Last Chance by Sarita Leone

TITLE: Last Chance
AUTHOR: Sarita Leone
PUBLISHER: Whiskey Creek Press
LENGTH: Novel (roughly 56k)
GENRE: Historical romance
COST: $6.99

Widow Laura Perkins opted to stay in Nebraska after her husband died, but she has given no thought about ever remarrying. Her dead husband still lives in her heart, and she is content with her life, especially since her sister has joined her for company. At least, until Chance DeWitt arrives in Granite Creek, ready to work the ranch his family has owned for three generations…

I am having the worst luck lately in running into stories that lapse into tell not show. I had hoped choosing an author I enjoyed before would counter all that, but unfortunately, that just wasn’t the case.

Though Laura Perkins has been widowed, she stays in Granite Creek, Nebraska, since it was part of her dead husband’s dream. To make her life more bearable, her younger sister Callie Jo comes to stay with her, but it’s another arrival who has caught her eye, the rancher Chance DeWitt. Chance has come out to Nebraska to run the family ranch, and make a success of it one way or another, without revealing the secrets the ranch holds. Their chemistry is strong, and for the first time since her husband’s death, Laura feels something for another man.

The author has a quiet, understated style, both in voice and storytelling, and while it worked well for the first book I read by her, it renders this one difficult to finish. The beginning meanders along, taking its time introducing the two main characters, but almost immediately, Laura suffers. Her sister Callie Jo is far more vibrant and interesting than Laura ever is. The only time Laura seems to have a spark is when Chance shows up. The problem with that is…it takes a while for that to happen. And even then, it’s more the chemistry between the two I’m responding to rather than any depth to their characters.

I would have been okay with this is if the story itself was well written. It’s just not. There are time jumps past pivotal events, with the details coming out afterward in conversation rather than getting shown to the reader. It happens over, and over, and over again, so much so that it got incredibly frustrating. It’s not like a lot even happened. There’s a murder that happens on Chance’s ranch – that we don’t see, but hear about – and one of Chance’s men gets questioned about the murder – that we don’t see, but hear about – and Callie Jo gets kidnapped – that we don’t see, but hear about – and…are you seeing a pattern here? It weakened an already slow story, and the entire thing borders on lugubrious.

In spite of really enjoying the first story I read by this author, this one fails to come close to that standard. Hopefully, it’s anomalous with the rest of the author's work.

Readability	6/10 – Though there are nice moments, too much gets told not shown and slows it down dramatically
Hero	6/10 – Sweet and strong, though I never felt like I really knew him
Heroine	4/10 – Not sure what the appeal was, her sister was far more interesting than she was
Entertainment value	4/10 – The slow beginning and then the patchwork tell not show nature of the second half really made this a lugubrious read
World building	6/10 – The environment was well-realized, but I didn’t believe the time period for the most part
TOTAL:	26/50

Favorite Non-Erotic Stories of 2007

So why is it that I read fewer non-erotic stories online than I do erotic, yet the ones I rated highest during the year were non-erotic? Is it because I read so much erotic romance that I increase the odds of finding stuff I won’t like? I would have thought it was the other way around, actually. But whichever it is, the fact of the matter is, my list of favorite non-erotic stories of the year was much harder to rank than the 4 I picked for erotic romance (getting posted on Wednesday). I love all these stories, though for very different reasons.

3^rd Runner Up
Snowdance by Sarita Leone

Snowdance is not a story for a quick read. It’s not a story for a reader who only wants a romance. It’s a story you read when you tuck yourself into the corner of an overstuffed couch in front of a fire in the middle of winter to savor over a long, lazy afternoon. It’s quiet, evocative prose at its best. It’s the portrait of a woman you’ll remember for more than the man she falls in love. I really can’t say that about 95% of the stories I read online.

2^nd Runner Up
The Strength of the Pack by Jorrie Spencer

In spite of the fact that I can’t look at the cover when I read this book, it remains one of those books I bought this year that I can’t stop reading once I start. Though he didn’t make my top 4, Seth is still one of my favorite heroes of the year. I fell utterly in love with him and all his heartbreaking angst. This book put Jorrie Spencer on my list of authors to watch. Even if the cover does bug me.

1^st Runner Up
Twist of Honor by Karen Welss

Considering both Kit and Antonia made my favorite hero and heroine lists, it probably isn’t a surprise this is on my favorite non-erotic book list, too. As a rule, historicals have to work harder for me to appreciate. I get bored too easily with them most of the time, so for one to be my second favorite non-erotic story of the year, you know it has to be special. The author writes compassionate, realistic characters in quiet, compelling prose. I can think of a lot of writers who could learn a lesson or two, simply from reading this book.

And my favorite non-erotic book I reviewed this year is:

Threads
by Michelle L. Levigne

This book is where the I hope the rest of the e-industry will eventually end up being. It approaches a fantasy world without skimping on detail, and treats the reader as intelligent without pandering to a lowest common denominator. It’s presented professionally without the common editing errors that plague many e-publishers, and on top of all of it, it’s just lush, gorgeous storytelling. I have this one in print now. It has a position of pride both on my bookshelves and my computer.

