If you will excuse a personal history, you will see its relevance to my review. I enlisted in the Army National Guard after 9/11. I became a US citizen and commissioned (became an officer) in 2003. I accepted a medical retirement in May of this year, at the rank of Captain, after 7 ½ years of service. I never went overseas, but I served in the Katrina response in Louisiana. I was a soldier and damn proud to be so.

But I am also bisexual (with some extra kinks outside the Kinsey continuum). This is the first time I’ve been able to admit this in public (well, I came out on Twitter on National Coming Out Day) since figuring it out because of the US military’s destructive Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy. My sexuality in no way affected my service. All outward appearances show a happily married, monogamous, heterosexual soldier, which is mostly what I am. But every now and then the issue came up and I had to bite my tongue. I could have been kicked out of the service if anyone had dug too deep, for a reason that didn’t affect my service or that of others around me.

At a time when Don’t Ask Don’t Tell is destroying the careers of loyal, hard-working, supremely competent soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen of the American Armed Forces, this fictionalized retrospective of men who serve together and love each other is never more necessary and welcome. I was thrilled to receive it (free) from the publisher (through Jane) and while it did a great job of showing the soul-destroying problem of homophobia in general, I could have wished that it had focused more specifically on the subtle differences of the problem of being gay in the military, rather than just showing gay military men.

“Blessed Isle” by Alex Beecroft
I don’t know what it is about Beecroft’s writing that ravishes me so. Maybe it’s that her prose is like Keats’ poetry to me: redolent with scent, aching with color, and beautiful with taste and sound. Maybe it’s how she scours me inside with the deeply-felt emotions of her characters. But this story manages to do in 58 pages what False Colors did to me in more than 300.

Set in the late eighteenth century, Captain Harry Thompson, late of her Majesty’s Navy, safely ensconced in Rio, begins a journal of his relationship with his Lieutenant, Garnet Littleton. They met when Harry took his first command of the Banshee with orders to escort three transport ships to Australia. Buffeted by storms, typhus, mutinous convicts, and his own yearning for the free-spirited Garnet, Harry only finds happiness when he and Garnet are marooned for months on their own small Pacific island. The actual sexual activity is minimally detailed, but you feel every prick and rush of longing and satisfaction, the abject fear and bone-deep rightness when the men fall in love. See how much Beecroft can do with so few words:

When we woke, that first morning, we made love. Nothing needed to be said; we both understood it would happen as soon as we had the physical resources to allow it. It was sweet and weary and gentle, and afterwards I held Harry tight and mourned for all the things he had had to lose to make this possible. I wished I might give his prudishness and his confidence and his career back to him. And in a petty part of myself I wished he might have come to me despite them, instead of needing to be ruined first. But I will say that holding on to him afterwards, in the warm glow and satisfaction of coitus, I entertained the inexcusable thought that the past months had been worth it.

Harry and Garnet find their happy ending and record it for posterity, for a time when their love might be celebrated rather than reviled, for a time after their death when they don’t have to pretend. The story is told in journal form, with Harry’s memories interspersed with Garnet’s as they reveal to each other, even after years together, their feelings and motivations in the past, as they reveal them to their reader, who also becomes a character in the story. So even the journaling has a place in their relationship. Brilliantly, perfectly done. Grade: A+

“Not to Reason Why” by Mark B. Probst
This is a narrative — a very boring narrative – of Custer’s last campaign, told from the perspective of a corporal (I think? Too bored to go back and look). Brett has the hots for Dermot. Dermot is married to Sarah. Dermot loves Sarah very much, and Brett is jealous of Sarah. There’s absolutely NO indication that Dermot feels anything at all for Brett beyond deep friendship and besides one kiss Brett almost (but not quite) forces on Dermot a few days before the big battle, there’s nothing overtly romantic about this story at all. In fact, there’s nothing covertly romantic either. This is not a romance (especially since it does not end happily); this is a narrative representation of a campaign: They saddled up, then they stopped here, then had dinner, then dicked around in the evening as soldiers tend to do, then slept, then had breakfast, then saddled back up for another grueling day of chasing Indians, then stopped for lunch, then…. Seriously, with a little more detail to prove that Probst had done his research (They stopped under overhanging cliffs. They crossed the stream eight times.), that’s what the story is like. Every now and then Brett will think something emotional for a sentence or two, but then he’ll ignore it and move on. I hate to play to stereotypes, but this read like it was a “romance” written by a man, and hey, look! It was written by a man. Okay, dude, you did your research; now tell me a fucking story.

And seriously, someone please proofread: “Dermot was in line looking none the worse for wear, though Brett could see his eyes were still vacuous from lack of sleep.” Really? I do not think that word means what you think it means.

And if we’re going to have a story about a man who runs away from battle, who deserts his troops, then lines like “The heat was stifling and there were times Brett would have welcomed a warrior arrow straight into his heart just to end it all” are not only not helpful, they’re patently wrong.

After Brett does desert, the level of his thought processes about his actions are symptomatic of the level of emotion and characterization in the rest of the book:

The wind and his body heat had dried his clothing and he began to warm up. His thoughts were a jumble of images and confusion. He couldn‘t sort it out enough to put together a plan of action. A piercing accusation kept surfacing—You are a coward and a deserter. Was he? What good would it have done to have stayed and died with the rest? Perhaps a couple more Sioux and Cheyenne may have been wounded or killed, but it would not have saved a single soldier‘s life. He longed to be unconscious so he didn‘t have to think. After the celebrating quieted and morning drew near, he got his wish and fell asleep, lying on his side on the creek-bank.

Oh! Coward! Deserter! Right, check. Let’s move on, folks, nothing to see here.

The author didn’t seem to be aware of the weight of his words, and coming after Beecroft’s clarity and precision, it was almost painful. At one point, Brett engages Dermot in deep conversation:

“Wrong side?” Dermot frowned. “How can you say that? There is no wrong side against the Indians.”

“I mean wrong side, in that it may not be the victorious side.”

“There‘s nothing wrong with dying to protect your country.”

“Dermot, haven‘t you ever noticed how these things are reported in the newspapers? When we win they say it‘s a victory, but when they win they say it‘s a massacre.”

Then after the Brett escapes/deserts, he listens to the Indian victory drums: “It went on for hours. The chanting haunted him. He wanted it to stop. It tormented him by constantly reminding him of the massacre. He sat huddled on the riverbank; the drums felt like his own heartbeat.” Completely, utterly without irony, Probst uses the word he’d previously questioned.

Dermot was cardboard, Brett was an unlikable, whiny, cowardly turd, there was no romance, no emotion, no connection. What there was was wishy-washiness. Was this deep, thoughtful commentary or just campaign details? Neither. Sorry. Grade: F

“No Darkness” by Jordan Taylor

Okay, so when the book starts like this:

“Lieutenant Darnell!”

“Sir?”

“Oh, there you are. Why are you skulking, man?” The red-faced, broad-shouldered platoon sergeant did not wait for an answer but plowed on before Darnell could even open his mouth, “Find someone to take with you down to the cellar. There should be half a ton of supplies in this bloody shack and no one seems able to find so much as a tin of jam.”

Private Morgan stepped forward and saluted the sergeant. He had large front teeth and matching ears that reminded Darnell of a corgi.

“Sir,” the private said. “Me and Stokes searched the cellar already. Nothing, sir. No sign anything‘s been in there for some time, sir.”

The sergeant walked right past him as if he had neither seen nor heard the private. “Well, Lieutenant? What are you waiting for?”

I’m confused. Unless things are very different in the British army in World War I from the US Army now, lieutenants don’t call platoon sergeants “sir” and platoon sergeants don’t call lieutenants “man” and give them orders. And no one salutes NCOs. So I don’t think much of your research abilities if that’s how the book starts. I mean, seriously. And my father (British AND British history buff) also confirmed for me that the officer corps in 1915 was still very much of and from the upper classes and Darnell is not upper class. He’s almost the opposite of upper class.

