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sisterjuneFinally managed to get my hands on Lisa Kleypas's "Dreaming of You" after having to wait for 2-3 weeks for it to get sent over to my library.
The book it should be said is not as sappy as the title implies. I liked the hero at first but after a while....well kleypas manages to come up with some delicious heroes sometimes but they often end up being too domineering for my tastes. I think I like Chase's sensibilities more, the guys manage to appear strong and masculine without always necessarily being domineering or having the "gruffy manly man" vibe to them. Which I appreciate, cause it makes things alot more interesting. Plus Alot of Chase heroes tend to be witty with their words which is something I always find immensely endearing in a guy. and Sadly very lacking in my real life :( Though I maintain when it comes to angst and vulnerability, no one can beat Laura Kinsale's heroes. Or maybe they can, from what I've read so far though, no one comes close. I have a feeling that as soon as I read more Kinsale stories it'll be her stories I love the most, we'll see.
In other news, I somehow ended up walking into a shopping center I've never been in today, It turns out there was a nice used book shop there, I didnt get to look at it much since my dad was done with his errands and was there to pick me up rather sooner than I'd liked. I didnt have money on me anyway, but I definitely gotta jump by there again. It was so small and quaint a place, I bet they have lots of cool stuff!
Anyway as you all can see I've been reading a lot of novels and did some reviews, well really just writing about my impressions.
Flowers from the Storm by Laura Kinsale. Grade: A-
If you are looking for a fluffy romance this is definitely not your book. This is one of the most angst and drama filled romance novels I've ever read (so far). and also was one of the most emotional. Those who like fluffy light and fun to read romances probably wont enjoy flowers very much. I love me some angst though and Flowers has it by the cup full but the book is also a very tense and stressful read at times. Not simply because of the subject matter and the threat of the Hero being sent back to a madhouse constantly looming over both the protagonists heads, but also because Kinsale's style is more involved than some of her other romance writing counterparts. The subject matter is heavy and so is the style of writing.
Now while this book is not as relaxing or glee inducing as some other stories I've read. I still really loved this book. It is very gripping and in the last 100 pages I found myself literally glued to the book, even staying up till unholy hours last night to figure out what happened next, even when I KNOW that the ending will be happy because it always is in romance novel land, I was still totally caught up in the tension and fear of the protagonists and was very worried. The author also doesn't go easy on either of her protagonists, and whole hero suffers alot trying to regain his status and keep himself out of the crazy place, the heroine who is a devout quaker, also suffers because she is drawn into a world of vice and extravagance. Her moral dilemmas are a big part of the tension of the plot. And there is ALOT of tension in this book and none of it comes from just one source, so even when one problem is solved, another manages to arise or still has to be taken care of.
But the great thing about this book is the angst is not over done at all and the problems that crop up for the lovers are very believable ones. I always felt for both the Hero and the Heroine throughout the whole story and understood why they did the things they did. and Most of the time I even found myself unable to take sides because they both were very justified in the way they felt. The way these two people see the world is so different and it's fascinating watching them brought together first by fate and then later by love.
It's really a great love story and I can see why this is such a classic and beloved favorite among romance readers. When the pair finally make it to their happily ever after at the end it feels very earned although perhaps not completely realistic and even handed in reconciling maddy's differences with the world of the Duke's aka the hero, it's a very big chasm between maddy's quaker existence and the duke's decadent life of luxury and power, it does make for quite a clash of ideologies though and while it is perhaps not a perfect resolution for maddy's reservations with living that kind of life with the hero, it felt believable an convincing enough to me and I was very moved by the final confrontation between maddy and jerveux in the quaker meetinghouse. It definitely wasnt a ridiculous deus ex machina that brought these two together in the end and in the hands of a lesser writer it easily could have been.
All in all I would say a very good read. I think I'm going to be reading more Kinsale in the future.
To wrap this entry up, I changed my layout a week ago and all the color coding took me at least 2 hours, and I never did manage to get the titles on the main page the precise color I wanted but eh, it's good enough I think.
The book it should be said is not as sappy as the title implies. I liked the hero at first but after a while....well kleypas manages to come up with some delicious heroes sometimes but they often end up being too domineering for my tastes. I think I like Chase's sensibilities more, the guys manage to appear strong and masculine without always necessarily being domineering or having the "gruffy manly man" vibe to them. Which I appreciate, cause it makes things alot more interesting. Plus Alot of Chase heroes tend to be witty with their words which is something I always find immensely endearing in a guy. and Sadly very lacking in my real life :( Though I maintain when it comes to angst and vulnerability, no one can beat Laura Kinsale's heroes. Or maybe they can, from what I've read so far though, no one comes close. I have a feeling that as soon as I read more Kinsale stories it'll be her stories I love the most, we'll see.
