Helpful Score: 2
Sweet romantic Cinderella type story - a little too syrupy for me at times.
Helpful Score: 1
~ THE FIRST HALF WAS WONDERFUL, BUT LOST SOME OF ITS SPARKLE AFTER THAT (3.5 stars) ~
I was really looking forward to reading this book, as I love heroines who are plain, serious, on the shelf, and all that good stuff, lol. Susannah definitely delivers on that end, but she's also *much* more: she's strong, generous, intelligent, and all-around lovely. She is essentially the head of her household, taking care of her three younger sisters and her absentminded father, who is a reverend. Susannah has held this caretaker role since she was 14 and her mother died. While she is at times content, she is never truly happy, and has given up on the idea that she might have a family and home of her own someday.
Her pairing with Ian Connelly (also the Marquis of Derne, though she doesn't know it) was absolutely perfect. He was a "bad boy" in his previous life (read: rake/rogue) and is truly considered one now, having been (wrongly) convicted of attempted murder and sent to America to serve a term of indentured servitude. While this book was written awhile ago, Ian is not an 80s-throwback hero, of which I was very relieved. He's an alpha male-type definitely, but I liked that he *does* work the farm and wants to learn how to help the family. He's a marquis, has no experience with physical labor, and was pretty much a wenching wastrel before all of this happened, yet he doesn't act spoiled or condescending.
The exchanges between Ian and Susannah were very sweet; I so enjoyed watching him tease her and seeing Susannah lighten up a little and allow herself to enjoy things. They are very much opposites, but fit together perfectly. The first half of the book was great, because we get to see their relationship develop through this odd-prism of Susannah thinking Ian is an indentured servant she bought (and ex-servant) and a man she's falling in love with, and Ian beginning to realize that Susannah is so much more than she shows the world and that all the other beautiful (but spiteful and greedy) women he's known pale in comparison to her.
CRITICISMS:
The second half is where things decidedly went downhill for me. I don't want to give anything away regarding the plot, so I will just say the following:
-- What could have been an emotional and lovely reunion was not.
-- Susannah has a decidedly shrewish period, one that is somewhat understandably, but a little over the top.
-- The entire subplot of how Ian was betrayed and forced into indentured servitude is resolved completely "off-screen" (off-page?) and is unbelievably anti-climactic - twice-over.
-- Parts of the subplot seem to come out of nowhere and involve people we've never met before or even been told about.
-- For most of the second half, the romantic relationship between Susannah and Ian is very different from what it was before - and not in a good way. It felt very seedy and far more superficial - and mostly physical - than it had before. Also, their personalities seem very changed, though I'm not sure whether that was what contributed to the seediness-feeling or vice versa.
-- The ending was a little anti-climactic and I feel that more should have been resolved between them, both emotionally and practically/logistically.
I also did not like the fact that almost all of the book was told from Susannah's POV. It made me feel very blind as to what was going on emotionally and internally with Ian, and I would have liked more insight into his feelings and thoughts.
Two other minor complaints: Whatever happened with Jed, the wife-beater? And Susannah's sister Mandy was very, very annoying.
BOTTOM LINE:
While this book could have easily been turned into a 4.5 or maybe even 5 star read for me, several things in the second half of the book decidedly lowered my opinion. I'm glad that I read the book and would recommend it, however I'm also happy that I got it from the library and did not buy my own copy.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
In many ways, this book reminded me of Lorraine Heath's series Rogues in Texas, which revolves around three English "gentlemen" who are all sent by their families to America "for their own good." They are best friends: one is a duke's bastard, another an aimless and direction-less second son, and the third a gambling addict.
Book 1 - A Rogue in Texas (4 stars)
Book 2 - Never Love a Cowboy (4 stars)
Book 3 - Never Marry a Cowboy (unread)
I was really looking forward to reading this book, as I love heroines who are plain, serious, on the shelf, and all that good stuff, lol. Susannah definitely delivers on that end, but she's also *much* more: she's strong, generous, intelligent, and all-around lovely. She is essentially the head of her household, taking care of her three younger sisters and her absentminded father, who is a reverend. Susannah has held this caretaker role since she was 14 and her mother died. While she is at times content, she is never truly happy, and has given up on the idea that she might have a family and home of her own someday.
