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Fantasy Romance

Book Review

Online Reviews and Research

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ScaryBook
How many stars you want?

I came across this article in the NY Times that, in short, says that online reviews really tell us nothing. Actually, less than nothing as independent research on the quality and reliability of products often contradicts the reviews.

Especially on places like Amazon.But not limited to it. It stretches across all reviews, from Yelp to Good Reads.

The article found certain recently released books were rated significantly higher than classics like Pride and Prejudice that have withstood the test of time. Some authors were a bit embarrassed or worried about their next work being as well received.

The researchers surmised about the biases in play, as well as people paying for reviews. There is some evidence that once a product starts to get good reviews, new reviewers are less likely to give bad reviews. Priming, which is a sales tool, also says if you can prep someone to want or like something, they are much more likely to to want or like something.

All of this does little to help those of us trying to decide what to buy. It does explain how some horrible books I’ve read lately have such high ratings.

For larger purchases, I will take a look to see if there are other reviews out there. For example, the Father’s Day gift for my husband I researched at a couple of different sites that concurred, including Popular Mechanics.

What I don’t know is how to use this information to find good books to read.

Kindle App: 8 Pros and 3 Cons

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You may have noticed a lot of book reviews lately, with more to come.

This is because:

  1. I love to read
  2. Thinking about a book and trying to figure out what I liked, didn’t like, and what I thought could have been done better helps sharpen my skills for my own stories
  3. It’s a great distraction from actually getting any writing done

I downloaded the Kindle App as there were several books that had been recommended to me that I couldn’t get in paperback. After having used it for over a month, here are the top reasons I like and dislike the app.

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Pros

  1. It’s a lot easier to read from than I thought it would be. The app is well done and all the books are very easy to read.
  2. No more god-awful covers giving away my less-than-highbrow reading choices. You may have noticed, I read a lot of romance novels.
  3. I can read regardless of the ambient lighting. Sitting with DD1 while she goes to sleep? No problem. Hanging out while DH is playing video games with the lights dimmed? Did that the other night.
  4. Book storage. I have shelves of books in the basement. I keep a couple of authors handy who I find write certain things very well and will reread chapters to help my own writing. The Kindle App condenses my collection to the size of my iPad.
  5. Book Disposal. I not longer have to figure out what to do with an awful paperback book. Donate it? Give it to an enemy? With the Kindle App, I just move it to the Yuck pile.
  6. Selection. There are a lot more books available for the Kindle than in paperback.
  7. Speed. I find a book I want to read, and I have it in less than 30 seconds.
  8. Super easy to read on the elliptical machine or treadmill.

 

Cons

  1. Places it can’t go. I like to read at the beach, and before children, I would relax with a book in a bubble bath. Can’t do that safely with an iPad.
  2. Selection. I have read some god-awful books lately. Every one of them was on the Kindle App. At least when I buy my books from Barnes & Noble, there has been some vetting process.
  3. You have to make sure you plug your iPad in more often if you’re using it more often

Book Review: Mad about the Marquess

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Title: Mad About the Marquess

Author: Elizabeth Essex

Rating: 3.5/5

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This book came to me highly rated. Absolute rave reviews. Perhaps if I hadn’t been expecting so much . . .

The heroine is basically a 1790s Robin Hood. Stealing from the rich to give to the poor. She starts out as a small time thief, pilfering snuff boxes and the like from parties, then graduates to highway robbery. Yeah, not attempted highway robbery, but full blown hanging offense highway robbery.

The dialogue is good, with sass and wit interwoven. I like sassy characters, spunky characters, and I was in love with the book up to the highway robberies. At that point, I felt like the author had gone too far with the heroine for her and the hero (who is supposed to be ferreting out this petty thief, then shoots the highwayman) to ever get together. Especially as the romance between them had really just started to progress when suddenly its revealed she’s his petty thief, and shortly thereafter, he discovers she’s the highwayman.

For a man who hates deception, is supposed to be “the law”, I just can’t believe that he’d marry her to save her. Especially as he doesn’t know that she is playing robin hood – her motives are not revealed to him until the end. And somehow marrying her saves his name, too, because of the scandal from his youth. Still not entirely sure how marrying her saves her from the law . . . Maybe I misunderstood that part. The whole “scandal” around him from his youth felt contrived, too. His “friend” raped a girl and then blackmails the hero for trying to help the girl he raped?!?  How does that translate to a scandal wrapped around the hero’s neck? If you’re going to give the hero a sordid past he’s overcome, give him a sordid past. I rather like the wholesome, do-gooder type, but redeemed heroes can be sexy, too.

