Kakaku：280 saved$2.80
Berkley Trade
In stock soon. Order now to get in line. First come, first served. IPhone 3G used's review (Great read) 『I bought the book for sharon shinn's story cause I am a big fan of her 12th house stories. The other authors are decent but not up to my standard』
(disappointed) 『I was disappointed with all the stories in this book, they were not up to what made me fans of these authors.』
(A mixed bag (three and a half stars)) 『It seems that the people who read this anthology fall into either of two groups: romance readers who love Kurland's story and mostly dislike the other ones and fantasy readers who pick the book up for Shinn's story and don't know what to make of the rest.
The plots are neatly summed up in the book description, so I'll just give you my impressions.
"A Whisper of Spring": Sometimes the impossible is closer than you think. I'm more of a fantasy reader, so Kurland's story was very nice, life-affirming, cozy, predictable and perfectly forgettable to me. No background building whatsoever. Maybe if it were a full-length book... Well, it's obviously a part of her Nine Kingdoms series, with another story published in the anthology "To Weave a Web of Magic" and a full-length novel "Star of the Morning" coming out in December 2006, so there's still hope. Three stars.
"When Winter Comes": Fight for the ones you love and you'll get rewarded. I love Sharon Shinn, so I liked her story very well, though it started as slow as her novels tend to, which may be annoying to unaccustomed readers. The story is a spin-off of her novel "Dark Moon Defender", the third volume of her Twelve Houses series. Even though it can easily be read without knowing the series, I suspect that in order to get a better feeling of the political/social background it would be best to have read at least "Mystic and Rider" first. Four stars.
"The Kiss of the Snow Queen": I've no idea what this story was about. Deveraux' story was the one in the lot I simply disliked and was bored by. It's not that it was badly written. I suppose that there may even be some readers who'll love it. However, the mix of Christian faith and Norse myths combined with the fairy tale of the Snow Queen and stuffed with both modern slang and medieval archaisms was... chancy, to put it mildly. I'm not usually bothered by such things (obviously, since I love Shinn's books), but some readers who are serious about their religion may even find it offensive. And if there was any romance at all, it was not between the hero and the heroine. Two and a half stars.
"A Gift of Wings": Love heals. I've never read anything by Monette, so I was pleasantly surprised. The best story in the anthology, in my opinion. It was maybe too obviously a 'healing' romance, developed against a background of a 'whodunnit'. Intricate world building, very interesting characters. This story is a bit darker than the other ones. What some readers may not like about it is that the heroine is obviously the stronger partner and the hero does a lot of crying, sometimes coming across as seventeen rather than thirty, but, hey, he's entitled ;-) I think I'm going to give her novels a try. Four and a half stars.
In my opinion, this anthology is such a mixed bag that each person will find a different story to his or her liking, but never all of them.』
(5 stars for Lynn Kurland, no rating for the others) 『I got this book for the first story, "A Whisper of Spring" by Lynn Kurland. I love her writing, while the other authors here just aren't my style. I love the way Lynn's stories are all clean... the romance is real love, rather than sexual "chemistry." This story didn't disappoint me. The emotion and tension is there, even though not even a kiss can be found in its pages. It is a BEAUTIFUL story of two people who discover that the chance that they never thought possible, has been given to them... to be together.
Iolaire, an elfin priness, has been kidnapped by the evil Lothar of Wychwold. Her brother seeks out Symon, the mage king of Neroche, to help rescue her. The rescue is swiftly accomplished... but Iolaire cannot return to her home... and Symon finally dares to believe that maybe he can have her as his own.』
(Excellent Compilation) 『I bought this book for the Sharon Shinn story, as I am a big fan of her Mystic and Rider series, and this story ties up a few loose ends. I also enjoyed the other stories, but the real treasure was Sarah Monette's short story, A Gift of Wings. It's a beautiful story, and extraordinarily well-written, so I give this book 5 stars for not only living up to my expectations as far as Sharon Shinn's story, but also introducing me to an exceptional new author for me.』 『From four of today's most imaginative authors come four stories of love as pure as the driven snow that will warm the coldest of hearts.
