Ten Questions from Tara: Interview with Glen Thomas Hierlmeier

Tara: Welcome. You’re here to promote Honor and Innocence, a historical romance novel. Tell me, please, what was the inspiration behind this story? How did it come to you?

Readers, here is the blurb real quick:

Hank Fischer is drafted into the American Army soon after high school graduation in 1945, beginning a six month saga of intrigue, horror, and love that takes him from his southern Wisconsin home to Texas, then Germany, Switzerland, Greece, and Singapore, revealing along the way the devastating truth of the tragic consequences of war. In the Texas prisoner of war camp where Germans were interned, a youthful and naïve Hank is targeted by Haynes who becomes his lifelong tormentor, but he also begins his closest, nearly unimaginable lifelong friendship with Max, a German prisoner of war under his supervision, whose twin sister, Roberta, back in their German homeland, is destined to become the love of his life. Hank is drawn into a dangerous web of intrigue by the common heritage he shares with Max, a prisoner of war being returned to his homeland, and the intense love he finds with Roberta. Because of their ties to the SS through their father, a senior Nazi official hand-selected by Adolph Hitler himself, Max and Roberta are pursued by the Intelligence Forces of the American and British Occupation. Hank is faced with the colossal choice between his allegiance to the U.S. Army and his love for Roberta. Hank chooses to collaborate with Max and free Roberta from a British prison camp, beginning a desperate flight through war-torn Germany where they witness first-hand the ravages of post –war Europe, while staying perilously ahead of pursuing forces. Their flight takes them to a secret refuge in the mountains of neutral Switzerland where Lazlo, a Hungarian born war-time profiteer provides the opportunity for their escape. Sadly leaving Max behind in Switzerland they set out for the port city of Trieste by train, only to survive an attack by post-war Italian Army pirates, then sail the seas on a merchant ship with a modern day Greek philosopher, Captain Koz, to search out hidden treasure in a small Greek village. Again forced to flee, Captain Koz helps them find refuge across the Indian Ocean, in Singapore, only to once again face the bane of powerful men…another war-torn country. Their very survival hangs in the delicate balance between their powerful love and will to live, and evil man’s violent quest for power and wealth. Their amazing journey, immersed in horrors of war, bombed-out cities, dead bodies, displaced person by the millions, desperation and hopelessness, give the reader a rare look at the despair of victims of the hubris of men seeking power for the sake of power, amidst their powerful love story.

Glen: Every romance has a dark side. When that dark side is war, hell has no mercy. Through hardship and suffering, the bond of love grows strong.

In Honor & Innocence: Against the Tides of War, I wanted to portray how war effects people who are innocently caught up in the hubris of powerful leaders bent on destruction, and how their honor is tested by desperate circumstances. All of my stories begin with what a close friend, and one of my trusted readers, once referred to as a “golden nugget”, a special moment or event that is unique and memorable. I find that “golden nugget”, then build a story around it.

I found such a nugget in researching my first book, We Had to Live: We Had No Choice. It’s a true story based on the genealogy of my family, tracing my mother’s side of the family from the immigration of her great-great-great grandfather from Liverpool, England in 1773 as an indentured servant, crossing the Atlantic on a slave ship to work on a Virginia plantation. In seeking to understand the family legacy, I extensively interviewed my oldest brother, Hank, the one living person whose life spanned the longest period of time in the family history. He shared many stories and experiences, one of which was particularly fascinating, a “golden nugget”, but not appropriate to include in that first book.

As a U.S. Army soldier in WWII, fresh out of high school, Hank escorted German prisoners-of-war back to Germany from an American prison camp in Texas. I knew all about the Japanese internment camps in California, but I had no idea there were such camps in America for Germans and Italians, and I felt compelled to investigate the historical period just after the war. As I continued my research I realized that much of the post-war experience around the world is largely overlooked in history books.

