Review: The Girl's Guide to (Man)Hunting by Jessica Clare

The Girl's Guide to (Man)Hunting by Jessica Clare

My rating: 2 of 5 stars



A librarian heroine and an ex-NFLer hero? Woohoo!, I thought.

Not so much.

This might be a bit of a personal preference thing because I kinda found their relationship a little, um, icky. I mean, who the hell sleeps with a guy that you think, basically, performed a sexually charged action against you without your consent? And maybe it's because I've lived in suburbia all my life, but I can't believe an entire town is blaming for the victim for what was, in essence, child pornography. She was a minor. Okay, I went back to double-check and the author makes it a point of saying it's the heroine's freaking birthday and so she was eighteen when the photos were taken. Still. Even if I'm going to accept the fact that the police were like, 'eh, you asked for it,' (let's face it, it's possible) why the hell didn't the heroine just email the hero & be like, 'Bastard, take down the pictures!'? Why didn't he email her if he was trying to contact her? Clearly the internet existed back then if the photos were uploaded.

I ended up skipping over most of the sex scenes, not because of their lack of hotness, but because I just couldn't deal with the inequality of their relationship. First, I felt like she was paying him for sex because the book was all 'two grand for the class, yadda, yadda' and it was clear that the heroine was only doing it for the possibility of sex and revenge. Then, once we learn that the hero has no idea about the pictures, I felt bad for him because he has no idea that the heroine is perpetrating a major deceit with the goal of sexually exploiting him.

Furthermore, when the photos were actually taken down, I felt like the consequences should've been a lot more severe. Being recorded without consent is creepy and if it's sexually explicit, it's wrong. To go a step further and distribute it, well, I'm on my work computer so I can't exactly Google 'posting naked photographs without subject's knowledge legality,' but I'm pretty sure it's illegal. Male or female, no one has the right to do something sexually explicit to you without your permission. No matter how you slice it, it's a form of rape.

If I pretend that the heroine is mad at the hero because of some run-of-the-mill misunderstanding, The Girl's Guide to (Man)Hunting would have been three stars until they got out of the woods, at which point it would've gone up to four stars. It's obvious who the other couples will be and I might read the next book if I ever see it at the library. So if you think I'm taking the 'naked photos on the internet' too seriously and you liked Molly O'Keefe's books, you may enjoy Girl's Guide. If you agree with me, then skip it.

Review: Down London Road by Samantha Young

Down London Road by Samantha Young

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



I was actually not a huge fan, personally speaking, of On Dublin Street, mostly because I didn't like the heroine. As a result, I put off reading Down London Road.

However, I loved Down London Road, mostly because I felt it was on the realistic side of things. Every time I started to roll my eyes or be like 'really?', the characters would stop and reconsider their actions. They acted like adults, mature adults. This isn't to say that they didn't make mistakes or do boneheaded things, but the way Young wrote it, you understood why they were behaving this way and it seemed very natural.

What made the book even more fascinating to me is that nothing extraordinary happens. There was no mystery stalker or sudden windfall. This really is just a story about two people, one rather messed up (Jo the heroine), falling in love. The instant attraction, the getting to know yous, finally getting together, the inevitable first fight, that make or break moment, and then the certainty of being in love. As a result, the pacing reflects the slow growth of the relationship between Jo and the hero, Cam.

Joss and Braden also returned. I don't know if it was because of my original dislike for her, but Joss felt like a completely different character to me. She was sharp and sarcastic, and I liked her much, much better. Braden also got a chance to flex his alpha muscles. In addition, Young introduces Jo's younger brother, Cole, who's just an all-round awesome kid, albeit one who should really look into therapy at some point. Other new characters include Olivia, Jo's cousin, and Nate, Cam's best friend. These two will be the main couple of book three, Before Jamaica Lane, and Young very subtly laid the groundwork for them in London Road. Like, I had an inkling, but I couldn't be sure until I saw the posting on her blog.

It should be clear by now that I loved this one and I definitely recommend it, but I do have a caveat: if you're looking for a book that's exactly like On Dublin Road, you're going to be disappointed by Down London Road. Despite the cameos made by the previous characters, London Road really stands alone and that's how you should approach it. If you go in with a negative opinion about Jo and the kind of relationships she had prior to Cam, you're not going to like it as much as I did.

Review: Born Wild by Julie Ann Walker

Born Wild by Julie Ann Walker

My rating:  3.5 stars.

So on the Friday during BEA, before it opens, I'm standing on line with a friend and she's all excited because Sourcebooks will be giving away copies of Born Wild at its booth that day. I admit to her that I've never read anything by Julie Ann Walker and she looks at me as if I just admitted that I occasionally stroll in work naked. Therefore, I made sure to snag an ARC.

