Mob Rule Learning is reviewed over at ForeWord.

These kinds of things make me do one of two things: make me think, “Hey, I wrote that!” or look behind me for that smart person being discussed; she sounds interesting.

–Jane, is occasionally interesting

It is both hilarious and touching to read how romance has impacted its readership. I am almost halfway through the book and I just finished the section on the top 9 romance heroes. I was a little meh on the list as I read it as none of my favorites were listed, until I got to the top two: Jamie Fraser from Outlander and Fitzwilliam Darcy from Pride and Prejudice. *swoon* Both books are my two favorites of all time and by extension the heroes are two of my favorite as well.

Outlander is one of the books that I bang people over the head with until they read it. When I was in grad school, my roommate, the only other person I had met up until that point that read as much as I did, had never read Outlander. It was too much romance for her and I never did succeed in forcing that book upon her.

However, about a year after I graduated, got a job, and moved to a different city, my friend and former roommate called me. Instead of the usual greeting, she said, “I want to marry Jamie Fraser!” I giggled gleefully, knowing full well the rabbit hole she had fallen into. Honorable, but flawed, men in kilts. Be still my heart.

There are two heroes not on Sarah’s list that are on mine:

Fenris from Castle of the Wolf
I can not tell you all the ways I love this book and its characters. I have reread it almost every year since first discovering it, thanks to the Smart Bitches. Why do I love Fenris? On the surface he is a snarling, uncaring, and crippled beast, but underneath he is a man who wants only to protect his family and live a dignified life (and find love, though of course he does not know THAT… yet). There are so many scenes in the book that reveal the true heartache of the hero and his struggle to be a better man for the heroine, Celia. The main characters strive to be better in different ways because they love their partner enough to want to be worthy of them. Isn’t that really what true love is?

Mr. Rochester from my real life
I am not talking about Mr. Broody Pants on the Moors by Bronte. I am talking about my Mr. Rochester who recently performed the very important quest of rescuing a silver earring from the drain of the sink, the man who refills my beer (that we homebrewed together!), who does the dishes, loves my cooking, calls me out when I am being less than I can/should be, rolls his eyes at my bad jokes, is a total nerd (just like me but in different ways), makes me laugh, is a wonderful dad, and can still kiss me senseless. Every girl should be as lucky as me.

Whoever your favorite romance hero is, I hope you visit him soon, in the pages of your favorite book or when you lay your head next to his at night.

–Jane, everyone needs a little romance

Today, Mob Rule Learning is officially out. Like a debutante in a white dress, I am hoping it gets a lot of serious attention, but not just for its good looks. I think the book has some good things to say about some very exciting things going on in conferences and higher education.

Order the book or ebook today from Amazon or order the ebook from Barnes and Noble, Sony, Kobo, or ebooks.com.

A book is about people you love because without them, you would just be a crazy person with a crazy idea. A lot of people I admire and love got me to this place. Today, I want to especially thank librarians.

Librarians are awesome. They are learned and hard working individuals who are underpaid and overworked. They struggle in a system that often does not appreciate their efforts and they do it all For the Greater Good. Thank you for holding me to high standards and for dreaming your big dreams with me.

–Jane, loves being a librarian

To win a signed paperback copy of Mob Rule Learning: camps, unconferences, and trashing the talking head, you only have to do one thing:

Leave a comment on this post and answer this question: If you could plan and attend an unconference on any topic, what would it be?

I will choose, at random, three winners. This contest will run until noon Central time on Friday, September 30, 2011.

–Jane, loves free stuff

Ever since I read When Christ and His Saints Slept, I have been a fan of Penman. British history has long been a favorite of mine and no one does the English royal court like Penman. Penman does a great job of keeping all the Williams, Georges, and Johns separate for you so you know who is doing what.

Lionheart is the story of Richard and the Third Crusade to the Holy Land. With all the fighting between the French and English kings, it is a wonder there was a crusade at all. Penman shows Richard to be both an inspiring leader who leads men fearlessly into battle and a caring man who loves the women in his life in their own way. This crusade was personal to Richard, like the journey to the promised land was personal to Moses. Penman goes beyond the king to the man and what drove him to do the things that he did during this early part of his reign.

As always, Penman’s language, storytelling, and attention to detail draws you in, making you experience life in the midst of a crusade.

Recommended for fans of Penman and History alike

(minor spoilers)

Alex is hiking in the woods, and has just met up with two other hikers, an older man and his granddaughter, when a loud boom in the sky makes everything go haywire. After the initial chaos, the older man is dead and Alex is left in the company of an 8 year-old girl and a dog.

