading.

Related posts:

1. GUEST REVIEW: Holding the Dream by Nora Roberts
2. Nora Roberts Beats Out Al Gore for Literary Prize
3. REVIEW: Carnal Innocence by Nora Roberts

***

The nicest thing my ex-SIL ever did was introduce me to Nora Roberts books. She gave me a box of her castoffs with the warning that they were formulaic but fun. Included in the box was Holding the Dream, the second of the “Dream” trilogy, published in 1997.

If they are formulaic, it’s a formula that works. The Dream trilogy is the story of Margo, Kate and Laura – three women bound not by blood but by upbringing, friendship, and love. Each of them had achieved the dreams of their youths, only to find their present world rocked by scandals. Now each of them has to find a way to survive, a new path, and in the process a new dream.

From the back cover:

Surrounded by the sweeping cliffs and beauty of Big Sur, Kate Powell treasured her life at Templeton House…and the family who raised her like one of their own. Although Kate lacked Margo’s beauty and Laura’s elegance, she knew she had something they would never possess – a shrewd head for business. Driven by ambition, Kate measured her life’s success with each soaring promotion. But now faced with professional impropriety, Kate is forced to look deep within herself – only to find something missing in her life…and in her heart.

Perhaps because I read the second book in this series first it has always been my favorite. Or maybe it’s because Kate is no typical romance heroine. She’s hard-working and driven and seems like someone you might meet the next time you need your taxes done.

Nora Roberts paints vivid pictures of her characters, but not by simply telling us how they look. Instead we get to see them through the eyes of other characters. In Holding the Dream, the hero Byron isn’t bowled over by Kate at first sight, but he is intrigued:

“I assumed you were cold, prim, rude, annoying, and self-involved. I’m not ordinarily that far wrong with people.”

She jerked the ribbon into a knot, snipped off the ends. “You’re not this time, either. Except for the prim.”

“No, the rude and annoying probably stick, but I’ve been reevaluating the rest.”

And later:

She was flushed and rumpled. Her short hair stood in spikes, those long, slim legs pale gold beneath the hem of his shirt. She had no figure to speak of, was more bone than curve. The little mascara she’d bothered with was smudged under her eyes. Her nose was crooked. Had he noticed that before? The nose was slightly off center, and her mouth was certainly too wide for that narrow face.

“You’re not beautiful,” he said in a quiet statement that made her brow knit. “Why do you look beautiful when you’re not?”

“How much of that wine did you drink, De Witt?”

“Your face is wrong.” As if to prove it to himself, he came around the counter for a closer look. “It’s like whoever put it together used a couple of spare parts from someone else’s.”

“This is all very fascinating,” she said impatiently, “But-“

“At first glance your body looks like it belongs to a teenage boy, all arms and legs.”

“Thank you very much, Mr. Universe. Have you finished your unsolicited critique of my looks?”

“Almost.” His lips curved a little as he skimmed a hand along her jaw. “I love the way you look. I can’t figure out why, but I love the way you look, the way you move.” He slipped his arms around her, drew her in. “They way you smell.”

“This is a novel way to seduce me.”

It certainly seduced me. I not only found and devoured the remaining two books in this series but embarked on what has been a decade-long Nora Roberts addiction.

The story is pure Roberts with just the right blend of believable conflicts and obstacles to success – no willful misunderstandings or contrived plot twists in sight. Though there is an overall storyline that ties all three of these books together, each has a satisfying resolution of its own. Can anyone really find fault with Nora Roberts writing? If so, it’s not me. Nora Roberts has become the ideal to which I aspire in my own writing, particularly with regard to characterization. There is nothing cookie cutter about her characters – each is fully developed and rich and when I close the book on the last page, I typically feel as if I’ve said goodbye to good friends.

Perhaps that’s why I’ve carried this book across the world with me from my ex-SIL’s garage in North Carolina to Egypt. I never have been good at saying goodbye.

Jenyfer Matthews

This book can be purchased in mass market or ebook format.

***

Do you have a favorite book? Would you like to share that with Dear Author? Send your review to jane at dearauthor.com. Every Monday we share books that we love to inspire more reading.

