Review Days [link corrected]

Sitrep: 45 minutes treadmill (too much, apparently, as my left leg is stiff & sore today)

I've been reading a lot more since returning from my sister's over the holidays. Not that I read much there...too busy playing w/my niece. But I've been reading some new-to-me authors (Thanks Janet W) and an old-to-me author. I'll start with that one. "Dark of Night" by Suzanne Brockmann note: I wrote this 2/11 after reading the book, and before coming across some author posts/comments. I just haven't posted until now due to my obsessive need to pare down words and correct myself. Not that it does much good. SPOILER ALERT I didn't enjoy this book. I do believe it is a combination of things. But I'll start by telling you my mindset when I picked it up on Friday night [a week after the release date. It was finally my turn at the library.]

1. I no longer consider her books romance. More suspense with relationships thrown in.
2. I was in the mindset for a cleverly written suspense novel.
3. I was not in the Sophia/Decker camp as neither character particularly jumped out at me to start with. Same with Tess/Nash, Dave, Tracy. Ho-hum. Although I enjoyed Tracy when first introduced to her in Into the Storm. And thought Tess/Nash had found their ho-hum HEA in their book.
4. I was very tired and really wanted a book I could escape into.

Now for the review.

About 20-40 pages into the book, I tossed it (literally) aside and watched TV instead. There was a lot of back story that needed to be explained for any potential new reader. To me, this came across as Show (then explain/tell). Kinda bogged the story line moving as quickly forward as usual. [Cranky Otter calls this "info dump". It fits.]

Sunday I gave it another go, because, well, I hate to give up on an author I like. Pretty much still the same mindset as on Friday night. I read and read, struggling, really. I felt like I was walking through mud. Or trying to run in sand on the beach. The show & tell really started to bug me. I was distracted, found myself thinking DUH, I got it, you don't need to explain what the character just said. I'm not stupid. Not a good thing to be thinking when you just want to get lost in a book.

The relationship portion had two "romantic" couples - Sophia/Dave and Decker/Tracy. For something like 5 years (not sure on the dates) there has been this dangling plot line of Sophia/Decker. After hinting in previous books (especially the last one), the pairing became Sophia/Dave. Only in the last book did I pick up on anything that might be Decker/Tracy. And it was a pretty obvious hint, since I picked it up. I don't usually read her books to pick up hints. I try to just enjoy the current story and go with the flow. Not being in the Sophia/Decker camp, I didn't really mind the pairing. Whatever. Because in my mind these aren't romances anymore, so...

I didn't feel there was much to Sophia and Dave's relationship. He was, shall we say, on the needy side? I felt smothered. Frankly, she should have kicked his ass. And he should have told her to go to hell. Putting up with all that I-love-Decker for years. What is he, some kind of masochist? Where's his pride? No respect for him on my end.

I was irritated with the characters. Especially the male characters. These men are attracted/in love with these spec ops type women, yet kept secrets to the Nth degree to "protect" their woman...Their strong, capable, kick-a$$ women? Oh, how caveman-ish. Decker, Nash, and finally, when Dave wouldn't tell Sophia something, I kinda half screamed out loud. (Scully went and hid at that point.) What, are these guys clones?

This is also the point I said F-this (literally), and skipped to the end of the book. Worked much better for me that way. Jumped around after that, reading scenes that popped out at me, etc.

So please note, that probably does affect my understanding of some points I didn't "get":

1. Why the hell was Jules/FBI involved in this? Even "unofficially".
2. Why the hell was the entire Troubleshooters office gone? Tom's making that much money in the first five years of his business they can do that? Not believable to me. Maybe a small point, but still...
3. Tracy was the only one with the "hope" to pick up the inconsistencies that meant Nash was still alive? yeah, right. Her being best friends with Nash and all that. Not.
4. Decker/Sophia - their "conversation" that tied up the angst that was between them for all those books? Very blah, kinda a "huh?" moment. And I wasn't even rooting for those two.
5. Really Bad Guys are after Nash, and S&A bring their baby along? Uh-huh. Right.

Now we get to my Biggest Pet Peeve w/Ms. Brockmann.

1. sex without a condom. It's in just about every freakin' book she writes, lately. What, is that supposed to mean they're in love? They forget themselves in the passion of love and don't use a condom? Puh-leeze. At least this time she ended up pregnant.

