Since
our last “what are you reading?” cycle, I’ve finished all but
one the books I discussed. Most of my new reading has focused on
titles I plan to or have promised to review. Accordingly, they tend
to be in the romance or erotica genres.
I
have a pretty significant backlog of to-be-reviewed books on my
tablet. They come from two sources. First, I’m a host for an author
promotion company that offers review blog tours as one of their
products. For these tours, the blog host commits not only to posting
cover, blurb and excerpt but also to reading and reviewing the book
being featured. I am quite selective about the review tours I accept,
but usually I have one or two on my calendar.
Second,
I receive many review copies of books from my fellow authors. In some
cases, I request them; in others, the writer offers. (I generally
ignore unsolicited review copies.)
I
have a semi-regular Review Tuesday feature on my blog, for posting
the latter reviews. About a week later, I will also put them on
Goodreads, Amazon and BN.
I
see reviewing other authors’ work as part of our community
ecosystem. It’s a way of paying things forward. Hopefully, writers
I know will review my books. (I’m always happy to provide copies,
by the way. Just ask!)
Reviews
also offer the possibility that I’ll expand my own network of
readers due to cross-promotion. This doesn’t mean I will post a
dishonest review, though. Once a reviewer begins to give every book
five stars, she loses her credibility.
Reviewing
gets me reading things I might otherwise not encounter. However,
knowing I’m committed to a review changes my reading experience. I
read more slowly, more consciously, and more critically. I’m less
likely to lose myself in a book, because my intellect trumps my
emotions. (If a book I plan to review does sweep me away, that’s a
really positive sign.)
Anyway
in this post, I thought I’d talk about a few recent review books.
Rescuing
Prince Charming by Edward Hoornaert
I
met Ed (aka “Mr. Valentine”) through our joint participation in
the Marketing for Romance Writers group. I was really impressed by
his intelligent, humorous blog posts, so when he put out a call for
advance readers for his science fiction romance, I volunteered.
I
found that his novel was as delightful as his blog posts, written in
a sprightly, tongue-in-cheek style but still conveying genuine
emotion. I have a love/hate relationship with the romance genre,
because so many romances are utterly predictable. This book held my
interest and kept me smiling from beginning to end.
If
you’re interested, you can read my full review here.
One
Too by Sherrie Cronin
I’m more than
halfway through this nearly 600 page book, which I’m scheduled to
review on February 12th. The genre is a bit difficult to
assign (always a recommendation, in my opinion!), but I guess the
closest category would be science fiction. Most of the important
characters have various super-normal capabilities: telepathy, astral
body travel, precognition, the ability to manipulate the flow of
time. These powers are treated scientifically rather than as magic.
The powers have clear limits. Exercising these powers is physically
draining. Also individuals differ in their native abilities, and
these abilities can be strengthened through training.
At the core of the
book is a conflict between two groups of telepaths with very
different values and views of the world. The novel is highly
political; although it is set in 2012-2013, the references to the
current world situation and media trends are quite transparent.
Indeed, this is one of my criticisms so far, that the author wears
her politics too much on her sleeve.
The heroine is a break from tradition, a
middle-aged mother of three adult children, a scientist and a
telepath, married to a high school physics teacher. I like this as
well.
The book also has
elements of an adventure tale, with kidnappings and daring escapes.
At the moment, the main characters are on a tourist cruise ship
headed to Antarctica, fleeing the evil telepaths of Enteletechy.
I’m enjoying this
read, despite the knowledge that I’ll have to review it. Stop by my
blog on the 12th of February to get my final verdict.
No
Title Provided...
There’s
one dilemma occasioned by accepting review copies from authors whom I
know—what if I hate the book? About a month ago, a colleague who
publishes with the same co-op I do offered me a copy of her latest
novella. I’d read a review by another author whom I generally
trust, so I happily accepted. Alas, I really did not like the book at
all. The tale is set in a world of extreme lifestyle BDSM, which
should interest me, but overall it felt stiff and fake. The main
premise and conflict struck me as implausible. The characters, most
especially the focus character, had a cardboard quality. I could not
identify with any of them. The final straw was a long kink scene
between secondary characters that did not advance the plot at all.
What
do I do? As I said above, I try to be scrupulously honest in my
reviews. If I review a book with flaws, I will try to first highlight
the positive aspects. In this case, though, the negative so outweighs
the positive that I’ve decided to simply let the book sink into
obscurity. Fortunately I didn’t add it to my books on Goodreads
before I read it, so there’s no record I ever even opened the file.
I’m
not entirely comfortable with this compromise solution, but I guess
it’s what I’d prefer if some reader hated one of my books.
And
coming up...
The next book I’m
scheduled to read for review is called Grinder’s Corner by
Ferris H. Craig and Charlene Keel. I was attracted to this because
of its unusual setting in the early sixties, in a taxi dance hall. It’s
also billed as a romantic comedy, a genre I enjoy but really can’t
pull off myself.
Check
my blog on February 27th,
to find out what I thought.
Meanwhile,
in late November, my DH and I visited the semi-annual book sale at a
private library near us. These sales feature hundreds of great
titles, at rock bottom prices. We spent about twenty five dollars for
more than dozen books. Some are by authors new to us, but there are
also volumes by T.C. Boyle, William Boyd, Jane Smiley, and Joanne
Harris. I’m looking forward to diving into this pool of literary
riches.
Tune
in next time for my comments!
Our county library system runs a used book shop on our excuse for Main Street. No telling what can show up. I recently saw Nicholson Baker's "House of Holes" . I'll bet nobody knows what's inside. Since I already have a copy, I'll leave that for someone else to discover. ;>)
ReplyDeleteUsed book shops are a gold mine.
DeleteLast night I started a book called The Peppered Moth by Margaret Drabble, whom I have heard of but never read. So far, quite intriguing. I'd never have shelled out full price for the book, but a dollar is a minor risk.
Sometimes, as an author, I feel a bit sheepish about buying used books as opposed to new. On the other hand, there have been several used books that I liked so much, I ended up buying copies for several other people as gifts.
I've stopped reviewing books. I've found that as an author, it puts me in an awkward situation. I have verrrrry high standards (or perhaps specific pet peeves) for fiction and most stuff that I'm asked to review just doesn't meet those standards -- so I'm left with the conundrum of do I (a) do a dishonest review and focus only on the parts I liked, (b) don't do a review, or (c) do an honest review and point out the flaws.
ReplyDeleteAnd with the rise of self-publishing -- which I totally am a cheerleader of -- there is an unfortunate rise in very unprofessional authors, authors who will bully and harass reviewers online who leave a poor review. I don't want to be in that position, so I have decided to just stop reviewing books. I will always help authors promote their works, but I won't review their books.
Hi, Cameron,
DeleteI definitely get what you're saying. But what if everyone felt that way?
Of course the review situation at Amazon is very skewed these days. If you haven't actually bought a copy of a book, your review will be buried.
Anyway, I respect your choice. And I'm going to add you to my "authors for promo" list, if that's okay with you!
I'm remembering when we were both reviewing books for DL King's Erotica Revealed web site. Certainly broadened my horizons, in some directions that I'd just as soon not look too often.
ReplyDelete