West of Mars\' Rocks \'n Reads

With a title like The Rock and Roll Queen of Bedlam, you’d expect the book to be a work of Rock Fiction, right? Add in a mention on the back blurb of the fact that our heroine, Allegra, has a thing for karaoke — and hello? That name!! — and yeah. You’d expect a rock novel. It’s not that unreasonable.

Ha. Not even close. This is one of those madcap, hapless tales of an amateur sleuth. There’s no rock here. Heck, there’s barely a mention of the karaoke nights.

In that respect, it’s quite disappointing.

In every other respect, this is one fun read. Allegra’s a great heroine. It’s easy to root for her. And Sloan is one heck of a hunky foil. The plot isn’t the most original, but it’s one that holds you throughout. I’m definitely going to be keeping an eye out for more from author Marilee Brothers.

It may not be a Rock Novel. But it’s a West of Mars Recommended Read.

I am not sure I knew Last Night at Chateau Marmont fell squarely into the category of Rock and Roll Fiction until a copy arrived from BookMooch and I read the cover flap. It’s the story of Brooke Alter and what happens to her when her husband lands a recording deal and becomes music’s new darling.

Okay, so it’s about Julian as he becomes a mega-star. That qualifies for rock and roll fiction, right? Even if Julian isn’t a rocker as much as a pop musician in the best sense of the word — after all, the guy lands the opening slot on Maroon 5′s tour.

This book doesn’t feel very rock-ish. If anything, it’s a story about celebrity. The paparazzi abound (although I don’t quite get how they conveniently disappear when the dog needs to be walked. Walter Alter didn’t come across as particularly interested in eating paparazzi.) and the jet-set lifestyle has definite negatives when you are the one at home, trying to continue to live your life as if nothing has changed. Gossip magazines rule your lifestyle.

In some senses, Julian could have been an actor thrust into the spotlight. Or a reality show star. His being in the music business didn’t matter.

And that is why this isn’t a rock and roll novel.

It’s a good read, though. Perfect for the beach. It’s not too deep, even when it flirts with serious topics like the serious bumps that can end a marriage or eating disorders. Even the ending is easy and breezy. It’s almost too easy, but that fits the sort of book this is. And it’s neat to see music from the angle of celebrity. That part, I can’t find fault with. It’s so real, so chilling. I can see the meeting of the scorned women so clearly, as if I was watching the reality show based on them. (Is there one? Gosh, I hope not!) And while I don’t read the rags, I’ve seen enough of them in my day to believe this vile, snarky world Weisberger plunges us — and Brooke — into.

If you’re looking for real rock and roll fiction, there are better books out there. If you want a pleasant read to pass a few hours with, this is definitely the one for you. I may not rave about it, but I’m sure glad I read it.

There’s always that moment when you first sit down with a friend’s book. That moment when you’re afraid you’ll wish you hadn’t risked your friendship over a book, which your friend was kind enough to give you (Yo, FTC, that’s your disclaimer).

I shouldn’t have worried. Darcia Helle’s as awesome a writer as she is a person. Which is to say Enemies and Playmates was one of the most wickedly fun cat-and-mouse tales I’ve come across in a long time. Alex Covington is a phenomenally well-drawn jerk, his wife Kara is a tragedy, son Stephen is an even bigger heartbreaker who colors the whole book. And then there’s daughter Lauren, our heroine.

She actually turns out to be a secondary character, as the heart of this story is Lauren’s man, Jesse, and the way he goes up against Lauren’s dad. This is where it’s at for me, and not once was I let down. Jesse and Alex engage in some of the most delicious — and dangerous — play I’ve read in eons. Really, the romance between Jesse and Lauren is secondary, even though it is pivotal to the way in which Lauren’s character grows and changes.

No, it’s not perfect. Dialogue is stilted in spots, and the subplot with Lauren’s friend stretches believeability — but at the same time, it makes the important point that no matter how well you think you know someone, no matter how best your best friend is, surprises can (and do) lurk around every corner. For a woman like Lauren, it’s a good reminder of what a louse her father is, why she needs to get away — and the steps her father will take to make sure she can’t.

