I Don't Want to Brag - But Hey, Why Not For Once? I Have Reviews Coming In.

So 'Ashamet' is out, and has sold some copies, though I have no idea how many. I do know that a few nice people have been generous on Goodreads, either giving it 4+ stars or tagging it 'want to read'. And I'm fine with the one person I saw there who wasn't keen - that's free speech, and it was never going to be a story everyone would approve of, was it?

But I'm even more pleased about the more extensive review on sfcrowsnest. No, of course it isn't saying the book is perfect. Hell, nor would I. But some of the things it did say made my eyes widen, especially since when my publisher chose to quote "Fascinating" my mind immediately began to invent possible contexts for what they hadn't included.

Things like, say, "Fascinating... misuse of adverbs"?
or maybe "Fascinating in its awfulness"?

So it was a relief to read that it actually said "fascinating setting" instead. Not to mention

"very engaging voice"

"For all Ashamet's flaws, I really liked him!"

"I thought about [the story] when not reading it and made time to get back to it."

"When it was finished I wanted to know what happened next."


Wow.
I really appreciate the remarks in this review, both the pros and the cons, and the time and effort it had obviously taken. Reviews are personal things, and no two people will react to a story in exactly the same way, but reasoned, balanced feedback, that's invaluable. And for now, until someone tells me otherwise, I'll make believe I've been lucky and pleased more people than not.