So. That's my personal view of DON. Before I came across an author Q&A on Barnes & Noble. The first part of the Q&A that caught my attention was this line:

“It was like dragging a piano up a hill with a rope the entire time.” S Brockmann on writing Dark of Night. (Date/Time Stamp: 02-06-2009 05:46 PM. About two-thirds of the way down.) I copied the quote out because it perfectly describes how I felt reading this book.

[FWIW, this link starts on pg 1 of the Q&A. If you're up to reading it this late in the game, good luck! It took me almost 2 hours to find the correct page to link!]

The more I read, the more disquieted I got. Many of the same feelings/questions I had were brushed aside rather rudely, I thought. With a "tough s&*t" attitude.

Personally, I can understand how so many people are upset. You can bring a horse to water but you can't make it drink. But if you bring that horse to water, and it drinks, but the water is vinegar, don't be surprised if the horse reacts negatively.

After ten years buying (multiple copies, several languages), reading, and promoting her books to every person I know, and in every bookstore I go to, (and this was way before she was a NY Times best-seller), I am personally insulted that I'm labeled as anti-gay because I don't like this book. That's a mighty big brush to tar & feather with.

But it wasn't enough to do that. Oh, no. She had to make other comments denigrating romance readers and so forth. The very readers that have propelled her to NY Times Best-Seller status.

Seriously, some of her comments are ones I've heard from non-romance readers, writers and press, etc. You know the ones. Who think all romance readers are stupid, uneducated, loser women.

And here's someone that got their start in the romance industry. I understand wanting to move on to bigger and supposedly better things. But to look down your nose at the very people that put you there? Not well done. And people can say all they want about her talent, but it means very little if the readers don't buy the books. That's what makes the publisher more inclined to keep publishing your stuff.

I'm sure it won't make any difference to Ms Brockmann (or her publishers). But I will no longer support someone that looks down on me. Not by word of mouth, and not by sending my hard earned dollars her way. There's no excuse, in my book, for being rude to readers who didn't like your book, and ask you very thought out, nicely phrased questions about your book.

I Am...

...really weird sometimes, ya know? What else can you say about someone who hangs out in their yard and meows at the neighbor's cat two yards down? We're talking 10+ minutes, here. My little sister rolls her eyes at me...I know the names of my neighbors' pets, but not my neighbors. Heh.


...also finished with ITF. Got it from the library on lunch yesterday and finished it at 1:45 am. So the rest of this post is ALL ABOUT ITF.

THIS IS YOUR OFFICIAL SPOILER ALERT!

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So. Obviously it was written well enough I stayed up late to finish it. Mostly because I want to be as enthralled by her books as I once was.

But parts of this book felt like I was slogging through mud. A few times I found myself thinking "oh, come on. This is taking for-ev-er!" I've felt that a few times lately while reading books I otherwise put in the "enjoyed" and "good book" category when done. Bizarre.

ITF was well written, as usual, yet I was still left frustrated at the end of the book. It reads more like several books competing to be top dog in one. Some of the story arcs are moving toward closure. Maybe. Although I don't think that Dave & Sophia will end up together. She's with him because she wanted to be with someone who loved her, not because she loved him. Totally understandable from my viewpoint. Decker...I still don't like him. Or not like him. I'm pretty "whatever" on the whole thing with him. Murphy & Hannah...the supposed main characters...liked them. Liked Hannah. Liked Murphy. Although at times I got confused by the similarity of sense of humor...like trying to figure out the nickname Hannah gave him "Bwee"...What the heck? I had to get the answer to that from the BB...which someone got from Suz...I kept thinking it was a "So.uth P.ark" thing...then kept having to go "no, that's Izzy, not Murphy." Sigh. And the sarcastic humor they all seem to have.

I enjoyed Izzy & Eden's story line the most, until the ctastrophic ending. [Arggh. I'd this vain hope while reading Suz was going to surprise me & tie that all up nicely.] Although how quickly Izzy "fell in love" with this kid wasn't so believable to me. He's confusing lust & white night syndrome with love, if you ask me. So I won't be surprised if in his next, what, 4?, appearances he's not with her and not with Tracy. So far Suz has had him hook up with 2 women needing to be "saved". At least, in their minds & his. Suz has already said his arc is over 6 books. 2 down, 4 to go. Yippee. NOT. And that's just Izzy/Eden/Tracy.

