Lost Souls

By Lisa Jackson



#1 New York Times bestseller Lisa Jackson started with a number of rejections before she embarked on her new career of killing people. Dear Author has a wonderful article about her first sale. Her personal story made me predisposed to like LOST SOULS – it makes a large difference to me in how I approach the book if I know something about the author. And yes, I did enjoy LOST SOULS.

As a thriller the book serves its purpose. The killer might not be a unique spin on the serial killer archetype, but the passages through his point of view are decidedly creepy and create tension. The reader becomes quite eager to see him and his partner stopped. However, it seems only police not assigned the case and Kristi Benz are eager to catch him.

Four girls have gone missing at All Saints College, but none of their bodies have been found so the police can’t call foul play. So instead we get Kristi Benz, two-time almost-victim and wannabe true crime writer, playing detective. I’m sorry to say this, but Kristi is TSTL (too stupid to live). Seriously, her motive for getting near a serial killer, even though she knows the danger, is so she can write about it. Doesn’t she know the best true crime novel, IN COLD BLOOD, was written after the killers were behind bars? Plenty of material is available from a safe distance.

While Kristi’s motive may be dumb, it’s straightforward. Unfortunately, Vlad’s interest in Kristi is inexplicable. He seems to have a history with her, but she certainly doesn’t recognize him. (Perhaps I’m missing something from an earlier book – I’ve never read any of Jackson’s work before.) Also, his victims are all “lost souls,” girls without close friends or family. Serial killers tend to be picky. So why would Vlad be interested in a woman with a loving father (who happens to be a famous detective) and a close boyfriend?

On the close boyfriend note, Jay McKnight serves his purpose fairly well. He tries in vain to keep Kristi from trouble and seems to have decent chemistry with her. I just have trouble with the separated high school sweethearts meet again and fall in love trope. Jay, a successful man in his prime, never managed to devote his full self to any relationships after Kristi because he never fell out of love with her. Still, he thinks she’s too stubborn and has a terrible temper. It’s kind of pathetic and not what I want in a romantic hero.

I cannot condemn the book though. Even with my dislike of the protagonist, Jackson kept me turning the pages. LOST SOULS is a serviceable thriller, but it could be much better. You can find out more at Lisa Jackson’s personal site.

My review copy was provided by Pump Up Your Book Promotion.

Bewitching Season

By Marissa Doyle


Persephone and Penelope Leland hide their talent with magic from everyone, including their parents. Now their governess Melusine Allardyce has disappeared, leaving only a note saturated with her fear. Persy must take action if she wants rescue Ally – and Princess Victoria. A political faction seeks to control the soon to be eighteen-years-old princess in order to keep control once she becomes queen. But finding Ally might put Persy and Pen in the faction’s power.

BEWITCHING SEASON is a light-fantasy historical adventure. The only thing that ruins the atmosphere is Persy and Pen’s almost complete disregard for keeping their powers secret. They use them in front of a number of maids and young men. One of these young men is Lochinvar Seton, Persy’s love interest. Lochinvar is well-read and liked by Persy’s family, and paid attention to her before she became an attractive and desired young lady. For some reason obstacles to their romance keep cropping up.

I’m serious. Ridiculous obstacle after obstacle that looks less ridiculous in comparison to the new obstacle. I would have preferred it if Doyle simply let Lochinvar and Persy acknowledge their feelings, become a couple, and let the book’s romantic plot focus on them maturing their relationship and getting to know each other past, “You like books? I like books too.” Instead, she squanders their chemistry by keeping them separate for increasingly ludicrous reasons. (See, I dislike the handling of the romance so much I’m becoming redundant.)

In the end, the mishandling of the pace of the romance does not bog BEWITCHING SEASON too much. (In fact, I'm looking forward to the sequel for which Doyle is already contracted.) It’s a frothy read, perfect for the modern American girl’s summer season. Pick up a copy for reading during that wonderful extensive free time.

Something else: I rather like the twins’ little brother. He’s a darling and his crush on Victoria is too cute for words. Lorrie, Ally’s younger sister, is also quite excellent. I love how they’re both talented individuals, but their families tend to miss it since they’re the youngest. I liked the other characters as well, but they are my favorites.

