tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-275528542024-03-23T14:16:39.171-04:00Gothic ThoughtsRandom Thoughts and Ideas Relating to Reading Fiction and LifeNancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.comBlogger114125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-51329055361408379062015-03-30T11:54:00.001-04:002015-03-30T11:54:11.089-04:00Review: The Assassin's Curse<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15767092'><img alt='The Assassin's Curse' border='0' src='http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1343083702m/15767092.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15767092'>The Assassin's Curse</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5331983'>Cassandra Rose Clarke</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1241090570'>4 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> I listened to this book as an audiobook, and some of my fondness for it likely has to do with the narrator's voice. She did an excellent job of creating Ananna's personality through her tone and accent. Naji was not as well performed, but he didn't speak often, so it was forgivable.<br /><br />This was a good, fun, book about a girl that makes decisions and has adventures. It was not perfect. I don't think we understand enough about why Ananna makes the choices she does. For instance, her decision to run from the marriage seems sudden and poorly thought out at the moment of its execution. And her adventures are frustrating in that she does too much following--the decisions about where she needs to go and why are made by others. But it was a fun read nonetheless, and I'm likely to reread it.<br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1241090570'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-32027179523867587862014-09-14T21:23:00.001-04:002014-09-14T21:23:30.154-04:0010 Books<br /><br />I posted this list to Facebook a while back, but it bears repeating here.<br />In no particular order, here are the 10 books that most influenced me before I was 20.<br /><br /><i> Rilla of Ingleside</i> by L.M. Montgomery<br />Montgomery inspired me with the idea of a wartime romance and the struggle to keep oneself true in a world that wants you jaded.<br /><br /><br /><i>Magic's Pawn</i> by Mercedes Lackey<br />Lackey taught me that same sex romance was really just romance.<br /><br /><br /><i>The Hero and the Crown</i> by Robin McKinley<br />McKinley shaped my voice.<br /><br /><br /><i>Life Without Friends</i> by Ellen Emerson White<br />White probably taught me the most about writing and about healing. Her books shaped my sense of humor and showed me what was possible in fiction. Really, this book should be at the top of my list because it influenced me as a person and a writer.<br /><br /><br /><i>A Ring of Endless Light</i> by Madeline L'Engle<br />L'Engle got me to think about faith and science, shaping my thoughts on both.<br /><br /><br /><i>The Eye of the World</i> by Robert Jordan<br />Jordan tested my willingness to invest in long narratives.<br /><br /><br /><i>Don't Care High</i> by Gordon Korman<br />Korman taught me that a twelve year old could write a book and launch a career. This book was also really really funny.<br /><br /><br /><i>The Vampire Diaries</i> by L.J. Smith<br />Smith taught me that it was possible to create your own vampire mythos.<br /><br /><br /><i>A Wizard of Earthsea</i> by Ursula K. Le Guin<br />Le Guin was simply awesome.<br /><br /><br /><i>Beauty</i> by Sheri S. Tepper<br />Tepper showed me that fiction could engage with Big Ideas. I found most of her ideas repellent as I got older, but this book taught me to ask questions.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-79727132399678397402014-03-19T13:03:00.001-04:002014-03-19T13:03:32.688-04:00Review: Mansfield Park<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4436117'><img alt='Mansfield Park' border='0' src='http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1328774186m/4436117.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4436117'>Mansfield Park</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1265'>Jane Austen</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/872862163'>4 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> It has been many years since I first read <i>Mansfield Park</i>.<br /><br />As before, I find that I don't really like Fanny Price all that much. She's so good, so patient, so quiet . . . such a paragon of virtue that I have a hard time rooting for her. Long ago, I read a critic's response to the book that stated (sorry, it's a spoiler, so I'll hide it) <spoiler> that Fanny and Edmund's home must have been incredibly boring and that their neighbors likely dreaded an invitation to dinner at their house. </spoiler><br /><br />I can't help but root for the underdog in this book: <spoiler>Henry Crawford. While he proves himself to be be morally challenged, I do believe that he loved Fanny and would have brought more emotion to her life than Edmund. In marrying Edmund, Fanny found happiness, contentment, and satisfaction. In a marriage to Henry, I can't help but think she would have found some emotional upset (after all, he wasn't always good) but I think that the emotional highs would have balanced that account. He, at least, was passionate. Sadly, both Jane Austen and the period in which she wrote were suspicious of passion, so Edmund had to win. Darn it.</spoiler><br /><br />I realize this book is over 200 years old, but as it's a lesser known Austen, I've chosen to hide some of my comments. Feel free to read and comment--and don't hold back in the comments. Anyone that reads that far deserves to be spoiled. :)<br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/872862163'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-67627994072283092512014-03-11T16:24:00.000-04:002014-03-11T16:24:06.641-04:00Contests . . . and cakeHi All:<br />
<br />
I don't normally use my blog as a space to enter contests, but this book sounds really fun, so I'm going to go ahead and do it. :)<br />
<br />
If you follow the link below, you'll see why. Wendy Darling gave a glowing review to <i>Rebel Belle</i> by Rachel Hawkins. The cake looks good, too (although I'm probably going to make the "normal" recipe--as someone that does not have a gluten intolerance, I have no reason to avoid it).<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.themidnightgarden.net/2014/03/rebelbelle.html">Check it out!</a><div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-26000296268552035712014-01-12T17:50:00.001-05:002014-01-12T17:50:44.953-05:00In Which I am a Watering Pot<p>Yesterday, we said farewell to a good friend, Sharon.</p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM69W0w2nKQATwE386P8odTqm-a19xkyyrA1y53vvtep_mC8hlW82C_wIcQMFg8r_mvKVWxgpPwUEWIuUX6cJ1hcmGHkibY31YJ8Cwss2_UmMCc8grl5-9_I9sk_1qruEfn04h/s1600-h/Sharon%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img title="Sharon" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: left; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" border="0" alt="Sharon" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcODGq-mtSxXynaNZRfgmZBLFFyPCoG439W98VgUjLapRmvVGI6mAMqUmqwaxb1KEHBXWYoSFhavfJXuCKTephkyN-LMW25ym3aq-raTK0LDKoBYp9tgdmJCud_vGZWt4r0SsP/?imgmax=800" width="205" align="left" height="244"></a></p> <p> Sharon was a classmate of mine while we pursued our Ph.D.s. Sadly, neither of us completed our degrees.</p> <p>She was always a delightful classmate. She had a tendency to doubt herself, to question everything she said. This insecurity led her to be a fantastic teacher. Instead of thinking “I’ve got this now, I know how to teach this class,” she always looked for ways to do better, to teach better, to be the best that she could be. This constant search for excellence made her one of the most inspiring people I know. </p> <p>She was a mother. Her daughter turned 13 on Saturday, the day of Sharon’s memorial. Sharon was devoted to her child; she constantly talked of the amazing experience of raising a child and her efforts to be the best mother and role model that she could be. </p> <p>She would rock backwards slightly when she laughed, as if she were surprised to be laughing, but she didn’t stop laughing.</p> <p>Sharon was a mentor to those that entered the program after her. Other new teachers looked to her for support and encouragement. I looked to her as well. When I taught a new class, one that she was a specialist in, I sought her counsel when designing my syllabus. That created a tradition among us—we always talked at the start of the semester as we planned our classes. Throughout the semester, we’d continue to touch base and provide each other with moral support for the daily stresses of teaching.