Related posts:

1. Nora Roberts Beats Out Al Gore for Literary Prize
2. REVIEW: Carnal Innocence by Nora Roberts
3. REVIEW: High Noon by Nora Roberts

***

At its most basic level, Boy's Life by Robert McCammon is the story of Cory Mackenson, a twelve-year old boy growing up in Zephyr, Alabama in the late fifties. But McCammon, a lyrical author with a flair for seeing the world through the eyes of a child, has skillfully framed the story by telling it in a balanced combination between Cory's perspective as a child and his adult point of view. There's no flashback&emdash;or, in a way, the entire story is a flashback, with only the first and last chapters happening to the adult Cory. But this is not a new literary device and it works especially well here. The reader is immediately drawn into Cory's coming-of-age story and we live his experiences with him, but the words belong to the adult Cory, so they are filled with metaphorical delights that will appeal to the reader who might want to skirt the edge between genre and literary fiction.

Now, let me say up front that I swore off literary fiction a few years ago when I retired from teaching high school English. I discovered this book when it was required reading for high school sophomores at a school I taught at in Georgia. I bought a copy soon after my first year at the school, in preparation for teaching it in the Spring and I was blown away. I'd never read anything that appealed to me on both a personal and professional level. Every page containing something exciting and something teachable. Now, re-reading it as only a writer, I was once again blown away by the amazing quality of the storytelling. I kept thinking this book should have won this author accolades on par with a major book award. Yes, it's that good.

To say that McCammon's talent with words is magical is an understatement and a pun. Not only is he weaving a complicated tale about growing up in the South, racism, cruelty, traditions, childhood, innocence, superstition, realism, fantasy and countless other themes that he manages to sew into a cohesive tapestry, but it has a plot, too. A really good one. Near the beginning of the book, Cory goes with his father on his milk delivery route. As they are driving past Saxon's Lake, a water-filled former quarry, a car rushes past them and goes into the water. Cory's father, Tom, dives in to save the driver, but the tattooed driver has been choked to death by a piano wire and is handcuffed to the steering wheel as the car begins to submerge. Tom is nearly dragged down as well, all while Cory watches, and the event is the impetuous for not only the action of the book, but for the emotional journeys as well.

What I think is missing from many thrillers (not that I'd necessarily characterize this book as a thriller, but it comes close) is emotion. In fact, in most genre fiction outside of romance, I find that emotions are given short shrift. Not so in BOY'S LIFE. McCammon milks the emotion out of every scene and I found myself laughing heartily in some places, reading wide-eyed in others and then mopping up tears from those very same eyes just a few pages later. Every scene contains a wealth of emotion to share with Cory and his compatriots. Cory's first crush. His love for his dog. His respect for his parents. His ambivalence toward his grandparents. His conflicts with his friends and their conflicts with their families.

I think what I love most about this book is the strength of the themes. It's the kind of book you want to read at the same time as someone else you know, because trust me, you'll want to talk about it. As I mentioned, this book was taught to high school sophomores and a day didn't go when the students didn't engage in spirited discussions about the assigned reading the night before. I should mention that the sophomore class that I taught were twenty kids whose teacher the previous year had spend most of the time letting them do their lessons out on the lawn or while watching cartoons on television. These were kids who were not used to having expectations thrust upon them, so when they got copies from me of a book that topped 500 pages, they looked at me like I was nuts. And yet, I'd say that 18 out of 20 of them read the book cover to cover when all was said and done. They enjoyed the class discussions and felt a sure sense of accomplishment when they reached the end. I wondered if I'd still experience that same awe of this book reading it as a "lay person" and not as a teacher and I'm glad to say, I did.

I was very pleased to learn that Simon & Schuster re-issued the book, so buying a new copy from Amazon was a snap. I haven't read any of McCammon's other work, but this one is a classic and is usually the book I mention when I'm asked in interviews, "What is your favorite book of all time?" The book has been described as McCammon's ŝtour de force" and I agree wholeheartedly.

On final note, while doing a bit of research before writing my review, I learned that this book was challenged by a school board not two counties away from me. Had I known, I would have shown up at the school board meeting ready to defend this book to the death. Luckily, the author himself showed up. I respected McCammon as a writer immeasurably just because of the book, but for his reasoned fight against mindless censorship, he's won my lifelong devotion.

~Julie Leto
Vampires are so five minutes ago…
PHANTOM PLEASURES, April 2008
http://www.plotmonkeys.com

This book can be purchased in mass market. No ebook format I could find.

