What bothered me about the book was its lack of plot, its lack of authenticity, its lack of historical detail–I had been pointed to this book as being fabulously researched, etc., etc., etc. and I was expecting something more than just a poorly-plotted romance.

I know, I should have known better, but the story was such a disappointment, just a (very) thin excuse to bring the two lovers together, a story without substance, and I’m left still looking for a more substantive love story set in this time period.

Most mystifying to me was the way the book started off as being about the brave French resistance/English agents of WWII and once the characters were in London became John Le Carre.

And the virginity thing was just silly.

As for Isobel and Killian, the part of the book that really bugged me was the last section where Killian is basically dragging Isobel across the desert and she has no idea where they are going. At that point he seemed much more competent and in control. Up to that point, though, and in the final pages, I felt that there was more of a give and take of power (in their past relationship and their reunion).

I think I started to be irritated earlier on, when Isobel did not see through Killian’s disguise and then when she allowed him to drug her (I’m referring to the drugging in the present day storyline rather than in the past).

Also, I think I got more of a sense of emotional equity between them than in some of the other books in the series — they both seemed to me damaged in similar ways.

That’s true — there was more emotional equality and that was probably one of the things that made the book a B- for me. I think I could have loved it had Isobel not kept getting outsmarted.

One of the reasons I stopped reading the Reno/Jilly book is that I started rolling my eyes very early at the way I felt that Jilly’s cluelessness brought out Reno’s boorishness.

I didn’t love that, either (Fire and Ice was a B- for me, too), but I liked the way Stuart made me feel Reno’s own youth and fear of commitment, as well as his protectiveness of Jilly.

And I think that one of the reasons I liked Black Ice so much was that I never felt that Chloe’s ignorance came across as stupidity (at least not to me). So I accepted the differences in experience and emotional connectedness in a way I haven’t been able to since in the series, except for part of Isobel and Killian’s story.

I also thought that Black Ice was the best book in the Ice series. I read the rest of the series hoping for another book that good, but as is often the case with series for me, the first was the best and the most potent.

What I’m tired of, I guess, is heroines who feel to me that they’ve been crafted according to a more sentimental notion of femininity or womanhood — who won’t kill because it goes against their biological role as mothers, for example. Or heroines who refuse to be selfish because that would be unfeminine. It’s the way certain aspects of the character are connected to gender that bothers me, much more than the characteristics themselves. So I don’t mind a kind heroine or a virgin heroine, as long as those characteristics aren’t mere extensions of her “womanhood.”

I don’t categorically mind virgin heroines either. I think the heroines I like best are the ones who feel whole and multidimensional to me, whose behavior and choices make sense to me and seems in keeping with the rest of their personalities and backgrounds.

I love, for example, Leda in Kinsale’s The Shadow and the Star, and I feel that her virginity is integral to that story because of the fierce way she clings to her reputation and her sense of propriety as a result of being illegitimate. That she is willing to sacrifice that reputation for Samuel in the way that she does is very telling about just how much she feels for him, and it makes for some incredibly powerful scenes.

I think right now that fantasy and paranormals is where we’re seeing the stronger heroines, although I think that sometimes we simply get the “kickass” heroine, and not a more subtle and layered alpha heroine.

Yeah, that is true. To be honest, I don’t know if a kickass heroine that is not subtle or layered interests me much more than a more traditional heroine. Probably a little bit, but what I really long for are those layered characters.

But I like to think that this trend toward stronger heroines in fantasy and paranormals is seeping into other subgenres as well as a result of the paranormals’ popularity, and that hopefully we’ll be seeing heroines grow stronger across the board.

How about Lilith from Demon Angel? Whether or not she would want to save someone is another matter altogether.

For me, she is another one that’s right on the borderline.

And OT: Kinsale. *sigh* I just read Flowers from the Storm. What a great storyteller she is. And For My Lady’s Heart is one of my favourite romances of all time.

She has probably written more romances that I absolutely loved than any other author. I hope The Lucky One will be published eventually.

How about Lilith from Demon Angel? Whether or not she would want to save someone is another matter altogether.

Oh, yeah, definitely Lilith!

Actually, if you read further in Fire and Ice, you will see that Jilly shoots someone too. It was one of the strongest moments in that book, for me.

I may get there someday.

As for Isobel and Killian, the part of the book that really bugged me was the last section where Killian is basically dragging Isobel across the desert and she has no idea where they are going. At that point he seemed much more competent and in control. Up to that point, though, and in the final pages, I felt that there was more of a give and take of power (in their past relationship and their reunion). Also, I think I got more of a sense of emotional equity between them than in some of the other books in the series — they both seemed to me damaged in similar ways. One of the reasons I stopped reading the Reno/Jilly book is that I started rolling my eyes very early at the way I felt that Jilly’s cluelessness brought out Reno’s boorishness. And I think that one of the reasons I liked Black Ice so much was that I never felt that Chloe’s ignorance came across as stupidity (at least not to me). So I accepted the differences in experience and emotional connectedness in a way I haven’t been able to since in the series, except for part of Isobel and Killian’s story.

When I say alpha I don’t mean conscienceless, or “kick ass” either. But I would love to see some heroines with a streak of ruthlessness or ambition or calculation.

What I’m tired of, I guess, is heroines who feel to me that they’ve been crafted according to a more sentimental notion of femininity or womanhood — who won’t kill because it goes against their biological role as mothers, for example. Or heroines who refuse to be selfish because that would be unfeminine. It’s the way certain aspects of the character are connected to gender that bothers me, much more than the characteristics themselves. So I don’t mind a kind heroine or a virgin heroine, as long as those characteristics aren’t mere extensions of her “womanhood.”

And Melanthe is definitely a class A alpha heroine. I also love Zenia from Dream Hunter, Maddy from Flowers from the Storm (and believe her to be an alpha), the Abe heroines, Nell from Crusie’s Fast Women, Francesca from Chase’s Your Scandalous Ways, Coco from Ivory’s Sleeping Beauty, etc. I think right now that fantasy and paranormals is where we’re seeing the stronger heroines, although I think that sometimes we simply get the “kickass” heroine, and not a more subtle and layered alpha heroine. Some of the Kresley Cole IAD books feature alpha heroines, though, IMO (Myst and Kaderin, especially).