The loud boom, an EMP of some kind, has altered the brain chemistry of the survivors in strange ways. Everyone of middle age has died, leaving old people and a very few people younger than 30. Most of the survivors in the under 30 crowd turn into animalistic cannibals, like zombies, but alive and breathing. The book follows Alex, Ellie, and later Tom, as they navigate through the dangers of the forest. It is a great story and a very interesting new take on zombies. There is, of course, a Lord of the Flies undertone, as the trio encounters various people along the way.

The only thing that I disliked about the book was the 8 year-old, Ellie. For much of the beginning she is annoying and uncooperative. She is the TSTL, Too Stupid To Live, character, who despite her idiocy, seems to escape fatal consequences to her choices, due in this story to the benevolence of her companions. I almost stopped reading the book, so annoying were her mistakes. Ellie does become less annoying as time goes on, when she finally realizes she needs to stop being such a brat because their lives are all at stake. Hello? People eating zombies?

I like that Bick leaves some questions unanswered and she has set up the next book nicely, though you will be facing a cliff on the last couple of pages.

Highly Recommended for lovers of survival and zombie stories

My upcoming book, Mob Rule Learning: camps, unconferences, and trashing the talking head, is now listed on Amazon for preorder! It is only available in paperback as a preorder but when it is released, I have been told it will be available in all ebook formats.

There is also a web page for Mob Rule Learning attached to this blog where I will put news regarding the book and an updated list of resources.

Expect more blogging here starting next week. I have some fun things to talk about in regards to crowdsourced learning lined up. Bairn 3 starts school a week from today, so I will have a little more time to write.

–Jane, currently writing in a quiet house and has no idea what to do about that

A few highlights:
Books read: 33
Most read in one month: June, 8
Best new (to me) book: The Stand (April)
Best new series: The Hunger Games (October)
Best reread: I reread two great books this year, but My Sweet Folley by Laura Kinsale (September) takes the cake
Worst book read: tie between Stolen by the Sheikh (May) and How to Wed a Baron (October) both were WowBad for their own reasons

January
Here Be Dragons by Sharon Kay Penman – One of my favorite historical fiction authors and a decent read. I liked When Christ and His Saints Slept better though.

April
The Stand by Stephen King – I kept getting this book recommended to me and now I know why. It was fantastic.
Memories of the Future by Wil Wheaton – Snort your drink funny, a must read for any STNG fan. I can not wait for the next installment.

May
Beyond Heaving Bosoms by Sarah Wendell and Candy Tam – Exactly the mix of high and low brow humor and commentary I expect from these ladies and a must read for anyone who loves romance or wants to know why so many other people do.
Stolen By the Sheikh by Trish Morey – Train wreck. It was so bad I could not stop reading it.

June
White Witch, Black Curse by Kim Harrison – A great book in The Hallows series with all the fun you expect from Harrison.
His Lady Mistress by Elizabeth Rolls – Amusing but not great. One of those romances that makes you want to shake the main characters a bit.
Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr – An interesting take on the fairy world.
A Bride Most Begrudging by Deeanne Gist – A good read and, though labeled as inspirational romance, it was not annoyingly so. I liked it.
Victory of Eagles by Naomi Novik – I love, love this series so I loved this book as well.
Castle of the Wolf by Sandra Schwab – An almost yearly reread for me now and always worth it.
What a Scoundrel Wants by Carrie Lofty – A sort of meh romance involving Will Scarlet of Robin Hood.
Jungle Heat by Bonnie Dee – This was my first, and probably only, foray into the male/male romance arena. While the story was ok, I read the sexy bits pretty fast. I guess this sub-genre is not for me.

July
Chew: vol. 1 – Taster’s Choice – A great graphic novel about a guy who is clairvoyant when he eats things, including people. Yum!
Chew: vol. 2 – International Flavor – A great second part to the series. I am going to have to finish these.
Hexed by Michael Alan Nelson – Fabulous graphic novel about a young thief named Lucifer. I loved it! More please. Plus, I actually got to meet the author and he was lovely.
Song of Seduction by Carrie Lofty – The writing was superb and the weaving of the musical elements was nice, even if the main characters made me batty at times.

August
Exclusively Yours by Shannon Stacy – I will never look at an ATV in the same way again. The supporting characters in this one were well developed.
The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan – I was really disappointed by this book, mainly because the main character is so selfish.
Pegasus by Robin McKinley – Wonderful. Please hurry and write the next part, please!

