Marie August's Blog, page 22

Book Review: One Tiny Miracle by Carol Marinelli

Pretty good unwed-mother romance

One Tiny Miracle by Carol Marinelli

Reading Level: Adult Contemporary Romance
Release Date: March 1, 2010
Publisher: Harlequin Medical Romance
Pages: 192 pages
Source: Purchased
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Dr. Ben Richardson lost his beloved wife, a fellow doctor, and his unborn child four years ago, and he is still in mourning. He is making a new start at the emergency department at a hospital in Melbourne, Australia. Since being around pregnant women recalls traumatic memories, Ben is both drawn and repelled by his beautiful, extremely pregnant neighbor. Then he learns that Celeste is a nurse in his department at the hospital, and it is difficult to maintain his distance, either at work or at home. Celeste is clearly struggling financially and physically, and it is impossible for Ben to see how much she needs emotional support and not try to, at the very least, be a friend.

I'm not usually a fan of pregnancy romances, where the heroine is pregnant with another man's child when she meets the hero, but this book was free, and I thought I'd give it a try. I personally am a bit squeamish (and incredulous) when the hero is utterly turned on by the heroine's gestationally swollen figure, so I was relieved that in this book Ben and Celeste don't have sex until well after the baby is born. It is also nice that they are friends for a long time before they become lovers.

The romantic conflict of Ben's mourning his wife is movingly done, and Celeste is believably hurt and discouraged by the abandonment of her baby's father.

This is definitely a Cinderella story, and the heroine is so pathetically bad off, it is rather hard to read sometimes, but the hero nobly rides to her rescue on numerous occasions without being obnoxiously perfect or causing her to seem totally helpless.

All in all, this is a good read for people who like stories about an abandoned pregnant woman who finds true love.

The Kindle edition is well edited and formatted.

I rate this story as follows:

Heroine: 4

Hero: 4

Romance Plot: 4

Writing: 4

Overall: 4

Book Review: A McCree Christmas

Christmas with Chase and Briar in Florida

A McCree Christmas by J.C. Isabella
Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: December 6, 2012
Publisher: J.C. Isabella
Pages: 70 pages
Source: Purchased
Reviewed By:Kate McMurry

This short story provides another fun chance to spend time with Chase and Briar for those who have read Chasing McCree and enjoyed it. I grew quite fond of these highly sympathetic young lovers, and I'm one of the happy fans who snapped up this story. It takes place in Florida, where Briar and Chase have gone to spend Christmas with her family. The story events occur before the epilogue in Chasing McCree and subsequent to the events in The McCree's Star Spangled 4th.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
I rate this story as follows:

Heroine: 5

Hero: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Writing: 4

Romance Plot: 5

Setting: 5

Overall: 5

Book Review: The McCree's Star Spangled 4th

A nice chance to revisit Chase and Briar in Montana

The McCree's Star Spangled 4th by J.C. Isabella

Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: July 5, 2012
Pages: 35 pages
Source: Purchased
Reviewed By:Kate McMurry

For those who have read Chasing McCree and enjoyed it, this is a fun chance to revisit these highly sympathetic young lovers. This short story is set on the McCree family ranch in Montana. The events take place just before the epilogue in Chasing McCree and, as is apparent from the title, deal with the celebration of the Fourth of July.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
I rate this story as follows:

Heroine: 5

Hero: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Writing: 4

Romance Plot: 5

Setting: 5

Overall: 5

Book Review: Rose in Bloom by Louisa May Alcott

A treasured classic

Rose in Bloom (Eight Cousins, #2) by Louisa May Alcott

Release Date: 1876
Source: Purchased
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

This book a sequel to Eight Cousins. It was originally published in 1876 as a contemporary novel. Rose was 13 in Eight Cousins and is currently 20 years old. She just spent two years traveling all over Europe with her guardian, Uncle Alec, while her best friend, Phebe, studied music and improved her amazing voice. Rose informally adopted Phebe soon after they first met when Rose was 13 and Phebe was 15. Like Rose, 22-year-old Phebe is an orphan, but instead of being an heiress who is part of a large, loving family like Rose, Phebe was a foundling.

