Old School Romance Lurve

I've said it before and I'll say it again - what makes a book a "keeper" has just as much to do with the space and time the reader is currently occupying as it does with the book itself. Nothing illustrates this more than reading a romance "classic." I love genre fiction with the kind of slavish devotion usually reserved for stalkers, but even I'm one to admit that genre fiction tends to work best in what I call The Here And Now. A large chunk of genre fiction is not designed and written to stand the test of time. Some of it does.....

But a lot of it doesn't.

And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. It just means that reading a "classic" of any genre sometimes requires the reader to approach the story from a slightly different angle.

Lightning That Lingers by Laura London (the pseudonym for husband and wife writing tandem Sharon and Tom Curtis) was first published by Bantam Loveswept in 1983, and is a favorite among many long time romance readers. I will say for a 26-year-old category romance, this story held up better than I thought it was going to. That doesn't mean it didn't show it's age though, and it doesn't mean that I'm ready to shout from the hill-tops that this is the greatest category romance ever written.

Jennifer Hamilton is a Plain Jane children's librarian (oh, of course she is!). She's young, fresh-faced, and innocent. So when her friends haul her to a local male strip club (The Cougar Club - no I'm not joking) she practically dies of embarrassment. However instead of the floor opening up to swallow her whole (which is what she wants to happen), she catches the eye of the "star" stripper, Phillip Brooks.

The Brooks family is old money American aristocracy. Phillip is actually an out of work biologist (seriously, I'm not joking) who lives in the former family summer home. He's stripping for a "greater good" - and takes care of injured wild life. The moment he spots Jenny he's smitten, flirtation and pursuit ensues, and a happily ever after is right around the corner.

First things first, this book was published in 1983, so it is dated. That can't really be helped. Jenny has a Dorothy Hamill hair cut. Phillip does a strip tease to a Stray Cats song. Swear to God, STDs are referred to as "social diseases" (which I'm pretty sure was dated even back in 1983) and Jenny mentions "Mr. Greenjeans." All in all though, really not bad for a 26-year-old category romance.

Parts of this story are just patently absurd. The first chapter begins by introducing the reader to Phillip and his pet owl, Chaucer, who lives and flies around freely in the rambling family summer home. Insert major eye roll here. Also, I didn't know it was humanly possible to cram so much purple prose in a story that only clocks in at 180 pages.

"Like frigid poison, the icy water bled through her clothes, lacerating her raw flesh, washing her in agony, convulsing her muscles."

Or another gem:

"As she had eased herself gracefully into the bath, he had seen her wince when the sore petals of her femininity touched the water, and he was sorry."

Admittedly I'm a "less is more" kind of reader, but I found myself rolling my eyes or fighting giggles more than once. Sigh....but again, 1983. Purple prose was pretty much the standard back then. Just makes me appreciate today's romance genre more, which allows writers to be a bit more....ummm....frank with their language.

So where does that leave me? Well, I can see why so many readers like this story. Phillip is charming and roguish and Jenny definitely fulfills a common reader fantasy; that of the Plain Jane who manages to snag the attention of the drop dead gorgeous hero. That being said, I didn't believe this romance. Yes Jenny is nice and sweet, but I couldn't figure out what Phillip saw in her. What was it about her that kicked his hormones into overdrive? I have no idea - other than it was probably the fact that she was the only woman not throwing her panties at him. And that's just not enough for me to believe that they're in love. Also, one of the things I really loathe about old school romance (and even some new school romance!) is that innocence is shorthand for "heroine" and Miss Slutty McSlut Slut is shorthand for dastardly "other woman."

Ahem, sorry. Got off track there. There is no dastardly "other woman" in this story and no Miss Slutty McSlut Slut. I might have been a tad annoyed however that the socially awkward, shy, bashful heroine just happened to be a librarian. Stereotype much?

I will say that if I read this book when I was teenager I probably would have loved it beyond all reason. I was a very shy Super Librarian-in-training when I was a teen, and thank the good Lord above, largely outgrew it by the time college rolled around. At 16 I would have been a swooning mess of teenage emo hormones reading this story. But now? As a more....ummm....forthright woman in her 30s? Yeah, not so much.