</p> <p>I wish that I knew Sharon better. We did not see each other often outside of work. I consider her my friend, but I know that I was only a very small part of her rich life.</p> <p>Last spring, the announcement came through that she had been diagnosed with cancer. I spoke with a mutual friend and learned the type of cancer—clear cell ovarian. The diagnosis was a bad one—clear cell cancer is terribly difficult to treat. After her diagnosis, I was only able to speak with her once. We traded teaching stories, as that was the primary thing we shared. I am glad that we talked, and I want to remember that conversation.</p> <p>I did not see her in person after her diagnosis. I am ashamed of this.</p> <p>Sharon passed away in mid-December, less than a year after her diagnosis. She was a Catholic, and her memorial was held at a beautiful Catholic church where her daughter had received her first communion.</p> <p>I cried throughout the memorial. Tears dripped down my face. I could not stop them. It was not a noisy cry—the tears just leaked out.</p> <p>I am incredibly sad that I will not have more time with Sharon. We will not talk about teaching again. I am more sad that we didn’t have a chance to grow our friendship further outside of our shared work. I regret losing a future of friendship with her. As someone that also lost her mother when I was a teenager, I have an incredible sense of sympathy for her daughter. I never imagined what it would be like to be on the sideline of this sort of situation—to find myself in the position once held by my own mother’s friends. Sadly, since I am not close to Sharon’s daughter, I don’t know how to reach out to her and help her.</p> <p>Sharon was a wonderful person, and I hope that her memory will live long after she has passed. I will do what I can to keep that memory alive.</p> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-50865038153172010772013-09-13T13:29:00.001-04:002013-09-13T13:29:00.149-04:00Review: The Companions<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18134282'><img alt='The Companions' border='0' src='http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1372353225m/18134282.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18134282'>The Companions</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1023510'>R.A. Salvatore</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/690502634'>3 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> I received a copy of this title for review from Netgalley.<br /><br />This is the first book by R.A. Salvatore that I've ever read, and I can understand this popularity better now. My husband has long been a fan of his, but I've found Salvatore intimidating because there are simply so many titles in his series. Thankfully, <i>The Companions</i> was a good entry point into the series.<br /><br />As the novel opens, several characters meet again for the first time. They have all apparently died at one time or another, and they are in what seems to be a resting place before their final destination. They are offered a choice: they can go to the reward promised to them by their god, or they can choose to be reborn. Their friend Drizzt needs them, and if they choose rebirth, they will be able to be there for him.<br /><br />The four friends--the Companions of the Hall--debate whether they want to return to life or seek out that final reward. What will it mean to turn their backs on the reward? What will their new lives be like?<br /><br />Without getting too spoilery, I can't share much more detail. The novel follows the new lives these characters lead. They are reborn as infants, but with full memory and personality. While they may still see themselves as their past lives, their new lives and relationships will shape this new incarnation of themselves. How much can they hold onto the past? How can they live this new life, knowing that they're simply waiting to resume the old life that had died long ago?<br /><br />Parts of this book did confuse me. The novel was quite clear about when the events were occurring; Salvatore provided both year names and numbers. However, since I'm unfamiliar with the Forgotten Realms calendar, neither of them mean much to me. I'm certain that I missed allusions to places and events that would have been quite meaningful for a fan of the series.<br /><br />Salvatore's writing did irritate me a little. He's overly fond of exclamation marks, but I did adapt to that eventually.<br /><br />Overall, I liked this book and found it to be a surprisingly deep and entertaining story.<br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/690502634'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-13734833404805806182013-09-08T17:03:00.001-04:002013-09-08T17:03:49.837-04:00Review: All These Things I've Done<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9858517'><img alt='All These Things I've Done' border='0' src='http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1316730655m/9858517.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9858517'>All These Things I've Done</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/40593'>Gabrielle Zevin</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/209577149'>3 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> This was an enjoyable book, but I hesitate to say much more than that about it. While it was a fun read, I found it a little too uneven for my taste. The writing style is relatively easy to read, which would indicate a younger audience, but the content (mafioso style executions, lust) was perhaps a bit much for that audience. Further, I wasn't certain I could buy into the concept of the story.<br /><br />Anya lives in a future New York--about 60 years into the future. Her grandmother would have been one of today's teens. She, her older brother, her little sister, and her dying grandmother live together in an old penthouse. Anya's father was a leader of a crime family that dealt in illegal chocolate, and he was murdered by unknown persons. Her mother was also killed in a hit--a hit which damaged Anya's older brother, Leo, leaving him mentally unable to achieve adulthood. The city is unstable, and so is Anya's family. While she wants nothing to do with the business, she gradually finds herself caught by the mere connection of sharing a name.<br /><br />The New York City of this novel is driven by scarcity. Water has been drying up, to the point where many lakes are dry, and it is expensive. Paper is taxed, although there seems to be enough to print all sorts of vouchers needed to buy luxury items like ice cream. Alcohol consumption is legal for all ages, but chocolate is banned. Dealing in chocolate is a serious crime. Speakeasies serve coffee at all hours.<br /><br />The problem of this book lies in its concept. For a futuristic society like this to work well, there needs to be a reason for the unreasonable. The ban on chocolate is both bizarre and unexplained. Anya explains that chocolate is addictive, but that's not a good reason to ban it. The idea that the government would suddenly ban chocolate, and that otherwise ordinary confectioners would become gangsters as a result, simply doesn't work well. Zevin's picture of high school classrooms doesn't function well, either. While I would agree that it's a mistake to measure the high school of this book against ours today, I had a very difficult time suspending my disbelief in order to accept that it was common for a school to offer three years of Forensic Science classes.<br /><br />While I did like the book, and I might look into borrowing the sequel, I did not like this book well enough to wholeheartedly recommend it to others.<br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/209577149'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-81956016880953703872013-09-04T21:52:00.001-04:002013-09-04T21:54:29.750-04:00Say Nice Things About Detroit: A Meditation"No one moves back to Hiroshima."*<br />
On my way to and from my classes this last week, I've listened to Scott Lasser's book, <em>Say Nice Things About Detroit</em>. It often irritated me more than most of the books I've read in years. <br />
<br data-mce-bogus="1" />
Let's
get one thing straight: I love Detroit. Admittedly, I don't live in
the city, so I haven't had to deal with the same problems the residents
of the city have had to confront. However, I've worked here for ten
years. At any time after those first four years or so, I could have
easily taken a job elsewhere. But I haven't. Part of the reason for
that is the fact that I love Detroit. It's an amazing city. When I
first arrived in the city in 2002, it was in the middle of an "up
swing," and the city was filled with hope. The years when Dennis Archer
was mayor had been good years, and Kwame Kilpatrick had only just taken
office. He was a charismatic leader, and it really seemed possible
that Detroit was turning around. Seemed is the operative word there.