***

Have an absolutely favorite book that you want to share with us? Write a review. There’s a real luxury in re-reading a book that we love. It represents a certain nostalgia and comfort. I think giving ourselves permission to re-read from time to time is a reading treat that we all need. Consider submitting a review of your favorite book for review. It could be a childhood book, a collection of stories, a biography, or even a romance. There is no limit in terms of genre. The only qualification is that it is a book that the reader loved. Email jane at jane at dearauthor dot com

Related posts:

1. GUEST REVIEW: Bad for Each Other by Kate Hathaway
2. GUEST REVIEW: The Little Country by Charles de Lint
3. A Bookshelf for Boys

I would not describe myself as a science fiction fan-and not because I haven’t tried it. Thanks to my college habit of taking only classes that met Tuesday-Thursday, I’ve read the whole SF canon, everything from Left Hand of Darkness to Snow Crash. And while I didn’t hate it all (Because, really, who could hate Dune?) literature about dystopian feminist/fascist/droid-ruled/war-mongering societies just doesn’t get my blood pumping. And, though I have nothing against space operas in theory, many “composers” seem so besotted with the nifty little worlds they’ve created they forget details like characterization and lucid plots. But last January, in a post about genre labels, you mentioned Lois McMaster Bujold’s Vorkosigan books as a series often embraced by romance readers. I needed something to read, so I gave them a shot.

Cordelia’s Honor is the first installment in the Vorkosigan series, but it reads like a stand-alone novel. It also reads like one of the best damn books I’ve ever owned. It’s primarily SF, but the relationship thread is very strong and the book ends with a HEA, so it more than satisfied my romance needs. Even better, the lead couple, Cordelia Naismith and Aral Vorkosigan, are actually great people. With all the Mary Sues and Too-Stupid-To-Lives masquerading as heroines, all the Jackass-Alpha-Males and Self-Centered-Brooders offered as heroes, I often settle for merely tolerating my main characters. But Cordelia and Aral are different. For starters, they’re Grown-Ups. They do not play dumb relationship games or pull stupid stunts that endanger themselves and others. They’re intelligent and competent. They respect each other. It’s all so refreshing!

Aral, from the empire planet of Barrayar (imagine a really cut-throat and futuristically-equipped Regency England) is an aristocrat and a soldier in command of a starship. Cordelia, hailing from the progressive Beta Colony, is a scientist in command of a survey expedition. In the beginning, anyway. A lot happens in this book, more than any sane person would attempt to summarize (in fact, I believe this was originally published as two separate and complete novels.) And it’s a really good story. But, for me, this book succeeds because Bujold concentrates not on the universe she’s created, but the people living in it.

Vorkosigan returned from the forward pilot’s compartment, and slid in beside her. “Are you doing all right?”

She gave him a nod. “Yes. Rather overwhelmed by all these herds of boys. I think you Barrayarans are the only ones who don’t carry mixed crews. Why is that, I wonder?”

“Partly tradition, partly to maintain an aggressive outlook. They haven’t been bothering you?”

“No, amusing me only. I wonder if they realize how they are used?”

“Not a bit. They think they are the emperors of creation.”

“Poor lambs.”

“That’s not how I’d describe them.”

“I was thinking of animal sacrifice.”

“Ah. That’s closer.”

She also does a terrific job of showing all this SF strangeness through Cordelia’s eyes, a point of view that most can relate to.

She gathered Dubauer and followed him aboard Vorkosigan’s ship. It smelled different from her survey ship, colder, full of bare unpainted metal and cost-effective short cuts taken out of comfort and dà©cor, like the difference between a living room and a locker room.

But Aral and Cordelia themselves are the main reason I’ve read this book three times since January. They’re the kind of characters that keep you coming back for more. They’re honorable and wise-even in the face of enormous challenges. They have an inspiring but realistic relationship. And their humor saves them from stuffy paragonhood.

“Don’t worry. You’re not going to have to carry me. I’m one of the fittest men in my command.” He limped on. “Over forty.”

“How many men over forty are there in your command?”

“Four.”

Or try this part, in which Cordelia insists her bodyguard-the only female to hold such a position on the entire planet-be allowed to participate in the weekly sparring competition among their otherwise exclusively-male security detail. Aral goes to arrange it with the referee, Lt. Koudelka (aka “Kou”).

Cordelia could not hear what they said to each other, across the garden, but supplied her own dialogue from gesture and expression, murmuring, “Aral: Cordelia wants Drou to play. Kou: Aw! Who wants gurls? Aral: Tough. Kou: They mess everything up, and besides, they cry a lot. Sergeant Bothari will squash her-hm, I do hope that’s what that gesture means, otherwise you’re getting obscene, Kou-wipe that smirk off your face, Vorkosigan-Aral: The little woman insists. You know how henpecked I am. Kou: Oh, all right. Phooey.[...]“

The rest of this series follows the adventures of Cordelia and Aral’s son, Miles, with Cordelia and Aral making periodic cameo appearances. The “Miles books” have very little romance, but I was so hooked after reading Cordelia’s Honor I didn’t care. I recommend this book to all romance readers, even if your preferred flavor is Scottish Highlander or frontier sheriff. Give it a try. Grade A.