I really like the hero, too …  up until he throws away all of his morals and being an upstanding politician of exacting scruples for a woman he is just starting to have feelings for.

I was devouring this book, unable to tear myself away, through the whole first half. After the highwayman bit, I actually put it down for a week before coming back to it and making myself finish. The ending is fine, but that’s just it. Fine. Okay. Pretty Good. The beginning was spectacular. I wish the author would have spent more time developing the romance and chemistry and saved the highwayman bit until much later. Late enough that I would believe the hero loved her so much he was willing to look past a hanging offense crime.

 

Pros

  • Heroine is mostly likable. She’s strong, intelligent and sassy. She does good things, for somewhat, but not entirely, good reasons. Makes her human.
  • There is growing chemistry between the hero and the heroine in the first half of the book.
  • I genuinely liked the hero. He is honest and passionate about his work in parliament, including abolition. Would have liked him even more without the “scandal” I didn’t really think was a scandal.
  • There is only one steamy scene, but its very well done.
  • The first part of the plot with the petty theft was fun.
  • The dialogue is excellent.
  • I also like that the heroine’s mother and sister are portrayed as intelligent.

 

Cons

  • I never understood why she stole the buttons from the hero when the rest of the story has her as a thief of opportunity – stealing left behind snuff boxes and the like. Not cutting buttons off of clothes currently being worn . . . Plot device, clearly, but not one that makes sense.
  • The hero and heroine needed more history and more chemistry before he saves her from being a petty thief and a Highwayman.
  • Building this chemistry would have added to the romance, which I felt was needed. A few stolen kisses in the garden to marriage? Really? The romance felt like an afterthought to a rather outrageous plot.
  • Never understood why someone as well connected, landed, titled, etc. as the hero is searching for a petty thief.
  • The plot is almost too over the top. At least for me. In the real robin hood, you root for him because you hate the Sheriff of Nottingham so much. Makes it easier to accept armed robbery. Again, this could just be me. I had no real issue with the petty theft, even of expensive items, but the full on armed robbery . . .
  • For a mother who is on to her over so many other little things, I can’t believe she never noticed her daughter’s thefts over the course of 3 years.
  • I have never met a reverend as observant about who put offerings into their poor box, or as tenacious . . .really, sending street urchins to follow her and spy on her? Because they totally can do this across town while she rides in a coach and they run after her.
  • I can’t believe her father is as aloof and uncaring as he appears. Maybe appropriate for the times, but it felt jarring.

 

All in, it’s a good read. I would’ve probably liked it better if I hadn’t gone into it with such high expectations.

Book Review: The Study of Seduction by Sabrina Jeffries

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Title: The Study of Seduction

Author: Sabrina Jeffries

Rating: 3/5

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**Trigger Warning**  This book deals a lot with rape and, to a lesser extent, stalking. The stalking I gathered from the book blurb, but I did not have any inkling based on the blurb about the brutal rape that would be rehashed repeatedly when I bought this book. I am giving fair warning as I am going to discuss it in this review as it was an integral part of the book.

This is a historical romance novel that centers around a French diplomat wanting to wed the heroine, Clarissa, and his willingness to go to any length to do so.

Edwin, an earl who’s been friends with Clarissa’s family since childhood, does not believe in love and is looking for a “comfortable” bride. He is attracted to Clarissa but knows she will be anything but comfortable. As the diplomat gets more aggressive, Edwin marries Clarissa to protect her.

Clarissa is hiding a dark secret. The back of the book alludes to this. What it doesn’t tell you is that she was brutally raped at her society debut by a man trying to force her to marry him so he could get her fortune. Her brother duels the rapist, kills him, then her brother flees to the Continent to avoid the repercussions as he won’t say why they dueled. After the rape, Clarissa has avoided all relations with men. Even with the patient and gentle Edwin after they’re married, she can’t bring herself to have marital relations with him.

The author does eventually get the heroine over this and there is a happily ever after ending. As I have never endured such a vicious attack, I have no idea if Clarissa’s responses are “normal”. What I can say is that it made the book almost unreadable to me.