Inaccuracies aside, this has to be one of the most depressing stories I’ve ever read. This is precisely why I don’t read stories that aren’t romances with HEAs. Yes, I understand that World War One was a desperately horrible war. Yes, I understand that being gay in the military is terrible. AND, I understand that the purpose of this anthology was not all about the happy endings. But can we have ANY bright points of light? Can we have ANY happiness in the story? Apparently not.

LT Darnell and PVT Fisher get shelled into a cellar with no way out. Fisher’s broken so many ribs he can’t do anything to help get them out. Darnell literally ruins his hands digging them out, but even when they get out, it takes days to find anyone else and of course when they do, disaster strikes. There’s only a relationship between these men on the level of two men who find themselves stuck in a cellar together, trying to get out. The fact that they’re both gay doesn’t really factor into it at all.

What I do think is interesting is that both this story and the last both conform to the melodramatic abjection of the married gay man being the one to bite it. Think Brokeback Mountain, right? Sure, Jack’s more out, more comfortable with himself than Ennis, but he’s the one who marries first and stays married so he’s the one who has to die. Ditto these two stories.

This story isn’t a romance. Not in the slightest. Not that it’s trying to be — and that’s fine, of course. But it isn’t really even a story about being gay in the military. It’s just a depressing story about a horrific war. I don’t know how to grade it. It’s not badly written like the previous story (research abilities aside). It’s just…not something I choose to read. So, I guess…Grade: C-

“Our One and Only” by E.N. Holland
This is the only story that truly deals with the problems that being gay specifically in the military can produce. Philip is Eddie’s lover, but when Eddie dies in France in 1944, Philip is left feeling invisible, able only to admit to being Eddie’s best friend, not able to fully express his grief over his beloved’s death. The story is told over 40 years, at intervals of a decade. We see Philip deal (or not) with Eddie’s death, even though every now and then you want to hit him over the head and say “Get OVER yourself already!” The story shows the expected and unexpected repercussions the life and death of one soldier have on his friends, fellow soldiers, and family. While not amazing, this story is thoughtful, interesting, and eventually has a hopeful ending (not with Eddie, obviously).

One thing pulled me out of the story. In 1954, Philip thinks, “he always thought war was sort of pointless and his feelings only sharpened after Eddie‘s death.” Maybe this is just me overthinking things, but if there was one “just” war, one necessary war, it was World War Two and I don’t think very many people can disagree with that. Yes, war is devastating and horrible, but with Hitler as an aggressor, there’s not much else that the Allies COULD have done besides what they did. WW2 was not a pointless war; of any war in history, it was the least pointless. The mindset Philip expresses is very much a post-Vietnam mindset and I found it jarring in this story.

Other than that, I enjoyed watching this man through 40 years of his life and I was very happy that he had a hopeful ending “blessed” by his long-lost partner. Grade: B

Overall, while I think that an anthology against DADT, showing the emotional devastation it causes, is a wonderful idea, it was only the last story that really dealt with the peculiar problem of being gay specifically in the military. Because in 1790, 1876, 1915, and 1944, being gay was a problem NO MATTER WHAT. So being gay in the military was no more or less difficult that being gay anywhere else (it might have been easier, perhaps, considering close proximity). I would really like to have seen the awful Custer-era story or the depressing WW1 story dropped, and a story about the Gulf War or even Iraq or Afghanistan added, to make the point that “being gay in the US military” specifically IS an issue NOW, because being gay now is much more accepted than in 1876 and it’s the military that’s ridiculously behind the times.

I once had someone ask me why a gay person would join the US military when they know they’re not wanted, and the question made me shake with rage. Gay and bisexual men and women want to join the military for the same reasons as everyone else: we love our country and want to defend it, we like the opportunities and benefits, we’re loyal and hard-working and honorable people. Just like everyone else. Why should we not be able to serve? We have just as much to offer — more, perhaps, since we’re joining knowing we’re not wanted, joining knowing we’re going to have to hide who we are in order to serve.

Anyway. Overall, I’d give the entire anthology a high C+ or a low B-, but the whole thing is completely and utterly worth buying just for the sublime Beecroft story, “Blessed Isle,” with a nice added bonus of the gentle “Our One and Only.”

Best regards,
-Joan/Sarah F.

This book can be purchased at Amazon. No ebook version that I could find.

Related Posts:

• REVIEW: False Colors by Alex Beecroft
• REVIEW: Bound and Determined by Jane Davitt and Alexa Snow
• REVIEW: Beautiful C*cksucker II: Such a Good Boy by Barbara Sheridan
• REVIEW: Personal Demons by James Buchanan
• REVIEW: Unrequited by Abigail Roux
• Regarding Gay Romance
• REVIEW: Sindustry II
• REVIEW: Sindustry I
• REVIEW: Healing Heart by Thom Lane
• REVIEW: Strongman by Denise Rossetti

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I re-read your book recently in preparation for a year end list.  I was shocked when I checked the DA Archives and did not see a review for it.  I had to rectify that immediately.  His Lordship’s Mistress is one of my favorite books and your work in the Signet Regency line was really wonderful.  There are so many that I enjoy revisiting and I am so grateful that you decided to resell your ebook rights to Belgrave House so that I could buy ebook copies of many of them.  I do think that His Lordship’s Mistress is the best of your stellar work in that line and I’ll do my best to convey why.

As Janine noted in the review of another of my favorite Wolf traditional regencies, A London Season, your writing style is simplistic and spare.  I really enjoy that style and it’s out in full force here.  His Lordship’s Mistress contains all the classic elements of a Wolf book: the heroine in trouble, gambling leading to despair, Shakespeare, and horses.

Jessica Andover has just buried her stepfather, a wastrel that gambled away her mother’s small fortune and left Jessica and her brothers with a crushing load of debt and no way to support themselves.  Jessica is quite lovely and so a neighbor buys the mortgage and tells Jessica she must either marry him or he’ll foreclose on her home.  Jessica refuses.  She would rather sell herself than indenture herself in marriage to a man who will have control over her and her property again.

Marry for money she would not do. The thought of putting herself into the power of some man for the rest of her life filled her with horror. She might as well sell herself, she thought.

Which had brought her to her second option. She knew the amount of money her stepfather had spent on women. It appeared, she thought grimly to herself, that there was a good chance of making money by selling oneself temporarily.

Jessica tells her family that she is going to Scotland to take care of an ailing aunt who might leave her some money.  She then goes to London to borrow money to pay the mortgage.  The loan allows her six months to pay it off.  She goes to the Convent Garden Theatre  because “Men looked for mistresses who were actresses or opera dancers, so Jessica’s limited worldly wisdom told her.”  She hopes to get a small part but when the manager hears her clear, beautiful voice and her aristocratic carriage, he realizes he has a find.  He casts her as Juliet and a star is born.

Philip Romney, Earl of Linton, arrives in London from his country estate to find everyone talking about Jessica O’Neill.  Linton is an aristocrat among aristocrats.  His lineage can be traced back to the seventeenth century.  He is proud but likeable; utterly correct in his aspect; and unappreciative of excess.  Upon seeing Jessica perform, he determines that he’ll have her.

Everything about this book has a refined feel to it.  When Linton asks Jessica to be his mistress, it is done in the most mannerly way conceivable:

“I have a house in Montpelier Square that is standing empty at the moment,” he had said thoughtfully. “It would make me very happy if you would move into it and let me take care of you.”

Even in the dim light of the carriage she had been able to see the blue of his eyes. “I cannot afford to run a large establishment,” she had answered in a voice that was not quite her own.