I don’t want to say too much. Go read it for yourself. Have some fun with it.

Enemies and Playmates. A definite West of Mars Recommended read.

When author Melody Lane sent me her book, Rock Me, it came with a caveat. It seems she had gotten zinged in other reviews by critics who felt the main character, Jenny Page, was too innocent to be believable.

As someone who was once an innocent spending a lot of time around the Pittsburgh heavy metal scene, I can relate. I was there once. And so, to me, Jenny was just fine. I liked her innocence, even. It fit her age, it fit her character. After all, Jenny is a woman who never dared to believe her fantasies concerning rocker Ian McAllister could ever possibly come true. She thought she’d forever be that girl in the front row, watching, flirting, and dreaming. And she was fine with it.

She’s able to make her dreams come true when the object of her lust winds up in the very hospital — on the very floor — that Jenny works in. She’s a nurse and it turns out that our bad boy rocker has a nurse fetish. The fact that he finds Jenny horribly attractive only makes the situation more perfect for them both.

Chemistry flares. Jenny is a champ at trying to stay professional, and the scenes in the hospital where Jenny is fighting Ian and her own temptation are some of the best in the book. At times, they are laugh out loud funny — and that’s a compliment. By the time Jenny was done helping Ian in the shower, I was thoroughly charmed by this couple, this scenario, and this book.

Of course, there’s a but. There are two, actually. One is that some of the prose feels like it was written by what I’ve heard called a “young writer.” This means the writer is still finding her voice. The narrative and the dialogue seems stilted, like it’s there for information only; once the writer is more seasoned, this will go away. I do believe this; Melody Lane can imagine a great story. All she needs is more chances to do it and this rough spot will go away.

The other isn’t so easy to deal with. It’s the subplot featuring the roadie and the unbalanced fan who is out to get Ian. Having worked crew, I find it hard to believe this Bill guy would have been hired in the first place. And then to sabotage the band the way he does? That’s hard to swallow, and then when we find out he’s doing on behalf of this deranged fan…

Yeah. It strains credibility too much. Bill is too much of a creep. There’s nothing redeeming about him; he’s 100% jerk. You can’t even like hating him.

Again, I’d write this off to being a young writer. As Ms. Lane grows and writes and firms up some respectable chops, this sort of quibble will vanish. She’ll dream up better bad guys, better conflict scenarios.

You know I can’t mention an Ellora’s Cave book without talking about the sex. It’s not as hot as Lex Valentine’s Rock My World, but it wouldn’t be believeable if that was the case. Instead, the sex has an innocence and newness to it. Given Jenny’s young age and relative inexperience, and given that Ian is opening himself up for the first time to sex with emotion, it works. And yep, it’s enough to rev the engines quite nicely.

All in all, Rock Me was a fun read. This book is, pure and simple, utterly charming.

I’d have to call this one a West of Mars recommended read — with a caveat. It’s not perfect. But, it doesn’t really have to be.

It was a pleasant surprise to see Lex Valentine drop into my inbox. Lex and I had fallen out of touch, but she’s a special lady in my world. Her presence in my inbox is always welcome.

Best of all, this time, she came with presents! Well, okay, only one. But one is better than none, especially when that one is Lex’s first Ellora’s Cave Release, Rock My World.

Yep, Lex was kind enough to send me a copy. So I thought I’d return the favor by posting some reviews of the book. After all, the only thing an author likes better than having someone love their work is when that reader loves their work publically, so others can see and agree. (Or not. Such is the nature of opinion.)

First off, let me say that Lex is known for explicit, hot sex. If that’s not your thing, walk away now. Even if you, like me, love books about rockers, if you’re not into watching Gia and Sin have all sorts of sex in all sorts of positions, places, and involving toys and various body parts, this isn’t the book for you. Lex almost rivals my friend Colette Gale, who promises at least one orgasm every chapter.

So, yeah. Let me say up front that Lex can write a sex scene. I’ve known that about her from before her days as a published writer, so it’s nice to see others getting to experience her skills.

I hate to say it, but in her quest to bring us such great sex, she sacrifices some character development. And that’s my biggest (and only) quibble with Rock My World.