USA Todaybestselling author Claire Delacroix delivers an enchanting tale of a gifted seer who receives a vision of a man whom she was not meant to marry, but was meant to love.
USA Todaybestselling author Lynn Kurland spins a story of a mortal man and an elven woman who endure both the mundane and the magical in their quest to remain together.
Award-winning author Sharon Shinn writes of a brave young woman who saves her sister's magically- gifted child, only to receive an unexpected gift of her own.
And newcomer Sarah Monette's romantic novella tells of a warrior maiden trapped in a deadly storm with the only man she ever wanted, whose scars she must heal if he is ever to want her.』
Kakaku：140 saved$1.40
NAL Trade
Usually ships in 1 to 3 months IPhone 3G used's review (Just like the cover this book is beige (and clearly no research was done on the subject)) 『This book sat in my to read stack for two years or so (ever since it was published) and I never got around to reading it. To admit a completely stupid emotion I even felt guilty for having it sit around for so long getting no attention from me. But regardless when I did pick it up and read it I was a little...stunned. Not because this was some fantastic novel that redefined my life or because it was the worst piece of trash ie ever read that left me attempting to scrub my brain with soap to get the bad words out of my head. Not I was stunned because a more mediocre novel I have never read.
I guess it's a good thing that the cover was beige because this whole novel was just.....bla. While apparently the plot is like, edge of your seat, biting your fingernails, peeing in your pants exciting, in reality it's dull. It doesn't even have the imagination to be confusing, it's just boring.
So Gwenith (in reality this should be called a book of Queen Isabella and Gwenith the random royal Welsh girl) had her whole family destroyed by Edward Longshanks during his campaign to get ride of the Welsh princes of Wales and had vowed to her dead grandmother to everything she can to get ride of the present Edward, Longshanks son. Being a lady of waiting to Queen Isabella she gets a chance when a Welsh knight pleads his master's case to her and asks that the queen might meet with his master, Mortimer.
Doesn't sound bad-well it is. On top of all of the historical inaccuracies (and there are soooo many-either this author did no research and went off of what she learned from movies like "Braveheart" or there was no editing at all or both. I mean fiction is fiction, but in historical fiction you need to get the facts strait-you can pay with character emotions, things that are disputed by the historical communities...but not strait out facts!) The plot inches along at a snails pace. Even the action parts of the book are boring. There are only two interesting things in the whole book in fact, one is Isabella and Edwards fights which are really something and the other is the intimation that Edward III is not the son of Edward II, but his real father is never named.
Anyway, this book is a great way to put yourself to sleep. I managed to finish it, but unless you like sleeping all the time or being in a catatonic state, I wouldn't recommend it.
One star. 』
(Queen of Shadows by Edith Felber) 『This lady Edith Felber should write more historical novels. Tres bien!!! She definitely rates among the top authors of historical novels. If it didn't have two sex explicit scenes I would want it to be placed in all school libraries. The girl students nowadays love this kind of literature but this book wouldn't pass the approval of our school board.』
(Waste of time and money!) 『I realize a historical fiction is fiction but usually the author does research and builds the fiction around the facts. I am not an expert and even I picked up on the inaccuracies (not just the dates, places and events but the customs, speech, dress, etc.) I gave this book one star because of the historical figures she started with and the only good parts in this book are Isabella's interactions with Despenser. I can't say this would even be a good book if you like romance because the love scenes were not fantastic. Over all this book is poorly written and I am not sure it's the writers fault or the editor. There's so many mistakes it's hard to read through it. The characters are weak, the plot is weak, details of the period are not that discriptive or all wrong. It's so unbelievable, it's comical. As I was reading this book, I thought if it became a movie it would be a cartoon. If your looking for a good historical fiction, look for Sharon Kay Penman or Anya Seton or even Philippa Gregory.』
