I don't like this at ALL.

I write like
James Joyce

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

My guess is that my overuse of the dash has been responsible for this travesty, but out of four different texts pasted in, I got James Joyce for three of them. I got Dan Brown for the first one, so I'll be happy with Joyce, I guess. Still, I maintain that of all the people I know who have claimed to have read Ulysses, I believe only one of them.

In other news, I'm finished with Yeats! That does not mean all the work is over; on my agenda for today is a 15-page journal review of College English which examines the trends in composition and rhetoric research.

But since Yeats is over, I've had time to read not school-related books, starting with, of course, Kim Harrison's White Witch, Black Curse. Read: Rachel Morgan getting herself into yet more trouble. Apparently, witches do like the Amish and shun members considered deviant. This is going to put Rachel into a world of hurt, and I'm looking forward to Black Magic Sanction and how she deals with the long-term consequences of all of that. Also, I was kinda disappointed in Marshal for running scared when she did get shunned, but I suppose that, to a certain extent, Harrison is putting forth a very realistic portrait of the modern woman's search for love. Con men who keep turning up like a bad penny, seemingly upright guys with no spine, backstabbing ghosts, faithful vampires... Seriously, though, I think a lot of women will recognize the underlying issues with some of these men and why they couldn't work out. And some of them will likewise recognize some of the good things--Kisten may have been a screwed up vampire, but he loved Rachel unconditionally (after all, he went up against Cincinatti's vampire leadership for her).

Besides that, I also treated myself to The Brazen Bride. It's marketed as a romance novel, and...um...it fits the category. I've read almost all of Stephanie Lauren's books. They're well written, decently researched (she writes Regency romances) and always feature some really interesting characters that you remember when you've put the book down.

I feel that I should point out, in my own defense, that my next statement is made because I am trained as a literary critic to notice things. I notice patterns, things people like to do the same, etc. Stephanie Laurens generally likes to include three sex scenes in her romance novels. They usually take place in the latter half of the novel, and they follow a very particular pattern.

In some aspects, the title of her newest novel is entirely appropriate. Brazen is the word for it, because as I read, my first thought was...Wow, this is a lot of sex. So, to confirm, I went back and looked at one of her other novels. Yup, three scenes. Went back and looked through The Brazen Bride. Eight. Almost all of which were in the first 150 pages.

O.o? What? Seriously? Eight? I got halfway through the book and started wondering if there was a plot anywhere. There was, but the plot that has been driving this quartet of books was almost non-existent, and the hero losing his memory seemed contrived, as if she was trying to avoid having to deal with those chasing after him from India to England.

It was well written, don't get me wrong, but I prefer my romance novels to, you know, actually have a plot, and I was enjoying the plot of this quartet. And I am very much looking forward to reading the final book of the set, The Reckless Bride, when it comes out in November.

I've also added Holly Lisle's Talyn to the reading list, thanks to my favorite Snarky Writer, who loaned it to me. I've got Black Magic Sanction checked out from the library, and I have plenty to read in any case. I need to get back to Through the Looking Glass as well, so I can knock that off my reading list.

But schoolwork (that's due tomorrow) comes first. Here's hoping the cats don't go completely insane while I'm trying to do this. They've already made my morning interesting.