What I didn't know at the time was that Detroit feeds on those cycles of
hope. Every few years, things will look better here, but then they'll
go downhill again. If not for the cycles of hope, the city would have
collapsed long ago. Some might think that it's collapsed now. The
bankruptcy is all over the news (both nationally and internationally--my
friend in Vienna learned about it on her local news). Some are trying
to say that the bankruptcy is the ultimate proof that Detroit has fallen
for good. Others are trying to spin it that this is what will restore
the city. For me, I just see it as another stage in the cycle. This is
a dark stage, yes, but I think the riots may have been darker. Why do I
love this city if I can say such things about it? Well, simply, I love
the fact that, no matter how bad things are, Detroit doesn't give up.
That cycle of hope is addictive, and I find myself always thinking that
Detroit can still have a prosperous future. It won't look like the
prosperity of the past, but that's probably a good thing.<br />
<br />
How
does all this relate to that passage from the book? Well, that passage
offended me. It's from the point of view of David, one the main
characters of the novel. He's a 45-year-old lawyer, and his father has
invited him to move back to Detroit. His first response is think that
there's nothing in the city for him or for anyone else. For him, the
destruction of Detroit is similar to that of Hiroshima, the first city
destroyed by a nuclear bomb. After the bomb struck Hiroshima, thousands
of people continued to die due to the radiation given off by the
buildings themselves. The city was toxic and damaged those that tried
to live in it. Except that's not the end of the story. The city
rebuilt itself. There's a park dedicated to peace in the city near the
site of Ground Zero. It's now a vibrant city, rebuilt from the rubble
of the bomb.<br />
<br data-mce-bogus="1" />
While looking at the
comparison that way makes Detroit seem better--as if it, too, can
recover like Hiroshima has--I still don't like the metaphor. Detroit is
not broken, for one thing. It's struggling, yes. It's dangerous,
yes. But even though much of it has been abandoned, it is not broken.
The damage to Hiroshima was sudden and stunning. The damage to Detroit
has been creeping and slow, with a sudden boost of speed during and
after the riots. If it had been fast, we might have been able to "fix"
it already.<br />
<br data-mce-bogus="1" />
Eventually, David does decide
to return to Detroit. He falls in love with the city again, and readers
are supposed to think that hope has returned to the city with him
(after all, he now has a baby son and an American car). What Lasser
might not realize is that his hero was just another part of that same
old cycle. Hope, followed by despair. Followed by hope . . .<br />
<br data-mce-bogus="1" />
*I listened to this an audiobook, so I don't have a page or chapter information for the quotation.<br />
<br data-mce-bogus="1" />
Lasser, Scott. <em>Say Nice Things About Detroit: A Novel.</em> Narr. Kevin Kenerly. Blackstone Audio, 2012.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-54243271221910849022013-08-28T14:47:00.000-04:002013-08-28T14:47:04.915-04:00New BeginningsAs the semester resumes tomorrow, I've decided to use this blog as a part of my class. <br />
<br />
Students in two of my classes have been assigned "commonplace reading blogs." These blogs will work much like the commonplace books of the colonial period in America. In those historic documents, readers would write down various thoughts and proverbs they found important in their reading. As this is a writing assignment, I am asking my students to write down a quotation that they find compelling. They will also then take that a step further by writing their thoughts on that quotation. This is not a response to the quote so much as a meditation upon it.<br />
<br />
Whenever possible, I will also complete a commonplace blog entry and post it here. I will also continue to post any book reviews that I feel have merit enough to display beyond goodreads.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-12103146253660257342013-05-23T19:23:00.001-04:002013-05-23T19:23:47.206-04:00Review: A Spear of Summer Grass<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16074560'><img alt='A Spear of Summer Grass' border='0' src='http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1356914412m/16074560.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16074560'>A Spear of Summer Grass</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/156327'>Deanna Raybourn</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/602130903'>4 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> This is an extremely difficult book to review. I'll try to make this review as spoiler-free as possible. Most of the details I need to engage with are at the level of setting rather than plot, so that should not be to much of a problem with plot spoilers.<br /><br />It tries to find a position for itself among very troubling imperialist (and racist) fiction set in colonial Kenya without triggering so many of the elements that make those books unsettling for a modern audience. I'm not certain that it always succeeds.<br /><br />I am not an expert on Kenyan (or African) fiction by any means. I have taken classes on African fiction, and the professor that taught those classes was a Fulbright scholar that taught in Kenya. With that history, I started reading this book aware of the complicated position in which it is situated.<br /><br />Delilah Drummond, our heroine, is a scion of two wealthy families--Louisiana planters and British gentry. Her mother is scandalous, having been married and divorced several times. Edith Wharton's fiction was written at the same time in which this novel is set, and Wharton was strongly interested in studying the changing attitudes toward divorce among American and European aristocracy. Delilah's mother, using Wharton's fiction as a guide to history, would then be something of an outlier--freely marrying and divorcing several times before it was even potentially acceptable. Delilah is scandalous as well. She is nearing 30 (if my estimates are correct), and she's been married three times. The last marriage ended in death and scandal, and her family decides that the best thing to do is to send her to Africa until the scandal dies down. In order to convince her to leave France, they threaten her allowance.<br /><br />Her poorer cousin, Dora (called Dodo) accompanies her as a chaperone--an ineffectual one at that. Once in Kenya, Delilah finds herself among people that she's known for years--other aristocrats that have been outcast by society. There's Kit, the painter with a insatiable sexual appetite. Rex and Helen are a married couple that understand the need to look to someone other than one's spouse at times. Others--Tusker, Jude, Anthony, and Ryder--are new to Delilah. There are missionaries and a few others as well. The society of wealthy white planters in Kenya is limited, so they all know each other well. <br /><br />The cover copy for the novel is quite clear that is the story of one woman's journey to find something that matters in life--something worthy of personal sacrifice. Delilah does not enter that journey willingly. She is, often, a repulsive character. Like Hemingway's characters, she has been scarred by World War I, and she disguises those scars with alcohol and sex.<br /><br />The problems with this novel start with the idea of a colonizer finding him/herself in a colony. That sort of story has long been a part of the imperialist project justifying the growth of empire. Isak Dineson's <i>Out of Africa</i> is one such book. Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, in his essay "Her Cook, Her Dog: Karen Blixen's Africa," outlines the racist attitudes that laid at the heart of Dineson's characterization of Africans. He states that the Africa of European fiction is especially dangerous due to its embedded racism and the beauty of its presentation which allows the racism to be swallowed unnoticed.<br /><br />Raybourn, on the other hand, tries to avoid the problem by presenting Delilah as a relatively enlightened woman willing to talk with and work beside Africans. She tries to learn native languages, including Swahili and Maas. The other characters (with the exception of Ryder) have slightly more historically accurate attitudes. Dodo, in particular, seems to embody the opinions of the establishment, as a chaperone should.