Midsummer Moon

Rating:
Summary: Worth a Second Look
Review: I agree with another reviewer: when I first read this book, several years ago, I thought it was pretty "fluffy." However, it improves upon re-reading. There is more depth to the complex family dynamic than I first noticed. Ransom's relationship to his brother became more poignant on second reading. The mother's walk-ons became more humorous. And Ransom's behaviour toward the children in the story became more telling... Even at first read, I appreciated that she was more object-oriented than relationship-oriented. It takes an actual act of will to decide that the social domain - politesse, hierarchy, etiquette, etc - is too trivial to waste attention on. In the multiple intelligences model, Merlin's interpersonal intelligence might not approach average. But she has other, redeeming talents, her mathematical and intrapersonal intelligence clearly among them. And I like that she does not obsess over sex. Her relationship to Ransom just does not occupy a significant proportion of her consciousness. The sex is pleasant, true, but taken as a whole with his drawbacks, it isn't clear that Ransom will be a net asset to her life's work. Like the heroine of Prince of Midnight, Merlin is refreshingly practical, in an abstract way. This is a book that improves with age. If you read it in a romance junkie way, you'll miss its whimsy.

Rating:
Summary: My favorite book of my favorite author!
Review: I don't care what the others thought. I still believe this to be THE best of Kinsale's books. The inventor was just SO smart that she invented things to improve HER life (such as the talking box aka phone) and never considered that others would find it a miracle. Once her invention works, she forgot it and went on to the next. She was not absent minded or dense. She was just so smart she moved on.

This is my all time favorite of Laura Kinsale's books. That is saying something since Laura Kinsale is my personal all time favorite author!

I can hardly wait for "Enchanter" to come out within the next year!

Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable read.
Review: I wasn't impressed with Midsummer Moon the first time I read it. Merlin is ditzy and that makes her rather annoying at times. I also felt that the sexual tension between Ransom and Merlin was weak. And Kinsale's attempt at humor was too forced occasionally. I told myself that I was indifferent to this book, and yet I couldn't forget it. The second time I read it I enjoyed it a lot more. Midsummer Moon's charm is subtle, it takes a careful reading to appreciate it. The complexity of the characters in this book was wonderful; they transcend their stereotypical roles. I especially loved the secondary romance between Ransom's ne'er-do-well brother Shelby and his wife Jacqueline; I found the story of the rebirth of their love to be more emotionally satisfying than Ransom and Merlin. I would love to read a novel/novella devoted to Shelby and Jacqueline.