Open Thread for Readers for August 2022
Book Reviews / Open ThreadOpen Thread25 Comments
Got a book you want to talk about? Frustrated with a book or series? In love with a new one? Found a buried treasure? An issue that keeps popping up in the books you are reading? Just want to chat about stuff in general?
Have you ever encountered a book or series where the author has published a second version that has had some content removed or rewritten? I’ve encountered this several times, but the only example I can think of now is T. Hammond’s Red Rover where she removed some explicit content and made the characters younger than in Blind Seduction.
This comes to mind because I just reread Lyn Gala’s Claimings series, and I was thinking of all the people who will miss out on this series because they eschew books with significant adult content. I also reread Leta Blake’s Any Given Lifetime recently and had similar thoughts.
@Kareni: Yes, I’ve seen this happen. Mary Jo Putney expanded her old traditional regencies when she reissued them digitally. She added sex scenes and I think maybe some other stuff. A friend who loved The Rake and the Reformer (original version) read The Rake (expanded version) and didn’t like it as much. She felt it had been padded.
Another case was with Judith McNaught. Before the release of Until You, her publisher reissued Whitney, My Love (the prequel) in a new revised edition. McNaught took out a scene where the hero flogs the heroine on the behind with a riding crop in punishment for her rebellion, and also, with a scene most readers see as rape, she edited the hero’s reference to it. She had thought of it as consensual (the heroine agreed to have sex with the hero, but he was out to punish her because he thought she’d cheated on him, and the sex got very ugly), but noticed on editing that the guilt-ridden hero referred to what he’d done as rape, and believed that this was why readers saw what happened as rape. So she cut out or changed the line where he said he raped her.
She also added (this I remember very clearly) a whole last chapter about the hero’s brother, clearly setting him up for his own romance (Until You). The book had previously felt like its ending was too abrupt, but this chapter didn’t help matters, because what readers really wanted was more groveling from the hero of WML.
A third case I can think of is with a book called The Duke’s Tattoo. It was an ebook and from what I understand, Author Miranda Davis kept rewriting it after it was reissued. Obviously, a lot of readers were displeased. If they read and liked the book, they still couldn’t recommend it because by the time someone else bought it, it might read very differently.
Sunita, a DA reviewer/contributor in those days, wrote an op-ed about this titled “When I bought your book, I didn’t sign up to be your beta reader”:
https://dearauthor.com/features/letters-of-opinion/when-i-bought-your-book-i-didnt-sign-up-to-be-your-beta-reader/
Thanks for your thoughtful reply, @Janine, as well as the link.
Unlike your examples, both T. Hammond books are for sale; they are aimed at different readers.
I did discover another book which has two different versions ~ The Forest Bride by Jane Buehler. There is the regular version as well as a PG version which was, as the author says, “Inspired by family and friends who “aren’t really into the steamy stuff,”….”
https://janebuehler.com/books/pg-versions/
@Kareni: Thanks for clarifying.
Your mention of a PG version of a sexy book made me think of another example of what you’re talking about. Laura Kinsale’s book For My Lady’s Heart was published with some Middle English dialogue. Not long before the release of the sequel, Shadowheart, she made minor changes to set Shadowheart up better. But that wasn’t the end of it—when For My Lady’s Heart was reissued as an ebook, she included a second version of the book where the Middle English dialogue was translated into more accessible English that readers could easily follow. If you purchase the ebook, you will find both the easy English and the Middle English versions in there. I’ve always been curious about the one with the more accessible English, but I loved the Middle English version so much that I don’t know if I could stand to read those romantic lines in more colloquial language.
I hope it’s not too late to ask for recommendations. I’m seeking some fresh YA fantasy novels. Lately everything I’ve read or tried to read in the YA fantasy genre has been kind of stale. Bonus points of the books have fae characters and a fae world. No worries if not, I still want to hear your recs!
@Janine, have you read Vespertine by
Margaret Rogerson? (I see that @Layla considered it as one of her Best of 2021.) It reminded me a bit of the Penric and Desdemona books.
@Kareni: There’s a historical writer who has done this with some of her books set in the 17th century. I’m blanking on her name now but there are no-sex and steamy rated versions.
@Janine:
Is this like getting a director’s cut vs a studio cut of a movie? Or is it like a movie being re-edited or parts reshot based on what test audiences say about it?
@Jayne: LOL. I personally would go with the test audiences metaphor.
@Kareni: I haven’t, though Layla keeps recommending it to me! I should give it a shot.
I only read the first Penric and Desdemona novella (my library doesn’t have the others) but I was underwhelmed. Especially relative to Bujold’s first two Chalion novels.
I don’t think the Penric books are as meaty as those Chalion books, @Janine, but I find them to be pleasant reads. (The third Chalion book did nothing for me. You, too?)
@Kareni: I never read the third one because I heard that it wasn’t as good.
@Kareni: I think Alexis Hall is revising “Glitterland” for its release by a traditional publisher. I hope it doesn’t differ too much from the self-pub version, which was my entry into M/M romance. And then I have to deal with the dilemma of whether or not I should buy it. If it’s 20% different? 50% different? Completely re-written? Hall is pretty much a “shut up and take my money” author for me, so I will probably be first in line to order it.
