Sumptuous Historical Romance Covers

I'll admit it - I'm a ho for reprints. I know they tend to annoy most readers (unless the reprint in question is for a book that had been selling used online for outrageous sums), but for me it's a by-product of my job. Yes, I buy lots of shiny, new titles - but I also spend quite a bit of time scouring for reprints to replace tired, worn, pathetic looking copies of old favorites.

Sometimes the publisher simply recycles the old cover art, or uses a bland, stock image. Or in the case of Harlequin, they revamp them entirely, with delectable results. This summer, Susan Wiggs' Chicago Fire trilogy is getting reissued (for the second time, by my count) and Harlequin has slapped them with such sumptuously beautiful covers that I'm actually contemplating buying them all over again. Never mind that I already have two copies of The Firebrand in the Bat Cave Keeper Stash.






Seriously, aren't these covers dreamy? Of course if you don't like beef-cake-less, headless heroine covers, you probably think I'm demented, but....

Dreamy, dreamy sigh.

And for the record, I lurved The Hostage and The Firebrand, but was meh on The Mistress. These will be released back-to-back-to-back starting with The Hostage on June 29. I hope they sell oodles, since I keep hoping Mira will let Wiggs write Phoebe's story.

Back In The Saddle

I drove the visiting Super Librarian parents to the airport this morning, which means life (and this blog) will hopefully be settling back into a normal routine. We all had a lovely visit - my parents soaking up quality new granddaughter time (my niece). Much "tourist-y" stuff was done (hello, Disneyland!) and Wendy cooked a couple of "nice" meals (ham dinner one night, homemade lasagna another...). Which makes that the most time I've spent in my kitchen in...well...ever. Ha!

Here's what happened while I was away from my online life...

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This past Saturday the Orange County Chapter of RWA asked me to speak with their published authors about my job. Basically, what I do, how I do it, how books get into the library system - all that fun stuff. I brought my Mom along for the visit and she was really impressed! The Orange County Chapter has been around since 1981, and is pretty kickass. Jacqueline Diamond gave her a copy of one of her older Harlequin American titles, Diagnosis: Expecting Boss's Baby (classic Harlequinized title if ever there was one!), which Mom proceeded to devour in a couple of sittings. She really liked it, and figures it's the first romance novel she's ever read. I have plans to read it now and see what I think of it - since Mom saying "I really liked it!" is about the only "review" I'm likely to get out of her. Heh.

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I've been asked to do some contest judging for the Georgia Romance Writers, and the books arrived yesterday. When I do published author contest judging, I tend to put category romance down as my first choice, mostly because they're quicker reads I can squeeze in around my life. I also usually put down historical romance as Choice #2. Well, my package was all Harlequins, but it's a really good mix! The lines represented include Harlequin American, Silhouette Special Edition, Harlequin Intrigue, Harlequin Presents, and Harlequin SuperRomance. And, wait for it, all written by new-to-me authors! I'm hoping I'll discover at least one great new autobuy author to add to my category romance shopping list.

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While I was largely off-line, longtime Detroit Tigers radio broadcaster Ernie Harwell passed away after a surprisingly lengthy battle with terminal cancer. This is how much I blather about the Tigers - some of you popped up on Twitter and in blog comments to offer your condolences. Ernie was 92, and ill, so it wasn't exactly a shock that he passed, but sad all the same. To tie this into romance novels (stay with me non-baseball peeps!), Ernie and his wife, Lulu, were married for 68 years. Which is mind-boggling anyway, but factor in how much traveling he had to do for his job, and it's doubly impressive!

So to close out this blog post I'm going to post a piece that Ernie wrote in 1955 and read during his 1981 induction into the Baseball Hall Of Fame. God speed Ernie.

Baseball is the President tossing out the first ball of the season and a scrubby schoolboy playing catch with his dad on a Mississippi farm. A tall, thin old man waving a scorecard from the corner of his dugout. That's baseball. And so is the big, fat guy with a bulbous nose running home one of his (Babe Ruth's) 714 home runs.

