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Book Review: Dual Image

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ATouchofSun
Dual Image was one of two books in this.

As I mentioned in my previous post, my daughter bought me this paperback for mother’s day this past year. It was prominently displayed at Target, and she saw that it was in the romance section. Also as I mentioned before, it turns out that the book is actually two books in one, both written in the 1980s.

Interestingly, this story was timeless enough there were only a few give-aways to the decade. Lack of cell phones/smart phones has definitely had a huge impact on the stories.

This one was better than the first of the two novels. It was an enjoyable afternoon read as long as I didn’t think too much. Certain plot holes were rather obvious after I put the book down, particularly relating to the custody battle over the heroine’s brother’s son.

Other than that, there was some decent chemistry with the characters. The heroine was far more fleshed out than the hero, and as such, I liked her a lot better. The steamy scenes were okay, but they aren’t the type I will reread to help my own writing.

The worst part was the sheer amount of head-hopping. Any character you come across you have the chance of seeing the story through their eyes. Even small incidental ones. This is a lot of head-hopping. In older, more established romance writers, you expected to see the scene through both the hero and heroine’s perspective. This was way beyond that.

All in, I don’t regret reading it, but I won’t read it again.

It did teach me a few things.

First, an external plot is really helpful. Having so much internal, “I am getting over my ex” going on, not augmented by something more, can make it difficult to relate to a character. It can also make it difficult to believe they have gotten over their ex.

Second, my favorite character in this was not the the usual serious and duty-driven one. All of the character building that went into the heroine who was driven more by emotion and living for the moment actually made me like her better. Unusual, but some key character driven elements, such as her compassion for her nephew, drew me to her.

Reminds me how important character development is, and it’s something Nora Roberts does very well in all of her work.

Book Review: Cold-Hearted Rake

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ColdHeartedRake.PNG
Heroine does not look how I imagined her, but the gardens and manor house do.

This was a book I bought for myself. I had picked up one of Lisa Kleypas’s audio books at my library for a long car trip, and I liked it so much I decided to try the first book in her Ravenels series.

The story is set during the Victorian era as much is changing in land ownership and its place in the social hierarchy. It definitely portrays how vulnerable women were, and our hero is not a man of his times, at least when it comes to respecting women and their wishes. This is par for the course for historical romance. Hard for a modern reader to root for a hero that treats his wife like cattle.

The plot was a combination of the romance between the hero and heroine, as well as a “scapegrace” coming to terms with the responsibilities of a crumbling earldom in a time where landownership no longer confers wealth.

The hero definitely has his work cut out for him, though I am not completely certain why he chose to accept the responsibility. But he did, and it changes him. The weight of so many people needing him, depending on him, helps make him a different man. One capable at the end of truly loving the heroine.

This is also a story where the hero is smitten with the heroine from almost the very beginning. I am not certain I believe it from a “cold-hearted rake”, but I was more than willing to suspend disbelief and enjoy.

It did have some head-hopping. We moved between different characters in the same page, and those characters included people beyond the hero and heroine. I only note this after how much push-back I received from editors for doing the same thing.

All in, it was a great read. Good enough that I plan to purchase the next book in the series.

It also taught me a few things.

First, having a hero you don’t especially like at the beginning is okay if you can make him likable enough and redeemable. The hero was ready to toss all the sisters and widow of the former earl out as the earl hadn’t provided for them in his will. He doesn’t, and that helps build his character and make him likable.

Second, this is clearly the first book of a series. I paid close attention to how she laid the foundation for the characters who will get their own book in this story.

Third, her steamy scenes are fantastic. I need to go back and study them more. I feel like I have learned a lot in my years of writing, but this is something I am always trying to do better.

I am looking forward to reading the next book.

Book Review: Mind Over Matter

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ATouchofSun
Mind Over Matter was one of two books in this.

While I grew up reading Nora Roberts, and she was one of the authors that lured me into this genre, it has been many years since I have read one of her books.

My daughter bought me this paperback for mother’s day this past year. It was prominently displayed at Target, and she saw that it was in the romance section. While it might not be my usual fare, it was a thoughtful gift, and it delighted her to no end to see me reading it.

Honestly, though, that is about where the joy ended.

I kept waiting for the plot to come into focus. I am still not sure what it was other than the heroine being willing to accept who she was and that she could be loved. But even then, there was no real journey to that.

I don’t really have a lot to say about the story. The queen of romance wrote it, so I feel bad saying anything less than positive about it, but the story never gripped me. I never really understood why the characters were attracted to each other or what really kept them apart.

The steamy scenes didn’t make up for it either. And I’ll forgive almost anything for good steamy scenes.

There was also a lot of head-hopping. On one page, we saw the story through four different characters. This is even more head-hopping than you see in many older, more established romance writers where it was expected to see the scene through both the hero and heroine’s perspective.

All in, I don’t regret reading it, but I won’t read it again.

It did teach me a few things.

First, it is incredibly important to have real stakes for your characters. There has to be something keeping them apart. Yes, it can be internal, but a somewhat routine break-up from eight years ago needs a whole more to it.

Second, there has to be something in story that get the character over it. While this book has a happily-ever-after, I am not sure why I didn’t get in on page twenty rather than page two-hundred and seventy-four. Nothing all that much really seemed to happen to make the changes real.

A few things in the story made me pause, like the mention of phone booths and car phones. I checked the copyright date after I finished it. While the book A Touch of Sun was published in 2019, the story Mind Over Matter dates back to the 1980s.

Reminds me how much has changed in romance novels and technology over the last thirty-five years. I might stick to Nora Roberts’ more recent works.

