Normally my Hump Day Bonuses are all about you, the reader, getting a little sum sum for free, or nearly free. Today, though, I wanted to point out two ways you can give a little bit back – and it still costs you nothing. Maybe it’s the pending Holidays, but these both feel especially right at this time.

1. A coworker pointed this out to my department a short while ago: a website, LetsSayThanks.com, hosted by Xerox that will send thank you cards to U.S. troops. From you. For FREE. There are tons of free designs to choose from, and several pre-written messages to include inside the card. Xerox is completely footing this bill and will add your card and message of choice to their future print run and send them out when they are ready.

I don’t talk at all here about political beliefs, and I still won’t, but I support our troops, no matter any issues surrounding their service. I think this is a wonderful, heart warming way for anyone to make a small – and possibly profound – difference to a soldier who is away from home, missing family and in possible danger. I did it. It only took me five minutes. I strongly encourage others to take advantage of an easy yet thoughtful way to reach out to our troops.

2. I received this notice from author Sharon Ashwood’s (Ravenous, Scorched) publicist for a “free alternative greeting card/donation to injured pets program”. I’ve adopted or helped adopt several animals myself, so I found this effort on the author’s part to be very admirable. To make sure her intent and efforts remain clear, I’ll quote:

Injured dogs and cats that have been abandoned, are strays, or who belong to the homeless or to lower-income women and children in transition will benefit every time someone downloads a FREE alternative greeting card on www.SharonAshwood.com.

Each card offers unique and fun sentiments related to paranormal romance author Sharon Ashwood’s most recent book, SCORCHED. For example: “Chestnuts SCORCHED on an open fire. Hell hounds nibbling at your nose… Here’s hoping your Christmas is fiendishly merry!”

For every card downloaded, Ashwood, a native of Victoria, Canada, will donate 54 cents, Canadian, to the Greater Victoria Animal Crusaders (GVAC). All donations will help defray veterinary costs for one of GVAC’s injured pets. Once that animal’s expenses have been covered, all donations from Ashwood’s program will then go toward the health care costs of another dog or cat. The author says she settled on 54 cents as the donation amount because that’s the current cost for a Canadian first-class postage stamp.

To find out the full details of how you can take part in this program, click on over to the author’s site.

Warning: Books discussed here will be done so with spoilers!

Before we get going, let’s all get nice and comfy. Put on some comfy clothes; for me that’s my loungy lounge pants and a tank top, some slippers and a fire in the fireplace to keep me warm. A nice cup of English Breakfast with lemon and honey. Maybe a favorite throw blanket to cuddle under. Bring about your Circle of Comfy because…I’m going to talk about rape in fiction.

I want to say, too, before going further, that if I cite examples of books below, it in no way means I’m calling said book bad. I’m in no way attacking any author. (We know this can be a touchy subject all around. I don’t think I’ll ever forget reactions to Ana’s calling out of a rape scene here.) It is simply a commentary and example used for this post. I fully believe that a book that doesn’t work for me will work for another reader and I celebrate readers liking books. Period. I also make no assumptions on any author’s personal reasons behind their work.

I can’t imagine what it’s like to go through such an ordeal in reality. The reading of it, no matter how well written, in fiction makes me squirm. Sometimes it makes me sick to my stomach and I want to throw up. It’s just a topic that is close to me. No, I can’t say I’ve borne the burden of it myself, but I have extreme empathy for those that have…although I admit that the hearing of or the reading of personal experiences can be too painful at times for me. Reading about it in my books tends to hit me no less hard because it is, very unfortunately, such a profoundly impacting experience for women. Every. Single. Day. I also find that I am hardest hit with the characters that I become invested in most while reading. When I’m happily reading along, enjoying the book (and that’s whether it was actually a happy story prior OR already a deliciously dark read), and a rape happens, I find it hard to disengage, to not feel just as emotionally invested at that point. Hence the nauseated reaction I have most of the time.

While at the beach I had the pleasure of finally cracking open Thorn Queen by Richelle Mead. Rape was a prevalent issue in the first book, Storm Born (which I really liked – the, er, book, not the rape attempts) because the heroine essentially carries the burden of a prophecy. This prophecy says the daughter of the Storm King will bear an heir that will go on to conquer the human world. This makes the heroine, Eugenie, a target for rape. Around every corner is a new supernatural creature ready to force her into having his child. Or his. Or his. Everyone wants to be the father of the man who goes on the reclaim their rightful lands.

