One Year In, So Much Love!

Here are some of my favorite professional review snippets and awards for Silk and Tapestry thus far...

'Northanger Abbey' by Jane Austen, a Mother of Novels and a Timeless Reflection of Human Nature

Jane Austen

Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen has been interpreted as a parody on the popular Gothic novels of her day, which it may be at times… but not utterly.  Part of the quintessential charm of Jane is that she mocks everyone to a degree, since we all can be so ridiculous, but in Northanger Abbey she takes that mockery up a few notches. Meanwhile, she inspires not just generations, but centuries of future writers!

Listening to Northanger Abbey specifically reminded me of plot lines used by other cherished authors:

Emily Brontë

Most notably, there’s Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights: both Catherines (the novels' female protagonists) grow up rather wild and are only recently civilized, though Wuthering Heights’ Catherine makes a feistier adult. I suspect that Emily Bronte took Catherine’s gothic-parody ideas and ran with them, showing just how powerful gothic elements can be! The wild weather, haunted-seeming gothic estate, etc. set the mood.  Austen's Henry has purchased a nearby estate, as does the brooding Heathcliff. The similarities go on.

Then there's Anne of Green Gables. Austen’s Catherine is chaperoned in Bath by an older neighbor friend, a Mrs. Allen who is quite indulgent and pleasant.  Well, Anne Shirley also has a Mrs. Allen mentor friend that she adores—so perhaps LM Montgomery’s Mrs. Allen was inspired by this element of Northanger Abbey.

I was even reminded of The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett in Northanger Abbey's garden bit with a mystery about the mothers.

Northanger Abbey seems to have inspired elements of innumerable amazing novels, of both witting and unwitting authors!  Or perhaps I’m just a bit quick to draw corollaries. Maybe I'm not the only one:  A recent reviewer also recognized parallels between my first novel, Silk: Caroline’s Story, and Northanger Abbey, which is what sent me back to revisit this long-forgotten novel. I’d read an omnibus of the complete Jane Austen novels, including Northanger Abbey, while in college, one lazy summer when I was about 20 years old; now that I’ve just listened to it on audiobook, I'll say that while Silk seems not to have quite the acerbity of Jane Austen, she may have influenced my writing more than I knew.

For example, I found myself relistening to a striking section that just made me laugh—Austen forgets the novel entirely, ranting for pages in a tirade about authors maligning novels and novel-reading in their own writing. With biting wit, she leaves her own novel behind entirely, that whole ‘breaking the fourth wall’ technique.  It’s great.  The third time I listened, I made my Austen-hating husband join me.  His evaluation?  “That was badass.”  So now I’m convinced that even though he still refuses to listen to her, he couldn’t possibly hate her as much as he says he does.

That rant reminded me of a section of Silk in which Caroline goes on in praise of her cheap dime novels; she’s impatient with her brother John’s penchant for Shakespeare—as with Austen, customary literary regard is flipped on its backside. Could this be because I absorbed Austen’s sharp sermon when I was twenty?  And Caroline does go on more than I expected her to (inexplicably, to my authorial dismay), akin to Jane Austen’s strange detour from her story to have that rant.  Austen was impatient with well-done novels being looked on as fluff or silly, saying instead that novels are some of the most astute, insightful perspectives on human nature. I don’t recall exactly how she put it, but go, Jane!  She also talks about other writing being perceived as more high-minded when it really isn’t.

Given this rant of hers, I'm hesitant to cast Northanger Abbey as a full-on parody of the Gothic novels of her day. Austen merely illustrates a girl who is a bit swept away by fanciful notions of murders and hauntings, no doubt mocking some of her own thoughts after reading some popular Gothic novels. She was capturing human nature there, laughing at herself and others. There's an analogy to be had for this situation (demanding respect for novels while mocking the Gothic novels) in Silk as well, as what my Caroline fervently insists a novel should do in her diatribe… well, Silk does not necessarily do.