Her pairing with Ian Connelly (also the Marquis of Derne, though she doesn't know it) was absolutely perfect. He was a "bad boy" in his previous life (read: rake/rogue) and is truly considered one now, having been (wrongly) convicted of attempted murder and sent to America to serve a term of indentured servitude. While this book was written awhile ago, Ian is not an 80s-throwback hero, of which I was very relieved. He's an alpha male-type definitely, but I liked that he *does* work the farm and wants to learn how to help the family. He's a marquis, has no experience with physical labor, and was pretty much a wenching wastrel before all of this happened, yet he doesn't act spoiled or condescending.
The exchanges between Ian and Susannah were very sweet; I so enjoyed watching him tease her and seeing Susannah lighten up a little and allow herself to enjoy things. They are very much opposites, but fit together perfectly. The first half of the book was great, because we get to see their relationship develop through this odd-prism of Susannah thinking Ian is an indentured servant she bought (and ex-servant) and a man she's falling in love with, and Ian beginning to realize that Susannah is so much more than she shows the world and that all the other beautiful (but spiteful and greedy) women he's known pale in comparison to her.
CRITICISMS:
The second half is where things decidedly went downhill for me. I don't want to give anything away regarding the plot, so I will just say the following:
-- What could have been an emotional and lovely reunion was not.
-- Susannah has a decidedly shrewish period, one that is somewhat understandably, but a little over the top.
-- The entire subplot of how Ian was betrayed and forced into indentured servitude is resolved completely "off-screen" (off-page?) and is unbelievably anti-climactic - twice-over.
-- Parts of the subplot seem to come out of nowhere and involve people we've never met before or even been told about.
-- For most of the second half, the romantic relationship between Susannah and Ian is very different from what it was before - and not in a good way. It felt very seedy and far more superficial - and mostly physical - than it had before. Also, their personalities seem very changed, though I'm not sure whether that was what contributed to the seediness-feeling or vice versa.
-- The ending was a little anti-climactic and I feel that more should have been resolved between them, both emotionally and practically/logistically.
I also did not like the fact that almost all of the book was told from Susannah's POV. It made me feel very blind as to what was going on emotionally and internally with Ian, and I would have liked more insight into his feelings and thoughts.
Two other minor complaints: Whatever happened with Jed, the wife-beater? And Susannah's sister Mandy was very, very annoying.
BOTTOM LINE:
While this book could have easily been turned into a 4.5 or maybe even 5 star read for me, several things in the second half of the book decidedly lowered my opinion. I'm glad that I read the book and would recommend it, however I'm also happy that I got it from the library and did not buy my own copy.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
In many ways, this book reminded me of Lorraine Heath's series Rogues in Texas, which revolves around three English "gentlemen" who are all sent by their families to America "for their own good." They are best friends: one is a duke's bastard, another an aimless and direction-less second son, and the third a gambling addict.
Book 1 - A Rogue in Texas (4 stars)
Book 2 - Never Love a Cowboy (4 stars)
Book 3 - Never Marry a Cowboy (unread)
Helpful Score: 1
I read this book while I was on vacation at the beach, and it was a perfect book to read while on vacation. I thought it was great and a sweet love story without being too sappy. Both h/h were strong willed people used to being in control so it was fun to see the dynamics between them as they fought for domination in their relationship. I liked the fact that it was more than beauty that drew the hero to to the heroine. She was considered to be "dowdy" by everyone, including him, in the beginning, and she relied on something other than her looks to gain the respect and attention of those around her. She transformed into a beauty at some point, but much of that seemed to be in the eyes of the hero, which was nice. I really liked the book and would highly recommend it.
A great historical romance with a Colonial setting!
I really enjoyed this book.
Entertaining...good plot...
Cute story!
From the inside flap:
In Carolina Colony, the community admired Susannah Redmon, plain eldest daughter of the preacher. Her herbal healing skills made her an angel of mercy, her determination held together the family's farm, and her strong will always got her what she wanted--even the buying of a man. But no suitor had ever courted her...