And there were some things I was kinda "huh" about. I'm not an expert, but I'd thought the amount of Roh.yp.nol it would take to give Eden such total blackout/amnesia would be a fairly large dose, and would last from 2-12 hours. Reading I've done would indicate the 12 hours being on the extreme far end of the time-line. Effects starting to wear off around 4 hours. From what I've read. Would there have been enough time to do all that filming/staging? Maybe. I guess I'm getting hung up on details. And why the heck would this guy go to all the bother. Yeah, I can get the whole I-want-her-I'm-gonna-have-her vibe. But the elaborateness of Richie's plan, the videos, etc, all to get Jerry back? I mean, geez, hadn't they just met??? Is this guy in love with Jerry or something? Made NO sense to me. One tape would have been enough..."dude, your girl's been screwing around on you...and it wasn't the first time."

Then there's the whole Sophia/Decker/Dave triangle. The Tess/Nash/"Whatever" triangle. And that one leaves me feeling betrayed. Because Tess & Nash had their book. They got their happy-ever-after. Which means riding off into the freaking sunset in my world - when it comes to romance novels, that is. [g] It does not mean being primary characters, overcoming the storyline obstacle to become a couple in love and together at the end of the book only to appear fleetingly in subsequent books with major issues, and then finally as a major not-quite-secondary-not-quite-primary plot line. Which wasn't resolved by the end of the book either. Hoo. Yah. If I wanted this kind of anxiety/heartburn, I'd watch F.ox news 24/7. [sorry Dad & other Fo.x N.ew.s fans. If it helps, I can't think of any other news programs that don't follow close on FN's heels.]

Reading fulfills a need I have to escape. Escape being the operative word. Closure, happiness, order, balance, harmony, light...That's what I need at the end of the book. Not a bunch of characters with gaping wounds. And there are so very, very, very many characters...and we just got 2 new ones. Eden & Jo (the psychiatrist.) It's too tiring; I can't keep them straight. I shouldn't need a freaking chart to keep track of info while reading for pleasure.

This is why I'm not enjoying her books as much anymore. Why I want to cry when I finish; because I'm so let down. The older I get, the less I find myself "equipped" to deal with such angst. Funny, really, considering I used to watch THREE soap operas daily. Taped & watched them daily, I really did. (This was pre-DVR days.) Maybe I just burned myself out. LOL.

Mostly I think it's because I'm just tired of it. I'm much more pragmatic now than I was during those years. Growing up had something to do with it. Mostly those 2 years in Paraguay, I think. I'm so "For Pete's Sake. Get over it already." Which is why I'm not the best support for my friend fighting alcoholism. Not that I think that about the alcoholism. But the way she blows everything else up into a huge f-ing deal. Sometimes I just want to scream "GET A F-ING GRIP!" Heh. Wonder what response that would get! [g]

Anyway. I'm kinda wandering all over the place today. See what lack of sleep and no coffee yet have done to me?

So here's what I have to say to myself: "Get a F-ing Grip!" and "Get over it already." [g] Facts are facts. Suz' books are not romances. Not any more. They are what I consider fiction/suspense with relationships. It's a series of ongoing characters, not stand-alone books loosely connected to each other. So. Facts being facts, and life being what it is, I'll probably keep reading her books. But I'll be doing the library thing, like this time, and only reading them when I'm in the mood for that type of book. :) It's a testament to how good of a writer she is that her books engender these kinds of reactions, no?

Saying Goodbye to Favorite Authors

Sitrep: last week - 30 minutes swimming
Goals: 2x Boot camp

One of my favorite authors, Suz.anne Bro.ckmann, released a new book last week. And I have yet to buy it. Yes, I know. Coming from the person that scoured used book stores on her vacation in Japan to find copies of her back list, this is shocking.

I haven't enjoyed her last few books as much as I used to. (My post on her previous book) Part of it is that I have changed since I first discovered her books 10+ years ago. Part of it is she has changed, as has the world.

I'm on the library waiting list for this one. I noticed Saturday that I'm now up to number one (from 4 on release day), with the next copy due back around August 14. But I'm so not excited about this. I think I'm actually dreading reading this book. Made evident by a BB post header listing several characters that apparently have secondary story lines in this book. Characters from two of her "triangles"; the seemingly endless soap-opera-like threads. [sigh]

It's so depressing when an author whose books/writing I enjoy evolves into a different style. It happened with J.ude De.vereaux, Ju.lie Ga.rwood, etc. It's the switch over to mainstream, more fiction/suspense, I think. And seems to happen around or after they move into hardback. After they hit the bestseller lists. Reader, publisher, editor or author driven, it seems to inevitably happen.

