More book censorship at US schools

As summer ends here in the US, schools are resuming classes. In my area of the US, most schools are resuming in the next few weeks while in other areas school has already begun. This means curriculum are being re-evaluated and last minute decisions made. Not surprisingly, this is the time of year when bannings and challenges increase.

Last month, Kurt Vonnegut Jr.'s Slaughterhouse-Five and Sarah Ockler's Twenty Boy Summer were removed from Republic High School in Republic, Mo. (This same school system has been in the news recently for making a middle grade female student apologize to the male student who raped her. Seems to me this school has serious issues.) You may have heard about Vonnegut Library's response, an absolutely AWESOME one in my opinion - they offered free copies to any of the 150 students who were originally meant to read the book in class. The cost of the books is being covered by an anonymous donor.

Down in Virginia, Sherlock Homes came under fire. The Albemarle County School District removed the Sherlock Holmes mystery A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle from a sixth-grade reading list this summer. Why? Parents complained that the book portrays Mormons in a negative light, according to Matt Haas, executive director of the county's schools. Now, I haven't read that one so I can't speak to that claim but it seems to me that the administrators passed up what we in education call "a teachable moment". The book was on the reading list as an introduction to the mystery genre, but it could also have served as chance to examine the portrayal of religion in historical fiction, an author's responsibility for factual accuracy; intentional bigotry versus unintentional bigotry, reading historical texts  from a contemporary perspective, and so on. The teaching possibilities are practically endless. Study of the book could have been incorporated into history, social studies, literature, and ethics to name a few. The book was moved to the ninth grade reading list and replaced on the sixth grade list with a different Sherlock Holmes book, The Hound of the Baskervilles.

Remember that Banned Book Week, the ALA's annual observation and celebration of banned books and an individual's right to choose their reading material, is coming up in a little over a month. It runs September 24th through October 1st. I have something planned on the blog for every day of the observation.

Review of The Insider by Reece Hirsch

Publisher: Berkley

Release date: August 19, 2010

More Info: Amazon     The Book Depository

Book Blurb (from Goodreads):

First corporate attorney Will Connelly's colleague hurtles to his death outside his office window. Within days, Will is a prime suspect in a murder, the target of an S.E.C. insider trading investigation, and a pawn in a complex criminal scheme involving the Russian mafia and a ruthless terrorist plot. Now, to top things off, he must ensure a deadly enemy doesn't gain access to the nation's most sensitive and confidential information-that has the power to do incalculable, irrevocable harm.
 
My Thoughts:

The cover of this book has a blurb calling it "Gripping and gritty...". It is gritty but gripping...that was more erratic. It would hold my attention for a while then it would get dull and several times I dozed off. There are lots of twists and turns in the story though I guessed or predicted some some pretty quickly. To be honest, I figured out the identity of the person in the firm was who betrayed Will; Hirsch pushed us so hard in one direction that it was obvious to me that the guilty person was someone else. I think the story could have been trimmed a bit, tightened up, and that might have held my attention more.

Stylistically, the story is similar to John Grisham and James Patterson, but with more depth, and also to Michael Connelly. The plot is timely, with it's focus on technological privacy, mergers of giant corporations, and terrorist attacks. As I said, the story drags at times, but Will is likable. There are some implausibilities but some of them are due to Hirsch sticking with some of the thriller genre's standard tropes. However, unlike many mystery and thriller  protagonists, Will manages to stay calm most of the time and can think on his feet. He makes amateurish errors but they are, for the most part, in keeping with his character. He is smart enough to seek out a lawyer and ask for help when he needs it.

Overall, it's a well told story. If you like Grisham, Patterson, Connelly, then you should give this one a try.

I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway.

Review of Maximum Witch by Jodi Redford

Publisher: Samhain Publishing

Release Date: September 27, 2011

Series: #3 in That Old Black Magic

More Info:  Amazon     Samhain

Book Blurb (from Samhain):

Willa Jameson is having one whopper of an identity crisis. Odd memory flashes that aren’t hers. A sultry voice in her head that’s obsessed with sex. Even weirder, she finds herself in the jaws of a rogue leviathan, dragged to the bottom of the ocean—and rescued by a hunky…shark?

The last thing Sheriff Max Truitt expects to find on his daily, deep-Atlantic patrol is a human—especially one who breathes underwater. Compelled to take her home, he waits for the beauty to wake up and reveal her name. Instead he’s treated to a punch in the nose, then a sexy romp hot enough to boil water.

