Good Doggy by Gemma Parkes

I was a little skeptical. I believe I had every right to be skeptical. After posting my review of Alison Tyler's "On Finding Jon's Porn" on Good Reads - which then announces it on Twitter - I got a reply about Gemma Parke's short story, "Good Doggy." Being the good book hunter that I am, I quickly went over to Amazon to check things out. I then went to Good Reads to see what others were saying about the story in question or anything else by Gemma Parkes. 

"Good Doggy" wasn't the story that caught my eye. That was reserved for "Home Visits." However, I was deterred from purchasing either story. The reason? Both stories had five-star ratings, which were give by Gemma Parkes. There's nothing wrong with self-promotion, so I don't hold it against the author to advertise on Twitter by replying to anything I post. In fact, I encourage new or unknown writers to do so. However, I draw the line at self-rating. So I almost went without purchasing any story by Gemma Parkes. But then, curiosity - as it is my mortal enemy - overwhelmed me and I purchased "Good Doggy."

I've never heard of the term dogging before tonight. It's essentially having sex in a car parked in a public place with other people watching or even joining in. Okay, you've piqued my interest. 

The story follows a woman's introduction to the dogging scene. The story isn't any special, but I'm not stating it's not worth a gander - it most certainly is. I'm not going to jump the shark and state that Gemma Parkes should just quit while she's ahead. Maybe this story wasn't for me. Maybe, I should've just gone ahead and purchased "Home Visits" instead. Either way, I'm not going to quit on her now. 

My problems with the story - first let me go over the superficial things - starts with the format. I don't know who to blame this on - I mean, Alison Tyler's "On Finding Jon's Porn" also had some format faults that bugged me. Spacing before paragraphs that come and go begins to make me tick. The pace was also a tad too quick. Sex is supposed to be sensual, therefore, erotica should follow suit. If you're lover doesn't tease you with foreplay and rushes to the point, you feel unsatisfied and unworthy of their patience. The same goes for the erotic writer. I don't want "less poetry." I don't want the writer to just "be specific." I'm also not looking for the next Anaïs Nin. If I wanted cheap thrills, I'd just watch pornography.

Gemma Parkes has potential. And I wish her luck on this journey. "Good Doggy" is available for Kindle for only $1.00. Until next time, keep on huntin'.

Doc: A Novel by Mary Doria Russell

First of all, I'd like to thank the great people at Good Reads who gave me the opportunity of being one of the first readers of Mary Doria Russell's historical novel, Doc. For those of you who don't know, Good Reads hosts giveaways held by publishers and authors - from well-known authors to indie writers.

John Henry Holliday, better known as Doc Holliday in popular culture, was immortalized as a quick-drawing, drunk, gambling gunslinger in  movies like Tombstone and the docu-drama, Wyatt Earp. His been portrayed on screen by actors like Val Kilmer, Kirk Douglas and Dennis Quaid. But how much of Doc Holliday - as well as, his relationship with Wyatt Earp - do we actually know? He was made famous because of the shoot out at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, AZ, which only lasted less than a minute. Dime store novelists and Hollywood producers wanted more action, more thrills. Soon the mere dentist, slowly dying of consumption, was turned into a fiend, an anti-hero.

Mary Doria Russell set off on her writing adventure to capture the man, not the legend, unmuddied by media-created lies. And in doing so, she created an image of Dr. John Henry Holliday - the dentist, the good friend, the lost soul, the taker of those abandoned and less fortunate - that we would otherwise never have known - despite the evidence and literature that contradict pop culture.

Russell's novel isn't exactly a western, though it does have its feel. More poetic than a regular historical novel. She allows the reader to make judgments and comparisons - once in a while, flash forwarding us to the future persona Doc Holliday would hold.

