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Becka's Song by Frankie J. Jones

Becka's Song by Frankie J. Jones

Bella Books, 2008

Overview: Lee Dresher enjoys her quiet life running a successful art gallery in Christmas, Arkansas, where tourists flock every holiday season as the town makes itself over into a Victorian wonderland. She is even happy being single until she meets Becka James who, despite a mysterious and troubled past, might prove too compelling for Lee to ignore.

My Reaction:I was sold on Becka's Song when it opened with Lee hiding in the woods in the early morning, trying to photograph a shy twelve-point buck. Any character that likes nature that much is fine by me. Though the ending fell victim to a few too many cheesy lines, my overall impression of the book confirmed my initial judgment; Becka's Song is a solidly plotted romance with a beautiful setting - a very enjoyable read.

Often, one of my biggest complaints about romances is the lack of convincing characters or plot lines. Here, Jones drew a three-dimensional protagonist, and while the love plot is certainly the center of the book, other occurrences don't feel like they are only there to carry the characters from one sex scene to another. What with Becka's mysterious past and other unsettling events around town, it almost reads like a mystery. A perfect book for a snow day (it is set in Christmas after all, where the holiday season lasts three months), though it works just as well for Christmas in July!

Sticky Fingers by Morgan Hunt

Sticky Fingers by Morgan Hunt

Alyson Books, 2007

Overview: When Tess Camillo finds a rattlesnake in her bedroom, she knows it isn't there by accident, especially after another San Diego-area lesbian dies mysteriously of snake bites only a few days later. Convinced that others may be in danger, Tess begins to investigate the case, despite her own better judgment and that of those around her.

My Reaction: Sticky Fingers is one of those books that is just okay - not engrossing, not off-putting, not the inspiration for any particular emotional response. It has good qualities, including a discussion of breast cancer (the author is a survivor), a fast-paced mystery and a mostly likable lead sleuth. The writing is okay, and got better as the book progressed. If the whole thing contained REALLY BAD similes such as "the snake's tail vibrated like a cicada with Parkinson's" (2), I probably would have put it down. If you want a quick read requiring little investment of emotion or time (it took me less that four hours), you could do a lot worse. I will likely read the other two in the series, since they are also short, to see if they get any better (the third book won a 2009 Indie Excellence Award, for what it's worth).

Tess Camillo Mysteries

Sticky Fingers, 2007

Fool on the Hill, 2008

Blinded by the Light, 2009

Fingersmith by Sarah Waters

Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
Riverhead Books, 2002

Overview: Orphan Sue Trinder agrees, at the urging of the woman who raised her, to pose as a servant in order to cheat the heiress Maud Lilly out of her inheritance, but finds herself increasingly attracted to her victim.

My Reaction: If you like a book that keeps you guessing what will happen next, I have good news for you: Fingersmith has enough plot twists to make Dickens proud. As The Bookwhisperer can attest, our apartment was often filled with my outraged exclamations or squeaks of surprise as I slowly made my way through this most excellent novel. I say slowly for a reason, though, since it's not easy going. Perhaps I am particularly sensitive, but I often had difficulty getting past the excess of human suffering and unfairness of the world that Sue and Maud inhabit and had to put the book down to recover for a while. We had planned to do a "Sarah Waters Week" last week, but I couldn't get through my contribution in time - we'll have to make it a two week celebration, which is what this talented author deserves anyway.

Despite the sometimes overwhelming plot, I can't help but recommend this book for its beautiful writing and strong sense of place that is present in all of Waters' other work.

Affinity by Sarah Waters

Affinity by Sarah Waters

Riverhead Books, 2000.

Overview: Affinity is a story told through the diaries of  two Victorian women: Margaret Prior, who becomes a "Lady Visitor" at the women's "gaol" at Millbank Prison in Chelsea, and Selina Dawes, a young spirit medium who is one of its prisoners. Two major plotlines unfurl and inform each other, as we wait with bated breath to see where Margaret's clear attraction toward Selina will lead, as well as to discover who--or what--committed the crime for which Selina is imprisoned.