I used my brother’s story as a key passage, a “golden nugget”, in the novel that unfolded. Because so much of our lives is experienced through romantic relationships I chose to weave a love story around the horrific experiences of common citizens caught in turmoil not of their choosing---Americans, Germans, and many others, caught up by the times. I hoped to captivate my reading audience with fascinating characters, an intense and improbable love story, and historical revelations largely ignored in our written history.

Tara: Wow. I think your family history is fascinating and I imagine you are very proud of your brother.

We focus a lot on heroines here on Book Babe. Tell me what makes your heroine strong.

Glen: Roberta Schoellkopf, a young German girl, is the primary heroine in the story, although there are several other strong women who could be considered heroines as well. Berta is only 18 years old, but due to the travails of war and the absence of her family, she loses everything she depended on in life. On her own, she must learn difficult lessons quickly, but not without making mistakes. She demonstrates the ability to persevere and to overcome her failures and shortcomings, and proves to be a very faithful and strong companion. Ultimately, in spite of great adversity and loss, she becomes the great woman she aspires to be.

Tara: Did any particular woman in your family or life help inspire some of her traits?

Glen: I come from a family of 13, including 7 sisters. I am a great admirer of my mother and my sisters, all strong women. I know the challenges they have faced in their lives without losing their dignity and purpose. Much of what I have accomplished in my life is attributable to their example and encouragement. I think my female characters represent the kinds of qualities I found in them.

Tara: What makes her sexy?

Glen: My book has been referred to as “low heat level”. I know that has to do with physical sex and certainly the label does apply, by intent. While she is presented as a very beautiful girl, I wanted Roberta to be an extremely attractive woman for her personal values and attributes, particularly her willingness to make her own way and be her own person. With all the sex in romance novels, I wanted to present a strong woman who is very desirable for her character, and her moral and ethical values, and for the adversity she faces and overcomes. She is the kind of intelligent person a man would love to be shoulder-to-shoulder and back-to-back with under extreme duress. She more than holds her own, while also being very lovely and provocative.

One scene in the book, where the hero and heroine first meet, is analogously based on my first meeting with my wife, RuthAnn. RuthAnn has the qualities I tried to portray in Roberta.

Tara: "A strong woman desirable for her character"...that's exactly what we look for here on Book Babe, Glen. So many people think sexiness is only about physical traits. Not the case. Thank you.

So, what kind of research did you do when you penned this novel? Did anything surprising come up in your search?

Glen: You know from my answer to question #1 above, that this story actually evolved from my research for my first book, We Had to Live: We Had No Choice. A story my brother related about his experience as an American soldier responsible for German prisoners stuck in my mind; my “golden nugget”, leading me to research the circumstances following WWII. I was amazed at how much I found out that I had never known---a view of history not generally recorded in history books that had become very personal to me because of my brother’s experience.

Perhaps not surprisingly, my research for Honor & Innocence, has also led to revelations that have piqued my interest. When I began writing the book, I did not have in mind to write another or two, but I discovered so much historical information that is relatively unknown that I decided to continue my research and perhaps write two more books. My group of intimate readers were so taken by some of the supporting characters that I have decided to write two more books following the experiences of those characters, Lazlo and Koz, and tie them back to the first book. The second book is well underway, and I hope to have it published by September of this year.

Tara: What would you like readers to gain from reading your book? Is there a strong moral? Do you hope they will laugh, learn something, ponder a point?

Glen: I particularly appreciate this question. Yes, it is extremely important to me to accomplish the following with my writing:

Learn and understand history from a new perspective.

Understand the importance of moral and ethical values and how these attributes will be severely tested in life.

Love, fear, or hate the characters.

Feel empathy for others regardless of prejudice, hatred, religion, nationality.

Laugh.

Cry.

Ponder how they might react under similar circumstances.

Tara: I LOVE that answer! I feel that way when I read a book. I want to laugh, cry, have some emotion invoked, or learn something new.

Now let’s talk about your hero. What draws the heroine to him? Does he have some of your own traits or traits you wished you had?

Glen: I prefer to think of my hero as having the attributes of my brother, Hank, who passed away during the writing of this book, just five days short of his 86th birthday, although I certainly have aspired to have the qualities of character that he modeled for me.