The story is about rocker Gia Santora. She’s at the top of her game, surrounded by body guards, and badly scarred by an event with a stalker. She’s also tired of the rock star one-night stand life. And did I mention she’s in lust with the frontman of her opening act, Sinclair Carstens? Sin’s young enough to have grown up with posters of Gia on his walls and more fantasies than a guy can remember. But the ones he does remember…

He gets to act them out, and then some, when Gia and he crash into each other in the wings. Their first meeting, as they’d been studiously avoiding each other, is properly rushed, but not so fast that the sparks can’t begin flying. These two have chemistry, all right. They’re also in a position where they’re willing and able to commit to each other.

I love this part of the story. These two are at opposite ends of the spectrum — Gia’s on top and has been there awhile. She gets this world she lives in. It’s jaded her a bit, but not so bad that she has to give it up. Nope. She’s a rocker, all right. It’s in her blood.

Sin, on the other hand, is a youngster — not just in age, but experience. Opening for Gia is his band’s big break. When Gia allows him into her rarefied air, he learns much.

Or, he should. This is where the shallow character development comes in. I’d have liked to see more of the impact on Sin. Through his relationship with Gia, he’s experiencing the difference between being an opening act and a headliner. He takes it in stride — but then, he seems to take everything but Gia in stride. She runs off, trying to protect him from her stalker? Okay, fine. He’ll roll with that, too.

It’s kind of frustrating. I want to see his passion for more than her. For his music. For the commitment he’s making to her. I want to see him struggle with how different their worlds are, how difficult the age barrier can be. He mentions Gia’s got a more mature body than she did when she was younger, but we don’t get to see him really process that too much. This was a missed opportunity for some real older-woman appreciation here. Let him lick a hipbone that’s not bony like a twenty-some chick’s hipbone would be. Let him realize how much better that is.

Gia, too, could have used more depth, especially where her stalker’s scars are so evident. This guy terrorized her; I’d have loved to see her be truly vulnerable. To struggle with her memories and her fears. We see a bit of her with her fear of flying, but I want more. I want to connect with her, understand her, empathize with her. I want to feel as though I can change places with her and be her for the length of this book.

Ahh, and there’s the problem. It’s not that Lex can’t develop a good, deep character who transcends the page and comes alive. I’ve read some of her unpublished stuff. I know darn well she can do this.

Rather, the issue is that an Ellora’s Cave book can only be so long. And when you’re busy packing all that delicious sex into it, something’s got to be sacrificed. It can’t be plot; if it is, we wind up in the areas where people talk in terms of soft-core and hard-core. So… it’s a bit of characterization that suffers.

Too bad, because this book could have been one of my top reads of the year. I wish it was, and not just because Lex is a friend. I like the concept.

Good news for me — and for you guys, too. Lex is working on a follow-up, featuring one of the characters from Rock My World, James the guitarist. I’ll be on the lookout for it. Once you read this one, I suspect you will be, too.

If I’m going to count Jacqueline Luckett’s Waiting for Tina Turner on the rock book list, I suppose I ought to include Laura Lippman’s In Big Trouble, too.

This was my first book written by Ms. Lippman. I have to say, I don’t think I’ll be revisiting this series.

Our series heroine, Tess, had a certain blandness to her. I don’t know… she just lacked zing. So did our bass player, the mysterious Crow. Or Ed. Or Eddie. He went by all three in the book, although to Ms. Lippman’s credit, it never got confusing.

Tess takes off in search of Crow. She winds up in Texas, where Crow — now Eddie — has gotten involved with a mysterious woman who may or may not be up to anything good. He’s also gotten involved with this woman’s band.

The music never pulsates off the page, though. Whereas the spirit of Tina Turner permeated the pages of Ms. Luckett’s book, it’s lacking here. Now, one could argue that since this music setting is a mere part of a bigger series, there’s no need for the pages to vibrate. I’d buy that.

But I still missed it. And as a result, as a rock and roll novel, this failed for me. As part of a series, I thought it was okay but lacked any real distinction or any compelling reason to keep reading. Maybe you guys can convince me otherwise; it won’t be the first series that I put down after the first encounter and said, “Meh,” to. I’ve kept going with plenty other series. So go on. Convert me.