“It is not a large establishment,” he had returned gently, “and of course I should make you a monthly allowance to enable you to cover all expenses.”

When Jessica set out on this course to regain her independence and secure a future for her brothers, she did not imagine she would become famous or catch the attention of such a man as Linton. Linton does not expect to fall in love with his mistress. But they fall in love with each other for Jessica is a woman of depth and strength and Linton is a man of honor and purpose. Phillip begins to inexorably draw Jessica into serious society in an effort to pave the way for them to be together but everything is set against them. A man does not marry his mistress and he certainly does not marry an actress.

Their relationship and their love and their seemingly helpless situation changes them. Jessica comes to realize how foolhardy she was:

She thought back now to the arrogant, innocent girl she had been. Not for her the sitting back and allowing destiny to take its course. Not for her a convenient marriage to some unknown, boorish, rich man. It was all right for other, less proud, less determined women. Not for her. Not for Jessica Andover

Phillip’s changes aren’t as visible. While we get omniscient views of his life away from Jessica, we never get his point of view.  But as a proud man whose life was smooth as glass, his will was thwarted more than once. Phillip is always viewed through the lenses of others, but we do get a full picture of who he is through his actions, dialogue, and perceptions of others.

Throughout the story, Jessica’s roles in the theatre, first Juliet and then Macbeth, provide a sort of backdrop for the movements in the book. Juliet as the young, innocent, arrogant when Jessica starts out, believing herself to come out of this unscathed. The story then moves into darker period where Jessica and Phillip are in love. Phillip, though, is more Lady Macbeth urging Jessica to screw her courage to the sticking point. (Neither are trying to kill anyone but perhaps societal expectations). Both plays represent the tragedy and doomed nature of their relationship.  Despite the references to Shakespeare, this novel is not heavy.  Instead it is balanced with humor, love, sadness, and, yes, sexual tension.

While the love scenes are delicate, there is something inordinately sexy in the way that Phillip would say to Jessica:

Silence had fallen, but it was the rich silence of deep, inarticulate companionship. He put down his cup and smiled at her, long and lazily. “Let’s go to bed,” he said

Part of the reason, I think, is because of the restrained nature of the prose that once the reader falls into the book, like the titillation of the ankle in the Regency period, the mere reference of “bed” is provocative in His Lordship’s Mistress. This is one book in which the two acknowledge their love for each other early on, but there is significant external and internal conflict for Jessica which provides the drama for this powerful love story.

The book also contains one of my favorite romance declarations of love which Jessica makes some time after Phillip’s initial proclamation:

“I love you,” she whispered to him deep in the night. “You own me, body and soul, do you know that?”

His mouth was on her, feeling her silken smoothness as she lay there, open to him as a flower lies open to the sun. His voice, when it came, was husky and unsteady. “The things a man owns, my darling, hold him far more securely than he holds them,” he replied.

I don’t know what you are writing now and while I haven’t loved your recent works, I never fail to be swept away in your short novels published back in the 80s. A

Best regards,

Jane

This book is out of print but can be purchased in digital form from Fictionwise in DRM free formats.

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• If You Like Romances Featuring Mistress
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Two of the many things I enjoyed about your erotic novella collection, Pleasure and Purpose, are the setting and the heroines’ background. All three novellas take place in a fantasy setting which resembles mid nineteenth century Europe in terms of its technological development. As far as I can tell, this world does not seem to contain magic, but underlying all the stories is a fascinating mythology that plays an important role in the characters’ lives.

It is the prevailing religious belief that each time a soul finds perfect solace, even if only for a moment, an arrow appears in the god Sinder’s quiver. According to legend — and many people’s faith — when the quiver is full, Sinder, his wife and his son, The Holy Family, will reunite, bringing peace and harmony to mankind.

To that end, the Order of Solace was created. The women who enter the order, called handmaidens, make it their task to bring solace to the patrons who engage their services. Sometimes doing that involves sex, but there is more to it than that. To give an idea of the handmaidens’ outlook, here are the five principles which comprise the tenets of the Order of Solace’s philosophy:

1. There is no greater pleasure than providing absolute solace.
2. True patience is its own reward.
3. A flower is made more beautiful by its thorns.
4. Selfish is the heart that thinks first of itself.
5. Women we begin and women we shall end.

If that sounds sexist, it sounded that way to me too, but the stories derive a lot of impact and depth from the heroines’ religious commitment to these principles, and the heroines themselves are far from wilting flowers.

“Stillness,” the first novella, begins when a handmaiden named Stillness Faine arrives at the home of Edward Delaw. Stillness has traveled far to bring Edward solace. What she does not know is that Edward doesn’t expect to be able to attain perfect solace. He has signed a contract with the order partly because his house is in chaos and he knows a handmaiden will make it a more peaceful place.

Peacefulness is something Edward craves in his soul. When they were young, Edward and his friend Cillian, the Prince of Firth, had sexual escapades with prostitutes. But one of these went terribly awry, and Cillian was sent to an asylum. Cillian returned half-mad, and it is now Edward’s job to watch him. Their friendship is a thing of the past. Cillian is intelligent enough to discern that Edward has rejected his own sexual need to dominate, and he taunts Edward with that need.

Edward and Stillness’ first sexual encounter is a bit rough, something Stillness enjoys very much, but Edward has trouble with. Gradually, though, he comes to see that pain play can bring Stillness not only pleasure but solace, and as he comes to care for her, he begins to accept his own sexual needs.

I enjoyed “Stillness” tremendously. Beneath her outer calm and submissiveness, Stillness is a wonderful heroine, clever, astute, yet also vulnerable. Although she was focused on bringing Edward solace and putting him first, she still had needs of her own, which gave her character dimension.

Edward, meanwhile, started out a bit less likable, but he grew on me more and more as the novella progressed. Despite being tormented by the past, and despite the fact that Stillness was there to serve his well-being, he quickly focused on satisfying her needs. Cillian, though not always as appealing, was intriguing, as was Edward’s friend Alaric.

Since I am not that knowledgeable about BDSM, I can’t say whether its depiction in this story was accurate, but I can say that I found this novella very hot. The sex was quite erotic to me, despite the fact that I am not usually a huge fan of pain play and am not always into male domination. If I had to guess at why, I think it was because I was rooting for Stillness so much that whatever gave her pleasure was sexy to me, and because Edward was so obviously concerned for her needs more than for his own.

Another thing I loved was the language, which was suitable to the historical feel of the fantasy setting. Here’s an example:

She returned her attention to the house. Spring green ivy climbed redbrick walls, and the gabled roof spoke of cozy, tucked-away garret rooms. Smoke from the chimney wisped its gray tail against the background of blue sky.

If I have a couple of minor criticisms it’s that I wanted to understand Edward’s reasons for engaging Stillness’ services a little better, and that the ending was a bit rushed. On the whole, though, this is an excellent story. A-/A for “Stillness.”

“Honesty,” the second novella in the collection, is about Prince Cillian. Having seen Edward attain solace, Cillian craves it for himself. He contacts the Order of Solace to request a handmaiden. Honesty, the handmaiden who is sent to him, arrives late due to a train accident, as well as hungry and fatigued.

Cillian, who is sullen and petulant most of the time, is in a worse mood than usual because of her late arrival, and his temper doesn’t improve much when Honesty is brought to his “playroom,” the place where he flogs willing women for sexual pleasure, and faints of hunger and exhaustion. After nursing her until she awakens, Cillian expects her to begin catering to his needs, and is chagrined when Honesty requests something to eat instead.

Honesty isn’t at all what Cillian expected. Instead of a submissive and gentle handmaiden who anticipates his every need, he gets a woman who isn’t impressed by his title and bluntly shares her opinions of him.