(Good Story but Full of Inaccuracies) 『First of all, the term "Majesty" was not used until Henry VIII styled himself as such a couple of centuries later. There are many other details which are inaccurate and for the avid reader of Historical Novels, (NOT historical romances) it was sometimes difficult to get past them to enjoy the story. This author was not as thorough on her research as she should have been. Two authors who ARE who I love and I have read nearly everything they've written are Margaret George and Sharon Kay Penman. As a descendant of Edward I, Edward II and Edward III, I am particularly interested in historical fiction from this time period. The author should be aware that unlike historical romances, the readers of historical novels DO know their history.』
(Terrific historical novel) 『Queen of Shadows is a marvelous book. I liked it so much I wrote a blurb for it. I have written myself about dark ages and medieval Britain, and Edith Felber captures so well the color, the sights, the sounds, the smells of a medieval English court. Isabella (whom I had always thought to be a villainess) comes across as a strong woman who has the guts to take her destiny (and that of her country) into her own capable hands. This is the first review I have ever written for Amazon, but I didn't want potential readers to miss out on this wonderful book because of a highly dyspectic previous review. Joan Wolf』 『In fourteenth-century England, beautiful Queen Isabella-humiliated by her weak, unfaithful husband-is emerging from the shadows to take her revenge. But her newly arrived, twenty-oneyear-old Welsh handmaiden, Gwenith de Percy, also seeks vengeance-against the English invaders who crushed her beloved Wales. Isabella's once-golden marriage is now her penance. Due to his rumored relations with men, Parliament forced Edward to share his throne-a demeaning arrangement that torments Isabella.
With the help of her secret, noble lover, Roger Mortimer-an enemy of her husband, imprisoned in the Tower of London-the queen plots to take control. Thrilled by this turn of events, Gwenith realizes that a king cannot afford to be weak-especially when his formidable, discontented queen seeks his power as her due.』
IPhone 3G used's review (I'm going to get these books back in print! Can you help?) 『I'm launching a letter campaign to get these books back. It is ridiculous what people are spending for a book that should be available to young girls and old alike. Libraries can't keep these books in stock! If you want to help me this is what I'm doing: I will mail a letter a day to the Ballantine/Fawcet press asking that they publish The Secret of the Unicorn Queen Series. I will say that there is a genuine need for these books and that they will sell. In order to prove the high demand for these books it would be great to have other people send in letters too. Anyone who is interested can e-mail me (it's a hotmail account with my name) or just write and mail a letter. This shouldn't be a herculean labor, these books are marketable and will sell, the publisher can't go wrong. (I love the cover art too-Rowena is brilliant!)』
(Fabulous!) 『I read these books over and over until I was in middle school. They're great! I was a dummy and donated them to my school library of the time and they're long gone. That was over 10 years ago and I'm still kicking myself.』
(If you know where to get this book...) 『I read "Swept Away" years ago, and when I went to the library to check it out again, it was gone. Disappeared. I cried. If any kind soul reads this and knows where I can get a copy of ANY of the "Unicorn Queen" books, I would be eternally greatfull if you would write to me and tell me where. Thank You!』
(Wonderful For All Ages!) 『I got the series from a friend and just keep readng them over and over! I love them! I just can't put them down! I woiuld recommend this series to ANY lover of fantasy! And the cover work is beautiful!』
(Great Series) 『I read this series in third grade and I can still sit down and read it over and over. The six books are one of my treasured series that I will never get rid of, and it fueled many stories of my own!』
IPhone 3G used's review (A good one) 『This is a nice book to read where you'll learn how your upbringing is so ingrained to you that you'll've to check what are you teaching to your children. The story of love -not the same as a love story- will make you think what are you missing with your family. At the same time you'll appreciate the friendship you have and what that word really means. So yes, S.S. is a great writer. 』
(Whats in a name? Would a Rose smell as sweet...) 『A miserable home life supporting her sisters with only their gambling father and a runaway mother, the unusally named 'Queen' raises the family.
the oldest of three girls, Queen, Diamond&Lucky respectively, Queen manages to sell their ramshackle home, divides the money between her and her sisters and sets out on a new life.
Midway on her journey she runs into some waifs in need and steps into the fray, unable to resist caring.
As a self designated housekeeper, she looks after the three boys she rescued as well as their father, Cody Bonner.
