I just couldn't get into Marsha Canham. I tried and tried to read her books (and I don't deny that she's a great author). I just couldn't get into her books. Ah well, good luck for people who want to read her as I just put her books back in the system :)

I so wanted to be able to get into her. Sigh.

Too each their own!  I know that happens to me sometimes when people rave about stuff.  I couldn't get into Lora Leigh (I think that's her name.)

Saw all those M.C. books pop up on the homepage and I thought somebody was getting rid of their stash!

Sara

*gasp*  Blasphemy!  <puts fingers in ears and runs away...>

But seriously...  Different things appeal to different people.  Aside from the fact that you have no taste... er... I mean nothing to feel bad about, nobody beats me up for not liking Kinley MacGregor or Julie Garwood, so don't beat yourself up over it.  Allow me:P  (okay, j/k again...)  All anybody can do is suggest authors & different books that they like.  But I think everybody knows there's always a chance they won't be a hit with everyone - no matter how similar our tastes may often be.  There's really no way to know in advance who's going to like what, you just give it your best shot & hope you recommended somebody their next keeper.  I know that sometimes the things I like don't even make sense to me:P

I have 3 of hers in my TBR but haven't read them yet 'cause I haven't been in the mood for that kind of historical. not sure what to expect from them either - like how much drama, etc going on. I've been in an erotica/humor/mystery mood lately so no need for me to attempt historical unless it's erotica too.

also some authors dont appeal to me at the time then a few years down the road it's exactly what I want. but thank goodness everything doesn't appeal to me..I'm almost glad sometimes to find an authro I don't like(before I buy all she ever wrote of course!) so ic an cross her off my list to buy LOL!

I tried to like Mary Janice Davidson and just cannot get into her. 

also some authors dont appeal to me at the time then a few years down the road it's exactly what I want. but thank goodness everything doesn't appeal to me..I'm almost glad sometimes to find an authro I don't like(before I buy all she ever wrote of course!) so ic an cross her off my list to buy

I know exactly what you mean and it's why I find it so hard to get rid of any book! Because you just never know... being sure I don't like someone really is a relief!

I almost always breathe a sigh of relief when I recommend something and the people I recommended it to end up liking it as much as I did.  You can just never tell.  And I absolutely agree with Susanna.  Flowers from the Storm, for example, is one of the reasons I didn't initially warm up to Laura Kinsale, and look how ridiculous that is.  It's only one of the best historicals ever written - if one of the most frustrating - and now I always list it as one of my top 5 favorites.  I had to read it twice to get to that place though.  And there have even been a few (thankfully very few) that I've read and thought I loved, and on a re-read was wondering wth I could have been thinking when I liked it:P

It is so hard to tell, isn't it?? I read See Jane Score by Rachel Gibson and thought, this made the AAR Top 100?? Because it just didn't appeal to me - but I had already gotten more Rachel Gibson, so I went ahead and read them. Yep - now she's one of my favorites! I read a couple of Julie Garwoods and again wasn't hooked, but have now read 1 that I did like. And I read 6 - count 'em 6 - Lisa Kleypas books and she is now on my Do Not Read list. I think giving her books 6 tries was enough!! I only gave Stephanie Laurens 2 tries, and couldn't finish either one.

There are plenty of authors whose work I love that have books out there I rate 3 stars or even less - not every book is a keeper from even my favorite authors. I love Susan Andersen but I'm struggling right now to finish her latest, Cutting Loose... too much "jargon" - the characters just aren't appealing to me. I had a similar reaction to Julia Quinn's latest, and I love almost every other book she has published!!

So - uh - maybe you should try Canham again, a different book maybe? Cuz she's good! but not if you don't want to - it ain't like there aren't thousands of other books out there to read!!!

I read See Jane Score and I was a bit disappointed but only because I think after the raves I'd read about it I was really psyched for something more. It was stil a good book though..better than a lot I've read but I think I expect too much out of a book sometimes.

lately I've REALLY gotten into Marianne Stillings yet I'm not sure others would enjoy them the same...just great reads for me and I wish she'd put out one per month at least LOL! I've almost caught up and there's a new one coming out. also read one by Beth Ciotta that I really liked and went ahead and go tmore of hers (please let me keep liking her LOL!)

It is so hard to tell, isn't it?? I read See Jane Score by Rachel Gibson and thought, this made the AAR Top 100?? 

..............And I loved that book.  It's my re-read that I could pick up and read at any time!

Lisa Kleypas books and she is now on my Do Not Read list. I think giving her books 6 tries was enough!! 