The truth is that Honesty is burned out, having spent a long time attending a dying woman. She feels she is not cut out to serve the order anymore, and hopes to fail in her assignment and be sent home. It’s not until she realizes how badly Cillian needs solace that she begins to want to at least try to help him attain it.

Honesty’s emotional depletion isn’t the only obstacle she and Cillian face. There is also the fact that Honesty isn’t drawn to pain play. In addition, Cillian still has issues to resolve with Edward, and a nobleman plotting against him.

I liked “Honesty” very much. Cillian and Honesty started out a bit less sympathetic than Edward and Stillness, but as they began to fulfill each other’s emotional needs, I grew to like them more and more. Edward and Stillness played a significant role in this story, and it was great to see them again, and through other characters’ eyes.

Although not as erotic as “Stillness,” and a bit less romantic to me, “Honesty” was a very engaging story. In some ways, Edward and Cillian’s relationship with one another was as integral to this story as Cillian’s relationship with Honesty. There was also a nice twist in the way Cillian found his solace. B+/A- for “Honesty.”

“Determinata” is the most unconventional of the three novellas. It is the story of Alaric, Edward and Cillian’s friend, who has been unlucky in love. Alaric’s fiancée, the Lady Larissa, has recently broken off with him, leaving Alaric so devastated that he became addicted to a drug called oblivion.

The story begins when its heroine, a handmaiden named Derterminata, or Mina for short, is given the assignment. The request for Mina’s services is unusual, because it was made not by Alaric himself but by Edward and Cillian. Even though one of Mina’s sisters-in-service expresses doubts about this, Mina herself is eager to travel to Firth and begin her work with Alaric.

Mina has a dominant personality and she is intrigued by Alaric’s profile and his need to submit. She is confident that she can bring him solace. As she leaves the order, a former lover of hers waits with her for the carriage that will bring her to the train station. Mina allows it because she understands that this means something to the man, but to her, their relationship is in the past, and she is unsentimental about such things.

I liked this contrast between Alaric and Mina; whereas Alaric had been devastated by the loss of love, Mina had never truly felt it. When they meet, Alaric is not interested in Mina or her services, and he tells her that he will never love her. Mina replies that she is not there for love, but rather, to give him solace. She makes it clear that that is all she is interested in.

But as Mina helps Alaric through drug withdrawal and gives him assignments that help him get stronger, things begin to change. Mina’s dominance and Alaric’s submission match up so well that they understand each other in ways that are new to both of them.

This was a lovely story. Alaric, with his need to please, was very much out of the usual mold of heroes, and I found him likable and sympathetic. Mina was more compelling, and an unusually strong-minded heroine. I really loved her. Edward and Cillian played a role in this story but the focus remained firmly on Alaric and Mina.

Though a couple of questions remained unanswered, and the story felt a bit too short, the ending was both surprising and touching. I loved how unusual Alaric and Mina’s relationship was, too, so “Determinata” gets an A- from me.

Overall, I think that Pleasure and Purpose may be my favorite of your books thus far, though I have not read your entire backlist. In comparison with your novels for Harlequin Spice, the novellas in Pleasure and Purpose don’t have quite the same degree of depth or emotionalism, but since they are shorter works, that is only to be expected. Also, in my opinion the heroines here are more sympathetic and the novellas are more uplifting, which, combined with the fascinating worldbuilding, made for terrific reading.

Readers may also be interested to know that whereas in the Spice novels the focus is more strongly on the heroines’ emotional journeys, here the heroes’ arcs get at least as much attention as the heroines’. In that sense, these stories may be more traditional, but the setting and the way faith plays a role in the characters’ choices also make these stories feel very fresh.

Perhaps because they are shorter works, the novellas are tight and fast-paced, something else I really liked. Finally, can I say how much I appreciated the happy endings? Although they are labeled as erotic novellas, to me these stories read as romantic too.

In conclusion, all I can say is that I enjoyed Pleasure and Purpose enormously. It is definitely going on my list of favorite books of 2009. My overall grade for the entire collection is an A-.

Sincerely,

Janine

This book can be purchased at Amazon or in ebook format from Sony or other etailers.

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I don’t review many non romance books here at Dear Author because it’s a) a romance oriented blog and b) I rarely read anything that isn’t romance except for the books I read to my daughter. For the most part, the books I’ve read to my five year old are mainly old classic standbys such as Dr. Seuss stories and the Magic Tree House series which are educational but nothing to write home about in terms of storytelling.

My husband read an excerpt of Where the Mountain meets the Moon and bought it. (You can hear an excerpt here read by the author).  We are always on the look out for any girl positive stories.

We started the book about three weeks ago, reading a few chapters every night in alternating succession. I would read one night and my husband, the other. My tot was mostly interested in the dragon, but my husband and I were so captivated with the book that we would give each other recaps after we had finished. Sometimes we would ask the tot to tell us what had happened when Mommy or Daddy had read the story the night before.

I finished reading the book to the tot Sunday morning because I just could not wait to find out what happened to Minli, her family, and the dragon and when I closed the story I felt like I had just read something very profound.

This is a beautifully written fable for people of all ages, not just those in grades 3-6, as suggested by the publisher.

Minli is a girl whose family is very poor.  They live in the valley of Fruitless Mountain, an area so resistant to color and fortune that everything within the village looks drab, from the houses to the people. All day the three work in the muddy rice fields and eek out just enough from the harvest to provide one bowl of rice each night.

Her mother (Ma) is embittered about their lack of fortune. She scoffs at Minli’s father (Ba) when he tries to entertain the family each evening with a fanciful tale.  One story that Ba tells Minli is that of the Old Man of the Moon and his book of Fortune. The Old Man can tell you what will happen in the future and in some cases, he can even change your Fortune.

Oppressed by the dreariness of her village, her life, and anxious to bring happiness to her family, Minli sets out to find the Old Man of the Moon and ask him how she can change her family’s fortune. As Minli journeys to find Never Ending Mountain, the home of Old Man of the Moon, she is joined by a flightless dragon who has lived for years upon years in the forest, hiding and alone. Along the way, Minli meets and hears the fortunes of the very rich and the very poor until she learns an important lesson about herself, her family, and their fortune. While Minli is away, Ma and Ba have to come to terms with Minli’s absence.  Ma blames Ba for filling Minli’s head with impossible tales. Ba is sad and silent.

The book is illustrated with small ink drawings at the start of every chapter and full color illustrations scattered sparsely throughout the book. I could have used a few more full color illustrations but only because the ones that were included were gorgeous.

About every other chapter there is a Chinese fairy tale told by one of the characters (never Minli though). Each one of these stories are interwoven with each other like the tangled strings of fortune that Old Man of the Moon ties to the figures on the earth. Essentially, there are two stories that take place. Minli’s search for Never Ending Mountain and that of Magistrate Tiger, a man twisted with his desire for more.

This is not a coming of age story where Minli learns about herself with each step of the journey. Instead, it is a story about the bonds of family, the secret to happiness, and the insidious nature of envy, jealousy, and want.

It made me think about my role as a parent and how even the most unthinking of actions can have an impact on how my daughter views her place in the world. I can’t wait for the time when my daughter can read this to herself. Until then, though, I wouldn’t regret it if she wanted me to read it to her one more time. A

Best regards,

Jane

This book can be purchased in hardcover at Amazon or in ebook format from Sony or other etailers.