He is the natural romantic lead of the story and after the initial meeting, all the trials and travails of the book are merely to explain why they don't immediately fall, slavering, into each others arms.
With a few too many plot strategems (an escaped convict, an evil mother-in-law, and a runaway child), Sharon Sala takes an extra 250pgs to finish a book which ought to have been concluded around 100pages.
It's not the sort of book you throw at the bin after 10 minutes of reading, but nor is it hugely enjoyable or romantically touching. Queen bemuses&Cody is bemused. The children are sweet, but the behavior ascribed to them by Sala doesn't mesh with their designated ages.
kotori ojadis@yahoo.com』
(A Queen Of A Tale!) 『This was a wonderful story about a strong willed woman who will not let herself down and is true to herself. She finds love were she least expects it and it's more touching and wonderful for that fact.
Queen is the oldest of three girls. Her father has died, but even when he was alive he was not there for his girls. He did manage to teach them not to trust men, slick comments, and things that seem to good to be true. He was a gambler, and not a good one so they lived on the fringes of society in a small backwood Tennesse town, that is until Johnny dies and the girls decide that it is time to move on. Queen bids farwell to her younger sisters as they each take a different road. Queen gets on a bus and heads to Arizona. She wants to be as far away from coal smoke and mountains as she can get. Fate steps in and soon Queen finds herself headed toward Colorado and her destiny.
Cody Bonner has suffered much in his life. He was an Air Force pilot but after the death of his wife he retires so he can be home with his 3 sons. They have suffered cruelly at the hands of their grandmother and he will do anything to keep that woman away from his kids. The grandmother feels that Cody is not fit to be a parent and has had the kids in and out of court trying to prove it. A set of circumstances lead Cody's boys to a chance encounter with Queen. From there the lessons that will be learned are heartwarming and are learned by all. Love does save the day.
This is a wonderful book and a does justice to this strong willed, but soft on the inside woman. This is second in the series of the Gamblers Daughter trilogy but stands alone if you have not read the first one. Wonderful characterization, fast paced, and romantic. A perfect way to spend the evening.』
(A wonderful read!) 『Queen Houston has spent her whole life scraping by, and making due for herself and her two younger sisters. She's always dreamed of not having anyone but herself to worry about, of being footloose and fancy-free. Johnny, the father that she'd parented as much as she had her sisters, has recently passed away. The small house that Johnny had won in a card game had always been where they'd lived, but had never really been much of a home, so the three sisters decide to sell it and split the proceeds, and go find their dreams.
Queen hasn't decided yet exactly where she is going, but Arizona sounds like it is far from the coal dust and poverty that she's known all her life, so she buys a bus ticket, and decides she'll just play it by ear. Little does she know a broken down bus, and a decision to hop the next bus that passes by, even if it is going to Snow Gap, Colorado, will help the course of her life along. Hopping off the bus to stretch, Queen sees three little boys talking to the sheriff, and a woman from the Welfare services. Having an innate dislike of the welfare system left over from her own childhood, Queen takes fate in her hands and hops in to help the three boys. Finding that their father seems to be missing, she claims to be their aunt, and returns home with them to help them avoid being taken into custody.
It's not long before the children's father, Cody Bonner, returns home to find his home invaded by Queen, his children acting like they'd found a long lost friend, and himself questioning his sanity by wanting this stranger to stay. Hiring Queen to be his housekeeper, and to watch over the boys, Cody begins to realize that Queen means much more to him that just a housekeeper. It's not long before Cody and Queen find themselves falling in love...
