*Book
source ~ A review copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.
Title ~ Simon
Series ~ Le Beau Brothers, #2
Author ~ V.A. Dold
Publisher ~ Vickie Dold
Published ~ 1 July 2014
Genre ~ Paranormal | Romance
Pages ~ 204
My Rating ~ 3 bites
Wolf
shifter Simon Le Beau has spent fours years in the Marines and the cost to his
shifter side is tremendous. Denied the touch shifters need to stay healthy
mentally he has become stuck in his wolf form. If he can’t find a way to heal
he may never be able to shift to human again. And human he needs to be when he
meets his mate, Rose O’Leary. He has to get healthy because a shifter only has
one mate and he needs to convince Rose that she’s his. No matter how much he
wags his tail he’s pretty sure she won’t buy into it while he’s furry. To
complicate his life there appears to be an insane shifter after Rose. Get
healthy, convince Rose, stop an insane shifter. A checklist that’s completely
doable for a Marine.
While
the basic plot of this story is great and the characters are wonderful it does
have its flaws. The time Simon spends in the Marines is pure civilian fiction.
It’s obvious no research was done in regards to the subject, so the first two
chapters are, to be brutally honest, crap. To those unfamiliar with the
military, the Marines in particular, then you won’t notice the problems. Those
of us connected to the Marines in any way will find them painful to read.
Simon’s ability and the fact he’s a shifter with particular needs are the only
shining stars in this section.
Once
Simon gets home I breathed easier. Out of the Marines and back into civilian
life it becomes a story I can enjoy. It still has some flaws, but they are
bearable. The POVs change too abruptly and too often for a smooth read, but
it’s a minor problem. The story also moves very quickly with the characters
having little time to develop rich and deep personalities. Don’t get me wrong,
I love the characters, but they could have used a little extra love.
This
is book 2 in the series, but I had no sense that I was missing any plot points
or anything by not reading book 1 which was about Cade and Anna. I do want to
go back and read Cade because I’m
intrigued about his and Anna’s courtship and obstacles. So, all-in-all, I liked
the story after the first two chapters and definitely enjoyed the steamy bits.
The military part needs fixing, but the rest is decent. He's only active duty for the first two chapters.
ReplyDeleteOh and see now you have me curious how it was done wrong--the military stuff. That drives me crazy when a book isn't researched well. I just read one that was a nice read overall but she included a medical condition as a bit plot point and had it all wrong. Like the condition she described was an entirely different name than what she used. And these weren't unknown illnesses that it would be hard to research. So frustrating!
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean. Because I'm a Marine wife and mom when I see Marines in books I tend to cringe. Authors love to use them as their hero, but never stop to think about the culture of the Marine Corps. Unless they have done research or are connected to the Marines in some way they inevitably screw it up. The three worst offenses are not capitalizing Marine, calling them an ex-Marine and calling them soldiers. It is beyond insulting to a Marine. And it is so very frustrating!
DeleteOh the ex-Marine drives me batty. I've actually had the capitalization discussion with some authors/readers before on if it had to be or not and what we found was it didn't technically have to be capitalized according to the "rules" for things like that but that most found it disrespectful not to.
DeleteAnna and Cade, really? Sorry, that cracked me up.
DeleteThe wrong military info would have driven me nuts especially when there's no need. If the author can't be bothered to do the research, why should I be bothered to spend my time and/or money on the book?
Anna, I don't know who made those so-called 'rules' but Marine should always, ALWAYS be capped. So, technically yes it does need to be or risk insulting and alienating every Marine (or Marine relative, like me) who sees it not capped. A Marine considers it a title, a title that has been earned and deserves respect.
DeleteBea, I agree.
Oh my gosh Bea it was so bad!
DeleteFor the Marines bit it was one of the technical rules that apply across the board for everything. I wish I could remember exactly what it was but it included information on all branches of the armed forces, awards given like the Purple Heart, etc it was along the lines of an individual is a Marine but marines isn't always supposed to be capitalized depending on how it is used. I always capitalize myself and most in the group did but this was from a technical stand point not a respect one. It had been brought up in group because of a book that didn't capitalize any use of Marine. Not saying it's "right" or I agree with it though. Just what the ladies in the group found when looking into it.
It's "technical rules" like that one that piss off Marines and make every one of us who are connected to the Marines grind our teeth whenever we read a book that has Marines in it and Marine is not capitalized. I wish every editor/author/publisher/reviewer understood the importance of this point. Anything pertaining to the ocean is "marine" and anyone in the Marine Corps is a Marine. It is a title and Marines consider it a part of their name (& identity). In the words of my husband: "I am Ralph. I am a Marine. Marine is part of my name. I capitalize my name. Do they not capitalize their name?" I think this problem stems from the fact no other branch does this.
DeleteArmy=soldier
Navy=seaman or sailor
Air Force=airman
National Guard=guardsman
Marines=Marine
Everyone in the military is a service member.
On a final note: if the so-called sticklers for the "rules" is that set upon using that said "rule" then I challenge them to post a public note where a vast majority of Marines will see it explaining why THEY (these sticklers) feel, due to technicalities, that Marine does NOT need to be capped and henceforth in all publications they shall be marines. Yeah. See how well that goes over. It's this kind of shit that chaps my ass. Anyone who is around a Marine for 5 minutes would understand this. I think from now on any book I read that doesn't cap Marine will get a 1 star from me. Period. I'm tired of dealing with people who do zero research. Now I'm mad at myself for giving this book 3 bites. Maybe I need to go to bed. *grimace*
Oh I know. I know. Makes you grit your teeth a little-- (or a lot). With things like this I always hope the authors just don't know better and aren't doing it to be rude. Hopefully that's true. Still annoying though when things aren't gotten right. I know I have problems with most that include animal rescue/vets because they rarely get it right.
DeleteI haven't read any animal rescue stories yet and very few with vets. All of this stuff is easy to research, too! *sigh*
DeleteI've managed 4 vets this month I think including a historical one which was interesting. Don't know how I landed so many. These did pretty good but whew one a bit ago managed to confuse adoption and foster homes. So animals were being adopted into foster homes not permanent homes. Not offensive stuff but just make you hang your head because it's just such basic stuff in the world of rescue/vets. Ah well.
DeleteSo the good thing is that I have 0 knowledge of the military and probably wouldn't have have any issues with that. The multiple povs changing so suddenly could be a problem though, since I tend to have a hard time following lots of povs anyway. I'm still interested, though. Going on my maybe pile. Great review Carol :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Berls. You have an advantage, so you may not notice at all. :)
Delete