This weekend it dawned on me that OTE was the last book of hers that I read more than once. Every one after that, once I'd read it, I put it away and that was that.

Her writing style has changed. Slowly at first with the introduction of the Sam/Alyssa/MaryLou triangle. But once that went over so "well" (hey, it generated lots of buzz and people wanting to keep reading to get to the end) it's like that became the sole goal. There are now three continuous story lines or "arcs": Decker/Dave/Sophia, Tess/Nash, Izzy/Tracy. The last book and now this book introduce the hero and heroine for the first time. And they are newcomers to the "world" she's created. Characters we've never heard about. It's like they are foils for these story arcs, and overshadowed. Less detailed, less impressive, less important. At least, that's how I feel.

And her books are definitely more political. It's not like my politics and hers differ. They really don't from what I can tell. I just am tired of the "causes". Maybe they were always there; I'm either too sensitive or the climate politically has changed and it's coming across more stridently in her books. I don't k now. But things like "Cosmo" pulling out the PF.LAG button/emblem (whatever it was) didn't fit in the scene it happened in. Maybe it was the way it was written, like it was added to promote the group, not as part of the character development. I'm so not sure why that was jarring to me and stands out. Hmmm.

The characters no longer stand out for me; they blend together now. It's kind of irritating that the heroines all seem to be of the same type: spunky, law-enforcement type background, etc. The continual use of alcoholism, lack of condom useage. It's becoming repetitive. And I know I've remarked on this before, but the fact that everyone the characters meet has the same type of sense of humor etc. It's like what happened with Davi.d E.ddings. I loved the "Belagariad". The "Belgarion" was pretty good. But after that, especially through the "Sparhawk" and later series, it's like they were pale imitations of the first books.

Or like the Ro.bert J.ordan "Whee.l of T.im.e" series. Wonderful writing, detailed, intricate story lines, great characters. Until what, the fourth or fifth book? Then the characters (especially the women) started to become more like empty shells of themselves, more alike than dissimilar, and way too many threads/story lines for any of them to be satisfactorily written. It was too easy to become lost, confused...and way too much work to read the books as they came out. I'm not sure to this day, almost twenty years after the first book in the series, if he ever finished it.

But I digress. So this is how I feel about Suz' books. Rather a revelation to me. And I'm not sure I even want to read this latest one, In.to the F.ire, when my turn comes up at the library. I'm tempted to wait until she finishes these story arcs. Or maybe not even then. (Which will probably get me banned from the BB.)

"What kind of father ARE you?"

Sitrep: 3x Cardio, 3x PPU (Max 0)

"The kind that doesn't give his daugher $30 to eat lunch at Taco Bell." OMG. I had to leave the room over that one. Can we say my oldest niece is a firecracker? This is an actual quote from her and my brother. Just one from the last week. All of us are wise acres. Including the kids. ;)

Yesterday we went to McKay. A used books, music & video warehouse. OMG. Talk about fun. I scored big time. TWO of Suz' books. An original edition of Taylor's Temptation and an original edition of Undercover Princess. I already have the first one, but have never read the second one. For only 50 cents each! Whoo-hoo. I also got a couple of Catherine Mann's Wingmen Warriors that I haven't read. And the latest J.D. Robb on unabridged audio CD for 50% less than cover price.

Then we just hung out the rest of the day, reading, doing crossword puzzles. My nieces are really getting into doing them. We spent an hour this morning working on one. I have them using the dictionary to look up meanings and get hints. They are doing really good. I also have my SIL hooked on crosswords now. LOL. We spent a good part of yesterday doing them....both of us feeling stupid when we get the obvious, easy ones wrong!!

Last night was TV night, where after the kids cleaned their rooms we all sat down and watched Christmas movies together. Everyone but the oldest niece, M, and I fell asleep. Then after everyone went upstairs to bed, I sat with her in her room and we just talked. It was fun. I liked having that one on one time with her. It was a little disconcerting though as I kept getting these images of her as a toddler/preschooler. The last time I spent several days just with her. She's almost 11 now. It was just weird.

