Vaginal Fantasy Book Club discussion
May 2015: Driven/Dead Winter
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Driven *possible spoilers*
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Disappointing. Bland. The elements in this book were interesting and could have been handled so much better. It relied too much on cliche. I felt let down by the author.
Did anyone else feel like this had so much potential and then it fell so flat you kind of feel betrayed. I never felt any tension about Raina's struggles. Whenever we were introduced to a mystery it was solved by switching to Wizard's POV in the next paragraph and explaining or solving everything. Also if the characters had actually been fleshed out I would have been able to forgive the weak plot and over the top science fiction (If she is so poor why does she have a top of the line shower, security system, and specially modified gun!)
Angela wrote: "Also if the characters had actually been fleshed out I would have been able to forgive the weak plot and over the top science fiction..."I was thinking the same. Particularly with Bane. I wasn't sure about his motivations other than being sexually charged by violence. How did he get to be this overpowering influence in this world? And his death was very anticlimactic. I was expecting a bigger fight or even more dialogue. He could have been a brilliant villain.
I'm about 40-something pages in and I realized that this is going to be weird future trucker porn. Nothing about truckers screams erotica to me, so we'll see how this goes.And my thoughts on the name: Wizard is the name of a guy who has the creepy windowless van with weird fantasy scenes painted on it.
I enjoyed this book because I liked the concepts she was playing with so much that the problems with execution (Raina always thought-narrating, problems with repetitive dialog and descriptions) didn't bother me as much as they should.It made for an odd reading experience, because as I read, I kept thinking "Meh" but then I'd step back and think about how fun the concepts were in my head, and get sucked back in.
I really liked that she ended up becoming friends with Yukiko, even before she fully knew what was going on with her and Wizard. All the other friendships felt false, but that one rang true for me. I liked the book a lot more for having a relationship outside of the romance, especially when the bad guy was deliberately trying to make sure she was isolated from other people.
I actually really liked this book. I enjoyed the world that was changed, but not too drastically. I liked that Raina had a grasp on herself, and was strong all on her own. I liked how she fought her infatuation with Wizard, rather than just falling for him. I also enjoyed how the plot played out, and how everything connected in the end. The thing that annoyed me the most was her random, snarky asides in her head. She was pretty judgmental, and it really turned me off of her character at first. I felt like she evolved, either on purpose, or not, to where she wasn't as judgmental, and more just thinking to herself.
I also enjoyed the way the book kept switching point of view from him to her. Not my favorite thing usually, but I thought it was well executed so that I could feel the emotions on both sides, without too much overkill on the switching.
It was a light read, and I really enjoyed the sexy times. Will be looking into the second book. :)
Did you know that Wizard has gray eyes and long black hair? Cause Raina does. His eyes and hair are described about every other page.
Alisha wrote: "Did you know that Wizard has gray eyes and long black hair? Cause Raina does. His eyes and hair are described about every other page."Haha not to mention a Mercenary Assassin, 8 times she remind us that 35 times altogether that's hes an assassin - which was lucky because I was consonantly forgetting that :|
Alisha wrote: "Did you know that Wizard has gray eyes and long black hair? Cause Raina does. His eyes and hair are described about every other page."With marcasite beads in it. Don't forget the beads.
I found it readable and I might pick up the rest of the series at some point. The characters needed fleshing out more especially, as others have said, the villain. He could have been a seriously scary character (clearly a sick minded individual) but he came off as a caricature of a villain. The romance side could have been a bit more as well. The jump from absolute strangers to two nights and a day later they're in love was a bit of a leap for me. Although the sexy times were definitely good and had me blushing a bit on the DLR.
Wizard is better then Rupert. I like it so far. It's frigging good! ☺
Everything is cold! Cold night. Cold eyes. Cold, cold, cold. Never freezing, brisk, chilly or even nippy. Just cold. ;)
So while the name Wizard wasn't too much of a problem for me, names I can skim over, the rest of it was a bit of a let down. The world building left me wanting, and besides the protag and her LI nothing really caught my eye until pretty much 60% of the way through the book, and considering how short is it, that's not saying much, or at least anything good.