Sharon Sala has written a beautiful love story, one that tugs your heartstrings continuously, but that also makes you laugh out loud at the spunky Queen's antics. Ms. Sala has interwoven several different threads of story lines, and keeps you on your toes the whole time you enjoy Cody and Queen falling in love. I truly enjoyed this book and gobbled it up in one setting. It is a stand-alone book, however I caution you, if you want to find out the dreams the other two sisters have set out to find, you'll have to pick up Diamond and Lucky, also by Sharon Sala. Happy reading!』
(A wonderful book!!!) 『Wow!!! This was an excellent book. Queen was a fiesty, yet wonderful character who had to overcome several of life's harsh obstacles before she found her home with a handsome man and his three lovable sons. If you have never read the series, then I strongly suggest you do. It is well worth it to read this heartwarming novel from one of the best authors I have ever come across.』 『Queen of HeartsNo stranger to responsibility, Queen was the one who cared for her younger sisters when their errant dad was otherwise occupied. Now that the girls are all grown up, Queen is finally free to pursue her own dreams. And she knows they're bound to take her farther than the Tennessee hills...some day.Cody Bonner loves being the father of three young boys, though raising them on his own is a handful. Then Queen shows up. From the very start Cody knows this fiery, flame-haired lady is much more than just a housekeeper. Her remarkable heart and passion move him in ways he's never felt before. The proud, handsome widower's got a love in him that could make Queen Houston happy for the rest of her days. All he has to do is convince her restless royal highness that the sweetest dreams of all wait just inside his door...』
IPhone 3G used's review (What ending?????) 『While this book was well written, drawing on the Queen's Gambit for its set up...just as the Queen and her knight have just mutually declared love, a rushed sequence involving a contrived fight between the Queen's knight and the Church Knights is trotted forth, then a rather unbelievable contretemps with the Heretics is stuck in, the two knights have a meeting of the minds if not agreement and then...... the book just stops; too many storylines left hanging, no indication of how the Queen will deal with the next, not even a promise of another book. I actually thought I was missing pages for a few startled moments.
But up till the end, it is a wonderful twisting of the story of this fascinating world, its magic, its belief set and its characters, building on Queen's Gambit, watching a realistic growth of the queen into her role. Read it, enjoy the story as it spins out, but do not expect closure of all of the key story lines. I don't blame Ms. Chester, I blame her editor and publisher who should have been more skilled in ensuring the book ended with a tantalizing hope for more of this construct, rather than just stopping the story without some closure.』
(A Great Read!) 『I thoroughly enjoyed The Queen's Knight. I reread The Queen's Gambit before I began this last book, and the two read well as one volume. This book definitely does not stand on its own! Luckily, Chester does not waste time explaining what has gone on before, but just gets into the story. I am looking forward to the next book in the series!』
(Enchanting) 『Before her coronation as Queen Pheresa, the queen of Mandria, kills the husband who betrayed her and arrested her father for aligning with her spouse for the power and treasure he would gain from such an alliance. However, her enemies still remain for Theloi the Cardinal and head of the true church wants to control Pheresa and have the church as the most powerful force in Mandria where Magic is forbidden.
She is forced to banish her protector Sir Talmor before she is crowned queen because Theloi knows, even if he can't prove it, that Talmor has magic flowing through his veins. Talmor accepts the wishes of the church because of his love for his queen. During the ceremony, a red mist appears and Pheresa vanishes, taken hostage by the Sebeins, a heretical cult that practice magic and is hunted by the church. Talmor rescues her but witnesses saw him use fire magic so that the queen is forced to exile her beloved to his estate. While she copes with more attacks by the Sebeins, the machinations of Theloi and the rumbles of war from barbarians Talmor waits for Pheresa to call him back from exile.
The heroine has grown to be a strong and independent woman worthy to wear the crown and rule the realm by herself. She knows who her enemies are and tries all in the power to keep the kingdom safe from attack from within and without. Although everyone says she can't marry Talmor, she believes that one day she will be his wife for there is nobody else she trusts more. THE QUEEN'S KNIGHT is an entertaining, enthralling romantic fantasy page turner.
Harriet Klausner 』 『Pheresa, rightful Queen of Mandria, is ready to claim her crown and her destiny. But when a deadly mist fills the cathedral, and Pheresa vanishes, only Sir Talmor, her sworn protector, can find and save her--by revealing the magical powers that will bring scorn upon him.』
Kakaku：170 saved$1.70
Da Capo Press
Usually ships in 24 hours IPhone 3G used's review (Too much gay culture, too little opera) 『This book is well-written, which is why I give it 3 stars; but much of it is well-written nonsense, which is why I give it only 3 stars.
