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Bookkeeping
Dec. 1st, 2006 11:52 amToday we have a Juno double-header.
39. Best New Paranormal Romance - Paula Guran (editor)
I saw this in the bookstore before I knew anything about it and rolled my eyes, imagining one of those LKH-anthos. Then I saw the table of contents, and did a double-take. Elizabeth Bear's "Follow Me Light", Deborah Coates' "Magic In a Certain Slant of Light", and Elizabeth Hand's "Calypso In Berlin"--I read all of those when they came out last year, and loved them. And while they are certainly love stories (although "Calypso" is creepy and rather disturbing), they're not what I think of when I think "romance". So I grabbed this, and came away pretty impressed. Some stories I loved, some I liked, a couple I totally bounced off of, but this is a good collection. Of the stories I hadn't read before, my favorite is Delia Sherman's "Walpurgis Afternoon," and Claudia O'Keefe's "Maze of Trees." (I adore the idea behind Maze--the gods of empty places, and what it's like to be one--and want to steal it.)
Paula is putting together next year's anthology now, and you can recommend stories over here, if you're so inclined.
40. Jade Tiger - Jenn Reese
After hearing Paula talk about the kind of things she wants for Juno, and being impressed with the anthology, I picked up this.
As a book, this is fast and fun, even if I snarked at it a couple of times. (And kept hearing Lo Pan talking about girls with green eyes in the back of my head.) I don't want to have its book-babies or anthing, but it was an enjoyable read.
But as a romance novel, wow. I don't like being a genre snob, but usually romances make me want to set things on fire. I tend to find the character conventions repulsive--overly sheltered and virginal heroines, "alpha males" (when exactly did bullying jerk date rapists become sexy?), and the most ridiculous and insulting gender stereotypes.
Jade Tiger ain't got none of that shit. The heroine kicks ass, and the hero is cute, geeky, and totally supportive of her ass-kicking (and actually described in a manner I find hot, as opposed to ridiculous muscles and hair that doesn't act like hair). No stupid jealousy, no misunderstanding plots, no ridiculous wangst, no eleventh hour reversals in which the chicky is rendered helpless and rescuable. I couldn't write a relationship this healthy if I tried.
I'm curious to know what people who read more romances think of this. Anybody read it?
39. Best New Paranormal Romance - Paula Guran (editor)
I saw this in the bookstore before I knew anything about it and rolled my eyes, imagining one of those LKH-anthos. Then I saw the table of contents, and did a double-take. Elizabeth Bear's "Follow Me Light", Deborah Coates' "Magic In a Certain Slant of Light", and Elizabeth Hand's "Calypso In Berlin"--I read all of those when they came out last year, and loved them. And while they are certainly love stories (although "Calypso" is creepy and rather disturbing), they're not what I think of when I think "romance". So I grabbed this, and came away pretty impressed. Some stories I loved, some I liked, a couple I totally bounced off of, but this is a good collection. Of the stories I hadn't read before, my favorite is Delia Sherman's "Walpurgis Afternoon," and Claudia O'Keefe's "Maze of Trees." (I adore the idea behind Maze--the gods of empty places, and what it's like to be one--and want to steal it.)
Paula is putting together next year's anthology now, and you can recommend stories over here, if you're so inclined.
40. Jade Tiger - Jenn Reese
After hearing Paula talk about the kind of things she wants for Juno, and being impressed with the anthology, I picked up this.
As a book, this is fast and fun, even if I snarked at it a couple of times. (And kept hearing Lo Pan talking about girls with green eyes in the back of my head.) I don't want to have its book-babies or anthing, but it was an enjoyable read.
But as a romance novel, wow. I don't like being a genre snob, but usually romances make me want to set things on fire. I tend to find the character conventions repulsive--overly sheltered and virginal heroines, "alpha males" (when exactly did bullying jerk date rapists become sexy?), and the most ridiculous and insulting gender stereotypes.
Jade Tiger ain't got none of that shit. The heroine kicks ass, and the hero is cute, geeky, and totally supportive of her ass-kicking (and actually described in a manner I find hot, as opposed to ridiculous muscles and hair that doesn't act like hair). No stupid jealousy, no misunderstanding plots, no ridiculous wangst, no eleventh hour reversals in which the chicky is rendered helpless and rescuable. I couldn't write a relationship this healthy if I tried.
I'm curious to know what people who read more romances think of this. Anybody read it?