Then there's a situation in Northanger Abbey where Catherine worries about a carriage’s safety, and her antagonist blows off her concern, creating an expectation in me that there would be a terrible accident at some point in the novel. I waited and waited for it. I’m sure I had the expectation the whole time I was reading the novel the first time, and that expectation may have been fulfilled with Sam’s accident in Silk. There’s a mistreated horse, too, in Northanger Abbey, so like I said, many hints of Silk there. Anyhow, I’m delighted with the Jane Austen comparison, though the books have notable differences, even in genre.  Catherine is smitten with this Udolpho novel in Northanger Abbey, one of those completely sensational thrillers (she says horror), and Silk is perhaps more of a hybrid that way than a strict Austen-style book, as mine has ‘the detritus [of Jessies’ jealousy] littering the Lowcountry landscape”.  Arson, murder, etc.! 

Such interesting corollaries for generations of unwittingly inspired authors, even as the number of authors trying to write Jane Austen spinoffs is already mind-boggling. I suppose there’s an eager market for them, though! But regardless… what an honor for my first novel to be compared to Jane Austen’s first novel (albeit one of her last ones published—posthumously, in fact)—and to then see the similarities for myself, to my own surprise!

All this said, I should share at least one critique of this novel—or, I should say, of Catherine's character in the novel. At the beginning of the story, she is charmed by and befriends beautiful Isabella, who alleviates Catherine's boredom and demonstrates many characteristics of a true friend.  They become attached, spending their days together.  Later, when ill fortune befalls Isabella, much of it through her own poor choices, Catherine has no compassion whatsoever for Isabella.  I could understand better if Catherine were torn about it and finally decided to spurn Isabella anyhow, but Catherine seems to have no qualms whatsoever about turning her back on her unfortunate, flawed best friend—not even seeming to miss her—and I ended the novel liking Catherine far less than I had throughout the rest of it, wondering if she'd ever had any true affection for her friend. Isabella had actually shown herself to be a far truer friend than Catherine. Perhaps General Tilney delivered a sort of retribution (energetically-speaking) when shortly afterwards he mirrored Catherine's judgmental spurning and kicked Catherine out of his house after having so doted on her. You have to wonder about such times when people were so quick to turn their backs on their friends and loved ones, when proper conduct mattered far more to them than friendship or affection. Yet... I'm not so sure that human nature has changed so much in the past couple of centuries, so I'll conclude yet again that this is not so much a statement of the times as it is a timeless reflection of human nature, unfortunately.  [Note: I am discussing the book here, not the film adaptations. Isabella might be depicted a bit differently in the films!]

An illuminating aspect of Austen’s writing is that it is contemporary for her time, so when she describes their notions and ideas, habits and surroundings, I don’t have to wonder, “Does she have that right for the period?” Wonderful how writers can speak to us through the centuries. For example, General Tilney is constantly consulting his watch, so watches are apparently not anachronistic to the early 19^th century. Her contemporary status also cleared up another confusion: I've heard that Jane Austen is one of the earliest popular novelists, but her character Henry Tilney argues that he’s read hundreds of novels. Even Sophia Dorothea (a century before Jane Austen, another of my protagonists) had novels to read, and I’m relieved to hear just how very prevalent they were by Austen’s time. I suppose one might point out that Jane Austen actually is one of the earliest still-popular novelists, though!

Reader Views Review of 'Tapestry' Hones in on Rapunzel Trope

"All that’s missing is her breaking out into song declaring 'Mother Knows Best!'"

Hmm... This reviewer really took to heart the Rapunzel theme in 'Tapestry', though I myself recognized it only in retrospect!

“[A] tale filled with the heartbreak of separated loved ones, the anxiety of growing up in a changing social and material world, altogether while battling demons inside their own home… [A] unique imagining of the classic Rapunzel trope… The lengths [Jessie] will go to accomplish her own goals, even at the expense of those around her (namely her stepdaughters), is both disturbing and shockingly clever… I thought Vivian’s and Gaynelle’s sisterhood in Tapestry was beautifully chronicled.” -Megan Weiss, Reader Views. 