The initial meeting finds my heroine under great duress and therefore particularly vulnerable. The initial characteristics that draw her to the hero are his gentleness and empathy. As they are confronted with obstacles, they each prove to be very intelligent, resourceful, and strong. Finding themselves in need of each other, they learn to trust one other and are drawn inexorably close through mutual respect and by overcoming difficult circumstances, leading to their joint quest for peace, harmony, and happiness.

Tara: I'm really sorry about your brother's passing. I imagine, however, his spirit is very proud to be in your book. 

Your book takes place in many places. If I were a tourist, what in your novel would you recommend I see?

Dolder Grand Hotel
Wiki Commons

Glen: There are numerous fascinating locations where the story takes place as it moves from Wisconsin to Mineral Springs, Texas, to Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Greece, Singapore, and Australia. I wanted to give the reader a perspective of what was happening in each of those places post-war, while confronting Hank and Roberta with obstacles unique to those locations.

The highlights for me, those places I would most like to see, are as follows:

Hamburg, Germany – to see what remains of the devastation of the city

Zurich, Switzerland – to see the grandeur of Lake Zurich, the mountains, and stay at The Dolder Grand Hotel where Hank and Roberta met Lazlo.

Casa dei Pagani, in the mountains of Italy – a serene mountain location with a mystical past

Kapsia, Greece – the romantic retreat in the Greek countryside south of Athens

Singapore – to look for Puteh

Tara: That's a lovely hotel. I want to go there too! LOL A more personal question. What’s the one thing you hope to accomplish before you die? Your main goal?

Glen: Above all, to provide a living example of moral and ethical values to my wife, children and grandchildren.

Tara: I’m a dog mom, so I always ask this. Do you have pets? If so, tell me about them and do provide pictures.

Glen: We were cat lovers, particularly RuthAnn. However, the passing of our beloved Koko several years ago at the age of 17 was a particularly traumatic experience. In winter he would sleep on my feet because he knew they would be cold---in summer he would sleep on RuthAnn’s---I think because he knew I didn’t need him in summer. We have his remains in an urn on a shelf in her office alongside those of her previous cat, Ulysses. They will go with us wherever we may go, and beyond, and I guess, now, irreplaceable.

Tara: It's heartbreaking to lose a pet. They are like children. Seventeen is an excellent lifespan though. Koko must have been very well cared for.

Thank you for visiting Book Babe today, Glen, and good luck with your book.

***

Glen graduated from the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado, then earned a Masters of Business Administration at The University of Wisconsin at Madison. He served in the US Air Force on the Manned Orbiting Laboratory space exploration program and on the design phase of the development of the F-15 fighter aircraft. After leaving the Air Force, Glen returned to Wisconsin and became Vice President of the largest bank in his home state, First Wisconsin National Bank. In 1979, he moved on to become President and CEO of several real estate development and management companies. Glen retired in 2009 to devote full time to his grandchildren and his writing. Glen is the author of Honor and Innocence, We Had to Live: We Had No Choice…, and Thoughts From Yesterday: Moments to Remember.

All My Tomorrows by Ellie Dean

This novel somewhat reminds me of those British television dramas I’m so fond of. Lots of drama. It’s a good story full of (mostly) good people, people you come to care about as the story continues. The problem for me is it’s awful long and it’s nothing but drama and everyday life. Every story should have some of that, but I like a little something more in my books. I like to walk away with a good laugh or some new bit of knowledge. Though the story takes place during the war and the heroine works in a factory, there’s not a whole lot of detail about that stuff. Next to none, to be honest. Oh, they sit in shelters and they have rationing coupons, but I’m especially disappointed in the lack of factory life as that bit is what drew me to this story to begin with.

This is part of a series, but except for some references to Rosie and her problems, I never felt I was lost.

It’s a tad predictable. That has to be the second biggest downside, but it’s enjoyable enough that that’s not overly bothersome.

