Okay, if someone can explain this to me, I'd be grateful.
Normally, I don't find myself attracted to Middle Eastern men. I can't figure out why -- dark hair & eyes are my "thing". I mean, there ARE incredibly BEAUTIFUL men there -- Tarkan and Oded Fehr spring to mind immediately. And while I love to look, I just don't swoon.
Anyway, I have a passion for romance novels with arrogant, unforgiving Arab princes as the hero. And it's a pretty by-the-formula passion. The Arab prince falls hard for the reserved and misunderstood British heroine but he won't allow himself to express it. He treats her unfairly. She cries but puts up with it. He sees the error of his ways and gives her the earth. Tra-la-la... happy ending.
Seems like she's always a blonde, too.
Case in point: An Arabian Courtship by Lynne Graham. First published in 1989, Courtship came to my collection late. Pretty sure it was included in a MASSIVE box of books I bought on eBay 3 or 4 years ago. I read it for the first time on Friday night.
LOVED IT!!
Not only is it formula, there are a few pieces of humor thrown in unexpectedly. Perhaps unintentionally, but they're funny nonetheless.
I'd love to give a better review but I'm still dwelling on the whole "don't find Middle Eastern men attractive" thing... I'm confident that it has nothing to do with racial prejudice. I think it's something with the shape of the nose or the set of the ears.
They're not alone, either. I don't happen to find men with very light blond hair attractive, either, which pretty much rules out all of Scandinavia. And, try as I may, I can't for the LIFE of me think of an exception!!
Julian Sands, maybe.
Naaah... That's just his accent...
Monday, November 1, 2010
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Back in Time with "A Package Deal"
After a re-read last night, I have NO idea why I kept this book. I can only assume that I must have matured since the last read. A lot.
"A Package Deal" by Ariel Berk was published in 1989 -- back when Silhouette Desire were some of the racier offerings out there. At least, some of the racier offerings my teenage self had the access and gumption to obtain!
Our hero, Douglas Baldwin, is our typical T.D.H. (Tall, Dark & Handsome). He's rich, successful and lives in a high-rise overlooking Central Park. He's also the single father of a VERY spoiled and hyperactive 4 year-old son whose mother abandoned them after deciding being a mother wasn't "fun".
First off -- seriously? Do I love being a mom? Absolutely!! Do I have fun with my daughter? Totally!! Would I trade her for anything? NEVER!!! Did I ever -- even for one minute -- imagine that the lifetime commitment parenting entails would be "fun"? HELL NO!! Who in their right mind would decide to have a kid because they think it would be "fun"?!?!?
The heroine is a broke grad student, Heather Lewis, who takes babysitting jobs to get extra spending money even though she hates kids.
Totally.
Hates.
Kids.
From the first page to the second-to-last page, Heather goes on and on and on about hating children. Then she goes on some more about hating kids.
Not that I blame her for the opinion. At age 14, her mother died and she found herself the mother to her 6 younger siblings. Which would be enough to put ME off kids, too. I only had 2 siblings to babysit occasionally and even THAT was tough!! But there's a difference between deciding not to be a parent and deciding that you hate anyone under 20.
I found myself rolling my eyes at how often Heather agonized over how much she loved Doug -- after sleeping with him once -- and how perfect things would be if he didn't have a son! She tells him it's over because she doesn't like kids. He calls her repeatedly, asking her to reconsider (harassment much?) The kid gets the chicken pox, so she helps out -- only for Doug's sake. Then they sleep together again. Then she tells him it's over (again) because she doesn't like kids (again).
First off, if you don't like kids - and I don't care HOW hot the booty is - you do NOT start sleeping with someone who has kids!!
OK, maybe you sleep with them, but you make certain you don't show up anywhere around the kid. And you don't spend time thinking, "I could stay with this person forever if they didn't have that kid!" 'Cause, honey, that kid AIN'T going NOWHERE!! (Pardon the grammar, but writing "that kid isn't going anywhere" just doesn't have the same impact.)
Second, if someone I was dating kept telling me he hated kids, you can DAMN SURE guarantee I'm not going to keep throwing them together in the hope that he'll suddenly realize he doesn't like kids with one exception. If it were me, he'd never meet my daughter. And I wouldn't be running after him, practically begging him to stick around while desperately hoping he's going to change his mind.
