Jul 11 2007
The Week in Books IX
Yeah, I’m slacking. Things are actually happening this summer. In fact, it looks as if I’ll only have TWO BOOKS in my next entry. But for this one, five.
Here we go!
The first book I read last week was Jude Deveraux’s The Mulberry Tree. This sounds like one of Deveraux’s sappy little romances, but instead it’s a very well-plotted mystery/romance–emphasis on the mystery, not the romance. In fact, the romance takes quite the backseat, maybe even the trunk, to the heroine’s growth and the mystery she unfolds. I blew through this book because I really really enjoyed it. Highly recommended for romance readers who prefer plot, but not romance readers who are looking to have the romance being the main focus of the book.
One of the few books I did not finish this year was Only Revolutions because even though I wanted to read it, I did not have the time/mind for something experimental. This could be why I also did not finish Kathy Acker’s Rip-Off Red, Girl Detective. Or it could be that there’s more porn than plot. Yes, I went into it knowing it was some sort of pornographic mystery, but I didn’t expect to have three sex scenes before the plot even started. And for those who dig their porn and are like “O RLY?” I should point out that it’s…you know…EXPERIMENTAL. Not just porn. It can be really stream-of-consciousness at times. I guess that makes it “literature”? I’ll pass, unless I have to read it for a class sometime in the future.
Then I read Welcome to the World, Baby Girl! by Fannie Flagg. Part down-home ramble and part Sidney Sheldon novel, Flagg seems to have meshed Fried Green Tomatoes with the Hollywood experience she had adapting the screenplay. The result is a surprising good blend of stories that come together happily at the end. Oh, and there’s a mystery, which is weird because it doesn’t come into play for such a long time that when it becomes the focus you wonder 1. what took so long or 2. why bother? But this is a huge book, that encompasses so much, that you can forgive it. Plus, it’s a great reveal.
Next, I checked out Eileen Dreyer’s Sinners and Saints. Confusing to begin, Dreyer soon clears some things up and then it’s on to the fantastic story. At times, her reveals for the character make little sense–one scene, for instance, ends on a line that I feel was supposed to shock me but really was something I took for granted–but the plot twists themselves are always surprising. From reading this, though, I’ll be happy to pick up another Dreyer book in the future.
Finally, on a recommendation, I picked up These Old Shades by Georgette Heyer. According to the essay in the beginning of the Harlequin reissue, Heyer was THE Regency writer, and I can believe it. This book was totally awesome. The copyright date startled me: 1926. You could’ve told me it was written last year and I would’ve believed you. There’s a freshness to it, but I suppose all good books are that way. Romance fans, this is the book for you, especially if you’re into Regency. Next week I’ll be reading the sequel, which I believe she wrote decades afterward. We’ll see how it holds up…
And that was my week. Next week, I’ll be returning to an old favorite, telling a story that goes with it, and promoting web comics.