Normally, I like to read a series in order, but since I'm not a big fan of the whole 'alpha male dispensing justice from the back of his motorcycle' trope, I kinda figured 'screw it,' and just started reading. Y'know what, though, Born Wild stood alone pretty well. I think I missed out on some of the emotional payoff since it appears these characters made cameos in previous books, but I never felt lost or like I was missing something.

The book was good enough that I checked out the first two from the library. I thought the mystery was great and that the identity of the Big Bad was skillfully revealed. However, the romantic relationship hinged on a lot of 'let's talk around the giant conflict and create more misunderstandings rather than deal with it like adults.' I'm not a big fan of that. You have the balls to disarm an IED, but you can't be all, 'You should've returned my calls'? Pfft. Both the hero and heroine suffered from this failing which annoyed me and would probably lead to couples counseling down the road for them. If the mystery hadn't been so compelling, I likely would have bailed halfway through.

I wanted to rate this book three stars, but after thinking it over, I'm bumping it up to four, because a lot of this book simply wasn't for me. I think Walker's fans will enjoy it and it's definitely accessible to new readers. I see it as a cross between Lora Leigh's Elite Ops and Jaci Burton's Wild Riders, so if you're a fan of either of those series, you should check out Born Wild.

Review: The Cursed by Alyssa Day

The Cursed by Alyssa Day

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



Truthfully, this isn't really a five star book, but, Lord, do I love the hero. Like, he's a wizard with a penchant for blowing things up, and yet I'm still entertaining the question of 'If this guy was real, would I date him?' I am actually going to quote all y'all a section that solidified my devotion to the hero.  From page 129:


"Before she had a chance to even think about her next step, a thunderous explosion shook the house, and then the door burst open, and Luke stomped back in, slamming it behind him.

"'I just blew up the Helga's Tea Room van,' he announced. 'Blew it to smithereens. There's not a scrap of metal bigger than a shoe box left of it.'

"Rio's mouth fell open and she realized she was completely speechless.

"He advanced on her, swept her up off the stool into his arms, and kissed her until she was having trouble breathing again, and then he walked around the counter and started drinking coffee while she sat, half-dazed, tingling in every nerve ending she'd ever thought of having. He wasn't even breathing hard, darn him.

"'I know. Don't yell at me,' he said, half sheepishly and half defiantly. 'I'll buy her a new van. Hell, I'll buy her two new vans.'

"'But why--' She couldn't wrap her head around any of it.

"He scowled, but somehow she knew it wasn't directed at her. 'I don't know how to have all these feelings. I know how to blow stuff up. You were hurting, and I wanted to help, but I didn't know how, so I blew something up.'"


I've never had a fictional boyfriend before, but I want Luke to be my first. *swoon*

For the non-hormonal portion of this review, I have to say I wasn't crazy about the world-building. I was confused as to the nature of Bordertown because quite frankly, it put me in mind of a Wild West town and it's actually more like a cross between the Dresden Files and the Shiftertowns in Jennifer Ashley's Shifters Unbound. In addition, The Cursed suffered from first book-itis. The plot jumped around a lot in order to expose the reader to the new world. We meet a lot of supporting characters and different races.

I really should have rated this 3.5-4 stars, but I'm powerless against Luke and his adorkable ways.

Review: Heart of Obsidian by Nalini Singh

It had been over 365 days since I read a new full-length Psy-Changeling novel and I did my best to refrain from impatient whining. As a reward for my uncharacteristic, albeit reluctant, acceptance of delayed gratification, the Book Gods saw fit to grant me a boon. Enough about me, though, as I know you want to know about the book, so let's move on to the pretty-much-spoiler-free-because-it's-all-my-reactions review.

Heart of Obsidian reminds me of those long, quiet, hours that mark off time before night slips into the dawn. Change is happening, anything is possible, and a new day is breaking. Still, this is not an easy book. As much as one could claim the main theme is rebirth, there's no denying the traumas that perpetually ripple throughout the book. It will be a trigger for some, especially given recent events, and, by the end, parents may reconsider the wisdom of letting their teenagers fly too far from the nest.

Despite the heaviness, this is one of Nalini's simplest books. It could almost be a stand-alone, if the reader was familiar with the sociological and political framework of the Psy/Changeling world, as it focuses very tightly on the hero and heroine. The SnowDancers don't appear at all and only two of the previous heroines make cameos. However, just like I said in my Tangle of Need review, starting with Heart of Obsidian will do you a disservice. Nalini has brought together disparate threads to reveal a stunning tapestry that finally shows what she has been working towards during the past eleven books. There are clues as far back as Slave to Sensation and jumping to the end will rob you of the grand reveals.