And I can't help but wonder (considering when it was written) if the famous Alec Baldwin was the inspiration for our hero. After all, it's written circa Working Girl and Beetlejuice. (Some hero he turned out to be... Well... At least his last name isn't "Gibson".)
Long story simplified into 10 words or less: this one's on the way out of my collection.
"A Package Deal" by Ariel Berk was published in 1989 -- back when Silhouette Desire were some of the racier offerings out there. At least, some of the racier offerings my teenage self had the access and gumption to obtain!
Our hero, Douglas Baldwin, is our typical T.D.H. (Tall, Dark & Handsome). He's rich, successful and lives in a high-rise overlooking Central Park. He's also the single father of a VERY spoiled and hyperactive 4 year-old son whose mother abandoned them after deciding being a mother wasn't "fun".
First off -- seriously? Do I love being a mom? Absolutely!! Do I have fun with my daughter? Totally!! Would I trade her for anything? NEVER!!! Did I ever -- even for one minute -- imagine that the lifetime commitment parenting entails would be "fun"? HELL NO!! Who in their right mind would decide to have a kid because they think it would be "fun"?!?!?
The heroine is a broke grad student, Heather Lewis, who takes babysitting jobs to get extra spending money even though she hates kids.
Totally.
Hates.
Kids.
From the first page to the second-to-last page, Heather goes on and on and on about hating children. Then she goes on some more about hating kids.
Not that I blame her for the opinion. At age 14, her mother died and she found herself the mother to her 6 younger siblings. Which would be enough to put ME off kids, too. I only had 2 siblings to babysit occasionally and even THAT was tough!! But there's a difference between deciding not to be a parent and deciding that you hate anyone under 20.
I found myself rolling my eyes at how often Heather agonized over how much she loved Doug -- after sleeping with him once -- and how perfect things would be if he didn't have a son! She tells him it's over because she doesn't like kids. He calls her repeatedly, asking her to reconsider (harassment much?) The kid gets the chicken pox, so she helps out -- only for Doug's sake. Then they sleep together again. Then she tells him it's over (again) because she doesn't like kids (again).
First off, if you don't like kids - and I don't care HOW hot the booty is - you do NOT start sleeping with someone who has kids!!
OK, maybe you sleep with them, but you make certain you don't show up anywhere around the kid. And you don't spend time thinking, "I could stay with this person forever if they didn't have that kid!" 'Cause, honey, that kid AIN'T going NOWHERE!! (Pardon the grammar, but writing "that kid isn't going anywhere" just doesn't have the same impact.)
Second, if someone I was dating kept telling me he hated kids, you can DAMN SURE guarantee I'm not going to keep throwing them together in the hope that he'll suddenly realize he doesn't like kids with one exception. If it were me, he'd never meet my daughter. And I wouldn't be running after him, practically begging him to stick around while desperately hoping he's going to change his mind.
And I can't help but wonder (considering when it was written) if the famous Alec Baldwin was the inspiration for our hero. After all, it's written circa Working Girl and Beetlejuice. (Some hero he turned out to be... Well... At least his last name isn't "Gibson".)
Long story simplified into 10 words or less: this one's on the way out of my collection.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Amanda McIntyre's "Tortured"
I have been struggling with insomnia for a while now. It hit pretty hard last night -- I finally "gave up" giving up on sleep at 4:00 am. For those who don't "do" Deenie-Speak, that means I finally said, "Dammit! I have to WORK tomorrow! I'm going to lay here in the dark with my eyes closed until I fall asleep. So THERE!!"
Really. That's what I said. Out loud. To myself. In the middle of the night.
When I first gave up on sleep last night, I picked up one of my freshly delivered Harlequins -- a Spice novel called "Tortured" written by Amanda McIntyre. It's not new - came out in 2009 - but it's new to me.
Based in the Dark Ages somewhere in Britannia, McIntyre chronicles our heroine Sienna's misadventures from the point of her mother's execution to her freedom from the Saxon warlord who made her the apprentice to his executioner.
His gay executioner.
Not sure why that was a big deal, except that it kept him from taking advantage of our then twelve year-old heroine.
Anywhoooo....