My reaction: This one was a real treat! It was much different in tone than The Night Watch since it was set about 70 years earlier, but it was just as compelling. Waters delicately balances the major story arcs, and finishes with such a stunning ending that I had to sit on it for hours before writing this review. Like The Night Watch, Affinity comes to life as much through historical detail as it does from its complex and enigmatic protagonists. While trying to slog through Foucault's Surveiller et Punir (Discipline and Punish) in a college French class was quite a challenge, I finally reaped the reward here; Millbank has some essential elements of a Panopticon with its main watch tower and radial floor plan, and disciplinary habits designed to create "docile bodies." Waters' descriptions of prison architecture and routines made me feel claustrophobic, and seemed to be an appropriate background for the stories of two women who were constrained by their circumstances. In particular, Margaret's simultaneous revulsion and attraction to prison life made sense given her station as a well-bred lady in Victorian England. She is not free to love whom she will, or even to be very independent. As she is a spinster (her word, not mine!), her mother insists that her place is in the home with her; it is ironic that the greatest freedom Margaret is allowed is to go to a prison of her choosing. 

This is an amazing story to follow, and while it was often a devastating (though beautiful) read, the upside is that it made me feel so lucky to be living in the 21st century!! 

Forged in Fire by J.A. Pitts

Forged in Fire by J.A. Pitts

A Tor Book published by Tom Doherty Associates, LLC, 2012.

Overview: Sarah Beauhall continues to deal with the fall-out of the dragon-slaying she accomplished in Black Blade Blues, picking up right where Honeyed Words left off. A bloodthirsty necromancer is on the loose, and while he has taken a distressing interest in killing off Sarah's acquaintances, he is definitely trying to achieve something even more terrible.

My reaction: Forged in Fire thankfully moves much faster and with more direction than Honeyed Words, but it did not quite equal Black Blade Blues for me. Since we jump right into an action sequence in the first pages, I thought it was going to really show off Sarah's skill with a hammer and sword. Unfortunately, a lot of the action remains on the periphery of her life, and it began to irk me. In my book, if some of your favorite acquaintances are brutally slaughtered for the express purpose of finding out more information from you, AND you have the battle skills to do something about it, YOU TRY TO FIND THE EVIL NECROMANCER. On the whole, though, I was mostly engaged as I enjoyed Katie coming into her own as a heroine herself, and speculating at how Sarah's association with a dragon was going to work out. While I didn't see any hint of another installment coming on his website (which was last updated before Forged in Fire was released!), there were some major loose ends that I anticipate will be taken up if there is one. (Based on the interval between the first three, it shouldn't be too much longer.) I have to admit that I hope there is one, despite the mixed bag of its predecessors, as those loose ends have the potential to be a really good story. 

Cemetery Murders by Jean Marcy

Cemetery Murders by Jean Marcy
New Victoria Publishers, 1997

Overview: A serial killer is at large in St. Louis who targets homeless women and stages their bodies in graveyards. When P.I. Meg Darcy's friend finds her own family caught up in the serial murders, Meg agrees to investigate the case, especially since it means she will get to work with her old army flame, police detective Sarah Lindstrom.

My Reaction: At first I thought Cemetery Murders was going to be a hard-boiled detective novel, along the lines of something by Raymond Chandler, just starring a tomboy lesbian PI. Meg Darcy is perhaps not as hard-boiled as the tone of the first chapter suggests (she only pretends to drink a rum and coke and never wakes up with a hangover), but the book was fun anyway. The mystery kept me guessing and I enjoyed Meg's enthusiastic crush on the mostly aloof Lindstrom. I also suspect someone with greater familiarity with St. Louis than I would enjoy the place specific details scattered throughout the story. I certainly plan on checking out later titles in the series.

On a side note completely unrelated to the quality of the book (but which probably had undue influence over my enjoyment of it), Cemetery Murders was written by the most adorable couple. According to the back:

"Jean Marcy is the combined pen name for Jean Hutchinson [...] and Marcy Jacobs [...]. Partners for nine years, this is the first joint writing endeavor of one who leans towards purple prose and another who sees herself as a minimalist. They live in Illinois"

And here is a picture:

D'awwww

Meg Darcy Mysteries
Cemetery Murders, 1997
Dead and Blonde, 1998
Mommy Deadest, 2000
A Cold Case of Murder, 2003

Honeyed Words by J.A. Pitts (2nd book in the Sarah Beauhall series)

Honeyed Words by J.A. Pitts

Tor Books, 2011. 

Overview: At the beginning of Honeyed Words, Sarah and her friends are only a few months removed from the traumatic battle with a dragon and his minions, and are struggling to forgive themselves and each other for the deaths of their comrades. When an acquaintance is kidnapped by dwarves, Sarah is alerted to the unrest in Vancouver, the former domain of the dragon she slew. While she assesses the new threats to the safety of her circle, Sarah must also find a way to reconcile with friends and enemies alike. 

