Muscling Through by J. L. Merrow

M/M romance isn't usually my thing - I miss the female perspective - but I've enjoyed a few M/M stories.  I pulled this one out after the recent discussions of M/M on the romance blogs.

Muscling Through by J. L. Merrow
(2011, Contemporary)  2/20/13
Grade: 4

Al may not have a degree or a fancy job, but he’s intrigued by college professor Larry Morton - even after Larry mistakes him for a mugger.  Everyone around Al and Larry see their relationship as unequal, but Larry sees something in Al that no one else can see - his kind heart.

This was an intriguing writing experiment that mostly worked.  The story is told from the perspective of Al, who isn’t particularly perceptive or self-aware.  But the reader starts to understand Al by seeing how other people react to him - we get a perspective on Larry based on his actions, even though we don’t get to hear his thoughts.  I sometimes found this frustrating, because I wanted to know more - Al is a nice enough character but he’s limited as a narrator - but in the context of a novella it worked.  The frequent sex scenes also limited the character development - at first they helped explain the relationship but after a while they just became repetitive.  If the book had been longer I think I would have given up but at this length, it worked.  It was interesting to read a book with such a different perspective.

I read this book on my Kindle and I didn't see the cover art until after I finished the book.  I think the cover would have added to my reading experience - I had a hard time visualizing Al and the cover definitely makes him more intriguing.  More Larry's view of Al rather than his own. 

Autumn Rose by Marjorie Farrell

I went a few weeks without reading anything, then tried a couple of Regencies without success.  I hope I can find something worth reading soon - I had such a great run of books over the last few months!

Autumn Rose by Marjorie Farrell
(1991, Regency)  2/19/13
Grade: 3

Honora Dillon has lived an unassuming life in Hampstead with her daughter since she ran away with a scoundrel as a young girl.  But their quiet life is changed when Nora’s daughter Miranda falls in love with Jeremy, the Earl of Alverstone.  The marriage seems impossible because of the differences in their stations - but when Nora starts spending more time with Jeremy’s godfather, Viscount Marcus Vane, she begins to wonder...

I’ve read several books by Marjorie Farrell and enjoyed all of them, but this one just didn’t measure up.  It was refreshing to read about an older heroine who had to come to terms with her daughter growing up and the choices she had made in her life, but the romance between Nora and Marcus felt like an afterthought.  They barely spent any time together and had no chemistry whatsoever.  It left the book feeling flat and kind of dull.  

I wonder if reading the more fast paced books that are being published now has ruined me for a good Regency.  I still have quite a few in my TBR pile so I hope not!

The Hollow House by Janis Patterson

I ran across this book in one of Dear Author's deal of the day posts, and it sounded so intriguing I decided to give it a try.  I used to love Gothics, although it's hard to find a good one these days.

The Hollow House by Janis Patterson
(2011, Historical Mystery)  2/1/13
Grade: 4

I decided to use the name Geraldine Brunton. It's not the name I was born with, nor the name I married, but it will hide who I really am...and what I have done.  I've taken a job as companion to wealthy invalid Emmaline Stubbs, whose fragile exterior hides a will of iron. Despite its opulence, the Stubbs household is not a happy one. Emmaline's equally stubborn daughter and charismatic, untrustworthy son-in-law want control...

This was an intriguing gothic mystery that kept me turning the pages late into the night.  The book is set in Denver just after WWI, and there were a lot of interesting details about the setting and time period.  The heroine is a typical Gothic heroine, who comes to a dark and mysterious house hiding secrets of her own, although Geraldine is a lot more savvy and tough than many of those old Gothic heroines.  The book is also lacking any romance - it’s purely a mystery.  At first I liked this, because it made sense for the heroine to avoid men and to stay away from anyone who might guess her secret.  But as the book continued, it started to get a little repetitive, and a little flirtation might have added some spark.  This was the main problem with the book - the author ratcheted up the tension in the first half of the book, but once the murder took place, the tension couldn’t be sustained.  There weren’t enough suspects to keep the reader guessing.  I still kept reading but it just didn’t quite live up to the terrific first half.  Still, I liked it overall - 4 stars. 

I've been trying to expand my horizons and read more books outside of romance.  It's just as hard to find a good mystery as it is to find a good romance.