Final Grade = C

Teenage Super Librarian Grade = B+/A-

Contest Alert! Because I love to pass along the Old School Romance Lurve, I'm giving away my copy of Lightning That Lingers. It's pretty beat up. Lots of spine creasing, and the pages are pretty darn close from starting to separate from the spine. But it's a decent reading copy, and I would love to pass it along to another reader curious to read one of "the classics." Winner will be chosen from random comments on this post Friday, June 5 @ 8AM PST.

ETA: Contest is open to everybody - including published authors and those who live outside the US.

Movie Night At The Bat Cave

Very minor spoilers ahoy! This has been out on DVD for a long while now - but I'm nice and still warning ya.

Final scene in The Wrestler. Fade to black. Bruce Springsteen starts warbling.

Me: Oh. My. God. This better not be the end or I'm gonna be pissed.

After several moments of black screen, credits start rolling.

Me: Oh. My. God. How much did that suck?

My Man: I liked it.

Me: I didn't end!!!!!!!

My Man: It did so "end." It just didn't end the way you wanted it too.

Dammit. I hate it when he's right.

Me: I didn't end! It just stopped!!!!!!

My Man: Not everything has to be like one of your books Wendy. Life doesn't wrap itself up neatly and tie a bow around itself.

Me: And that, my dear, is exactly what is wrong with the world today.

My Man: Well, I liked it.

Me: Ugh! It didn't "end!"

++++++++++

Final Thoughts With Super Librarian: The Wrestler is worth seeing if you're an acting junkie. The acting is very good in it. Most noteworthy, Marisa Tomei is particularly wonderful. I told My Man that not many actresses her age would take such a risk playing that part (she spends 95% of the movie naked). To his credit My Man says that not just any actress could. Not just because Tomei is in great shape (she is by the way), but because she can do "vulnerable" really, really well. She's that interesting mix of kick-ass, tough-as-nails Jersey girl, with a soft marshmallow center.

Evan Rachel Wood is also very good here - and one forgets that she's actually a capable actress. I'm always distracted by her on-again, off-again relationship with Marilyn Manson. Besides the icky age difference, that guy is just plain creepy.

Mickey Rourke. Hmmmm, I'm just not seeing this as some great comeback for him. First off, he's been "back" for several years working as a character actor. And I might be in the minority here, but Rourke The Character Actor is way more interesting to me than Rourke The Leading Man. Don't believe me? Check out The Rainmaker, Man On Fire and/or Sin City. Rourke is so good in those parts you actually want to see more of him. Leading man material? Yeah, he's never done all that much for me. That includes 9 1/2 Weeks. For anyone reading this who is under the age of 25? Yeah, Mickey Rourke used to be hot. My advice is to do a shot of vodka, lay down, and put a cool washcloth on your forehead. Yeah, Mickey Rourke used to be hot.

Final Grade = C-. The Acting = B+/A-

I'll Take Potpourri For $200 Alex

I still seem to be flailing about looking for solid ground (and routine) after my parents' visit. So in the hopes of getting back to my normal, boring, self, we have a potpourri blog post!

First, isn't that picture just the cutest thing you've ever seen? That's my niece reading Coraline by Neil Gaiman. Sometimes I forget that she's 7 and reading "big kid" books now. Gah, how time flies! I'm not sure when I woke up and got old - but it's a little disconcerting to say the least.

My own reading took a serious nose-dive with the visit of the Super Librarian parents, and yesterday I think I kicked my ass in gear by finally finishing The Diamonds Of Welbourne Manor anthology. Oh, and look! The review has already been posted over TGTBTU.

I've still got several May Harlequins to read. Sigh. I really like to get them read, reviewed and posted the month they come out - but it can't be helped this go around. Look at this way. If something sounds good, you can always order them online even if they've vanished from brick and mortar stores.

I hope everyone had a good Memorial Day weekend. My Man and I finally made a dent in our movie watching. We saw Wolverine and Angels & Demons. I was really expecting Wolverine to be horrible, and while it is certainly cheesy, I found it a watchable popcorn movie. I also liked how they tied it into the previously released X-men movies.