Book Review: Romancing the Duke

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RomancingtheDuke
Romancing the Duke by Tessa Dare

As said by one of the greats, and quoted often:

“If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.”
― Stephen King

But as a writer, I need to do more than just consume fiction. Consuming it is easy. But much like watching great movies doesn’t make me a screenwriter, I also need to do more than read great books. I need think about what makes them great. To understand what I liked about them, and even what I dislikes about them. But more than that, I need to think about the how and why the author does what they do.

Tessa Dare is an amazing author, so I decided to really think through one of her books. I just finished this one, and it is was a nice read. I started it on Friday night and finished it on Saturday morning.

As a said, it’s a solid read, and I would recommend it.

As I think through it, here are a few things she did particularly well I can learn from:

  • She doesn’t reveal things too quickly. Why is the heroine afraid of the dark? You’ll find out, but not too quickly. And when you do, it moves the romance along. She does this repeatedly, seeding story points early and bringing them to fruition later.

 

  • Her characters are not perfect. The heroine isn’t insurmountably beautiful. The hero is scarred. Literally. And blind. She uses this to build tension naturally. There are very few external events, which is perfect.

 

  • She uses these flaws to create tension. The characters do talk to each other, and sometimes they say mean things. But this fits with the flaws. Never too much to make them irredeemable, but you can see them working through their pain and flaws to earn their happily-ever-after.

 

  • Her characters all have agency. Each one chooses their path. They act with self-interest as well. Sometimes blatantly, but never maliciously so you still love them.

 

  • Her steamy scenes are concise but impactful.

 

Reading the work of a master always helps with your own work. Building a world. Crafting a story. I am particularly mindful of how she builds those character flaws and allows them to guide the story.

Something more for me to ponder.

Book Review: A Talent for Trickery

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Book: A Talent for Trickery

Author: Alissa Johnson

Recommendation: Solid Read

TalentTrickery
Fun, sassy book

I was looking for a fun book to pass a cold and rainy evening. This book checked a lot of boxes for me, and it didn’t disappoint in the execution.

Characters

I thoroughly enjoyed the characters.

Owen, the hero, was a white knight. He was not your typical alpha male, always knowing best. He stumbled, made mistakes, but at his core, he was always good and trying to do what was best. He was competent, smart, but not invincible. You also understood why he struggled not to always take charge.

Lottie, the heroine, was smart and savvy. She had a hard upbringing with a criminal father involving his children in his schemes. She’s come a long way, but trust doesn’t come easily for her. I also loved her relationship with her siblings

All of the supporting characters are excellent. Owen’s two men I’m sure will feature in future stories. Esther, Lottie’s sister, is a complex and developed character. More than that, the author focuses on the sisters’ relationship. How they argue, keep secrets, and try to protect each other. Esther is not just tacked on for a bridge into a sequel. No fighting over a man, either, thank goodness!

I really enjoyed the playful banter as well. The characters laughed and teased, even in some of the tense scenes as Lottie comes to terms with her past (as real people do).

Plot

The romantic plot was solid. Lottie might have forgiven the hero over past wrongs a tad easily, but I also applaud the author for not dragging it out interminably. And the reasoning behind the forgiveness did not require me to suspend disbelief.

This is a mystery romance, and the mystery seemed solid to me. I was surprised by the villain at the the end, but not unduly so, and all of the clues leading up to it kept me turning the pages.

Steamy Scenes

This was by far the weakest bit. There was one, it wasn’t bad, but it was pretty forgettable.

 

All in, well worth the read. It gave me the happily-ever-after I demand, and it was sweet without sending me into sugar shock. I liked the characters, and it featured a white knight hero. All in, a good read.

 

Book Review: Her Viken Mates

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Book: Her Viken Mates

Author: Grace Goodwin

Viken

This is not my normal reading fare, as you may have noticed from my other book reviews. I am not entirely sure why I picked it up.

Okay, that’s not true. I do know. It was curiosity, plain and simple. It appeared in my Amazon feed, and while I was intrigued, but didn’t buy it. The book then intruded on my consciousnesses during my drive home, and as I had some digital credit with Amazon, I decided to give in to temptation and see what it was all about.

 

Characters

These are flat, one dimensional characters. Expect no growth because you’re not going to get any.

 

Plot

There was one. Somewhere. But it’s even less important than most other romance novels I’ve read. The plot is as one dimensional as the characters, and I’m actually somewhat surprised how contrived it was. I was shocked how quickly characters believed a heroine from another planet who was there as an interstellar bride. There is no real reason for them to do that. Nor is there a reason that the villain would do what they did or give their hand away as they did. But, you know, plot wasn’t what this book was about.

 

Steamy Scenes

This is why you’re reading the book. The novel opens with steamy scenes, and the steamy bits probably take up at least 50% of the story, maybe more. It does include multiple lovers simultaneously, and I have never read anything like it, though I know this is not uncommon in romance. Just uncommon to me. As far as I can tell, the author handled it well.

 

Writing Style

While the writing was just okay, it was relatively free of grammatical and punctuation errors. It was also properly formatted to the Kindle. When she did a jump in PoV, which she did often, she used a new chapter and labeled the chapter with the person whose eyes you were now seeing through.

 

Themes

Despite the fact that this was really just an excuse for steamy scenes, there were some pretty interesting themes running through a book that was mostly steamy scenes. Issues of trust came up time and again, but more than just trust, it was also about consent. This played throughout the book. I was pleasantly surprised by this. There was never even a hint of rape culture in the book, and while rushed, it did let the heroine explore her sexuality without guilt. Rather, her mates encouraged her to explore it.