Storytelling and copulation....

“Storytelling and copulation are the two chief forms of amusement in the South. They are inexpensive and easy to procure.”–Robert Penn Warren

So recently I found myself in a real reading slump. You all know what I mean. You keep picking up books and reading 20 pages and putting them down. Nothing catches your interest.  As someone who reads constantly, I find this sort of dry spell to be really disconcerting. Oh, I know I'll get my groove back, but since reading is my main form of entertainment I want it back NOW. Usually the key to kickstarting the reading desire is to turn to an old favorite and revisit a story and characters that i know I will love. The pressure is off. I don't have to worry that the story will eventually fizzle out and leave me frustrated, because these books are my tried and true. 

To end this recent bout of reader's slump, I turned to one of my very favorite old friends, Linda Howard's Shades of Twilight.  Now anyone who reads this blog knows that I love me some Linda Howard and this is one of her best!  After revisiting this twisted and sultry tale of the lives and loves of a powerful and dysfunctional southern family, I mentioned my love for this title on Facebook, calling it a prime example of "slightly skeevy southern gothic hotness."  Turns out that this sort of book intrigues a lot of folks, many of them FB friends of mine.  We decided that this should be an official sub-genre or rating system, at the very least.  So what exactly makes a book a purveyor of sssgh?  Lots of things, but here are a few elements that it must have:

• Strong sense of place and that place must be in the South!
• Heat.  Both in terms of sexual chemistry and the weather.
• Gothic elements.  A big old manor house is good.  A deserted plantation house is good.  A shack in the bayou is fine too. Fill any of these homes with an assortment of odd relatives and you're on your way.
• Insanity or at the very least, some crazy.  Whether it be an elderly aunt who is slightly doddering or a villain who is completely nuts, you've got to have a bit of crazy action in a good sssgh.
• Relationships that carefully tread the fine line between skeevy inappropriate and skeevy hot. 

Now those of you who share my love for the sssgh, are probably already thinking of your faves!  Like any good genre reader, you've recognized the type of book to which I'm referring and you're most likely always on the lookout for a new one.  I know I am.  So without further ado, a few of my favorite sssgh classics:

Shades of Twilight - Linda Howard
This one has it all!  It's a sultry, sweaty, slightly skeevy tale of an old south family who knows how to put the fun in dysfunctional!  Hot as hell in every way that matters in a  good sssgh.

After the Night - Linda Howard
Oh yeah, another Howard classic!  The meaner her crazy creole hero, Gray Rouillard gets, the more we all want him.  Nobody does sssgh better than LH!

Best Kept Secrets - Sandra Brown
This classic example of sssgh from Sandra Brown finds her young heroine returning to a small Texas town to solve the mystery of who murdered her mother.  While hot on the trail of a murderer, she finds herself being wooed by two sexy guys.  Which one should she choose?  Probably the one that isn't her father.  IJS.

Slow Heat in Heaven - Sandra Brown
Another good example of a fine sssgh from Ms. Brown.  A twisted southern family tale, set in super sultry Louisiana.  With a  crazy hot hero named Cash Boudreaux, can there be any doubt that this one belongs on the list?

Now lest you think that every great sssgh is written either by Linda Howard or Sandra Brown, here are a few more titles that, while not reaching the level of sssgh greatness of those listed above, will surely provide you with an entertaining read.

One Summer - Karen Robards
Carnal Innocence - Nora Roberts
Lucky's Lady - Tami Hoag
The Sweetgum Tree - Katherine Allred
The Stone Flower Garden - Deborah Smith

So, what do you all think we should use as the rating symbol of the sssgh?  A sultry summer night, a gator, a mint julep?  I'm happy to entertain any and all suggestions.  oh and PLEASE leave your favorites titles as well.  As any proper southern belle would tell you, it's the polite thing to do...

Malt does more than Milton can...

I have always loved A. E. Housman, in fact when I was about 10 years old, I memorized this poem and forced everyone I know to listen to it.  Obviously, not much has changed...

Terence, this is stupid stuff

by

A.E. Housman

  "Terence, this is stupid stuff:

 You eat your victuals fast enough;

 There can't be much amiss, 'tis clear,

 To see the rate you drink your beer.

 But oh, good Lord, the verse you make,

 It gives a chap the belly-ache.

 The cow, the old cow, she is dead;

 It sleeps well, the horned head:

 We poor lads, 'tis our turn now

 To hear such tunes as killed the cow.

 Pretty friendship 'tis to rhyme

 Your friends to death before their time

 Moping melancholy mad:

 Come, pipe a tune to dance to, lad."