I had no huge desire to see Angels & Demons, but My Man wanted to see it, so we went. Frankly, the only reason The Da Vinci Code was made into a movie was because the book sold a bazillion-jillion copies. No sane person would read that book and think, "Wow this would make a great movie!" But I ended up pleasantly surprised by Angels & Demons. For one thing, I think the story is better than The Da Vinci Code. For another? We've got Ewan McGregor. OK, so it's more than a little dirty that he plays a priest and all I could think about was getting under his robes - but still Ewan McGregor. Hell, he's the only reason that the Star Wars prequels were even remotely watchable. Is it wrong to have naughty fantasies about Obi-Wan Kenobi? Yummers!

My final verdict on both movies is that you can wait for DVD. They were both decent ways to blow through an afternoon, but nothing so spectacular that you'll be missing out on much if you decide to wait.

Still....Ewan McGregor. ::drool::

Authors, Books, And Wendy Blowing Up Her Credit Card

I was going to do a nice, thoughtful post for Memorial Day, but threw that out the window when I noticed that RWA has posted the list of authors signing at the Literacy Autographing on July 15 in Washington D.C.

If you live anywhere within spitting distance of D.C., and can't afford to attend the whole RWA conference, I still highly recommend you make the trip for at least this one event. It's free to get in, open to the public, and the cost of any books you purchase are donated to literacy charities. It's an awesome, wonderful, amazing event, and really? Seeing that many authors, gathered in one ballroom, all signing their latest releases is really flippin' cool. Hell, even if you don't buy a single book, it's worth coming in just to people watch.

Lots of great authors lined up this year - including Nora, Jennifer Crusie, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, J.R. Ward and Suzanne Brockmann. But I know you're dying to ask? Who am I excited about seeing?

Nicola Cornick.

I've read and loved her last two Harlequin Historicals (the Edwardian, The Last Rake In London and the throwback, Kidnapped: His Innocent Mistress). Plus, she lives in England. This is a long-ass trip for her, and I'm sure she's shelling out the bucks because she has back-to-back-to-back releases coming out from HQN this summer (I picked up The Confessions Of A Duchess this weekend). So I'm really, really excited to meet her. I mean, she's in England, I'm in California. How many chances am I gonna get?

Any others? Thea Devine will be in da house again this year. I've met her before, but this year I vow I will finally get my hard cover, book club edition of Desired signed. It's a must. That woman's stories are like crack for me. Hey, you all have J.R. Ward. I have Thea Devine. Over the top sexual shenanigans and soap opera plots. Seriously. My life doesn't get any better than that.

So what authors on the list intrigue you? Are you attending RWA this year? Making the trip for the Literarcy Signing? C'mon, dish!

Kicking Off Summer (Reading)

The smartest thing Entertainment Weekly ever did was convince Stephen King to write for them. Whether or not you like his books, you have to admit Uncle Stevie is an interesting guy. Just in time for Memorial Day weekend, King gives us seven books that he thinks we should read this summer. And heck, because I'm a librarian, it's my blog, and frankly, because I can - I'm going to provide some commentary on his selections. Here we go:

Shatter by Michael Robotham

Uncle Stevie Says: "Gideon Tyler, the deranged villain of this exceptional suspense novel, is a devil so persuasive he's able to talk his victims into killing themselves."

Wendy Says: I don't drop the F-bomb on this blog very often, but what the hell? This sounds fucking fabulous! Suspense in the summer is like chocolate and peanut butter. They just go together.


Quicksilver by Neal Stephenson

Uncle Stevie Says: "Swashbuckling pirates with candles in their beards, a smart and beautiful young woman liberated from slavery, kinky sex, sword fights, double-dealing...and a stirring account of how rational scientific thought was born. All told with a sense of humor. Very cool."

Wendy Says: It's ambitious, over 900 pages and not my thing. But Stephenson has quite a loyal following, so no arguments here.


The Tourist by Olen Steinhauer

Uncle Stevie Says: "Here's the best spy novel I've ever read that wasn't written by John le Carré."

Wendy Says: A coworker read this recently and told me at a meeting that he frickin' loved it. It strikes me as a thinking man's beach read. If my Dad read fiction (which he generally doesn't) this is one I'd get for him.



Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens

Uncle Stevie Says: "His most sentimental, absorbing, delightful novel...and yes, you will like it....explains the whole Bernard Madoff mess. If I'm lyin', I'm dyin'."

Wendy Says: OK Uncle Stevie, you've lost me. The two best things about graduating from college? That I was finally done and that no one would be able to force me to read Charles Dickens ever again.


