Can't we all just get along...

Big news in the publishing world this week involved bestselling author Barry Eisler's decision to walk away from a half million dollar deal with a traditional publishing house in order to pursue self-publishing.  There is an interesting discussion of his decision on his blog...


Barry Eisler Blog

As with the ongoing print vs. ebook conversations amongst readers, I do not think that this issue has to be an either/or situation. I think it makes sense for authors to look for ways to take advantage of the new markets. In many ways, publishers have held the upper hand in the writer/publisher relationship for too long, and this might be an opportunity for writers to take some control. I also think that the creative control issue is a real one. I find that many of the independent authors that I have discovered through my kindle reading are doing some very interesting things and I'm enjoying discovering new writers. That said, I think there is still a place for traditional publishing houses. My hope would be that they would realize that working off an ancient and crumbling business model is not the way to survive. Publishing as an industry needs to try to quit choking ebook sales and embrace the new technologies. I am surprised that they learned nothing from the music industry debacle. As with any business, they must evolve or face extinction.

I do know that since I started reading on the kindle, I am buying twice as many books annually. This year, I may triple the amount. I attribute this to ease of use, convenience and the lower cost of ebooks. I still buy print books and I expect I always will, but for the amount of genre reading I do, ebooks have made perfect sense.

I don't think there is a right or wrong answer here, but I would hope that we can continue to discuss in a rational and thoughtful manner.  

"We are such doomed fools..."

I couldn't let the recent passing of Elizabeth Taylor go unmentioned. She has always been a favorite of mine. I admired her passion and her energy, and of course, her beauty. She made great films, mothered four children and several step children, championed and supported serious and worthy causes, had great success as a business woman and lastly, never stopped believing in love and romance.

Her greatest romantic love, I believe, will always be Richard Burton. Their love was as complicated and passionate and messy and huge as any romance novel story I have ever read. If you haven't read Furious Love: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, and the Marriage of the Century, then you must remedy that immediately. It chronicles one of the great true romances of our time. I'm not sure exactly what I believe about the afterlife, but it comforts me to think of Richard and Elizabeth reunited in some way. Of course, if they are together on some heavenly plane, they are probably already fighting. True passion can be that way.

I leave you with a letter from Richard to Elizabeth, one of the many wonderful letters that she graciously shared with the authors of Furious Love...

The last day of March

My darling Sleeping Child, …I am oddly shy about you. I still regard you as an … inviolate presence. You are as secret as the mysterious processes of the womb. I'm not being fancy … I have treated women, generally, very badly and used them as an exercise for my contempt except in your case. I have fought like a fool to treat you in the same way and failed. One of these days I will wake up—which I think I have done already—and realize to myself that I really do love. I find it very difficult to allow my whole life to rest on the existence of another creature. I find it equally difficult, because of my innate arrogance, to believe in the idea of love. There is no such thing, I say to myself. There is lust, of course, and usage, and jealousy, and desire and spent powers, but no such thing as the idiocy oflove.

Who invented that concept? I have wracked my shabby brains and can find no answer. But when people die … those who are taken away from us can never come back. Never, never, never, never, never (Lear about Cordelia). We are such doomed fools. Unfortunately, we know it. So I have decided that for a second or two, the precious potential of you in the next room is the only thing in the world worth living for. After your death there shall only be one other and that will be mine. Or I possibly think, vice versa.

Ravaged love,
And loving Rich

The Eyre Apparent...

Ok, Ok, I'll admit that the world doesn't really need another film version of Charlotte Bronte's amazing classic, Jane Eyre. There have been as many as 30 versions by my count, including television and foreign language titles. What is it about this romance classic that continues to fascinate both film makers and audiences? I believe that this book, which has been on my favorites list since I first read it at 9, has all of the elements that a reader could want. The book explores spirituality, faith, love, romance, sexual chemistry, madness, adultery, sin, horror and certainly, redemption. I'm not sure what more one could ask from a work of genre fiction. Since the latest film version of Jane Eyre opens this month, I thought I'd provide a quick overview of some of my favorite and least favorite adaptations. This is by no means an exhaustive list, I have only included versions that I have actually experienced. If I were planning a Jane Eyre Festival, most of these would definitely be on the program...