In other news, I somehow ended up walking into a shopping center I've never been in today, It turns out there was a nice used book shop there, I didnt get to look at it much since my dad was done with his errands and was there to pick me up rather sooner than I'd liked. I didnt have money on me anyway, but I definitely gotta jump by there again. It was so small and quaint a place, I bet they have lots of cool stuff!
Anyway as you all can see I've been reading a lot of novels and did some reviews, well really just writing about my impressions.
Flowers from the Storm by Laura Kinsale. Grade: A-
If you are looking for a fluffy romance this is definitely not your book. This is one of the most angst and drama filled romance novels I've ever read (so far). and also was one of the most emotional. Those who like fluffy light and fun to read romances probably wont enjoy flowers very much. I love me some angst though and Flowers has it by the cup full but the book is also a very tense and stressful read at times. Not simply because of the subject matter and the threat of the Hero being sent back to a madhouse constantly looming over both the protagonists heads, but also because Kinsale's style is more involved than some of her other romance writing counterparts. The subject matter is heavy and so is the style of writing.
Now while this book is not as relaxing or glee inducing as some other stories I've read. I still really loved this book. It is very gripping and in the last 100 pages I found myself literally glued to the book, even staying up till unholy hours last night to figure out what happened next, even when I KNOW that the ending will be happy because it always is in romance novel land, I was still totally caught up in the tension and fear of the protagonists and was very worried. The author also doesn't go easy on either of her protagonists, and whole hero suffers alot trying to regain his status and keep himself out of the crazy place, the heroine who is a devout quaker, also suffers because she is drawn into a world of vice and extravagance. Her moral dilemmas are a big part of the tension of the plot. And there is ALOT of tension in this book and none of it comes from just one source, so even when one problem is solved, another manages to arise or still has to be taken care of.
But the great thing about this book is the angst is not over done at all and the problems that crop up for the lovers are very believable ones. I always felt for both the Hero and the Heroine throughout the whole story and understood why they did the things they did. and Most of the time I even found myself unable to take sides because they both were very justified in the way they felt. The way these two people see the world is so different and it's fascinating watching them brought together first by fate and then later by love.
It's really a great love story and I can see why this is such a classic and beloved favorite among romance readers. When the pair finally make it to their happily ever after at the end it feels very earned although perhaps not completely realistic and even handed in reconciling maddy's differences with the world of the Duke's aka the hero, it's a very big chasm between maddy's quaker existence and the duke's decadent life of luxury and power, it does make for quite a clash of ideologies though and while it is perhaps not a perfect resolution for maddy's reservations with living that kind of life with the hero, it felt believable an convincing enough to me and I was very moved by the final confrontation between maddy and jerveux in the quaker meetinghouse. It definitely wasnt a ridiculous deus ex machina that brought these two together in the end and in the hands of a lesser writer it easily could have been.
All in all I would say a very good read. I think I'm going to be reading more Kinsale in the future.
To wrap this entry up, I changed my layout a week ago and all the color coding took me at least 2 hours, and I never did manage to get the titles on the main page the precise color I wanted but eh, it's good enough I think.
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no subject
Date: 2009-06-07 05:08 am (UTC)Old book stores and libraries are always fun--I like smelling the insides of old books XD
no subject
Date: 2009-06-08 12:11 am (UTC)I love old books <3 I actually new ones, they have this annoying smell and they are always so rigid. Another reason I prefer hardcovers and big paperbacks ( the first reason is because the small text stresses my eyes). Which is the best thing about used book stores. Hardcovers on the cheap! and not to mention digging and exploring through the stacks.You never know what you'll find.
Oh I was reading Haruki Murakami's bio on wiki today and saw something made me crack up:
Shortly before finishing his studies, Murakami opened the coffeehouse (jazz bar, in the evening) "Peter Cat" in Kokubunji, Tokyo with his wife, Yoko.
dont lie now, that IS funny XD Especially since Hina compared himself to Haruki one time on a recommen, albeit in some misguided attempt at a joke but still. lol
no subject
Date: 2009-06-07 08:30 am (UTC)Like it a lot and IM love with your Little Prince friends only banner *___*
no subject
Date: 2009-06-08 12:04 am (UTC)I loved the banner too! It's so cute isnt it? I love that story, it's very bittersweet. and I thought it suited the whimsical nature of my header. my layout has a cute children's book vibe doesnt it? or that's the theme i was going for. XD
no subject
Date: 2009-06-07 11:53 am (UTC)your layout is nice too, me likey :D
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Date: 2009-06-08 12:01 am (UTC)thanks sabs :D