Drood by Dan Simmons

Uncle Stevie Says: "Simmons is always good, but Drood is a masterwork of narrative suspense. It's a story of Egyptian cults, brain-burrowing beetles, life-sucking vampires, and an underground city beneath London...or is it?"

Wendy Says: Historical thriller starring Charles Dickens (him again?) and Wilkie Collins. Got fabulous reviews. Strikes me as a bit "dense" for a summer read though. But that's just me.


Dog On It by Spencer Quinn

Uncle Stevie Says: "Fans of both Marley & Me and The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency are going to fall head over heels in love with this hard-boiled detective novel, which is narrated by the PI's smart (if sometimes forgetful) mongrel sidekick, Chet."

Wendy Says: Outside of children's picture books I don't "do" talking animal stories. I mean, how bloody precious can you get? That said, I ordered a lot of copies of this for work. Excellent reviews and anything with what I call "The Dog Gimmick" seems to be circulating well these days. To each his own.


Handle With Care by Jodi Picoult

Uncle Stevie Says: "You men out there who think Ms. Picoult is a chick thing need to get with the program. Her books are an everyone thing, and the current offering — about a little girl whose bones are so brittle that they break almost at a puff of wind — is her best since My Sister's Keeper."

Wendy Says: Kudos to King for recommending this book to a male readership, whom I suspect would rather be boiled in oil than pick up a Picoult title. That said? Picoult sets off my "weepy" alarm. And while "weepy" is OK - it's typically the last thing I want to read during the summer. I want all the good stuff - sex, violence, fun, fast, flirty....not weepy. Yes, it's true. I really am that shallow.

So there's King's list. Gotta say the only one here that truly excited me is the Robotham title (I am so requesting an audio copy from work). What about you? Any of these look interesting enough to add to your summer reading list?

Be Sure To Have Your Pets Spayed Or Neutered

My Lil' Sis now lives in southern California, so when my parents were out here for their recent vacation/visit they got to see two daughters for the price of one. We divided up their time here between the two of us, but we also did some fun stuff together as a family. Awwwwww. One such fun thing was that we all went to The Price Of Right together!

So what was that experience like? Well first off, it's a massive time suck of a day. We got to the studio at 8AM to get in line for the 1PM taping and they were already full up! So we opted to try to see the 4PM taping, which meant killing time at a local diner for breakfast and getting back to the studio by 12:30PM to stand in a line, show our ID, stand in another line, get our name tag, stand in another line, get interviewed by the producers, stand in another line etc. etc. etc.

4PM finally rolled around and inside the studio we went. OK, I hate to shatter everyone's illusions but The Price Is Right studio is tiny! And rather cheap looking. It looks like this cavernous warehouse on TV and in person it's about the size of a college dorm room. Also we had been standing in one line or another all blessed day. I was wiped out! But they pumped in the music (I'm thinking the production staff are a bunch of alcoholics, because hearing YMCA by the Village People all day would certainly drive me to drink) and got the audience revved up. Everyone got so into it, that despite the dinkiness of the studio you can't here a darn thing the announcer is saying. They hold up cue cards with your name on it if you're selected to "Come On Down!" to contestants row.

I still miss Bob Barker, but Drew Carey did not disappoint. When there was a break in filming, he chatted with audience members, cracked jokes and even handled a militant vegan trying to convert him with a good sense of humor. He's very relaxed with the audience, and wasn't standoff-ish or snobby. Not an easy thing, I'm sure - since they filmed three shows that day! He had to be tired. I was, after standing in line all day, and I didn't have to be "on" for anyone.

Now to answer the burning questions. Nope - none of us got selected as contestants. A major bummer too since the Lil' Sis needs a car and I certainly wouldn't have turned away new living room furniture. Just sayin'. But I think we will make it on camera during the audience shots. My Mom bought us all bright red "Yes There Really Is A Kalamazoo!" T-shirts to wear and we were sitting in front of a big group from the USPS, who were all wearing navy blue. Plus, the Super Librarian Dad is 6'6". Makes him easy to spot in grocery stores, at ball games, and in audience shots on The Price Is Right.

Our show is set to air on June 2. Set your TiVos, DVRs or VCRs. Or heck, you can even watch it online. You just have to wait for June 2.