I will say it was nice seeing the guy be the one who was experiencing all the "new" emotions for once. "What are theses unknown feelings?!?!?"
I also liked that Raina never quite stopped being impossibly stubborn, and didn't stop and give all that up despite falling with the guy over a span of a few days.
Other smaller things were irritating, like the trying to implement a use of "frig" instead of F*@k. And the fact the the Tatiana angle was never really completely resolved, when I feel it easy could have been. Overall the whole thing felt a bit unfinished and rushed. The sex scenes weren't too bad though, even if he did have a serious case of "perfect love interest is perfect" syndrome.
Found this on Scribd and started reading yesterday. I'm about halfway through so I hope to finish it tonight. That should give some indication of the pace. I like fast paced reads and this had that in spades. I used to be a truck driver so really liked that aspect of it.
Wizard - horrible name. Why is his name so different from his sisters? Hopefully I'll find out.
Sexual tension - was there and I liked it. Haven't gotten to any actual sex yet but the buildup to it is going well.
Like others have said - Typos. Lots of repeated info. and the story isn't long enough to justify it.
I like the play between the two main characters. Like the humor. This is a fluffy, cotton candy, sugary sweet quick read.
What would have made it better? How about a theme? Maybe some deeper exploration of some kind of dynamic: social, power, male/female. Something to make this more of a meal instead of dessert.
Looking forward to 6/2! :)
Wizard - horrible name. Why is his name so different from his sisters? Hopefully I'll find out.
Sexual tension - was there and I liked it. Haven't gotten to any actual sex yet but the buildup to it is going well.
Like others have said - Typos. Lots of repeated info. and the story isn't long enough to justify it.
I like the play between the two main characters. Like the humor. This is a fluffy, cotton candy, sugary sweet quick read.
What would have made it better? How about a theme? Maybe some deeper exploration of some kind of dynamic: social, power, male/female. Something to make this more of a meal instead of dessert.
Looking forward to 6/2! :)
I enjoyed the book A LOT at first - anything with a mysterious master assassin is going to get my attention, but (view spoiler)
tom wlaschaha (jaqen h'ghar) as Wizard, and Billie Piper as Raina. cmon, it's great and you know it.
It was a nice, fun read. I liked it enough to read the second book as well. It fit my mood at the time.
Well I am definitely enjoying this book more than the last. I'm not up to the sex scene yet but I must be close so YAY.I had a problem with the name Wizard in the start but now I don't care, like the word fork is stupid but I don't think about it when I am using one. The bad guy is a bit too OTT, I thought of the bad guy in Inspector Gadget, stroking a cat and laughing in an evil fashion. Still I think it's fun and I like the universe it is in. I keep wondering if Wizard is a killer sex bot robot guy!
Frakki wrote: "Fork is one of my ten favorite words."Sometimes I just say it over and over and think about it actually hahahhaa
What are people's thoughts on the dad and they reasons for him hitting her?Kind of pissed me off. Like that was all he could think to do to toughen her up. I would not have forgiven so easily.
Frakki wrote: "What are people's thoughts on the dad and they reasons for him hitting her?Kind of pissed me off. Like that was all he could think to do to toughen her up. I would not have forgiven so easily."
To me, it is lazy writing. The author wanted to make the main character be a "strong, emotionless, independent woman." So, she throws in the tropes of "the abusive father" and "molested as a child (by Bane)."
Actually, I find it to be especially gross that this author decided to "justify" the actions of the father. The line that some abusers say like "this is for your own good" is taken literally here. I already didn't really enjoy this book but now thinking on this is making me feel sick.
Alisha wrote: "To me, it is lazy writing. The author wanted to make the main character be a "strong, emotionless, independent woman." So, she throws in the tropes of "the abusive father" and "molested as a child (by Bane)." Actually, I find it to be especially gross that this author decided to "justify" the actions of the father. The line that some abusers say like "this is for your own good" is taken literally here. I already didn't really enjoy this book but now thinking on this is making me feel sick. "
I'd already figured out that they were going to justify his abuse, so the actual mechanism was more wearying than sickening for me.
