Thread: MobileRead February 2013 Book Club Vote
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Old 01-23-2013, 05:17 PM   #55
Nyssa
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Elfwreck View Post
I've read Stardust and seen the movie. It's a romance. It has a fantasy-adventure setting, and it's not *only* a romance, unlike Harlequin or Mills & Boone stories where "boy meets girl; tensions ensue; everybody lives lustfully ever after" is the only thing going on. But the core plot is one of the classic romance tropes. (I don't want to go into detail and spoil it for those who'll be reading it soon.) If the romance were removed, the story would be impossible; the relationships are the driving force for the adventures.

Shards of Honor is a military SF story with a romance in its center. The story would be different without the romance, but not impossible. I'd call it "romantic science fiction" rather than "a science fiction romance" (which doesn't mean I think it's inappropriate for February's choice; I'm happy to have broad categories instead of narrow ones). I suspect that in a more restrained society--Victorian era England or US, perhaps--it would read more firmly as a "romance;" the parts are all there, but it's more subtle than modern romance-genre books expect.

Lolita, which, I haven't read, I understand to be a creepy psychological study about obsession rather than "romance." Again, though, I'm willing for "romance" to cover "all stories with strong elements of romantic or sexual relationships," even if they're not the classic "meet other person, overcome obstacles together, " style of story.

Love Story is a romance. It was hailed as an Epic Novel of Great Truths in the 70s; it's likely to come across as either a bit dated or wonderfully nostalgic now.

Outlander is on my do-not-read list; Gabaldon had some vile things to say about fanfiction... although she admits that she based one of her own characters on Dr. Who. Authors who insist it's illegal and immoral for me to be artistically inspired by their works are off my readlist.
Great post Elfwreck! Thank you. I think i'm at the point where I'll most likly read whichever selection wins, save Lolita. While I'm curious as to the quality of the work, I'm not sure I can get past the "pedophiliac obsession", which is the central theme of the story.

Besides Lolita, I'm actually least interested in Love Story. It sounds very... cliche.

My only reason for not voting for A Town Like Alice, is that it is quite expensive (and not public domain here in the US).

Quote:
Originally Posted by tilia View Post
Sorry if I confused you. I'm pretty sure the illustrated version is only available in paper.
No worries. Thanks again.

Last edited by Nyssa; 01-23-2013 at 07:26 PM. Reason: Calification & typos...
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