I was very easily able to get “lost” in the tale for four days. The heroines are Ruby and Peggy. Ruby is young and at first, I thought, “Oh no…a woman who lets herself get smacked around..ugh.” But she finds her backbone and then some. I think my favorite scene is when she stands up to Doris, but I digress. I appreciate Ruby’s story—battered wife trying to make it on her own, growing braver with each day, taking risks by up and moving from all she’s known and finding a job and a new home and opening up to people. Peggy is a strong older lady whose husband is off to war and has her own battles as her health declines and her home is bombed…but nothing…and I mean nothing stops this incredible woman from opening her home and her heart to other people, especially young girls in trouble, like Ruby.

Peggy is a fabulous role model.

We get brief looks at the other girls, such as Rita, who rides a motorbike and works as a firegirl, but you have to read their books to get their stories. This just offers teasers of sorts.

I enjoyed it, but like I said above, I just like more in my books. If this was a TV drama on BBC, I’d be all over the series, but at 500-some pages per book, I want more of the war, of the factories, of the motorbiking. More of that interesting stuff, less drama and personal problems.

I received this via Netgalley.

How Pat Benatar "Birthed" a Wild Angel: A Guest Post from Shari Copell

Please welcome Shari Copell as she talks about her upcoming book release featuring a tough rocker chick. Here's the story behind the story:

I’m going to blame it all on Pat Benatar, though I’ll admit I wasn’t thinking of her when I wrote Rock’n Tapestries.  I actually used the relationship I had with my husband the first time we dated as a basis for that book.

Rock’n Tapestries is a short novel written in first person.  It takes the form of a journal penned by Chelsea Whitaker about her love affair with Asher Pratt, a Pittsburgh, PA guitar player. She falls unconditionally in love with him during high school, but he makes her crazy with his secrets, his infidelities, and the way he tends to disappear when the going gets tough. When Asher unexpectedly pops into Chelsea’s life a third time, she reluctantly lets him back in, but only after she builds a sturdy wall around her heart. They end up with a friendship she values. Until he disappears again, that is.

Rock’n Tapestries was meant to be a one –time thing. It was just one of those stories that popped into my head, complete with an unconventional happy-ending.

It wasn’t even published yet when I began to think about the little girl who is mentioned in the epilogue of Rock’n Tapestries.  What kind of person would she be?  I knew without doubt she would be a rock guitarist, but what challenges would she face?

And that’s when I thought of Pat Benatar.

From Wiki Commons

I grew up a child of the seventies and early eighties.  We had our share of female rockers— The Runaways, Vixen—but there was no one quite like Pat.  She was tiny with a short haircut my mother always called a pixie, but she roared like a lion when she sang.  She didn’t need to show voluminous cleavage or have long, wavy, feminine hair to get her point across.  You could just tell she was a badass.

Pat published a book in 2011 called “Between a Heart and a Rock Place” (which I highly recommend reading).  She detailed some of the problems she and her husband Neil Giraldo (also her guitarist) faced as a female rocker in a male-dominated world. Her managers tried to push a sexual image for her. They were unhappy when she refused to wear revealing clothing. I was blown away by the fact that they even objected to her becoming pregnant.  When one music executive told her “You don’t think they really come to hear the music, do you, Pat?”, she socked him in the face.

She just wanted them to hear the music.

When I sat down on September 2, 2013 to write Nicks Sorenson’s story in Wild Angel: A Rock’n Tapestries Novel, Pat Benatar’s experiences in the music industry weighed heavy on my mind.  It must’ve been frustrating in the extreme to have that level of talent, but your managers simply tried to sell you as tits-and-ass.  I knew Nicks, as a gifted singer and guitarist, would face those challenges too.

And so, Nicks Sorenson came to life in my head. Now an eighteen-year-old guitar prodigy, she still feels the effects of the bullying she endured for stuttering as a child. Her band Wild Angel plays every Friday night at Tapestries, the bar her parents own in Pittsburgh.

 Nicks loves making music, wants to do it for a living, but she hits a bit of a brick wall when she steps out into the public eye for the first time.  Specifically, a brick wall named Stone Jensen.