First, it is mis-titled. It is not about opera so much as about opera singers, in particular female opera singers who allegedly appeal especially to gay men, such as Maria Callas (there is a whole section (pp. 134-53) on "the gay cult of Callas") - what must my wife think when I play her records?
Second, where it leaves off the gays-as-super-aesthetes stuff, and attempts to discuss testable hypotheses, it often gets the facts backwards. For example: "Records helped kill opera by limiting the repertoire to a handful of repeated and repeatable chestnuts." (p. 47) The truth is of course the exact opposite. Before records, a handful of operas were performed in a season and every season would include at least a Bohème, a Butterfly, and/or a Carmen - one would be lucky to hear a couple of hundred operas in an entire lifetime even if one lived in one of the few world cities with an opera company. Today I can, as I do, live in the desert and choose from thousands of recorded operas whenever I feel like it, an unprecedented cornucopia of operatic riches. Similarly, Koestenbaum states that "opera virtually died with Puccini" (p. 74). That is true only if you don't count Richard Strauss's Arabella (1933) and Capriccio (1942), Alban Berg's Wozzeck (1925) and Lulu (1937), or all or most of the operas of Hindemith, Weill, Krenek, Stravinsky, Prokofiev, Gershwin, Poulenc, Menotti, Barber and Benjamin Britten. Puccini may represent the end, even the Indian summer, of romantic Italian opera, but scarcely of opera. 』
(Me LikEy..) 『Me likey the book, me likey Gays in Opera cause no one writes about (see "Opera: The Undoing of Women; Catherine Clement) them.And Opera, Callas singing Delibes Laksme is good. It's good someone talks about how Gays like Opera, otherwise straight corporate society would think they were the only cultured ones,..Yep, Me like.』
(Theory on a High Note) 『The Queen's Throat is an insightful and animated blend of knowledge and intuition exploring the connections and overlappings of homosexuality and opera, arriving at a number of intriguing conclusions. The core of opera's queerness is dismantled and reassembled with a reflective and lyrical precision that defies typical essay format and approach. This is a brilliant monologue -- a very entertaining brainstorm which even includes silly graphics. It's smart, funny, personal, and spirited and even of interest for the operatically challenged. In fact, I bet big opera fans would give this a five.』
(Tediously whimsical) 『There's no denying that Wayne Koestenbaum is a very smart man, but that still doesn't make THE QUEEN'S THROAT very worthwhile. The narratorial persona he adopts (which he's stuck to ever since the book was published ten years ago) is of a slight hysterical, over-the-top aesthete who takes to impossibly grandiose and silly declamations (such as when he pretends to dream he is Thaïs: "Wayne, Thaïs must have pearls!"). The book really belongs to that peculiar moment in academia when writers could claim whatever trivial thing they did in daily life was politically important, with regard to identity politics, simply because they claimed it to be "subversive"; if you give eventwo seconds worth of thought to the strictures and actual repressive measures gay men and women must face on a daily basis all over the world, you'll see how trivial Koestenbaum's claims that his trivialities are politically important really are.
There is some fun to be had in the reading of this work, but the narrator's giddy narcissism does get very wearisome after a while. This new edition comes with a new and especially pompous preface from Tony Kushner.』
(Queenly Insights) 『The author is sometimes outrageous yet outspoken in some of his assumptions and observations about those who attend and enjoy opera and those singers and other musicians who perform these works. Some may disagree vehemently with some or all of his consclusions, but no one who reads this book will be without an opinion - either agreeing wholeheartedly with the author or having a "hissy fit" over his "over-the-top" arguments and perceptions. It is amusingly illustrated with occasionally very droll captions to go with the archival photos. On the whole, this book is a pleasant diversion for before-bed reading and may keep you from falling asleep with some of the author's "apercus" in mind』 『
This passionate love letter to opera, lavishly praised and nominated for a National Book Critics Circle Award when it was first published, is now firmly established as a cult classic. In a learned, moving, and sparklingly witty melange of criticism, subversion, and homage, Wayne Koestenbaum illuminates mysteries of fandom and obsession, and has created an exuberant work of personal meditation and cultural history.