Ian Connelly, Marquis of Derne, had been betrayed, branded a criminal, and beaten. Still defiant, he had been indentured and transported to the Colonies, where a bossy, primly proper woman had bought him! But he alone saw the strength of her character, the gold in her tawny hair, and, in her eyes, the fire of her long-hidden desire...
Now Susannah "owned" this magnificently handsome rogue, but it was his passion that could free her imprisoned, lonely heart. From the frontier South to society London or even to hell itself, with her body she would worship him and with her soul she would love him, for she was...Nobody's Angel.
From the inside flap:
In Carolina Colony, the community admired Susannah Redmon, plain eldest daughter of the preacher. Her herbal healing skills made her an angel of mercy, her determination held together the family's farm, and her strong will always got her what she wanted--even the buying of a man. But no suitor had ever courted her...
Ian Connelly, Marquis of Derne, had been betrayed, branded a criminal, and beaten. Still defiant, he had been indentured and transported to the Colonies, where a bossy, primly proper woman had bought him! But he alone saw the strength of her character, the gold in her tawny hair, and, in her eyes, the fire of her long-hidden desire...
Now Susannah "owned" this magnificently handsome rogue, but it was his passion that could free her imprisoned, lonely heart. From the frontier South to society London or even to hell itself, with her body she would worship him and with her soul she would love him, for she was...Nobody's Angel.
With a farm to run and three sisters to care for like in Carolina Colony was hard for a preacher's daughter...
In Carolina Colony, the community admired Susannah Redmon, plain eldest daughter of the preacher. Her herbal healing skills made her an angel of mercy, her determination held together the family's farm, and her strong will always got her what she wanted-even the buying of a man. But no suitor had ever courted her.
Great story. Loved it
~ THE FIRST HALF WAS WONDERFUL, BUT LOST SOME OF ITS SPARKLE AFTER THAT (3.5 stars) ~
I was really looking forward to reading this book, as I love heroines who are plain, serious, on the shelf, and all that good stuff, lol. Susannah definitely delivers on that end, but she's also *much* more: she's strong, generous, intelligent, and all-around lovely. She is essentially the head of her household, taking care of her three younger sisters and her absentminded father, who is a reverend. Susannah has held this caretaker role since she was 14 and her mother died. While she is at times content, she is never truly happy, and has given up on the idea that she might have a family and home of her own someday.
Her pairing with Ian Connelly (also the Marquis of Derne, though she doesn't know it) was absolutely perfect. He was a "bad boy" in his previous life (read: rake/rogue) and is truly considered one now, having been (wrongly) convicted of attempted murder and sent to America to serve a term of indentured servitude. While this book was written awhile ago, Ian is not an 80s-throwback hero, of which I was very relieved. He's an alpha male-type definitely, but I liked that he *does* work the farm and wants to learn how to help the family. He's a marquis, has no experience with physical labor, and was pretty much a wenching wastrel before all of this happened, yet he doesn't act spoiled or condescending.
The exchanges between Ian and Susannah were very sweet; I so enjoyed watching him tease her and seeing Susannah lighten up a little and allow herself to enjoy things. They are very much opposites, but fit together perfectly. The first half of the book was great, because we get to see their relationship develop through this odd-prism of Susannah thinking Ian is an indentured servant she bought (and ex-servant) and a man she's falling in love with, and Ian beginning to realize that Susannah is so much more than she shows the world and that all the other beautiful (but spiteful and greedy) women he's known pale in comparison to her.
CRITICISMS:
The second half is where things decidedly went downhill for me. I don't want to give anything away regarding the plot, so I will just say the following:
-- What could have been an emotional and lovely reunion was not.
-- Susannah has a decidedly shrewish period, one that is somewhat understandably, but a little over the top.
-- The entire subplot of how Ian was betrayed and forced into indentured servitude is resolved completely "off-screen" (off-page?) and is unbelievably anti-climactic - twice-over.
-- Parts of the subplot seem to come out of nowhere and involve people we've never met before or even been told about.
-- For most of the second half, the romantic relationship between Susannah and Ian is very different from what it was before - and not in a good way. It felt very seedy and far more superficial - and mostly physical - than it had before. Also, their personalities seem very changed, though I'm not sure whether that was what contributed to the seediness-feeling or vice versa.