There's a man in Mobile who remembers that Honus Wagner hit a triple in Pittsburgh forty-six years ago. That's baseball. So is the scout reporting that a sixteen year old pitcher in Cheyenne is a coming Walter Johnson. Baseball is a spirited race of man against man, reflex against reflex. A game of inches. Every skill is measured. Every heroic, every failing is seen and cheered, or booed. And then becomes a statistic.

In baseball democracy shines its clearest. The only race that matters is the race to the bag. The creed is the rulebook. Color merely something to distinguish one team's uniform from another.

Baseball is a rookie. His experience no bigger than the lump in his throat as he begins fulfillment of his dream. It's a veteran too, a tired old man of thirty-five hoping that those aching muscles can pull him through another sweltering August and September. Nicknames are baseball, names like Zeke and Pie and Kiki and Home Run and Cracker and Dizzy and Dazzy.

Baseball is the cool, clear eyes of Rogers Hornsby. The flashing spikes of Ty Cobb, an over aged pixie named Rabbit Maranville.

Baseball just a game as simple as a ball and bat. Yet, as complex as the American spirit it symbolizes. A sport, a business and sometimes almost even a religion.

Why the fairy tale of Willie Mays making a brilliant World's Series catch. And then dashing off to play stick ball in the street with his teenage pals. That's baseball. So is the husky voice of a doomed Lou Gehrig saying, "I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of this earth.”

Baseball is cigar smoke, hot roasted peanuts, The Sporting News, ladies day, "Down in Front", Take Me Out to the Ball Game, and the Star Spangled Banner.

Baseball is a tongue tied kid from Georgia growing up to be an announcer and praising the Lord for showing him the way to Cooperstown. This is a game for America. Still a game for America, this baseball! Thank you.

Random Romance Sunday: He Don't Need No Stinkin' Razor!

The Book: Bridge To Yesterday by Stephanie Mittman

The Particulars: Time Travel Romance, Harpercollins, 1995, Out of Print

The Blurb:

DESIRE'S TRAIL

Investigator Mary Grace O'Reilly would go to the ends of the earth to find abducted children. But when a case took her to a mysterious Arizona canyon, she never expected to be transported one hundred years into the past--to help hell-raising cowboy Sloan Westin free his baby son from an outlaw gang. And she certainly didn't plan on letting the ruggedly handsome Sloan, spark desires impossible to deny.

With a perilous desert trek ahead of him, Sloan needed all the help he could get, even if it came from a stubborn redheaded spitfire who claimed she was from the future. But no amount of danger could stop Sloan from hungering for "Sweet Mary's" passion--or defying fate for the love of a lifetime.

Is It In Wendy's TBR?: I have other books by Mittman in my TBR, but not this one.

Any Reviews?: In one of the more awkwardly written reviews I've stumbled across in a while, Romantic Times gave this 4 Stars:

Warm and wonderful, sensual and exciting, BRIDGE TO YESTERDAY is a beautiful, ingenious novel by a bright new voice in romantic fiction.

Anything Else?: This was Mittman's debut, and she went on to write several more Americana historicals and a handful of contemporary-set books for the now-defunct Harlequin Next line (under the name Stevi Mittman). Her web site indicates she's "taking a break from writing." No word if the break is still on-going.

A couple of reasons I wanted to spotlight this title. 1) It's a time travel, and there is a small, loyal fan base for these in Romancelandia (our dear KristieJ being one of their charter members). Also, I loved that the hero has facial hair! There's something you don't see every day. The current crop of romance heroes are all depicted on covers has having been waxed half to death. When I need a beard fix, I can always count on older Americana (and western) historicals to hook me up!

And neither here nor there - "Sweet Mary?" "Stubborn redheaded spitfire?" Gah!

Sex And The Single Earl

There is a segment of the romance reading population that is very discerning when it comes to Regency historicals. I like to call these fine folks The Old Guard. Those readers who cut their teeth on sweet traditional Regencies, know the era better than current events, and get rather annoyed when the history is "off" in historical romances. Reading Vanessa Kelly's second book, Sex And The Single Earl, had me thinking of these readers quite a bit. While there are elements in this story that hit all the right notes, there were other elements that felt...off.