Sienna is a slave - forced to witness the torture (and occasionally partake in the torture) of people who have P.O.'ed the Royal Badass for one reason or another. By the middle of the story, she's brainwashed, uncaring and has somehow become said Royal Badass's most trusted ... posession (?). She's okay with it because it keeps her alive. At least, she's okay with it until our dashing hero - the half Roman, half Briton Dryston of Hereford - comes on the scene.
I liked our hero and I thought our heroine was off the hook. There was a good bit of mind-messing here -- what with all the torture, rape, murder and villainy about. While I think Sienna's mistrust dissolved rather quickly, McIntyre did a good job of relaying the state of our heroine without wallowing in it.
The timeline hops back and forth a couple times -- once completely threw me and I had to turn back and figure out what happened. While it didn't do so without reason, it started to get old. Maybe it was just a bit too Tarantino for insomniac reading.
What's my opinion of it? I'm not sure... When I turned the last page, I flipped back and re-read a page or two. I closed the book. Stared at it and crumpled my brow. I was left... hungry. I wanted something more. I suppose one could say I had expected something more.
Don't ask me what more I expected. I don't know. I can't put my finger on it.
I mean, I liked the story. It's a historical, which is a good thing for me. Three of my top 5 favorite romance novels are historicals -- The Short Straw Bride by Dallas Schulze, Charming the Prince by Teresa Medieros and Beauty and the Beast by Taylor Ryan (no, it's not a rendition of the fairy tale!).
I thought the storyline was well constructed and there were enough plot twists to keep me interested. I mean, I finished it in what was essentially one sitting...
But the story isn't what I would call an "erotic novel" despite what the title says. I didn't find much erotic about it. I would guess it was labeled "erotic" because there were flat-out sex scenes - no emotional involvement - for most of the book.
The writing was good, the story was interesting... but it wasn't anything that would have made me keep reading had I been able to sleep. It didn't engage my heart.
Wait... That's it!!
It Didn't Engage My Heart.
I've been entranced by far less sophisticated works. I mean, HELLO!! I read "Twilight" and "New Moon" back to back in about 8 hours one night! I've read that entire series 5 or 6 times. (As much as I ADORE those books, the writing isn't incredibly strong.)
What "Tortured" DID do was interest me in that historical period. I'll probably search out a couple more books of that time period in the future.
Now, it's 12:30. I'm going to try to go to bed. For the first (and, I hope, LAST) time tonight.
Sweet Dreams!
Deenie
Really. That's what I said. Out loud. To myself. In the middle of the night.
When I first gave up on sleep last night, I picked up one of my freshly delivered Harlequins -- a Spice novel called "Tortured" written by Amanda McIntyre. It's not new - came out in 2009 - but it's new to me.
Based in the Dark Ages somewhere in Britannia, McIntyre chronicles our heroine Sienna's misadventures from the point of her mother's execution to her freedom from the Saxon warlord who made her the apprentice to his executioner.
His gay executioner.
Not sure why that was a big deal, except that it kept him from taking advantage of our then twelve year-old heroine.
Anywhoooo....
Sienna is a slave - forced to witness the torture (and occasionally partake in the torture) of people who have P.O.'ed the Royal Badass for one reason or another. By the middle of the story, she's brainwashed, uncaring and has somehow become said Royal Badass's most trusted ... posession (?). She's okay with it because it keeps her alive. At least, she's okay with it until our dashing hero - the half Roman, half Briton Dryston of Hereford - comes on the scene.
I liked our hero and I thought our heroine was off the hook. There was a good bit of mind-messing here -- what with all the torture, rape, murder and villainy about. While I think Sienna's mistrust dissolved rather quickly, McIntyre did a good job of relaying the state of our heroine without wallowing in it.
The timeline hops back and forth a couple times -- once completely threw me and I had to turn back and figure out what happened. While it didn't do so without reason, it started to get old. Maybe it was just a bit too Tarantino for insomniac reading.
What's my opinion of it? I'm not sure... When I turned the last page, I flipped back and re-read a page or two. I closed the book. Stared at it and crumpled my brow. I was left... hungry. I wanted something more. I suppose one could say I had expected something more.
Don't ask me what more I expected. I don't know. I can't put my finger on it.