With Tangle of Need, I was willing to cryptically answer questions, but I'm not going to do that with Heart of Obsidian. As I said previously, the book is so tightly focused, a hint about one thing could also apply to everything. so feel free to speculate in the comments, but I will not confirm or deny anything. However, I will tell you that my personal theory about the Ghost was very wrong. Oh, and the hero. I'll tell you the hero.

Don't highlight if you don't want to know.


Seriously.


Last chance to back away.


Here it comes.


I give you the first sentence of Heart of Obsidian: "Kaleb Krychek, Cardinal telekinetic and a man no one wanted to meet alone on a dark night, had been searching for his quarry for seven years, three weeks, and two days."

I know there are some die-hard Kaleb fangirls out there and you are going to be very happy. Nalini took a cryptic blank-slate-could-go-either-way character and turned him into a fascinatingly complex man. And, dayum, he's also scorchingly hot. There was one bit on page 131 that had me cranking up the AC. 


Heart of Obsidian releases on June 4th. If you buy the e-book from Barnes and Noble, steeling yourself against Penguin's WTF ebook pricing, you should be able to download it around 1am on the 4th.

Being Internly: Lessons from Liberty States Fiction Writers' Conference, Part III

I'm struggling to stay awake right now, which is never a good thing when you're at work, so I decided to start writing this entry in hopes it would perk me up. Here are the last nuggets of wisdom from the Liberty States Fiction Writers' Conference, these carefully mined at the Agents panel.

Things You Should Know from the Agents Panel

Panelists: Marisa Corvisiero (Corvisiero Agency), Louise Fury (L. Perkins Agency), Brittany Howard (Corvisiero Agency), Marie Lamba (Jennifer Dechiara Agency), Lori Perkins (L. Perkins Agency), and Eric Ruben (The Eric Ruben Agency). 

1) Good agents can spot a hole in the market and will look for something to fill it. On her website, my boss lists general categories she's looking for, but, in reality, her wishlist is a lot more specific. At the panel, women's fiction was mentioned several times, but specifically, (and I'm paraphrasing a bit) something like Gone with the Wind, albeit shorter and more modern. No chick-lit or books with recipes. Also mentioned were LGBT books that featured established relationships. No coming-out stories. Brittany Howard said she wanted a 'literary-feeling' middle grade manuscript. No so-called 'portal' adventures. I realize all of this may sound as clear as mud, but basically, it goes back to what I've said before. They don't want manuscripts that feature trends that are hot right now; they want trends that will be hot two years from now. 

2) Agents are your business partners, not your friends. Louise Fury spoke quite passionately on this topic and many of the other panelists were nodding. Agents are there to help you make money. They are there to help you produce the most marketable book possible and to make sure you get the best contract available.  They are not there to hold your hand when you've had a rough day. That's what your emotional support system is for. They are not there to read every single draft of your book and make suggestions. That's what your beta readers and critique partners are for. I'm not saying you and your agent won't be friendly, but think about this: an agent could have twenty clients. If they spent an hour every day, simply listening to ten of those clients, that's the entire workday shot to hell. When are they going to have time to sell your book or negotiate on your behalf? So when you're tempted to call or email your agent, ask yourself, is this important enough that I'd rather they take the time to read it and reply than do something else on my behalf? 

3) Be patient. An agent may offer you representation on a quick turnaround, but that's probably because they see potential in you and don't want to risk losing you to someone else. That doesn't mean they're going to immediately start sending out your manuscript. Chances are you're going to need to revise or edit before your agent thinks it's submission-ready. Also, once you go on submission, it could still be a while before your book gets sold, if it ever does. Getting an agent is a vote of confidence in your talent and an important step forward, but there's still a lot of work to come. 

4) Ask questions and pay attention to the answers. If an agent offers you rep, be excited, but still be smart. Have a conversation about where you both see your career going, your manuscripts, money, expectations, everything. Make sure the agent is a person you can trust to look out for you, someone to whom you can entrust your manuscripts and reputation. Email a few of their clients and ask politely how they  like working with the agent in question. This is the equivalent of checking references after a job interview. If the agent has a problem with you talking to their clients, then that's a red flag. A good agent will also give you time to contact any other agents who have your manuscript so you can see if anyone else is interested. My boss typically gives prospective clients a week from when she offers rep. Even if the author knows my boss is their dream agent and wants to sign immediately, she still makes them take the week. This is a business relationship and it's best if everyone signs the contract confident that this is the best decision. 

5) Talk to your agent before you talk to the internet. I forget the exact question the moderator asked, but it was something about what do authors do that you wish they wouldn't. I think it was meant to be about pitches or querying, but one of the agents (Eric Ruben, I think) said that if authors have an issue, they should ask their agent about it before complaining online. There were no specific examples given, but what they meant was, if you're worried submission is taking too long, think your contract is nuts, worried about your publisher giving you the runaround, anything like that, talk to your agent before you vent on Twitter or your blog. 