Regards,

Elizabeth

This book can be purchased in mass market or ebook format.

Related posts:

1. REVIEW: The Sharing Knife: Legacy by Lois McMaster Bujold
2. REVIEW: The Sharing Knife: Beguilement by Lois McMaster Bujold
3. GUEST REVIEW: Bad for Each Other by Kate Hathaway

***

Dear Jane-

Let me start with my confession and get that out of the way right up front:

I was prepared to hate this book, and I hope you have enough space for me to list all the reasons why:

1. Lisa Kleypas is a HISTORICAL romance writer, one of the best writing today and one of my all-time favorites. Two of her historicals, Where Dreams Begin and The Devil in Winter, are dear old dog-earned friends of mine, to be brought out and savored when I’m feeling glum, or just as a special treat.

I look forward to Kleypas’ historical novels, which do not, IMHO, come out often enough. That being the case, I felt rather strongly that Kleypas had no business whatsoever splitting her time writing contemporaries.

Not that anyone asked for my opinion, you understand.

2. The book is in HARDCOVER. $19.95, anyone? 'Nuff said.

3. The book is women’s fiction. Huh? I know WF deals with a woman’s journey, but where does that put us with the whole all-important romance/happily-ever-after thing? Is there one? And why should I bother if there isn’t?

4. The book is in first person POV. Ugh. Not my favorite, unless we’re dealing with a Victoria Holt gothic and myopic first person is appropriate to heighten the heroine’s fears because she doesn’t know who to trust and neither, by extension, does the reader.

So, yeah, I was already a little ticked off when I picked up this book, but I duly bought it because I love Kleypas’ work and want her to keep writing. We headed off for spring break and I packed it in my beach bag along with several other books, just in case.

Okay, Jane. Here’s where the fussing and whining end and the rabid fan-girl gushing begins. I loved this book. LOVED it.

Sugar Daddy tells the story of Liberty Jones, a poor east Texas girl who, as the story begins, lives in a trailer with her mother. Liberty’s Mexican father has died, leaving Liberty and her mother to fend for themselves. Mom has dubious choice in men but works hard. Plucky Liberty is often left to fend for herself and navigate the tricky waters of young love and adolescence. Enter Hardy Cates, a fiercely ambitious blue-eyed older boy whose desire to leave small-town Texas trumps his love for Liberty.

I don’t want to give too much away here, but let’s just say that things happen and Liberty finds herself raising her younger sister, Carrington, while simultaneously attending school to become a cosmetologist. Then she meets billionaire tycoon Churchill Travis, and his frosty, disapproving son Gage…

I couldn’t put this book down, Jane. Couldn’t stop reading it. Resented the kids’ requests to go to the beach (Oh, come on! The beach again?) because it interfered with my uninterrupted reading time. When I finished the book I reread my favorite parts, of which there were many. I forgot about all the back-up books in my beach bag.

Sugar Daddy does have a HEA, you’ll be glad to know. A very satisfying one. The book is heavy on the romance, which is always great, and the man Liberty ends up with is the right one for her, no question. Along the way, though, there are several tender scenes between Liberty and both her loves, and this makes the book all the more poignant when it’s time for her to choose between the two rivals for her affection.

The first person POV totally works, mainly because Liberty is such a terrific heroine. She’s funny, self-deprecating and strong. Not kick-ass, kill vampires, take-no-prisoners strong, but quietly strong, which is just as important. Her loving care of her challenging younger sister, her ability to deal with bullies, her refusal to be bowed by life’s hardships, her absolute likeability-all these things make Liberty an unforgettable heroine.

The world building is wonderful. I’ve spent precious little time in Texas, but Kleypas gives great descriptions of Texan males and attitudes, especially that of Churchill, the larger-than-life billionaire who could have been ripped from an episode of Dallas.

When you asked me to do a review, Jane, I tried to think of a book that had really stayed with me in the past year, a book I’ve reread more than any other. I also tried to think of characters I loved, still wonder about, and wish I could spend more time with. Heroic characters who are real, human, and true to themselves.

Only one book came to mind: Sugar Daddy.

So now I have this to say: Lisa Kleypas can write whatever she pleases and I’ll be right there the day the book hits the shelves, money in hand and a smile on my face.

Best,

Ann

This book can be purchased in hardcover or ebook format (mobipocket at $19.99) or the Kindle version at $9.99.