  Why, if 'tis dancing you would be

 There's brisker pipes than poetry.

 Say, for what were hop-yards meant,

 Or why was Burton built on Trent?

 Oh, many a peer of England brews

 Livelier liquor than the Muse,

 And malt does more than Milton can

 To justify God's ways to man.

 Ale, man, ale's the stuff to drink

 For fellows whom it hurts to think:

 Look into the pewter pot

 To see the world as the world's not.

 And faith, 'tis pleasant till 'tis past:

 The mischief is that 'twill not last.

 Oh I have been to Ludlow fair

 And left my necktie god knows where,

 And carried half-way home, or near,

 Pints and quarts of Ludlow beer:

 Then the world seemed none so bad,

 And I myself a sterling lad;

 And down in lovely muck I've lain,

 Happy till I woke again.

 Then I saw the morning sky:

 Heigho, the tale was all a lie;

 The world, it was the old world yet,

 I was I, my things were wet,

 And nothing now remained to do

 But begin the game anew.

  Therefore, since the world has still

 Much good, but much less good than ill,

 And while the sun and moon endure

 Luck's a chance, but trouble's sure,

 I'd face it as a wise man would,

 And train for ill and not for good.

 'Tis true, the stuff I bring for sale

 Is not so brisk a brew as ale:

 Out of a stem that scored the hand

 I wrung it in a weary land.

 But take it: if the smack is sour,

 The better for the embittered hour;

 It should do good to heart and head

 When your soul is in my soul's stead;

 And I will friend you, if I may,

 In the dark and cloudy day.

  There was a king reigned in the East:

 There, when kings will sit to feast,

 They get their fill before they think

 With poisoned meat and poisoned drink.

 He gathered all that springs to birth

 From the many-venomed earth;

 First a little, thence to more,

 He sampled all her killing store;

 And easy, smiling, seasoned sound,

 Sate the king when healths went round.

 They put arsenic in his meat

 And stared aghast to watch him eat;

 They poured strychnine in his cup

 And shook to see him drink it up:

 They shook, they stared as white's their shirt:

 Them it was their poison hurt

        - I tell the tale that I heard told.

 Mithridates, he died old.

God does not leave us comfortless...

Jane Kenyon's poems have always offered me comfort and perspective, here's hoping they might do the same for you... 

Let Evening Come

By

Jane Kenyon

Let the light of late afternoon

shine through chinks in the barn, moving   

up the bales as the sun moves down.

Let the cricket take up chafing   

as a woman takes up her needles   

and her yarn. Let evening come.

Let dew collect on the hoe abandoned   

in long grass. Let the stars appear

and the moon disclose her silver horn.

Let the fox go back to its sandy den.   

Let the wind die down. Let the shed   

go black inside. Let evening come.

To the bottle in the ditch, to the scoop   

in the oats, to air in the lung   

let evening come.

Let it come, as it will, and don’t   

be afraid. God does not leave us   

comfortless, so let evening come.

Thoughts that breathe and words that burn...

Poetry is thoughts that breathe, and words that burn.

Thomas Gray

Hello my lovelies! How cool is it that we take a whole month to celebrate poetry? Very cool, in my opinion. I have said before that I may be the last person who actually buys and reads poetry, but I hope I'm not. There is something truly special about discovering a poem that speaks to you. So, occasionally, throughout the month, I'm going to introduce you to some of my favorite poems and poets. I suspect no one will read this, but it will give me a chance to revisit some amazing poems, so I'm OK with that. If you do stumble onto something you enjoy, that's just icing on the cake!

Today's poet is Theodore Roethke.  

I Knew a Woman

I knew a woman, lovely in her bones,
When small birds sighed, she would sigh back at them;
Ah, when she moved, she moved more ways than one:
The shapes a bright container can contain!
Of her choice virtues only gods should speak,
Or English poets who grew up on Greek
(I'd have them sing in chorus, cheek to cheek.)

How well her wishes went! She stroked my chin,
She taught me Turn, and Counter-turn, and stand;
She taught me Touch, that undulant white skin:
I nibbled meekly from her proffered hand;
She was the sickle; I, poor I, the rake,
Coming behind her for her pretty sake
(But what prodigious mowing did we make.)

Love likes a gander, and adores a goose:
Her full lips pursed, the errant note to seize;
She played it quick, she played it light and loose;
My eyes, they dazzled at her flowing knees;
Her several parts could keep a pure repose,
Or one hip quiver with a mobile nose
(She moved in circles, and those circles moved.)