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• Written on Your Skin by Meredith Duran (recommended by Jennie, Janet/Robin and Jan)
• Hot Under Pressure by Kathleen O’Reilly (recommended by Smart Bitches, Jayne and Jane)
• Mistletoe Mommy by Tanya Michaels (recommended by Jayne who also recommends forgetting what the title is because it has nothing to do with Mommy or Christmas)
• One Week As Lovers by Victoria Dahl (recommended by Janet/Robin and no, I don’t know what it will take for Victoria Dahl to get an A here at Dear Author)
• Goddess of the Hunt by Tessa Dare (recommended by Jane because I loved the immature, big hearted Lucy who had to have that fearless belief in life in order to bring about the brooding Jeremy).
• Beloved Vampire by Joey Hill (recommended by Jane. The review will come at noon. Needless to say its a star crossed lover + vampire + love saves people story with a dark edge).
• Since the Surrender by Julie Anne Long (recommended by Jane because even with the plot flaws and the WTFery sex scene, I still loved the characterizations).
• Beyond the Rain by Jess Granger (this is a qualified rec by Jane. It was a very good SFR that was accessible but slow in some places. It’s a trade but if it were in mass market, it would be an unqualified rec. This one is not in ebook form and therefore not available under the discount).
• Spider Touched by Jory Strong (I’m giving this the same qualified rec. The detail that Jory Strong has brought to her new alternative urban fantasy romance is amazing and I love that she uses the world to provide the basis of the conflict but it’s a trade).

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Since I’ve acquired my lovely Sony PRS-505, I’ve used the handy-dandy “bookmark” button to mark notable pages in a book that I may want to refer back to when I write a review. Depending on the book, the bookmarks may be noting something that worked for me or something that didn’t. When reading your latest book, Written on Your Skin, I hit the bookmark button so many times I was afraid I was going to wear it out. All 32 bookmarks (and it easily could’ve been 132 if I hadn’t restrained myself a bit) noted bits of prose or characterization that I just loved. So it’s no surprise that Written on Your Skin is easily one of the best books I’ve read in a long while.

The book opens in Hong Kong in 1880. Phin Monroe and Mina Masters have been carrying on a flirtation for several weeks when they encounter each other at a party. Phin thinks that Mina is an empty-headed flirt and Mina thinks Phin is an American businessman. They’re both wrong. Things get interesting when Phin collapses, the victim of poisoned brandy. Each quickly realizes that the other has hidden depths, but there is no time to explore their new understanding of each other – Phin has to get away before Mina’s brutal stepfather comes for him. Mina saves Phin’s life, but not without great cost to her own.

Four years later, Mina is in London, more or less under house arrest. Her beloved mother has gone missing, and Mina is under the thumb of Ridland, a rather amoral character who happens to be Phin’s former spymaster. Mina decides to call in the favor that Phin owes her.

Phin has finally gotten himself out from under Ridland’s hated control, and he isn’t eager to fall back into it. He’s now Phineas Granville, Earl of Ashmore. He has the power to ignore Ridland’s dictates, and in fact is using that power to try to destroy the man who blackmailed him for years, forcing him to kill for crown and country. The last thing Phin wants is to be dragged back into Ridland’s web of intrigue. But the fact that Mina once saved his life weighs on his conscience, and the reluctant attraction he felt for her in Hong Kong still lingers in his mind.

There is nothing extraordinary about the plot of Written on Your Skin – it’s pretty standard historical romance fare. It is well-executed and almost perfectly balanced. I had some brief concerns about it dragging during a section where Mina us under Phin’s control and Phin suspects her of being in league with Ridland – hero/heroine power struggles are a delicate area for me and suspicious heroes are such a staple of mediocre romance that I was hoping this aspect of the story would be resolved quickly. It was. The rest of the book was largely a road romance, as Mina and Phin try to track down and save Mina’s mother. I don’t think of myself as having a particular affinity for road romances, but on reflection I think I do. There are so many possibilities that arise from having the hero and heroine uprooted from their everyday surroundings, and you utilize that aspect of the story very well.

What really worked for me in Written on Your Skin is the beautiful prose and especially the extraordinary characterization. Prose and characterization are inextricably linked in my mind – I suppose you can have fine prose and still have bland characterization, but I think it’s pretty impossible to have exceptional characterization without superior prose. In WOYS you have both, and that is what lifts it from the status of a good book to a great one.

Phin and Mina are remarkable characters. Phin was born to the aristocracy but always existed as a bit of an outsider, due to his Irish heritage and his wastrel father. He found a mentor at an early age who welcomed Phin into his family and taught him cartography. But even this positive development ended up having a dark side: it was the mentor and Phin’s mapmaking skill that caused Ridland to take an interest in him.

Phin has tried to settle into the life of an Earl and forget his past. But he is essentially consumed with self-loathing about the things he did during his career as a spy. He feels like a murderer and suffers from panic attacks. He reminded me a bit of Samuel from Laura Kinsale’s The Shadow and the Star, not only in his feelings of shame and inadequacy but in his nascent attempts to court the daughter of his recently deceased mentor, a move he seems to feel would help cleanse him of his sins (as well as perhaps bring him closer to being the son of a man he regarded as a father). Phin’s anguish and guilt are real and devastatingly rendered.

If Phin is a wonderfully drawn character, Mina is even more so. She may have vaulted onto my list of favorite romance heroines of all time.

Mina is an American, daughter of a long-dead American father and an English mother who has tried, mostly without success, to instill in her only child strict English notions of propriety. Mina’s childhood was traumatic due to her mother’s weak character and marriage to Mr. Collins, an Irish-American businessman of shadowy ties and brutal tendencies, a marriage that forces Mina to assume the role of protector and comforter at a young age:

But as she drew a breath to start the routine—reassurances (he did not mean it), denials (he will not leave you), promises (he will never leave you), for God’s sake all the manufactured optimism, the lies—she could not muster much feeling beyond exhaustion. You are not meant to cry in my arms, she thought. You are my mother. I am meant to cry in yours.

Mina and her mother were able to escape Collins back in Hong Kong four years before, but not without acquiring scars, both physical and emotional. She has since flourished as a businesswoman in New York, formulating and selling hair tonics and enjoying her independence. A trip to England, in part to procure lavender for her tonics, turns into a nightmare for Mina when Collins escapes from prison and Mina’s mother disappears.

What did I love about Mina? Where to start? She is a beautiful woman who is not shy about using her beauty to achieve her goals. She’s managed to turn the tables on the condescending men she encounters in business and society by playing the role of the brainless and helpless beauty who is unthreatening and in need of their aid. She had previously successfully played this role with Phin, and though the mask slipped a bit at the end, when they are reunited he is still not sure about Mina’s true nature. In fact, the first time they encounter each other in London, she rather amusingly throws herself into his arms and begs his aid with the air of one who cannot imagine that a man would not help her, a ruse that might have worked had Phin been less suspicious due to Ridland’s involvement.

Mina has every bit as much emotional baggage as Phin does, though ultimately I think she is stronger emotionally and better able to carry it. The main impediment to love for her is trust – she has watched her mother subvert her own character to a man’s will, and she vows that she will never do the same. Mina’s mother is on stage for relatively brief portions of the book, but I found myself resenting her for the damage she had done to her daughter. I was that attached to Mina, whose character is aptly described here, in her own thoughts:

She lifted her chin as she walked, the better to display the line of her neck, which a number of gentlemen had assured her put them in mind of a swan’s. Surely it would prove harder on the conscience to hurt a swan than a hedgehog, although she could use a few sharp quills right now, and the helpful capacity to curl into a bristling ball.

Mina is both a beautiful swan and an impenetrable and prickly hedgehog; she’s also at times a roaring tigress, as well as perhaps a few other denizens of the animal kingdom. She’s not a perfect romance heroine, at least not in the traditional sense: she’s not beloved by servants and kind to small children. She’s also not a new-school kickass heroine, operating at all times without fear or error. She’s beautiful and smart and tough, and she uses all of these attributes to get through life.

This book is tangentially related to your June release, Bound by Your Touch, and it’s interesting to read Phin’s thoughts on that book’s hero, his friend Viscount Sanburne:

It would be a simple thing to put his curiosity to rest. I stole things. I killed people. And I drew a few maps. But it had occurred to Phin that the viscount was too bored to receive these tidings with the proper revulsion. He might see them as novel options for keeping himself occupied.