Rose is amazed at how mature and grown up her seven male cousins are. Archie and Charlie are 23, and Archie is soberly working for rich, merchant Uncle Mac, while Charlie, son of a rich ship captain, is a social butterfly. Mac, like Phebe, is 22. He plans to become a doctor and will study with Uncle Alec, who has been a doctor for many years. Steve is 20 and seems to do nothing but go to high-society events. Will is 19, and Geordie is 18, both of them attending a military academy. Jamie is 13 and acts as if he's about 8-9 years old, perhaps because he's the baby of the family.

Rose is dismayed to discover, when Jamie blurts it out, that her relatives hope she will marry one of her cousins and keep herself (and her large fortune) in the family. Archie's mother, Aunt Jesse, and Mac's father, Uncle Mac, hope Rose will marry sober, reliable Archie. Charlie's mother, Aunt Clara--and Charlie himself--think he's the man for Rose, but unfortunately, he has a drinking problem that disgusts virginal Rose. No one but Uncle Alec thinks that Mac is the cousin with the most potential to make Rose a good husband. Mac is unpolished and bluntly spoken, but he is brilliant, multi-talented, and as honest as the day is long with no bad habits.

Where Eight Cousins is clearly a children's book, this story is geared more for older girls in their teens and might, today, be called "young adult." In the nineteenth century, though, all ages read these books.

Most people purchasing this classic story will have read and treasured it in their childhood and desire to either re-read it themselves or hand it on to a child or grandchild. I read this book so many times in my childhood, I practically had it memorized. I was happy to discover that, after many decades since I had last experienced it, this book was just as delightful a read for me now as it was when I was young. It is not called a "classic" for nothing.

I rate this book as follows:

Heroine: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Family drama plot: 5

Romance plot: 5

Writing: 5

Overall: 5

Book Review: Nothing But Trouble by Trish Jensen

A terrific contemporary, romantic comedy

Nothing But Trouble by Trish Jensen

Reading Level: Adult Contemporary Romance
Release Date: April 26, 2013
Publisher: Bell Bridge Books
Pages: 150 pages
Source: Net Galley
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Laura Tanner, a Southern gal transplanted to New York City where she owns a bar, has been burned by love and has no interest in romance. Then a gorgeous man named Brandon Prince shows up in her bar the same night her psychic friend predicts Laura's "prince" will arrive and sweep her off her feet. But as much as they are instantly attracted to each other, Laura is not the only one with major commitment issues. On top of that, as far as Laura is concerned, the extreme wealth of Brandon's family makes his world so far from hers, they might as well be from different planets.

Laura is a feisty, independent heroine, and Brandon is smart, handsome and very, very sexy. Underneath all that, he has a strong streak of kindness and empathy, and his determined pursuit of Laura is full of deep emotion as well as witty repartee and comic situations.

Disclaimer: I received a Kindle review copy of this book through NetGalley.

I rate this book as follows:

Heroine: 4

Hero: 4

Romantic Comedy Plot: 4

Writing: 4

Overall: 4

Comic: Page 91

Page 91 of Marie August's webcomic, The Fox and The Firebird, has been posted.


If you liked the page, please support the comic by voting for The Fox and The Firebird on topwebcomics.com.

Book Review: Erasing Time (Erasing Time, #1) by C.J. Hill

Science-fiction, time-travel, action-adventure, YA romance

Erasing Time (Erasing Time, #1) by C.J. Hill

Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: August 28, 2012
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Pages: 368
Source: Copy from Author
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

A time machine snatches fifteen-year-old, twin sisters, Sheridan and Taylor, and catapults them to a frightening, dystopian society four centuries in the future within the former United States. It's a one-way trip with no means to return home, and their only hope for survival is to rely on their intelligence, courage, and personal integrity--and the vital assistance of a mysterious teenage boy named Echo.