Eye Of The Tiger

The Super Librarian parents are boarding a plane and heading back home tomorrow afternoon. Yep, it's time for Wendy to come up for air! I've been able to sorta, kinda keep up with my e-mail, but am massively behind in my blog hopping (and blogging). So to kick start myself back into a semi-normal routine, I'd like to announce that I have won a most prestigious award! Tracy and Kris have honored me with the first ever Official Book Slut award. Isn't it purdy?

How did I win?

Well, first I shamelessly nominated myself. Then I disclosed to Tracy how many books I have in my TBR. This actually isn't a big secret. I have the whole blessed thing cataloged over at Library Thing. Still, I hate to openly admit it publicly because it's a source of much angst and crushing anxiety. Of course I'm among friends here, so I guess I shouldn't be overly embarrassed. Hell, some of you are probably even a little jealous. Sick puppies that you are.

So many thanks to Kris, Tracy, and all the romance junkies I've met and interacted with over the years (in person and online). It takes a village to raise a Book Slut, and I couldn't have done it without all of the help and encouragement you've given to me over the years. ::snort::

Top Five: In Demand Romance

I haven't done one of these round-up posts in forever, and for that I apologize. Every Monday when I roll into the office, I get to look forward to a spreadsheet that lays out the "in demand" titles amongst our library patrons. Those books with large waiting lists. I got out of the habit of doing my Top Five feature because frankly? It was like the same five books for the last several months. The Reader, The Story Of Edgar Sawtelle, White Tiger, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, blah blah blah. For the love of God people - discover some other books will ya! I'm getting bored! Now that most of the demand for these is settling down to the dull roar, I thought I'd relaunch my Top Five segment by talking about the Top 5 Most Requested Romance Titles for the Week of May 11.


Lover Avenged by J.R. Ward - I had mentioned in a previous post that the request list for this was pretty stagnant. Well that changed the minute the book was actually released, because my holds queue jumped up to the next level. Not quite as off the charts as I was originally expecting (seems like plenty of readers are still willing to buy their own copies), but very respectable.






Vision In White by Nora Roberts - Yes it's trade paperback, but the discount retailers are selling this at an extremely reasonable price (I think I saw $9 and change at Costco) so I wasn't sure how high library demand would be for this title. Also, it's Roberts' first straight-up contemporary romance title in a long while - so I thought that might drive retail sales more so than library lending. Not quite as off the charts as her J.D. Robb series, but still a very nice holds list, plus my first go-around of ordering this title was pretty significant, so that's been keeping the list down to a manageable level.



Black Hills by Nora Roberts - A romantic suspense title that's not due out until July, but I already (naturally, it's Nora) have it on order. People are already staking out their spot on the waiting list.









Crouching Vampire, Hidden Fang by Katie MacAlister - Yes, it's true. Good librarians do purchase titles for the library that they would rather be skinned alive than read. Case in point? This book. I'm burnt out on paranormals anyway, but even when I wasn't? Yeah, I don't "do" Funny Ha Ha Paranormals. To be fair? I don't "do" most Funny Ha Ha novels. Just ain't my thing. But, we have some libraries where they can't keep books like this on the shelf. That's how popular they are. So I ordered this latest from MacAlister, and now we have a waiting list.



Malice by Lisa Jackson - All of Jackson's titles circulate well for us, but it's the hard covers that get the most mileage. I explain this with the reasoning that while there are readers who will buy her in paperback, maybe they just haven't made that jump to laying down hard cover prices for her books yet. Or it could just be the simple fact that this particular book has been getting some PR attention and new readers have been intrigued enough to add their names to the waiting list.

Throw Your Panties....

At Curtis Granderson. Seriously.

Last night, we "paused" the Tigers-Indians game while me, My Man and the Super Librarian parents ate dinner. And boy howdy, I'm glad we did. Curtis Granderson. Love of my life. Stud muffin. Not-so-secret crush. Robs Grady Sizemore of a hero-making walk-off homerun in the bottom of the 9th inning. Tigers win. Indians lose. Sizemore cries himself to sleep that night.

OK, so I'm not so sure about that last part. But a girl can dream.

Needless to say everyone in the Bat Cave living room (well except for Mom who was covering her ears) had thrown their arms up in the air and were whooping and carrying on. Beyond awesome.