My reaction: I was really disappointed in this one overall. While the first one had some plot holes, the story was generally moving fast enough for me to not really care; Honeyed Words moved about as fast as molasses until at least halfway in. Part of that was because of  excessive summarization of Black Blade Blues, but I also couldn't really get invested in the kidnapping arc. I didn't miss it when it got dropped (well, as in Sarah wasn't actively trying to rescue him) for most of the book in favor of focusing on a more interesting new character's problems, and the unlikely alliances that Sarah forges to help her. Like Sarah, I was relieved when there was something for her to do about the situation. Unfortunately, that took a little too long for it to be as rewarding as Black Blade Blues.

I wanted to finish the next book, Forged in Fire, to balance out this review, since the 58 pages I've read so far are much better, but I didn't have the time. I hope that it maintains its fast pace, since I'll feel better about sticking with Honeyed Words if there is a payoff in Forged.

(I was tempted by the end to give this a "decent," but I think that's more a reflection on the relative quality of its companions than on its own merits.)

Ghost Motel by Jackie Manthorne

Ghost Motel by Jackie Manthorne

Gynergy Books, 1994

Overview: When Harriet (Harry) stops for the night at a deserted looking motel on her way down Cape Cod, she doesn't expect to be the last to see the enigmatic owner, Gertie, alive. After reading about Gertie's death two days later, Harry feels compelled to return to the motel to discover what really happened.

My Reaction: It's the rare book that makes me say this, but Ghost Motel is bad. Really bad - and not even in the ridiculous way that still might make it enjoyable reading. On top of being one of the most thoroughly un-mysterious mysteries I have ever read and lacking any kind of detection on Harry's part, it has one of the most cliché rocky relationship story arcs imaginable.  At one point, Harry's lover Judy actually says "it's not you, it's me" and "please realize I'm not trying to hurt you" AND "I have to do this for myself" within the space of the same page. One of the cardinal rules of the mystery genre states that while other subplots, such as a love interest, a relationship or a leaky basement can enter into the narrative, none should overshadow the investigation. No such luck here - more than half of this 174 page book passed before Harry even got back to the motel to "investigate" Gertie's death (which consisted of one late-night foray to the scene of the crime; the rest of the mystery was solved by others telling her what happened). And don't even get me started on all the mist-filled dreams that Harry has about Gertie. Leave no cliché unturned, I suppose!

In short, Ghost Motel, it's not me, it's you.

Black Blade Blues by J.A. Pitts

Black Blade Blues by J.A. Pitts

Tor Books, 2010.

No, she does not wear belly shirts in the book!

Overview: Sarah Beauhall, a Seattle blacksmith and part-time prop manager for a low-budget movie, is happy to spend her free time with her friends in the Society for Creative Anachronism (a medieval re-enactment group), going to auctions to pick up antique weapons, and dating her girlfriend of a year, Katie. When she comes into possession of a sword straight out of Norse myth, Sarah is forced to recognize that dragons, giants, and trolls are real, and that she must fight them. 

My reaction: When I found this in the library, I thought it was too good to be true! Tamora Pierce's Daja Kisubo, a female blacksmith who (spoiler alert!) is eventually revealed to be attracted to the ladies, was the beginning of my love for lesbian smiths, and Laurie J. Marks' Karis rekindled it. With Black Blade Blues, I hoped to find another kickass smith to be a fan of. For the most part, Sarah did not disappoint! She is a skilled smith and warrior (she's proficient in tae kwon do as well as sword and hammer), and while she is a skeptic at first, she commits herself to saving the day when her friends are in danger. 

The culminating battle was a thrill to read, and I'm definitely planning to read the other two books in the series, Honeyed Words and Forged in Fire.

My main issue was Sarah's trouble dealing with a really homophobic upbringing. It wasn't her shit-ton of internalized homophobia going on that grated as much as the fact that she recognized it, and hadn't taken constructive steps to deal with it even as it sabotaged her relationship with the woman of her dreams. When it got too much, I'd skim just slow enough to comprehend, but fast enough that my annoyance was minimized. 

Since this was my first urban fantasy read featuring a lesbian blacksmith in the Pacific Northwest, and I was really enjoying my reintroduction to the genre after a long time spent reading mysteries, I brushed aside any number of plot holes without caring too much. It actually wasn't until I was looking up the publishing information for the book on Goodreads--and subsequently gave into the temptation to read negative reviews--that I realized just how thoroughly I had glossed  them over by the end because DRAGONS and HARROWING ENCOUNTERS and oh, yeah, a LESBIAN BLACKSMITH. Sure, there are things that don't make sense, but you know what? I enjoyed it anyway. Yell at the characters a little if you have to (I'm sure you will--I did!), skim a little if you have to, but because my overall enjoyment factor was so high, I'm recommending this one!