I rarely read adult science fiction, especially dystopian novels, but I do occasionally read books of that type if they are written as teen novels, and especially if the YA author is someone whose work I greatly enjoy. C.J. Hill AKA Janette Rallison is one of those authors. Under her own name of Rallison, she has written many hilarious, YA, romantic comedies. In contrast, her fantasy/sci fi novels written under the Hill pseudonym are thrilling dramas with only occasional comic relief, as is the case with this book.

Whether the novel is comedy or drama, one thing a reader can count on from Rallison are stories of great emotional depth with the very moving theme of healing and redemption. As a result, her books invariably produce the much coveted response in readers of, "I laughed, I cried, I sighed." Before I read this book, I considered Hill/Rallison one of the most talented YA authors writing today, and this book has only reinforced that opinion. I consider every book she's written for young adults, as well as this one, a "keeper."

Hill/Rallison does an outstanding job of characterization in this book. Her main characters and important secondary characters are strongly and convincingly drawn, and Echo and Sheridan are quite sympathetic.

Most adult romance novels over the past almost thirty years have been written in the dual point of view (POV) of the heroine and her romantic interest, but currently very few YA romances are written this way. Instead, the primary convention is to use a single, first-person ("I") POV. I was delighted to discover that Rallison offers both the POV of Echo and of Sheridan. There is no confusion at all to the reader when the POV switches, because she employs only one POV per chapter, and each chapter is headed with the name of the POV character. It added immensely to my enjoyment of this story having Echo's POV. He is a fascinatingly complex character. If the publisher had created a cover strongly featuring Echo, there is a good chance that teen boys might have read and enjoyed this book because of him. Unfortunately, both the cover featuring the two sisters and the way the book has been marketed essentially insures that the vast majority of readers will be teen girls and adult women and few boys or men will be likely to read it.

Another happy difference in this novel is that, unlike the majority of YA romances these days, it does not imitate Twilight and throw in a third-wheel romantic interest to create a romantic triangle.

The world-building of this book is outstanding. The explanation for the creation of the time machine is unique and plausible, and the transportation, architecture, commerce, food, clothing and entertainment choices of the citizens of Echo's society are all shown in enough detail to make this world come vividly to life. The political power structure and the means it utilizes for controlling its citizens are convincingly drawn with a fascinating use of technology for both mind control and brute force. The author also offers a much more understandable historical justification for the loss of democracy over time than many other YA dystopians I've read.

One aspect of this future world especially impressed me as a former English teacher who, as part of my masters degree program, studied linguistics (the structure and history of language formation) and several foreign languages, including Spanish. Hill/Rallison very logically constructed the language of her world as a type of "Spanglish," a mixture of English and Spanish with simplified, phonetic spellings of words.

There are three central threads of this book, and for my taste, all three are done extremely well. First, there is significant personal growth within both Echo and Sheridan that springs substantially out of their romantic relationship. This is something that every good romance plot needs to accomplish and not nearly enough manage to achieve. Second, the villains of her action-adventure plot are not merely predictably power-hungry and cruel, but have larger motivations that prevent them from being one-dimensional, Snidley Whiplash buffoons. Third, the author's story forces the protagonists to make difficult, ethical choices--vs. merely allowing them to stumble into dumb, immature mistakes. This is a source of major conflict and trouble in both the romance and the action-adventure plots. I love it when a novelist writes this type of sophisticated story. Integrity is a costly virtue to maintain in any era, and a rich source of danger and adventure in a dystopian, futuristic plot in particular. And for action-adventure plots in general, the most effective ones are those in which the protagonists are willing to sacrifice themselves for the safety and well-being of others, as both of these protagonists are abundantly willing to do in this story.

Hill/Rallison is well-known for writing "clean reads," with no swearing, drugs, alcohol or sexual situations, and this is definitely the case for this book. In my opinion, this type of artistic choice means that this author stands out in a refreshing way in the field of YA fiction. The latter is increasingly dominated by excruciatingly dark books containing mature subject matter that editors from the Big Six publishers label "edgy" and "gritty." This is so much the case that many, if not most editors--and unfortunately many who review YA--have come to assume that if a YA book is not filled with adult content it must be aimed at children and doesn't "deserve" the title of YA.