All this potential rape round about sounds kind of like foreshadowing…yes? I ought to have been anticipating the heroine being raped…not enjoying the prospect, mind, simply knowing it would happen eventually. And it does in Thorn Queen.

I was actually shocked. I had actually talked myself into believing that this particular heroine wouldn’t be made to succumb to the thing I hate most in reading fiction. I thought, for once, a heroine will not be raped just because it’s hinted at. For once, a heroine will overcome the apparent character-building/plot-building need to be raped in order to be seen later as “stronger”.

Why is it that the act of the heroine being raped seems to be so that she can be seen as stronger later in the book? So that she can become a stronger person, better for having experienced such a horrific act? I confess that this is the heart of my dilemma with the act as it’s presented in fiction. I can only wonder because I’m not the author – I don’t know why, in fact I don’t think I’ve ever known why, they choose to inflict rape on a character.

Yes, I know bad things happen to good people in real life. This is certainly so in fiction as well. I genuinely love a dark read. But rape is its own darkness. It oozes into the pores of the rest of the story, to the point that it seem to breed its own kind of viscous shadow, and I find it hard to shake from then on. It’s as if no amount of scraping or scratching can claw it off. Frankly – it often ruins the story and sometimes a series for me.

So why then is rape often the cause of a heroine becoming more? Stronger. Better. Superior to her former self. Is it that something positive must come from such a cruel and inhuman act? Speaking in purely fictional terms here – why is rape used to show that a heroine can become better?

In the Fever series by Karen M. Moning, Mac is raped at the very end of book three, Faefever, by four Fae princes. The author seemed to anticipate reader reactions because an author’s note immediately followed the cliffhanger ending, assuring readers that, that part, the rape, had been foreshadowed. Color me surprised – because since when does a dark book mean that something like rape is necessary for character growth (and is there a checklist somewhere for dark reads, rape being numbered amongst it)? At this point it would almost be refreshing to have a heroine defying that “foreshadowing”, as in not getting raped. Unique in my reading experience would be a heroine that annihilates that male that even tried. Before anything dastardly happens.

Patricia Briggs wrote in a rape scene for Mercy in Iron Kissed, the third in her Mercy Thompson series. I bought the fourth book, Bone Crossed, back in January, but I’ve yet to pick it up. I empathized too much with Mercy’s ordeal. Surprisingly, it was the aftermath, in which Mercy deals with the rape, that makes it so hard for me to pick up Bone Crossed. I keep hearing what a great book the fourth installment is, and I feel that Briggs did deal with that aftermath in a way that was believable for Mercy’s character. For me, this will probably be the one I eventually go back to when all I usually am inclined to do is shy away from a series where this happens.

Sookie Stackhouse. My second most favorite urban fantasy series to date. And I think she might have been raped in the last book, Dead and Gone. I’m just not sure. She undergoes a torture scene and the whole thing is very vague. That vagueness is understandable. To be able to bear whatever it is she specifically goes through, she kind of transcends her surroundings for a while, going to a place where it was all blunted physically and emotionally. We do not get to see her dealing with it afterward. There’s not really enough time with what action comes next.

God forbid Kim Harrison writes in a rape scene for Rachel Morgan in her books. I might finally throw in the towel on reading for a while. A long while.

In all the examples I cite above, the heroines are changed, and usually for the better, after their rapes. Mac goes on to acquire new and better powers. Eugenie realizes she is the Thorn Queen, she can rise above the tribulations of the fairy kingdoms and be powerful (unfortunately, in my opinion, this realization comes after a male character kills her rapist for her). Mercy, well I can’t say for her or Sookie really, as their ordeals happen close to the ends of their books and I’ve yet to read on to how rape or the possibility of it has impacted them as characters.