So often the heroes of related historical romances are portrayed as blood brothers, almost platonic soulmates. It was actually refreshing to read, from Phin’s perspective, that he finds Sanburne’s laconic jokester persona wearing at times.

Being that Phin is a wonderful character and Mina is a wonderful character, it makes sense that I found myself very emotionally invested in their romance. Their relationship, is, in the end, wildly romantic. Both have fears to overcome; neither is entirely reasonable at times (I found myself siding with Mina more often than not, perhaps because her independence makes her a sympathetically though not unrealistically modern heroine). Written on Your Skin is my favorite type of romance, one in which the obstacles to lasting love are relatively equal on each side, and the hero and heroine thus have to take an equal number of steps to come together.

Okay, I find that I still have about 30 bookmarks I haven’t gone through yet, but I don’t want to spoil the book for readers. Rather I want to urge them to run, not walk to their nearest bookstore and pick up a copy of Written on Your Skin. My grade (one I’ve managed to talk myself into in the course of writing this review): A+.

Best regards,

Jennie

This book can be purchased at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or in ebook format from Sony on July 28, 2009, or other etailers.

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I was probably the only member of the Dear Author reviewing team that didn’t love your freshman debut, DUKE OF SHADOWS. For me, it read like a love story between you and India and not so much a love story between the characters. I admit that despite the urging of your critique partner, Janine, that I was reluctant to read your follow up book. I put off reading it until recently when I cracked it open just to read the first couple chapters and ended up not being able to put it down.

It’s obvious from the categorization of this post that I gave the book an A. It’s the first without qualification A I’ve given in a long time but I tried to look for flaws and couldn’t find them. This is a story that was technically masterful as well as being a great love story. I think it’s a book in which I would find new layers and meaning each time I read it.

Lydia Boyce is a spinster, living with her sister who is married to the man that Lydia thought she would marry. She’s plainer than her younger two sisters and has sought refuge in the love and approval of her father, a scholar of Egyptian artifacts. Her father has been in Egypt for some time, uncovering ruins and sending goods back to be sold from time to time. He needs more funding and Lydia is his emissary, handling the sale of his goods and writing papers based on her father’s research.

James, Lord Sanburne, has only the mildest interest in Egyptian artifacts. In fact, his only interest is in besting his father. If his father had taken an interest in Chinese goods, James would have wanted the priciest, most difficult to obtain Ming vase. Instead, they duel over Egyptian artifacts. James intrudes on an archaeology society meeting carrying a stela. He steals the thunder of Lydia and likely reduces her chances of gaining funding for her father. Lydia decries his stela as a fake.

Sanburne’s fight with his father is a real one. Sanburne’s sister, Stella, killed her husband after he beat her one too many times. She was put in an asylum and the one visit that Sanburne was granted haunted him. He begged his father to remove her to somewhere else, just as he had begged his father to help his sister when she first ran away from her husband.

Sanburne and Lydia’s attraction to each other made perfect sense. Lydia was very strong. Her personality is strong, of course, but there is mention made of her physical strength. Their lovemaking is fierce with each marking the other. Sanburne, I think, revels in the fact that he could not break Lydia no matter how he tried. He revels in her intellect too: “No. You take my meaning. That’s the joy of seducing an intelligent woman: you follow me perfectly.”

Lydia is attracted to Sanburne because of his seeming ease at taking joy in life, even though that is often a mask. Sanburne challenges her as well. He constantly makes her answer for her actions where no one has in the past. He questions her, makes her think. No matter how insulting she is to him, Sanburne makes her dig deep for the why of it.

The sex scenes in this book were very moving and perfectly in keeping with character and plot. One of my favorite parts was where Sanburne says to Lydia: “”I see every part of you.. your body was only the last bit.” and Lydia replies “Let me see the same.”

Craftwise, this book was amazing. There was no wasted scene or sentence. At one point, James is boxing. In many books a scene like this merely provides a background to have some dialogue. This scene, however, serves to instruct the reader on many points. It shows us why James is physically hardened as Lydia notes. It shows us that James seeks constant absolution for living while his sister is imprisoned. He seeks out pain and maybe even the oblivion of the knock out but never gets it. “He had fists like hams, didn’t he.” The scene provides foreshadowing of Lydia’s weakness and James’ believable use of strength of her behalf. That one scene portrays so many points of the story.

Mirroring was used to great effect. Lydia loves her father and is his emissary. James hates his father and does everything he can to embarrass the man. Lydia is often at loggerheads with her sisters, betrayed by Sophie. James loves his sister and wishes he could have saved her. The way that these two characters’ paths arc and cross and blend is really amazing and I can’t say more because it would ruin the story.

There’s so much I didn’t touch on in the review such as the themes of selfishness, the concept of absolution and redemption, the act of forgiveness. One simple review couldn’t address it all. Readers will have to read the book to see the true beauty of the work.

Of course, now I am beset with another fear. Can any work of yours possibly top this one? A

Best regard,

Jane

This book can be purchased at Amazon or in ebook format from Sony or other etailers on June 30, 2009.

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I have a bone to pick with you. I’ve got a packed read-and-review schedule for the next month or so, and I need to be able to move from book to book. But you’ve made that impossible. Yes, I blame you. It’s your fault that your book, Jellicoe Road, left me so drained and dazed that I can’t read anything else.

I tried. I tried a sexy historical romance. I tried a contemporary erotic novel. I tried a thought-provoking science fiction story. I tried one of my very favorite books from last year. I even eyed another YA. I put them all back down after a page or two.

It’s not that they were bad. They just weren’t your book. They weren’t Jellicoe Road.

It really isn’t fair of you to write a book that’s so beautiful and powerful that everything else pales in comparison.

Now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, let me explain that when I picked up this book to read for Keishon’s TBR challenge, I was cheating a bit. Yes, technically speaking Jellicoe Road was first published in 2006 (The Australian edition called On the Jellicoe Road), but the American edition came out in 2008, and it’s only been sitting in my TBR pile for a few months.

I first heard of this book here on the YA YA YAs blog. Then I heard that it won the American Library Association’s Printz Award. Then it was selected for DABWAHA. At that point I bit the bullet and bought it in hardcover, a purchase that was worth every penny and then some.

I read Jellicoe Road for the TBR challenge because this month’s theme is “Tortured hero or tortured heroine,” and I had the sense that this book had its share of tortured characters. Boy, was I right about that.

The heroine of the story, Taylor Markham, is a seventeen year old boarding school student at the Jellicoe School, which is about 600 kilometers from Sydney. Taylor was abandoned by her mother in the bathroom of a 7-Eleven when she was just eleven years old. A woman named Hannah began taking care of her at that point, and Taylor suspects Hannah knows something about her mother, but whatever it is, Hannah won’t reveal it.

Taylor enrolled in the Jellicoe School when she was thirteen. When she was fourteen, a hermit whispered something in her ear and then shot himself. But Taylor can’t remember what he told her, and she has other memory gaps as well. She also dreams about a boy in a tree who knows things about her. Sometimes her life feels like a mystery that she can’t solve.

Just after the hermit committed suicide in front of her, Taylor took off to try and find her mother. On the way to Sydney she met a boy named Jonah Griggs, who is rumored to have killed his father, and who is one of the cadets, military school students who camp near Taylor’s school for six weeks every spring and every fall.

The kids from Taylor’s school have a territorial war with the cadets and with a third group of students who live in the town, known as the townies. So Taylor’s running off with a cadet was not looked on well by her fellow students. But Taylor and Jonah made a connection. Taylor opened her heart to Jonah and trusted him, and when he called an adult to come and take them back to their schools, she felt betrayed.