Alicia wrote: "Alisha wrote: "To me, it is lazy writing. The author wanted to make the main character be a "strong, emotionless, independent woman." So, she throws in the tropes of "the abusive father" and "moles..."I agree. They needed some reason why her father, beloved by many, was not actually a bad guy. I don't know if this will come to into play in future books, nor will I. Like I said, it is just lazy writing.
Alicia wrote: "Frakki wrote: "The sex scene came 23% in on my device. I loved that there was no conversation. just bam, we're naked, we're tested, no egg in the shoot, we're banging. and bonus points for using ..."
I think this was actually a bonus chapter at the end of my book. The author said that she took it out because it came too early in the book, before they made a connection, as the OP mentioned.
I enjoyed the book - I needed something less brain involved after last month. I thought Wizard was a strange name choice at first until they explain why he has the name and then it became sad, really. I enjoyed the sex scenes and the hunky Cmdr Data vibe from Wizard.The thing that got on my nerves was the overuse of world jargon. Everything was plas-something. I was ready to stab myself in the eye with a plasknife.
OMG! :-D -- Wizard of Oz didn't even occur to me.The song Pinball Wizard -- which I hate -- would pop into my head.
A agree with the lazy comments in reference to timing up the father storyline. I didn't want to hate on the book to much cuz it was a fun enough ride. But, that was not cool.
I got the jumbo Women of the Apocalypse book which included Driven. That's why I thought sex came so early on in the book.
Just a heads about the Women/Apocalypse 99 cent book pack, the second story is about the Milyway Univers after an attack that left the men dead or sterile. So, the women scientists created stud males to travel around in their spaceships have baby-making sexy-times with all the ladies. I'm trying to read on but I can't stop laughing.
I was supremely disappointed that Wizard did not turn out to be a cyborg. I was convinced he was a cyborg for about 20% of the book and when I finally accepted that he was not, the book lost a lot of its sparkle.
I'm finding it really difficult to enjoy books like this. I'm more interested in the world and the politics, but the author barely scratches the surface of those things in order to set up the sexy times. The bad guy was only lacking an oiled mustache and fluffy white cat. I liked Raina, I liked the action in the story, and I loved the idea (maybe because I had just seen Mad Max) of the trucker-warfare....but it ended up falling flat. What is the story of the rebellion? Did she ever explain what the hell a "reaver" was, or was it completely stolen from Firefly? If there are sandy beaches, why are everyone's headquarters in the Northern wastes? If Wizard can make water into fuel, why not just provide that technology to the rebels and destroy the oil supply? And what on EARTH was the author thinking naming the lead male "Wizard?" Could there be a LESS SEXY name? She could have made those letters spell out anything...wizard is just. dumb.I also thought he would end up being an android or cyborg, which would have made the name more bearable. I'm Wizard, this is my buddy Apple, and the leader of our rebellion here is Commodore....64.
Katie wrote: "I also thought he would end up being an android or cyborg, which would have made the name more bearable. I'm Wizard, this is my buddy Apple, and the leader of our rebellion here is Commodore....64."*snorts cola everywhere* Bwhahahahha.
It is disappointing when you're really interested in the world of a book, but the author doesn't spend time on it because it's erotica. So much wasted potential...
In the first half of the book, I kept thinking the truck was a real Mary Sue. It has everything!!! Crazy showers, satellite banking, a skidoo, a loft apartment… but then she doesn't really utilize it in the second half of the book.Now in Mad Max, Furiosa's war rig goes down fighting. Less amenities = more bad ass.
Katie wrote: "If there are sandy beaches, why are everyone's headquarters in the Northern wastes? ..."At one stage there is a throwaway line from the Big Bad's office about broadcasting his lies about climate - I wondered if there was actually any apocalypse or it was just his Evil Plot(™). But it was never elaborated on so who knows?
Callee wrote: "Disappointing. Bland. The elements in this book were interesting and could have been handled so much better. It relied too much on cliche. I felt let down by the author."I agree. I liked the author's sense of humor which is the only reason I'm giving it two stars instead of one. That was the one good thing about this book for me. The plot, the romance, the general writing, it was all meh...