I was very jazzed when I came across Olivia Brynn‘s Falling Star. I was even more jazzed when Olivia contacted me and offered to send me one of the few existing print copies of the book.

I read it with no small amount of relish. It’s a fun book. I’d recommend it, absolutely. But, of course, as with the majority of what I read, there are some issues. Nothing fatal, I’m pleased to say.

Well, okay. There was one almost-fatal problem, but we can’t blame it on the author. It’s the editing, specifically the copy editing. I’m terribly sorry, but “Come here babe” just isn’t grammatically correct. There needs to be a comma between the words here and babe. This was enough of a consistent problem, there was no way it can be excused as a fluke. Someone doesn’t know how to do their job. Period.

Let’s focus on the things that are what we’re really here to talk about, which is the story. It’s not a fresh one: rock star needs to clean up his act, walks incognito into a florist, and falls in love with an ordinary girl who has no idea who he is, even though she loves his music.

Does some of this sound familiar? A bit? It’s a similar premise of the recent book from Karina Bliss, What the Librarian Did.

I feel like lately, every review winds up as a comparison — with the more recently reviewed book falling short. In some ways, Falling Star does just that. But because it lacks the more serious subplot found in Librarian, this is a stronger beach read.

That’s a compliment. I love a good beach read.

Unfortunately, our rocker, Adam, is a bit bland. He’s fine. He’s likeable. But he lacks that zing we saw in Bliss’ Devin, that raw sexuality and charisma. Likewise, Adam is also lacking the real bad boy persona — and details — that is causing his star to fall. We’re told he’s heading for problems, but all we get to see is a nice guy. His excesses are glossed over, and that gloss hurts my rock and roll rating.

Flower shop owner Jade is a character with a lot of potential. Sure, she’s got the gay best friend thing going, but she’s also confident without being too strong. There’s nothing wussy about this girl. Even when she chooses to sleep on the couch, it fits her character. Again, though, I don’t feel like I’ve gotten to know her deeply enough.

This is a problem, especially as we have many of the properly cliched scenes. The woman who doesn’t recognize the star. Getting up in the middle of the night to find Adam working on a song. The boats, the homes.

Since this is an erotic romance, I am compelled to mention the sex. Hot. Steamy. Possibly the best part of the book, and I’ve already said this is a good read. But there was a problem, here, too.

In one scene, Adam changes and becomes very dominant. This was a jarring change and it bothered me. We see him so consistently as a good guy, a gentle man. And then he’s growling and he’s almost forcing Jade up against a wall and … yeah. It was too rough. Too out of character. For me, it crossed the line into assault, simply because it was so out of character.

In other words: dominant males are fine. A Jekyll and Hide switch from gentle to dominant isn’t.

I suppose that leads us to the final assessment: as a rock and roll novel, how is it? Only fair, I’m afraid. There are almost too many clichés. If that doesn’t bother you — or you’re one of those folk who lap it up, especially in an erotic romance or a good beach read — you’ll be quite happy.

I do look forward to more from Olivia Brynn. Even if she’s not kind enough to send me a freebie each time.

I wasn’t going to include Searching for Tina Turner, the debut novel from Jacqueline E. Luckett, in my list of rock and roll fiction. It’s not about a rocker. Not really. But it belongs on my list, all right.

In this tale of a woman searching to find herself once her kids are grown and she’s become disenchanted with always sublimating herself for her husband, it’s all about Tina, baby, and the lessons our main character, Lena, learns from the rock icon. These pages vibrate with Tina’s music — her lyrics, in particular.

There is strength in those famous words, there’s no denying that. As Lena runs around France, finds herself, almost repeats the mistakes she made the first time around, and eventually connects with her own strength, I found myself not only rooting for her but remembering who I am, too.

SFTT is one of those books that made me angry, grossed me out (when she chased all over like a groupie. It was SO beneath Lena), made me cry, and made me laugh out loud. And the ending? Absolutely perfect.

