Smart Bitches, Trashy Books

The Science of Kissing by Sheril Kirshenbaum - A Guest Review by CarrieS

I was inspired to read and review this book by two things: my local library's science book display (Yay, libraries!) and Sarah's articles on the myths about biology and anatomy that often appear in romance.  I thought readers of those threads might enjoy The Science of Kissing (henceforth known as TSoK) based on my first impression of it as a light and entertaining science read.  As it turns out, this was a hard book to grade because as a science book it was disappointingly slight - and I say that as someone who's prefers to have science offered up to me in small portions with easy words.  On the other hand, the historical content was fascinating and it was a really charming book overall.  

I'll let the author speak for herself as to what the book is about and why she wrote it:

"A kiss is one of the most significant exchanges two people can have, serving as an unspoken language to convey our deepest feelings when words simply will not do.  From a symbol of… read more »

Truths and Roses by Inglath Cooper

I found this book because of a Facebook ad. If you follow me on Twitter or are subscribed to the SBTB Facebook page, you saw me talking about it yesterday. Here's the ad:

This ad worked for me so well I was astonished. Hero description, heroine description, briefest plot summary with hints at the tropes to be used.

I WAS SO THERE.

Then I got a look at the cover. Beautiful! Looks…professional!

Add to that the .99c price, and it was not difficult to click the ad, look at the book description, and click to buy. And judging from the link traffic stats, many of you did, too. I hope you enjoyed the book as much as I did.

Player’s Ultimatum by Koko Brown

I received a pitch for this book from the author, and was intrigued by the mix of elements she highlighted in her email: the multi-cultural characters, the use of European soccer clubs as a setting, and the interesting conflict with the heroine posing as the fiancée of her gay best friend while being attracted to his nemesis. I not only bought it but sent a message to Jane at DearAuthor, since she and I both enjoy sports-focused romances.

Alas, this book is poorly edited, suffers from an outright fear of commas, is confused as to how the characters names are spelled, and is published with a lack of formatting that neglected to mark changes in scene or point of view, which made reading downright confusing.

Most bothersome to me, the plot relies on stereotypes to a degree I found offensive. The portrayal of the gay characters turned me off entirely.

The Unexpected Miss Bennet by Patrice Sarath

This book was a big departure from what I usually read. I don't as a rule like Austen sequels, and I don't like sequel stories that take place within the same family. Sometimes the portrayal of the same people by two different authors, especially when one is Jane Freaking Austen, is so jarring and different I can't read either book for awhile, the classic and its sequel.

When the author enquired whether I'd be interested in this book, I was caught between my usual "No, thank you" reaction to Austen Sequels, and the opportunity to read about Mary Bennet, who was the sister after Jane and Elizabeth that I most liked and wanted to find happiness. I'm glad I read this book, as it was familiar and enjoyable, though it didn't leave me with the almost mental exhaustion and feeling of admiration as I had finishing Pride & Prejudice, which, the first time I read it, was so compelling and absorbing I was all wrung out when I was done.

Beauty and the Duke by Melody Thomas, a Guest Review by RedHeadedGirl

I got this as a recommendation from…. Aw, hell, there isn’t a name attached to the rec, but Sarah sent in on because “it’s fun when your head explodes!”

So there’s a couple things you should know: first, like many people, I went through a dinosaur phase in my misspent youth, so there’s that.  Not a big enough of phase to want to become a paleontologist, but still, very interesting and whatnot.  There are pictures of dinosaur poo on my twitter feed from my Christmas visit to the Science Museum of Minnesota.

Second, Beauty and the Beast is my favorite Disney movie.  Ever.  I know there are people who think it’s an example of Stockholm Syndrome and that it encourages the idea that women can change men, which I think is a simplistic reading of the text and we could get into it, but the core lesson, I think, is that if you want to be treated like a person, you have to act like a person.  And sometimes it’s someone… read more »

Lord and Lady Spy by Shana Galen

I found this book to be fun and fast paced and easy to jump in and out of, with a pretty good balance of emotion, drama, action, humor and tension between the main characters. I liked the heroine and the hero, I wanted them to figure out a way to be happy and together, and I loved their scenes together. In the larger context of the mystery they were trying to solve, I cared more about them than their progress in solving the case.

