Jane Litte's Blog, page 993

REVIEW: Gnome on the Range by Jennifer Zane

Dear Ms. Zane:

I am trying to a) read more self published books in hopes of finding overlooked gems and b) respond positively to more of the authors who take the time to write us and ask for a review.  Part of the review query process requires requesting authors to send in an excerpt, usually around 1,000 words. I read all those excerpts because the title, blurb and cover can be awful but a book is about the story, the writing, and I'll try to overlook the three things when I have the...

Friday Film Review: The Flame and the Arrow

The Flame and the Arrow (1950)

Genre: Adventure/Romance

Grade: Kinda depends

[image error]My recent review of The Crimson Pirate made me curious about TFATA. It had been years since I saw either film and I remember not liking this one *quite* as much as TCP. I found that I still liked TCP but what about TFATA? Would it stand up to a rewatch? The answer is I still feel the same about it. It's good but not quite as good for a couple of reasons. Still, it's a decent rainy day/Saturday afternoon flick.

Medieva...

REVIEW: Sex, Lies & Surveillance by Stephanie Julian

Dear Ms. Julian:

I liked the blurb for this book.  The heroine is the daughter of famous CIA agents who have retired. Janey DeMarco works in the family agency that does everything from surveillance to retrieval of kidnapped victims.  Their agency's services are wide ranging, almost too wide ranging in my opinion. I had a hard time getting a handle on exactly the nature of this agency as if it was deliberately opaque so that the agency would have the mutability to change according to the needs ...

Dear Bitches, Smart Authors Podcast, Episode No. 19

This was recorded when I was coming down with the flu and pneumonia, and I'm slightly out of breath – and coughing. I edited out most of the coughing but if I missed one, I apologize.

This episode includes Sarah's nefarious plans for Romantic Times in 2012 in Chicago, reader mail from Sarah's inbox about buying books, picking self published books for review and how we do it, pitching books for review and how not to do it, and reacting and responding to reviews. Jane also tries to recommend...

REVIEW: Shattered by Jennie Marsland

Dear Ms. Marsland,

When deciding on a romance novel to read, if there is something out of the ordinary about it, I'm more likely to give it a second glance. It still might not make the cut but it has a better chance. Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1917 with WWI still raging, a heroine hoping for a hero whom she never thought would be interested in her and a looming event which changed the town forever definitely is different.

[image error]In the six months since injured Liam Cochrane returned from the...

REVIEW: In Bed with a Stranger by India Grey

Dear Ms. Grey:

This is a sequel to the Craving the Forbidden (review here) and I thought it was interesting to take an established relationship, shake it up, and still convince the readers at the end that these two could be happy beyond the pages of the book.  Sophie Greenham fell in love with Kit Fitzroy after pretending to be his brother's fiancée.  Kit leaves for Aghanistan and when he returns, he is not the same person.  There is a bridge between the two that Sophie is unsure of how to...

Wednesday Deals and News: Apple Has Blowout Quarter & Social Media Out of Control

News

I think it is hard to say whether Apple can make inroads on textbooks, but schools are already looking for funds to increase iPad and laptop distribution throughout classes.  This infographic suggests that learning can be enhanced by technology but there are other studies that indicate the opposite.  Apple's success does not depend on the education sector.  It's 4th quarter financial results were beyond any analysts' estimations and make Apple one of, if not the most, profitable company i...

What Jennie's Been Reading

I haven't been finishing books that quickly lately; first the holidays interfered and then work interfered. I read and reviewed The Lost Book of Mala R. and Lily. Here's a rundown of what else I've been reading:

The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins: I started this on the recommendation of a friend; it's her favorite book. I'm about halfway through, and…it's good. I wouldn't say I love it the way my friend does, but it has a nice atmosphere to it. Wikipedia says it's an epistolary novel; I had ...

REVIEW: Her Rebel Heart by Shannon Farrington

"There was a time when Julia Stanton's fondest wish was to be Samuel Ward's wife. But that was before the war. As pro-Confederacy sentiments clash with the Union troops occupying Baltimore, fear and suspicion turn friends to foes. Julia chooses the Confederacy…Samuel does not. And his decision is one she's sure she'll never forgive.

Samuel would gladly give his life for Julia. Still, he cannot go against the certainty he feels that slavery is wrong—even after his beliefs cost him Julia's...

REVIEW: Skirmish by Michelle West

Dear Ms. West,

I love your books. Whether it's under this pseudonym or Michelle Sagara, I make sure to read them all. It's true that I find some more satisfying than others but I've never actually regretted picking any of them up. Given my growing disenchantment with the fantasy genre as a whole, this is a major point in your favor. So thank you for offering an early look at your latest fantasy novel. I'm sorry I wasn't able to get to it sooner and it in no way reflects upon the book or your w...