Something in the Wine by Jae

Publisher:       Ylva Publishing

What do you do when you decide to play a joke on someone else and the joke turns out to be on you?

Annie and Jake Prideaux have a typical sibling relationship, she’s an adult and he’s a perpetual kid.  One of Jake’s favorite things is to play practical jokes on his long suffering and “unconnected” sister.  He tells Annie that he’s going to set her up on a date with a close friend that he just knows she’ll like.  Jake neglects to tell Annie that his friend Drew Corbin is a woman.  Drew is totally focused on her vineyard, but has begun to realize that she needs more in her life.  She’s seen Annie before and is happy to have the date, but not when she discovers what Jake has done to them.  Instead of the explosion that Jake expects, the women decide to turn the tables on Jake and act like they have actually fallen in love.  This includes attending Prideaux family events where Jake discovers that he’s very uncomfortable with the situation and accuses Drew of confusing his sister.

Annie and Drew are both confused by the middle of the book.  Annie has never experienced feelings for a woman before, not that she took seriously anyway, and Drew knows that getting involved with a straight woman is disappointment waiting to happen.

Jae is becoming a young legend in the field of lesbian fiction.  Her books are longer than most romances and full of details and plot that have made her a multiple award winner.  What usually amazes her readers however is that she is a native German and writes better in English than a lot of her contemporaries.  Her books are amazingly free of mistakes, which means the reader isn’t distracted by errors that interrupt the story.

Something in the Wine is a coming-out romance about a slighter older character than is usually found in those stories and the typical already burned lesbian.  Though it isn’t Jae’s strongest book, it’s still an enjoyable story and entertaining.  If you like lesbian literature, it’s difficult to go wrong with this author.

Hidden Truths by Jae

Publisher:       L-Book

*2012 GCLS Award winner in Historical Fiction

Hidden Truths is the continuation of the story in Jae's earlier award winning book Backwards to Oregon.  While it is a good book, it shows the strengths and weaknesses of a sequel.

This entire book is about people hiding secrets.  "Luke" Hamilton and "his" wife Nora have been living with their two daughters, Amy and Nattie, for over a decade in Oregon, where Luke is a successful rancher and respected member of the community.  No one except Luke and Nora has any idea that Luke is not the man he pretends to be.   Amy and Nattie are struggling to emerge as young women with their own futures, but they are living lives of deceit also.  Nattie is hiding a love that she hopes will be solved by going away to college and Amy has struggled for years to fight the feelings she has for women. 

Into this web walks Rika Aaldenberg.  Rika has assumed the identity of a dead friend who was supposed to be the mail order bride of Phin, a hand on the Hamilton ranch and Luke's surrogate son.  She arrives just after Luke and Phin have left to take horses to the army, so she will spend time on the ranch learning the lifestyle and getting to know the people, especially Amy.  The new life that opens up to her is not the one she was counting on.  When Luke arrives back home, he finds his family in crisis.  The only way to resolve that crisis is for everyone to reveal their hidden truths, starting with Luke and Nora.  No sacrifice is too great for one of their children…or is it?

Jae is an accomplished author who knows how to write long stories and develop characters completely.  The advantage to a sequel is that she knows the characters well and can build on that information to extend the story.  The disadvantage is that information can be skipped over in the assumption that the reader read the first book.  This puts holes in the story that a new reader may not be able to fill in easily.  Another drawback to the book is that, while scenes are well written, they aren't all necessary.  There are a number that don't enhance the story or move it forward.  They show information about the characters that is already known.  For example, how many scenes have to be included to convey the idea that Amy is very skilled in handling and training horses?  What is a good book could have been improved with tighter editing.  A novel of over five hundred pages may be daunting to some readers, especially if they feel like the pace of the story is being slowed down by unnecessary scenes.     

Hidden Truths is easy to read and tells a good story, especially appealing to those who read Backwards to Oregon.  For those who like to immerse themselves in a book, this one fits the bill.  For less patient readers, they may find themselves skipping over passages, but there is still a story to hold their interest.

Backwards to Oregon by Jae

Publisher:               L-Book

Backwards to Oregon is the best kind of historical fiction.  It strives to be accurate.