We planned to play outside today but it is all rainy/misty out. Yuck. So we are stuck indoors. This morning the girls helped me do my final workout of the week. Heh. They are almost as hard task masters as Alden! They all think the BodyRev is cool, and "joined" me while I did the 15 minute Cardio workout. Then both girls tried out the Pefect Pushup. How pathetic do I feel when my 8 year old niece cranks out 10 regular PPU's in a row? Sheesh. But hey. She has less weight to push up and hold up!

So this marks the first time in well over a month that I have actually MET MY WEEKLY GOAL. Whoo-Yah! Now that is something to get FIRED UP about. And tomorrow is family game day and we're going to play the Wii. Bowling, tennis, whatever. :) I'm having a really great time!

Well, I'll be a Monkey's Uncle (edited)

****FORCE OF NATURE SPOILER ALERT****

YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!

Just in case you didn't believe me
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I just have to get my thoughts down somewhere, so, here we go.

After work yesterday I went home and immediately fixed dinner (sorry REVvers)...while reading. Ate dinner...while reading. And read until midnight, when I finished the book. What can I say. She hooked me.

This was a very very satisfying read. Because there were no loose ends at the end of the book!!!! Can you believe it? I can hardly believe it. I was just over halfway through it when it dawned on me what she was actually going to do in this book

What a surprise. I had no idea that Jules & Robin were going to get their happy ending in this book. It was supposed to be about these two new characters, Ric and Annie. Well, we briefly met Ric in one of the other books, Gone Too Far, I think...But they were rather eclipsed in this book because of Jules & Robin. Who only got strung along for 4 books, not 6, and only Jules was in two of them. Not that I'm particularly thrilled that Robin was Jule's happy-ever-after. A little disappointed. Once I overlooked the "when did he get a grip and accept that he's gay" question. (Maybe I need to re-read? I could have sworn last time we saw him he was still rather in denial, even after the whole sleazy Adam thing). And when I forced myself to forget the Adam thing.

But I am so thrilled that that is finally over!!!!!! So this book ended with Ric & Annie together, and Jules & Robin together. So. I'll probably be flamed for this (if I ever post in on the BB, that is) but I'm rather relieved she wasn't as descriptive with the love scenes with Jules & Robin. I'm just not that...comfortable...reading that kind of scene. And honestly, she's been dialing down the heat/sex scene quotient book-by-book as she gets more mainstream. Not sure why hot steamy sex scenes are great for the female dominated romance market, but not the general public? What, like guys don't like to read about sex? But I digress.

Back to the book. Jules & Robin were emotionally satisfying. I can see how the events of this book would force both of them to make the decisions they did.

Ric & Annie were cute together. Lots of snappy repartee. But the thing is, like in a lot of the last few books, they were a bit overshadowed by the story-arc characters: Jules & Robin. They lose out in comparison, because J&R have such a built-up story already. Their characters are very well developed, very fleshed out. They were major secondary characters in Cosmo & Jane's book. Frankly, almost over-shadowed them in that book as well.

Here are my issues with Ric & Annie. They were the secondary characters. Lots of page time, probably as much as Jules & Robin. But they were the secondary ones. Less character development. So to make their falling in love in a few short days believable, she had them know each other from childhood. For about 20 years. Yeah, okay. But all of a sudden he's so over-protective, etc. Going crazy trying to keep her safe. It's an over-used device in my opinion. Very tired. Geez. Find something else to cause tension between the hero/heroine. Some other issue they need to resolve before they get their Happy Ever After. But. Okay. And then all of a sudden he's loved her since they were teens? Umm, that wasn't really brought up until well into the book. But okay.

And what about how Ric just quit the police force and opened his business. Then all of a sudden at the end he was dissatisfied with his career for a long time? Doesn't like his new business? Where'd that come from? Did I read too fast? Skim too many scenes? Miss something? I didn't think so...made myself read slower than normal. Geez, it took two days for me to read the book.

Then there's the quintessential sex scene where - ooops - you make me so crazy I forgot the condom. She does this in just about every book. And in this book, like the others, she makes the heroine be okay with this. Well, I don't think so. Especially in this book. Ric is quite the womanizer. Maybe not quite as much as Annie thinks, but he's no saint. So. he's had this "girlfriend" in Ohio for years. Who visits him in Florida every couple of months (or something like that, anyway) and then all of a sudden calls up and says she's coming down with her fiance and please get your stuff out of her condo? Obviously she's not been monogamous. But okay. I can deal with that.

