sovay | One plays the violin and sleeps inside a fridge

Current Music: Tom Waits, "Murder in the Red Barn"

One plays the violin and sleeps inside a fridge

And today, Ajit Pai and the FCC burnt net neutrality. I guess this is one of the nights we sit up in the hills and plan how to hit the Seleucids so hard, Alexander's teeth will hurt. (Also he'll be confused, since his relations with the Jews were cordial enough to rate a touching if fabulous scene in Josephus and an equally positive appearance in Lights (1984), but you can't go around leaving empires where people live and expect not to get socked sooner or later.)

Here are some whiplashily different things.

1. Courtesy of

brigdh: I had of course encountered "absquatulate" in the works of Barbara Hambly, but I had never heard of "dumbfungled" or "goshbustified" and I laughed like a loon.

2. I was asked on Facebook if I knew any weird or spooky traditions associated specifically with Hanukkah. I did not, and said that I associate the tradition of ghost stories around this time of year almost strictly with British Christmas, but I could offer a literary option: Eric Kimmel's Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins (1989), an original tale of Hershel of Ostropol which has so successfully passed into folklore that I have heard it retold in the wild. (I put it into a poem myself.) I wondered if it had antecedents in two stories in Isaac Bashevis Singer's Zlateh the Goat and Other Stories (1966) in which demons visit households on Hanukkah—frighteningly but harmlessly in "Grandmother's Tale," with the real possibility of death and destruction in "The Devil's Trick"—but I just found this recent interview with Kimmel and the influence he cites is Dickens. I guess ghost stories for Christmas were relevant after all. I am honestly delighted.

3. Courtesy of David Schraub: Courtney Milan's #metoo story. It has since made the Washington Post. Since it becomes very clear in the course of her post that romance novels are the career she adopted after she was traumatized out of her previous profession, I figured the strongest gesture of support I could make was to buy one. I remember either

phi or

skygiants saying something that made Unraveled (2011) sound attractive to me, so that's where I'm starting.

ETA: I am sneezing my face off and going to bed.

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re Courtney Milan, it's probably hard to go wrong anywhere in her back catalogue (I haven't read much of it, because I'm not into historical romances), but if you're at all interested in contemporaries, I thought Trade Me (2015) was brilliant.

but if you're at all interested in contemporaries, I thought Trade Me (2015) was brilliant.

I am often less interested in contemporary fiction than historical in general, but since I don't know what my mileage with Courtney Milan is going to be, I will keep it in mind! What did you like so much about it?

For me, the great things about Trade Me were as follows:

- I actually believed in the romance which, given how much I like romance novels, happens less often than you'd think
- Like the best contemporary fiction, it says something interesting about the times in which it is set, in this case about technology companies and promotion, immigration, modern families, etc.
- Billionaire romances were a bit of a trend at the time and Milan took that trope and made something that felt real, as well as having some interesting commentary on race and class. I remember a Goodreads review accused Milan of making the heroine a woman of Asian descent out of some terrible political agenda, which as far as I'm concerned is only points in Milan's favour, because I get thoroughly sick of how white romance novels are at times.

There's more I liked but I read it a year ago so can't remember the finer details now.

Have you read Hold Me yet? I liked it even better than Trade Me, for featuring a science nerd who doesn't have the usual science nerd background.

I have not! I've read hardly any fiction that wasn't graphic novels or terrible tie in novels this year, so I've got a huge backlog of romance waiting for me on my tablet. I've been meaning to get around to it, though.

I liked it even better than Trade Me, for featuring a science nerd who doesn't have the usual science nerd background.

See, that sort of thing appeals to me!

I also enjoyed Hold Me more than Trade Me (which I liked!). It's the first You've Got Mail plot I've read and actually believed in. You don't need to read Trade Me first.

I really loved Trade Me even though I usually avoid contemporaries! The only one of Milan's back catalog that I don't recommend is Talk Sweetly To Me, because it snapped my willing suspension of disbelief entirely past its breaking point. The Turner series (Unveiled, Unclaimed, Unravelled) are my favorites though!

I haven't tried the Turner series yet. All I've read of her work is some of the Cyclone series and Brothers Sinister (of which my favourite was The Countess Conspiracy).

The only one of Milan's back catalog that I don't recommend is Talk Sweetly To Me, because it snapped my willing suspension of disbelief entirely past its breaking point.

Check. For character reasons, or historical ones, or just plot improbability?

The Turner series (Unveiled, Unclaimed, Unravelled) are my favorites though!

I did remember you recommending them! I have started at the wrong end of the series, but will let you know what I think!

The Turner books are terrific.

