a coffee machine that needs some fixing
Laura Kinsale's Uncertain Magic was another I borrowed off liadlaith. Started it at the bus stop on the way back and oh man oh man. It was sooooo beautiful and fascinating and genuinely terrifying and very very skilful. My first and if that's what Kinsale's like, I'm totally sold. Unfortunately I can't find her in any of my usual haunts and have just remembered boojumlol sent me one in e-format so that might have to do til I can afford to start a collection. Believe the hype, yo.
Pam Rosenthal is an author who's fascinated me for a while. I did get Almost A Gentleman ages ago cos of the genderbending premise but the revelation and first kiss happened way too fast for me so I never went back. I was equal parts intrigued and apprehensive about The Slightest Provocation, having read some pretty vehement reviews for and against it. Did sound like the kind of couple I'd adore but y'never know, do you?
So I was screamingly excited when liadlaith mentioned she'd just started it. And eep. My god, it was so good. For all my curiosity about the couple, it was actually Rosenthal's literary techniques that fascinated me to the point of a serious lit!crush. The fabulous immediacy of the language, the hilarious use of brackets, the efficacy of the indirect speech. It was just so real, so inner and yet so comprehensive and so much of an ensemble piece. Totally the kind of country piece I adore.
I had absolutely no interest in the politico-economic stuff but that didn't mean I couldn't recognise how very well done that was, and applaud how wonderfully feminist and strong that content made our heroine, made more than just her.
The earthiness of their sexuality was so refreshing and exhilarating, reminded me so much of the glorious piquancy of Story Of O.
A total inspiration, this book.
Which is Not what I can say for Laura Lee Guhrke. Holy mother of fucking god. See, the cover for Secret Desires Of A Gentleman has been catching my eye ever since this resurgent interest in romance novels ... er, resurged. So I finally gave in and got it and was told immediately in resounding terms that she was crap. Which made me go "oh dear" and try to give it a go.
She IS crap!
Well, no, we mustn't be personal. The book is crap, not the author. *eyetwitch*
It was just so ... blathery. Blathered description that wasn't interesting or beautifully written. Blathered exposition one too many times in repetition. Blathered over-emoting extrapolation of motivation. Trite sentimentality of dramatic moments. God, it was so irksome and mediocre and ... blathery.
The heroine was a spirited pastry chef. Good o. But there was no attention given to the people she hired, the relationships she had with them. What?! It was so unrealistic as to be almost anachronistic. Unbelievable!
By the time I got to the proposal scene, I was quite vexed. And then my brain pretty much exploded. The proposal scene was the most shameless rip-off of Pride And Prejudice and without irony! I couldn't believe my eyes. It was SO insulting! I mean, was I supposed to be delighted? How fucking stupid do you think I am, Laura Lee Guhrke? This is not an Austen parody nor a homage so what the fuck is that doing in there? You weren't even being ironic! And if it wasn't in irony, am I supposed to be impressed by such a blatant gimmick? Did you think shoehorning such a beloved scene, instantly recognisable to any romance reader, would actually endear you to that reader?
GOD!
I couldn't read any further. And my god, will I never be touching another Laura Lee Guhrke book again. The unmitigated gall.
I didn't have quite so violent a reaction to Sara Bennett's Led Astray By A Rake. Always loved those covers ever since I saw them in the Canberra store, always been tempted. But this did not impress me. Too much tell, not enough show, too much exposition, and no actual story. Which led me to scrawl in my journal: God damn it, does nobody know how to write any more?
Books, man. How they fuck me up and down. :p
Pam Rosenthal is an author who's fascinated me for a while. I did get Almost A Gentleman ages ago cos of the genderbending premise but the revelation and first kiss happened way too fast for me so I never went back. I was equal parts intrigued and apprehensive about The Slightest Provocation, having read some pretty vehement reviews for and against it. Did sound like the kind of couple I'd adore but y'never know, do you?
So I was screamingly excited when liadlaith mentioned she'd just started it. And eep. My god, it was so good. For all my curiosity about the couple, it was actually Rosenthal's literary techniques that fascinated me to the point of a serious lit!crush. The fabulous immediacy of the language, the hilarious use of brackets, the efficacy of the indirect speech. It was just so real, so inner and yet so comprehensive and so much of an ensemble piece. Totally the kind of country piece I adore.
I had absolutely no interest in the politico-economic stuff but that didn't mean I couldn't recognise how very well done that was, and applaud how wonderfully feminist and strong that content made our heroine, made more than just her.
The earthiness of their sexuality was so refreshing and exhilarating, reminded me so much of the glorious piquancy of Story Of O.
A total inspiration, this book.
Which is Not what I can say for Laura Lee Guhrke. Holy mother of fucking god. See, the cover for Secret Desires Of A Gentleman has been catching my eye ever since this resurgent interest in romance novels ... er, resurged. So I finally gave in and got it and was told immediately in resounding terms that she was crap. Which made me go "oh dear" and try to give it a go.
She IS crap!
Well, no, we mustn't be personal. The book is crap, not the author. *eyetwitch*
It was just so ... blathery. Blathered description that wasn't interesting or beautifully written. Blathered exposition one too many times in repetition. Blathered over-emoting extrapolation of motivation. Trite sentimentality of dramatic moments. God, it was so irksome and mediocre and ... blathery.
The heroine was a spirited pastry chef. Good o. But there was no attention given to the people she hired, the relationships she had with them. What?! It was so unrealistic as to be almost anachronistic. Unbelievable!
By the time I got to the proposal scene, I was quite vexed. And then my brain pretty much exploded. The proposal scene was the most shameless rip-off of Pride And Prejudice and without irony! I couldn't believe my eyes. It was SO insulting! I mean, was I supposed to be delighted? How fucking stupid do you think I am, Laura Lee Guhrke? This is not an Austen parody nor a homage so what the fuck is that doing in there? You weren't even being ironic! And if it wasn't in irony, am I supposed to be impressed by such a blatant gimmick? Did you think shoehorning such a beloved scene, instantly recognisable to any romance reader, would actually endear you to that reader?
GOD!
I couldn't read any further. And my god, will I never be touching another Laura Lee Guhrke book again. The unmitigated gall.
I didn't have quite so violent a reaction to Sara Bennett's Led Astray By A Rake. Always loved those covers ever since I saw them in the Canberra store, always been tempted. But this did not impress me. Too much tell, not enough show, too much exposition, and no actual story. Which led me to scrawl in my journal: God damn it, does nobody know how to write any more?
Books, man. How they fuck me up and down. :p