Unlike most of you guys, I had no problem at all with the name Wizard. I actually thought it was pretty cool.
And also, am I the only one who wasn't into the sex scenes? They were strangely detailed... I kept thinking if the author had put as much detail into the plot and characters, this would have been a better book.
The heroine was a bit slow on the uptake and not even a stuck-in-the-Deathstar's-garbage-chute scene made her more interesting. I fully support her intsalust towards a pretty guy, but this book needs another 100+ pages of plot and character development for me to believe she feels love too. As for Wizard, I'm also so disappointed that he didn't turn out to be a robot... or get a Hogwart's letter.Names are a problem. Such a problem. "Raina" made me picture her as the Raina from Agents of Shield. "Rupert" was fine with me (Rupert Graves, mmm) but "Wizard" also gave me the Pinball Wizard earworm. I also kept visualising him as The Operative from Firefly, but all the descriptions of muscles and being pretty made me picture a crazy killer version of "Simon Tam".
To start off I want to say hello, I am new to this group so I am not sure when you have talks about the books so give me time and I will catch up. As for "Driven" the book was ok, but it was not a book that I could sink my teeth into. I agree with everything I have read so far, it was slow, needed more plot and as for Wizard, I would of liked it if not a whole robot but had parts of robot. It would of made more sense with his ability for strength, cold, sight, etc.. As for names I don't put too much emphasis on names they r just names.
Mod
I liked this book. After forcing myself through last month's main this was a nice break. Sure, the author repeated herself a lot and the fake cussing drove mad but other than that it was a quick fun read. I kind of want a Wizard past book. It sounds like it would be a lot of no strings attached sexy time and missions.
Driven written by Eve Kenin, otherwise known as Eve Silver, was published in 2007 and is the first book in the Northern Waste series. This book is Vaginal Fantasy Book Club’s main selection for the month of May.This book is a perfect example of not judging a book by its cover. The cover is an anime style image that does nothing for expressing the characters or story, to be honest judging by the cover I probably wouldn’t pick this book up but I am glad I read it. Driven is the simple story of a strong female character, Raina Bowen, who falls for a man that is not necessarily right her, Wizard, while trying to do her best in world that is practically a waste land.
Raina is an ice trucker in the Northern Waste that has lived her life on the run from a vicious man with a lot of power. All she wants is to be the first to deliver her trucks load to Gladow Station so that she can use the reward money to find a safer life for herself and the sister she just found out she has. She was to meet a man name Wizard for a truck pass and instead rescues him from some goons, or so she thinks. As they outrun truckers, ice pirates, and the man now bent on both their destruction they grow closer but Wizard has a secret that threatens not only their bond but their very lives as well as the lives of countless government rebels they find refuge with. Raina is not one to run from a battle and now the time has come to face her biggest battle yet.
The story is simple but it is based in an intriguing world, with interesting character points. The book ends leaving you wonder what will happen next for this unlikely pair.
Kate wrote: "I was supremely disappointed that Wizard did not turn out to be a cyborg. I was convinced he was a cyborg for about 20% of the book and when I finally accepted that he was not, the book lost a lot ..."SAME HERE!!! This book would've been so much better if he was a cyborg. :\
Kelsy wrote: "Kate wrote: "I was supremely disappointed that Wizard did not turn out to be a cyborg. I was convinced he was a cyborg for about 20% of the book and when I finally accepted that he was not, the boo..."I agree 100% :(
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Definitely in agreement with you. The idea of the book is unique, and overall it was fun, but the amount of editing it needs definitely brought it down for me. There were misspelled words, incorrect grammar, typos, and so much repetition that I often thought I was accidentally re-reading a section. In other places, it moved so quickly that it was hard to follow, and page breaks often were placed where full chapter breaks should have been.
It was fun, and I did enjoy that both characters realized they weren't perfect and that there was room to grow. They were more of a partnership than one dominating the other, which is how I prefer my romance.
And I do have to say, if a dude flys you to a private beach in paradise to recover..... yea, he might be worth keeping around!