Okay, maybe parts of the book — and the ending — were a bit too pat. So what? The book needed it. Lena needed it. We, the reader, needed it.

Know what else I need now? A copy of I, Tina. There’s much to be learned from Tina’s tale, methinks.

As for Ms. Luckett, bring on the next one, baby. She’s a strong new voice who transcends skin color (I didn’t even realize the heroine was African American until I saw the “Essence Book Club” badge on the cover.) and speaks to all of us women.

Except… maybe not Tina Turner. She’s been there, done this. Survived it. So does Lena.

And so will we.

Karina Bliss’ What the Librarian Did is one of those books EVERYONE is talking about right now. It’s getting quite a bit of positive buzz. That was enough to pique my interest. But then something else popped up and I had to read this book.

The male hero is a rock star. Therefore, I had to pick up a copy via PaperbackSwap.com and see if this rock star dude meets MY standards. Does What The Librarian Did qualify for inclusion my list of Best Rock Books?

Devin does earn his spot… and he doesn’t.

For starters, let’s talk about the book. I like the triangle here. There’s more than just a rock star and a librarian, cliched opposites fighting their attraction to each other. There’s a son who doesn’t know he’s met his mother, and a mother who’s not sure how to tell him. Or how to act around him. Or… well, pretty much everything. Rachel has a real challenge put in front of her, and it’s a personal, introspective one. I like this twist. It potentially allows for some serious personal growth.

This subplot rules the plot. Heck, it’s the reason for the title. I like Mark, the son who found out only recently that he’d been put up for adoption at birth. I wish he’d been a bit more rounded out and a bit more real, but … what can you do in 300 pages? He does serve as a nice buffer for Rachel and Devin, and he more than earns his spot in the story. I like how he reacts to hearing the news of his parentage. How he gets two truths but still doesn’t understand the how or why of it. It is very real.

I had a few quibbles with Rachel, our librarian. I’d have liked to get to know her better; she’s got a mountain bike and she quite self-consciously refers to it (threatening to shove it up parts of Devin’s quite experienced anatomy), but I never see her as the mountain bike type. (I say this as a mountain bike owner, myself, even if I’m not one who’s first in line for the singletrack.) A mountain bike conveys a sense of adventure, a seeking of danger, and a confidence that your wheels can handle it all. Rachel never onces gives off this sort of vibe. At most, she bucks trends and wears vintage clothes that seem more frumpy and frilly than the left-of-center expectation opened up by that bike.

Now, here’s the real thing about the mountain bike: I’m grousing on it so much because it just doesn’t fit. Contradictions in a character make a character come alive, my writing professors often said. But this contradiction seems more planted by the author than demanded by the character. (All you writers will immediately get what I mean. You readers, when you read this book, think about it and you’ll get it, too.)

Back to Rachel: I have one big issue with her, and that’s that she’s shut off. We never get to see her open up, how Devin brings out the best in her and inspires her to take a chance. This is sad. We’re told about some changes, but … we don’t get to experience them with her. It creates a distance and since we don’t get to see it, when the final scene happens and Rachel takes a HUGE chance that leads to her happily ever after, it seems out of character. We need to see her take other chances along the way (and no, I don’t think riding on Devin’s motorcycle is an example of her doing exactly that. She’s too matter-of-fact about it for me to believe she’s stretching herself.).

Now. Devin. Our rocker. Yeah, I can buy a guy who’s about to literally drink himself to death who wakes up and realizes not only does he need to sober up, he could benefit from being a student. I can buy a rock star who moves halfway around the world to take care of his mom.

Know what I’m missing here? A difficulty adapting to this new, not-outrageous world he’s been forced into. Chagrin over his past antics. Mistakes made as he tries to fit in — real mistakes, like where he can’t figure out why he has to pay for food in the cafeteria; it’s not provided by catering and paid for by the tour manager. He adapts too easily. He’s not a fish out of water, and he should be.

I found myself longing for a hint of where he wants his life to go now that he’s been forced into this change. It’s not something he chose, not if he wants to stay alive. So where’s his mixed emotions? Where’s the longing to make music again? To be on that stage, under those lights? For the gritty side of the life? For the glamour? Like Rachel, he’s on a very even keel. Maybe too even.