Oh, Courtney Milan is fantastic! Unraveled is probably my least favourite book of hers, I'd have to say - from memory, it was the book after that where she went the self-publishing route, because she was tired of publishers telling her that she couldn't have a hero who was a virgin (he wound up as the hero of the next book), or who had mental health issues, or any of the other fun things she has been doing since then.

Her Brothers Sinister series is probably my favourite - late Victorian, which she enjoys as an era because she views it as having handy analogies to our time, in terms of sudden changes in available technology and social issues struggling to keep up.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy her, and if you enjoy Unravelled, I'd venture to say that you'll enjoy her later works even more. Her YA series is also a heap of fun.

Oh, Courtney Milan is fantastic!

People keep telling me this!

from memory, it was the book after that where she went the self-publishing route, because she was tired of publishers telling her that she couldn't have a hero who was a virgin (he wound up as the hero of the next book), or who had mental health issues, or any of the other fun things she has been doing since then.

The paperback edition hails from CreateSpace, so I think it must have been self-published. I don't know where it falls in her decision to do so, though.

Her Brothers Sinister series is probably my favourite - late Victorian, which she enjoys as an era because she views it as having handy analogies to our time, in terms of sudden changes in available technology and social issues struggling to keep up.

Data point duly noted.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy her, and if you enjoy Unravelled, I'd venture to say that you'll enjoy her later works even more. Her YA series is also a heap of fun.

Thank you! (I didn't even know she wrote YA.) I read almost no romance as a genre, so this is something of an experiment.

I meant New Adult romance, not YA - sorry! It's the Cyclone series mentioned below.

Also, I got her Un-books mixed up. I LOVE Unravelled, and yes, it was her first self-published one. It's Unveiled that I can take or leave.

I'll be interested to see what you make of Milan, coming to it as a non-romance reader. For me, one thing that is really fun is the way she subverts the tropes to make them more feminist, and I'm not sure how obvious that will be to someone who hasn't met those tropes in the wild...

And since we are all gushing about Milan on this thread, here's my two cents on why she is probably my favourite romance author. First, she has a real gift for comedy, but also for underlying emotional punch. Second, her work is overtly feminist, and her heroines are not afraid to be clever (or sciencey - Milan's science background shines through in a lot of her choices of plot, I think). And third, Milan is consciously inclusive in her writing – she has women of colour, trans heroines, bi and gay heroes - and this is always just part of their emotional landscape rather than The Big Issue That They Must Overcome, which I really like.

My top Milan picks would be The Suffragette Scandal (historical, with a suffragette journalist heroine, because I adore the blackmail / counter blackmail scene), Hold Me (contemporary new adult with a trans heroine who writes a blog I am desperate to read, because she gets the world of scientific research horrifyingly right, but also fixes part of it), and The Pursuit Of (a novella in Hamilton's Battalion, with a gay, mixed-race couple, and a hysterically funny subplot about cheese). But honestly, it's very hard to go wrong with her work.

OK, I shall stop procrastinating my baking and babbling endlessly on your blog now...

And third, Milan is consciously inclusive in her writing – she has women of colour, trans heroines, bi and gay heroes - and this is always just part of their emotional landscape rather than The Big Issue That They Must Overcome, which I really like.

Awesome. That does appeal to me.

OK, I shall stop procrastinating my baking and babbling endlessly on your blog now...

You should definitely bake if you were planning to, but you don't have to stop talking about books you like!

IIRC, 'absquatulate' also gets into Wells's 'History of Mr Polly' which is an old, old favourite of mine.

IIRC, 'absquatulate' also gets into Wells's 'History of Mr Polly' which is an old, old favourite of mine.

Excellent!

I'd rec the Brother's Sinister series by Milan, I read the Un--- series first and wasn't that impressed but ADORED most of the more recent self-pubbed one. I think it starts with The Governess Affair. The Heiress Effect is my favourite.

I'd rec the Brother's Sinister series by Milan

I'm seeing a lot of votes for this one. That seems a good sign.

The Heiress Effect is my favourite.

So noted! May I ask why?

The heroine spends most of the book deliberately driving off every man she meets, while pretending she's just really awful, which is often very funny (she's under a lot of pressure to marry, and for plot reasons cannot). I liked her chemistry with the hero. There are several excellent side plots, including one about the trashy novels the heroine is reading that I found really moving.

Yes I arrived to fumigate your garret for you and enthusiastically rec the Brothers Sinister series. It is historical fiction that doesn't make me want to stab myself in the frenulum.

It is historical fiction that doesn't make me want to stab myself in the frenulum.

That is an excellent recommendation.

Janni has a Hanukkah ghost story out somewhere -- one of the Maccabees haunting a boy with divorced parents. I forget the name of the anthology.