***

Do you have a favorite book that you would like to review for DearAuthor? Send your review of it to Jane at jane at dearauthor.com

Related posts:

1. REVIEW: Sugar Daddy by Lisa Kleypas
2. REVIEW: Mine Till Midnight by Lisa Kleypas
3. REVIEW: Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas

I just finished your new book Servant: The Awakening and before I expound on its virtues first let me tell you how excited I was to find out that one of my favorite erotic authors, Lori Foster, had a darker side, L.L. Foster. I even joined the Dark Muse Society – does that make me a Lori Foster addict? Maybe.

As I am a huge fan of strong male leads butting up against stronger female leads, especially one as complex as Gabrielle Cody, this book drew me in and kept me hooked. Normally a fast reader I took my time on this book making sure I understood the many facets to this woman’s personality and what past experiences have shaped her. We find out fairly quickly that the paranormal is normal for her, that her perception of herself is definitely not how others (who really look) see her, and that despite all the good she’s done she believes she is unworthy of friendship or love. Yet she wants them with the same enthusiasm as she fights them off and that makes for an interesting tug of war between Gaby and the two male characters she interacts with.

First Morty, because who doesn’t love an awestruck, if somewhat spineless, man who finds that there is a little hero inside him after all? He is friendship personified, no matter how many times Gaby physically and verbally pushes him away he dogs her every step in an effort to bask in her presence, prove himself a worthy sidekick and be there should she ever need his not so graceful heroics. Normally weak characters don’t strike me, but his was a facade that I was happy to see beneath.

Now Luther on the other hand was too hot to handle from the first touch, Gaby knew it even if she didn’t understand the nuances of the male/female dichotomy that is sexual attraction. I could feel his pain when she asked innocently for more clarification on sexual acts she witnessed and over her angry admission that the awareness of her own sexuality that he’d awakened was not a welcome addition to her already complex emotions. The way he throws her off balance is clear in how she reacts to every move he makes, every word he speaks. Her brand of antagonism is laced with attraction, worry and her strong determination not to let anyone get to close.

Add in the plot which is in no way secondary to the relationships, in fact the plot and the relationships build together in a harmonious dance that I know Gaby hasn’t quite figured out yet. Taught from early in life that her purpose as God’s henchman is a solitary job she fights against evil and personal entanglement with the same fervor. But I interpreted this book to be the foundation of a new beginning in Gaby’s life where she no longer has to shoulder that gruesome responsibility alone on her own slim shoulders.

It may take the full series of books to convince her that she just might need these two men as her support system and that three is definitely better than one when fighting evil (normal or otherwise) and I for one look forward to watching it all unfold. Write fast, please :) -Gina

Paperbacks available at Amazon and Barnes & Nobile – eBook also available.

Related posts:

1. GUEST REVIEW: The Little Country by Charles de Lint
2. REVIEW: The Vampire Queen’s Servant by Joey Hill
3. REVIEW: Midnight Awakening by Lara Adrian

* * *

Dear Jane:

I’ve always been fascinated by the late 19th century. I admit it. It was a period in which two very different cultures-agrarian and rural-came crashing into each other, with uneven and dynamic results. The major social changes that occurred in this era-old mores going head to head with the new ones–are mind-boggling.

When I was teaching history, I used to compare the late 19^th century to the late 20^th century. Both periods experienced rapid technological change–not just improvements on technology, but entirely new things that completely transformed people’s lives. The impact of electricity and refrigeration in the 19^th century can be compared to the invention of computers and cell phones in the 20^th-all things that made major changes in the way that people worked and lived. Plus, you have two completely different, yet eerily similar women’s liberation movements. The late 19^th century was an exciting time to live in, and also an awful one–read anything on American immigration in that period and it doesn’t even begin to touch upon how terrible some people’s lives were.

Of course, the other thing that characterizes the late 19^th century, especially in England, is the sheer repression of men and women emotionally and sexually. The fact that Victorians called a chicken breast a “bosom” because “breast” was obscene. I always got a kick out of the idea that Queen Victoria never made female/female sexual conduct a crime, simply because she could not conceive of it ever happening in her world view.

I’ve read a lot of books on this time period, both fictional and romance, and Robin Schone’s “Scandalous Lovers” is one that just resonates with me. It’s rare that a romance novel raises questions that you think about for days afterward.

