You know there's a problem when it takes 2 weeks to finish a book. I had the hardest time getting into Elizabeth Thornton's The Bachelor Trap. This is going to sound weird, but there is a vagueness about the opening of this book that just left me completely uninterested. I had to reread the first 25 pages 3 times before it made sense, maybe I was preoccupied, but still, it didn't catch my attention at all. It took at least 150 pages for me to warm up to the h/h and to get remotely interested in the mystery, and I knew the "villian" as soon as the character was introduced. To be honest, I assumed it was an Avon book as it seemed rather interchangeable with most of their Regency period books. There's a pretty good review over on RT, the book wasn't horrible, just boring.
Extreme Exposure has an interesting backdrop--a newspaper. The heroine is a reporter and the hero is a Colorado State Senator. Very Erin Brockovitch (did I spell that right?) in style. I enjoyed the mystery and story, but I had issues with the heroines risk taking considering she's a single mom, with no support from the childs father. I loved the inner workings of a news room. My brother is an editor, it's a thankless job, long, long hours. 
Dream Man still works for me. It's been a few years since I've read it cover to cover, though I did skip the scenes detailing why Marlie lost her abilities, I can't handle reading about a child being abused and murdered. Dane is a neanderthal and I still love him. The villian is evil. I wonder if I can use this one for Angies TBR challenge??Pulled this from AAR's At The Back Fence message board in reference to why erotic romance and "Blaze" authors don't get respect:
It's not about the sex in the books, it's about the sex being the books, and in the eyes of said peers the sex replacing the romance. In erotic romance, the romantic conflict is solved through a sexual relationship, and many romance authors still cannot accept that the genre has come to that.
True or False?
5 comments:
I love Dream Man and Dane, the Neanderthal, who could fell a door with his woody.
I felt the same way about Tracy Warren's The Wife Trap - that it was so bland that I was sure it was an Avon!
And finally, I would go and read the posts over at AAR but can't get in. Maybe I am being banned for making mock of LLB. That'll learn me.
I see you're reading After the Night. Is this a first read or a reread. This one still remains my all time fave. I'll be looking for your review!
I commiserate with your Bachelor Trap experience. The beginning was very vague and I felt like all these scenes were missing. Bleh.
I enjoyed After the Night. Now I have to go looking for Dream Man - my TBR pile is becoming a mountain!
"In erotic romance, the romantic conflict is solved through a sexual relationship, and many romance authors still cannot accept that the genre has come to that."
Uh. Call me relationship challenged, but IMO relationship conflicts cannot be solved with sex. Romance, for me, by definition involves more than sex.
The two main characters must connect with one another on an emotional level beyond 'friends with benefits' & manipulative sexual gymnastics.
I really think there are genuine differences between erotic romance & 'regular' erotica.
Whoever said this does have a point in that romance authors & RWA in particular have consistently made attempts over the last year or more to restrict the defintion of romance as a genre.
There are message board posts all over the internet by women complaining that the erotic romance they just bought doesn't have any romance as they (the reader) recognize it. The above poster would do well to listen to these women if you want to be an 'erotic romance' author.
Take pride in what you write & don't whine if some girl doesn't want you to play in her sandbox. Go & Build your own.
Jane--I don't know how Linda Howard does it, but some how she creates Neanderthals you can't help but love, it leaves me scratching my head.
Maybe my link was bad, or maybe it got ugly and LLB decided to pull the thread, I'll have to go check.
Kristie--definitely a reread, it's one of my favs too. It's one of those books, I reread all or parts of all the time and don't bother listing on Just The Books, but this time I'm going to blog about it.
Ames--The beginning was very vague... Didn't an editor somewhere say "Elizabeth, this opening doesn't work"? I'm relieved I wasn't alone in this thinking.
Amanda--Go & Build your own. Amen to that, my thoughts exactly.
The quote I put up came from an anonymous romance author who was trying to explain why these authors don't get respect, I'm not so sure she's an erotic romance author.
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