At what point does such an act become organic to the rest of the storyline and can it even become so? Why is it that in order to appear stronger, a heroine is raped? Why does she get something good out of it, like bigger and better powers? Not to make an understatement at this point, but this bothers me. As a plot device, I personally find it distasteful and am turned off, sometimes permanently turned off a series. I personally want to read about heroines that kick ass, burn the names and everything associated with said names. If there just has to be a rape of said heroine…well, it better be a damn “good” reason is all I’m saying. I don’t know that giving the heroine some kind of new super something or character “growth” is justification enough to subject her to such a violation. Of course, it can depend heavily on how it’s handled afterward. I suppose I’ve yet to find an instance where it made any sense to me whatsoever.

Does rape in books bother you? Have you ever felt it was a turn-off if used as a plot device? Can you think of any examples where rape really was the predecessor to something good for the heroine, and in a believable way? Why?

ETA: Holy crap – I love WordPress. After posting this, I noticed that WordPress’s auto-generated links based on my post’s subject had a link that looked interesting. Click here if you want to see a great blog post on rape in genre fiction. I swear, it’s exactly what I’ve been looking for!

I’ve been at the beach! Walking on the beach! A lot. Picking up seashells! A ton, let me tell you. Will the beach have enough shells left with which to make more sand? Stay tuned. I read books! Eh, not as much as I hoped, but I had at least one winner in the small bunch.

I don’t know why, but I felt restless part of the trip and unfortunately some of the reads I picked out may have suffered a little from my mood. Still, have a few issues I need to discuss about some of them.

I remember reading the first in the Allie Beckstrom series and being pretty pleased. So pleased, actually, that I bought the first as soon as it was released earlier this year. Unfortunately it sat waiting for me and I finally decided that the beach was the perfect place to get back on the series horse.

Allie is much changed in this version. She’s been through quite the wringer in the first book and the action doesn’t slow down for her battered and bruised self one bit in book two. I enjoyed it. There were still issues, this isn’t a perfect read, but I find that I enjoy Allie’s voice as a heroine and I do like immensely the world that Monk has created here.

For those that enjoy a little romance with their urban fantasy, their is an ongoing romantic subplot, but the focus is very much on Allie and her magical, personal, and familial issues. Even though I had reservations about some parts of the book, the end snapped back around like a big ‘ole scorpion tale and had me ready for the next book.

Good thing Magic in the Shadows, book 3, is already out! More on Magic in the Blood when I get the review done.

I used to read contemporary romances a lot more. Sometimes it’s fun to dive into a story that is set in present time with no werewolves or vampires in sight. the hero and heroine work through realistic issues and have a hot little fling while doing so. It’s as much full of magical potential as any paranormal setting.

I’d heard a lot of good about this book. I was prepared to eat it up like the perfect sundae. I ended up contemplating it more like an overripe banana instead. Honestly, I don’t get what is particularly great about this book. Just about every character, main and supporting, has pretty weighty issues – which isn’t the problem. The problem is that they weigh down the book to the point of depressing, pointlessness and sheer boredom. I do appreciate a contemporary romance where issues are tackled, but the book could have stood for a little humor, some honest-to-goodness girls-only scenes to cheer things up…something to get the ball rolling. Anything.

More on this one as well when the review gets into town.

I loved this one’s predecessor, Storm Born. This series packed in a lot of great things in the first book. It seemed to be continuing them very well with this second effort. I was enjoying it. A lot. But then that restlessness I mentioned about kicked in. And I unfortunately skipped a little in the book to see if a thread I suspected was coming was indeed coming up. My suspicions turned to fear and then…yep.

It happened.

Please don’t read anymore if you do not want spoilers.

The heroine, Eugenie, is raped. Now, I called myself three kinds of idiot for feeling betrayed by this series at that point. While being able to completely see that the author somewhat foreshadows this, Eugenie’s rape (it is actually a prevalent issue in the book), I also had somewhat convinced myself that here was a heroine that would defy what is probably my most hated plot device in fiction. The rape of the heroine, after which she comes away stronger. Stronger for being raped. It’s never felt more so than when I read the scenes during and prior to the rape(s) in this book.

Let me interrupt that train by saying I don’t blame the author in any way. I don’t feel that this is now a bad book. It’s just not the book for me. I almost abhor these days a book where the heroine is raped, and then shown to be stronger for it. I just…cannot seem to get past this as a woman. It’s a me thing, although I do want to post more about this and might do so in the future. What’s the best way to learn from things we continually notice in fiction? The things that particularly bother us (or delight us)? Yep, we talk about it.