Jane Eyre - 1934
Colin Clive and Virginia Bruce

Happy Jane!
If you have ever felt that Jane Eyre could be improved if it was just a bit more cheerful and upbeat, this is the version for you! All is sweetness and light in this film version, which has next to nothing to do with the actual text of the book. A blonde Jane!!!  That tells you all you need to know.

Jane Eyre - 1944
Joan Fontaine and Orson Welles

Broody Jane!
This version certainly relies on the novel's gothic tone.  Welles plays a very broody and intense Rochester, but I didn't think Fontaine added much with her portrayal of Jane as sort of a wishy-washy damsel in distress.  It adheres to the text of the novel pretty closely and is a decent, if limited, adaptation.

Jane Eyre - 1949
Mary Sinclair and Charlton Heston

Yankee Jane!
Nothing special to be found in this blase treatment of the book produced as part of the otherwise excellent Studio One television series. The lack of British accents let one experience the book from a Yank's perspective.

Jane Eyre - 1970
George C. Scott and Susannah York

Elderly Jane!
While I enjoyed the look and feel of this version and the acting was solid, both of the main characters were played by actors far too old for the roles.  Nothing terrible about this version, but certainly nothing special either.

  

Jane Eyre - 1973
Sorcha Cusack and Michael Jayston

Steady Jane!
A very good BBC production that adheres closely to the text of the book and features excellent performances by both leads.  Nothing brilliant about the look of this production, but if you want a version that remains true to the book and doesn't screw with any of the major elements, then this may be the best one for you.

Jane Eyre - 1983
Zelah Clarke and Timothy Dalton

Completely Jane!

Another BBC production which features all of the positives of the 1973 production with just a smidge more intensity. This is, in my opinion, the most complete and well-rounded adaptation of JE to be found. The script is faithful to the text of the novel, the performances are nuanced and Dalton's Rochester is just the right level of intense and passionate without being obnoxious. If Zelah Clarke is unable to match Dalton fully, she does a very credible job of portraying Jane's straightforward and innocent nature. My only gripe? Typically cheap BBC sets. The interior shots look like the sets of a high school theater department production. Still, for the Bronte loving purists, this is a treasure!

Jane Eyre - 1996
Charlotte Gainsbourg and William Hurt

Whimpy Jane!
The only reason to see this version is to enjoy the excellent cinematography and the gorgeous look of the film.  Neither Gainsbourg nor Hurt brought much energy or passion to their roles. They both float through the film with a sort of resigned sadness and it just doesn't serve the story at all.

Jane Eyre - 1997
Samantha Morton and Ciaran Hinds

Angry Jane!
Anyone who knows me knows how much I adore Irish actor Ciaran Hinds, however his Yelly McYellerson approach to Rochester was not a highpoint of his career. Hinds chooses to emphasize Rochester's anger and we don't see much more than that. The production is fine, but the script is rather weak and I recommend this version only for the joy of watching Ciaran Hinds look excellent in period costume. Oh, this version did feature an excellent Pilot!

Jane Eyre - 2006

Ruth Wilson and Toby Stephens

Sexy Jane!

Certainly the hottest version of Jane Eyre so far, this BBC production was really well-done.  Beautifully shot, with a strong musical score and an excellent script, this version featured a more  modern interpretation of the classic tale. Toby Stephens brings a boatload of sex-appeal, humor and charm to the the role of Rochester, although he never loses the character's intensity.  Ruth Wilson is wonderfully subtle as a smart, strong, forthright and loving Jane.  This is likely the version that readers of historical romances will most enjoy.



So there you have it Eyre heads!  Hopefully this quick overview will help you to pick and choose your fave film version of one of the best books ever!  I'd love to hear which Jane you liked best and I would really love to hear a review of any of the zillions of versions that I missed...

Where Shadows Dance...

I was thrilled to get the latest title in the wonderful Sebastian St. Cyr historical mystery series this week.  Penned by the talented C.S. Harris, Shadows Dance is the sixth book featuring Sebastian St. Cyr, a sort of Regency era James Bond. St. Cyr, or Viscount Devlin, as he is also known, is an intriguing character and Harris is a marvelous writer. I was very excited to find a historical mystery series set in the regency era, as it is probably my favorite historical period.