-- The ending was a little anti-climactic and I feel that more should have been resolved between them, both emotionally and practically/logistically.
I also did not like the fact that almost all of the book was told from Susannah's POV. It made me feel very blind as to what was going on emotionally and internally with Ian, and I would have liked more insight into his feelings and thoughts.
Two other minor complaints: Whatever happened with Jed, the wife-beater? And Susannah's sister Mandy was very, very annoying.
BOTTOM LINE:
While this book could have easily been turned into a 4.5 or maybe even 5 star read for me, several things in the second half of the book decidedly lowered my opinion. I'm glad that I read the book and would recommend it, however I'm also happy that I got it from the library and did not buy my own copy.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
In many ways, this book reminded me of Lorraine Heath's series Rogues in Texas, which revolves around three English "gentlemen" who are all sent by their families to America "for their own good." They are best friends: one is a duke's bastard, another an aimless and direction-less second son, and the third a gambling addict.
Book 1 - A Rogue in Texas (4 stars)
Book 2 - Never Love a Cowboy (4 stars)
Book 3 - Never Marry a Cowboy (unread)
I was really looking forward to reading this book, as I love heroines who are plain, serious, on the shelf, and all that good stuff, lol. Susannah definitely delivers on that end, but she's also *much* more: she's strong, generous, intelligent, and all-around lovely. She is essentially the head of her household, taking care of her three younger sisters and her absentminded father, who is a reverend. Susannah has held this caretaker role since she was 14 and her mother died. While she is at times content, she is never truly happy, and has given up on the idea that she might have a family and home of her own someday.
Her pairing with Ian Connelly (also the Marquis of Derne, though she doesn't know it) was absolutely perfect. He was a "bad boy" in his previous life (read: rake/rogue) and is truly considered one now, having been (wrongly) convicted of attempted murder and sent to America to serve a term of indentured servitude. While this book was written awhile ago, Ian is not an 80s-throwback hero, of which I was very relieved. He's an alpha male-type definitely, but I liked that he *does* work the farm and wants to learn how to help the family. He's a marquis, has no experience with physical labor, and was pretty much a wenching wastrel before all of this happened, yet he doesn't act spoiled or condescending.
The exchanges between Ian and Susannah were very sweet; I so enjoyed watching him tease her and seeing Susannah lighten up a little and allow herself to enjoy things. They are very much opposites, but fit together perfectly. The first half of the book was great, because we get to see their relationship develop through this odd-prism of Susannah thinking Ian is an indentured servant she bought (and ex-servant) and a man she's falling in love with, and Ian beginning to realize that Susannah is so much more than she shows the world and that all the other beautiful (but spiteful and greedy) women he's known pale in comparison to her.
CRITICISMS:
The second half is where things decidedly went downhill for me. I don't want to give anything away regarding the plot, so I will just say the following:
-- What could have been an emotional and lovely reunion was not.
-- Susannah has a decidedly shrewish period, one that is somewhat understandably, but a little over the top.
-- The entire subplot of how Ian was betrayed and forced into indentured servitude is resolved completely "off-screen" (off-page?) and is unbelievably anti-climactic - twice-over.
-- Parts of the subplot seem to come out of nowhere and involve people we've never met before or even been told about.
-- For most of the second half, the romantic relationship between Susannah and Ian is very different from what it was before - and not in a good way. It felt very seedy and far more superficial - and mostly physical - than it had before. Also, their personalities seem very changed, though I'm not sure whether that was what contributed to the seediness-feeling or vice versa.
-- The ending was a little anti-climactic and I feel that more should have been resolved between them, both emotionally and practically/logistically.
I also did not like the fact that almost all of the book was told from Susannah's POV. It made me feel very blind as to what was going on emotionally and internally with Ian, and I would have liked more insight into his feelings and thoughts.
Two other minor complaints: Whatever happened with Jed, the wife-beater? And Susannah's sister Mandy was very, very annoying.
BOTTOM LINE:
While this book could have easily been turned into a 4.5 or maybe even 5 star read for me, several things in the second half of the book decidedly lowered my opinion. I'm glad that I read the book and would recommend it, however I'm also happy that I got it from the library and did not buy my own copy.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
In many ways, this book reminded me of Lorraine Heath's series Rogues in Texas, which revolves around three English "gentlemen" who are all sent by their families to America "for their own good." They are best friends: one is a duke's bastard, another an aimless and direction-less second son, and the third a gambling addict.