Let seed be grass, and grass turn into hay:
I'm martyr to a motion not my own;
What's freedom for? To know eternity.
I swear she cast a shadow white as stone.
But who would count eternity in days?
These old bones live to learn her wanton ways:
(I measure time by how a body sways.)

Roethke was offered $75 dollars to allow the above poem to be published by Harper's Bazaar, his response is below:

Reply To a Lady Editor


           If the Poem (beginning "I knew a woman, lovely in her bones")
           in The London Times Literary Supplement 
           has not appeared here, we offer you $75 for it.
           Could you wire us collect your answer?
                                Sincerely yours,
                                Alice S. Morris
                                Literary Editor, Harper's Bazaar

Sweet Alice S. Morris, I am pleased, of course,
You take the Times Supplement, and read its verse,
And know that True Love is more than a Life-Forse
- And so like my poem called Poem.

Dan Cupid, I tell you's a braw laddie-buck;
A visit from him is a piece of pure luck,
And should he arrive, why just lean yourself back
- And recite him my poem called Poem.

O print it, my dear, do publish it, yes,
That ladies their true natures never supress,
When they come, dazely, to the pretty pass
- Of acting my poem called Poem.

My darling, my dearest, most-honest-alive,
Just send me along that sweet seventy-five;
I'll continue to think on the nature of love,
- As I dance to my poem called Poem.

Big Sky, Big Book...

In my ongoing quest to read pretty much every western romance ever written, I recently delved into Rosanne Bittner's epic tale of life and love on a wild Montana ranch, Wildest Dreams. This book is a reprint, Wildest Dreams was originally published in 1994, and that becomes clear once you get into the book. They really do not write books like this, at least not in the romance genre, anymore.  Wildest Dreams covers 560 pages and about 30 years in the life of Montana ranchers/pioneers, Luke and Lettie Fontaine. It's a big, sprawling piece of work, very much in keeping with the classic historical romances from the 70s, 80s and 90s. This is not your typical meet, fall in love, big misunderstanding, back in love type of book. You're going to have to live with this one for a while in order to get the full impact.

Probably because she knew that she had a ton of material to cover, Bittner drops you smack dab into Luke and Lettie's story. They meet on a wagon train headed west. Lettie and her well-to-do family are headed to Denver to open a store and Luke is fleeing his wealthy father's disdain to head to Montana and make his fortune in ranching. Not a lot of time is spent with the these two getting to know each other.  In fact, that is a weakness of sorts in the book. Before you know it, they meet, fall in love, and he convinces her and her family to let him marry her and take her into the wildly dangerous and unsettled Montana territory. The reader is told that one of the reasons that Lettie's family is so quick to accept Luke's interest in her is that Lettie was a victim of rape from some Confederate raiders during the Civil War and, as a result, has a two year old son. Her family believes that Luke cares for her and they see this as her chance to have a normal marriage and family life. This quick start was difficult because I never really got a feel for what attracted Luke and Lettie to each other.  It seemed that Lettie wanted Luke because he was handsome and strong and he was willing to accept her son. Luke, on the other hand, seemed to like the idea of heading into the unknown Montana wilderness with a woman by his side.  This jackrabbit start bothered me only until I got into the book, then I realized that Bittner wasn't necessarily telling the story of Luke and Lettie falling in love, but rather the story of them staying in love. This almost never happens anymore in the romance genre, so it took me a while to shift gears, settle in and enjoy the ride.

And a wild ride it is.

The book is divided into four parts and it does skip years in places. An incredible amount of stuff, both good and bad, happens to Luke and Lettie as they make their fortune in the wild Montana territory. This attempt to cover such a long time period does make parts of the book a bit choppy and sometimes it feels as if characters and happenings are being glossed over.  That said, overall, the story flows smoothly and the passage of time becomes less bumpy the further you go into the story. Because you share so much of their lives, you do really begin to feel that you know the main characters.  They are both strongly drawn and well-rounded. At times I worried that, Luke especially, was going to slip into a caricature of the strong western hero, but Bittner provides him with plenty of weaknesses and failings and that keeps him human and relatable. The strongest element of the book for me was the amazing growth and development of the two main characters. We watch as they go from young, innocent and fairly naive lovers to a couple truly tested by tragedy and heartache, and finally as they find their way back to each other emotionally and physically and emerge stronger and more in love than ever.