Any non-erotic stories you want to recommend? Because my TBR list can never be too big.

Oh, and to everybody who reads, Happy Holidays!

Favorite Heroines for 2007

Of the six categories I decided to highlight this year end, this one caught me most by surprise. Not because of what I eventually chose, but because of the dearth of choices compared to the other categories. It made me stop and wonder about why that might be. Am I extra critical of heroines in stories because I’m a woman? Do I read more for the escapism of the hero? Does the fact that most of them came from non-erotic stories mean anything? I actually think all three questions are valid, with the first two being true, as embarrassed as I am to admit it. There were few heroines that I reviewed this year that engaged me as much as the men did – which, by the way, was the single hardest category for me to narrow down to 4. But in the end, I picked the women I remember even months after reading the story.

3^rd Runner Up
Addie Alger in Your Alibi by Annie Dean

When it comes to contemporary heroines, I prefer them spunky. That’s how I think of Addie. In spite of rather bizarre situations in her life, she reads eerily normal, talks like any number of women I know, and is refreshing in a world of angst-ridden heroines.

2^nd Runner Up
Antonia in Twist of Honor by Karen Welss

This is my sole choice this year where I’m picking a heroine I actually liked less than the hero, though I still found her characterization rich and believable. There was a lot about Antonia that could have rubbed me the wrong way, but in the end, the author made her down-to-earth, devout without ramming it down my throat, intelligent and empathetic.

1^st Runner Up
Friday Maxwell in Shadow Vision by Samantha Storm

Spunky heroine #2. Six months after reading this, I still remember how funny she was, how sharp her commentary. This was a heroine who knew how to kick ass and take no prisoners, without losing her personality or femininity. I still regret that the rest of the story didn’t match the potential Friday had. I keep hoping that another story will come out that gives it to her.

And my favorite heroine of the books I reviewed this year is:

Elinor Montoya in
Snowdance by Sarita Leone

Elinor has a slight advantage over other heroines I read this year. I was treated to reading about her entire life, and thus, got to know her far better than I did any other female character I read. I’m okay with the fact that maybe the dialogue wasn’t the most natural-sounding. I was in her head enough, and I got to see so many pivotal moments of her life, that she’s an old friend regardless. Thinking of her simply makes me smile.

Now it’s your turn to tell me your favorite heroines of the year! Who made you laugh? Cry? Hold your breath? I’m looking for recs, so lay ‘em on me!

Snowdance by Sarita Leone

TITLE: Snowdance
AUTHOR: Sarita Leone
PUBLISHER: Whiskey Creek Press
LENGTH: Novel (roughly 53k)
GENRE: Mainstream romance
COST: $5.99

Elinor Montoya has lived a long, fruitful life. In the captivity of her snowbound home, she reflects on the paths that have led her to these particular moments, nearly a century of them added up together to sculpt her world.

From the very first chapter of this book, there is a distinct nostalgia that crooks a finger at the reader and beckons them to indulge. The descriptions of the central character’s home and the storm that rages outside are simple yet evocative, painting pictures with words that put me in the middle of that house, in the middle of that storm, watching and wondering over each individual pattern of snowflake falling outside the window. This isn’t a book to read when you’re looking for an adrenaline rush. The heroine is nearly a hundred years old, and the pace of the entire novel reflects both her experience and the simple, unadorned lifestyle she has had her entire life. But it still sucked me in, wrapping me up and making me smile, even when I wasn’t in the mood for it.

Not a whole lot happens in this. It’s a series of flashbacks interspersed with time spent in the present day. The flashbacks aren’t hugely original, either – there’s the obligatory death to deal with, a love at first sight scene – but the first one and actually my favorite is one with Elinor and her cousin Sara when Elinor is 8 years old. They’re contemplating their different lives, and how each is jealous of the other, and all that comes out in this discussion they’re having about how oak trees are made. It’s simple and so real that I finished it completely invested in wherever the story was going to take me after that. So if maybe some of the scenes were a little expected, that was all right. The point was, I wanted to be there by then. And that was enough for me.

I do wish that some of the dialogue wasn’t as stilted as it was. The author’s strengths are in descriptions, not in making her dialogue real. A 4 year-old in this came across as a teenager to me until I was told he was four. Even then, I didn’t quite believe it.

But in spite of this one quibble, I fell for this simple story head over heels. It’s more than a romance. It’s a story of a life. And how love shapes and forms everything that we are.

Readability	8/10 – Mostly clean and evocative, with a nostalgic rhythm that sucked me in
Heroine	8/10 – Dialogue is stiff, but otherwise, I wanted to know this woman even more
Plot	6/10 – The flashback device is awkward in some places, and there’s nothing hugely original about the vignettes the author shares
Entertainment value	8/10 – I completely fell for the melancholy nostalgia in this, due mostly to the quality of writing
World building	9/10 – I felt and saw every snowflake. I knew Elinor’s home as well as she did, I thought.
TOTAL:	39/50