Book 1 - A Rogue in Texas (4 stars)
Book 2 - Never Love a Cowboy (4 stars)
Book 3 - Never Marry a Cowboy (unread)
Set in the Carolinas during the colonial period, this saucy Cinderella story concerns the unexpected seduction of a Methodist minister's plain and practical daughter. Susannah Redmond, who has sacrificed much of her youth to care for her otherworldly father and her three motherless younger sisters, buys an indentured prisoner named Ian to help with the heavy chores. When Ian washes and shaves his beard, Susannah finds (to her horror) that he's the devilishly handsome prince of her dreams. Though she fears he will seduce her innocent sisters, she is the one who loses her virginity and her heart to him. It turns out, of course, that Ian is actually the wealthy Marquis of Derne. When he returns to England to right the wrong done to him and recoup his title and riches, he takes the incredulous Susannah with him against her will. Amidst the glamour of London's high society, she realizes she has given her heart and her body to a man whose social standing is far above hers. Though she returns home to Beaufort, all ends happily in this lighthearted romance, which is sure to please readers who relish sexy period romps.
---------------
Hardcover debut for veteran romance-writer Robards--the titillating story, set in 1769 in the Carolinas, of a minister's daughter who falls in love with the indentured servant whom she's purchased. Susannah Redmon, a 26-year-old spinster who's spent the last dozen years acting as a mother to her three younger sisters and helping her widowed father run the family farm, decides to buy an indentured servant at a public auction. Her choice falls on Ian Connelly--filthy, starving, and suffering from repeated beatings; before he can work, Susannah must nurse him back to health. As she does, she discovers, of course, that he's devilishly handsome. Soon the formerly prim minister's daughter--in an engaging Lady Chatterley-like situation--is romping about with her bound man in a most unseemly fashion. But the plot becomes thinner and more strained when Susannah, having finally decided to marry Ian, discovers him missing from his room (left in terrifying disarray, including a bloodstained mattress). She spends weeks imagining the worst, and when she does find him--at a wharf in Charles Town-- she's so overcome that she faints. She wakes to find herself on board a ship bound for England. Turns out that Connelly is nothing less than a marquis, returning home to deal with the ``enemies'' (his stepmother and half-brother) who were responsible for his plight...though there are problems still to come before the predictable happy close. A fairly enjoyable romantic read--until that heavily contrived last third.
---------------
Hardcover debut for veteran romance-writer Robards--the titillating story, set in 1769 in the Carolinas, of a minister's daughter who falls in love with the indentured servant whom she's purchased. Susannah Redmon, a 26-year-old spinster who's spent the last dozen years acting as a mother to her three younger sisters and helping her widowed father run the family farm, decides to buy an indentured servant at a public auction. Her choice falls on Ian Connelly--filthy, starving, and suffering from repeated beatings; before he can work, Susannah must nurse him back to health. As she does, she discovers, of course, that he's devilishly handsome. Soon the formerly prim minister's daughter--in an engaging Lady Chatterley-like situation--is romping about with her bound man in a most unseemly fashion. But the plot becomes thinner and more strained when Susannah, having finally decided to marry Ian, discovers him missing from his room (left in terrifying disarray, including a bloodstained mattress). She spends weeks imagining the worst, and when she does find him--at a wharf in Charles Town-- she's so overcome that she faints. She wakes to find herself on board a ship bound for England. Turns out that Connelly is nothing less than a marquis, returning home to deal with the ``enemies'' (his stepmother and half-brother) who were responsible for his plight...though there are problems still to come before the predictable happy close. A fairly enjoyable romantic read--until that heavily contrived last third.
An American innocent, and English schoundrel...together they found a world apart. In Carolina Colony, the community admired Susannah Redmon, plain eldest daughter of the preacher. Her herbal healing skills made her an angel of mercy, her determination held together the family's farm, and her strong will always got her what she wanted---even the buying of a man. But no suitor had every courted her.
Orignial 1992 publication so the cover is a different. Another great book by Karen Robards.