"Luke" Hamilton has lived her life as a man since she was twelve and has had no problem concealing her gender even as an officer in the US Army.  Now Luke wants to head for the Oregon Territory and start a ranch for breeding horses.  Before the wagon train departs from Independence, Missouri she meets Nora Macauley who is supporting herself and her young daughter as a prostitute and something about the woman impresses her.  Though Luke had never considered the possibility of a family for herself she wants to help Nora start a new life and Luke finds herself not only married, but promising to act as a father to Nora's child.  She's able to maintain her charade as a man by saying that this is a business arrangement and that she has no "expectations" for a true marriage from Nora.  As they cover two thousand miles of trail, they learn to depend on each other as they face various threats and the hazards of the wilderness.  Their struggles bring them close together and a deep friendship forms and eventually tries to turn into something else.  When Nora inevitably learns Luke's secret she has to make some serious decisions about her attitudes toward family, marriage and love.  What is really more important, someone who conforms to society's standards or a person who supplies the support and comforts that you really need?  The answer may not be as simple as it seems.

Too often novels try to bend history to fit the needs of the story.  This isn't a problem in Backwards to Oregon.  Jae captures a real feel for what it must have been like to cross the West in the early 1850's.  At all times the real antagonist is the trip itself and the demands it puts on the pioneers.  Hollywood creates the impression that people just piled into wagons and, except for the occasional Indian attack, rode across the prairie and the mountains with very little trouble.  In truth, this was a long and arduous trek that killed many people not from snake bites or accidents, but sheer exhaustion.  The little details, like how to cook a meal and the techniques for crossing rivers, are what give this book authenticity, but the story isn't bogged down by facts.  Another nice touch is that the Indians are not portrayed as vile or blood-thirsty people, but as sophisticated and clever individuals who were perfectly willing to trade for goods rather than staging a massacre and trying to take what they wanted.  The only questionable aspect of the book is that the relationship develops very quickly, but on a trip like this that might have been possible also. 

Jae presents a very appealing romance with believable characters and interesting settings.  This is a very entertaining book that is definitely worth reading. 

Second Nature by Jae

Publisher:             L-Book

Jorie Price is a fairly successful, although reclusive, writer who is trying to write a  different type of novel and that is giving her trouble.  She's writing about two things she doesn't believe in, shape-shifters and romance.  Her other books were about paranormal fiction and were easy to write, but this one is a struggle. She has no idea how much trouble it is about to cause her.  The Wrasa are real, form an ancient society and they live among the humans trying to keep their existence a secret.  They've heard about Jorie's book and they consider it a threat to them.  Griffin Westmore, a member of the Saru, an elite group of soldiers, is sent on a mission to find out what Jorie knows, how she knows it, and, if necessary, to destroy the book and her.

As Griffin investigates Jorie and forms a friendly relationship with her, she suspects that something more is going on than Jorie trying to reveal the existence of the Wrasa.  Griffin finds herself dealing with family relationships, politics among the shape-shifters and a commanding officer who is intent on seeing Jorie killed.  She's always been a good soldier, but she's not going to follow an order until it makes sense to her.  Jorie and Griffin find themselves being forced to work together as they are pursued by others who don't share Griffin's opinion.  Two women who haven't been able to trust anyone now find that trust is the only thing that may save them and save the future of the Wrasa themselves.

Don't let the size of this book scare you away.  Jae likes to write big books, but the characters are so compelling and the action moves so swiftly that you don't want to put them down.  She takes this story through different levels.  First, there is the intricate dance between Jorie and Griffin as they establish their acquaintance.  Then there is the action and excitement of the chase as everyone seems out to find the women and hurt Jorie.  At the end there is the tension of Griffin trying to prove to the Wrasa that, rather than their destroyer, Jorie might be their salvation.

Second Nature also includes symbolism and raises ethical questions.  The reader can't help but draw parallels between the Wrasa and the history of gays and lesbians, two groups that have been persecuted and forced to hide among the larger society.  As well, Griffin's battle between following orders and what feels appropriate is similar to issues that have been raised in numerous real incidents.  As harsh as the Wrasa's methods may seem, humans aren't let off the hook either with difficult questions being raised about the treatment of other species and the abuse of nature.

Don't be deterred by the fact that this is a paranormal story either.  Second Nature is a complex, yet thoroughly enjoyable tale and the creatures in it are presented in a totally believable manner.  The biggest drawback to the book is that, once you start reading, it's hard to stop and the number of pages guarantees that you can't finish it in one night.  It's worth it though.  Give this book a chance.