Bonus Wisdom from me: Interns and assistants do more than you think. The agent will always make the final decision, but the better the intern, the more weight their opinion is going to carry. In addition, interns often operate like scouts. You may be tracking every move an agent makes from across the room, but their intern may be sitting right next to you. When you attend industry events, network as much as you can and be polite & professional to everyone you meet. My badge might say reader or librarian, but that doesn't mean I can't ask for your card and tell my boss about you later on. Polite and professional, m'kay?

Being Internly: Lessons from Liberty States Fiction Writers' Conference, Part II

I would celebrate posting two weeks in a row except I'm writing them both on the same day and I should be doing client edits right now. Eeeee. Let's move on, shall we? Bits of wisdom from the Liberty States Fiction Writers' Conference, this time from the Editors panel.

Things You Should Know from the Editors Panel

Panelists: Jillian Bell (Ellora's Cave), Shannon Criss (Harlequin), Toni Plummer (Thomas Dunne/St. Martin's), Bob Podrasky (AudioGo), and Michelle Richter (St. Martin's)

1) They really prefer you have an agent. The exception here was Ellora's Cave since they are an e-pub that basically offers the same contract to everyone. Shannon Criss from Harlequin talked a lot about the different ways you can submit to the publisher, agent or not, but I definitely got the feeling that the majority prefers to deal with agent for business matters rather than the authors themselves. It helps keep the relationships separate because when you're dealing with an editor in an editorial capacity, it's more of a symbiotic relationship. However, in a business capacity, that editor's now going to be looking to get the best deal possible, which may not be the best deal for the author. I'm not suggesting they're going to be unethical or try to screw you; they're simply looking out for their own interests. An agent can be all aggressive on your behalf and your editor can play hardball with them, but keeping you out of it means your relationship with your editor remains healthy.

2) Unsolicited means do not send anything that hasn't been requested. At all. Someone asked this question at the end of the panel and I was a little surprised about that, so I thought I'd cover it here. If you see in Writer's Market or on someone's website 'closed to unsolicited submissions,' that really means 'If you send me a query/manuscript, I'm going to have an intern look at it to make sure that it's not something actually important and then reject it/delete it.' Even if they are open to submissions, unsolicited materials rank at the very bottom of the 'look at' list. One of the St. Martin's editors (I can't remember if it was Toni Plummer or Michelle Richter) basically described the hierarchy like Authors Already Under Contract -> Agent Submissions -> Conference Submissions (solicited) -> Other Solicited Submissions (contests, twitter, etc.) -> Unsolicited. This is yet another reason to attend as many pitch sessions as you can, online or in person, and more confirmation about why it's important to get an agent.

3) Don't call us, we'll call you. I know it's hard being patient when you're waiting for an editor/agent to make a decision, but the entire panel cautioned against aggressively following up on a submission. Shannon related an anecdote about a manuscript she'd been excited to read until the author started calling her every day to see if she'd read it yet. Now, not only does she have no desire to work with the author, she no longer wants to read the manuscript. My advice would be to find out what their time frame is and give them a gentle nudge two weeks past that. For example, Shannon says Harlequin's policy is to respond within 90 days. So if you submitted to Harlequin on April 1st, I would politely nudge on July 15th.  Above all, be professional, folks.

4) A good manuscript will always trump the economy. Times are tough all around, but according to the editor panel, it hasn't stopped them from buying books by debut authors.  Sure, they might do smaller print-runs or only buy the first two books of a series, but if they love your book, they'll still go for it. A wonderfully entertaining, beautifully crafted, story will always find its way if you are persistent enough.

5) Do your research. All of the editors complained about receiving submissions that don't fit their categories. Jillian Bell made a point of saying, no, Ellora's Cave doesn't publish picture books. Even a rudimentary glance at Ellora's website reveals its 18-and-over content. Shannon also mentioned that her last name is frequently misspelled on submissions (I feel I should point out that both Shannon's and Bob Podrasky's names were misspelled on the conference website). It wasn't specifically mentioned during the panel, but if you are un-agented, you should definitely do research on the companies themselves, especially the smaller e-pubs. A company may be "actively acquiring" dozens of manuscripts, but how are they getting all of those manuscripts edited? Who's doing the marketing?  Which online stores are going to offer the book for sale? Do your research.


I also want to mention that Bob gave a pitch for Man in the Empty Suit that basically had the entire room salivating for the book. It sounded so good, I was surprised at the low GoodReads ranking. This is the power of a pitch that highlights the unique, people. I'm off to go do those edits, but, hopefully Part III (the Agents Panel) will be up next Sunday.