Overall, this has been a really solid and enjoyable series.  Sebastian is an intriguing character with a wonderful wit and style.  In the early going, he was deeply involved with an actress, Kat Boleyn. I never really enjoyed the pairing because Sebastian seemed like a whiny child when he was around Kat. He seemed to use her as a threat and a wedge with his estranged family and it just got tiresome. As the books progressed, it became very clear that the mysteries involved were somewhat secondary to the familial secrets that Sebastian is constantly uncovering. This ongoing storyline lets the reader get to know more about Sebastian and his family with each book and a fascinating family it is. One of these family secrets eventually brings an end to the romantic relationship between Sebastian and Kat and while I felt for them, I was actually pretty thrilled about this development as I hoped it meant less of the petulant, emo Sebastian and more of the witty, mystery solving, urbane Sebastian.

Throughout the series Sebastian's nemesis is the wonderfully villainous, Lord Jarvis. Jarvis is the power behind the throne and  perhaps my favorite character in the books. If I loved Jarvis for no other reason, I would love him for fathering his daughter, Hero Jarvis. Hero is an amazing character. She is a 25 year old bluestocking, with a love for all things intellectual as well as a highly developed social concious.  Her ability to stand up to Sebastian as an equal made their relationship interesting to me from the start. As the series progressed, I hoped for a relationship between these two, but didn't see how Harris could pull this off since Sebastian is so sure that he can never love anyone but Kat. I should not have underestimated Harris's abilities, since she has indeed managed to build a unique and complex storyline for these two.

Where Shadows Dance is, I think, a pivotal book in this series. It felt like Sebastian was finally growing up. When a low level but well liked young diplomat is murdered, Sebastian steps in to investigate. The investigation uncovers an incredibly complex situation involving politicians and diplomats from many countries and almost more twists and turns than the reader can keep up with. Almost. Harris outlines the many players and elements of the storyline very carefully and I had no trouble following the action. The plot of this book serves to remind one just how volatile the world was in the early 1800s. There were so many powerful players on the world's political stage and all were seeking to build and strengthen alliances. As Sebastian works to unravel the puzzle surrounding the young diplomat's death, he also works to convince Hero to become his wife. Thanks to an unplanned episode in their recent past, Hero and Sebastian find themselves facing a difficult situation and both seem to be trying desperately to behave honorably. As they agree to marry, Hero steps in to aid Sebastian in his investigation. This development gives me great pleasure as well as real hope that this trend will continue in future books.  Sebastian and Hero are an amazingly well-matched couple and when they join forces they are indeed a force of nature!

A word here about romances in historical mysteries.  I am in favor of them. Really. That said, I think that writers of historical mysterys have to tread a bit lightly to keep the fine line between mystery and romance in place. Harris has always done an excellent job with this and I am truly grateful that she didn't try to keep some sort of love triangle going between Kat, Sebastian and Hero. When Sebastian makes his decision, he definitely mourns for what he might have had with Kat, but he makes it clear that he is going to be a faithful husband to Hero. He and Kat have a couple of lovely moments and I'm sure that she will continue to be featured in the series, but I felt like Harris effectively ended the concept of any sort of sordid triangle. I also worried about Sebastian and Hero being trapped in a stuffy marriage of convenience. These two have enormous chemistry and a strong physical attraction, but I was concerned that they would refrain from attempting a real relationship due to the circumstances of their marriage.  I would like to cheer C.S. Harris for not going that very tired route. The last few pages of this books are quite possibly the most romantic I have ever read in any genre. The writing is truly beautiful and I am reminded that Harris, under her real name, Candace Proctor, wrote several excellent historical romances earlier in her career. She even quotes one of my favorite poets, Sir Thomas Wyatt. Sigh!

So, strong mystery, swoony romance, great attention to historical detail, interesting familial situations, intriguing characters, both main and supporting, along with some truly fine writing combine to make the latest entry in this series one of the best.  If you haven't read this one, do so.  At the first opportunity.  Number seven in the series is due next March and believe me I expect that they will only get better and better! Harris is a worthy successor to the late, great Kate Ross and while Julian Kestral remains number one in my heart, Sebastian is certainly a close second.

Titles in the Sebastian St. Cyr series:
What Angels Fear: A Sebastian St. Cyr Mystery, Book 1
When Gods Die: A Sebastian St. Cyr Mystery
Why Mermaids Sing: A Sebastian St. Cyr Mystery
Where Serpents Sleep: A Sebastian St. Cyr Mystery, Book 4
What Remains of Heaven: A Sebastian St. Cyr Mystery, Book 5
Where Shadows Dance: A Sebastian St. Cyr Mystery, Book 6