Guest Reviewer
Cultural Appropriation in Romance
Earlier in this year of 2009, there was a Great Cultural Appropriation Debate, dubbed racefail09, that centred mainly around the SF/F genres. If you clicked on that link, it leads to a set of many, many, many links about race, racism, cultural appropriation and white privilege. (If you’ve never heard of these terms before – or your knee jerk reaction is to say “I don’t have white privilege!” – this is a good place to start reading.)
Romance suffers from the same problem SF/F does. It’s very, very white. It would also seem that readers are far more okay with reading about vampires and werewolves and demons and angels than characters of colour. That is not okay. Think about what this means for a second. And imagine, if you will, being erased in stories or always in the background, a victim, evil, maybe the best friend or sidekick. . .but never the hero of your own story. This is what appropriation does to people of colour. It is not diversity to have white people running around in foreign lands without much thought to the people who are native to those lands. I can’t say …
This guest review is brought to you by Jill Myles, author, friend and blogging partner of Meljean Brook. We will have a review of Demon Forged by Janet (aka Robin) next week.
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Dear Meljean Brook:
 I’ve struggled to write this review a little. In fact, this is the second time I’ve tried to write it on paper, and probably the ninth draft from my head.
Disclaimer – you and I blog together and we are friends, but…I was a friend to your series (does that sound lame? Can I say that?) long before we’d ever said hello. I was first introduced to the Guardians when Jane Litte of Dear Author raved about DEMON ANGEL. Hello, angel story? I am there. It wasn’t until much later that we became friends, but I wanted to throw this out in the open lest someone think I have bias, and I guess I do.
Some of your books I have loved more than others. DEMON BOUND was my absolute favorite, and some of the others were less…favorite… (I’m looking at you, DEMON NIGHT) but were still excellent reads. For me, your books are …
Welcome to a new feature at Dear Author: the Intro Interview. Alyson H. will bring us occasional interviews with newly-published authors. If you are an author with your first (or perhaps second) novel coming out, and you’d like to be considered for an interview, send your name, web information, and release date to DAintrointerview at gmail dot com.
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 This month, we’re meeting Leanna Renee Heiber, whose Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker leads off a series that’s part fantasy, part historical-paranormal romance. In Heiber’s Victorian London, Jack the Ripper is no mere elusive criminal—supernatural forces are at work, an apocalyptic unrest threatening the city. The title character is also a refreshing mix: people keep describing her as timid, but Percy Parker’s heart “is fortified with passions.†She keeps rising to—and above—the occasion, and the blushing, crushing schoolgirl becomes the dauntless heroine.
Leanna is also a playwright and actor, and her novella Dark Nest won the Prism Award. She and fellow writers Maya Rodale and Hope Tarr founded Lady Jane’s …
Heather Massey is a blogger who travels the sea of stars searching for science fiction romance adventures aboard The Galaxy Express. Additionally, she pens a science fiction romance column for LoveLetter, Germany’s premier romance magazine.
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When I think of steampunk, I envision Victorian fashion, airships, and oversized rivets. And lest we forget—Captain Nemo’s elegant submarine, too. It’s a heck of a lot more than that, of course, but the elements that tend to leave a lasting impression in people’s minds is the brass goggle-icious visuals.
But what is steampunk, exactly?
Steampunk as a literary genre gained notice starting in the 1980s. A subgenre of science fiction and fantasy, it developed as a rebellious response to the science fiction that preceded it. Core elements of steampunk include:
- Steam power
- Alternate history settings (mostly Victorian/Edwardian era England)
- SF/Fantasy elements
- Devices that reflect the period but are ahead of their time (e.g., difference engines, airships, etc.)
 In fact, the …
Complements of Lori S Green aka Jimerick.
So many authors I greatly admire
Have suggested I read Georgette Heyer
 Who in Regencies name
Has well deserved fame
So The Grand Sophy I thus did acquire.
When Sophie and her cousins first meet
The youngsters fall straight at her feet
She has a dog and a chimp
And a bird who’s an imp
Who swears like a sailor, no tweets.
Her cousin Cecilia has been betrothed
To a dear man who became indisposed
From a case of the mumps
Then he must take his lumps
When for a poet, Cecilia’s emotions grow.
There’s Hubert who hides what he’s done
Silly boy, is under the thumb
Of a mean moneylender
Who shows nothing tender
And Hubert can’t fix his sad run.