But, again, we have that 300 page issue. You can only do so much and ultimately, this is a romance, not some of my beloved rock and roll fiction.

I have a question, too. We’re told Devin was sixteen when he joined his brother’s band. Did he graduate high school? If not, how’d he get into college? Yes, he gave the school a boatload of money, but was that enough to get them to overlook the small matter of an unearned diploma?

And then there’s Zander, his big brother, the stereotypic prick. Nope. I didn’t buy him for an instant, even though I’ve met his type more than a few times. I especially didn’t buy the bit about the jobs. I don’t mean the job he tries to strong-arm Devin into. The other one. It’s a nice gesture, but you know what? I don’t buy it. It’s too convenient — and too much of a break from the stereotypic character we’re shown. Again, this is an instance where contradiction seems forced.

You’ll have to read the book to see what jobs I’m talking about. I’m trying really hard not to spoil things.

Or am I? I mean, I said I liked this book, and now I’ve popped up with a whole slew of complaints.

What it gets down to, you see, is this book is packed full of the fun of a romance. No matter how you try to spin it, a good chase is a good chase, and both Rachel and Devin have deliciously wicked tongues and quick comebacks. Plus, I really got the sense that author Bliss knows her romance-writing stuff. She’s smart. It shows. I appreciate that. And I love the idea of the dragon tattoo on Devin’s arm, its tongue licking his knuckle… What an image. What a concept. I wish it had gotten more play.

Sort of like that mountain bike of Rachel’s.

Overall, yeah. I’d suggest you ought to read this book. But how I rank it as Rock and Roll Fiction? It falls a bit short of my standard — but then again, my standard is freaking high.

Read it. Set your own standard.

**The buy link in the book’s title will take you to Powells.com. Any purchase you make yields me a few pennies. Once those pennies add up, I’ll give a book away to you dedicated readers.

It began, on my part, as a joke. One of my Win a Book authors, TJ Bennett, was Tweeting about how she’d managed to come in under budget on her Christmas shopping list. I pulled a Trevor and said, “Oh, honey. All you needed to get me was a copy of your latest book!”

Truly, TJ wasn’t going to send ME a present. We both knew it.

But she seized on the idea and very soon, there was a copy of her sophomore novel, The Promise, waiting for me to slide it out of my PO Box.

So when I needed something to read before starting my latest book club book, I picked up The Promise.

Holy smoke, why aren’t more people talking about TJ Bennett? Why aren’t more people reading TJ Bennett?

In The Promise, she’s got not one couple finding their way toward love. Nope. One’s not good enough. TJ gives us TWO. That means she’s got four characters to juggle: Alonsa and Gunter, and Fritz and Ines. She does it well, using the Fritz/Ines relationship as a subplot. It also provides a nice subtextual contrast for Alonsa and Gunter, too.

As usual, I’m not going to say much about the plot. Gunter’s got it for Alonsa. She returns the feeling, but is worried about a curse placed on her back in the days when she was young and stupid (not to mention impetuous). And while there’s much about Alonsa we don’t know — or that I missed — she seems to have grown up very well, even if she’s filled with fear.

You can’t blame the poor woman. Even before she begins hanging around the soldier camps, she’s seen more death than any one person ought to.

Her story is one of overcoming fear. Of choosing to love.

It’s a great message, and it’s subtly done. This could have been terribly heavy-handed, preachy… all sorts of awful things. But it’s not. TJ, girl, you got it going. You make your characters talk to each other, they don’t fall into the deception trap, they face their problems, no matter how scary. And oh, the things they do for each other. These people will give their all for their partner — it’s not just the women who go to lengths for the men. Nope, there’s a lot of equality here. These people give all of themselves, and in return, they are given all of their partner.

Ahh, this is my idea of how real life ought to be.

So, yeah. TJ Bennett. A total hidden gem who’s going to be a huge romance industry one day. Mark my words.

** Just a small reminder: if you use the link to Powells.com and buy something — anything! — I’ll get a few pennies, which will add up one day and I’ll be able to afford to give a book away to you guys.