And yeah, I know the Indian announcers suck....but I couldn't find video of the Tigers announcers who were suitably freaking out.

Vast Wasteland

I've been an atrocious blogger of late. This happens to me every once and a while. Some weeks I have a ton of crap ideas that I can ramble discuss, and other weeks what little creativity I possess flees the scene. And I'm here to report, it's only going to get worse.

That's right kiddies - it's that time of year again. The Super Librarian parents are, as I'm typing this, somewhere over the Midwest, winging there way to sunny southern California. The difference this year? They've got two daughters living out here. Yes, two daughters for the price of one! Can't beat that!

Since the Lil' Sis will be entertaining them part of the time, I will be sneaking into the office next week - mostly because the end of our fiscal year is killing me. I'm hoping that day and a half in the office will allow me to keep my e-mail in-box to around 300 messages. Ha!

What's on tap? We're doing Disneyland this year. Also, we're going to try to get into the Price Is Right. I plan on tackling Drew Carey and telling him (in no uncertain terms) that they will pick me as the contestant to play Plinko. This is of course assuming we're able to get tickets - which is not a given. I'll keep y'all posted!

I'll try to pop in on the blog every now and then - but I promise nothing. Seriously, my brain she be mush. In the meantime? The Super Librarian parents leave town on the 19th. Be good to each other, and hold off on any interesting flame wars. Boring, redundant flame wars? Heck, have at it.

PS - Yes, the above picture is yours truly at the ripe old age of 5. A wee little Super Librarian in training. Sigh, I know. I was cute as Hell. I'm not sure what the heck happened either. What I wouldn't give to still be that cute. Except, you know....not 5.

The Month That Was April 2009

OK, so I'm finally getting around to doing my monthly reading recap for April. I managed to get nine books read, most of them pretty decent. Here's how it all breaks down:

A Cowboy's Promise by Marin Thomas, Harlequin American Romance, Grade = C-. This was the second book I've read by this author and the second book that largely didn't work for me. The heroine was way too "save me rescue fantasy" for my tastes, and the hero wasn't exactly a prize either. There's also a scene where the hero has to clean up after one of the heroine's kids who has an "accident" on the bathroom floor. Ahhhh, romance! Not. Full TGTBTU Review.

The Substitute Bride by Elizabeth Lane, Harlequin Historical, Grade = C+. A sequel to The Borrowed Bride, I liked the early 20th century San Francisco setting and the heroine. The hero? Yeah, not so much. Still the selfish jackass that he was in the first book. Absolutely no growth. Full TGTBTU Review.

Someone Like Her by Janice Kay Johnson, Harlequin SuperRomance, Grade = B-. A nice story about a hero who discovers his mentally ill mother is alive, living in a small town in the middle of nowhere. A nice romance about grown-ups, no babies or kids mucking up the works. I did feel the heroine was a bit too hard on the hero, hence knocking my grade down a bit. But still, a solid read. Full TGTBTU Review.

In A Mother's Arms by Jillian Hart & Victoria Bylin, Steeple Hill Love Inspired Historical, Grade = B-. File this under Wendy Broadening Her Horizons. I thought it was high time I try reading an inspirational romance, and since both authors have written secular books I figured they'd be a good way to test the waters. The Bylin story was a real stand-out, but pretty heavy on the "God Stuff." The Hart wasn't quite as heavy, and a nice sweet read. Full TGTBTU Review

Taking Care Of Business by Megan Hart & Lauren Dane, Erotic Romance, Grade = B. I love Hart's writing, but admittedly her Spice novels can be a little "heavy." This was a light, fun, sexy erotic romance. An ideal beach read. Full Review.

Ride The Fire by Pamela Clare, American Historical Romance, Grade = B+. I like "gritty" historicals, and appreciated that the author didn't pull her punches. Loved the period detail in the story, and a great romantic couple, both with plenty of personal baggage. Not a keeper for me, but I understand why it is for many other readers. Full Review.

The Rake's Inherited Courtesan by Ann Lethbridge, Harlequin Historical, Grade = C. False advertising with this title since the hero isn't remotely rakish. Nice hero, nice heroine, but the lack of communication between the two, along with misunderstandings and assumptions were more than a touch annoying. Seriously, why is it that Regency romantic couples can't seem to talk to each other? Full TGTBTU Review.