............. I couldn't finish one of her books if someone promised me a diamond ring at the end of the last chapter.  And one time I met her, and she was so sweet but I really wanted to tell her that I don't understand how she gets published ;p

I think if there's anybody who's tried MC and didn't get into it, they should definitely try something else of hers before hanging it up.  Which ones did you try to read, Barbara?  For instance, I always recommend the Robin Hood series first, but my sister's favorites ended up being the Pirate Wolf books.  The one she liked best after that was Under the Desert Moon, whereas after Robin Hood, my favorite is Pale Moon Rider.  I just gave her Swept Away and the Highlander books last weekend, so I'll just have to wait & see how she feels about those.  She thinks MC is really good, but I don't know that she likes her as much as I do.  And with me, you're looking at someone who got into reading romance with the big sweeping historical sagas and writers like Kathleen Woodiwiss, which I think still has certain influences on my current taste in books.  Marsha Canham has the perfect balance of everything I personally like in historicals, but that's not going to be the case for everyone.  Some people are going to find her too prosy, or too heavy on external plot.  My personal preference is for external conflicts in the romance over internal.  In my own opinion, internal conflicts, or I guess I should say "pure romance" books, are more often riddled with the same standard & overused plot contrivances used to introduce & resolve the internal romance conflict.  Not that romance driven plots can't be good - Delicious by Sherry Thomas is a good example of a romance driven story that works.  There are external forces at work there, but no evil mustache twirling villains helping to drive the story, which MC makes liberal use of.  I don't find her villains at all one-dimensional though, but some people might.  Some of them are just evil for the sake of being evil, but I think she makes them colorful and gives you that love to hate 'em factor that a lot of writers seem to fall short of when it comes to writing their bad guys.

Anyhoo - all of that is neither here nor there.  All I can do is recommend her, but I can't make anybody like her:P  I wouldn't want to anyway, if the truth be known.  I enjoy the wide range of tastes & preferences we have here in this group of ladies.  Your tastes have helped to make mine more well rounded than they were before, and that's a wonderful thing.  I've discovered new & old writers I didn't know about before from your recommendations - even started trying other sub-genres aside from historicals, like erotica & contemporaries in general, and I probably wouldn't have done that without the benefit of so many alternating opinions & perspectives:)

Did you read The Last Arrow.  I've read most of hers and this is by FAR the best!  Don't see how anybody couldn't love it.  Steamy romance, lotsa swashbuckling, history, evil villans.  What's not to like?   Seriously, give it a try!

Yeah, as much as I hate to pick & choose, I have to admit the The Last Arrow is probably her best.  I love that whole series, but that one does seem to have something extra-special about it.  Probably the hero:P  He's a little on the young side (speaking as someone who remembers when dirt was invented:P), but he's not written that way.  Total muffin:P  And the thing about her maniacal villains - there's no doubt they are just nasty, evil people.  But she doesn't just sketch them out and leave them flat.  They have the usual bad guy motivations; greed, lust for power, etc. but they really play their roles with gusto.  I don't just read the things they do and wrinkle my nose for a second.  I find them truly repulsive, and it's an honest emotional reaction.  I can't even begin to count how many technically well-written books I've read that failed to engender any sort of emotional response from me, and for me at least, the emotional response is everything.

Well gee now you're making me all feel bad :( (Just kidding!). I started with attempting the Robin Hood trilogy because I absolutely love Robin Hood. The only thing is I think that when I read Robin McKinley's The Outlaws of Sherwood that it kind of spoiled any other Robin Hood story for me.

Only one of the books was wish-listed so the rest are all still sitting in my basket in the dining room. So it's not as if I can't pick one up and try again! The thing is I admire her writing--the bits I've read I can tell she's a fantastic author. I like her writing style. The stories just aren't calling me.

I know about recommending books--my other love is science fiction and I love love love CJ Cherryh's books. I've recommended her to a number of people and they all say they can't get into her books.  I guess it's a good thing that there are plenty of books and authors for us to choose from, huh?

Well, I tell ya what, there are a lot of books that I picked up and couldn't get into, and then gave away only to kick myself for later.  Maybe you should just shelf them for a while until you feel a sudden urge for Robin Hood:P  And I'd also suggest you try something else.  If you're in the mood for a highwayman tale, try Pale Moon Rider.  Pirate story, give Across a Moonlit Sea a shot, and if you like it, get The Iron Rose.  If you want a western, do Under the Desert Moon.  I'm not into pirate books or westerns, but those are the books that changed my opinions on those sub-genres entirely.

And don't feel bad... much:P  You won't hurt my feelings, and I probably pass out more MC recommendations than anyone. 

Well, I'm about halfway through My Forever Love and it's not doing that much for me. Not bad at all, just not thrilling. Of course, I had really wanted to keep reading Death Angel, so that might be a factor.  :-\

Nah, My Forever Love isn't bad, but it isn't anything special either.