Unfortunately, I really have no desire to go on with the series now. I had to read what happened after Eugenie’s ordeal, and while I felt that at first she reacted to the situation in a very realistic way for the context of the book and her character, she soon changes. And then there came that dreaded feeling again that the rape happened as a way to show her that she could be stronger. This doesn’t gel with me in the books I read. Rarely. Almost never. There are other books where the heroines have been raped and I cannot go on to read the series any longer. I suppose I must add this one to the line. Because not only do I hate it as a plot device, but it felt…forced into the story anyway. The book didn’t feel naturally flowing afterward. Again, that may have just been me and my intense personal dislike for the device.

And that was it for beach reads! Hope everyone had a great week while I was gone.

Lauren Kate
Fallen (Fallen #1)
Delacorte Books for Young Readers
ISBN-10: 0385738935
ISBN-13: 978-0385738934
Young adult fantasy
December 8, 2009

There’s something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori.

Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price’s attention from the moment she sees him on her first day at the Sword & Cross boarding school in sultry Savannah, Georgia. He’s the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are all screw-ups, and security cameras watch every move.Even though Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce–and goes out of his way to make that very clear–she can’t let it go.

Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, she has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret . . . even if it kills her.

Dangerously exciting and darkly romantic, Fallen is a page turning thriller and the ultimate love story.

Rating: One and a Half Scoops

Random House has hosted a special site for the Fallen series. Click here.

Scott Westerfeld
Leviathan (Leviathan #1)
Simon Pulse
ISBN-10: 1416971734
ISBN-13: 978-1416971733
Young adult steampunk
October 6, 2009

It is the cusp of World War I, and all the European powers are arming up. The Austro-Hungarians and Germans have their Clankers, steam-driven iron machines loaded with guns and ammunition. The British Darwinists employ fabricated animals as their weaponry. Their Leviathan is a whale airship, and the most masterful beast in the British fleet.

Aleksandar Ferdinand, prince of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, is on the run. His own people have turned on him. His title is worthless. All he has is a battle-torn Stormwalker and a loyal crew of men.

Deryn Sharp is a commoner, a girl disguised as a boy in the British Air Service. She’s a brilliant airman. But her secret is in constant danger of being discovered.

With the Great War brewing, Alek’s and Deryn’s paths cross in the most unexpected way…taking them both aboard the Leviathan on a fantastical, around-the-world adventure. One that will change both their lives forever.

Oh yes – my first steampunk read! What a fascinating aspect of this book, all the steampunk goodies. The airships, which in this case were made from the body of a flippin’ whale (the Leviathan itself), six-legged dog-like creatures that could sniff out hydrogen leaks, complex war machines that either walked upright like a man or crawled and scuttled like an insect…these were a few of my favorite things. Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld was a great way to break into the steampunk genre, offering up a very pleasing amount of worldbuilding that brought back memories of my fascination with…Little House on the Praire by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Bear with me.

As a tadpole I didn’t read a whole lot. I think I was too busy tom-boying it up outside, making mud pies and such. There was one series, though, that I still hold close to my heart and that was the Little House on the Prairie series. These are not, in my opinion, character-driven books. They are books that gave a rich look into the lives of the characters, though, the events and chores and life that shaped them. Leviathan reminded me about halfway through of the Praire series, the light bulb went off and I realized I was enjoying Westerfeld’s book for the same reasons. You see, with the Prairie books, I wanted to make that molasses candy the girls got to sample. I wanted to be there when the adults built the family’s log cabin. I wanted to travel with them that time the family moved to the plains, enduring harsh winters and beautiful springs. Every little detail of how they lived – and why they did it – was breathtaking.

This is what Leviathan did for me. Westerfeld has masterfully captured not only cool steampunk machines and their details, but how this way of life, that of animal-driven Darwinists and machine-driven Clankers, are shaped by their very divergent steampunk societies and beliefs. I was fascinated by how a squid-like animal full of hydrogen worked, or what made a Clanker machine tick, even what particularly unique words and phrases each group used in day-to-day life. Prince Alek and young Deryn are our guides, and as characters…they felt a little flat to me, but oh how they develop into a great means with which to sink into the steampunk aspects of the book. As with the Ingalls family, the characters in Leviathan are not so important as characters, but more so as conduits for understanding the world Westerfeld has built.

