"Northanger Abbey" by Jane Austen

Having recently reread "Pride and Prejudice", I've been thinking about Jane Austen.  Although I'm very familiar with her life and work, I realized that I had never actually read "Northanger Abbey". 

For some reason, "Northanger Abbey" seems to be the forgotten one of Austen's books.  I can't even count how many movies, plays, books and songs have been inspired by her more popular novels (especially "Pride and Prejudice"), but I can't think of any references to "Northanger Abbey".

In some ways, "Northanger Abbey" is classic Jane Austen.  We have a heroine who is good-hearted, but also realistically imperfect.  The novel is full of period information ranging from the fashionable areas of Bath to simple matters of propriety.  The story is focused on mainly domestic settings with a small group of characters.  As usual, there's a love story that includes a few misunderstandings but ends happily.

In other ways, "Northanger Abbey" is unique among Austen's work.  There is a self-conscious narrator.  At times the narrator (assumed to be the author) interjects and speaks directly to the reader.  There are also discussions inserted into the novel.  For example, there is a whole discussion on novels and readership (a theme that is continued through the story as well).

Reading it I can understand why it has not been received as enthusiastically as some of Austen's other novels.  The main character, for example, is slightly younger and more naive.  For most of the novel she is fairly passive and lets the other characters control the action.  Her main love interest is about a decade older than her (not surprising given the time period), but he seems intent on teaching rather than wooing her.  Indeed, one of her main attractions seems to be that she is eager to please him and agree with whatever he tells her (even if it's what her opinion should be).  Perhaps another time I'll go into a longer feminist reading of "Northanger Abbey" as there's plenty of interesting points to discuss. 

Despite not finding it her best novel, I did enjoy reading "Northanger Abbey".  The highlight of the novel, for me, was Austen's use of irony and sarcasm.  If you pay attention, the book is actually very witty and full of humour.

The Sweetheart Season by Karen Joy Fowler

Since I read a lot, I'll read pretty much anything that catches my attention or is recommended to me.  I'll often go to the library and check if they have any other books by an author I've enjoyed before. 

This is how I found the book "The Sweetheart Season" by Karen Joy Fowler.  Like millions of readers (especially women and book clubs) around the world, I read Fowler's popular The Jane Austen Book Club.  Having read that novel, I was curious about Fowler's other works.

"The Sweetheart Season" was written before "The Jane Austen Book Club", and you can tell.  It's just not as good.  It was thought out and planned, but Fowler just didn't develop the characters as well.  The main problem with the novel is that you just don't care.  I kept thinking that I would get involved at some point, but it never happened.  Reading the book was a test of perseverance, and I never gained an interest in the setting, story, or characters.

For another review of "The Sweetheart Season", click here or here.
To visit Karen Joy Fowler's website, click here.

The Mammoth Book of Wolfmen: The Ultimate Werewolf Anthology

Traditionally vampires have been more popular than werewolves.  This is probably because--if we're being honest--vampires (the beautiful undead) are sexier than werewolves (people who turn into over sized dogs).   There seems to be a lot more fiction about vampires than werewolves, or else werewolves show up as secondary characters in vampire books (like in the Twilight books).

It was a refreshing change, then, to read the Mammoth anthology of werewolf short stories.  Mammoth always does a good job with their short story anthologies, and this one is particularly good.  I really liked the wide range of short stories in "Wolfmen".  There were a lot of very different takes on werewolves, and stories ranged from classic horror to postmodern thoughtfulness.  Like in any anthology, some of the short stories are better than others.  On the whole, though, the standard is surprisingly high.  If you like werewolves, it's definitely something you should read.  And if you don't like werewolves, you might be surprised by how much you enjoy some of these stories.

To read my full review of The Mammoth Book of Wolfmen, click here.

"Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen

I recently read some Austen fan fiction.  Reading the Austen inspired novels mostly just left me wanting to revisit the real thing.  I have a copy of "Pride and Prejudice" and hadn't read it in a few years, so I decided to read it. 

If I'm honest, I'm a bit intimidated to write a post about "Pride and Prejudice".  It is, after all, an absolute classic.  Everyone is familiar with it, and it's difficult for me to find something new and interesting or useful to say in a blog post about it.  I'll just tell you a little about my experience reading "Pride and Prejudice".

Exactly eight days ago I had the most beautiful baby boy ever born (no, there's no point debating this point...he's gorgeous).  It was a planned c-section.  This means that I had plenty of time to wait at hospital appointments before he was born.  "Pride & Prejudice" became the book that I stuck in my hospital bag, and I literally read it sat waiting on a hospital bed on the morning he was born until they started preparing me for surgery.  So "Pride and Prejudice" is now linked, for me, to the memory of my son being born.

If you're used to modern novels, then it can take awhile to really get into novels from this period.  However, once you get a few chapters in, "Pride and Prejudice " is completely involving.  For me, I sometimes found it difficult to read without automatically picturing one of the "Pride and Prejudice" films.  I really enjoyed rereading it though, and noticed things that I hadn't before.

Overall, what can I say?  "Pride and Prejudice" deserves it's place as a classic.

"Personal Demon" by Kelley Armstrong

I'll keep this relatively brief as I've written on here about other books by Kelley Armstrong.  We all know that if you're looking for a certain genre of supernatural fiction, then she's the woman to be reading.

"Personal Demon" is the eight book in her "Women of the Otherworld" series, and centers on half-demon Hope Adams.  This wasn't my personal favorite in the series, but I enjoyed getting more story about the side characters from other novels and seeing how other familiar characters popped up in this book.  It's very fast-paced with a detective type element to it.

To read my review of "Personal Demon", click here.
To visit Kelley Armstrong's official website, click here.

"The Host" by Stephenie Meyer

Just about everybody has heard of Stephenie Meyer.  She became a superstar in the publishing world virtually overnight when her first book, "Twilight", was published.  Since then the "Twilight" series has become a merchandising empire of best-selling books, popular movies, and related merchandise...but you don't need me to tell you this.  Even if you've never read "Twilight", you know about the vampire love saga.

What less people know about is what else Stephenie Meyer has done.  Her only other published book is a science fiction novel called "The Host".  This book hasn't reached the manic popularity of "Twilight", although I'm sure that both Meyer and the publishing company both made a healthy profit off of it.

Out of curiosity, I read "The Host".  Overall, I have to say that it probably is actually better written than the "Twilight" books.  Meyer's writing is more focused and less awkward with overall better crafting than the "Twilight" series (certainly at the beginning of the series).  Somehow, though, that doesn't necessarily make this a better book.  Despite the many shortcomings of "Twilight", people still get sucked into the characters and story (especially the love story).  In "The Host" you just don't get quite as involved with the characters, and so you're not as emotionally invested in the book.  It was entertaining, but it wasn't groundbreaking science fiction.  I do commend it, though, for the simple fact that I think it probably introduced scifi novels to a new generation of readers that wouldn't otherwise have considered picking up a scifi novel.

For more of what I thought about "The Host", click here.
To visit Stephenie Meyer's official website, click here.

"Distant Music" by Lee Langley

"Distant Music" is a book that is more about capturing a feeling or essence than about portraying a specific plot or even characters.  The novel is an embodiment of yearning.  It is about potential futures and unfulfilled dreams that are greater than a single individual or lifetime.  In many ways this is a beautiful, lyrical text, but it is also deeply melancholy and haunting. 

To read my longer review of "Distant Music", click here.
To find out more about author Lee Langley, click here.