But early on in the book Annie finds him seconds away from having sex with a woman he's just met after already seriously making the moves on Annie and then they find out this woman he was going to have sex with was a FORMER FAMOUS P.OR.N S.TAR???????? But hey. That's okay. Let's not use a condom and I won't freak out. And then after this talk about blood tests, etc? What the...

And is it just me, but how likely is it that everyone they meet has the same sense of humor, etc?

Anyway. I guess I just focus on the irritating stuff, huh? But seriously. This was a very satisfying read. More like how I felt when I'd finish her earlier books. Before she started the whole Sam & Alyssa torture-fest. Which she is apparently wanting to continue. Sigh. Because I know she's still got Decker/Sophia lined up for this. Frankly, I don't like either of those two reoccuring characters. Some major ICK factor there for me. And then she started dangling Izzy and Tracy in the last book, Into the Storm. So she's not stopping with this story-arc stuff.

I wonder how newbies to her books react? I can't imagine reading Force of Nature as my first book by her. How lost would I be? Would Annie & Ric be totally drowned out by Jules & Robin? Or would they not appear as strong because they've not been burdened with the past history and drama. Hmmm. Never thought of that. Maybe Annie & Ric would be very fleshed out for them, because they haven't read the other books.

Anyway. I didn't mean to go on and on like this. I'm sure there's plenty more I'll think of to say. Maybe I need to do a re-read of the series. But that will definitely have to wait until I get the next Microsoft certification exam done. Hopefully in September. Maybe October. Well. I'd better get to work.

Oh! Just remembered something. Can I just say that I was a little irritated in this book at the almost stigmatizing attitude toward someone who has sex without being in love? For Pete's sake. It's 2007 here! If two people decide to have sex because they want to have sex, and they're both unattached consenting adults, what's the problem???? It felt like being lectured to me. Just because someone has sex with someone they aren't in love with, it doesn't make it a bad thing. Forgot to post about that earlier.

Well, that didn't work

Goals: 2x Abs #2, 2x Arms, 2x Cardio
Sitrep: 1x Abs #2, 1x Arms

So much for my big exercise motivation idea. I was not going to allow myself to buy Suz' new book, Force of Nature, unless I worked out 15 minutes every day this week. It came out the 14th. I bought it yesterday. I have no willpower. I was doing my monthly grocery shopping at the h-e-double-hockey-sticks that's Wal-Mart, and there it was. A hardback at $14.46 is hard to pass up...

Especially when you live in a town where you buy at Wally World or Costco (another nightmare place to visit) or Hastings (which rarely has good sales).

So FON went home with me. But hey, at least I managed to feed the dog and myself, and put all the groceries away. There's still a pile of plastic grocery bags on the counter, though. And unwashed dishes. Good news is, I did go to bed at my normal time. Bad news, I didn't REV. I'm a weak, weak, woman. (But that's not news to me!)

So today I have to do 30 minutes as soon as I get home. No eating, no touching the book. I am woman, hear me roar. ;)

DON'T READ FURTHER IF YOU'RE AVOIDING ALL DISCUSSION OF THIS BOOK UNTIL YOU'VE READ IT

Preliminary thoughts on FON:

It was hard to get started. The first couple of chapters are set-up, introducing (or reintroducing) you to the main characters. She has to do that now because there is so much back story from other books...I think that's one of the things I'm liking least about the books. Usually I like back story, and the connections...but these are getting so, I don't know, weighty, somehow. There are a lot of characters, and I'm so scatterbrained I'm losing track of who has what characteristics/voice. But that could just be me. :)

TAADMC.

The.Abbreviations.Are.Driving.Me.Crazy. Not much fun, is it? I blame that on two things. One, the military/government community uses a lot of abbreviations. So when writing in the "voice" of people in those arenas, to sound true, you have to use abbreviations. Two, we've become a world of text-messaging and instant-messaging addicts. All that short-hand texting. KT (little sister's sibling) texted me once and I had to call her to ask her what the heck she was saying! There are too too many words in my life to be able to do that.