 

Pros

  1. I adored Edwin. He was a quirky, fun male lead. The author did a great job showing his personality. I never had to be told he was smart or generous. I saw that in the books he read, his ability to build automatons, and his interest in a boy’s charity school. I loved how he could be blunt to the point of rude. Logical (his take on picnics) and forthright. He was protective without being overbearing. A solid alpha lead without being a jerk. I really liked him, as you can tell.
  2. Steamy scenes were well done when they weren’t being overshadowed by the heroine’s fear. If I had known there was a rape in the book, I’d never have bought it.
  3. Romance pace was quite good. The pair start out as friends and their relationships grows believably over the course of the story. By the end, they both know and admit that they are in love with the other. I appreciate this far more than the “love at first site” or “soul mates” tropes.
  4. Genuine love and respect grew between between the characters. It was, not sweet, not exactly, but kind and loving. A romance instead of lust.

 

Cons

  1. Clarissa felt flat even while Edwin really took on a life of his own, . Everything about her personality had to be told to me as I never saw her as strong, bold, effervescent or any other descriptors that were used about her. I didn’t like her, but at least I didn’t dislike her. After reading some really awful heroines lately, maybe I should move this to the pros column . . .
  2. The rape. I bought this book to be a fun read. Watching a woman’s life be broken by a brutal attack and watching her struggle to piece it back together, even with the help of a kind, patient and caring hero, is not fun.
  3. The steamy scenes could have been spectacular, but I found myself racing through them as Clarissa’s fear made them impossible to enjoy.
  4. Heroine’s mother – I normally care marginally about background characters, but this woman was too stupid to breathe. So dumb she wasn’t believable.

 

All in, I liked the author enough that I will give another of her books a try. I wanted to enjoy this book, but I just couldn’t. It could easily have been a 4 or 5 star book if there was either no rape or if the fact that a rape was going to feature prominently in the story was clearly disclosed in the book blurb so a reader knows what they’re getting.

Book Review: Militess and Mage by Monica Enderle Pierce

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Book: Militess and Mage

Author: Monica Enderle Pierce

Series: The Shadow & The Sun (book 1)

Rating: 5/5

Excellent fantasy novel. If you’re looking for a romance novel, this may not be for you. It’s really more of a fantasy story with a romance running through it.

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Starting with the cons, as there are so few.

Cons

  1. There are almost no steamy scenes, and the few that are there are forgettable. Again, this is more of a fantasy story.

 

If you’re good with the one sorta con, I highly recommend giving this book a read.

Pros

  1. The story has an excellent plot that moves along well, especially coming into its own once there’s a bit of trust between the characters.
  2. I love that they’re not “in love” or even “in lust” with each other at first sight. This attraction grows along with their trust. The sparring back and forth started to drag a touch in the beginning, but the author soon got the characters working together by moving the plot along.
  3. The characters sing. I love their strength and their vulnerability. They both made sacrifices, sometimes unwillingly, for their power. It’s clear both earned their standing even if they were born into privilege. The Mage suffered under a cruel master and the warrior suffered the social stigma of being a bastard.
  4. Both the hero and heroine are very powerful, but so is the villain they are up against, and their power has reasonable limits. This adds to the tension as victory is never guaranteed and there are a lot of close calls along the way.
  5. Once the plot really starts moving, it’s fast and furious and you get swept along for the ride.
  6. I *love* that heroine starts out strong and ends strong. She is never weakened for the story. She doesn’t have to go from warrior to damsel to make the story work. I loved that she was physically scarred and unrepentant about it. She took lovers as she chose. Yes! A true warrior that happened to be a woman instead of a “female warrior”.

Book Review: Deliver Me from Darkness by Tes Hilaire (Book 1 of Paladin Warriors)

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Book: Deliver Me From Darkness

Author: Tes Hilaire

Rating: 1/5 Stars

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I preface this review with the fact I read the name of the series Paladin Warriors, and was *squee* Paladins! I love knights and dragons, swords and sorcery. Bring it on!!

I read a bit further to see that the author’s take on Paladins was angels from The One God that had chosen to come to earth to fight Lucifer’s minions. *double squee*

Oh wait, the hero is a vampire. Still a Paladin, but somehow a vampire was able to turn a holy being. Hmmm, probably a bit of story there, hopefully a good story . . . Still hoping for the Paladin parts to be really good even if they’re not as powerful as I would’ve thought.