When Dr. John Henry Holliday - a dentist who just established his practice in Dodge City, Kansas - is called to inspect the burned body of young John Horse Sanders, he calls foul play. Because Sanders is Negro, Bat Masterson disregards the death, calling it accidental. What doesn't make sense is, Sanders' body was found in the ashes of the Elephant Barn when he didn't own a horse. But in Dodge City, everyone is suspect. When Wyatt Earp returns from Texas, he learns of the death. Panged with guilt, Earp takes on the position of lawman for Dodge City, alongside his younger brother, Morgan. The event of John Horse Sanders' death draws the three men closer.

Mary Doria Russell gives us a look of life before Tombstone, something that is rarely done. She casts away any popular culture depictions of Holliday and the Earps, placing poetic prose in their place. The book hits shelves on May 3 and will be available in Kindle and Nook.

Free Books, Giveaways & Other Musing

If there's one thing a book hunter loves more than a book, it's a free book! Cheesy and predictable, I know but that doesn't rob it from the truth. Last year, without much announcement, I found a copy of Madeleine Wickham's - otherwise known as the Shopaholic Series writer, Sophie Kinsella - A Desirable Residence. Fearing the worse - a book hunter blackout shopping spree - I didn't know where the book came from. I checked out GoodReads, vaguely remembering that I had signed up for several of their giveaways. Lo and behold, I learned that I had won the giveaway for the novel. 

Because I'm horrible at following my preassigned queue - take this year's challenge for instance: I was supposed to read a bunch of books of and about religion and so far only managed to read an essay and half of a book - I still haven't read the novel. Today, however, I got some more amazing news:

Congratulations Guillermo!

You are one of our First Reads lucky winners! You will soon receive a free copy of Doc: A Novel in the mail. Please allow a few weeks for shipping.

Don't forget to add the book to your Goodreads currently-reading shelf, and we encourage you to also add it to a "first-reads" shelf when you are done reading. Posting a review is optional, but please keep in mind that reviewing the book is in the spirit of First Reads. Publishers provide free copies to Goodreads in hopes of getting early feedback about the book. First Readers who post reviews are also more likely to win free books in the future!

If you have further questions, please contact [redacted], who listed this book for giveaway. Goodreads is not involved in the shipment of books to winners. Books usually arrive within 4-6 weeks. If you've waited more than 30 days, visit the Giveaway Details page to let us know you haven't received your copy.

Thanks for playing!

The Goodreads staff

I haven't a clue - well, I didn't at the time - who wrote the book (Mary Doria Russell) or what the novel was about (Doc Holliday), but that didn't matter. What mattered was I won it.

As I continued flipping through my e-mail, I came across a message sent to me via GoodReads from someone who works over at Quirk Books (the publishers who brought us Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls). Letting me down easily and then picking up my spirits, the writer informed me of the following:

Hey there Guillermo!

Saw you entered the giveaway for a copy of Pride & Prejudice & Zombies: Dreadfully Ever After. It just wrapped up and I was going through the folks who entered. Spotted your blog, saw you didn’t win… and thought I’d reach out to see if you wanted a review copy. :)

My name’s [redacted], I’m the social media marketing guy for Quirk Books, the publisher of Pride & Prejudice & Zombies. It’s my job to find book bloggers like you who are into our books, and I figured I’d see if you were still interested.

Let me know! I’ll drop a copy in the mail for you soon. :D

[redacted]

I nearly pissed my pants, I tell you. The excitement - not to mention several glass of cool, refreshing ice tea - was overbearing. I can't tell you how excited I am about this. Not only did I win a copy of a book about Doc Holliday - who I remember as Val Kilmer playing rather than Dennis Quaid - but my book blog was noticed by someone from Quirk Books. You bet your sweet ass I'm gonna sit down and read the hell out of those books - and A Desirable Residence - when they arrive. Until next time, keep on huntin'. And check out the giveaway section over at GoodReads.

P.S. While I'm on the subject of giveaways, I'm still strongly in favor of opening a giveaway for this blog. I haven't found a book to give out, but I'm working on it. Tomorrow I'm book hunting with Monica so who knows.

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