Into this household, dear Sophy emerges
With fix-it desires and urges
Her cousin, stern Charles
With Sophy, does quarrel
While his betrothed wishes a familial purge(s).
The writing is fast and has many plot holes
The characters lack personality but play their roles
But with Sophy, no matter
The plot’s mad as a hatter
And is better (not the parts) but the whole.
Contemps are my true cup of tea
But The Grand Sophy delighted me
Friday’s Child is next
And sits on my desk
Waiting to turn me into a fan of Regency.
This book can be …
Dear Mr. Crutcher,
 I picked up your book DEADLINE because my middle teenage daughter has a problem sitting still for long enough to read her required books for English, and when she does read them, she needs help absorbing them. She started your book, handed it to me and demanded to know “Is the main character really dying????â€
As in she couldn’t believe her eyes. So I opened the book and read.
Yes, the main character is dying. Almost stopped reading right there because my kid-in-jeopardy tolerance is pretty low. But here’s the thing. I couldn’t. You sucked me right in with your easy, sardonic wit and devastating charm coated in a bluntness that as an author myself, I loved. Our hero is Ben Wolf, a pint-sized, eighteen year old who lives in a small town in Idaho. He has big things planned for his senior year, big things that don’t include a fatal blood disease.
But he takes the cards he’s dealt. Because he’s eighteen, he’s allowed to keep his terminal disease a secret from his crazy mother, distanced father and beloved brother. It’s a decision …
We hosted a series of posts by guests last year called “If You Like”. The purpose of the post and the comments is to explore what we like about a particular author and what other authors have books like the author. If you would like to host an “If You Like” post, please email me at Jane at dearauthor.com
Val Kovalin who writes about fantasy fiction at ValKovalin.com and m/m fiction at Obsidian Bookshelf is hosting this If You Like entry on Jordan Castillo Price. Val Kavolin did a great piece on Julia Spencer Fleming, a favorite of author of mine.
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It’s with great interest that I’ve read the comments of many DearAuthor readers, already fans of traditional m/f romance, who are venturing into m/m fiction. I happen to be doing the same thing, but coming from the opposite direction (m/m to m/f) so maybe I can help.
Jordan’s strong points include the following:
- Comedy. This is so rare and so worthwhile! I deeply appreciate the author who can make me laugh.
- Creative genre-blending. A typical piece by Jordan can contain romance, erotica, comedy, horror, mystery, and paranormal elements.
- Male characters who
…
Live under a rock?
Jessica Bird is also
penname JR Ward.
 Spike = hero.
Ex-con gourmet chef hottie
Not millionaire.
Heroine is “Mad”
No, really – that is her name.
She is the rich one.
Reverse HP theme?
Maybe. But Mad comes off as
Poor little rich girl
Will they won’t they?
Goes on a bit too long, sigh.
Just get to the sex!
Second half picks up
Sex: Almost as hot as ‘Ward’
Liked it at the end.
Verdict: Is Ward ‘lite’
But Ward lite is still yummy
B minus in all
This book can be purchased in mass market from Amazon or ebook format from Mills & Boon (epub only folks).
I’ve been a romance reader since I was in high school, but during my school years, I read alone. I didn’t know anyone else who read romance – a few of my friends might pick up a Nora Roberts book a couple of times a year, but that was all. That all changed in the early 1990’s, when I discovered the fledgling internet, and found reading groups filled with romance readers. How exciting! But I was hoping to meet some of these readers in person – to see the people I’d only talked to online, and talk to people face to face, instead of just by email.
I attended my first romance event when I graduated and moved to New York. The other readers online told me about a huge booksigning in New Jersey. (The annual NJRWA book signing.) I got on the Garden State Parkway and headed for New Jersey. When I walked into the hotel, I couldn’t believe it – there were crowds of people, and all of them were fellow romance readers! There was a huge ballroom with rows of tables, all lined with romance authors.
I timidly approached …
Amazon grendel
is charming, lord vere is too.
bertie, not so much
headstrong reporter
debauched earl meet-cute in street
banter, love ensue
she wins the horse race
Vere wins her heart. And Tamsin?
Short end of stick, sigh.
Vere + Grenville: love
Tamsin…ends up with Bertie
Why, Loretta, why???
New to Chase books, hmm?
Ignore the bloated pink head
This is a good book.
B+
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