IF you are a huge fan of vampire romance, this might be your cup of tea. If you are looking for Holy Paladins, Guardians of the Light, and Knights in Shining armor, this story isn’t for you.

Pros

  1. Steamy scenes were pretty good.
  2. The background characters were amazing. I *loved* Logan, I liked Vallin by the end, and Alexander was also cool. Gabby was wonderful, and Christos easy to hate.

Cons

  1. Flashback scenes were jarring and didn’t actually help with the story. As a matter of fact, they were a tad confusing.
  2. The Paladins are NOT *Paladins* They are rapists. To force yourself on someone, to forcibly “mark” them against their will, a mark that will bare their thoughts and feelings as well?!? Really? And every one of them was ready to forcibly mark Karissa because she was the last female paladin? Really? Maybe their order deserves to go extinct. Not sure what separates them from the Darkness. Why would the Light even allow this forcible marking? Shouldn’t the Light demand consent or smite the Paladin doing the marking?
  3. By the way, why were there no other female Paladins? Low birth rate, but why a low birth rate? And how did the ones that birthed the rapey paladins all manage to die? Book never does a great job explaining it. From some of the flashback scenes, seems like all the women were together for some reason and the forces of darkness pounced. I hope to hell that wasn’t the reason. Those ladies should’ve lit the forces of darkness up and taught them what it means to mess with a celestial being. But, you know, there were no big strong men around to protect them. *gag*
  4. The plot was weak. It appeared to be: everyone wants Karissa. Whether to forcibly subject her, as per the Paladins, or for her blood, as per Lucifer and gang. No idea why Lucifer wants her blood, and he gets it, so he wins.Not really the ending I was expecting in a Romance novel. Yeah, the hero and heroine also survive, but I don’t expect the bad guys to get what they want.
  5. I didn’t like the heroine from the beginning and never came around to liking her. Might be the temper tantrums. Might be everyone saying how powerful she is and then her constantly being a damsel in distress. She doesn’t do much of anything to save herself other than run away. Which, yeah, can be viable strategy, but then get the heck away! Quick synopsis of her story:
    • Captured and brought to Roland.
    • Sorta willingly taken to Haven with all the rapey Paladins, but then goes unconscious because of reasons and is imprisoned in a bedroom. I rolled my eyes when she simply walks out of Haven (who was guarding their most precious victim?). In the middle of the night. And doesn’t notice it’s still night until the door closes behind her. Right.
    • Good thing there’s a rapey Paladin that catches her and who’s about to force himself on her but has to stop so he can save her from a couple vampires and demons.
    • Good thing the vampire Paladin gets there in time to save her from the other Paladin . . . ‘Cause, you know, she’s so powerful . . .
    • The fact that later in the story she leaves the cabin when her vampire Paladin can’t, after she was told not to . . . Are you surprised she’d abducted (again)?
    • She’s taken to the coal mines where she’s drained of blood and tortured . . . in a romance novel . . .
  6. Serious damsel in distress. And I have no idea why she’s considered so powerful, or why an author has torture in a Romance novel. All I can come up with was that the author desperately wanted her to be vampire by the end rather than Rolland being redeemed to the Light and returning as a full Paladin (which is the Happily Ever After ending I was expecting a la the Circle Trilogy from Nora Roberts – great trilogy, by the way.).
  7. Karissa has no real growth or development, either. In the last scene, she is being all squeamish over helping dissolve the remains of a really bad guy and ewww, she can’t touch it. Even though there are Paladins (granted rapey ones) fighting all round her, risking their lives, to save her.

 

I opened the book wanting to love the Paladins, ready to love them, in fact. I came to hate them (except for Logan). The vampire ended up being the best of the lot (surprise twist, Logan ends up being Karissa’s brother, so no super nice guy for her!), and I kept hoping for there to be something that redeems the vampire Paladin and brings him to the light. Yeah, no.

He is still a vampire at the end, and now, so is she. No happily ever after for me. Looks like the end of the line for the Paladins as she was the last female one of them and now she’s undead. Not sure that’s entirely bad, given their propensity to not require consent.

Not a book I remotely recommend, but if you do read it, don’t get too caught up in the Paladin Warriors title.