Writers Read: Gina Robinson

Monday, January 2, 2012

Gina Robinson

Gina Robinson's books include Spy Candy, Spy Games, and The Spy Who Left Me.

Recently I asked her what she was reading. Her reply:

When I'm in the middle of a project, as I am now, I like to read out of the genre I write in. Getting lost in very different voices and stories seems to refresh and renew my creativity. Lately I've been on a young adult binge. And as I have a teenage daughter who's also an avid reader, from time to time we like to read the same books and discuss them when we're both finished. Right now we're reading the latest books in two different YA series and a Christmas book, which is not YA.

First, I'm reading The Iron Knight, the final book in Julie Kagawa's excellent Iron Fey series. I received the first book, The Iron King, in my goodie bag at the Romance Writers of America conference in New York this past summer. It won Romance Writers of America's RITA award for best YA novel. I'm not much of a fantasy reader, so I was surprised by how much I love this series. The general premise of the books is that the faerie world is being overrun and overtaken by a new breed of faerie, the Iron Fey, who feed off of technology and iron, which is lethal to regular fey. One half-human, half-summer fey girl must save the fey world. As she follows her destiny to save the fey, she becomes involved in a bit of a love triangle between herself, her male summer fey guardian and best friend, and a winter fey prince. The winter fey are the enemies of the summer fey, so this poses a problem for her as she falls for the prince.

I love the sense of whimsy and fantasy these stories evoke. They're full of humor and witty dialogue. As an author of humorous spy romances, I'm a big fan of humor. The action moves along, carrying the reader with it. And the reader gets a strong sense of young love and longing that is less physical than most romances for adults, yet highly emotional in the way teenagers are. It's a very refreshing read.

The second book I'm reading is the second book in the Bright Young Things series by Anna Godbersen, Beautiful Days. The series is set in the late 1920s, which is perfect because I love historical books. The series follows three young women trying to find love, fame, fortune, and their way in life during the last years of the Roaring Twenties. The girls in these books fascinate me with their boldness and drive. Sometimes it's like watching a train wreck happen. You want to step in and stop them from doing things that will mess up their lives, and yet it's engaging to read about. The characters are well drawn and the plot moves right along. I tell my daughter the things these girls do are examples of what not to do.

And finally, I'm writing this during the holiday season, which means I'm reading a Christmas book, as I do every year between Thanksgiving and Christmas. This year I'm reading The Nine Lives of Christmas by Sheila Roberts, which is about a matchmaking cat on its ninth life. This book makes me laugh and smile. It's a small book, just over 200 pages, lighthearted and sweet. The perfect break from the holiday stress.