Simon St. James, the Earl of Trask, is fascinated by business, numbers and math - much to his family's horror. He has designs on cornering the wool market, and has even had an architect draw up plans for some textile mills. The problem? His chief investor is concerned about Simon's ability to get his hands on the necessary fuel to run the factories. In this case? Coal. The Stanton family is sitting on some coal rich land, and Simon figures he can lease it from them. That is, until the land is tossed in as dowry for Miss Sophie Stanton. Well, bother. He's known her since she was a girl - always pulling her out of one scrape or another. He's certainly fond of her, and they were practically raised together. The idea of marrying her is hardly repulsive, and besides? He needs that coal.

Sophie is entering her fourth season and is very close to being on the shelf. The girl just doesn't know how to play the game. Couple that with her knack of finding trouble and the fact that she's been hopelessly in love with Simon for years? Yeah, it's not a surprise she's still unmarried. But what will happen when she finds out that Simon, the man she's been carrying a torch for, only wants to marry her for her land? And what will Simon's reaction be when his intended bride keeps getting into scrapes that scandalize the ton?

What we have here is most definitely a mixed bag. Having read my fair share of historicals over the years that feature heroines constantly getting into trouble, I read this book waiting for the other shoe to drop. Sophie toes the line for pretty much the whole book, and maybe I am getting soft in my old age, but she never completely went off the deep end into Too Stupid To Live territory for me. It helped that the girl's heart is always in the right place, and that most of her impetuous behavior can be explained away by her reacting to situations (for example: chasing after the thief who swipes her reticule while she's walking through the streets of Bath).

Simon is a bit of a cold fish. One of those exacting Regency heroes feeling the pressure of family obligation, his title, and society. He abhors scandal, and Sophie's knack for finding it tends to throw a wrench in his life. Over the course of the story he threatens to spank her, or lock her away in a closet, on more than one occasion. Essentially, he wishes he could control her. Keep her in line. With heroes of this ilk, the reader just has to wait him out for that moment when he realizes he doesn't want to control the heroine, that he's breathlessly in love with her, and wouldn't change a thing about her for all the tea in China. The problem here is that I never warmed up to Simon. Sophie does whine that he treats her like a child (which, at times, she totally deserves), but I also found myself agreeing with her when she thunders at him that she doesn't need a Daddy or another older brother - she needs a husband who loves her.

Simon's desire to marry to further his business dealings, along with the descriptions of ton society in Bath, all have the requisite Regency sparkle. The author also throws in some grit in the form of two children that Sophie desires to save from an abusive father. On the flip side though, there are the love scenes which never gelled for me. The timing of the first one was rather troublesome, with an inebriated Sophie throwing herself at Simon, not giving her virginity so much as a by-your-leave. And given Simon's consuming desire to get his hands on Sophie's land, her deflowering reeked of a half-baked plan to bring her to heel. Like I said, troublesome.

Finally, the author keeps the conflict churning along thanks to an Evil Ex-Mistress. I think every romance reader has at least one trope, that no matter how well-written, just doesn't work for them anymore. The Evil Other Woman/Ex-Mistress/Ex-Wife is one of mine. This is hardly the author's fault. I've DNF'ed books by favorite authors because of this trope. This one is all on me.

In the end what I'm left with is the writing, which is crisp and clean, and a heroine that I liked, despite her tendency to get into trouble. On the downside, I never warmed up to the hero, the love scenes felt off, and the Evil Ex-Mistress is admittedly an issue for me. I wasn't bowled over by this story, but I also wasn't greatly annoyed by it either. Like I said, mixed bag.

Final Grade = C

The Month That Was April 2010

Looking back on my reading for the month of April, I'm struck by two things. 1) I managed to read 8 books, which surprises me (I thought I was more of a slacker) and 2) I had a good reading month as far as quality goes. A new book joined the ranks of the Bat Cave Keeper Stash and look at all those B grades! Title links will take you to full reviews.