Adrian, Lord Smythe, is a spy known as Wolf. His wife, Sophia, is also a spy, known as Saint. Their identities are so secret, they have no idea about one another, and are pretty much strangers in their professional and personal lives. But when the war with France comes to an end, the secret agency in which they work is downsized and they are both laid off (my language, not the author's). Then, each receives a mysterious note to meet in some dark, drippy location at midnight where they discover they're both spies. Plus, there is a case that needs… read more »

An Innocent in Paradise by Kate Carlisle

This book has it all, and by "all" I mean All The Cliches That Will Drive Me Nuts. Some of my recent ranting about cliches? Largely inspired by this book, I am sad to say.

The story starts out so cool, and I was anticipating something truly different and amazing. In the heroine, I got some of that. In the hero and the plot, I got All Of The Cliches. All of them. I am NOT KIDDING.

So please be aware, This Review Is Most Spoilery. I couldn't present the depth of amazing cliche without explaining them, so there is a LOT revealed. BE YE WARNED. 

Grace Farrell has come to the tropical resort on the island of Alleria under false pretenses: she's a scientist. A research scientist. A supremely brainy child prodigy holds-four-PhDs-that-she-earned-at-the-same-time when-did-she-sleep research scientist. Her research focuses on a specific type of spore that shares some microscopic traits with humans.

Grace needs more spores to study because the ones she has are not as robust as the ones on the island, plus there's some scuzzy guy back home who… read more »

Chain Reaction by Zoe Archer, a Guest Review by CarrieS

(With Bonus Mini-review of: The Clockwork Girl.)

I reviewed Archer's first science fiction ebook, Collision Course, about 8th Wing and their fight against PRAXIS and I loved it.  A special thanks to all the commentators who pointed out that in real life PRAXIS can stand for a type of standardized test.  I still love the series but now every time the word comes up all I can think of is number two pencils. 

Anyway, I had high expectations for Chain Reaction and those expectations were met and exceeded. Wonderful characters, a geek hero (SWOON!!!!), great dialogue both serious and funny, and a refreshing amount of realism considering the setting.  After a sequence of ebooks in which protagonists were practically knocked senseless by their first encounter with the godliness of the other, it was lovely to see a more realistic but still passionate description of attraction and deepening emotional romance.

Unraveled by Courtney Milan, a Guest Review by RedHeadedGirl

You guys know that I’m in my last year of law school (ABOUT FUCKING TIME) and it’s finals coming up and I SHOULD be writing a paper, but Sarah knows very well that I usually do reviews when I’m avoiding writing.  Or studying.  Or doing anything I really should be doing.  SO HERE I AM and I’m also a little (a lot) unhinged (which totally should be the title of Courtney’s next book).

      Anyway, so I got an advance copy of Unraveled in a giveaway during the Sizzling Not Summer Book Club chat and there was pressure for a review and here we are because Smite is AWESOME and I LOVE HIM and Miranda is FANTASTIC and also I really don’t want to write this stupid paper.  SO HERE WE GO.

      (Told you.  Unhinged.)

Abby and the Bachelor Cop by Marion Lennox

I read this book in a matter of hours. That's how much I liked it. I didn't even notice that the Steelers were on, that there was dessert on the table, that it was past my bedtime. I thought it was charming and I loved reading it. I want to read everything Marion Lennox has written, and I want to read the rest of this series.

But after I finished it, I found myself arguing with my own opinion, challenging how much I liked it, pointing out flaws and figuring out that, yup, despite them, I still liked it. I'm conflicted about how to grade the book, because I know there are flaws and I know there are some uses of character that will drive some readers nuts, but I also really enjoyed it, with and despite those flaws.