BEWITCHING SEASON came out last month. More details are available at Marissa Doyle's site. Doyle also co-writes a beyond awesome blog, NineteenTeen, about being a teen in the nineteenth century. A signed copy of BEWITCHING SEASON will be given away on that blog next week.

Meme

I've been tagged by Dominique of The Book Vault.

So this is how it goes:
1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Open to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people and post a comment to the person who tagged you once you've posted your three sentences.

The nearest book is THE HUNTER by Gennita Low.

Amber scowled. He had hardly been out of breath when she had finally jumped in front of him a few minutes ago, a mile away from where they had started.

"Not bad. You'll do," Hawk said.

I am tagging:
1)Kicks and Giggles
2)Amberkatze's Book Blog
3)The Opinioned Reader
4)What I am reading . . . (She has a great Pay It Forward contest going on now.)
5)Tez Says

Singled Out

How Singles Are Stereotyped, Stigmatized, and Ignored, and Still Live Happily Ever After


By Bella DePaulo, Ph.D.

I know some people are marriage-obsessed and I’ve certainly experienced one of the main questions at a family gathering being, “So, do you have a boyfriend?”; still, I’ve never realized the extent of discrimination against singles. (And yes, Bella DePaulo is very aware that singles do not face the discrimination many other groups must survive.) Sometimes she seems to be digging too deep into a frankly benign situation, but other times she uncovers surprising truths. The tone rarely contains bitterness – yes, there is some, but DePaulo approaches her subject matter with humor. Each chapter focuses on a different subject singlehood in a fairly self-contained manner. Thus, I’d like to make some comments about my favorite discussions.

Science and the Single Person

This is perhaps my favorite chapter in the book. Some might be intimidated by the large amount of data presented, but DePaulo presents everything in easy to understand terminology and graphics. We’ve all heard that married people are happier and healthier – but how accurately are scientists presenting this data? As it turns out, not very. I want to force some of my science friends to research some of the topics DePaulo brings up for their theses.

Myth #2: Single-Minded

DePaulo barely has to make a case for this one. What to single people want? To get married. Yeah, right. She deftly addresses how demeaning it feels to be reduced to an empty-headed man or woman chaser, simply because you don’t have a partner. She brings up examples of this experience that will feel familiar to any single. None of the material in this chapter seems stretched; it’s a concise, clearly stated common problem.

Myth #4 It Is All About You

This chapter definitely brought some issues to my attention I had never considered. Many cultures regard marriage as a sign of maturity, and treat singles as children no matter their age. On the other hand, there are many culturally acceptable ways for married people to act immature. One of the most obvious: a perfectly capable married person can rely on their spouse to cook and do their laundry.

Myth #6 Attention, Single Men

SINGLED OUT is a female-centric work, partially because it is informed by DePaulo’s person experience. This chapter focuses entirely on the male side of the equation. One of the most intriguing points is the tendency to perceive single men as creepers. In truth, many serial killers married and procreated. The majority of violence against women is done by a past or current intimate partner. In the end, DePaulo concludes society regards single men more favorably than single women.

To Be or Not to Be Single

DePaulo writes, “I think that most Americans – including most single Americans – want the marital mythology to be true. They passionately want to believe that if only they find their soulmate, they will live happily ever after.” My friends and I talk all the time about this concept, and we do want it to be true. We grew up in an age of high divorce rates, but we still hold the Disney dream close – jaded, cynical teenagers who still believe one day we’ll find the one. Maybe we will, maybe we won’t. Who cares? We’ll be just fine on our own, whether Prince Charming arrives on the scene or not.

Don’t be put off by the non-fiction aspect. SINGLED OUT is a fascinating read. It may not change your paradigm, but it will open your eyes to various injustices. Find out more at Bella DePaulo's website.

April Contest Winners

The winner of THE GOD OF ANIMALS is:

The Book Muncher!

The winner of WAKE is:

BooksandLove!

Congratulations! Please e-mail your addresses to me at inbedwithbooks AT yahoo DOT com this week or I will choose new winners.

I'm sorry for my recent absence. Until late Tuesday I had extremely limited internet access. I finished five books which I should review soon and there are quite a number more in my TBR pile. I will begin writing those reviews after I turn in my World Literature essay on Friday. (It's supposed to be at least eight pages and my flow is stalling halfway down page seven. That's just wrong.)

I'll post about the May contest sometime between tomorrow and next week. Please check back and enter.