Read the full review: https://readerviewsarchives.wordpress.com/2022/06/30/reviewalexandertapestry/?fbclid=IwAR1KTdbG3dned3PDaBIW6qoIstwrm8d7-5aBJQ1zkDlIhB8zu_11WPKNeJk

Cave Search (a microfiction), plus my trip to Virginia

 

I just completed a wonderful birthday trip (with a longtime friend) to the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, enjoying the ups and downs all the way from the rocky peaks in the National Park to the vast, deep Luray caverns. In the Grand Caverns, the stratigraphy was particularly interesting because a hill had basically fallen on its side (due to plate tectonics long ago), and instead of the horizontal layers on the walls, there were vertical layers in the ceilings, dripping to create interesting shield formations. I didn't get great pictures of them, but just to the left, on the formation closest to these words, there's a lighter ear-shaped shield jutting towards us, as if listening to what I'm typing here. Thomas Jefferson himself actually visited some of the nearby caverns and drew the first known cave maps in the United States!

The caverns reminded me of a couple of my stories, except there weren't any bats yet. I'd have to wait until wintertime to see them in the caves. The above never-before-published microfiction was actually written about six years ago. I hope the escaped slave, a mulatto girl, made it to safety, but at least she found the cave entrance.

Seems I have a particular interest in caves, as my yet-to-be-released YA Fantasy also begins with Addi, a Vessian princess, hiding out with her wolf-dog in a cave, just near the entrance. It's actually Frix's cave, but you'll meet him later...

In the picture below, taken in the Luray Caverns, a pool mirrors the stalactites above it.  I think it's beautiful, though of course much of the credit goes to how the lights were placed.

Mayan Deities Brought to Life in Silvia Moreno-Garcia's 'Gods of Jade and Shadow'

After reading Mexican Gothic on vacation last year, I was quite pleased to have the audiobook of Gods of Jade and Shadows, also by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, to listen to as I meandered up to the Shenandoah valley of Virginia from Savannah, GA for a vacation this year.  It did not disappoint. The genre is a bit different—instead of Gothic horror, it’s considered historical fantasy, mostly set in Mexico in the 1920s and dealing with ancient Mayan death-gods.  I would recommend the novel for teenagers and adults, especially women, who once enjoyed Rick Riordan’s stories about the gods of various world mythologies and for those who enjoyed the movie Labyrinth, as the antagonist Vucub-Kamé sometimes reminded me of Jareth the Goblin King.  Any lover-of-novels who is curious about Mexico should find it an absorbing story as well.  This is only my second novel by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, but I’m already a big fan. She brings her main characters and Mexico to vivid, surreal life. Her strong, practical female protagonists are dreamers—they’re likeable, relatable. In Gods of Jade and Shadows, Casiopea worries about her reputation, about the teachings of her family and the church regarding how single young women should behave. The author draws a vivid portrait of her village life, of how her defiant spirit is recognized—and brings her trouble—even when she thinks she’s being servile.  The characters are mostly well-drawn, though some of the action-filled scenes have side characters that seem as though they could have been written by Riordan himself, they’re that cartoonish (I still very much enjoy Riordan’s writing, too, let me add!). Hun-Kamé, the god that she is trying to help, feels tangible, though—and his transition to being more human only makes his initial godly persona that much more authentic.  The betrayal by his brother, and the subsequent finding of body parts to restore himself reminds me so much of the Egyptian legend of Osiris and Seth that I find myself quite curious how much of this story is truly Mayan legend, and if it is, whether or not there is some ancient, shared connection with the Egyptian myths.

Kirkus Review of 'Silk: Caroline's Story'

"[Jessie's] passion is magnetic right to the end of the story. Alexander does a good job of fleshing out all of the other major characters, but the novel belongs to dangerous, deadly Jessie... A richly atmospheric tale about two very different women seeking their ideal loves."  -from the Kirkus Review of Silk: Caroline's Story.

Literary Titan Thrice Honors 'Tapestry: A Lowcountry Rapunzel'

• "This astonishing novel grabs readers in the first chapter and takes them on a journey that makes it impossible to put the book down. The characters are well developed. Even the minor characters stand out for their parts in this novel... Tapestry: A Lowcountry Rapunzel is a dramatic coming of age and family saga novel exploring the 1920's women rights movement through the eyes of two young women and the romance of unrequited love."-excerpt from Literary Titan review.

Tapestry: A Lowcountry Rapunzel was honored with this lovely 5-star review by Literary Titan, received their Gold Book Award, and was the subject of an interview with Yours Truly.  Those are three separate links, but to see them all together, visit: https://literarytitan.com/?s=Sophia+Alexander