I mean, I liked the story. It's a historical, which is a good thing for me. Three of my top 5 favorite romance novels are historicals -- The Short Straw Bride by Dallas Schulze, Charming the Prince by Teresa Medieros and Beauty and the Beast by Taylor Ryan (no, it's not a rendition of the fairy tale!).
I thought the storyline was well constructed and there were enough plot twists to keep me interested. I mean, I finished it in what was essentially one sitting...
But the story isn't what I would call an "erotic novel" despite what the title says. I didn't find much erotic about it. I would guess it was labeled "erotic" because there were flat-out sex scenes - no emotional involvement - for most of the book.
The writing was good, the story was interesting... but it wasn't anything that would have made me keep reading had I been able to sleep. It didn't engage my heart.
Wait... That's it!!
It Didn't Engage My Heart.
I've been entranced by far less sophisticated works. I mean, HELLO!! I read "Twilight" and "New Moon" back to back in about 8 hours one night! I've read that entire series 5 or 6 times. (As much as I ADORE those books, the writing isn't incredibly strong.)
What "Tortured" DID do was interest me in that historical period. I'll probably search out a couple more books of that time period in the future.
Now, it's 12:30. I'm going to try to go to bed. For the first (and, I hope, LAST) time tonight.
Sweet Dreams!
Deenie
Sunday, October 24, 2010
What About Me...
Two posts in one day!! It's A Miracle!!!
I probably won't continue on at this pace but I felt like I should introduce myself a bit to those who don't know me well.
And maybe surprise those of you who DO know me.
As I said in my intro, I've been thinking A LOT about the past, who I've been, what I've done and what I always imagined I would be doing.
There have been a LOT of lost dreams. I never played at Veteran's Memorial Auditorium in the finals of the Iowa 6-On-6 Girls Basketball Tournament. I never moved to California or even applied for admission to UCLA. I've never been to Greece. I've never gotten married. I never kissed or even DATED my life-long crush. And, while it's too early to say "never", I'm fairly certain I won't become a singer, high school science teacher or doctor in this lifetime.
Lest you feel I'm wallowing in "Never-Land", I've also lived a pretty awesome life. I've got a fantastic, beautiful daughter. I have a loving, wacky family. I have the BEST friends a person could wish to have. I've even owned my dream car!! (Miss you, Dom!!)
Yes, the past 39 years have been a trip. Some has been wonderful, some stressful and the best parts were surrounded by paperback romances.
Yes.
That is the real point of my rambling. I love romance novels!!
Even as a child, romances were my thing. Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, The White Cat... I could spend hours reading and re-reading my favorites.
Then one hot, summer day, my life changed.
I was a normal 10 year-old girl visiting Grandma and Grandpa Harwood in Redfield, IA. Grandma always said there were too many druggies hanging out at the city park to go there and play (seriously, that's what she said!) so I stayed in her yard.
Now, please remember that this is 1981. Cable was something only found in the homes of "rich people". There weren't video games, DVD's, iPods or computers to take up the spare time. There was no community swimming pool. My bike was at home -- and I couldn't have ridden it, anyway. (Druggies, remember?) What toys were available were geared towards my younger, male cousins. Not a Barbie in sight!
Yep. I was BORED -- in all caps!
I tried crosswords and word searches. Eh. I looked through magazines and newspapers. Nothing interesting. I even tried to read the TV Guide! Not the most riveting of works for a 10 year-old.
I sat there on the sofa, sighing. Now what?
Then I saw it. There! On the end table! A little white book!!
I knew what it was -- I'd seen hundreds of them lining the walls of Grandma's bedroom. It was a Harlequin Presents romance. I picked it up, read the back and thought, "Sounds like Cinderella."
I opened the cover and found True Love from page 1.
Over the years, I've developed quite a collection of favorite titles. Some I have read so many times that I've practically committed the entire book to memory. Others I only know by the hero's name. Still others I have sitting at the ready - waiting for me to be tempted into slipping between the pages.
I've learned a lot from romance novels but the most important lesson is this: love isn't perfect. Sometimes it's destructive. Sometimes it's selfish. Sometimes it's down right inconvenient. But somehow, with patience and strength, love can find a way.