Plot summary: Abigail is about to marry Phillip, who has been her boyfriend for ten years, who she went to law school with, who she practices defense law alongside each day, and who she has been with for so long it's hard for… read more »

All Seated on the Ground by Connie Willis, A Guest Review by CarrieS

There are only three kinds of people.  There are those who think Connie Willis is a genius (that would be me).  There are those who can't figure out what all the fuss is about and think she's over-rated (bah!).  Finally, there are those people who haven't read her yet.  If you are in the third group, go read her right away!  Christmas is a great time to start, because she is widely beloved for her Christmas stories, one of which perfectly fits my geek profile as it involves aliens and romance.  If you feel something has been missing from your holiday experience, allow me to suggest that probably in the deep places of your soul you've been sensing a certain lack of aliens at the mall.  That is why I suggest you try Willis's novella, All Seated on the Ground.

A Hero in the Making by Kay Stockham

This book made me mad. Really mad. Mad to the point where I'd mark passages that pissed me off and yell at the book instead of making a note. The hero is awful until about 75% of the way through the book, and the heroine lets everyone push her around and permits varying levels of cruelty. Her family is made up of some horrible people. Her conflict is real enough, but her decision-making ability as an adult is constantly questioned and undermined to the point where she makes the decision that everyone else wants, mostly because she abandons her perfectly valid arguments.

And that last bit is what pissed me off the most. In this book, the subtext is that family is more important than anything else, and the people who are your family deserve your undiverted loyalty, no matter how shitful, cruel, and hypocritical they are. Love and family are more important than anything else, even when that love and that family are the opposite of beneficial to the heroine.

That subtext wove through the book repeatedly, because that was the only… read more »

Captured by Beverly Jenkins: A Guest Review by RedHeadedGirl

I first noticed this book in Borders when I was working there as a bookseller (I miss my Borders, and I really miss my fellow employees.  We have a standing date at our local pub on the 14th of every month so we don’t lose touch with each other and our facebook group is in honor of our favorite manager).  It was shelved in African-American Fiction, but wouldn’t have been out of place in the regular Romance section, and I did have this thought process about where it should really go- but that wasn’t my call to make.  The sticker said African-American fiction, in African American Fiction it went.

Anyway, I saw this book, and was vaguely intrigued, but it was during an impoverished spell, so I couldn’t get it, and then I forgot about it because my head was full of other things, and then the pirate book discussion in November happened, and someone mentioned it, and a lightbulb went off so I went and downloaded the sample.

And was… read more »

The Hunter by Theresa Meyers - A Guest Review by CarrieS

Back in August, this lovely author, Theresa Meyers, sent an email to Smart Bitch Sarah asking if I (Me! CarrieS!) would review her latest book, The Hunter.  Well.  As Paula Deen once said, that just knocked my socks clean off and into the washer.  I feel I have Arrived.  Now that authors (or, at least, an author) are requesting me (me!) personally, I'm sure the New Yorker will be calling any minute.  I'm waiting by the phone, New Yorker!  Call me!

Anyway, there I was, flattered right out of my mind, when I realized that this was actually a disaster, because for the first time I knew in advance that an author was going to read my review.  What if poor, nice, trusting Theresa sent me the book and I hated it?  What if I had to say, "In all honesty, Theresa, reading your book is akin to having my toenails pulled out by angry monkeys?" Would I be able to keep my journalistic objectivity under this kind of… read more »

50 Shades of Grey by E.L. James

So many readers have recommended this book to me. SO MANY. It has a 4.49 average after 1,728 ratings on GoodReads and 4.5 stars after 100 reviews on Amazon. Readers on Twitter have told me how much they adore this book, how they love the hero, love the story, love every one of the 200k pages of this book (which ends on a cliffhanger and continues in volume two, Fifty Shades Darker).

Alas, this book didn't work for me. I kept trying, and going back to it more than I normally would because of the number of people who adore this book and talk about it so reverently. Unfortunately for me, I found it to be melancholy and meandering, and the heroine narrator is so maudlin and wimpy I grew more and more irritated with her and with the story and had to stop. It's amazing how powerful a first-person… read more »