The story is loosely based on a real club that existed in England at about that time, called the Men’s and Women’s club. The purpose of the club was to discuss sexuality (love the term “sexology” that Schone uses) in a rational and empirical manner. I can just imagine the real meeting in my head: suffragettes, Malthusians (proponents of birth-control), and other forward-minded thinkers discussing sex in a time when sex was completely taboo. A time when discussing condoms got you thrown in jail for obscenity. And a time when relations between a man and a woman were supposed to take place fully clothed, in the dark.

One of the things I love about Robin Schone is that her characters are significantly older than those in a typical romance novel. Francis, the heroine, is forty-nine, a grandmother and post-menopausal, and James, the hero, is forty-seven. Both are recently widowed. There is a sad dearth of older romance novel hero/heroines, and every time I read another historical with a 22-year old heroine, I think fondly of Schone’s older lovers.

The story begins when Francis, a country widow visiting London, accidentally walks into a meeting of the Men’s and Women’s club. James, a member, asks her a simple question: What do women desire?

God love her, Francis answers. But not in a way that James expects. Let’s just say that her presence changes everything about the club, and about James.

It’s a very sweet love story, very tender, but also very sexual. (Very, very sexual. This book has what I usually call “The Full Monty”–not to put too plain a point on it, anything I consider “The Full Monty” has sexual contact in ALL its configurations. That may make some people uncomfortable. Sometimes it made me uncomfortable, because James and Francis have a sexual relationship that I think is unlike any other in romance novel land today.) James is the kind of character that stays with you for a long time afterwards, someone who has made terrible mistakes in his past and clearly takes responsibility for them. It’s pretty obvious he’s in love with Frances from the get-go, but like most of Schone’s books, there’s no build up to the happy ending where he loves her and she loves him and they get married and live happily ever after. (In many of Schone’s books, no one ever even says the words “I love you.” This is one of my few complaints about her books, but given the time period, this is probably more realistic than the effusive love proclamations of other historical romances.) It’s not a perfect story by any means: Schone’s writing style isn’t for everyone (I happen to like it, but I know it’s an issue for many readers) and the ending is abrupt and a little disappointing, in the sense that it does not live up to the long buildup that preceded it. But you are drawn into the story of James and Frances, both as a couple and as individuals, as well as the stories of the supporting characters, and I was rooting for all of them to find love, or at least an acceptance of their sexuality.

From a historical perspective the book is fascinating. Certainly the history of sexuality isn’t a topic any history major comes across in school, but I learned a lot from this book I didn’t know before: that all condoms came in tins with Queen Victoria’s face on them, that bookstores within bookstores sold everything and anything you could possibly imagine–and the various definitions of “French Postcards” (including Billiards, Renters, and Mothers and Fathers, and I’m not telling you what those are-you’ll just have to read and find out.).

Most importantly, the story is really about freedom, and Schone is an unabashed feminist, which comes through in all her books. It would be so easy for James to marry Francis and take care of her forever, but Francis resists, and for good reasons, ones that made me think about some of my own personal choices, and how different her options were from my own. Some of Schone’s observations on the nature of male/female relations and especially husbands/wives are so insightful that I had to put the book down and think about them before continuing. Schone nails squarely on the head why women wanted true liberation, and why women’s sexuality was an inherent part of that struggle. Frances’s relationship with her son is heartbreaking, but although I can see both sides, what he does to “protect her” is absolutely terrifying. As a woman, I think it’s safe to say that all of us females should thank the powers that be every day that we live in this century and not that one. My fellow history majors used to joke in college about what we think we would have been like if we’d lived in different times in history, and I’ve forever stated that I would be the old spinster lady with 20 cats; but this book reminds me that I would not even be the person I am if today I lived in that time. Everything liberated about me, everything I grew up believing about women, would have been beaten (either literally or figuratively) out of me. Maybe I would have been that good wife with six kids who never even thought that life could have been different, who would never have questioned my life’s path.

One of the things this book leaves you with is the natural comparison of Francis’s struggle and our own as women in the 21^st century. I sometimes wonder if Americans, real Americans (not the ones you see on TV) are as repressed as the Victorians were? Not this sloppy, slutty girl culture that has no respect for women’s real feelings, but the culture where talking about sex–really, really talking about it–is still not done. This is one of the things I think is so vital and important about romance novels as a genre: it’s one of the few places where women’s sexuality is accepted, celebrated, and encouraged. It’s something to think about next time another person questions your reading choices. I know its something I think about when people give me-and my sometimes questionable romance novel covers-condescending looks on the train.

Happy Reading

Meredith

This book can be purchased in trade paperbackformat. No ebook format as far as I know.

