A Win and Two Warnings

Several weeks ago, I discovered a website called Chirp, that offers great deals on audiobooks in many different categories, including Christian fiction and non-fiction. Coming off Christmas, but still needing to be in the holiday spirit since I’m working on the sequel to Tinsel in a Tangle, I was pleased to find Michelle Griep’s historical mystery, 12 Days at Bleakly Manor.

It’s book #1 in the Once Upon a Dickens Christmas series, and though one could qualify it as inspirational, the Christian mentions are not preachy, nor do they detract from the overall plot. And while there is a bit of romance, it’s at once a clean read and wonderfully satisfying for the romantic. Lastly, the writing is superb. Having worked at this craft now for over twenty years, I’m unapologetically picky when it comes to an author’s quality of writing, and I have nothing but high praise for Griep. If you enjoy clean reads set in an English country manor with mystery and a satisfying thread of romance, you will likely enjoy 12 Days at Bleakly Manor. The narrator is truly gifted, as well.

That’s my win.

So enthused with my audio find, I returned to Chirp for another book. I latched onto Kissed by Magic by Erica Ridley. Categorized under fantasy romance and boasting a cute cover (and cute blurb), this book seemed like it would be a light-hearted winner.

No.

It was not.

First, there were expletives sprinkled throughout. Okay. I can handle a few of those, as long as they don’t drop the F-bomb. Then came the first kiss—and with that description I grew concerned that this was not going to be as clean as I had first thought. By the second kiss, 51% of the way through the book, I decided I needed to investigate my choice further. So off to Amazon I went—directly to the 1-star reviews. And that’s where I found it. A sole review that mentioned the explicit sex in this book.

Grrr! 

Long ago, God had convicted me about reading secular romance that went past the closed bedroom door, so I can’t tell you how the book ends as I didn’t get past 51%. But I am writing this as a warning, in case anyone happens across this little title in the future. Please know, this is not a clean read.

My second warning is to those who enjoy the middle grade Wings of Fire series, by Tui T. Sutherland. My two girls have thoroughly enjoyed this action-packed series that features dragons as the main characters, living, loving, fighting, dying, working together, etc. The first five books follow one group of five dragons; the next five follow a second group; and the third as-yet-incomplete “arc” follows a new group. My eldest daughter has loved the series so much, we have pre-ordered the last several books.

The 13^thbook, The Poison Jungle, came out last summer. I ended up returning it a couple days after it arrived.

Over the course of the series, Tui sloooowly begins introducing the concept of homosexuality, but it’s always kept in the background involving minor characters. Um, not ideal, but my kids have to live and function in a society in which they will interact with people who adhere to a different lifestyle. I can’t keep them in a total bubble. So, I allowed them to continue to read the books on one condition: if homosexuality occurred in the main character, we would have to be done with the series. My girls agreed.

Well, it happened: the main character in The Poison Jungle is a lesbian. My eldest daughter discovered it about 1/3 of the way through the book and handed it back to me with some tears (the writing is wonderful for kids, the plots thrilling, the main characters lovable; I wouldn’t expect anything other than sadness at having to put down a book part-way through). I immediately returned it to Amazon, which I mention only to inform you that you can return some books there within a certain time frame.

What frustrates me about The Poison Jungle is that nowhere in the description does it hint at the homosexual content. I have read plenty of reviews in which people gripe about not being told the Christian content of a book. I get it. If you’re not a believer and you pick up an inspirational romance, you want to know ahead of time what you’re in for—so you can decide to push through the Christianese or skip it altogether. As a reader who doesn’t want the bedroom scenes, I get frustrated when, as in the case earlier, I inadvertently purchase something that isn’t clean, because it came with no warning.

There were many parents blindsided by The Poison Jungle, and with the push to normalize homosexuality, this won’t be the last time it happens.

Which brings me to my point with the warnings: Living in a culture that does seek to normalize and downplay sex and all its perversions, we readers must do due diligence in researching potential books (and movies!) to make sure we know what we’re getting into. And if we’re a parent, we must pull double-duty for ourselves and our kids—even (especially) our teenagers. Many times, that research means going beyond the back-cover blurb and heading to the 1-star reviews on Amazon, Goodreads, and other similar platforms. It’s there we will find out if a book has bad language, homosexuality, bedroom scenes, and other questionable content. I know there are those who don’t like to leave bad reviews no matter how much they dislike a book, but such comments are helpful to readers like me who want to avoid certain content.

In today’s age, we can no longer afford to judge a book by its cover alone.