inthelouvre.org » This One is About Books

This One is About Books

Oct

'07

I’ve recently started reading a series of books - The Blackdagger Brotherhood paranormal romance novels by J.R. Ward - and I’ve fallen for them. Hard. It came at a complete surprise.

The only thing remotely close to paranormal romance that I’ve read and enjoyed has been the Anne Rice vampire books. The only thing I found to be romantic about them was my fannish, ridiculous crush on Marius, the Roman vampire who painted and collected great works of art. In the same way, my favorite character in the Blackdagger Brotherhood books instantly was Darius (weird that they rhyme?) who also styled his home with beautiful artwork and ancient artifacts.

In any case, I have tried romance novels before - even a historical romance novel here and there - but they never appealed to me. First of all, the ones I read weren’t well written at all. They were sort of “light” and “airy,” sort of how you’d feel “beach reads” would be. There’s nothing deep or interesting in them, and the writing style is very straight forward and to the point. No need for fancy lines of description, but at the same time, any time there is fancy description, it’s flowery. I don’t like reading flowery writing. Using the same word over and over again is fine with me, because I don’t need to read ten different ways to say “the sun shone brightly” on the same page.

I’d never really tried paranormal romance, because having denied historical and contemporary romance, I figured that paranormal romance wouldn’t really do it for me. I’m not really into werewolves or magical kings or time travel, and most people’s definition of “vampire” doesn’t do it for me. I am loyal to Anne Rice’s illustration of a vampire, even sometimes Bram Stoker’s (though too dramatic, I think), so I don’t want to read about a weak scrawny thing with long black hair and no physiological or personality traits different from the other vampires he hangs out with, who just wants to bite women and get laid.

However, these J.R. Ward books are wonderful. I’ve found them to be enthralling, not just because of the beautiful writing, but also because of the story. Each book focuses on a different brother in the Brotherhood, but they never ignore the other brothers who aren’t directl involved in that relationship, and in every case (so far), love saves them. They aren’t just “doing it.” It’s intense and fictionalized and completely overwhelming, and I really love the plotline. I love the lore and legend that comes with the Brotherhood and the heirarchy in J.R. Ward’s vampire world.

Another reason I’m really into these books right now is because, as I’ve mentioned, the writing style. Earlier today I realized that reading these books has made me want to become a better writer. This author, to me, is a master of that “show, don’t tell” way of describing things, something I wish to hell I could do successfully. I was telling Richard last night about a sequence in the text - instead of saying “the character couldn’t see very well,” she instead mentioned that he picked up his cane and felt the carpets to determine which room he was in. That is so awesome. I only wish I could be that talented with my words.

Has there ever been a book that you were hesitant to read at first, but which totally grabbed you by the end of it? And is there an author out there who makes you want to become a better writer, or if you weren’t born with the interest, who makes you want to dive deep into the world of literature and become a writer?

3 people found this entry interesting.

Hev says:

I know what you mean, Michelle. I have read those books also. I didn’t think that they were going to be any good, but they were really good. Though in my opinion, they didn’t quite match Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles but they were awfully close. I love how J.R. Ward changed how most authors use the standard version of vampires. The vampire hunters are an interesting twist also. The way that J.R. Ward wove everything together made the book quite interesting and very hard to put down.

I am looking forward to any more that Mr. Ward puts out in this series.

Oct

'07

Fatima says:

I’ve missed you too Michelle! And That’s Amore too I’m so sorry for not playing lately… It’s just that every time I sit down and start to play, something comes up - my groupmates text/IM me about our projects or someone asks me to run errands. ack. I will be back soon though! We have a long weekend coming up and I’ll be catching up with the net.