A Not So Perfect Past by Beth Andrews, Harlequin SuperRomance, Grade = A-. The best read of the month. Fantastic wonderful romance about a heroine who finds her back bone and a hero who gets his second chance. Emotional, sweet, all-in-all a great read. And only Andrews' second book for HSR. Yippeee! Wendy found a new author! Full TGTBTU Review.

Menage On A Train by Alice Gaines, Spice Briefs, Erotica Short Story eBook, Grade = B. Um, yeah. Wanna guess what this short story was about? Hot, sexy, but very much fitting in the erotica = escapist fantasy mold. If you're looking for realism and oh...I don't know....safe sex practices and condoms? Not the read for you. I was able to roll with it, hence the grade. Full TGTBTU Forthcoming.

The Golden Age

Back before blogging really took off, I would lurk over at the AAR message boards. Inevitably a thread would crop up every couple of months. Someone bitching voicing their concerns that historical romance just "ain't what it used to be." Too much wallpaper, not enough "meaty" history. Then the historical market seemed to peak and stagnate a bit - and everyone started declaring the historical romance "dead." I never really put much stock into this theory, but I do think the historical romance as we once knew and loved it is poised for a big revival. Sweeping sagas featuring passion, betrayal, loyalty, and above all? Actual history. If you're an old-school romance fan, especially one who adores medievals? Yeah, just stop reading my review right now, run out and buy The Conqueror by Kris Kennedy. It has everything you'll want, and more (!), all for the bargain basement price of $3.99.

Sigh, yes I know the back cover copy says that it's 1152 and Henry II is the King of England. But even though the person who writes the back cover copy at Zebra doesn't know history, the author does; and she employs it to excellent effect, while tweaking things just enough to make this fictional story all her own.

After years of war, Guinevere de l'Ami is tired. Her beloved father is dead, and now the villain who lives on a neighboring estate is trying to force her into marriage. It's while she's busy thwarting his evil plans that she finds herself rescued by Griffyn "Pagan" Sauvage. What neither of them knows? Each others true identity. Griffyn doesn't know that Gwyn (or "Raven" as he takes to calling her) is the daughter of his sworn enemy. And Gwyn has no idea that Griffyn is the rightful heir to her estate. Also? They both are on different sides of the continuing battle over the English throne. Gwyn backs King Stephen and Griffyn is working to secure the throne for Henry II.

There's also the small matter of some long, lost treasure rumored to be hidden on Gwyn's Griffyn's land.

Seriously, this is like the first 50 pages.

There is a lot going on in this book, and it couldn't have been easy for the author to juggle all of this in one story. However, Kennedy makes it work, with mysteries solved, loyalties tested, and the struggle for control of the English throne all be resolved by the end of the story. The author does tweak a few historical facts to make her story work, but they add to the drama and conflict of the story, and force Gwyn and Griffyn to admit their love and devotion to each other.

I suspect the one issue that will be hard for some readers to overcome is Gwyn's unflinching, unyielding loyalty to King Stephen - even after it's apparent to her, and the reader, that she's breathlessly in love with Griffyn. It's a hard thing to understand, I think, as a 21st century reader, that people in medieval times lived and died for their loyalty. So yeah, I'm not above admitting that I got annoyed with her...but a part of me did understand.

This is a big, sweeping saga of a story, and it's also a damn hard one to write a review for. It really has that epic quality that used to be so common place in historical romance, but has been absent for many years as the sub genre took off like a rocket during the late 1990s. For readers who miss "the golden age" of historical romance? The Conqueror has all you want, and more, since the author avoids the many pitfalls that plagued some of those stories of yesteryear (no forced seduction, the hero isn't a jackass, and the heroine isn't a brain dead twit). It's easy to see why this book finaled for RWA's Golden Heart award. It's really a very accomplished debut novel, and fans of medievals should just beat the Christmas rush and start rejoicing now.

Grade = B

ETA: Thanks to Jane from Dear Author for this Twitter update. For those of you who "do" ebooks - The Conqueror is on sale over at Books On Board for $2.38. Seriously. $2.38. Even if you think I'm full of crap and you end up not liking this story? It's $2.38! At that price how can you not try it? Hell, that's cheaper than a lot of the novellas and short stories being sold out in ebook-land.