<br /><br />The problems in the book get more complicated by the fact that the white settlers are agitating for independence from Britain, just as Rhodesia was able to become independent a few years prior. The opinions of the local tribespeople never enter into the matter. The characters all state the part of the reason that Britain doesn't want to release Kenya is due to the number of Indian shopkeepers that have settled in the colony to do business; therefore, one of the very minor characters is an extremely stereotypical Indian shopkeeper.<br /><br />Further, Ryder is the male lead for the book. He's a hunter, but he's not a "bad" hunter. He's not a hunter for profit, although he will lead safaris for the wealthy. Instead, he's more of a gameskeeper, worried about sustaining the viability of the African environment. When hunting, he only goes after man-killers and predators that attack livestock. He does not poach or hunt for ivory. He is, in a word, anachronistic. There may have been men like him in Kenya in 1923, but I don't think it's that likely. His respect for predators and the environment is based in modern knowledge about ecosystems, and I just can't see a hunter embracing some of the things he believes.<br /><br />Raybourn walks a number of fine lines in this book, to use a very old cliche. She wants to embrace the romance of living in a wild colonial environment without embracing the social structures and racism at the heart of imperialism. She wants to present a narrative of personal fulfillment in Africa without glorifying empire. I'm not certain that she succeeds at anything she tries to do in this novel.<br /><br />This is a well-written novel. Delilah is a complicated, rounded character. Ryder is less well-developed, but he's also not the heart of the book. Delilah is often unpleasant, but she's also fun with it. Her sarcasm is entertaining even as she cuts those nearest to her. The journey she makes--from debauched divorcee to something else--is powerful. As a novel, it functions well, and that's why I've given it four stars.<br /><br />That said, I'm not sure that there is a place for a novel of this kind, one that embraces and ultimately romanticizes the colonial past so thoroughly. I desperately hope this is not a new frontier in romance, as "captive narratives" set in eighteenth and nineteenth century America were in the 1980s. Raybourn's project in this novel is ambitious, but I'm not willing to say it was successful.<br /><br />I received a review copy of this book through the Goodreads First Reads giveaway program. <br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/602130903'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-13233872361192448312013-03-19T13:49:00.001-04:002013-03-19T13:49:51.485-04:00Review: Forever<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9917596'><img alt='Forever' border='0' src='http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1313346230m/9917596.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9917596'>Forever</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1330292'>Maggie Stiefvater</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/552192992'>3 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> Once again, I think Cole and Isabelle saved this book series.<br /><br />This time, I took an unfortunate week off of listening to this audiobook while I was on Spring Break. Without my Ridiculous Commute (TM) to and from work, I had no reason to listen, so I took a break in the early part of Disk 8. That break wound up being a problem, as it interupted the emotional connection I had with the book. By the time I listened to the last disks last night and this morning, I kept waiting impatiently for Cole and Isabelle to narrate, and I was getting impatient with them, too. After having taken a break from the book, when I went back to it, Cole's voice seemed too sly at times and it didn't sit well with my understanding of his character. Sam and Grace, as always, were just a little to earnest.<br /><br />A long time ago, I read a short story in [b:Tales of the Witch World Volume 3]. In the headnote to that story, the author explained how she got stuck while writing it. Unable to get the story moving, she resorted to an old writing trick and inserted a character that was just as disgusted with the events as the story as she was. Cole and Isabelle serve that function in the Shiver stories. While Sam and Grace's story is great in the first book, their constancy and devotion gets wearying to read. While I did find Grace's parents despicable, I almost sympathized with them for forbidding Grace to see Sam. They had their own reasons for doing so, but I thought that the fact that he made their daughter boring was perhaps one of them. Cole and Isabelle are the cynical foils to Sam and Grace's sweetness. As a critic once said of Fanny and Edmund in[b:Mansfield Park|45032|Mansfield Park|Jane Austen|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1309203298s/45032.jpg|2722329], I'd hate to go a dinner party at their house. Cole and Isabelle, on the other hand, would host great get-togethers.<br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/552192992'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-57450904520443925782013-03-16T16:40:00.001-04:002013-03-16T16:40:50.871-04:00Review: The Wadsworth Guide to Research<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8981907'><img alt='The Wadsworth Guide to Research' border='0' src='http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348355834m/8981907.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8981907'>The Wadsworth Guide to Research</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2823729'>Susan K. Miller-Cochran</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/502660156'>3 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> The approach to teaching students how to research is well-thought out and well-explained. At times, it is painfully simplistic, as students will have encountered thesis statements well before approaching a research project of this complexity. However, it does serve to reinforce what's been taught in other classes, so that isn't necessarily a bad thing.<br /><br />Unfortunately, the section on MLA format is atrocious. They create their own language for the documentation styles (concerned with whether or not an online source is "dynamic" or "stable," for instance). This language then becomes confusing as it does not match the vocabulary used in [b:The MLA Handbook|110592|The Penguin Handbook (MLA Update) (Paperbound)|Lester Faigley|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1171642224s/110592.jpg|1357283]. They fail to explain things like what to do when a source has more than three authors (there is no mention of "et al," and not a single example features its use!). <br /><br />While I liked parts of the book, especially the assignments, I am not certain that I would reuse it if given a choice.<br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/502660156'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-3132644094647451852013-02-14T23:10:00.001-05:002013-02-14T23:10:52.998-05:00Review: Shiver<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16041596'><img alt='Shiver' border='0' src='http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348398655m/16041596.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16041596'>Shiver</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1330292'>Maggie Stiefvater</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/529482441'>5 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> The first time I read this book, I adored it. However, it's been a few years since that first time, and I hadn't reread it in a long time.<br /><br />When the opportunity came to check out an audio edition of it from my local library, I jumped at the chance. I have a Ridiculous Commute (TM). Two days of the week, I drive three hours. The other two days, I drive two hours. Spending ten hours a week driving cuts into my reading time quite a bit, so I've been turning to audiobooks for the last year in order to give me the fiction fix that I need.