The next morning, embarrassed by the sizzling, scandalous things the voice in her head drove her to do, Willa slips away. But if there’s one thing a determined shark excels at, it’s tracking his favorite meal.

Solving the mystery that is Willa is no simple task. When they finally unlock a dangerous secret hidden deep in her subconscious, it drives a wedge between them…and puts them in a desperate race against an evil that seeks to rain down a watery Armageddon on all mankind.

Product Warnings:

This book does not contain sex with a puffer fish. There’s not even sex with a seahorse. However, there’s plenty of smoking-hot lovin’ with a shark. And even a steamy M/F/M threesome. So slap on your snorkels and swim fins, things are about to get wet and wild.

***May contain spoilers for the first two books***

My Thoughts:

See the pretty cover? Isn't that H A W T? By far, my favorite of the three covers. Sigh. As you can see, I'm on a Jodi Redford kick this week. I had the first two reviews planned for a while, then over the weekend Redford requested reviewers for book #3 so I immediately said yes. Since the first two reviews were going up this week, I squeezed this one too.

This one is my second favorite of the series, book one is my favorite. The sex is is still hot and steamy but less raunchy than the second one, there's plenty of humor and action, and again a threesome. One day, I would LOVE to see Redford do a story in this world where the threesome is more than a one time thing but a committed relationship.

I complained in my review of the second book, "Seven Year Witch", that I wanted to see more world building. We get it in this book, although, despite the title, the only witch in this book is Willa. The focus shifts away in this book to shifters and ancient gods, specifically Poseidon. Sadly, he doesn't make an appearance. I do have a thing for mythological gods. :D

We met Willa briefly in the first book and saw more of her in the second book; in fact the second book ended with a cliff hanger involving Willa. That cliffhanger leads into the opening of this book. With this book, Redford returns to the trope that she used in the first book - the hero, in this case heroine, who is more than she seems,and has a parentage, and powers, that she is unaware of.

I like Willa, she comes across as a spunky, smart, confident woman normal who could be your co-worker or neighbor. The spunkiness and confidence we see in Willa are recent, having just started in the second book, and she doesn't know what to make of this new development in her personality. Max, on the other hand, loves it and loves the contrast with her shyness and occasional demureness. Max is kind, strong, honorable and has a healthy sex drive (well, ok, all of Redford's characters have a healthy sex drive, lol). Sparks fly when they are together and they spend a lot of time together when Max realizes that she needs protection. He's happy to give her 24/7 hands on care; Willa is less certain. She enjoys the sex but is also uncomfortable with some of the urges she suddenly has. She's also not willing to let the strangeness in her life disrupt her life anymore than absolutely necessary. She and Max clash on this and I like that while they disagree, they do it respectfully and Willa isn't one of those UF females who run off and do something stupid just to prove their independence.

I like this series, and I'm looking forward to number four, scheduled for February 2012. The series is easy, enjoyable, fun, sexy, urban fantasy.

I received this Kindle book from the author for review.

Review of The Seven Year Witch by Jodi Redford

Publisher: Samhain Publishing

Release Date: March 23, 2011

Series: #2 in That Old Black Magic

More Info: Amazon     Samhain     The Book Depository

Book Blurb:

After this much foreplay, something’s bound to combust.

As head mistress of Beaumont coven house, Clarissa Miles has perfected two things: keeping her sister witches from accidentally turning innocent bystanders into toads, and resisting the sexy overtures of her familiar, werewolf Logan Scott. 

But her resolve is vanishing—fast. Seven years ago she sold her soul to save her father, and that contract is coming due. The allure of spending her last days indulging in some dirty, naked loving is too tempting to resist.

Logan has patiently ridden out the past seven years, content to do Clarissa’s bidding and ignoring his consuming need to mark her as his. Now that the ban on witch/familiar fraternizing has been lifted, he’s off the leash and ready to launch a full-on sensual assault on her defenses. They’re destined mates, and he’ll do whatever it takes to convince her.

It’s delightfully easy to get her in bed. Get at her heart? Not so much. Especially when a deadly predator stakes its claim on her…and Logan faces a battle not only to win her heart, but save her soul. 

Warning: This book contains a villain with more personalities than Sybil, a witch in search of redemption and a dirty-talking werewolf hell-bent on claiming his mate in every wicked, sexy way possible. Spontaneous howling may occur. 


