The Annotated Pride and Prejudice: A Revised and Expanded Edition by Jane Austen

Rating:

“Pride is a very common failing I believe… human nature is particularly prone to it, and there are very few of us who do not cherish a feeling of self-complacency on the score of some quality or other, real or imaginary. Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we would have others think of us.” [p36]

Ah, one of the most widely read books in history – the pressure! But since Ms. Austen’s Emma is the reason I received a D in one of my English Lit exams, I’ve held a bit of a grudge.

The Reiver by Jackie Barbosa

Rating:

Length, laziness and/or problems meeting the deadline killed this short story, originally published as part of The Mammoth Books of Scottish Romance. Quite frankly, it’s an embarrassment to the author as I suspect Ms. Barbosa is capable of producing something of much higher quality.

Lavender Vows (Medieval Herb Garden #1) by Colleen Gleason

Rating:

“But mayhap you are too beautiful and aught should be done to remove that temptation from his sight.”

The abuse. I felt so sorry for Joanna, suffering the barbaric brutality of her husband. Bernard’s abject horror and ferocious rage at her wounds and bruises and his gentle giant nature soothed, contrasting with Ralf’s despicable cruelty and her father’s indifference to his daughter’s pain.