She fights back the only way she knows how- with a strong sense of right and wrong and a spine of steel. She proves to the male musicians who question her that she’s just as good—and most likely better—than any of them by playing her Les Paul right in their faces.

Dealing with all that would be frustrating enough, but Nicks suddenly finds the high school principal breathing down her neck, giving her one detention after another for the stupidest reasons. Then she begins to have dreams of a man shrouded in mist.  He say he watches her, that he loves her, but she has no idea who he is.  Her mother has begun to act strangely as well. Nicks suspects she knows who the man is, but, for some reason, Chelsea dodges the issue. 

A perfect storm converges on the Sorenson family as the secrets of the past are dragged into the present, with a little help from beyond the grave.  As a real storm bears down on Pittsburgh, it all comes to a shocking and explosive conclusion.

New Adult romantic suspense with paranormal elements, along with the usual warnings about sexual content and naughty language. There's also a bit of brutality and violence. I promised you all a happy ending after Rock'n Tapestries though, and I never break a promise. :-)

I tried very hard to make both books a stand-alone read, but Wild Angel will have more depth if you read Rock’n Tapestries first.

“Hello, Pittsburgh! You ready to rock?”

Nicks Sorenson, guitarist extraordinaire for the band Wild Angel, has a lot going on during her last year of high school. In fact, she sometimes wonders if someone has painted a bull’s eye on her forehead.

Stone Jensen, lead guitarist for the band Heavy Remedy, shows up everywhere she plays despite the bad blood between them. The high school principal is targeting her with endless detentions for some reason. And she’s starting to wonder if her mother is losing her mind.

Life soon spins into chaos for the Sorenson family. It began when Nicks learned the name of the dead musician who’d willed her his four guitars. Then came the dreams of a man shrouded in mist. She doesn’t recognize him, but he seems to know her.

As the strange occurrences escalate, Nicks goes on an unexpected—and painful—journey into the past.

She’s about to learn what you don’t know can hurt you.

***

Shari Copell is the pen name of S.L. Jesberger, author of the historical fantasy Àlainnshire series. Email her at sharicopell AT gmail.com or find her on Facebook.

Black Book: Shocking & Revealing Movie Following a A Jewish Spy in WWII

A shocking movie. The ending really surprised me. I didn't see that coming, the person responsible. 

The 411: A Jewish girl in hiding joins the Dutch Resistance and becomes a spy. She infiltrates the Nazi offices using the timeless method: sex.

When you watch WWII movies or read WWII books, they always take place in England, Germany, France, America, or Italy. I can't say I know much about what was happening in Denmark. Apparently it was occupied by the Germans and a resistance was in the background. In this movie, we see some of the more underhanded stuff, such as wealthy Jews being promise safe passage over the border, only to be set up for murder in order to steal their jewels and money.

Determined to get to the bottom of who is responsible for the murder of her family and wanting to aid the Resistance in any way possible, Rachel does what she must--sleeps with the head of the German SS and frankly doesn't seem too bothered by it. And here lies a quibble: I wasn't bothered by the sex, not at all. Though this is rare for me to say, the sexual scenes were actually quite tasteful and added to the story though they were more revealing than American films. What I was put off by was how quickly this chick falls in love with a Nazi. Idiot!

I think some Americans will be shocked by some of the content, but it was life then. It's what was happening. This is based on a true story and women did what they had to survive and get what they needed. I could have done without the full frontal view of that one Nazi pig though. EW.

I also didn't buy into that sexual encounter with the doctor. Seemed out of place.

But wow, was this movie exciting, as betrayal after betrayal happens and even though I already know the outcome of the war, watching this movie, I began to wonder if the Nazis were going to win. Who is revealing the Resistance's plans? Who is constantly betraying everyone? Why? And go figure, our heroine ends up blamed...

Also a surprising thing to me is the way people behaved when the war was won. It wasn't quite over for some people, for the women who slept with Nazis for whatever reason, for the people deemed traitors by the Resistance, whether they really were or not...