At the same time, I was disappointed that the two main protagonists were not more interesting. Because the book does try to get on with a plot. In my opinion, there is not quite enough of the necessary balance here. The steampunk world is so visually rich and interesting, that I almost didn’t care if the characters ever felt more than they were, which, in my opinion, again, was a little flat. But then I did wish for them to be more because of that plot. As I said , it tries. At times it’s interesting, but for the most part, I kept wishing for it to get on with itself. It took me till a little more than halfway through to realize this was the first in a series. When I discovered this book earlier in the year, I suppose I set out to be as unspoiled as possible, to the point that I had no idea it was the first in a new series. So this definitely can account for the book’s slow-paced plot. It must carry on to the next book after all. Unfortunately, for me, I wasn’t sure I’d care enough to go on to another book.

There is a secondary character, with her secretive Darwinist machinations, that could save the plot though, and that is Dr. Barlow, whose relations to a very important person in the Darwinist sect makes for a more interesting twist on the plot, at least. I’m not sure of her motives at all, whether she is a good or bad person…or whether such drawings of the line are even necessary for her character. She is rather intriguing, as she sets sail on the Leviathan with Deryn and crew with an important and fragile cargo. Despite not particularly enjoying the plot, I might have to keep going merely to see what’s up her prim Victorian sleeves.

One aspect that makes this book fun – and aids spectacularly in hyping up the steampunk elements (in a good way), is that this is also in small part a picture book. There are multiple black and white drawings of some of the machines and creatures and scenes and they are exceptionally rendered. The same drawings were used to produce what is perhaps the only book trailer I’ve watched multiple times, prompting me to think this book would make a pretty good movie, whether it was live action or animated. The artist captures the tone and atmosphere of the book beautifully, enabling a reader’s imagination to come that much more alive.

Leviathan was a great experience for this first-time steampunk reader. Plot issues and all, I think the book is perfect for the age group it targets and is also a great opportunity for newbie adults to try their hand at the genre. Despite a slow pace, which at times drove me batty enough to skim/speed read to more interesting parts, Leviathan carries itself off pretty darn well. With an excellently imagined world of this caliber, you almost cannot go wrong. So in spite of my problems with it, I do recommend it to young adults and adults alike. If you’re new to the steampunk genre, this is an excellent example that gives plenty of it in and in healthy, rich detail.

Rating: Three and a Half Scoops

For more on the author and his work, check out his site.

I know I’m supposed to be taking that break, but another blog post somewhere (sorry unable to do links ATM) out there is trashing ARC book reviewers, calling them out on their honesty, integrity, objectivity and any other weighty word they care to use. This particular blogger even admits to knowingly offending many a blogger with their post. They do not feel bad for this. And I cannot fault a person for laying it on the table. For being honest.

But I can say – Fuck ‘em.

Why do we blog?

Tons of reasons, dude. I blog for fun. Others blog for a little money (ads, etc) mixed with a little fun. Others have a particular passion they want to get out and share. We all have our own style. But my blog is not going to crumble under the reins of disapproval. Yours shouldn’t either.

And there comes another person, yet again, they’ve got a problem with how so and sos do so and so. They have a right to their opinion!

Correct-a-mondo. Everyone has a right to state their opinion. Even the ones that hate something a fellow blogger has done, even if those things don’t hurt that current complainer at all.

Fuck’em.

I’m tired of the bitching. January will mark my second year blogging, and of the two, it’s been the most unpleasant in terms of the gosh damn bitching. The whining doesn’t have to mean anything to those it’s aimed at though. If there’s yet another red flag thrower on your play?

Fuck ‘em.

What is the complainer of this particular hour going to do? Nothing. Their rants don’t have to mean a damn thing to you.

So if you like reviewing FREE ARCs, and Complainer #12,456 wants to bitch about the fun YOU are having?

Fuck ‘em.

If you want to organize an award, a reading challenge, a charity fundraiser or a promo for a book you freaking LOVE and someone has a problem with it –

Fuck ‘em.