***This review contains spoilers for book 1***


My Thoughts:

This one is very different from the first book. Although the events occur in a shorter time, the pace of the story is slower, and there's less action. Well, less overall action, and almost no fighting, but there's lots of sexual action. Lots and lots of sexual action. Lots. :D The first book was a paranormal romance with the two genres pretty well evenly blended. This one is an erotic romance set within a paranormal world. Since I wasn't expecting that, it took me a while to shift gears as I read. Whereas we had zombies and vodoo in the first book, in this one we get Christianity's seven deadly sins, as you may have realized from the book's description.

We're introduced to the paranormal conflict right away - Clarissa sold her soul seven years ago and payment has come due. The romantic conflict is also introduced right away - Logan has wanted Clarissa ever since he became her familiar but there were rules about witches and familiars being involved and Clarissa has had an emotional barrier erected around herself. The rules have been invoked and Logan has decide to make his move on Clarissa. It doesn't help Logan's case that he's been, in Clarissa's words, a "horndog" She describes him as "(a) werewolf familiar (who) brought a whole new meaning to the word horndog..."

From there, the story is focused mainly on Clarissa and Logan for about the first half of the book. They sleep together, often, and the sex scenes are both steamy and raunchy. Redford really turns up the heat in this story. There's a lot more sex in this one and it's not for the faint of heart.

In the first book, Clarissa came off as a hard-assed, tough, unfeeling witch at first, but we get hints of a softer side. In this book, we see both sides, her hard and her practical. She had a rough childhood and it's left it's mark on her - she holds people at arm's length, is afraid to let people get close, and focuses on being practical. But, while she may have an emotional wall up, softer feelings do creep in. Logan is cocky, plain spoken, raunchy, stubborn, swears frequently, and is not above pushing people's buttons just for fun. He wants Clarissa and nothing will get in his way. He's one of the few people who sees her softer side, even before they're involved. Even her coven sisters are oblivious; they readily accept the hard shell she presents as the real Clarissa.

Redford employs a familiar romance trope, though we really only see it from Logan's perspective - Logan, though he's wanted Clarissa for years, doesn't really fall in love until they have sex. Sex with her is so awesome that he's "bat-shit crazy in love with Clarissa Miles, the woman who lived by the motto of allowing no one past the closely guarded gate shielding her heart." If we hadn't spent so much of the story already in his head and seen his feelings, I'd have had  a hard time with this. It's not a trope I care for usually, but Redford makes it work

The non-romantic action, Clarissa and the demon who has a lien on her soul, really don't have much impact until about the last third to half of the story. Clarissa has accepted her fate but is determined not to let the demon take others. For a while I wasn't sure if there would be an HEA for Logan and Clarissa, but there is and it works for me. The very last page, concerning Willa, one of the coven witches, completely took me by surprise. Talk about a cliff hanger.

We learn about Clarissa's family in this book, and get to see her interactions with her father and mother, we learn about her childhood, but we don't learn about Logan's family or background. There's also not as much world building as I'd like; for instance, we don't really get to see in either book what purpose exactly the familiars serve in this world.

I enjoyed this story but not as much as I did the first book. Tomorrow, come back to find out about book three, "Maximum Witch" which releases next month. It has a HAWT cover. :P

I received this Kindle book from the author for review.

Do You Love Your Librarian?

Do you live in the US? Does your library have the best librarian EVER?

Here's your chance to let them, and everyone else, know. The Carnegie Corporation of New York/New York Times and the American Library Association are sponsoring  the "I Love My Librarian Award!" They are looking for librarians who are improving the lives of the people in your school, campus or community. This year there will be up to 10 winners.

 For more information, see this article.

Review of That Voodoo You Do by Jodi Redford

Publisher: Samhain Publishing

Release Date: September 2010

Series: #1 in That Old Black Magic

More Info: Amazon     The Book Depository

Book Blurb (from Goodreads):

For ten long years Griffin Trudeau has managed to keep his paws off Jemma Finnegan, best friend and leading star of his kinkiest fantasies. As her appointed cat familiar, indulging those fantasies with the delectable witch is strictly forbidden. But when Jemma shows up at his door with seduction in mind, control goes right out the window.

Too late he realizes making love to Jemma is the trigger that launches a zombie apocalypse.
 
Jemma-s been dealt a double whammy: she's just discovered she's a witch. And Griff has been hiding whiskers and a tail. Oh, and if her life wasn't crazy enough, a dead voodoo queen needs her blood to raise a legion of zombies.

There's one plan that might work to increase Jemma's powers so she can put an end to the looming holocaust. A sexy threesome with Griff and Logan Scott, a werewolf familiar with a history of rubbing Griff's fur the wrong way. A cat and a wolf playing nice, much less sharing? It'll take a miracle.

