Jane Litte's Blog, page 955

REVIEW: Tea and Spices by Nina Lane

Dear Ms. Lane,

Your novel was discussed in the comment thread to Kim T.’s post about South Asian romances. I discovered the ebook version after a bit of digging, since my first hit was on the paperback version, which you published under the name “Nina Roy.” While the blurb made me a little skeptical (“revolt is seething in the loins of the colonial settlement” sounds painful rather than appealing), I downloaded the sample and was intrigued. The Kindle sample offers the first two chapters, in w...

REVIEW: Bring Him Home by Karina Bliss

Dear Ms. Bliss:

Your last few books have had a sort of a madcap adventure feel to them and so “Bring Him Home” is a change in tone and pace. It deals with grief and recovery and discovery and relies less on external conflict and more on the internal changes that the leads experience.

Nathan Wyatt found a family in his SAS brothers but when their convoy was hit in an ambush, one of the men that held the group together becomes mortally injured. Nate has the choice of staying with his best friend,...

Friday Film Review: The Incredibly True Adventures of 2 Girls in Love

The Incredibly True Adventures of 2 Girls in Love (1995)

Genre: YA GLBT

Grade: C+

It’s hard to find good GLBT movies without some guidance as to what’s worth it and what’s dreck. As such, I often go with average ratings at sites like Netflix and IMDB. “2 Girls in Love” is a movie that has overall average ratings (which is still better than some of the 2 star ones other films have) so that’s why I picked it to try.

Randy Dean (Laurel Holloman) is a tomboy who works part time at her aunt’s gas stat...

REVIEW: On the Island by Tracy Garvis-Graves

Dear Ms. Garvis-Graves,

I picked up your book because it is everywhere lately. The concept of the teen boy-older woman romance is pretty repellant to me, but over 700 positive reviews on Amazon for a self-published book told me I should give this one a try. I read it, and I can see why it appeals so much. It’s a quick, easy read with a sweet romantic storyline at the center. If you’re looking for something soothing and nice, this is the book for you. If you are looking for controversy, keep lo...

Thursday Midday Links: Apple files motion to dismiss in DOJ case, Pondering the phrase “shit eating grin”, & a few deals

There isn’t much happening in the book world today. Apple has filed its motion to dismiss in the DOJ suit. Obviously Cotes will deny this motion but Apple has to make it in order to preserve its right to appeal.

Here’s some food for thought. McKenzie Walton tweeted this the other day “One of my least favorite terms is ‘shit-eating grin’. Like, I don’t even know what that means. That’s GROSS.”

My god, she is so right.

In lieu of book news, here are some random links that might interest you:

Nick D...

REVIEW: The Anatomy of Death (aka A Dissection of Murder) by Felicity Young

“At the turn of the twentieth century, London’s political climate is in turmoil, as women fight for the right to vote. Dody McCleland has her own battles to fight. As England’s first female autopsy surgeon, she must prove herself as she proves that murder treats everyone equally.

After a heated women’s rights rally turns violent, an innocent suffragette is found murdered. When she examines the body, Dody McCleland is shocked to realize that the victim was a friend of her sister – fuelling her...

REVIEW: Darkest Caress by Kaylea Cross

Dear Ms. Cross:

The first book I read of yours was a contemporary romance which I enjoyed and hoped to see more of your work in that area. When your book, Darkest Caress, was released on NetGalley I was intrigued because it was not contemporary romance but instead, a paranormal. I am constantly on the lookout for a new paranormal author. While the work was competent, I think my tastes are too jaded at this point to find a competent story compelling.

[image error]Darkest Caress relies on the mate bond, an ol...

Wednesday Midday News: New publishing models; Amazon adds Paramount to Prime; BN to publish government ebooks

Say Books Online – digital publishing Say Books – “Say Books is a digital publishing services company in Auckland, New Zealand. We work with self-publishing authors who want to create and market ebooks, we offer digital publishing consultancy services to publishing companies, and we work with partners to create digital products and enhanced ebooks.”

Personal Note: One of the things Say Books created was a serialized ebook using the PressBooks platform. The PressBooks platform is a wordpress ba...

Debut Print Book: Coveted by Shawntelle Madison

I’ve had some concerns by readers who are primarily print readers that the coverage at Dear Author has been too focused on ebooks. When I asked the readers what they were interested in seeing, they responded that they would like to know more about print debut authors. We developed a little questionnaire and every Wednesday at 10:00 AM CST (as long as we have content) we’ll post the questionnaire answers along with links to the author’s site and a buy link to her book. I hope this helps people...

REVIEW: Spirit’s Princess by Esther Friesner

Dear Ms. Friesner,

I’ve never read any of your books but I’ve certainly heard of you. How could I not? Not only do you have a substantial backlist, you’ve had a long career. Recently, it seems like you’ve turned your attention towards YA retellings of mythological princesses. In this novel, you focus on Himiko, the shaman-queen of Yayoi era Japan.

[image error]Not much is known about the Yayoi period. My knowledge of Japanese history only goes back to the Heian era, and even the historical facts seemed to b...