<br /><br />Since this book has been out so long (and I'm fairly certain I wrote a review for the text version), this review is solely of the audiobook.<br /><br />This was one of the best audiobooks I've ever listened to. There are two narrators--one for Grace, and one for Sam. The Grace narrator has a suitably wistful tone to her voice, especially when she talks about "my wolf" in the first few chapters. The Sam narrator is also excellent. His voice lends a believable credibility to the character, making him seem slightly less emo. Sam's song lyrics are still rather obnoxious, and it would we nice if the narrator had actually sung at least one set of them ("Summer Girl," for example, since Sam the character sings that song in the book). Since I'm not musical, I can't look at lyrics and imagine the sound of them set to music very well.<br /><br />Overall, the performance of this book was top-notch. If you're only vaguely interested in this book, I'd recommend this audiobook to you. While I can't say that the audio was better than the book itself (so those that hate the book will likely still hate the audio), I can say that the audio minimizes the book's flaws nicely.<br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/529482441'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-3761973111618691052013-02-06T22:57:00.001-05:002013-02-06T22:57:14.952-05:00Review: Glass Houses<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6651531'><img alt='Glass Houses' border='0' src='http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328771199m/6651531.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6651531'>Glass Houses</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15292'>Rachel Caine</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/526673656'>4 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> I've loved this book ever since the first time I read it. It's been years since my last reread, though, and when I saw that my library had an mp3 copy available for download, I was thrilled. (Not only are mp3 audio difficult to find, but since they're the only kind that my library will lend that works with my iPhone, I couldn't help but be excited.)<br /><br />After listening to this book over the course of a week, I remembered all over again just why I love the series so much. The narrator was slightly irritating (her Michael voice was Terrible), but I was able to let that go after a while. Overall, I was happy to visit the beginning of Morganville again.<br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/526673656'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-15776908458330153562013-01-21T15:07:00.001-05:002013-01-21T15:17:02.624-05:00Review: The Duke Is Mine<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12046062" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px;"><img alt="The Duke Is Mine" border="0" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1323541100m/12046062.jpg" /></a><br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12046062">The Duke Is Mine</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/86778">Eloisa James</a><br />
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My rating: <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/513028460">3 of 5 stars</a><br />
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This book as a test case for me, to see if I really did like Eloisa James. The cover did nothing for me, and the cover copy wasn't interesting either. The fact that this was a retelling of "The Princess and the Pea" didn't do anything for me, either. I'd always disliked that story. According to James' afterward, there's apparently a pun in the story that I missed as a child and never considered as an adult. (With the pun, Andersen's story does improve.) Susan Palwick's version of the story, "The Real Princess," asks readers to question what "sinister motives" might lie behind a man's search for a woman so delicate that a pea beneath so many mattresses could bruise her. Once that story was in my head, I was never able to let it go, and I came to hate "The Princess and the Pea." (Palwick's story is collected in <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/371638.Ruby_Slippers_Golden_Tears">Ruby Slippers, Golden Tears</a>.)<br />
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You can see I came to this story will all sorts of baggage. I used that baggage to determine if I liked James well enough to trust her with material that did not initially seem appealing. She did a wonderful job with it. James wove the fairy tale in and out of the story expertly, and she did it in such a way that it rarely felt forced. Her language was typically fun and engaging, mixing anachronisms like the phrase "wardrobe malfunction" in with references to contemporary fiction like <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12923.The_Castle_of_Otranto">The Castle of Otranto</a>. Her heroine was expertly drawn. Olivia was in a difficult position, betrothed to a man that she could not love, but her honor forced her to accept her fate. When she has a real chance at love, rather than chasing it down, she tries to make everyone else happy. Her self sacrifice is almost absurd, but she's been trained all of her life to be a representative of the best sort of nobility. While her parents believe that the training has not stuck, they cannot see just how deeply it is ingrained in her.<br />
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I've now come to the conclusion that James is awesome. Not all of her books are five stars for me, but I can trust her to create heroines that I care about, to be playful with anachronisms and allusions, to be the sort of romance writer that I wholeheartedly enjoy.<br />
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/513028460">View all my reviews</a><div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-2294173211536223372013-01-08T22:27:00.001-05:002013-01-08T22:27:36.795-05:00RADThe university where I work is hosting yet another "Rape Aggression Defense" class. <br />
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I am well and thoroughly sick of this shit.<br />
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Earlier tonight, I read a thoughtful blog post from Seanan McGuire where she explained why she will not write a scene where her characters are raped. (Google the post--it's worth reading.) I applaud her stance. I'm sick of the rape that fills urban fantasy novels, as if the only way that a woman can be a strong character is because her body has been violated. McGuire's post got me thinking about rape again, and the email from my university just made me even angrier.<br />
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I'm sick of this shit.<br />
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I hate the idea of rape defense classes because they put the burden of preventing rape on the victim. You know what the leading cause of rape is? It's not walking alone at night, failing to protect a drink at a party, or wearing a short skirt. <br />
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The leading cause of rape is a rapist.<br />
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Instead of classes telling our young woman how to defend themselves, we should be teaching how to not rape. That sounds silly, doesn't it? How to not rape. Part of the problem with hosting a class like this is that it acknowledges that anyone can be a rapist. Women can be rapists, too, although that's not something that we really talk about too much. It all depends on the definition of rape. Just over a year ago, the FBI updated its <a href="http://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/attorney-general-eric-holder-announces-revisions-to-the-uniform-crime-reports-definition-of-rape">definition </a>of rape. Now, the definition reads: “The penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any
body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another
person, without the consent of the victim.” As you can see, anyone can be a rapist--no penis required. This new definition is not perfect, but it's a start.<br />