Warning: A witch, tiger and wolf doing naughty things. A dead voodoo queen doing evil things. And zombies doing zombie things. Get your shovels ready.

My Thoughts:

"Too late he realizes making love to Jemma is the trigger that launches a zombie apocalypse." - Oops! Now there's a buzz kill for sure. Just imagine if they'd known beforehand, talk about performance pressure! On the other hand, if they had known, they could have planned better, been prepared. "That Voodoo You Do" starts off fast and maintains the pace right up until the last few pages of the book.

The story sucked me from the first line and kept me hooked until those last few pages mentioned above. Redford writes hot sex scenes, sharp dialogue, humorous moments, and all at a brisk pace. I really enjoyed the flirting between Jemma and Griff, and between Jemma and Logan. The action with the three of them was hot and I'd have liked to see them make it work as a committed threesome. That doesn't happen but not to worry, Logan's story is in book two.

The overall plot holds up and makes sense. Jemma gets a lot thrown at her in a short time and she tries to keep up and not got overwhelmed. I do think that some of the revelations that she encounters could have been introduced at earlier points, but the time line for the upcoming zombie apocalypse is tight. That tight timeline, however, allows Redford to make Jemma more vulnerable by having to cope with so much all at once and keeping her off balance. Redford has taken the traditional trope of the hero who doesn't know anything about his powers or true parental lineage and given it a modern, urban fantasy spin in Jemma. (The writing team of Ilona Andrews has also done this with their female lead, Kate Daniels. It's a trend I like.)

Both Jemma and Griffin are likable, their romance and passion easy to believe. In addition to the forthcoming zombie apocalypse, there's another consequence to their having sex. Griffin chooses not to tell Jemma about it until there's nothing she can do about it. Personally, I'd have preferred to be told and given the chance to deal with it. Griff sees his actions as protecting her emotionally; I disagree but it's clear that he means well. Clarissa starts out as a hard-assed, tough, unfeeling witch (no really, she's a witch, and the coven leader) but by the end we see that there is more to her than that. Ms Peach, Gloria and Logan feel less well-developed to me and I was never entirely clear on the cause of the animosity between Griff and Logan, or if there even was a cause.

I mentioned that the story worked, and held my interest, until the very end. The ending felt flat and not entirely believable to me. In the book, five to six weeks have passed. In that time, Jemma has not been to work at all; the only mention of her work is near the beginning when she and Griff flee the initial zombie attack. She calls and says she's going out of town on a family emergency. That's the only reference we ever get. I was left wondering if Jemma still had a job, who paid her rent and bills while she was gone, if anyone, did she still have a job, what was she doing for money, etc. Also, after the final battle, Redford employs one of my least favorite tropes and I found myself rolling my eyes, it was so cliched. There is a HEA, this is a romance after all. How we get there didn't really work for me, it felt very anti-climactic.

Despite the ending, I really enjoyed this book. It's a good start to the series and it left me ready for the next book. But that's tomorrow's review. :)

I received this Kindle book from the author for review.

Giveaway!!! Get It Before It's Released!!! Velva Jean Learns To Fly by Jennifer Niven

Thanks to Milena Brown at Penguin, I have one print copy of this book by a newish author, and it hasn't been released yet. It will be released om August 30th, so here's your chance to get it before it's available. If you like a bit of military history mixed in with your fiction, then you need to read this book.

Some information from the press release:

In Jennifer Niven’s debut novel, VELVA JEAN LEARNS TO DRIVE, Velva Jean Hart’s journey began with being saved, losing both parents, finding true love and risking it by teaching herself how to drive and daring to dream of a bigger life “out there,” away from her family’s mountain home in Appalachia.

In VELVA JEAN LEARNS TO FLY (A Plume original / August 30, 2011) the feisty Velva Jean Hart drives off from Appalachia to Nashville to follow her dream: singing at the Grand Ole Opry. But after Pearl Harbor, Velva Jean pins her sights instead on getting her wings.

Set during the tumultuous years of World War II, when men were called to duty and women were given the opportunity to step forward and serve their country, this second novel from Jennifer Niven is an inspiring story of one woman’s determination and independence.

Here we see the ever-intrepid Velva Jean become a pioneering member of the Women’s Airforce Service Pilots. Fewer than 1,000 women made the cut and became women pilots in this extraordinary program. These brave women flew the oldest, patched-together planes—and were finally given veteran status in 1977 and received the Congressional Gold Medal from President Obama. Set against this fascinating backdrop, the spellbinding story of Velva Jean’s training and flying sheds light on the amazing service performed by these daring women. It’s a page-turning story of heroics, romance, and poignant losses.

