Pemberly Shades

Pemberly Shades
Dorothea Bonavia-Hunt
5/5 stars

(update: since this was originally written, this book has been reprinted.)

It's a real pity that Pemberly Shades is out of print! To me it's the best Jane Austen continuation/imitation that I have read so far. And, being a Jane Austen fanatic, I've read a lot of them! This one has the humor, character depth and interesting plot, not to mention slow, rambling narration style, of Miss Austen herself.

Ms. Bonavia-Hunt set the Austen style on the first page:
"Who could have foretold that Dr. Robinson, who had done nothing of note in all his lifetime should, by the common and natural act of dying, set in motion a train of events so strange, so startling, so far removed from probability, as to emulate the riotous fancies of a disordered mind?"

It takes place, as you might have guessed, at Pemberly three or four years after Darcy and Elizabeth wed. Lady Catherine makes an appearance, as does Mr. Bennet, and the conversations of both could have been lifted from Pride and Prejudice. Mr. Collins joins us by letter, sounding just as pompous and ridiculous as ever. Elizabeth and Darcy keep that same sparring attraction that they developed in Pride and Prejudice.

Only Kitty has changed, and at first I found it a striking, drastic change. But after thinking about it, several years away from the terrible influence of Lydia (who is never even alluded to!) could easily make a major difference in Kitty's life.

The new characters in Pemberly Shades have all the flavor of Austen originals. The Misses Robinson remind me of all of Austen's gossipy old maids, Mr. Acworth is a cross between Wickham and Willoughby and Major Wakeford is an unluckier Colonel Brandon.

If you love Austen and the Austen style, then I highly recommend this novel! Run down to your local library or used bookstores and see if you can come up with a copy of it. You'll thank me later.

(Originally read/reviewed 2003.)

The Mutilation of the Herms: Unpacking an Ancient Mystery

The Mutilation of the Herms: Unpacking an Ancient Mystery
Debra Hamel
5/5 stars

In this short work, Hamel writes succinctly and humorously about the an unsettling event for the citizens of ancient Athens--the night that most of the herms (priapic statues of the Greek god Hermes)were vandalized. Hamel explains why this incident was important and gives an interesting account of the both the response of Athens and the possible reasons for the vandalism. This is a quick, well written and fascinating read, which is happily accessible to the layperson.

Baking Cakes in Kilgali by Gaile Parkin

Baking Cakes in Kilgali
Gaile Parkin
5/5 stars

(I was given the ARC by Amazon Vine in return for an honest review.)

Angel Tungaraza moved to Kigali, Rwanda from her native Tanzania when her husband took a job at the local university. An accomplished cake maker, Angel adds extra income to her large family and gives herself much joy by making custom-ordered cakes for friends, neighbors, and strangers who have heard the good word about her fabulous creations. In addition to being a "professional someone" (as she would call herself), Angel is Mama to her five orphaned grandchildren, confidant of friends and strangers, and a true example of a good woman.

Each chapter centers around one of Angel's cakes, giving the reader shorter stories inside the larger story. It is a story of family, of community, of all manners of love and reconciliation, and of course, of beautiful cakes. I wish I could explain the plot better, to show how desirable a read this is, but I simply can't. Suffice it to say that it is a surprisingly complex plot, despite this books benign face, with Angel facing several interesting ethical issues as well as the range of various good, bad and amusing situations.

Ms. Parkin uses the fact that Angel is an outsider to Rwanda to easily explain the current situation and the bloody past of this country. It never feels contrived; the explanations happen very naturally--as does most everything in this book. . . It all feels very natural. Customs are clarified, situations set up, the reader gently led here and there and yet, it just feels "real" and lifelike, always smooth and believable. Even the conversations, held in a manner so different from Western conversations, become so real that when a Westerner does appear, using typical Western speech, it seems brash and out of context.

This is truly a masterpiece, a first novel of the highest quality. It is a lovely, heartwarming book that sparkles with gentle wit, at times tugs the heartstrings, but is above all, a joyful experience. I can not recommend this novel highly enough. What a pleasure, what a delight. I expect to see much more of Ms. Parkin in the future

(originally read/reviewed in 2009)

Duty Free by Moni Mohsin

Duty Free
Moni Mohsin
1/5 stars

I was given this book by the Amazon Vine program in return for an honest review.

The heroine of Mohsin's novel is an unnamed Pakistani, whose spoiled and ridiculous voice distracts from what might otherwise be an interesting book. The story is told in the first person, using an affected "pigeon English" type of Pakistani, which is amusing for the first few pages but quickly becomes tedious before becoming so frustrating that the book is nearly unreadable. The novel is touted as "Jane Austen's Emma transported to 21st century Pakistan", but the similarities are few and superficial. Overall, the plot is a good idea poorly executed and is nearly impossible to read to the end.

Note: This is my opinion; 45% of the reviews on Amazon are 4 stars.