@SusanS, that is indeed a dilemma! I will be very curious to hear how the two versions differ.
@SusanS: I think if a writer is revising a significant amount of a book (changing plot points, adding or removing characters, altering the trajectory of the story), they should let readers know so we can decide if we want to repurchase/reread. However, if the changes are a matter of correcting misspellings or changing a word or a phrase here and there, I’m good with not reading the revised edition.
Speaking of Alexis Hall: if you like the snarky/smart/pop-culture-savvy inner monologue of Hall characters like Arden St. Ives, I strongly recommend a wonderful book I just finished this weekend: TWO TRIBES by Fearne Hill. It’s an m/m romance that bridges 25 years in the lives of the MCs (one of whom is quick-wittedly snarky…and like many Hall characters, unwittingly reveals hidden vulnerabilities). I also think anyone who enjoys 1980s New Wave or 1990s Grunge will love the ethos of the book, which is firmly grounded in that music. Highly recommended.
@Janine: I have a few YA fantasy recs, but no fey, I’m afraid.
Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas – m/m kind of UF set in modern LA with witches and ghosts.
This Poison Heart series by Kalynn Bayron – Queer YA UF with literal Black girl magic, plus a lot of references to Medea mythology and a little Secret Garden and Little Shop of Horrors mixed in. First one ends on a cliff hanger but the 2nd one is out. I liked it but didn’t love it – the teens kept acting like teenagers and it stressed me out.
The Circus Rose by Betsy Cornwell – queer retelling of Snow White and Rose Red (which is a completely different fairytale from Snow White) set in a steampunk-ish world with magic.
@cleo: Thanks, I’ll definitely check out Cemetery Boys. I have looked it over before but the cover art always puts me off. I think maybe I’ll get it from the library and read a sample.
I tried This Poison Heart but couldn’t get into it, so I’ll pass on that one.
The Circus Rose has a really low rating average on Goodreads–do you think I would like it?
What I’m really waiting for is a queer retelling of Goblin Market (but of course with them being stepsisters rather than sisters).
I liked vespertine well enough might be worth a try. Have you tried Holly Black, Book of Nights? Maybe moreNA tho. I also liked See these Bones by Chris tullbane, about young characters so maybe YA. It did remind me of Richard Raley’s King Henry books, but less in your face. That said I loved 5he king henry books which in No way are YA..tons of violence, sex. The voice of the main character might be quite off putting or shocking to some but I think the main characters are great, complex not perfect.. there are FAe but not a huge part of the series at this point. I ll also put in a plug for the Judge Dee mysteries by LaCie Tidhar..a series of short stories about a traveling vampire judge and his (maybe) hapless human sidekick…Finally I have liked the Phoenix feather series by Sherwood smith.. not all of her books work for me but these seem too. That said I’d definitely try before I buy because I’m not sure if they work for me because of an idiosyncratic reason such as possibly my love of Milan…
@Janine: Hmm, I gave Circus Rose 4 stars but I honestly don’t remember anything about it and I only wrote a very short GR review, so I don’t know if you would enjoy it or not. I remember that I read it for a Circus square in a book bingo.
Of the 3 I mentioned, I liked Cemetery Boys the most. Definitely try the sample – I think it’s a grittier book than the cover implies.
@Sue: Thanks for the recommendations! Layla keeps telling me to read Vespertine; I have to get around to it. I did try Holly Black with White Cat, but I often hate con artists so this wasn’t the book for me. I have been wanting to try her Folk of the Air series, though. Have you read those?
The Chris Tullbane book has unusually good ratings on Goodreads, I’ll have to look into it further. I hate to be shallow but the King Henry books have terrible covers. It’s a big turnoff to me. I’ve been very curious about Lavie Tidhar (Jayne has enjoyed some of his stuff) and I’ve heard great things about Sherwood Smith, so I’ll check those out.
@cleo: Circus is a tricky spot to fill in a book bingo. I’ve heard so much that’s good about Cemetery Boys but that cover makes it seem like a kids’ book. I don’t mean YA, I mean second grade. But I’ll try to get past that. I know, I know, you can’t judge a book…
@janine.. yup read book of air series.. enjoyed the first two..last one completely let me down.. I think because I felt the characterization was not consistent tho others may disagree. Book of night is about a con which I usually don’t like but somehow was ok, good cliffhanger ending too which I also don’t usually like.. maybe try king Henry only.99 on Amazon tho I will say I like some of the books better than others.
@Janine: Cemetery Boys is definitely YA, although I see what you mean about the cover. The MCs are in high school and they seemed like teenagers to me. There were some pacing issues, just fyi.
@Sue: Thanks, Sue.
@cleo: Thanks I don’t mind teenage characters at all.
@Janine: I’d put my Murder of Crows series (which starts with the aforementioned See These Bones) more in New Adult than YA, as there’s a fair amount of swearing, violence, and mature subject matter, especially as the series goes on. Just fair warning!
@Sue: Thanks for the mention!
@Chris Tullbane: Thanks, Chris.