This is only one woman's opinion, but I strongly disagree with this attitude. In the same manner that publishers of adult romance novels offer, and clearly label, "clean reads" for the extremely large segment of the fans of that genre who prefer that type of story, it would be a welcome service from publishers of YA if they would market novels for teens in the same way, making it obvious when a YA novel contains mature content. Until such time as they choose to do this, the only means for a potential buyer to make an informed choice is through seeking out YA reviews that describe the nature of a teen book's content.

Finally, I have good news for fans of this book: I visited Rallison's website and asked her via email if there would be any other books about Echo, Sheridan and Taylor. She replied that she originally intended this book to be a standalone, but her publisher, Harper, asked her to write a sequel. It has the working title of "Echo in Time" and will be released in 2013.

I rate this book as follows:

Heroine: 5

Hero: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Fantasy World-Building: 5

Action-Adventure Plot: 5

Romance Plot: 5

Writing: 5

Overall: 5

Book Review: Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

Review of audiobook

Ender's Game (Audio CD) by Orson Scott Card

Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: September 9, 2004
Publisher: Macmillan Audio; Unabridged edition
Source: Purchased
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Several centuries in the future, planet Earth is at risk from a third invasion of fearsome aliens whom the people of Earth have nicknamed "Buggers." Because of the enormous threat posed by these aliens, an uneasy peace has been maintained for several generations, in the years since the first invasion, between the three political factions who control the planet, the Hegemon, Polemarch, and Strategos. Each group has continuously contributed soldiers to the International Fleet (IF) which was formed to protect the planet from the Buggers. In order to prepare for the Buggers' presumed inevitable third invasion, the IF created the Battle School, a military program located on a space station whose goal is to locate and mold children with high intelligence into leaders capable of planning and launching military attacks in space against the Buggers. The children are subjected to rigorous, often brutal training conditions in order to prepare them to defeat the Buggers once and for all in a final Armageddon of a war. At the start of this book, the IF has only a few years left to come up with a general who is capable of saving the Earth from Bugger destruction, a force that outnumbers Earth's fleet by an enormous margin.

Ender Wiggin is only six years old when he is selected for training at the Battle School. In the world of this story, Earth is overpopulated, and couples are penalized for having more than two children. The Wiggin family is different, however. Ender's parents had him at the request of the IF command. Their eldest son Peter, who is 10 at the start of the story, is utterly brilliant, and the IF had previously hoped he might be the candidate for military leadership they were seeking, until they discovered Peter to be a budding sociopath who tortures and kills animals and terrorizes Ender and his sister. They had also considered the second Wiggin offspring, 8-year-old Valentine, as a possible future general, because she, too, is immensely intelligent, but ultimately they removed her from consideration as well; her disposition is too soft and yielding for her to ever be a general. Fortunately for the world, Ender seems to be just the right combination of brains, backbone, and emotional empathy to potentially lead Earth's efforts to defeat the all-powerful Buggers.

I'm not personally a reader of science fiction. Prior to this book I had read, tops, perhaps three science fiction books in my life, therefore I can only judge this book as a fan of popular fiction in general.

This book is phenomenal in every way imaginable. The character development is absolutely amazing--Ender is one of the most fascinating characters I've encountered in years, and the major subcharacters are all distinct and compelling, without ever upstaging Ender. The world-building, especially the battles in zero-gravity, is so marvelously done, that even someone who doesn't enjoy the high-tech details of typical space operas can understand everything that is happening in every scene.

I experienced this book in the audio format. I love audiobooks, and this is one of the best of the best I have ever encountered. The main narrator, Stefan Rudnicki, has a lusciously mellow voice that is a joy to listen to, and he imparts terrific emotion and acting skill to his narration. I am definitely going to be seeking out other books he has narrated. A cast of additional voice talents contributed to this production but, unfortunately, I cannot find a listing of their names in credits for the audiobook anywhere, other than the name of the famous author Harlan Ellison, who was one of the readers. A female narrator read the sections from Valentine's point of view, and she did a great job, too. The author also read one small part of the narrative, but lamentably, I also could not ferret out which part he read either.