』 『Why do so many gay men love opera? What makes an "opera queen"? What is the connection between gay sexuality and the full-throated longing that emerges from the diva's mouth? InThe Queen's Throat: Opera, Homosexuality, and the Mystery of Desire, self-proclaimed opera queen Wayne Koestenbaum investigates the hidden--and unexpected--mysteries that opera and sexuality produce. At once a personal meditation and an iconoclastic, highly entertaining survey of divas,The Queen's Throatis ultimately a profoundly moving, and at times curiously disturbing, investigation of the intricate interplay between art and sexuality, between beauty and eroticism. Koestenbaum is not afraid to challenge, and he more or less grabs readers by the hand to drag them, with nonstop exuberance, through the ornate, highly stylized world of diva worship. Traipsing through descriptions of classic performances, musical autobiographies, personal recollections, historical notations, and the music itself, Koestenbaum creates for us the daring, frenzied, disordered, highly sexual--and ultimately ecstatic--world of the opera queen.--Michael Bronski』
IPhone 3G used's review (If you love SEP or Crusie you will love this!) 『When the heroine calls the hero Big Pants, and the hero calls the heroine Mork, watch out! Rebecca Lear is reeling from her husband's defection to a newer, younger model. Having married and had a baby young, she doesn't have any training. Nothing. Nada. Zip. Except if you count being Miss Texas at one stage. Aw, poor little rich girl! Nobody's more surprised when an upcoming senator asks her to be on his political campaign. That includes Matt Parrish, lawyer, also on the campaign. He truly considers Rebecca a complete airhead from another planet. Armed with a zillion self-help books (eg. Surviving Divorce: A Woman's Path to Starting Over) and making 3 daily positive affirmations for herself, Rebecca is Discovering Herself. Guess what? She's not a doormat, she can think (Matt gets a few surprises with this one), and she's incredibly creative. All of which Matt finds out the hard way (sorry, pun intended!). The delight in this book is watching two honest but flawed characters fall in love, with a very blurred line between comedy and psychological insight. You'll cringe and cheer for Rebecca, and groan when Matt puts his foot in his mouth again. As a bonus, you get to enjoy all the wacky secondary characters drifting around in the background. Oh, and Rebecca gets totally, humiliatingly, uninhibitedly smashed, much to Matt's delight. Does he take advantage of her? Ooooh, yessssssss...』
(Nothing compared to Material girl!) 『I was incredibly surprised at this second installment of the Lear sisters. After reading material girl, which absolutely fantastic, I was excited to read about Rebecca- who was Miss Texas in her youth and had only a divorce and a son to show for it, to only be shocked at the silly writing and dialogue as well as the shallow and meaningless relationship between Rebecca and Matt-the hero.
I would like to say this first: London is a gifted writer, she is deep without being overwhelming and funny without turning into a comedian instead of a romance writer. She has an amazing grasp of characterization and her dead-on attention to detail that go on during human dramas. But most of all her build-up between two strangers that inevitably fall in love and steamy yet touching love scenes are the main reasons why I keep buying her books.
However, everything I had just mentioned was sadly lacking in Beauty Queen. I loved Rebecca and that's all I loved about the book. Although the writing started witty and sharp, it became goofy, immature and tiresome when no shift in tone was evident. Matt, an arrogant and playboy lawyer, was the most shallow and immature hero I have ever read. You had zero empathy for the man and could not relate to his careless regard for anything but himself. Unlike Rebecca, there was hardly any build-up to his character and all you saw of him was his constant sheepish grin and arrogance. And for 80% percent of the book they were like 2 girlfriends having it out with each other instead of 2 adults that were attracted to each other. Then before you even know what hit you, Matt makes a miraculous transformation and falls in love with Rebecca. What did I miss???
In all honesty, I was left baffled that I was reading a Julia London book and the only explanation I could think of is that it was deliberate she left the second installment shallow and immature that drastically shifts from her usual style.