That's what I'm going to write about here. My love for romances. My hopes for the future. I may review some stories or even write a little romance of my own.
Somewhere along the path, I'm sure I'll find my way.
Thanks for reading,
Deenie
I probably won't continue on at this pace but I felt like I should introduce myself a bit to those who don't know me well.
And maybe surprise those of you who DO know me.
As I said in my intro, I've been thinking A LOT about the past, who I've been, what I've done and what I always imagined I would be doing.
There have been a LOT of lost dreams. I never played at Veteran's Memorial Auditorium in the finals of the Iowa 6-On-6 Girls Basketball Tournament. I never moved to California or even applied for admission to UCLA. I've never been to Greece. I've never gotten married. I never kissed or even DATED my life-long crush. And, while it's too early to say "never", I'm fairly certain I won't become a singer, high school science teacher or doctor in this lifetime.
Lest you feel I'm wallowing in "Never-Land", I've also lived a pretty awesome life. I've got a fantastic, beautiful daughter. I have a loving, wacky family. I have the BEST friends a person could wish to have. I've even owned my dream car!! (Miss you, Dom!!)
Yes, the past 39 years have been a trip. Some has been wonderful, some stressful and the best parts were surrounded by paperback romances.
Yes.
That is the real point of my rambling. I love romance novels!!
Even as a child, romances were my thing. Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, The White Cat... I could spend hours reading and re-reading my favorites.
Then one hot, summer day, my life changed.
I was a normal 10 year-old girl visiting Grandma and Grandpa Harwood in Redfield, IA. Grandma always said there were too many druggies hanging out at the city park to go there and play (seriously, that's what she said!) so I stayed in her yard.
Now, please remember that this is 1981. Cable was something only found in the homes of "rich people". There weren't video games, DVD's, iPods or computers to take up the spare time. There was no community swimming pool. My bike was at home -- and I couldn't have ridden it, anyway. (Druggies, remember?) What toys were available were geared towards my younger, male cousins. Not a Barbie in sight!
Yep. I was BORED -- in all caps!
I tried crosswords and word searches. Eh. I looked through magazines and newspapers. Nothing interesting. I even tried to read the TV Guide! Not the most riveting of works for a 10 year-old.
I sat there on the sofa, sighing. Now what?
Then I saw it. There! On the end table! A little white book!!
I knew what it was -- I'd seen hundreds of them lining the walls of Grandma's bedroom. It was a Harlequin Presents romance. I picked it up, read the back and thought, "Sounds like Cinderella."
I opened the cover and found True Love from page 1.
Over the years, I've developed quite a collection of favorite titles. Some I have read so many times that I've practically committed the entire book to memory. Others I only know by the hero's name. Still others I have sitting at the ready - waiting for me to be tempted into slipping between the pages.
I've learned a lot from romance novels but the most important lesson is this: love isn't perfect. Sometimes it's destructive. Sometimes it's selfish. Sometimes it's down right inconvenient. But somehow, with patience and strength, love can find a way.
That's what I'm going to write about here. My love for romances. My hopes for the future. I may review some stories or even write a little romance of my own.
Somewhere along the path, I'm sure I'll find my way.
Thanks for reading,
Deenie
A New Day
All is quiet here in the Wilds of Iowa. Maybe tonight I'll be able to crack the cover of one of my four new books!
YAY!!
In the meantime, I'm reading the rich multitude of online reads available at www.eharlequin.com. They're free, they're easy to find and they are, most importantly, ROMANCE!!
So far, my favorite is "The Prince's Housekeeper Bride" by Carol Marinelli. It's only eight chapters but it's got the feel of a full-sized romance. Benito is, of course, sinfully rich, incredibly sexy, stunningly beautiful and entirely spoiled -- like a modern-day Prince Charming with part ownership in a casino.
YAY!!
In the meantime, I'm reading the rich multitude of online reads available at www.eharlequin.com. They're free, they're easy to find and they are, most importantly, ROMANCE!!
So far, my favorite is "The Prince's Housekeeper Bride" by Carol Marinelli. It's only eight chapters but it's got the feel of a full-sized romance. Benito is, of course, sinfully rich, incredibly sexy, stunningly beautiful and entirely spoiled -- like a modern-day Prince Charming with part ownership in a casino.
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