Feb 21, 2009 10:27 PM
1681 Views
This book took the women's movement back 50 years. The women were helpless and mere pawns of their fathers, brothers and husbands. The women graciously submitted to their husbands' punishments and even defended the archaic practices.
Good enough romance but disgusting gender relations! Shanelle seems like a strong woman. She's learning how to fly, she realizes her planet and her father have some backward ideas about how to treat women. Her mother is from a different planet and headstrong.
The book is off to a good start. Then Shanelle meets the guy, Falon. He is rough with her because he "can't control himself." She's bruised and beaten. Get the medical computer to fix her up and it's all fine. (Justifying rape? As long as you can heal fast!)
There's a tug of war between the dad choosing this guy for her and SHanelle not wanting him but wanting him. The guy is continually sexist and demeaning to Shanelle. He calls her "woman" throughout the book. He says things like "you will watch what you say woman!" What self-respecting female reader thinks this type of behavior is okay?
It gets worse when they get to the punishments. The men in the family can punish the women in their family. Shanelle was grateful that her father and brother would only punish her by sending her to the kitchen but in Falon's country they spank the women. This book could have capitalized on some S&M or something but no, it was just plain spanking. And it hurt Shanelle, but "she knew she deserved it."
Thank you Johanna Lindsey for encouraging whatever readers who thought this was a good book to think that allowing men to verbally and physically abuse them is okay. Good job.