September
The Red Tree by Caitlin R. Kiernan – Spooky with some fun twists. Read by yourself in the country if you can handle it.
Tomboy Bride by Harriet Fish Backus – A true story of a woman who followed her assayer husband to some of the more famous mining communities in North America. Very interesting.
My Sweet Folly by Laura Kinsale – A reread with Kinsale is always a good one.
Kansas Troubles by Earlene Fowler – Another fun mystery and quick read in the Benni Harper series.

October
How to Wed a Baron by Kasey Michaels -Pick any annoying romance trope and this book has it plus a heroine that is so annoyingly virginal I almost threw up a few times.
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins – Great, fabulous, loved it. Post-apocalypse meets Lord of the Flies. Awesome.
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins – I read the whole series in about a week.
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins –
Heat Wave by Richard Castle – I got this as a gift and never would have bought it, but it was actually very amusing. It was like reading a Castle episode and I love me some Castle.

November
There Is A God by Anthony Flew – A notorious atheist writes about his journey to God and the rationale behind it. Great book and very readable.
Uncertain Magic by Laura Kinsale – I have read a lot of Kinsale and this was the first one that I have been meh about. Definitely skip this one in favor of one of her other ones.

December
Black Sanction Magic by Kim Harrison – Another good Hallows book.
Rakes and Radishes by Susanna Ives – I wrote a long review for this book and I really enjoyed it. A fun read.

I originally wanted to read this book because of the title. I knew this book was either going to be good or good bad. While I love a good romance the ones that are good bad can be just as fun. Because it is from Carina Press, my bet was on good and I was right.

Henrietta, raised by two Mathematicians, is very smart but has unfortunately read too many romance novels and given her heart to a man lacking substance but not good looks. Kesseley, the Earl, neighbor, and childhood friend of Henrietta agrees to help her win back the wayward lover, though he himself is in love with the damsel. This is not a unique plot line, but the characters are amusing and lovable. Throw in some eccentric society Dames, a disapproving Momma, and a Beauty/Heiress and you have a few plot twists and bends that make for a very nice story. The author is crafty enough that she even turns some of the villains into likable characters. I read it in 24 hours and would have finished it faster had I not been interrupted by a family needing my attention.

While the characters were great and the story diverting, what made this novel truly a joy was the way that Ives uses the serial romance novel, with the gothic rake hero and the damsel in distress, as a background to the plot and a foil to the characters in the story. It was infuriating to see the smart Henrietta get caught up in creating a gothic romance of her own life, though the reader knows she surely most posses better sense. Kesseley reveals the darker aspect of a rake’s character by starting down a path he then has trouble not only navigating but escaping. While the characters each get their romance genre moment to act out, they are also discussing the latest in a series of gothic romances taking London Society by storm. Ives weaves together wonderfully both the lack of sense in gothic romances and the good sense her characters use to extract themselves out of their own romantic tangles.

Recommended, just make sure you have the afternoon free to sit on the couch

The first one is an interview with Neil Gaiman (we aren’t worthy!). He talks about the evolution of the vampire motif and what it has meant to fiction during different parts of history. It is brilliant and lovely as only Neil Himself can be.

The second article is one that Mr. Rochester sent to me. It is from the Today Show website and before you click on the link, I should warn you. Their website is so full of social software gunk, pop-ups, and MySpacesque formatting that I almost threw up when it loaded. Who the hell designed that piece of garbage? Tiny icons at the bottom of the article are much preferable to the huge bar taking up all my browser space. But I digress. Sorry.

I can basically sum up the article with a Smart Bitches phrase, TSTL. Bella Swan is Too Stupid To Live. It is a term given to especially annoying and whiny heroines that under any other circumstances (other than a romance novel) would have been killed because of ridiculous choices they make. That or the other characters get so fed up with the TSTL heroine’s antics that they kill her themselves.

Mr. R asked me why women would like that kind of character. I responded with this: Yes, we hate the TSTL ladies of fiction but they represent the fact that (warning broad generalization coming) most women want to things: 1) for someone to think they are special and 2) to be rescued by the said person in above phrase. The TSTL ladies are a perfect foil to the never wrong knight in shining armor (or shiny diamond skin).

Yes, it is archaic. Yes, it is a bit dumb. But the story of the “knight in shinning armor” has appeal for a reason and I think the two statements above are the underlying reasons.

That being said. I prefer heroines who want to be special and rescued, but who also do some rescuing of their own. We can not let the boys have all the fun.

–Jane, hopes she is not TSTL