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Part of the problem with teaching how not to rape is that issue of consent. The new FBI definition allows the states to establish what consent means as a matter of statute. From a legal perspective, that's fine. The problems occur outside of a courtroom, when rape is occurring.<br />
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Instead of teaching women how to defend themselves against strangers in the dark, we should be teaching everyone about consent, what it means, and how to respect it. We should be teaching people to only have sex with someone that says "YES!" enthusiastically. Instead of "no means no," we should teach "yes means yes." When someone is at all hesitant and not saying "YES!" that should be an absolute stop sign. Not a yield. Not a "well, let me convince you." We need to teach people to seek out partners that say "yes."<br />
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If you want to play consent games, that's one thing. However, that's something that you do with a partner after having established that both of you agree to the consent games (which, in and of itself, is a form of consent that can be revoked at any time).<br />
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That gets us back to the issue of rape again. Part of the problem with rape is that it's a crime defined by the victim. Only s/he knows whether or not s/he consented. Despite what some people want to believe, there are very very few false accusations of rape. The problem is that a victim can perceive that s/he has been raped but it may not fit the legal definition of rape (bringing us back to that legal issue again) or the evidence may not be enough to convict someone in a court of law. When the district attorneys choose not to press charges, that does not mean that rape did not occur. It means that they don't think they could win in court.<br />
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Since rape is a victim-defined crime, it is entirely possible for someone to rape another person without realizing it. That's where this idea of teaching people not to rape comes into play. It's a way to make all of us--men and women--aware of our partner's (or partners') needs. It's a way to make certain that everyone engaged in sexual activities is willing to do so and to cut down on regret. (Regret and rape are not the same thing. People often try to confuse them in order to lessen the legitimate emotional burden that comes with rape. But that's another blog post.) <br />
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It's time to stop telling victims that they could have prevented the rape if only they'd done something differently or fought just a bit harder. <br />
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That shit doesn't work.<br />
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It's time to talk to the potential rapists out there. Which, honestly, can be any one of us.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-56422880204967948242013-01-05T21:14:00.001-05:002013-01-05T21:14:27.502-05:00Review: The Bandit King<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13521312'><img alt='The Bandit King' border='0' src='http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1339068570m/13521312.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13521312'>The Bandit King</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/131208'>Lilith Saintcrow</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/295940924'>4 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> I really liked this book despite having several reservations about it.<br /><br />As the teaser at the back of [b:The Hedgewitch Queen|11287858|The Hedgewitch Queen (Romances of Arquitaine, #1 )|Lilith Saintcrow|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1319587813s/11287858.jpg|16215244] implied, this novel was entirely from Tristan's point of view. I don't want to get into spoilers, so I can't discuss the plot in any meaningful way.<br /><br />What I can say is that this novel changed the way I thought about Tristan. After finishing it, I went back and did a quick reread of <i>HQ</i>, and I could see that he does display behavior that provides clues into his thoughts. However, in that book, Vianne is too innocent to read him, and since it's told in a tight first person format, her POV is all that we get. In <i>BK</i>, the situation is reversed, and we're stuck in Tristan's head. While I didn't find it a problem in the first book, this time, I had a a very difficult time with the restriction. It could be because I didn't like Tristan so well as I did Vianne, but I'm not certain. At the very least, I wanted to understand her thoughts.<br /><br />This novel also forced me to question the nature of love and obsession. That's something that I tend to focus on in any romance, but it was strongly evident here. Just how much does Tristan love anyone? Why does he love Vianne?<br /><br />I don't think the book really answers those questions, which is part of the reason why I think I like it so much. Despite understanding himself very well, and having few blind-spots when it comes to his understanding of the world, Tristan is not perfect. He is extremely flawed, and not everything is wrapped up in a bow at the end. That's a good thing.<br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/295940924'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-77784120222281947532012-08-21T12:36:00.001-04:002012-08-21T12:36:02.493-04:00Review: Kitty's Big Trouble<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9647626'><img alt='Kitty's Big Trouble' border='0' src='http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1312075633m/9647626.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9647626'>Kitty's Big Trouble</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8988'>Carrie Vaughn</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/136284680'>4 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> This is yet another good book in the Kitty Norville series.<br /><br />In this one, Kitty has started to wonder more and more about the history of weres and how they may have been a part of human history. She introduced her suspicions about General Sherman in the first book, and her questions about his nature have continued to bother her. Even though they're supportive, Ben and Kitty's friends don't really understand her obsession with history. But that's part of the nature of werewolves--since they can't have children and all werewolves are therefore "made," the potential to pass down legends and history is impaired. Vampires are also "made," but they have strong Family relationships that create bonds and enemies among their own kind.<br /><br />Just as Kitty touches on some fascinating clues to a history of supernaturals, she finds herself distracted and en route to San Fransisco. Anastasia has called asking for help--she's on the track of a powerful artifact, but so is Roman. Anastasia needs Kitty's help to make certain that it does not fall into Roman's hands. Of course, Kitty agrees to help. And, of course, the situation becomes much more dangerous than she realized.<br /><br />Over the course of the series, Kitty has become one of my true favorite characters. She's smart, and her constant desire to know more keeps me coming back for more. She has grown and changed from a puppy to something else altogether, something mature and strong. I can't wait to read the next book and learn what those changes will mean.<br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/136284680'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-66057555732780370022012-07-24T12:39:00.001-04:002012-07-24T12:39:11.703-04:00Review: The Taken<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12925631'><img alt='The Taken' border='0' src='http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1321145617m/12925631.