Oh, Klausner
In the haiku thread that led to my new Bad Limerick Saturdays, there was a quick discussion of whether or not authors should respond to review. In general, my answer is “No” — unless there is an egregious error that needs to be pointed out, or one that leads to false expectations that would seriously disappoint a reader (suggesting that a book has a HEA when it doesn’t, for example).
Today, I ran across Harriet Klausner’s review of Heart of Steel. Now, I know Klausner doesn’t have much credibility and many readers ignore her reviews, but I also have heard that others find them handy for giving a quick overview of the story — and that is true. Her reviews often read like plot summaries or cover copy, and that can be useful at times.
That said, I suggest that you do not build expectations for Heart of Steel upon her final paragraph of this review (found at B&N). I’ve bolded the relevant bits:
Mercenary Lady Corsair airship Captain Yasmeen leads her crew to Fladstrand, Denmark. Their arrival frightens much of the townsfolk as the lady Corsair has a merciless reputation. She is here to meet with author Zenobia Fox to inform her she killed her brother treasure hunter Archimedes Fox by dumping him into a Venice canal amidst zombies for his concealing who his late sire was. Having killed his father before him, she has no qualms of number three, especially since [spoilers removed by Meljean … especially since they were totally inaccurate spoilers, in their own way].
[…]
The latest Iron Seas steampunk thriller (see The Iron Duke) is a great tale starring two fascinating protagonists in what may be the strangest courtship in years. The story line is filled with action as the Heart of Steel and the roguish treasure hunter make for an endearing couple. Fans who relish something different in their novels will want to read Meljean Brooks’ Yasmeen and Zenobia’s excellent adventure.
Harriet Klausner
As awesome as that story might be, Zenobia doesn’t go on an adventure with Yasmeen. She doesn’t even really appear in the story after Chapter 2. They don’t end up together, as is obviously suggested by this paragraph. That would be totally hot, I agree, but I’m sorry — Yasmeen doesn’t end up with Archimedes’ sister. You end up with The Adventures of Archimedes Fox and Lady Corsair, instead.
