[LMB] Two Reviews

[Agnes Charrel-Berthillier]

Lois McMaster Bujold wrote:

> I could find more samples to illustrate the trend, but the trend is 
> found at many levels; I find it quite striking and interestingly 
> consistent over many samples.  Many romance readers (those who do not 
> cross over a lot to F&SF) seem remarkably tone-deaf to world-building, 
> even as some skiffy reviewers seem at least equally tone-deaf to 
> relationship-building.

http://www.smartbitchestrashybooks.com/index.php/weblog/the_sharing_knife_volume_1_beguilement_by_lois_mcmaster_bujold/
would be a better control from the romance POV, although it only covers 
Beguilement.

And it fits the pattern to a T: 90% of the review covers the 
relationship between Dag and Fawn, but even though one of the reviewers 
seems to read SF the only mention of world-building is in terms of "not 
negatives", ie. it gets good mark for being unobtrusive and not impeding 
the story [1].


Agnes


[1] As a primary SF&F and sometimes romance (mostly Regency) reader I 
would have been much more puzzled by that had I not recently read a few 
"futuristic" romances (including one of the Jayne Castle recently 
mentioned on the list). The world-building was... pathetic.