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Anyhow...would anyone care to tell me their opinion of TT? Or anyone have a JM book that they thought was just a little different than her others?

PS...Don't go into too much book detail as I have not finished it, yet...lol...NO SPOILERS!

Honestly TT was never my favourite book. In fact it is the least favourite of mine. I guess maybe because of the plot and the characters weren't so lively and real like the rest.

Something that I find strange in the book was the making love before marriage...Talk about orgams here especially when we know that Ramon had a hard time controlling them himself

I think I need to go get the book...*sigh*

aimi

Aimi, you call yourself a JM fan and miss out TT??? Urgh! How could you???! LOL!

Hmm, stirring up the TT pot, are you? *grin*

Well, TT is not high on many people's list here. And it is a sure fire hit for a discussion! LOL

I think the most impt thing to realize about TT is when it was written. The equal rights issue was a *very* hot topic then. So, I very much understand Katie's side when it comes to that.

Also, Ramon is of an ethnic group in which the men are known for their machismo.

And one last thing...I always defend poor Katie when it comes to the whole produce truck debacle. *grin* Katie was in a white-bread, yuppy type of bar in the early 80's and there was one Hispanic man and one produce truck. I think she came to the most logical conclusion.

So, just try to keep reminding yourself about when TT was written.

Personally, I think that Katie is the most normal, average heroine of all JM's books. She's the one that we'd have as a friend, I think.

Happy Reading!

BTW, one of JM's funniest scenes is in this book. I won't spoil it for you.

I actually enjoyed TT. Granted its not a favourite but when I read it, I took into consideration the time in which it was written. For a time, I actually even enjoyed TT more than WML *gasp!* but not anymore after my WML reread.

But I have to say, that it's still a JM and even though it's not the best one, it is much better than books by other authors

I love JM's funny scenes...I tend to throw my head back and laugh as JM so often puts it. So, I will look forward to that...

I have a hispanic BF...and he is nothing like this Ramon with his macho attitude. I am so glad of that...lol. However, what girl doesn't want her man to be a little like a JM hero?

There are so many JM books that I haven't read *ducks any flying objects*. However, I am slowly, but surely, getting through them. I am sure that I will have more to say when I have finished...lol.

As a whole I liked TT also, but of course some of their actions/decisions left me going HUH?? Could it have happened that way in real life...maybe...NOT! But I was satisfied with the ending, that's a big plus for me.

I actually enjoy TT more each time I read it. I used to not "get" Katie and thought of her as very shallow and spoiled, but now I see her as a character of circumstance who is able to overcome her faults and become an independent, strong woman, despite her lifestyle growing up and her first marriage.

I also take into consideration when this book was written. It is very similar in nature to a lot of books from that time. The men were very macho and the women tended to be shallow. I think JM gave Katie the depth of character that enabled us to see Ramon as not so macho and actually very vulnerable to Katie's love.

I hope this makes sense.

I have to agree with you. Actually I couldn't remember the novel until I was reading something someone said about the book. The character for me is actually dull.

Despite Judith's amazing talent TT just wasn't all that interesting to me. I actually have a few books of Judith's I fell don't meet my standards. This is going to sound a little conflicting here but is not; I enjoy reading ever-single novel, however there are a few that are missing panache.

On the other hand the majority of Judith’s novels have me completely obsessed with the characters.

You're actually reading a Harlequin SuperRomance from almost 25 years ago. It was the first book I actually managed to sell (WML being the first one I wrote, then sold much later.)

I'm not surprised that you find some of the attitudes and notions in it irritatingly antique. This will give you an even better perspective on how really bad things used to be for women's fiction writers--and readers: When Harlequin offered to buy TENDER TRIUMPH, I was informed that I'd broken so many guidelines of Harlequin's that the VP who wrote and enforced the guidelines was going to have to be the editor on it.

For example, TT is the first ms. Harlequin bought that actually included the hero's point of view, instead of only the heroine's; it opened with the hero, instead of the heroine, and--worse much worse--it included a considerable amount of humor and "Harlequin's market research showed that women did not like humor in their romance novels."

I kid you not. A few years later, there were entire romance lines featuring humorous books, including--I think--one from Harlequin.
Did I mention that TT's new ideas and style made such an impression that it won awards and had what Harlequin called "a cult following."

Now, if you'd like another stunning example of "how things have changed," read DOUBLE STANDARDS, the next novel I managed to sell. (No one wanted to buy WHITNEY, yet.)

