A Homespun Regency Christmas (Anthology)

Signet is a bit sneaky with this collection. Although I read the back cover and didn't recognize any of the stories, I'm not sure I would have bought it if I'd known they were all reprints. The copyright says 2008, with a small disclaimer: "Author copyrights for individual stories can be found on page 329". So, it's only on the very last page that the truth is revealed. However, I should have seen it coming, when the front cover proclaims "Four Classic Holiday Stories". I don't mind reprints, but I wish they'd be more honest about it! (And of course, I wish Signet had come out with a new Christmas anthology this year.)

A Homespun Regency Christmas (Anthology)
(2008, Regency) 1020/08

An Object of Charity by Carla Kelly ~ Grade: 3.5
The Wexford Carol by Emma Jensen ~ Grade: 3
Mistletoe and Folly by Sandra Heath ~ Grade: 3
Once Upon a Midnight Clear by Amanda McCabe ~ Grade: 3

Four stories, by Carla Kelly (a lonely naval hero meets an orphaned young woman and her brother, and goes home for the first time in 20 years); Amanda McCabe (a scarred sea captain finds unexpected acceptance from the daughter of a slave); Emma Jensen (a young woman is desperate to save her home) and Sandra Heath (misunderstandings abound.)

As usual, the quality is mixed. Unfortunately, none of the stories are really exceptional. The Carla Kelly story (An Object of Charity) is best, although it lacks romance. The hero is wonderful, but the heroine is a cardboard cutout, and it felt like the hero fell in love with the idea of her, more than the person. But it had moments of emotion, especially when the hero looks back on his long estrangement from his family and lonely years at sea. The Amanda McCabe story (Once Upon a Midnight Clear) is second best - although it was a bit superficial (and the paranormal element out of place), it was interesting to read about an unusual heroine, who is of mixed race and dealing with her place in society. But the romance was far too rushed. The Emma Jensen story (The Wexford Carol) has the same problem - maybe in a full length book, it would have worked, but in short story form, it was just too abrupt, and the romance a convenience. The Sandra Heath story (Mistletoe and Folly) was the worst of the bunch - one misunderstanding after another, completely tedious. Overall, not the best collection of stories.

Dear Author recently reported that some paranormal authors are selling short stories individually as e-books. Although the price was a bit high, I think it's a good idea. I don't have the shelf space to save anthologies for a single story, but I'd gladly buy my favorite Mary Balogh, Carla Kelly and Mary Jo Putney stories as e-books. They're all out of print, so why aren't the publishers jumping on this? The anthology collections by Balogh and Putney were nice, but didn't include all the best stories. And if some of the old Regency authors were to publish new Christmas stories and sell them electronically, I might buy - if the price was right.

(Which makes me wonder - why the high prices for e-books? I was considering buying an e-book from Cerridwen Press, but the $6.99 price just drove me away. $6.99 for an unknown author, that I can't check out in advance, and that I can't trade when I'm done? That's just too much. (I know, e-books have excerpts, but excerpts are always picked to make the author sound as good as possible. Like movie trailers, they don't necessarily reflect the book as a whole. I like to skip through and look at several points in the book, to get a more representative sample. And to see if the book includes any of the plot points that annoy me.) Between the price of e-readers and the price of the books, I just don't see any advantage to switching.)