Now, three years later, Taylor is unwilling to trust anyone again. She presents a hardened exterior to the world. Despite this, Taylor is chosen through some convoluted politics to be the leader of the Jellicoe School kids in the next round of wars. The leader of the townies is Chaz Santangelo, who has a history with Taylor’s friend and supporter, Raffaela. And the leader of the cadets is Jonah Griggs. So Taylor must come face to face with Jonah again, this time as two leaders of enemy factions.

And just as this is about to happen, Hannah, the one constant in Taylor’s life since her mother abandoned her, disappears from her house without a word to Taylor.

As this story unfolds, told in Taylor’s first person narration POV, it is interspersed with third person italicized fragments of another story, about a group of kids who were involved in a car accident that killed the parents of three of them. The connection between the two stories isn’t revealed until deep into the book, so I won’t say what it is.

Can Taylor lead the Jellicoe School? Where has Hannah gone to? Will Taylor be able to piece together the secrets from her past, or unearth her lost memories? What about Jonah Griggs? Is he truly the enemy, or does he care for Taylor more than he allows her to see? And how is the story of the other group of kids relevant?

The above is a summary of what the book is about, but it doesn’t do justice to how moving it is, how good the writing is, or how memorable the characters are. Taylor is indelibly so. Although she has a lot to be tortured about, she is the last person to wear her suffering on her sleeve. Instead, she has a stony demeanor.

Here, for example, is an exchange between Hannah and Taylor which takes place when Hannah informs Taylor of the transfer of some girls to the dormitory Taylor is in charge of:

“Transfers,” she says, handing me the sheet. I don’t bother even looking at it.

“My House is full. No more transfers,” I tell her.

“There are some fragile kids on that list.”

“Then why transfer them to me?”

“Because you’ll be here during the holidays.”

“What makes you think I don’t have anywhere to go these holidays?”

“I want you to take them under your wing, Taylor.”

“I don’t have wings, Hannah.”

But for all her prickliness, Taylor’s inner thoughts eventually reveal her vulnerability. Here’s a scene that comes when she is floating on water:

My body becomes a raft and there’s this part of me that wants just literally to go with the flow. To close my eyes and let it take me. But I know sooner or later I will have to get out, that I need to feel the earth beneath my feet, between my toes–the splinters, the bindi-eyes, the burning sensation of hot dirt, the sting of cuts, the twigs, the bites, the heat, the discomfort, the everything. I need desperately to feel it all, so when something wonderful happens, the contrast will be so massive that I will bottle the impact and keep it for the rest of my life.

If Taylor isn’t what she appears to be at first, neither are many of the other characters. Their layers are peeled back gradually, and involve discoveries of things neither Taylor nor the readers know, so I don’t want to reveal them. In fact, it takes a few chapters to figure out exactly what is going on, but that is part of the charm of the book, because the reader’s confusion mirrors the sense of mystery Taylor feels about her own life. Some of the puzzles take most of the book to be put together, and although I guessed at certain truths before Taylor understood these things, that did not lessen my enjoyment of the book.

In fact, “enjoyment” seems like too mild a word. After its slow start, the book gathered more and more momentum, until I was completely swept away from thoughts of my own life. I became so invested in Taylor and the other characters in the book that some sections seemed heartbreaking to read, albeit in a cathartic and healing way. I laughed and cried — or, as my husband put it, “blubbered.” When I finished this book, my tear ducts felt completely empty.

I loved the intricacy of this story, the way so many small and seemingly unimportant details turned out to be important in the end, the way the different threads connected. It’s a rare book that seems so seamless when I finish it, that takes such complete hold of me with its magic.

Despite its YA designation, Jellicoe Road deals with a lot of adult themes, and includes a romance and even a couple of brief sex scenes, so while I would not recommend it for younger kids, I do wholeheartedly recommend it to older teens and to adults.

Thank you, Ms. Marchetta, for writing such a powerful, beautiful, unforgettable book. A for Jellicoe Road.

Sincerely,

Janine

This book can be purchased at Amazon. No ebook although this is a HarperTeen release and HT is fairly good about ebook releases. At least you know who to contact if you want a legitimate digital copy.

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Not too long ago I wrote a review for this site, my first review. I’m a writer not a reviewer but that book moved me, almost unbearably. At the time, I couldn’t imagine another book moving me as much.

I stand corrected.

Your book, THIRTEEN REASONS WHY . . . where do I begin? I’ve been trying to figure that out for hours, trying to figure out how to tell the readers here only enough about the plot to make them read it, because once I say too much, many of them are automatically going to say Not For Me.

But this book IS for them, it’s for everyone. Yes, it’s a Young Adult. Yes, it’s about forbidden topics, especially for teens. Yes, there’s death, a tragic, horrible death. A suicide, actually.

Sounds depressing to say the least, but stick with me on this. I write romances for a living, contemporary romances with a guaranteed happy ending. Always. When I watch a movie, I demand the same. When I read, even more so. I am a sap, a light-weight, happily-ever-after needing reader.

This book wasn’t close to that. And I couldn’t put it down.

The book opens with our protagonist, a well-liked, smart, kind high school senior Clay Jensen, as he receives a box of cassette tapes. They’re from Hannah Baker, a girl he’s crushed on for several years. Hannah recently withdrew from everyone without a word, and then, the unthinkable. She committed suicide, leaving behind the tapes, which are her thirteen reasons why she did what she did. It’s through these tapes that the reader gets her story, and the people who affected her, who brought her to this point in her life.

I loved that we listened through Clay’s ears, loved that as he experiences and comes to understand the truth, we see it change his life. And as hard and unbelievable as it is for him to grasp, it actually changes his life for the better.

What I want to say to the readers out there is this. Read this book, it just might change your life, too. It might make you think about your daily actions in a new way. It might make you think about someone other than yourself, or about how you affect others. And it just might make you turn to someone in your life and say something that needs to be said, like “sorry” or even “thank you”.

Just as I want to say “thank you” to Jay Asher for the amazing, clever, strong, deeply profound read. My grade – a solid A.

Jill Shalvis
When she’s not reading, USA Today bestselling romance author Jill Shalvis is at work on her next novel. INSTANT GRATIFICATION is in stores now. See her daily blog for more details, her crazy mountain adventures, and contests.

This book can be purchased in mass market from an independent bookstore or ebook format from the Sony Store and other etailers.

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I asked Bam if she would do a conversational review with me. Without a blink, she agreed. She even did an awesome summary:

Slither (2007) is a splatter-horror and dark comedy about a beautiful, hapless schoolteacher Starla Grant (Elizabeth Banks) and her husband, the small town’s wealthiest douchebag and the unfortunately named Grant Grant (Michael Rooker), who falls prey to the mind-altering alien slug that burrows itself into his chest after he pokes it with a stick while out for a moonlight stroll with the town slut, Brenda.

In the light of the morning, Starla feels guilty for being a bad wife and attempts to make it up to Grant by seducing him to the tune of “Every Woman in the World” by Air Supply, but Grant returns from his evening walk… changed. Suddenly, he’s a little more aggressive, ravishing Starla senseless. And then there’s his unyielding appetite meat, the bulk of which he buys from the local grocery store and the rest he takes from his neighbors and by that I mean their pets. He stocks his meat supply in the basement and puts a giant lock on the door, telling Starla not to open it because he is hiding her anniversary present in there.

I bet by now you’re wondering where the delicious Nathan Fillion comes in. Well, what’s a small town without an aw-shucks, salt-of-the-earth sheriff with a rakish grin and a secret, unrequited love for the beautiful schoolteacher? Fillion is charming as Bill Pardy, the aforementioned sheriff in a town with no crime or evil-doer to bust, except for the mayor who gets belligerently drunk and cusses at the townsfolk.