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12925631'>The Taken</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/137386'>Vicki Pettersson</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/375519186'>3 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> I liked this book, and found the protagonists appealing. However, I also had a few major complaints, which are also spoilers. They also deserve a trigger warning, I think. <br /><br />If you want to find out, read on: <spoiler> To help explain my objections to this book, it might be useful for you to know that I'm not a Christian. I do not practice any faith, so I do not claim any either. However, I was raised in a Catholic household, and I'm a scholar of the Gothic. As a scholar, I have seen the way that those books demonized the Catholic faith. In the early nineteenth century in England, Catholics and Jews were dangerous others that did not deserve full voting rights. Convents were depicted as merciless jails where families imprisoned their daughters against their will. Superstition ran rampant. According to those Gothic writers, no Catholic was logical. It pains me to see such religious stereotypes still in use today--although now our Christian other is the Mormon.<br /><br />Here's the big spoiler: the villain is a Mormon politician. (The timing of the book's publication is also therefore suspect--I can say this as someone that doesn't even like Romney.) The big problem with Pettersson's portrayal of her Mormon villain is that she also makes him sexually deviant. He is a polygamist and runs what amounts to a sexual bacchanal in his basement. Pettersson is playing with the worst stereotypes of Mormons--the idea that they're polygamists and that they allow others to sexually abuse their daughters. This is the modern version of the Gothic stereotype of a priest using a convent as his personal supply of women. She does try to clarify that her villain is unique and not representative of all Mormons by having a trusted character as a Mormon as well. However, that character is only outed as Mormon at the very end of the book, and readers never see how his faith shapes his character at all.<br /><br />Finally, I was disturbed by the emphasis on rape throughout the book. <b>More big spoilers ahead!</b> It is a constant threat, although one that is downplayed often. I want to say that Pettersson wrote about rape with the appropriate gravity, but the more I think about the book, the less I can justify that stance. Despite realizing that she was almost the victim of a sexual assault, the female protagonist seems to have no reaction to the event. She moves out of her house (temporarily) for safety, but that isn't traumatic either. My home was burglarized years ago, and I dealt with it very well. Even without the physical assault (no one was there when the thieves broke into my home), I still had more mental trauma than Kit did after a physical assault--within her bedroom--that almost became sexual. Also, the "rape festival" (pardon the name--I can't think of any other way to describe it) at the end of the book is just too much. A number of unnamed but respected citizens engage in an auction to buy a pubescent teen's virginity (against her will) and sit back to watch a gang rape as pre-auction entertainment. Of course, everyone is saved and nothing bad happens. I can't help but think that it's just too easy. Sexual danger is a constant part of paranormal fiction, but it's frequently invoked only because the idea of it is horrific. If a writer is unwilling to go through the follow through--the recovery, the work to heal and regain trust in others--writers need to stop using rape or the threat of rape as a plot device.</spoiler><br /><br />I do think I will read the next book in the series, as my complaints are likely to apply to this book and this book only. I do wish that I didn't have them at all though. <br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/375519186'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-66660188341813767212012-07-14T21:32:00.001-04:002012-07-14T21:32:04.956-04:00Review: A Discovery of Witches<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8667848'><img alt='A Discovery of Witches' border='0' src='http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1322168805m/8667848.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8667848'>A Discovery of Witches</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3849415'>Deborah Harkness</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/153775929'>4 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> This book is everything I'd hoped Kostova's <i>The Historian</i> would be, and more. <br /><br />As an academic, I'm nervous whenever a read a book featuring an academic as a protagonist. I'm sure most people feel the same way whenever they read books that cover a subject they know well. Despite my anxiety, I gave this book a chance in October of 2011, and I'm glad I did that. Deborah Harkness is an academic as well, and her knowledge of the field, as well as her incredible writing, created a book that is both rich and exciting. Having finished the book a second time, I think it's finally time for me to write a review.<br /><br />Diana Bishop is a witch, one that doesn't use magic. Or, she tries not to, unless absolutely necessary as when the washer nearly flooded her home. But that was an emergency, you understand. She comes from a long line of witches, a line that began with Bridget Bishop in Salem. However, having turned her back on magic, she is a tenured professor at Yale. As the book opens, she's on sabbatical at Oxford, researching very old alchemical texts in preparation for a conference presentation. One of the books she requests from the Bodeleian is far more than it appears, and once she lays hands on it, suddenly seemingly every creature in Oxford is watching her.<br /><br />There are three groups of creatures: witches, daemons, and vampires. All of them pass for humans and live among them, but each group is quite different. This book that Diana found is very important to all of them, each for different reasons. Some believe it has the answers on how to kill the others. Some believe it presents their origin story. Some want to prevent it from fall into the hands of others.<br /><br />Shortly after discovering the book, Diana meets the vampire Matthew. He, too, is interested in the book, but his motives become increasingly murky. <br /><br />This is a fabulous novel. Harkness understands the fever that drives an academic researcher. As I read the book, I, too, wanted to touch the old books that Diana reads. Her obsessions became mine. The novel starts slowly, but the intensity builds steadily. By the end of the book, everything is happening at a seemingly breakneck pace.<br /><br />I fear this poor review simply cannot do justice to the book; its layers of history and characters are too complicated to lay bare in a short review. <br /><br />I reread it in order to prepare myself to read the second book. Now I find myself gripped with a fever again--I must know the end of this story! It's not enough to say that I'm excited; I am absorbed.<br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/153775929'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-44726725121077266302012-07-11T14:00:00.001-04:002012-07-11T14:00:35.565-04:00Review: The Book of Tomorrow: A Novel<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8493839'><img alt='The Book of Tomorrow: A Novel' border='0' src='http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1301846950m/8493839.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8493839'>The Book of Tomorrow: A Novel</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7116'>Cecelia Ahern</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/365512083'>4 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> I finally finished a book by [a:Cecilia Ahern|5781141|Cecilia Ahern|http://www.goodreads.com/assets/nophoto/nophoto-U-50x66.jpg]! And it was good!<br /><br />I've tried to read Ahern's books before. I tried both [b:Thanks for the Memories|2410506|Thanks For The Memories|Cecelia Ahern|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1328019535s/2410506.jpg|2417683] and [b:Love Rosie|147865|Love, Rosie|Cecelia Ahern|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1306050450s/147865.jpg|3423015], but I couldn't finish them. For some reason, I bogged down in the middle of the book, and it simply could not hold my interest. Still, I could tell that Ahern was a very good writer, and I kept giving her books a chance because I knew that one of them would work for me eventually.<br /><br />This one was it.