DS was written to be my next Harlequin Superromance, but the editor of that line wanted changes made that I felt ethically and morally opposed to, so I instructed my agent to withdraw the manuscript from the Superromance line. (God, I truly thought I was risking my entire writing career when I refused to make those changes and withdrew the ms. from the world's biggest publisher, but I did it anyway. I think I'm really proud of that.)

Anyway, my agent later decided to submit DS to a new editor in charge of a new Harlequin line just starting up--Harlequin Temptation.

That editor bought the ms. immediately, then gave me a free hand in cutting it down by 1/3 which I had to do so that it would into the shorter length format of the Temptation line.

I can't think of DS without the phrase "sexual harrassment" coming vividly to mind. Of course, in 1983, there was no such notion, no such phrase, and no legal protection from it either, so my hero got away with things that would land him in the headlines today, or in minimum security prison.

Still, I'm quite fond of him and of that book. It's based on a true story, one that has special personal significance to me.

In case you're wondering why the copy of TT you're reading indicates that it was published by Pocket Books, instead of Harlequin, the answer is that after Pocket had published WML, Pocket wanted to re-release TT and DS. I was still working on ONCE AND ALWAYS with no end in sight, and TT and DS had already gone out of print two or three years before.

I asked Harlequin to either put DS and TT back in print or else let me have the U.S. publishing rights back. They advised me they did not and would not do second-printings of their old novels, but they agreed to give the U.S. publication rights back to me.

Actually, that's a misleading statement. They didn't "give" the rights back to me, they made me buy them back by returning every cent they'd paid me.

In case you're curious about how much I'd been paid for those two books during the four years since Harlequin had bought them, the answer is $18,000 and a little change.

Which is why, when a new author sells her first manuscript, the first thing published authors tell her is, "Congratulations!"

The second thing they tell her is, "Please don't quit your day job!"

I hope you found all this information as enjoyable to read as it was for me to write.

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God, I truly thought I was risking my entire writing career when I refused to make those changes and withdrew the ms. from the world's biggest publisher, but I did it anyway. I think I'm really proud of that.

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Wow. I absolutely love that.

Where would we all be if JM had followed conventional wisdom instead of her convictions? Thanks for sharing that story, Judith.

-Shannon

This is the second time in a few days that I've written a long explanation, posted it, returned to my reading of the topic--and immediately found comprehensive explanations and discussions already there.

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That editor bought the ms. immediately, then gave me a free hand in cutting it down by 1/3 which I had to do so that it would into the shorter length format of the Temptation line.

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Jessica, have you finished reading TT yet?

"Still, I'm quite fond of him [Nick] and of that book. It's based on a true story, one that has special personal significance to me."

I never realized DS was based on a true story. I'd love to hear more about that bit of info and its "special personal significance" to Judith!

I have always maintained that out of all the JM books, Double Standards is the one I relate to the most. There are many things in the story that mirror my life -- which is one of the reasons I wanted to compete for Nick Sinclair when the opportunity arose.

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This is the second time in a few days that I've written a long explanation, posted it, returned to my reading of the topic--and immediately found comprehensive explanations and discussions already there.

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Oh, please don't stop with your explainations! It's so interesting to hear (or read) an author's impressions and thoughts on their own works. It may not change my feelings about the book, but helps me appreciate the time and dedication that each author goes through to get that book published!

TT is getting better, especially now that I know that story behind it...

Same ere...I love DS but haven't read TT...
I need to put that on my TBL...

Well, let me say that the book left something to be desired. When I got to the last page and finished the last sentence, I went to the next page thinking that there HAD to be more to it than that. I said "What? That's it?" I was expecting to hear more about Ramon getting his business back to where it was. I was also expecting to get a little more detail on their wedding night (aren't I a brazen hussy?) Perhaps a day or two more of their life after the wedding. I was a little disappointed.

Perhaps if Judith is so inclined, she would consider revamping the ending like she did with W, ML. That would be nice!

Also, I read NW yesterday...I like that book. I have always liked romance books that have a mystery to solve. That's why I like to read Amanda Quick...so NW was a joy...just as it was the last time I read it...

When I read TT, I knew that it wouldn't be like most of the other romances I had read because of the time it was written. It didn't stick with me as much as DS did. I fell for Nick immediately where I think the machismo kept me from loving Ramon.

Thank you Judith for sharing the history of these books with us! It really is interesting that DS is based on a true story. That is something I always wonder about while reading any book. I can't wait to re-read DS now with that knowledge!

And to think I was too afraid to join this BB without having read everything published by JM first! I can't believe how many of the members here haven't read all of her great books!