He spends his work hours sitting in a squad car with his trusty deputy waiting to catch speed demons. In fact, he is napping in his car with his hat over his face when the meteor carrying the alien slugs streaks across the sky and lands in the woods.

When Grant mutates into a giant squid and the townsfolk turn into zombies controlled by the slugs that have managed to shove themselves down their throats, Sheriff Pardy finds himself bemused and ill-equipped to deal with the madness.

Backed by the gun-toting rednecks he had deputized to help him fight the monsters and the drunken mayor who invites himself to the hunting party, Bill Pardy struggles to save the town… and Starla!

Jaili: When Slither was released I thought it was just a B-movie, so I ignored it. Last year a friend lent me Slither DVD and ordered me to watch it. At this point I should admit I wasn’t a fan of Fillion. I loved Firefly. I even loved Serenity, but that is because it features my all-time favourite actors, Chiwetel Ejiofor.

With that in mind, I didn’t have high expectations for Slither. In fact I settled in for a spot of ‘Aw, look! How far Nathan Fillon has fallen!” but ended up loving it. And you know, it’s a Harlequin romance. Or rather, a Harlequin Romance’s Night Out to Dorky Horrorland. I didn’t expect that at all. Did you?

Bam: I have to say that I’ve always seen Fillion as a romantic lead, so I did expect the whole Harlequin small-town romance aspect of it. I think it would have been a wasted opportunity if director James Gunn didn’t exploit that angle, which he did.

Starla was married to Grant and she married him ’cause he was a successful business owner. Well, she was poor and she didn’t want to be poor anymore. It was implied that Grant “rescued” her. Sheriff Bill was in love with her and it was implied they had some kind of flirtation when they were younger, but Starla was more interested in “getting out”.

Jaili: Starla made a speech about sticking by Grant when he was a monster.

Bam: I think Starla felt guilty that she wasn’t being a better wife. She knew she didn’t love Grant but since she had “small-town values” she had to stick with him because that was what a good wife did.

Jaili: I didn’t pick up on that, actually. Because I remember they had a very affectionate relationship at the start.

Bam: Starla had a “little girl” crush on Grant at the beginning, impressed by his Cadillac and his big house.

Jaili: Ooh, good point. I remember Sheriff Bill did all these things trying to impress Starla, ranging from displays of bravado to getting the schoolgirl to tell Starla that Sheriff Bill saved her.

Bam: Yes, exactly! Well, it’s apparent that Sheriff Bill came from a nice family while Starla came from the wrong side of the tracks as implied by Kid-Starla sneaking into Kid-Bill’s room to tell him she’s running away to Hollywood to become a star

Jaili: Of course! Yeah Starla wanted him to be her bodyguard. And he called the police instead. (laughing)

Bam: And let’s not forget Grant had to work on the night of the Moose Dance, leaving Starla to go by herself and then Sheriff Bill Pardy asks her to dance.

Jaili: Here lie the stars above their heads…

Bam: Seriously, it’s a frickin’ Harlequin American Romance.

Jaili: Yeah, definitely. Tormented heroine, hero with a serious case of unrequited love, token schoolgirl, husband whom the heroine doesn’t really love, and the secret guilt she carries. Oh, and let’s not forget the town slut.

Bam: Oh, but she definitely gets hers! What do you think makes Starla a typical romance heroine?

Jaili: What you said as well as martyrdom, guilt, serious attempt to take marriage vows seriously, to the point where she doesn’t flinch that her husband turns into something she no longer recognises. She’s a former beauty pageant queen and a school teacher, to boot. What’s your favourite moment of the film?

Bam:

[Bill, Margaret and Trevor spot Grant and Starla getting into a car]

Trevor: That’s one match I’ll never get.

Margaret: [zipping Gina Kid's jacket up] Ain’t no mystery. Starla was raised in them shanties off St. Luke, dirt poor. All she ever wanted was to be a lady. Ol’ Grant Grant, he’s always been made of green.

Trevor: Gold digger, huh?

Bill Pardy: Oh, hell, Margaret! Starla’s mother left her, her daddy’s a drunk, she was 17 years old. Ol’ Grant pulls up in a big ol’ Cadillac, house on the hill, and college tuition? What would you do?

Margaret: [Lifting a handkerchief to Gina Kid's nose] Blow.

Bill Pardy: Hell, if he had a ‘gina, you’d'a married him, too.

Gina Kid: What’s a “‘gina”?

Bill Pardy: [after an awkward pause] It’s a country. You know, where “Ginese” people come from. Learn to eavesdrop better.

Jaili: Oh yeah, that had me laughing out loud. That’s what I didn’t expect from Slither: it’s funny! Did you expect that?

Bam: Well, I expected grossness definitely because James Gunn is a Troma alum… as for the funny parts, I knew Nathan Fillion has a bang-on comedic timing, so the zings were going to come fast and furious. What I didn’t expect, now that I think about it, was how much I was going to enjoy it.

As a fangirl, you go into these things to see your favorite actor or a movie by your favorite director and you’re thinking you’re probably going to enjoy it anyway because you’re a fan, but even if I weren’t, it’s just a genuinely funny, fun movie. I enjoyed it so much I would have enjoyed it even if I weren’t a fan.

Jaili: I only knew director James Gunn as a scriptwriter. He’s written Dawn of the Dead and Scooby Doo, so I didn’t have any good expectations, let alone expect it to be funny. Or romantic in a skewed way.

Bam: See, for me, I don’t know. Maybe I liked it so much because I really like Nathan Fillion. lol.

Jaili: Like I said, Fillion is nothing to me. I like the man, but not enough to be a fangirl like you.

Bam: Exactly! I think a fangirl would definitely view this movie differently, but I’ve never met anyone who didn’t fall down laughing while watching it.

Jaili: It was a friend’s vow to kill me if I didn’t watch Slither. Even though I’m not a fangirl, I really liked Fillion in this film. He came off a very likeable, witty bloke. A very dashing hero, too.

Bam: What I really appreciated was all the references to previous horror films. it was obvious that Gunn really respected the films he was paying an homage to. The name of the mayor is Jack McReady, which is a tribute to RJ McReady from John Carpenter’s The Thing.

Jaili: That’s one thing I liked about Slither; a lot of inside jokes and respectful references. What type of romance readers would enjoy watching this film? Aside Fillion fangirls?

Bam: I think as a romance reader you’d definitely enjoy it if you enjoy the unrequited love trope where the guy finally gets the girl.

Jaili: How would you rate the gruesome parts?

Bam: Well, let’s just say that James Gunn does not scrimp at all on the red stuff, since he’s a Troma alum after all. Troma, after all, is famous for The Toxic Avenger and other low-budget splatter films

Jaili: There is ‘this is meant to scare you’ and there is ‘this is meant to make you laugh’. Slither belongs to the latter.

Bam: Since you’re not a Fillion fangirl, what did you enjoy about it the most?

Jaili: Humour, no doubt. And believe it or not, Nathan Fillion. His performance, his charm and great sense of comic timing sucked me in.

Bam: I think what is very obvious in Slither is that everyone enjoyed making the film. You can tell when someone is just slumming it, but Slither is a labor of love

Jaili: That’s what made the film for me; the clear enjoyment of the cast in making this film.

Bam: And I have to say, it’s definitely made for genre fans

Jaili: But I think it would appeal to non-genre fans as well. They might not catch inside jokes, but I think they’ll still enjoy the ride. It’s so tongue-in-cheek that you cannot help but like it. What grade would you give Slither? It gets a B+ from me.

Bam: For a fangirl, A+++, but for a casual viewer, B. it’s a lot of fun, but it’s a “B-movie” after all. ha ha ha. It’s definitely a good cuddle-together-in-the-dark movie.

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