I just finished writing Year of the Dog ! It had a massive plot hole that I had to fix which turned out to be more work than I expected. Here’s a snippet: “Hey, Auntie Nell.” He wrapped his arms around her, bussing her on the cheek and breathing in pikake flowers and shortbread cookies. And suddenly he was nine years old again, and her solid presence had made his chaotic world stable once more. “What are you doing here?” He usually took her to dinner on Wednesday nights, but today was Tuesday. The edges of her smile faltered a little before brightening right back up again. “What, I can’t visit my nephew?” She angled around him to enter his home. “Is this your new house? Looks lovely.” Which was a blatant lie, because the fixer-upper was barely livable, much less acceptable to a neat-freak like his aunt. She also left four matching pink and purple floral suitcases on the stoop behind her. Only then did Ashwin notice the cab driver standing slightly to the side of the walkway. “Can ...
Captain’s Log, Stardate 05.02.2008
The Black Diamond by Jennie Gallant
From the back cover:
WAS THE BLACK DIAMOND CURSED—OR WAS THERE ANOTHER EVIL AT PALIN PARK?
Eight months earlier, Sylvia Thompson’s sister had been hired by the wealthy Palin family to care for their young son. Then, suddenly, she had vanished. Disguised as the new nurse, Sylvia began living at Palin Park, in Devon, in hopes of discovering the truth behind her sister’s incredible disappearance.
All at once, Sylvia found herself trapped in a deadly web of conspiracy, extortion and murder, all somehow linked to the famous Black Diamond—a ring that traced its history back to Lucrezia Borgia.
Too late, Sylvia realized that she loved Rober Palin with a passion she had never dreamed possible. Too late, she realized she would be the next to wear THE BLACK DIAMOND.
Camy here:
Melodramatic back cover copy aside, this is an entertaining novel. Set in Victorian England, I think (I’m not a history buff—it opens with the heroine taking a ride on a train for the first time). It has elements of a gothic novel, with the narrative in first person.
The writing is clever and entertaining. Jennie Gallant is a pseudonym for Regency romance and contemporary romantic mystery writer Joan Smith (Imprudent Lady (love this book!), Murder Comes to Mind, among many others). I love her wit and skill at subtext in dialogue.
There is a point near the end where I thought the heroine’s reasoning was faulty, but she gets back on track eventually and, of course, there is a happy ending. I literally couldn’t stop reading once I started this book.
This is a wonderful novel for gothic romance fans or Victorian historical romance fans who don’t like excessive sex. The story is not a Christian romance, but it is clean and entertaining, a quick read that’s perfect for a rainy, thundering day.
(This book is out of print, but you can now get it as an ebook from the publisher, Belgrave House, or from Fictionwise.com.)
The Black Diamond by Jennie Gallant
From the back cover:
WAS THE BLACK DIAMOND CURSED—OR WAS THERE ANOTHER EVIL AT PALIN PARK?
Eight months earlier, Sylvia Thompson’s sister had been hired by the wealthy Palin family to care for their young son. Then, suddenly, she had vanished. Disguised as the new nurse, Sylvia began living at Palin Park, in Devon, in hopes of discovering the truth behind her sister’s incredible disappearance.
All at once, Sylvia found herself trapped in a deadly web of conspiracy, extortion and murder, all somehow linked to the famous Black Diamond—a ring that traced its history back to Lucrezia Borgia.
Too late, Sylvia realized that she loved Rober Palin with a passion she had never dreamed possible. Too late, she realized she would be the next to wear THE BLACK DIAMOND.
Camy here:
Melodramatic back cover copy aside, this is an entertaining novel. Set in Victorian England, I think (I’m not a history buff—it opens with the heroine taking a ride on a train for the first time). It has elements of a gothic novel, with the narrative in first person.
The writing is clever and entertaining. Jennie Gallant is a pseudonym for Regency romance and contemporary romantic mystery writer Joan Smith (Imprudent Lady (love this book!), Murder Comes to Mind, among many others). I love her wit and skill at subtext in dialogue.
There is a point near the end where I thought the heroine’s reasoning was faulty, but she gets back on track eventually and, of course, there is a happy ending. I literally couldn’t stop reading once I started this book.
This is a wonderful novel for gothic romance fans or Victorian historical romance fans who don’t like excessive sex. The story is not a Christian romance, but it is clean and entertaining, a quick read that’s perfect for a rainy, thundering day.
(This book is out of print, but you can now get it as an ebook from the publisher, Belgrave House, or from Fictionwise.com.)
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