<br /><br />It's the story of Tamara Goodwin, a very self centered sixteen-year-old. She's a brat, and she knows it. As the first person narrator of the book, she's looking back on her recent life and able to condemn the choices she makes, so we know right off that she shouldn't be a jerk by the end of the book. Something is going to happen in the meantime that will allow her to see herself for the first time.<br /><br />As the novel opens, Tamara's father kills himself after losing his fortune in bad investments. Suddenly poor, Tamara and her mother move in with Tamara's Uncle Arthur and Aunt Roseleen. Shortly after their arrival, Tamara begins to see that something is desperately wrong. Her mother goes catatonic, speaking in simple phrases and unable to leave her bedroom. Roseleen says that it's just grief, but Tamara thinks she needs help. The house is increasingly tense, and then Tamara finds a book at the local mobile library that changes everything. It's a journal, except that someone is writing in it. That someone seems to be Tamara from one day ahead. Suddenly able to know the consequences of her actions, Tamara finds herself adapting and changing her future . . . and herself.<br /><br />This was a truly magical novel and everything I'd hoped it would be. <br /><br />Considering the age of the narrator, I'd think this book should be shelved in YA, but most bookstores shelf it with Ahern's other fiction for adults. It's possible that they consider it too literary for teens, which is a shame. I think this book is an excellent introduction to the world of good fiction, a way to bridge the gap from books like [b:Hush Hush|6339664|Hush, Hush (Hush, Hush, #1)|Becca Fitzpatrick|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1311064637s/6339664.jpg|6525609] to fiction written for adults. I recommend it highly.<br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/365512083'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-7398061418561214922012-07-10T14:55:00.001-04:002012-07-10T14:55:49.590-04:00Review: The Girl of Fire and Thorns<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11510639'><img alt='The Girl of Fire and Thorns' border='0' src='http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1311052437m/11510639.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11510639'>The Girl of Fire and Thorns</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4074051'>Rae Carson</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/180035882'>5 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> I loved every page of this novel.<br /><br />[a:Tamora Pierce|8596|Tamora Pierce|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1209044273p2/8596.jpg] gave it a blurb, and she's never led me wrong yet. If you like adventurous fantasy featuring Girls that Do Things (to use [a:Robin McKinley|5339|Robin McKinley|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1314406026p2/5339.jpg]'s term, you'll love this book. The ebook version is currently $2.99. I don't know how long such a good deal will last. If I were you, I'd grab this one up.<br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/180035882'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-34561242578729912372012-06-20T17:12:00.001-04:002012-06-20T17:12:34.085-04:00Review: Bitterblue<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12680907'><img alt='Bitterblue' border='0' src='http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1331532273m/12680907.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12680907'>Bitterblue</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1373880'>Kristin Cashore</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/352286093'>5 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> This was a brilliant addition to the Graceling Realm series. I don't want to say too much about it, as I'd rather have people read it for themselves. What I can say is this: the book is a long meditation on what it means to heal and move forward. <br /><br />I've always been drawn to fantasy for the characters. It seems to me that a fantasy must have psychologically real characters at its base in order to allow for the suspension of disbelief for the world in which the story is set. If the characters and the world have nothing real in them, then the book adds very little to the world. For all that the Graceling Realm is quite odd, the characters themselves are quite human. I love that Cashore recognized that Monsea and Bitterblue would need to fight in order to heal. Overall, I found this book to be excellent, and I recommend it highly. <br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/352286093'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-17969839607444869442012-06-19T19:26:00.001-04:002012-06-19T19:26:31.664-04:00Review: A Monster Calls<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8621462'><img alt='A Monster Calls' border='0' src='http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1331787035m/8621462.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8621462'>A Monster Calls</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/370361'>Patrick Ness</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/351506816'>5 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> You've been warned. If you're reading this review, that means you clicked the spoiler button and are willing to know about what happens in this book. If you don't want to know, stop reading. If you don't want to read about my incredibly personal reaction to this book, stop reading.<br /><br />Ok, then.<br /><br />I loved this book. It made me cry, and it made me miss my mom.<br /><br />My mom died on July 28th, 1990. She was 42. I was 14. It was a heart attack, a very sudden death. She had a chronic illness, but we never expected her to pass without warning the way that she did. I never got to say goodbye. I had a migraine that day when we were visiting my grandparents. I went into the guest room to sleep it off, and my grandfather and sister didn't bother to wake me when they took mom to the doctor's office. She passed away en route.<br /><br />Reading this book, I remembered the impotent rage, the feeling of separation from peers, the fear about the future. It was all so real and true that I felt like breaking something, too.<br /><br />I hope this book finds its way into the hands of those children and teens and adults that need it. We need it not only when we lose someone but also just to understand our own nature and the importance of what we do. <br /><br />I loved this book.<br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/351506816'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27552854.post-17746885160166018162012-06-13T18:53:00.001-04:002012-06-13T18:53:59.440-04:00Review: Fair Game<br /> <a style='float: left; padding-right: 20px' href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11480917'><img alt='Fair Game' border='0' src='http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1309650058m/11480917.jpg'/></a><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11480917'>Fair Game</a> by <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/40563'>Patricia Briggs</a><br/><br /> My rating: <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/347389047'>4 of 5 stars</a><br /> <br/><br/><br /> After the "hero takes on monster and wins, despite intense physical and/or emotional pain" format of the last few Mercy or Anna books, it was nice to read this one. Not only was it formatted as more of a mystery than the other books have been lately, but it also advanced the plot within the shared Mercy & Anna world. Finally. Things are changing, and no one can continue to ignore that fact.<br /><br /><spoiler>This book might have been five stars, if not for the sexual violence. Rape and/or threats of rape have popped up too often in Briggs' most recent books, and I'm not comfortable with that at all. While Briggs does write about it well, and the attacks do have lasting psychological effects on the survivors, I'm still not pleased to see it being used so often as a plot device. Not everything is about rape, and I don't want all of Briggs' books to be about it, either.</spoiler><br /> <br/><br/><br /> <a href='http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/347389047'>View all my reviews</a><br /> <div class="blogger-post-footer">Gothic Thoughts</div>Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17965637730234169527noreply@blogger.com0