Surrender Of A Siren by Tessa Dare - Historical romance, Regency, 2009, Grade = B-

• Enjoyed the shipboard setting, liked the heroine, really liked the hero. That said, this was a second half read for me, mostly because the pacing made the first half slow-going. A solid book, and it sets up the final book in the trilogy quite nicely.
  

Under The Gun by HelenKay Dimon - Harlequin Intrigue, 2010, Grade = B-

• A solid suspense story delivered in the postage stamp word count of the Intrigue line. Author continues to write good, solid "hero-worthy" heroes. Would have liked a bit more detail concerning hero's job as a "recovery agent" and admittedly, I had a hard time warming up to the heroine. That said, I'm looking forward to the future books in this series. Harlequin Cheat Sheet: Bad Ass Secret Agent Hero, Heroine Who Done Him Wrong, Evil Ex Husband, Sequel Baiting Coworkers (But Not Annoying Sequel Baiting).
  

The Captain's Wicked Wager by Marguerite Kaye - Harlequin Undone, Short Story, Ebook, Georgian, Grade = B

• Desperate heroine enters into wager with hero, and sexy shenanigans ensue. Loved the Georgian setting, and the author writes "anticipation" very well. The traditional happily-ever-after strains a bit given the short time-table, but this was a sexy, solid read and I'm looking forward to reading more by this author. Harlequin Cheat Sheet: Wager Plot, Self-Sacrificing Heroine, Military Hero.
  

Death Of A Trophy Wife by Laura Levine - Cozy Mystery, 2010, Grade = B

• Latest installment in one of my favorite cozy mystery series. This time out the intrepid heroine finds herself working to clear her neighbor's name when the police label him a prime suspect in the death of an obnoxious Los Angeles trophy wife.
  

Leave Me Breathless by HelenKay Dimon - Romantic Suspense, 2010, Grade = B

• Former FBI heroine is hired to protect the judge hero after he receives threats and his car is bombed. Good banter, steamy sexual tension, and a nice secondary romance involving another judge and the hero's brother.
  

John Riley's Girl by Inglath Cooper - Harlequin SuperRomance, 2004, Grade = B-

• My read for Keishon's TBR Challenge. Emotionally charged story about two reunited high school sweethearts. Suspension of disbelief heavily required, but I enjoyed it. Harlequin Cheat Sheet: High School Sweethearts, Small Town = Goody Goodness, Unhappy Career Gal, One Kid (Not Obnoxious), One Dead Wife, Single Dad.

Sex And The Single Earl by Vanessa Kelly - Historical romance, Regency, 2010, Grade = C

• A full review of this will be posted on Friday. A heroine who toes the "impetuous line," and a hero I never really warmed up to. Enjoyed the Bath setting, and the "gritty" Regency details the author included in the story. Could have done without the Evil Ex-Mistress, but admittedly this is a personal quirk of mine. An OK read.
  

Oh-So-Sensible Secretary by Jessica Hart - Harlequin Romance, 2010, Grade = A

• The best read of the month. Uptight, personal assistant heroine finds herself working for the hero, a wealthy minor celebrity who is more at home traveling the world than behind the desk in an office. Great first-person narration, no silly misunderstandings, and a heroine who "grows" over the course of the story. Harlequin Cheat-Sheet: Wealthy Hero, Wound-Tight Heroine, One Ex-Boyfriend (Not Evil), Office Romance.
  

My Internet Life, RWA Hotel and RT Drama

A heads-up that for the next week my face time on the Interwebs will be extremely limited. I'll be skimming blog posts, rarely commenting, absent from Twitter and mostly glancing at my e-mail - because the Super Librarian parental units are paying a visit to the Bat Cave. They've spent the last week visiting with Lil' Sis and my new baby niece, and now it's my turn. Honestly, I'm a little surprised I'm seeing them much at all - what with my niece being way cuter than I am. Of course, I can take them to Disneyland, and my niece isn't quite up for such fun and frivolity yet.

I've got a few posts scheduled to go live while I'll largely be unplugged - so at least this blog won't be a vast wasteland of nothingness while I'm away.