I have another major complaint though: This film is Dutch with English Subtitles, but at times they speak English--such as when the Canadians come. There's this huge scene with the Nazi Muntze....I have no clue what exactly went wrong for that man. It was all in English with NO SUBTITLES OR CAPTIONING. 

URGH.

But I recommend this. It was def interesting. And this actress, Carice van Houten, is really something.

I bought this DVD on Amazon.

The Red Lily Crown: A Novel of Medici Florence by Elizabeth Loupas

I'd love to see this turned into a TV mini-series. It'd knock whatever charts The White Queen is on right off the list. It's sex, lies, secrets, cruel royalty, affairs, spies, alchemy, and enough excitement to having you gasping in surprise in nearly every chapter. But yet, it's not a cheesy drama. It has real history in it. As I set this down for good, I am walking away with a lot more knowledge of the Medicis than ever before. I knew next to nothing about them before.

It's exciting, interesting, and intense, especially with all the cat fights. There's a lot of royal women duking it out and their fights/staring matches get really intense. I could actually imagine I was Chiara, caught the middle--to curtsy or not to curtsy?--and her conflicted emotions flew right off the page and into myself.

There's a very paranoid grand duke and a vile mistress, husbands killing wives, brothers turning on sisters. There's a lot of vileness, actually, but for every vile thing, there's something nice, such as Chiara and Ruanno's love, her Nanno, the kind lady in the nunnery, the grand duchess's dogs... In the end, besides all the history, I also took away from this that true love can conquer ALL.

Francesco

I feel the story was lacking in one thing, however. Chiara grew to care for each one of her mistresses, from Isabella to Diadora (I don't think I spelled that right), to the grand duchess...but why? There was very little of her relationship and communication with these ladies and why she cared so much about them was continuously lost on me. I feel like some scenes were missing, scenes in which we could have had a chance to watch these relationships between the women develop and strengthen.

The alchemy was strange, because I've never read about it before...it's like primitive and early laboratory work. The twists involving poison were absolutely fascinating, as were the real-life characters and their personalities: the grand duke Francesco, his mistress, his wife, his brothers. And yet, their drama never once detracted from the main heroine, a fictional lady alchemist who found herself embroiled in everything.

Very well done. Elizabeth Loupas has a winner.

Joint Review: Windshift by Joyce Faulkner

What We Read:
Shirley Maxwell is a troubled young woman facing a complicated personal life, a culture that restricts female options, and a world at war. Yet, together with friends -- Emmie, Delores, and Mags -- she joins Jackie Cochran's Women's Air Service Pilots program (WASP) and participates in the adventure, challenges, and tragedies of the 1940s with determination and courage. Shirley and her friends know what they are tackling will be hard, but they do it anyway and relish the effort. In the process, they change what is possible in the minds of young girls everywhere. Lively and moving, Windshift inspires and educates. Appropriate for history buffs interested in the World War II era, students of social change, those who love tales of derring do -- and those who just love airplanes.

What We Did:
Shomeret read the book, wrote down her thoughts, and Tara read the book a week later, emailing her two cents to Shomeret, and a discussion was born. Thus, our review.

Our Thoughts:Tara: I have a major complaint right off the bat. I can't stand Shirley, the heroine. She reminds me of Jack Nicholson's character in As Good As it Gets. WAY too uptight. She's constantly thinking of dirt, constantly criticizing others in her mind for their appearance or something, and even goes so far as to make the sheets a certain way. It's taking NEAT FREAK to a whole new level, making me think she has an obsessive compulsive disorder. I feel the author erred badly in one other thing regarding this heroine too. SHE DOESN'T LOVE TO FLY. For me, part of the enjoyment in reading about women pilots is always their love and passion for what they do. I can live through them. With this heroine, I'm not getting that.

What are your thoughts about the heroine? How do you feel about the other three pilots, Emmie and Delores and Mags? Mags makes me think of Pancho Barnes and I wonder if she was somewhat based on that woman, even though the real-life aviatrix was not in the WASP. I think she's my favorite character, with Emmie a close second. 

