Review: Sweet Starfire by Jayne Ann Krentz
Title: Sweet Starfire
Author: Jayne Ann Krentz
Genre: futuristic romance
Grade: B+
Reason for Reading: I wanted to try a Jayne Anmn Krentz book. And I like science fiction. I was hoping the two would be tastes that taste great together.
Synopsis: On the planet Lovelady (which is a lovely, whimsical name), there are two distinct groups of people. Harmonics live a serene lifestyle of contemplation and are unruffled by emotions. Wolves are basically everybody else.
Cidra Rain Forest isn't a full harmonic. She wants to be, but she can't commune telepathically. But she believes there may be an artifact on the neighboring planet of Renaissance which will allow her to experience that telepathic communion. In order to facilitate her quest, she signs up as the assistant to Teague Severance, an independent mailman who is very driven and determined, and who also has something of a shady past. Severance, of course, isn't sure he wants Cidra coming along mucking up the works, but of course he's terribly attracted to her, and soon they find themselves on a rather high-stakes adventure full of danger and passion.
My Thoughts: This was a pleasant read. Nothing that's going to leave me a massive puddle of fangirl squeeing, but definitely nice enough. I can see why Krentz is a comfort author for many romance readers. This would have been a great book to curl up with while drinking hot cocoa and eating soup.
The plot starts out fairly slowly, but picks up at about the halfway point, and there are a couple of tense moments. I remember as a kid that I tended to hate adventure books where the plot involved pitting people (7usually kids) against the elements. But this is a plot that works well in a romance, and both Cidra and Severance relied heavily on each other.
As for the romance? Again, it was pleasant. I got the sense that Cidra and Severance were good together. What I especially liked was that Severance was possessive and protective without turning into a caveman. And Cidra managed to come across as a very quiet, strong woman without turning into a doormat. Both characters also grew a lot because of each other, and I really liked the end and how they each needed to test whether the intense circumstances they'd been in were enough to prove their love.
Also, I have to say, I was expecting a lot more cheese from the sci-fi elements here. I imagine more hard-core SF readers probably might find Krentz's world-building a bit flimsy, but it all worked for me. I liked the whimsical touches she included as well as the violent ones. I mean, really. Severance has a pet rug named Fred. If that's not terribly cute, I don't know what is.
Negatives? You know, there weren't very many. I didn't really feel all that connected to the characters, and there were some places that dragged a bit. The book was very easy to put down, although once I was reading, I got into it. But that's very much a personal thing.
I have one of Krentz's earlier books, Fabulous Beast about half-finished. It's just not one of the books I've added to my commuting CD so I haven't had a chance to finish it while I've been at home.
Author: Jayne Ann Krentz
Genre: futuristic romance
Grade: B+
Reason for Reading: I wanted to try a Jayne Anmn Krentz book. And I like science fiction. I was hoping the two would be tastes that taste great together.
Synopsis: On the planet Lovelady (which is a lovely, whimsical name), there are two distinct groups of people. Harmonics live a serene lifestyle of contemplation and are unruffled by emotions. Wolves are basically everybody else.
Cidra Rain Forest isn't a full harmonic. She wants to be, but she can't commune telepathically. But she believes there may be an artifact on the neighboring planet of Renaissance which will allow her to experience that telepathic communion. In order to facilitate her quest, she signs up as the assistant to Teague Severance, an independent mailman who is very driven and determined, and who also has something of a shady past. Severance, of course, isn't sure he wants Cidra coming along mucking up the works, but of course he's terribly attracted to her, and soon they find themselves on a rather high-stakes adventure full of danger and passion.
My Thoughts: This was a pleasant read. Nothing that's going to leave me a massive puddle of fangirl squeeing, but definitely nice enough. I can see why Krentz is a comfort author for many romance readers. This would have been a great book to curl up with while drinking hot cocoa and eating soup.
The plot starts out fairly slowly, but picks up at about the halfway point, and there are a couple of tense moments. I remember as a kid that I tended to hate adventure books where the plot involved pitting people (7usually kids) against the elements. But this is a plot that works well in a romance, and both Cidra and Severance relied heavily on each other.
As for the romance? Again, it was pleasant. I got the sense that Cidra and Severance were good together. What I especially liked was that Severance was possessive and protective without turning into a caveman. And Cidra managed to come across as a very quiet, strong woman without turning into a doormat. Both characters also grew a lot because of each other, and I really liked the end and how they each needed to test whether the intense circumstances they'd been in were enough to prove their love.
Also, I have to say, I was expecting a lot more cheese from the sci-fi elements here. I imagine more hard-core SF readers probably might find Krentz's world-building a bit flimsy, but it all worked for me. I liked the whimsical touches she included as well as the violent ones. I mean, really. Severance has a pet rug named Fred. If that's not terribly cute, I don't know what is.
Negatives? You know, there weren't very many. I didn't really feel all that connected to the characters, and there were some places that dragged a bit. The book was very easy to put down, although once I was reading, I got into it. But that's very much a personal thing.
I have one of Krentz's earlier books, Fabulous Beast about half-finished. It's just not one of the books I've added to my commuting CD so I haven't had a chance to finish it while I've been at home.