If you need a little petty cash and put ads on your blogs to get it. You gosh damn GO, motherFer, high five – and don’t forget:

Fuck ‘em.

Blog for you. Blog for fun. Blog what makes YOU feel like you’re having fun, however you want to do it. The rest is mearly noise.

Technical difficulties this weekend, lots of them. In fact the last several weekends have been full of lovely things like the internet crapping out. Now it’s that PLUS the house phone, cell phones – even the damn power for a while yesterday – all out. Apparently there’s some kind of ambiguos area-wide problem with our provider, who in my opinion sucks ass. Talking to you, AT&T.

Irritated.

I try not to bitch here, but I’m did I mention being irritated? I don’t know when I’ll get to do anything for the blog. Irritated. Actually, I think I’ll just call a break for the next several days. I mean, I have to do this from my IPhone for craps sakes. Irritated.

See yall in a few days, where hopefully I’ll have at least caught up on review writing. Stay classy, blogosphere.

Drum roll, please!

Please?

OK, who needs it – we have our winners of the Blaze of Memory giveaway!

Out of 126 total entries (holy crap, yo, that’s a lot for this place), they are….

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

3
109

Timestamp: 2009-10-28 17:06:37 UTC

Willa and Gabriela!

Congrats, ladies! You each win your very own signed copy of Blaze of Memory to love and hug and well – read! Thank you to everyone that stopped by for a chance to win – and thank you to Ms. Singh again for the prizes. It was fun seeing all the comments roll in, even if my hand about fell off writing up all the names w/entry numbers. I really need to get a template that numbers comments…

One thing about the craze of the Harry Potter Years is I didn’t see over-the-top endorsements for other series, such as If you liked Harry Potter, you MUST read Amberfinch’s Magical Circus – Potter fans will rejoice! I’m sure there were some instances (it is after all in the nature of marketing to take advantage of whatever is topping an industry’s charts, however unoriginal it may be…), although I remain blissfully unaware of them. I was able to enjoy the Potter series for what it was and never did it intersect the potential awesomeness of any other children or young adult title. There were no constant shots at the Glory that was Potter when it came to another book.

I’m a big fan of letting a book stand on its own. So when I finished My Soul to Take by Rachel Vincent yesterday, I went online to Amazon to see other reader opinions, after which I planned to research some blog reviews. Then I saw the book trailer on its Amazon page. I clicked. I was about to click away when I saw that damning phrase, at :34 in – “Twilight fans will love it”.

Before I go any further, I can definitely see why some books are recommended based on logic like above. Some really do seem to imitate the marketing/fan loved phenomenon that is Twilight. Hell – I liked Twilight and most of it’s series sisters, and I watch the movie. It was fun. The end. After reading Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick and Fallen by Lauren Kate, which very much felt like Twilight with angels instead of vampires, sure – the comparison can be made.

Like anything, though, too much of a good thing is overkill and plain bad. Twilight cannot nor should it even attempt to represent the overall fun, imagination and talent that is inherent in the young adult umbrella genre today. My Soul to Take is absolutely nothing like Twilight. The phrase I mentioned above from its book trailer had this preceding the Twilight endorsement: “Plenty of paranormal thrills, mystery and romance.” And both books do, hell, lots of so-called young adult titles do – but this in no way means they are enough alike to slap the Twilight starburst of awesomeness on it. My Soul to Take is a great book and by God, it stands very well on its own. It doesn’t need Twilight to speak for it.

As Wendy pointed out to me on Twitter, books like Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols are phenomenal, yet they get little to no attention in comparison to Twilight (I know, I know, let’s point to the sales figures shall we…). While we’re at it, yes, this is all subjective, but honestly, how much more of this book and that book is for fans of brooding Edward and klutzy Bella do we need? My personal quota has been filled. My sparkles runneth over.

Of course, some authors might want a book like that to speak for theirs if it gets their work some attention. Totally and 100% understandable. But what about the sector that isn’t into Twilight? What if such a rec is off putting? I’m about at the point where it is.

What about you? Are you over the Twilight Train, or do you agree with and love all the places its sparkling bower of YA power is placed? Does it’s name on a new book automatically make you want to read said new book, or at least check it out (or Wuthering Heights and Pride and Prejudice)? Feel free to vote in the poll on the upper right.