Related posts:

1. GUEST REVIEW: Beauty by Robin McKinley
2. GUEST REVIEW: The Little Country by Charles de Lint
3. GUEST REVIEW: Bad for Each Other by Kate Hathaway

You (or maybe Jayne or Janine) asked awhile back for category recommendations. Et voila, I have one for you.

Sometimes you fall in love with a book that you ought to despise. Big Mis, Big Secret, Secret Baby, Marriage of Convenience. Normally, I can deal with one or two of these romance staples in a novel. But all four? I should gag on any book that includes them all. But Kate Hathaway made all of them work in Bad For Each Other.

Charlie “Kick” Cochrane is enjoying life as a country music star when Molly, his ex-girlfriend, knocks on his door She needs his bone marrow – her son Tobie has cancer and as his father – surprise!-Kick may be a match. Since Kick and Molly haven’t seen each other in eight years, when she threw him out for cheating with a groupie, Kick is skeptical at first, but quickly sees that Molly’s telling the truth: Tobie’s his son. Being a stand up, family-oriented guy, the Marriage of Convenience rolls into play.

Molly and Charlie weren’t just lovers eight years ago, they’d been friends since childhood, and knew each other’s weak spots, families and dreams. So they’ve got a lot of things to work through. The biggest issues revolve around trust: cheating and the opportunity to do so while out on the road; the Big Secret, and how Molly could keep a child from Charlie when she knew how much he loved his family; and sex – beyond Molly’s lack of trust and expectation of cheating, it was never that great between them…which led back to the first issue again, trust/cheating.

Frankly, there’s so much stuff that I’m always a little surprised when I do a reread – how does Hathaway work through it all in the tight constraints of a category romance? But she does, somehow.

I especially like how Hathaway alternate’s POV. The reader gets to see inside Charlie’s head and Molly’s through the alternation. Hathaway also uses flashbacks to illustrate how some of the dynamics between Molly and Charlie came to be.

Often I have a hard time with reunited lovers. I wonder what has changed? But here, Hathaway has Molly and Charlie actually <gasp> talk about what went wrong between them before, and they work on fixing it.

Bad For Each Other is a gem of a category romance, and I wish that Hathaway had written more.

~ JMC (one of my favorite bloggers)

ISBN-10 : 0373077912
ISBN-13 : 9780373077915
Publisher : Silhouette

Related posts:

1. GUEST REVIEW: Beauty by Robin McKinley
2. GUEST REVIEW: The Little Country by Charles de Lint
3. GUEST REVIEW: The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen by Syrie James

This is the book that cemented my love for the urban fantasy genre and, in particular, my love for Charles de Lint. This man is a master storyteller, who infuses his stories with lifelike characters, evocative settings, and a sense of wonder that I think is sometimes too often missing in a lot of fantasy.

We first meet Janey Little, a Celtic musician who has returned to Mousewhole (pronounced Mouzel) in Cornwall to spend some time with her grandfather, known to everyone as the Gaffer, who practically raised her. Janey’s career is going fairly well, except she needs a new side man as her last one hasn’t worked out, but she’s not going to worry about that. Instead, she goes up to the Gaffer’s attic and starts looking through old papers, and finds what seems to be a new novel by a friend of the Gaffer’s, an eccentric writer named William Dunthorn. This novel, however, was only published in an edition of one copy. Delighted, Janey starts to read, and we, the readers, are brought along with her for the story within the story.

Dunthorn’s novel features Jodi Shepherd, an orphan raised by her aunt who owns the town brothel, in the village of Bodbury, which is also somewhere in Cornwall, although Bodbury comes directly from de Lint’s imagination. Jodi’s bored with her own lot in life, most of which involves cleaning up after the animals in the shop of the inventor Denzil Gossip. So when a rumor starts among the Tatters Children, a group of local waifs who basically run wild, that the Widow Pender, reputed to be a witch, is keeping a Small in her house, Jodi has to break in.

Once these events are set in motion–Janey’s opening the book and Jodi entering the world of the Widow Pender, things won’t be the same for either woman. There is danger, intrigue, even a bit of romance for both of them.

De Lint weaves the story within a story wonderfully. He can also juggle a huge cast of characters and their multiple viewpoints with real aplomb. And while there’s always action happening, he knows exactly when to pull back and allow for some quiet moments. But when
the climax comes–and it happens at the same time in both stories–the tension really ratchets up.

I mentioned above that I love the wonder with which de Lint infuses his stories. He transported me to a place where magic was very much real, where a witch or her fetch could come upon anyone unawares and cast spells on them, where dead men talk and Smalls–tiny, magical beings–are very much alive. And that’s just in Jodi’s story. The thing that captivated me about Janey’s story was the sense of place.