The tragic happenings in the book, while many, never feel over the top or cartoonish. The dangers inherent in this time period and this setting seem very real and appropriate as well as historically accurate. Children were kidnapped by indians, there was little law in the western territories and outlaws did run rampant, often threatening the lives and livelihoods of the settlers in these areas. People paid a price to forge a new land and Bittner reminds us, sometimes rather harshly, how steep that price could be.  Luke and Lettie's reactions to these tragedies felt very real to me. Very genuine. The way that they were alternately drawn closer then eventually ripped apart only to slowly and painstakingly realize that their love and family was worth working for, was a truly moving aspect of this story.

Wildest Dreams took me by surprise. It has been so long since I've read a romance novel with this level of breadth and depth, I struggled a bit with trying to just relax and enjoy it. After finishing the book and thinking about it for awhile, I realized that I'm out of practice when it comes to books of this sort. I really hope that reprinted titles like this one will rouse reader interest in longer, deeper, more developed romance novels. I would love to see writers allowed and even encouraged to produce genre works of this level because now that I've eased back into it, I want to read more like this.

Rosanne Bittner appears to be writing in the inspirational sub-genre these days, but here's hoping that these reprinted editions will do so well that she'll decide to return to western romance. As someone who has recently experienced a wide range of what that western romance has to offer, I can tell you her talent would be very welcome. Until then, I'll have to make due with glomming her backlist and waiting for her second re-release, Thunder on the Plains to come out in July.  I hope that some of you guys will decide to give this book a shot. I'd love to know what you think of it as well as if you like a longer, more involved romance.  Maybe I'm the only one that still misses this kind of epic story, publishers certainly seem to think so.

It's like Little House with Sex!

For the last couple of months, in an attempt to escape the less than stellar european historicals that I keep picking up, I switched my focus to western romance. I've read well over 60+ and I've definitely found some favorites, but today I wanted to take a moment to spread the gospel of Garlock.  Dorothy Garlock that is.

I've always been aware of Dorothy Garlock. She has been writing for a zillion years, I had enjoyed some of her work when I was younger. has a ton of books and a very loyal fan base. Lately it seems that she has sort of fallen out of favor, but thanks to her books being released for Kindle, I stumbled onto them and after I started reading them again, I was hooked! Now Dorothy writes in several different sub genres of romance. She does western/cowboy stories, Americana/farmer stories, frontiersman/trapper books and her latest books seem to all be set between the 1920s and 1940s in prototypical American small towns.

There is a line in one of my favorite Amy Winehouse songs that goes "what kind of fuckery is this.." and I admit that line ran through my head continuously as I read Garlock's book, Homeplace. Homeplace tells the story of Ana, a 26 year old widow who goes to the aid of her 17 year old stepdaughter, after the girl has run off and married a farmer. Her stepdaughter is pregnant and later dies while giving birth. Ana stays on to take care of the child and try and protect him from all of the bat shit crazy people who live in this small midwestern farming community. She eventually marries her son in law and that is one of the more normal aspects to the story. This book has it all. It's almost gothic in tone. There is madness, incest, murder, and enough illicit doings to make Rosemary Rogers blush! Needless to say, I was hooked!

I immediately glommed DG's considerable backlist and found tale after tale of dark, twisty goodness. Her books don't shy away from the grittiness that was inherent in the 18th and 19th century American west. Her characters get dirty, they spend a good bit of time figuring out ways to bathe, and I appreciated her addressing what is undoubtedly, a realistic aspect of life at the time. The sex is earthy and abundant. She spends a lot of time talking about food (which I love) and she even includes recipes for some of the more obscure dishes. While trying to analyze what appealed to me about Garlock's work, I suddenly realized that they were like the Little House series for adults.  Many of the same elements that I adored in the Little House books when I was 10, I found in the Garlock books. An authentic portrayal of the challenges of life during that period. Talk of covered wagons, cooking over camp fires, moving west to find land, the difficulties of farming or settling in unsettled areas, all of these made the Little House books fascinating to me. I got all of that, plus romance, sex and violent action in the Garlock books.  It was sort of a dream come true!

Now, before you run out to your local library and grab all the Garlock books off the shelf, be warned, her books are NOT AT ALL politically correct. Women have a pretty tough row to hoe in these books. This is undoubtedly historically accurate, but sometimes difficult to read. The books that she writes set around the Civil War feature stereotypical African-American characters that will definitely make you do some heavy duty eye-rolling. That said, African Americans tend to be portrayed positively in her work, as do Native Americans. Her heroes are men's men and tend to run from the slightly chauvinistic to the cave man type. With the occasional wince, I managed to overlook all of those drawbacks and enjoy the stories.