Janni has a Hanukkah ghost story out somewhere -- one of the Maccabees haunting a boy with divorced parents. I forget the name of the anthology.

That's really cool. I'd love to read it.

Lessee, here's the biblio:

"Hanukkah Light," Published in Ghosts and Golems, edited by Malka Penn, published by the Jewish Publication Society.

Book is out of stock on Amazon, and the story's not available in the Google Books preview. I'll have to ask her tonight if there's a soft copy available.

"Hanukkah Light," Published in Ghosts and Golems, edited by Malka Penn, published by the Jewish Publication Society.

I've never heard of that collection. I feel I really should have. Thank you for the pointer no matter what.

I'll have to ask her tonight if there's a soft copy available.

I really appreciate it.

Your first paragraph made me so happy. Not the news, of course, but I'd heard that already. But the rest of it. Confused Alexander just cracked me up.
P.

But the rest of it. Confused Alexander just cracked me up.

Thank you!

Edited 2017-12-15 19:21 (UTC)

I love Courtney Milan! Her books, even the self-published ones, do follow romance genre conventions, which means there are certain tropes which may or may not appeal to you. Just fyi. I've fairly recently become a fan of the romance genre myself, but I know there are certain things about it that I only tolerate grudgingly and other people – quite fairly! – never adjust to.

I'll throw in another vote for her Brothers Sinister series (The Governess Affair, the first in the series, is a short novella and has a really interesting plot about the heroine recovering from rape – the way the sex scene with the hero was handled in particular impressed me. I also really liked The Heiress Effect, in which the heroine has a younger sister suffering from epilepsy and horrifying medical treatments of the 1800s are a major part of the plot. The sister herself gets a very cute subplot romance with an Indian law student. The Suffragette Scandal, starring a heroine who runs a feminist newspaper and a hero who's a conman was also very good). But I want to also mention Milan's newest series, The Worth Saga. There's only one book out yet (plus a short, fairly disconnected novella), but it appears that a major plot, other than the romances, is going to be the Opium Wars and a criticism of British Imperialism, in a historical AU in which things go a bit better for the Chinese. I've been really excited for her to write more books in this series, so I can see where she goes with such a neat idea.

Just fyi. I've fairly recently become a fan of the romance genre myself, but I know there are certain things about it that I only tolerate grudgingly and other people – quite fairly! – never adjust to.

I appreciate the warning. I don't know what will or won't work for me, but I'm seeing a lot of people mention that they believe the relationships between her principals rather than just accepting them for the sake of the plot, and that can go a long way with me. Much of my problem with romance in narratives can be described with the shorthand "obligatory het couple." (Does Milan write non-het romance?)

I'll throw in another vote for her Brothers Sinister series (The Governess Affair, the first in the series, is a short novella and has a really interesting plot about the heroine recovering from rape – the way the sex scene with the hero was handled in particular impressed me.

Mental note made. The real problem, if I like her writing, may be the availability of her books in print rather than pixels. I spend a lot of time on screens and really prefer not to do my reading off them.

but it appears that a major plot, other than the romances, is going to be the Opium Wars and a criticism of British Imperialism, in a historical AU in which things go a bit better for the Chinese.

And that immediately gets my attention: I can't think of a lot of even non-AU fiction that deals with the Opium Wars beyond Laurence Yep and Amitav Ghosh. How are the extant books so far?

Does Milan write non-het romance?
'The Suffragette Scandal' has a very sweet f/f couple in a subplot. In 'Hold Me', her second contemporary, the heroine is a transwoman (I believe the hero additionally is bisexual, but I might be misremembering).

The real problem, if I like her writing, may be the availability of her books in print rather than pixels. I spend a lot of time on screens and really prefer not to do my reading off them.
Ah, yes. That can be a problem with romance in general; the genre has hugely exploded into the ebook market (possibly because more people are willing to read them without embarrassing covers, possibly become many romance fans easily go through a dozen or more books a month, and the lower price point of ebooks has enabled that), and lots of people aren't bothering to put out physical copies anymore.

How are the extant books so far?
It was quite good, though not my favorite of hers. It stars a heroine who once was rich and noble, but after her father and older brother were accused of treason (the father committed suicide, the brother was transported to Australia as a criminal), she's forced to move to a poor neighborhood, work for a living, and raise her younger siblings by herself. The hero is her former childhood friend, who was the one who testified at the trial to prove the treason. The heroine believes her family was innocent and the hero lied, but we eventually find out that the treason did in fact happen, and involved the father and brother aiding the Chinese for moral reasons; the hero and heroine come to agree with their choices. However, that part of the plot is pretty minor and is mostly just setting up the dominos for future books rather than playing a major part in this one itself.