The drawback is that not all the readers are going to know the meanings. And the ones I did know, I had to think on for a few seconds. They stopped the flow of reading for me. Jarred me out of the story. Like POTUS. What the heck is that? Okay, take a second, what's this character thinking about? Re-read last few sentences. Oh, yes, President of the United States. Now back to your regularly scheduled programming. And then in one of the paragraphs the heroine described the hero as "TDH". Hmmm. The Defiant Hero was all I could come up with. (Title of one of her previous books.) I must have sat there for 5 minutes trying to figure out what she meant when it hit me. DUH. That's shorthand for "Tall, dark, handsome". Sigh. I could just be me. And once you get past those "introductory" chapters, either she's not using the acronyms as much or I'm getting used to them...or I'm - finally - getting sucked into the story and not noticing them.

No WWII subplot. I miss those the most. I just loved how she wove those into the modern day story. They were great. But again, there's just too much back story now with the secondary characters that they WWII plots have been abandoned.

But see, they're not secondary characters anymore. There are now multiple main characters in all these stories. Which I dislike the most. I like secondary characters to be secondary. Their storyline/presence should not be as important as the hero/heroine. And for Pete's sake, if you build them up, finish their story in the next book!!!! I guess what's already bugging me about this, is the secondary characters are getting lots of buildup already, and I know there's not going to be a resolution for them in this book.

Only that's why I read romance. It's for the guaranteed happy ending. I really hate this dragging out stuff over three or four (or more!) books. And the move away from Romance to Romance/Fiction to Fiction. Which is where she is heading. A lot of the really great Romance authors seem to do this. I'm not sure why. I know they change over time like the rest of us, probably get bored, too. Maybe there's lots of pressure from the publisher, or there's just more money to be made...who knows.

Funnily enough, so far it's still a good book, and I'm anxious to get home and read some more. I'm just such a whiner! [g]

Books, Books, Books, and Books

Can you guess what I want to talk about today? [g] I promised a post on books last week and just didn't get there.

Saturday I went to the library with my little sis and her sister KT. We spent almost 2 hours there. I'm not sure who was more reluctant to leave. And we all came away with a handful of books. Plus we'd gone to the library the weekend before...We also take lists from their mom with us. [She's started calling me her personal librarian.]

She's gone through my TBR & storage piles to the point I don't have anything else for her to read. I got her hooked on Elizabeth Vaughan's trilogy - Warprize, Warsworn, Warlord. She'd call me every morning to "gripe" at me that she stayed up late reading them. She couldn't put them down. Mooner, her husband, picked the first one up the other day making comments about "romance novels" but actually stayed up late to read the first one. Which is - literally - a first for him! Or so he says. Next we'll get him reading Suzanne Brockmann's books.

So here's what I've been reading lately:

Never Lie to a Lady by Liz Carlyle
*****Fabulous. Loved it. Stayed up late to finish it. On a week night. Want more. And whaddaya know, the next book in the trilogy is apparently already out! Yippee!!! 2 Carlyle's in one week. How'd I get so lucky?

Web of Love by Mary Balogh
****It's a Balogh. Must I say more? Good read, follows Gilded Web. Not my favorite Balogh, but enjoyable.

The Fated Sky: Astrology in History by Benson Bobrick
*Would have been great if the author would have stopped trying to use every big word he knew in every sentence. For pete's sake!!!! Returned to library unread.

Into the Wilderness by Sara Donati
*I could not get into this one. It was a BB recommended read, and I'm surprised I don't like it. Maybe it's my dislike of books that pull characters from other books the author didn't write. This one pulls in the characters from the book the Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper. I don't like that. Too jarring for me for some reason. I also didn't like the writing style. Irritated/aggravated me somehow. I know it's her first book, and there you have it. :) Felt to me like a first time author attempting to write in the style of one of the literary greats. I'm just too picky. So I put it down (spent several hours trying to get into it yesterday afternoon.) It seemed a poor attempt at copying "Shanna" by Kathleen Woodiweiss. But not really. It wasn't similar at all. Bizarre, but I couldn't get that thought/book out of my head. Or my favorite The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare. Anyway. This book is now in the "return to library" pile.

The Raven Prince by Elizabeth Hoyt
TBD - just started last night. So far so good, but I'm only 5 pages into it.

Multiple papers on Legal & Illegal Immigration in the U.S.
***because it powered up my brain and I'm just freaky weird in that I enjoy this stuff. ;)

Sooooo. My TBR pile is small, mainly because the mood I'm in lately nothing really sounds good. And then when I read stuff by good authors, like Carlyle and Balogh...well, nothing else works afterward. [g] Good thing Suz is having another book out on August 15th. But what I'll do after that is the question. I'm probably good until the 17th. Then I'm in trouble...