The WASP, from Wiki Commons

Favorite line from Mags: "They need a strong hand, an educated seat, and a lot of praise." 

Shomeret: I didn't like Shirley at all. I think the point of having her as the central character is that Joyce Faulkner thought readers would identify with her more precisely because she's more concerned with finding a man than with flying. At one point Shirley tells Mags about an incident in her past that is supposed to explain why she cares so much about getting married. As an explanation, it didn't make sense to me. I wouldn't have reacted the way Shirley did to that experience at all.

Tara: I haven't gotten the impression she's interested in men yet. I can't imagine her having sexual relations. Too germy and messy. She'd have to cover her in body in saran wrap.

 
Shomeret: I liked Emmie. Delores got more interesting to me later in the novel. There's another woman pilot who would have made a terrific central character.

I love Mags. This book should be about Mags. She's definitely the most interesting character in Windshift.

As a book about Shirley, it's a soap opera. Many people love soap operas and would therefore give it five stars.

Tara: Meh. Not into soaps. At 40%, I'm pleased that we've finally moved on past everyday life and horseback riding (it had a slow start) and are down to the flying stuff and issues the women faced, such as crappy planes, animosity from the men, their tasks.

Shomeret: What I didn't like about the flying content is that Shirley only does routine assignments. Of course, they aren't described because they aren't in the least bit interesting. Emmie and Mags have interesting assignments, but we are only told about them in summary. There's an incident involving Emmie and Mags that was very dramatic, but we aren't shown anything about it. I feel that Joyce Faulkner's dramatic priorities are very misplaced.

Tara: That is very true. She kept to the easy, safe stuff, too scared to do much else. As I said above, she had no passion for what she was doing. Regarding Emmie,  I especially like how she talked about the men's reaction to her and how she thought if she just smiled and was nice, they'd change their tune, but instead...as she says, "If they are so good at everything, why are they scared of what we might be able to do?"

Moving on...while I was initially really stoked that there is a hearing-impaired man in this story, I hate that he was given this horrid attitude toward women. His views on that girl getting pregnant, it being her fault, and a woman's "place" really ticked me off. I'm afraid there may be a romance here (I think that's a dude on the cover, lower right?) and it makes me sick. Though if it's between him and Shirley, I'd say they're meant for each other. I still don't like her. Too snotty.

Point in the book's favor: This scene between Grant and Shirley in which his views on women come to light DOES do a good job of showing us the confused sexual atmosphere of that time period. ...we were also in a new world where men and women no longer knew what to expect of one another.

Shomeret: There's other period atmosphere in this book. Women aren't allowed to fly when they're menstruating. Joyce Faulkner has a blog entry about that which I found on Goodreads called "Women and Their Periods" in which she points out that this rule was unenforceable because male officers and physicians would be too squeamish about menstruation to ask a woman pilot whether she's menstruating. Women were never supposed to mention such a thing because men couldn't stand the sight of a woman's blood.

Tara: I noticed that convo, but it didn't impact me because it's something I've known for a long time, that women were not allowed to fly whilst menstruating. It's been mentioned in every WASP book I've ever read, but that is terrific knowledge for anyone who hasn't read about them before.

Shomeret: I've read a couple of other WASP novels and didn't notice the menstruation prohibition before. This caused me to do some research. I found out that Opal Vivian Hicks Fagan was a WASP who proved in 1944 that women can fly while menstruating. I also read in an excerpt from Nancy Love and the WASP Ferry Pilots of World War II that Nancy Love appealed the rule grounding menstruating pilots, and that General C.R. Smith ruled in her favor on April 17, 1943.