Her story in Hamilton's Battalion (http://www.courtneymilan.com/hamiltonsbattalion.php) is interracial historical m/m.

Her story in Hamilton's Battalion is interracial historical m/m.

17catherines mentioned that as well! Also a subplot about cheese. I look forward.

Oh good, of all the Milans, Unravelled is the one I would be most likely to rec to you, specifically.

Oh good, of all the Milans, Unravelled is the one I would be most likely to rec to you, specifically.

Awesome! Did you tell me this previously?

I just went back to check my gmail and it doesn't look like it, but it's possible we had a vocal conversation about it sometime that I have forgotten!

Also, you should read K.J. Charles. All the K.J. Charles you can find. Her f/f is weaksauce compared to her m/m. but her m/m is inclusive and goes all the places and occasionally saunters into coffee toffee chip instead of vanilla, and I am in short JEALOUS, but yes. And if you do want to approach Milan or K.J. Charles digitally, you can borrow from me through the Kindle app. As N says, "It's free because we own it."

Also, you should read K.J. Charles. All the K.J. Charles you can find.

I found Spectred Isle (2017) earlier this year and loved it! That's good to know about her f/f, since I was planning to follow the Green Man series into Last Couple in Hell whenever it comes out, but also good to know about the rest of her m/m, since it means I can read something else while I'm waiting. Any particular favorites?

I unfortunately do not have a Kindle and therefore cannot borrow e-books, but I really appreciate the offer.

Yeah, the notion that she is diverging from solid m/m gave me a sad little But But But But Why face, but I will still preorder the book because I want to know where the universe goes. Spectred Isle is my favorite of hers in a while and that's saying something, because she's currently the only author who gets my preorder money.

Free samples are here http://kjcharleswriter.com/free-reads/ but I think you should start with the Magpie Lord/Charm of Magpies series, PARTICULARLY 'A Queer Trade' even though it's out of order, and then if you enjoy confectionery with light bondage in some of the books but no supernatural elements, move on to Society of Gentlemen which is 4 books of m/m sex and class warfare. Never hurt anybody. I enjoy that she consciously rings some of the Heyer tropes BUT ALSO does not fall into cod-Regency. Just cods of other kinds.

Spectred Isle is my favorite of hers in a while and that's saying something, because she's currently the only author who gets my preorder money.

I had never heard of her, because I live under a rock, before Spectred Isle turned up in one of

hawkwing_lb's Tor.com reviews and I impulse-ordered it through the local independent bookstore and was very pleasantly surprised.

kindkit has also said favorable things, especially about Think of England, A Seditious Affair, and An Unseen Attration.

but I think you should start with the Magpie Lord/Charm of Magpies series, PARTICULARLY 'A Queer Trade' even though it's out of order, and then if you enjoy confectionery with light bondage in some of the books but no supernatural elements, move on to Society of Gentlemen which is 4 books of m/m sex and class warfare.

I think I can live with that.

Any of the free stuff you particularly recommend, or just all of it?

Eh, I'd skip Remnant actually because the Whyborne and Griffin universe is so involved at this point and, subjectively, I only enjoy Hawke's Hexmaker series and find W&G super draggy and dry. (Although I do enjoy Charles' Simon Feximal and he crops up in... I think it was Spectred Isle actually but I'm doing a credit card reconciliation right now and I shed a REAL TEAR to learn they had gone to the Front because that probably means No More Of Those People)

And I have not read the Christmas coda to Society of Gentlemen because I hate subscribing to things. Also, KJ Charles is best with a little magic mixed in.

(Although I do enjoy Charles' Simon Feximal and he crops up in... I think it was Spectred Isle actually but I'm doing a credit card reconciliation right now and I shed a REAL TEAR to learn they had gone to the Front because that probably means No More Of Those People)

It is Spectred Isle, and I am seriously considering tracking down The Secret Casebook of Simon Feximal just so I can read what they were like when alive.

In my recollection, though I read it two summers ago, they banish ghosts and have fraught interactions and eventually there is the passion of the cut sleeve, but with a lot of grudges to go around. It takes a long time for Robert and Simon to trust each other and also to LIKE each other, and they just don't have a lot of time for boning because ghosts. Demons too I think? It was a very, very plausible go at ghost-hunting and banishing.

It looks like there's been a paperback reissue in the last month -- it was a Samhain Press casualty initially -- but also you can use the digital files even if you don't have a Kindle, at read.amazon.com . I say this mostly because the digital is on sale right now for a third the price.

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One plays the violin and sleeps inside a fridge

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