Flight into Fantasy

Lovescape an anthology by Anne Avery, Phoebe Conn, Sandra Hill,and Dara Joy.

This is a collection of four romance stories, and for the most part I liked them.

“A Dance on the Edge” by Anne Avery was my favorite, because it dealt with a couple’s developing relationship through a series of emails back and forth. Both have secrets that bring them a lot of pain, and I thought Avery dealt with the issues present in online relationships wonderfully.

“Toss the Bouquet” by Phoebe Conn was my least favorite story. Regan is a florist whose fiance has canceled his vacation with her at the last minute. Arriving at the beach house where she is to spend the week, she accidentally runs into Marco Tomasi, an Italian bicycle racer. Sparks fly, and Regan has the most wonderful week of her life. Unfortunately, Regan's a shrewish, braindead heroine archetype, and Marco was just too good to be true and I honestly didn't see the chemistry at all.

“Heart Cravings” by Sandra Hill is the longest story in the book. Nick DiCello is finally being served a divorce from his wife, Paula. Determined to win her back, he goes out of his way to fulfill a number of sexual fantasies he suspects she has, thanks to the advice of a fortune teller. This story is hillariously funny in places, and it becomes obvious that Nick and Paula's problem isn't their sex life, it's their lack of communication with each other.

“My One” by Dara Joy is a reworking of the tale of Tristan and Isolda. Trystan is an interstellar patroller. Lois Ed has just been dumped by her predictably jerky boyfriend who cleaned out her bank account. She sends out a call to the cosmos for help, and Trystan answers. Given the shortness of this story, there wasn't time for me to get really annoyed with either Trystan or Lois. In fact, Trystan is, in typical Dara Joy fashion, an utter dreamboat.

Next up, I'm making my way through Christine Feehan's Dark Prince . Even though I am assured it's not at all my thing, which it isn't. Oh, well… At least there will be snark.

Edited for grades: This is the gold standard by which I judge all romance anthologies, since it was my first. Given that I liked three out of the four stories, we'll give this a B.

Only two this week.

Tithe by Holly Black is a fun YA urban fantasy with real, flawed, three-dementional teenagers. The heroine, Kaye, becomes a pawn in the Seelie and Unseelie courts. And Kaye and her faeries are a whole lot more likable than the seelie and unseelie courts in another famous urban fantasy series I could name.

Knight of a Trillion Stars by Dara Joy: I loved this book, though not for its heroine, science fiction writer Deana Jones. Deana is not the sharpest tool in the shed, and has several moments of hysterical neuroses that really got on my nerves. No, the fascinating part about this book is Lorgin Ta'al Cru, the alien warrior who travels through space and time to earth, which is justthe beginning of the adventures he and Deana have. Lorgin is sexy as hell, larger than life, and every inch the alpha male. Sometimes, this manifested in me rolling my eyes, but Lorgin was so devistatingly sexy that I forgave him being a complete asshole.

Joy's secondary characters are also compelling. Most of them are obvious sequel bait, from Lorgin's half-brother Rejar, whose book I want to read, to the poor, tortured, angst-ridden Traed, and the revered mystic Yaniff. It's obvious that Joy loves her characters, and she made me love them, too.

Edited for grades: In hindsight, the white trash protagonist with the rebellious spirit who is also a teenager doesn't quite work for me, since I wasn't that teenager. So Black's book gets a B+. On the other hand, I remember dreaming about the characters in KOATS, which means I'll give it an A.

I’ve read a lot recently and because of computer troubles haven’t had a chance to update sooo.

• Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein: I love this book. Loved it the first time I read it, loved it this time. Especially now that I really get it. That book made me love Heinlein. Grade: A

• Charms for the Easy Life by Kaye Gibbons: Not terribly memorable, but a good portrayal of a group of very different, but strong women during the early twentieth century. Charlie Kate, the narrator's grandmother, is the central figure in this book, and she's a marvelous character. Grade: C+
• Daughters of the New World by Susan Richards Shreeve: Another wonderful portrayal of life during the twentieth century, and four generations of strong American women. This was made into a craptastic Lifetime movie that sucked me in, so I had to read the book. Naturally, the book was a lot better, and a lot less schlocky. In fact, what I really liked about it was that it was a feel-good story without being terribly sentimental. Grade: A-
• A Cure for Dreams by Kaye Gibbons: This one was short. I finished it within a couple of hours of starting. Another story of strong women in the Depression. I liked Charms for the Easy Life better, though. Grade: C
• World's End by Joan Vinge: The sequel to The Snow Queen . This didn't work so well for me because I found the style–that of a journal–insufferable and our hero is extremely whiny throughout and I spent the whole book wanting to smack him upside the head. Grade: D+
• A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith: I'd read this book before, too. I got a lot more out of it on a second reread. Another nostalgic story about life in the early twentieth century. Smith's book is surprisingly dark, with moments of sweetness throughout. Francie Nolan, the protagonist, really resonated with me, and she led a hard life, but there wasn't really anything noble in her or her family's being poor. Smith also delves into such issues as sex, marital problems, and racial tensions, and I was surprised at how candid and frank the book was in parts. Grade: A

I'm going back and forth between two books now, Joan Vinge's The Summer Queen which I'm finding interesting except that at the part I'm at now, all of her characters are either pregnant or mommies, and I'm finding that a little bit irritating, Elizabeth Haydon's Rhapsody which would be a great book if it weren't for the title character, who is very inconsistently written and who makes me want to stick a fork in her eye. (However, Rhapsody's reluctant companions, Achmed and Grunthor, are worth reading about because Achmed is snarky and Grunthor is a gentle giant and we all know I love that archetype, even if Grunthor is written with an annoying cockney accent. I'm also starting to reread Charles de Lint's The Little Country which I know is going to be great since I've reread it several times.