All in all, this audiobook is a truly worthy production of a classic book, which is an awe-inspiring example of sophisticated writing. In the author's discussion of this story at the end of the reading of the book, he explains that in writing this work, he envisioned it as best experienced being read out loud. It is definitely a book that merits audio production. Not every novel can withstand being read out loud, which is a much more leisurely way of ingesting a book than reading it silently to oneself. At such a slow pace, every flaw is spotlighted, but since this masterpiece has no discernible flaws, listening to it narrated becomes an experience of savoring a gourmet feast for the mind.

I rate this book as follows:

Hero:5

Subcharacters: 5

Fantasy World Buidling: 5

Writing: 5

Science Fiction Plot: 5

Overall: 5

My Photos from the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival

I went to the gorgeous Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival a few days ago:
Click for Disney's webpage devoted to Flower and Garden Festival

Here are some of the pictures I took.

Book Review: Blue Eyes and Other Teenage Hazards by Janette Rallison

Hilarious YA chick-lit novel

Blue Eyes and Other Teenage Hazards by Janette Rallison
Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: December 3, 2011
Pages: 174 pages
Source: Purchased
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Fifteen-year-old sophomore, Cassidy, is broken hearted when Anjie, her long-time best friend and next-door neighbor, moves away. As a fellow serious, A-student, no one has ever understood Cassidy like Anjie. Then a big, boisterous family moves into Angie's house, and at first Cassidy is hopeful she might make a new friend when she learns that the family includes a girl her age. Unfortunately, mercurial, party-girl Elise turns out to be the polar opposite of Cassidy's ideal for a friend. Elise is a terrible student, gets drunk at unsupervised parties and, worst of all, she starts dating Chad, a handsome athlete Cassidy has worshipped from afar since middle school.

Cassidy is ready to throw in the towel and give up on Elise until Josh, Elise's gorgeous, senior brother who drives the two girls to school each day, begs Cassidy to remain Elise's friend. He considers Cassidy a steadying influence on Elise, whose wild ways were the main reason the family moved from urban California to Cassidy's tiny home town in Washington State--they wanted to remove Elise from bad influences.

Though Elise's problems sound rather serious, the tone of this story remains comedic throughout. It is written as hilarious YA chick lit. Its many laugh-out-loud moments are produced by a combination of Cassidy's dating disasters and the overwhelming inrush of Elise's chaos into geeky Cassidy's previously well-ordered life.

It takes a truly gifted writer to create a character as messed up as poor Elise and make her as sympathetic as she is. Underneath all her rebellion against her family for being lost in the shuffle of six siblings and a seventh on the way, Elise really does love her family, including the small siblings she constantly babysits. In addition, even when she is loudly complaining, Elise, who is Mensa-level intelligent, is extremely witty. Elise is such a ball of fire, in fact, if Cassidy weren't so smart and quietly witty herself, Elise might have upstaged her. As it is, the sparring between them is quite evenly matched and a pleasure to witness.

There is also a lovely romantic subplot for Cassidy, which adds greatly to the overall enjoyment of the story. And the guy that Elise ends up with is completely unpredictable, making her journey to romance both funny and heart-warming.

All in all, this book is a real treasure, not to be missed.

Parental guidance: Though Elise does do some underage drinking, it is never romanticized, rather it is seen through the eyes of Cassidy and Josh as the serious problem it is. There is no underage sex or swearing in this book, and I would personally consider this book suitable for preteens as young as 12, but the story is so well written and entertaining that older teens and adults will appreciate it as well.

Fans of this book will be happy to know it has an equally delightful sequel called All's Fair in Love, War, and High School.

I had previously owned this book in trade paperback format and recently purchased it again in a Kindle ebook edition, which is well edited and well formatted.

I rate this book as follows:

Heroine: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Writing: 5

Chick Lit Plot: 5

Romance Plot: 5

Overall: 5