It’s obvious De Lint has been to Mousewhole, because his descriptions are evocative. And the music. I loved that music was a huge part of everyone’s life, whether it be playing music, listening to it, or singing it. The inherent magic in music is a theme de Lint uses often, and it’s one of my favorites. And I am fairly certain I would not be the lover of Celtic music that I am if it weren’t for Janey and company. And, this being a romance blog, I have to mention that
the second time around love story between Janey and Felix, a sailor she’s known for years, is among my top romances ever as it’s very poignant and well-done.

In conclusion, this is a wonderful fantasy novel. You get two books for the price of one, and two extremely entertaining stories at that.

Highly recommended!

~Shannon C

This book can be purchased in mass market or ebook format (ereader format only).

This is part of Dear Author’s “Favorite Things” series. Please consider contributing a letter about your favorite book.

Related posts:

1. GUEST REVIEW: Beauty by Robin McKinley
2. REVIEW: Heart’s Bounty by Christine Charles
3. GUEST REVIEW: The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen by Syrie James

I always fall in love with Beauty, her family, and the world they live in — right from the beginning of the story. I love meeting Beauty’s sisters, Hope and Grace. I love hearing Beauty tell how she ended up being nicknamed Beauty, instead of using her given name, Honour… even though she was a bookworm who had not inherited the same tall, willowy beauty that her sisters have. I become one of the family with them, sharing their grief as Grace’s fiancà© is lost to the sea, sharing their despair as their father’s fortune is lost as well, and sharing their determination to be happy in their new poorer life in the far magic-tainted North with Hope’s new husband.

And then the magic roses start to grow along the wall of the house nearest the forest, and their father gets lost in a storm and comes home with a hopeless story and a single perfect rose…

Beauty’s time in the castle with the Beast is an ever-changing exploration of a realm she didn’t know existed, and Robin McKinley’s gentle portrayal of it is exquisitely fascinating. I love how Beauty’s days in the castle with the Beast rarely change… yet the story keeps evolving in a way that draws me ever further into it, so that I am learning, along with Beauty, to allow my heart to trust… to see the colors that flavor that fourth dimension that the castle seems to have… to hear the voices in the Breeze that acts as Beauty’s maid… to listen as those voices chat about the mysterious tragedy of the castle… to learn that the Beast is not what he seems. By the time Beauty understands the mystery, my sight and hearing are clearer along with hers, and I am pleased to read that she finally knows her heart. I am never surprised that as her heart and mind have grown, so has her body and her spirit. How satisfying it is to see that both of her names now fit her so accurately! For she is both Honour, and Beauty now.

This truly is a beautiful story, beautifully told. In fact… I think I’ll go get it from it’s honored place on my bookshelf and lose myself in it again…

Related posts:

1. REVIEW: The Sleeping Beauty Proposal by Sarah Strohmeyer
2. GUEST REVIEW: The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen by Syrie James
3. One Click Iphone Hack Thing of Beauty

Our spotlights are over for the year. I hope you all enjoyed these features. We’ll start up with something like that again next spring so we can find out what great new books we should be on the lookout for.

In re-reading Julie Garwood’s book a few weeks ago, I realized that I hadn’t allowed myself to pleasure of re-reading. Sometimes our to be read stacks get wildly out of hand and we feel compelled to read the books we’ve bought but have languished in an indistinguishable pile of bound paper.

There’s a real luxury in re-reading a book that we love. It represents a certain nostalgia and comfort. I think giving ourselves permission to re-read from time to time is a reading treat that we all need. Last year, during Thanksgiving, Jayne and I blogged about books that were our favorites. For the next few months, we are going to feature a series called “My Favorite Things”. The series will contain reviews from readers, authors and industry folks of their favorite books. It could be a childhood book, a collection of stories, a biography, or even a romance. There is no limit in terms of genre. The only qualification is that it is a book that the reader loved.

Anyone is welcome to participate. I’ve not asked everyone in my address book because I do not want to presume on anyone’s time, but if you are reading this post and have a book in mind, please either email me at jane @ dearauthor.com or fill out this handy form with your review.*** I think reading people’s favorites might help to broaden my own reading scope and I hope it will broaden yours.

***Form seems to be broken at the moment. Please use the email address. Thanks!

Related posts:

1. 10 Things in Romance I’m Thankful For
2. Good Things Come to Those Who Wait
3. 10 Things I’m Thankful for Romance