Ummm... was there supposed to be an actual romance in here somewhere?
This was my first book by Johanna Lindsey, and I'll be honest... I was really disappointed. I admit I bought this book without checking out the ratings on Amazon.com... I ALWAYS check ratings first, so shame on me! But this was a last minute audio book purchase before an emergency eye surgery so I needed to buy SOMETHING! I've decided I may check out some of her earlier works because other reviews indicate she has much better fare than this latest effort, but really, this book contained no romance. It was all lust with no chemistry whatsoever and an absolute jerk for a hero, who ended up not being any sort of a hero at all! Would you want a man who consistently told you over and over again that he didn't believe you, didn't trust you? Accused you of being a liar even when there was proof to the contrary? I sure wouldnt! With that, the story became completely unrealistic real fast. And if I had to read one more time about how "angelic" Rupert was in Rebecca's eyes, I swear the audiobook discs were going to become frisbees for my dogs. Clearly his "angelic" glow impaired Rebecca's vision!
The potential for a great story was definitely there but it all just fell short. I was hoping Nigel could save the story and pair Rebecca and Rupert together to unfoil a good plot against the crown. The possibilities were endless yet the whole scenario with the Pearsons was so under-developed and brief it seemed like a last minute effort to create a little drama just to give the story some sort of climax, weak as it was. The potential to witness a blossoming romance was there as well but completely ignored. Instead Rebecca endured more accusations of untrustworthiness from Rupert, then of all things, he married her! WHAT?? The ultimate reason for the marriage made sense for the Victorian era, but come on! Rupert didn't believe Rebecca to begin with, so what was the point of marrying? Was that his way of finally acknowledging trust, or was he merely doing what he believed to be the right thing? Either way, that's not at all what I call romance.
This was my first book by Johanna Lindsey, and I'll be honest... I was really disappointed. I admit I bought this book without checking out the ratings on Amazon.com... I ALWAYS check ratings first, so shame on me! But this was a last minute audio book purchase before an emergency eye surgery so I needed to buy SOMETHING! I've decided I may check out some of her earlier works because other reviews indicate she has much better fare than this latest effort, but really, this book contained no romance. It was all lust with no chemistry whatsoever and an absolute jerk for a hero, who ended up not being any sort of a hero at all! Would you want a man who consistently told you over and over again that he didn't believe you, didn't trust you? Accused you of being a liar even when there was proof to the contrary? I sure wouldnt! With that, the story became completely unrealistic real fast. And if I had to read one more time about how "angelic" Rupert was in Rebecca's eyes, I swear the audiobook discs were going to become frisbees for my dogs. Clearly his "angelic" glow impaired Rebecca's vision!
The potential for a great story was definitely there but it all just fell short. I was hoping Nigel could save the story and pair Rebecca and Rupert together to unfoil a good plot against the crown. The possibilities were endless yet the whole scenario with the Pearsons was so under-developed and brief it seemed like a last minute effort to create a little drama just to give the story some sort of climax, weak as it was. The potential to witness a blossoming romance was there as well but completely ignored. Instead Rebecca endured more accusations of untrustworthiness from Rupert, then of all things, he married her! WHAT?? The ultimate reason for the marriage made sense for the Victorian era, but come on! Rupert didn't believe Rebecca to begin with, so what was the point of marrying? Was that his way of finally acknowledging trust, or was he merely doing what he believed to be the right thing? Either way, that's not at all what I call romance.
I enjoy the book but I did like other books I have read by Johanna Lindsey better. My first was the "The Devil whom Tamed Her". That book was great and it made me interested in her other books. I enjoy reading about the Reid family. I also like that period of time she writes about and the locations. It lets my imaginaton run.
You won't regret this book. Great read.