Tara: I have read so many at this point... It's also been mentioned in a few nonfictions about women in aviation, but it's a fabulous thing to include in the book. BUT, the aircraft mechanic in me is a bit ticked off that I can find no data on this mysterious aircraft, the Wiley Fox. Anyone who does their research can find out what aircraft the WASP flew and I've never heard of the Wiley Fox before. I'd like to think some research was put into this... When I read plane books, I look the planes up and get their data. I want to know. I'm not finding anything called the Wiley Fox. I'm hoping I just missed something pertinent somewhere and this was not just a made-up aircraft, 'cause there are so many fabulous planes from this period that could have been used.

I did, however, find the A-24 the ladies flew for target pulling: (photo from Wiki)

Shomeret: It doesn't surprise me that the plane is fictional since Wiley is a fictional character in the novel.

Tara: It irritates me nevertheless. It would not have been hard to use a real plane and factory.

At 50%... omfg. They had to make this Grant guy not only anti-women rights, but racist too? "They do hate Jews. They feel about Jews like we feel about the Japanese and Negroes."  What does she see in this guy? But for that matter, what does he see in her? 

Shomeret: It was obvious to me that Grant was Mr. Wrong with his attitudes toward women, but I didn't read Grant as racist. I saw that conversation as being primarily about not wanting to believe that Germany had done such terrible things because he himself is a German American. He agrees with Shirley when she tells him that ethnic cleansing is the wrong thing to do. There's some Holocaust content later in the book. It's supposed to show Shirley's compassion, I'm sure.

Tara: I came across that and while I applaud her helping her friend, we have to keep in mind it wasn't really HER but her daddy's doing...

At 55%, the dog thing...I can't say I'm surprised. As a pet parent I've been perturbed throughout the novel with the girls' ignorant treatment of the dog. You do not feed a dog tootsie rolls, bologna, and Jelly Beans. I told myself they didn't know these things in the 1940s and ignored it, but this horrid occurrence I won't speak of...doesn't surprise me in the least. How dumb can you be? Seriously?

Shomeret: So we don't get any great flying scenes. There's supposed to be romance, but I don't see this as a romantic book. Shirley does grow a bit through her exposure to Mags, I think. There's also a crisis in Shirley's life that matures her. Because of that, I'd consider giving this book two and a half bikes, if that were possible. I still didn't really like the book.

Tara: I began to skim at 62%. Everything in it WASP related, such as the B-29, the sabotage, the cockpit that won't open and the fire...it's all been done in every single WASP story ever told. Nothing new here. I finally hit Shirley's big crisis--the most unique aspect of the story--and I feel like that was supposed to endear her to me, but I felt her reaction...making all these people take care of her and risk themselves...was just appalling and in the end, I have to say this story didn't work for me. The romance, the REAL one, came too late, the heroine persistently came across as selfish, weird, and snotty and nothing, not even her crisis made her better in my eyes.

Shomeret: I think that the point of Shirley going through the crisis is that she realized that she didn't want to be in a situation where she had no control of her life which is what she'd have with Grant. 

Tara: Excellent point indeed. Now that you point that out, I see the reason, but I still don't like her or her actions. For me it's important to like a heroine to like a book...so...

Shomeret's Rating:

Tara's Rating:

Shomeret received an ARC of this title on Netgalley and Tara bought it on Amazon.

Strong is Sexy Heroine of the Week: Amanda Katt

Book: Dead Links
Author: Nigel Mitchell
Heroine: Amanda Katt

Amanda Katt is an African American freelance journalist who pursues a deadly conspiracy on the Internet. She's strong because as an African American woman, she's overcome racism to become one of the best investigative journalists in the business. She also has survived attacks and threats in the course of her work, and remained on top. She's also strong in surviving the murder of her father, which causes her to pursue justice in all forms. Katt is sexy because she's beautiful, but also kind and warm with a tenderness beneath her tough exterior.

Blurb:
Investigative journalist Amanda Katt's engagement takes a strange turn when her fiancee becomes obsessed with Araknee, one of the most popular websites ever made. As she investigates, Katt discovers others have fallen under the spell of the website, and the owners of rival websites are dying under mysterious circumstances. When Amanda tries to uncover the secret of Araknee, she finds herself drawn into a conspiracy that could threaten the world.