I hope the 3rd Lear sister gets just as an incredible story as her first sister did, and be content with the second one being a major slip up. 』
(Fun, light story) 『
Second book in the Lear Sisters trilogy.
Set in Austin, Texas, Rebecca Lear has been a daughter, a wife, a mother and a Miss Texas. Now divorced, raising her five year old son and wanting to find a job, Rebecca has no skills and no confidence. She's not getting any job offers and her prospects look bleak.
Then a state senator who's running for lieutenant governor calls and asks her to be part of his campaign. Rebecca agrees hoping to increase her "work" experience. The senator has also asked Matt Parrish, a very successful Austin lawyer. Matt agrees to join the senator's campaign to get inside knowledge for a possible run at the DA's office. Matt sincerely tries to help the underdog but his law partner wants him to take more *money* cases.
When Rebecca and Matt meet, sparks fly. Matt thinks she's an airhead (not true) and ignorant about politics (true). Rebecca thinks he's arrogant (true) and ego-driven (not true). Good story, some laugh out loud moments. I liked BEAUTY QUEEN more than the first book, MATERIAL GIRL.
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(Second of the Lear siblings) 『In the second installment of London's update Lear trilogy, middle daughter Rebecca is recently divorced with a toddler in tow, and looking for a job to help boost her sagging confidence. A chance meeting with a handsome stranger has disastrous results, particularly when she is asked to join a political campaign, and he turns out to be one of the key strategists, a bossy trial lawyer who is exasperated that she was chosen to be on the campaign.
As she struggles to find her confidence and not be just another pretty face, Rebecca and Matt start to work side by side, and initially butt heads at every turn, but start to develop feelings for each other. Matt even spends time with her son, who cannot seem to garner any of his father's attention. Soon both discover that they don't really like the candidate they are trying to get elected.
This one is not quite up to par with the fist in the series, though it does retain the funny dialog and humorous internal musings. The initial meeting between Rebecca and Matt is priceless!』
(Had the potential for much more....) 『I loved the premise of the book, and the author clearly knows how to do humor, but I just couldn't warm up to the characters, and I didn't really believe they fell in love. They both seemed too shallow for any real depth.
I think one of my problems was the junior high language that was used with a sledge-hammer throughout the book. As in: "You are so not cool," or "Oh. My. Gawd." Both main characters, supposedly in their 30s, talk like this non-stop. A little of that thrown in for spice is fine, but a steady diet of it? It made the characters seem shallow to me.
The book also went on and on. And on. It could have been edited down by 20% or so and worked much better.』 『Three glamorous sisters live up to the last-wish demands of a dying patriarch, and compete for that elusive dream called love. This imaginative update of Shakespeare'sKing Learis a hit with the critics:』
Kakaku：1095 saved$10.95
iUniverse.com
Usually ships in 24 hours 『When young Cecile wakes up in the hollow of a large tree, she can't remember who she is and how she got there. She bravely journeys through the thick and unfamiliar forest searching for clues to her identity. Lost and alone, Cecile stumbles upon Emma, a woman in the woods who not only feeds her and keeps her safe, but tells her an amazing story. Cecile discovers that she is, indeed, a princess, who has been bewitched by Queen Griselda, the Spider Queen. Not only is her beautiful kingdom of Belamor in danger, but the evil Spider Queen is searching for her. Cecile is the only one who can unlock the doorway to the treasury by appearing before the Mirror of Truth. Cecile must hurry to save her kingdom and its people from the Spider Queen's web. With its cast of colorful characters and its classic illustrations, Cecile and the Spider Queen tells a spellbinding tale of beauty, enchantment, and deception. Cecile proves that it takes more than beauty to be the princess of Belamor.』 fetish『 The Witch Queen 』
『 The Dragon Charmer 』
『 Prospero's Children 』
『 The Dragon Charmer 』
『 Brisingr (Inheritance, Book 3) 』
『 The Greenstone Grail (Sangreal Trilogy) 』
Jan Siegel
Kakaku：699 saved$6.99
Del Rey
Usually ships in 24 hours IPhone 3G used's review (Alternate title: Witch's Honour)