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The RWA conference is in Nashville this year, and word came down today that the Gaylord Opryland hotel (that would be the conference hotel) is flooded - along with most of Nashville. RWA has issued a press release - but at this point, it's too soon to know what's going to happen. The conference is still three months away, and hopefully the city will be well on it's way to recovery by then. If the Opryland hotel isn't doable, I'm hoping RWA can find another hotel in Nashville to accommodate the conference - as it would be lovely if my tourist dollars could stay in the city. Nothing helps recovery quite like tourists throwing their cash around.

Here's hoping the area sees some relief from the waters soon. I had no idea how bad it was/is. Further proof that my head has been in the sand thanks to my parents impending arrival, my new niece, my review backlog, and the end of the fiscal year crunch here at work.

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Readers and authors are starting to pop back online after returning to their normal existences after the RT Booklover's convention. Dear Author has a recap post up, and naturally, drama has erupted in the comments thread courtesy of the Mr. Romance pageant.

I don't have the time (or inclination) to rubberneck, but that won't stop me from offering my 2 cents. I'm more than likely going to attend RT next year, since they'll be in Los Angeles, and I want to put my money where my mouth is after whining the last several years that they've been nowhere near the west coast in recent memory. That said, I know there will be some elements at RT that won't be my thing. And that's cool. I have yet to attend any conference (romance novel or library related) where everything on the schedule was of interest to me. And inevitably, no matter how many people enjoy the event, no matter how well organized the conference planners are - shit happens. There's always some wee bit of drama, someone who hated the hotel/food/weather/city/whatever. Nothing can ever be 100% perfect, 100% enjoyable to everybody. So while this bit of drama has inevitably erupted regarding the conference, I'm sure there are oodles more attendees who had a blast and enjoyed themselves immensely.

Plus, let's be honest. It's easier to rubberneck over the uh, more over-the-top elements of the romance genre than it is to rubberneck over a bunch of a nice, respectable, intelligent women discussing their favorite novels. There's no drama in that, and the Interwebs needz dramz. If it bleeds, it leads.

ETA: Holy crap. So I lied and rubbernecked. Read a comment left by KristieJ and was gobsmacked! Not by her, but by something she heard/witnessed. Seriously? Seriously?! WTF?!?!?! Today I am ashamed I have ovaries.

Random Romance Sunday: Alien Baby From The Planet Zoltan!

The Book: The Soldier's Secret Daughter by Cindy Dees

The Particulars: Silhouette Romance Suspense #1588, 2009, In Print

The Blurb:

Dashing spy Jagger Holtz lived in a world of danger. Not even a sweet brown-eyed siren alone on New Year's Eve could be trusted, especially when he had to bring down her employer. Somehow Emily Grainger broke through his defenses—and set him up for two years of torturous captivity. Or so he thought.

Emily hadn't expected a cryptic message to lead her to rescue the man who'd disappeared after their night of passion. Nor had she known that he'd been held prisoner all that time and believed that she was responsible. Despite the suspicion, they must work together to stop the threat against them…and protect their precious
daughter.

Is It In Wendy's TBR?: I tend to avoid books with the One Night Of Passion And Oopsie Heroine Got Knocked-Up trope like the plague. So, um, that would be a no.

Any Reviews?: RT gave this one four stars:

Dees brings her wonderfully vivid and intense storytelling to the Top Secret Deliveries series. She does a terrific job of embedding a someday-my-prince-will- come fairy tale into the nonstop action.

My favorite line from the RT review though is, hands down:

Two years later, Emily sees Jagger every day in the face of their daughter.

But more on that in a minute....

Anything Else?: Dear Lord, what is wrong with that baby? Seriously? I mean, what is wrong with that kid? Did the heroine have to go on bed-rest during her pregnancy and decide a nuclear reactor was as good a place as any? I mean, that baby don't look right!

That being said, despite one of the more jaw-dropping babies I've seen slapped on a Harlequin cover in a while, this particular book is RITA-nominated in the Contemporary Series Romance: Suspense/Adventure category. So congrats to Ms. Dees on her nomination and my condolences for the cover. Yikes!