 Penned by an author who truly makes stories come to life, VELVA JEAN LEARNS TO FLY is an enormously exciting adventure and coming-of-age novel with more a little something for every reader.

 Entry is simple. You don't need to be a follower, though I won't complain if you are or choose to be.  :P

Entry is only open to US residents, sorry. (I'd love to do more international giveaways but the shipping costs are a PITA)

Leave a comment and a way to contact you. You can use the contact form for your contact info if you would rather not put it in public but you NEED to leave a comment or you you won't be entered.

The giveaway closes this Saturday, the 20th, at midnight EST. I'll use random.org to choose the winner.

Don't forget to read my Giveaway Policy. 

That's it! Good luck :)

Thank you Penguin Books for providing this book.

Giveaway & Review of The Devil in Disguise by Stefanie Sloane

Publisher: Ballantine Books

Release date: May 24, 2011

Series: #1 in Regency Rogues

More info: Amazon     The Book Depository

Book Blurb (from Goodreads):

Lord William Randall, the Duke of Clairemont, is a rake with little regard for society—a most unlikely suitor for Lady Lucinda Grey. But his latest assignment for the Young Corinthians, an elite spy organization, involves protecting her from a kidnapping plot. To do this, the notorious “Iron Will” must use his devilish charm to seduce Lucinda and convince her he’s worthy of her attention. William never planned to become enthralled by the lovely Lady Grey—or to lose his own heart in the bargain.


Beautiful and fiercely intelligent, Lucinda has managed to gracefully sidestep even the most persistent suitors. Until the Duke of Clairemont, that is. She’s tempted by his sinfully sensuous mouth and piercing eyes, and finds it hard to resist the champion thoroughbred he offers her in exchange for the honor of courting her. Can she keep him at arm’s length when his touch begs her to let him so much closer?

My Thoughts:

This is Stefanie Sloane's debut novel and overall, it's good. It's a light historical romance with some cute moments, some funny moments), and some sweet moments. Both the character development and the romance could have used some more fleshing out. I won the ARC on Goodreads (I confess, it's been sitting in my TBR pile for a while). One thing I do not like about reading ARC's is the tendency to numerous typos and copy editing issues. This one was particularly egregious; I assume that the final copy was revised and cleaned up.

First, let's look at the obstacles to Lucinda and Will's relationship. The conflict is fairly simple: Will needs to court Lucinda in order to prevent her from being kidnapped. Rather than tell her the truth (it was never clear to me why he wasn't allowed to tell her though late in the story, he finally does), he tries to court her. She has no interest in courting or marriage, she's determined to be single, so they make a wager - if he fails to win her heart in three months, she will take ownership of his racing stallion. She badly wants that horse for her family's horse breeding program, so she agrees. Since this is a romance, they fall in love with each other but neither wants to admit it to the other. So, there's a kidnap plot to foil, and reluctant lovers.  

Will is supposed to be a rogue, with a history of debauchery, but we don't really get to see that. Supposedly, his reputation is so black that Lucinda runs the risk of ruining her reputation by allowing him to court her. Sloane tells us all of this, but doesn't show us. She does that a lot in the book. Lucinda has some modern beliefs about women and their roles in life, which I enjoyed. Her aunts, the Furies, provided a lot of comic relief. Although they are secondary, they greatly influence Lucinda and so I would have liked more development of their characters. Sloane does throw in the occasional historical detail which adds a little flavor to the story eg having Will step over "a steaming pile of horse dung". It's a small thing but it helps add to the atmosphere.

The romance happened pretty quickly, which didn't seem to jibe with their behaviors and personalities as Sloane described them. Both Lucinda and Will are quite likable, and their romance was enjoyable, it just happened faster than seemed plausible. I did enjoy watching them flirt, it was good, light-hearted fun.


"The Devil in Disguise" doesn't quite live up to it's name since the "devil", Will, is actually a decent man but the story is cute and a pleasant way to spend several hours.

I won this ARC in a Goodreads First Reads Giveaway.

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Giveaway!!! 

I'm giving away my ARC of "The Devil in Disguise" by Stefanie Sloane.

The giveaway runs through Midnight EST this Saturday August 20th.

It's open to US residents only.

To enter, just leave a comment about what wager you might make with someone who wanted to court you. 

You don't need to be a follower to enter.

You need to leave a way to contact you, either in your comment or by using the contact form. Remember that you MUST leave a comment or you are not entered.

Please read my Giveaway Policy 

Good luck :)