So, if you loved the Little House books as a kid, but always wondered how Caroline and Charles Ingalls managed to have so many kids when they were traveling in a covered wagon or sharing a one room farm house, if you've always wondered how do I make a decent biscuit or hoecake while fending off an overly amorous fur trapper, if you've ever asked yourself what really goes on inside a teepee, you'll probably enjoy Dorothy Garlock's books. 

In which I learn to trust Jo Goodman...

I have read Jo Goodman's novels for many years. She is absolutely one of my top 5 favorite romance writers.  JG's books have everything one could wish for in a quality romance. Her writing is head and shoulders above 90% of the genre.  Having read over 30 of her books, I cannot say there is one that I didn't enjoy. Perhaps the best dialogue I've ever read in a romance novel can be found in her wonderful book, If His Kiss is Wicked.  She is one of the few writers left on my ever-shrinking auto-buy list.  All of the above is my long-winded way of saying that I like this woman and her books.  That said, my reaction to the publication of her latest, A Place Called Home reminds me that while I adore her, I obviously don't trust her.

Why wouldn't I trust a writer who has so consistently delivered such amazing results over the years? I never fail to start a JG book without thinking to myself, this is the one I'm not going to like.  I won't be able to enjoy this, even though it is so well-written, because I am going to HATE the heroine! Yep.  I consistently start out hating her heroines. While they are almost always, witty, intelligent and clever women, they also appear to be cold, calculating and snarky. Of course, because Goodman is a master of the complex and angsty romance, there are always reasons for her heroines apparent indifference and rudeness.  JG's latest, A Place Called Home, started much the same way; I hated the heroine.  Now, I thought this one might be different because it is her only contemporary romance, thus far.  Turns out that it did not matter a bit, I still started out hating the heroine!

A Place Called Home opens with Mitchell Baker and Thea Wyndham arguing over how to care for their dead friends children. They have been named co-guardians and they need to come to terms on who the children will live with and how they will share responsibilities.  Mitch proposes a shared custody and Thea declines. Grudgingly, Mitch agrees to assume primary custody and Thea agrees to visitation. My thinking at this point was basically, Mitch is sweet and Thea is a major bitch.  She not only won't share responsibility for her friend's children, she is snarky, sarcastic and seemingly pretty cold about the whole affair. Turns out that their friends have tried to push these two together in the past and it didn't work.  Thea would like to avoid Mitch at all costs, mainly because she senses that she could care for him a lot if she isn't very careful.  Mitch assumes custody of the three kids and sets about trying to change his lifestyle to accommodate them. As with all Goodman heroes, Mitch is wonderful. Oh he has all the normal manly quirks, but overall he is a warm, witty, smart and sexy guy.  As they are thrown together because of the kids, the chemistry between Mitch and Thea starts to heat up and we slowly begin to get a sense of what lies beneath these two characters.

As with all Goodman books, the storyline unfolds incrementally and we eventually learn why Thea is the way she is.  This is where Goodman excels. Her characters are incredibly layered.  As she carefully puts them in situations and relationships that challenge them, they are forced to peel back their outer layers and show an amazing amount of vulnerability beneath.  Goodman characters are always flawed.  Sometimes in a big, big way.  It is the way that they overcome those flaws and deal with the deep and often terribly disturbing causes of them, that makes a Goodman book special. And that is why I ended up not only liking, but respecting Thea. Because Goodman heroines may start out as cold, snarky and bitchy, but there is always a reason that they are the way they are. It is never about some sort of coy flirtation or spoiled princessy behavior. These chicks have often been through the emotional wringer and the triumph of a Jo Goodman novel lies in the way that they deal with their issues and ultimately, overcome them.

Even though it is her first contemporary, you'll find many of Goodman's traditional strengths on display in A Place Called Home.  Her amazing ear for sharp and snappy dialogue, her layered and intelligent characters, the ability to let her plots unfold at a careful, even pace. I am almost positive that, in the hands of a lesser talent, I would not have liked this story half as much. A Place Called Home is a warm and charming book about two people who prove themselves to be better than they thought they could be and find themselves sharing a wonderful relationship, both romantically and as part of a large, ready-made family. I happily recommend it to anyone looking for a contemporary romance with just a bit more depth than usual.  And from now on, I promise to trust Jo Goodman, no matter what I think when I am 20 pages into her next book.

ps.  If you haven't read Goodman, be sure and pick up If His Kiss is Wicked and/or The Price of Desire to fully experience the glory that is a Goodman historical romance!  She is a master of the deep, dark, sexy, meaty, angsty romance!  Trust me on this...