Chasing Chiles

Chasing Chiles: Hot Spots Along the Pepper Trail
authors: Kurt Michael Friese, Kraig Kraft, Gary Paul Nabhan
Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing (March 16, 2011)
ARC read courtesy of Amazon Vine program
1/5 stars

In Chasing Chiles, a chef, an agroecologist and an ethnobotanist take a year long trip to search out the rarest and best peppers.  The book is a nonfiction account of their trip, with each chapter focusing on a particular chile pepper and interspersed with their interpretation of global warming's effect on that pepper.

The book vacillates between an unnamed first person narrator (which one of the three?!?) and a third person point of view.  The anecdotes described are not interesting. The heavily didactic climate change message is weakened by the lack of true research and credibility of the authors.  The overall writing style is a mess, and would have benefited from some honest editing.

Over all, this is not the unique and interesting adventure it was advertised to be, but rather a nearly unreadable attempt at scientific discussion.

Note: This is my opinion; on Amazon, 38% of the reviews were 5 stars.

American Vampire

Told ya it was good!  American Vampire won the Eisner for Best New Series!  I've read the second one, had it pre-ordered, but haven't reviewed it yet because I want to read it again before I do.  I swallowed it whole, in one sitting, and as a result I know I missed a lot.  Am going to go back for a leisurely read, to savor it, as soon as I have a break from class.

Dune Group Read, Round 2

I finished reading the second "book" in Dune last night, so it's time for the Dune Group Read, Round 2 (hosted by Stainless Steel Droppings).  Little Red Reviewer was responsible for this set of questions.


Was Liet's identity a surprise?  Who do you think he really works for?
Completely!  I was shocked and pleased, as Kynes was a favorite character from the first book.  I was tremendously disappointed when he died, as I had hoped to know him better.  Of course, his death scene revealed a lot about him, for which I was glad, but I still felt a little cheated.  I think he worked for himself and his obsession of changing Arrakis.  

What do you think of the Fremen culture?  Is this a culture you think you'd enjoy spending some time with?
I think Herbert has done a fantastic job creating the Fremen culture.  It's one of the better parts of the book.  There appear to be so many layers to their mythology and customs; I'm hoping more layers will be peeled back as we go on.  I admire them greatly, but I'm too soft, too full of water if you will, to imagine myself actually a part (even a visitor) of the Fremen society.

What do you think of Count Fenring's unusual verbal mannerisms?  
I thought he used his humming sounds to look like the rabbit that  Feyd-Rautha took him to be.  That he was able to also use it as code to his wife was amusing.  It made for tough reading at times, though.


This is a far future empire with very little in the way of computerization. Information is often passed down orally, and schools (such as the Mentats and the Bene Gesserit) have formed to train young people in memorization and information processing.  What are you thoughts on a scifi story that is very "low-tech"?  Does that sound like a feasible future? a ridiculous one?
There are still vast high tech elements, enough so that the book still qualifies as sci fi.  As for the low tech, it's not unusual in sci fi or fantasy to mix the high tech with the low tech, and it's generally so as to create a culture of bards or druids, like the Bene Gesserit and Mentats.  So, I found it typical of what I've read before and not problematic at all.  Of course, I'm a steampunk as well, so it's a feature I particularly enjoy, this blending of tech levels. 


If you found the beginning of the book tough to get into, do you find that you're having an easier time with the middle portion, now that all the "set-up" is complete?
I loved the beginning, raced through it eagerly.  I admit to finding this middle section less compelling.  I've still enjoyed it tremendously, but it hasn't stayed continuously on my mind like the first section did.  Of all the elements in the book, I'm having a harder time swallowing Paul's sudden prescience than anything, and he's my least favorite character.  Terrible, I know, but there you have it.  So, since this entire section is mostly focused on him, I'm a little less enthralled.

The center portion of the book is still pretty dialog heavy, but what I've noticed is the subtlety of the dialog. Things left unsaid are often more important than things that are said.  What do you think of that as a stylistic choice? does it make the dialog more interesting? less interesting?
I honestly hadn't noticed the things left unsaid; I must not be reading it carefully enough.  I don't have a problem with the dialog--didn't notice it being dialog-heavy until I read someone's  (Little Red Reviewer's perhaps?) comments for the first round--so I must not be as sensitive to dialogue as most folks.  I did feel like Liet's death scene was a trifle strained with dialogue, but I was glad to get the info at the same time, so didn't mind it overmuch.

Dune was written in the 60's. Does it feel dated to you? How does it compare, writing style-wise, to more contemporary science fiction you've read?
No, it doesn't feel dated to me at all, but then I read a lot of Victorian lit, so I'd say a book would have to some pretty antiquated language for me to notice.  Not having a lot of tech gadgets described helps that timeless feel to it, as well.

 If you've never read this book before, where do you think the storyline is headed? 
Some sort of conflict between Paul and Feyd-Rautha, maybe, and something tragic to happen to Chani perhaps.  Complete inability of Paul and Jessica to see eye to eye, could happen.  But on the whole, I have no real feelings, I'm just enjoying the ride.