Rapture’s Heaven by Cyndy Carpenter is a tumultuous historical romance featuring a heroine who navigates through betrayal, love, and adversity, ultimately finding love despite numerous challenges.
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Rapture's Heaven by Cyndy Carpenter
Rating: 
Published: 1983
Illustrator: TBD
Imprint or Line: Zebra Historical Romance
Published by: Kensington
Genres: Historical Romance, Romance with Rape Element, Bodice Ripper, Forced Seduction
Pages: 489
Format: Paperback
Buy on: Amazon, AbeBooks
Reviewed by: Blue Falcon
TOTAL SPOILER ALERT ⚠
The Book
This review is of Rapture’s Heaven by Cyndy Carpenter, a 1983 Zebra bodice ripper historical romance.
The Plot
Lauriette Claymoor, the heroine of Rapture’s Heaven, plans to marry Sir Evan Brimley, a man she’s not sure she loves. Lauriette lives with her sister, Marie-Claire, in London.
There, she finds salvation from various perils by Sir Devlin Essex, Viscount of Delbridge, the typical jaded English nobleman hero of many romance novels.
When Lauriette finds Evan and Marie-Claire in flagrante delicto, she gets upset. Then drunk. So naturally, she and Devlin have sex. Despite this, Marie-Claire tries to force the marriage with Evan, but this plan is thwarted when Lauriette and Devlin marry.
Lauriette and Devlin’s marriage vacillates between happy and unhappy times.
The happy times occur when they are making love.
Several factors cause unhappy times. First is the presence and later death of Devlin’s father, Lord David. Soon after, Devlin’s twin brother, Neville, returns from India, and his presence provides insight into another reason Devlin married Lauriette.
Also causing trouble is the Essex brothers’ cousin, Muriel, who wants to marry Devlin and hates Lauriette for ruining her chance.
Then there are Lauriette’s recurring nightmares about a tragedy.
Finally, there are Devlin’s highly vacillating emotions regarding Lauriette. At the beginning of their marriage, Devlin didn’t believe in love. However, as time passes, he gradually falls in love with Lauriette, despite denying those emotions.
We later learn the reasons for Lauriette’s recurring nightmares. Then she endures another reason to have them when she is raped in a jealous rage by Devlin. After this, Lauriette leaves Devlin and travels to New Orleans, where more danger happens.
Eventually, Lauriette forgives Devlin for all the horrid things he did to her, and they have their happily ever after. Yay.
The Upside
Lauriette is a strong character. She has to be, given the things she has to endure, which, even for an 80’s bodice ripper, are many.
The Downside
The biggest downside of Rapture’s Heaven is Devlin, a standard male romance novel hero. His philosophy can be paraphrased as follows: “I can have an affair after we’re married [which he does], but if you look at any other man, I will kill you.” I am beyond these hypocritical male bastards!
After raping Lauriette in a fit of rage, she blames herself, saying that she provoked the act. That immediately turned me off from the book.
There were other men Lauriette could have fallen in love with—such as Neville or their cousin, Judd—but sadly, that didn’t happen.
There are also storylines, such as Devlin’s going to France to bring back the mother of Neville’s late fiancee, that are completely unfinished.
Sex
There are a lot of sex scenes in Rapture’s Heaven. Some of them are actually good.
Heat Level
The heat is on, and even though this book is all over the place, at least the love scenes are red, hot, and sensual.
Violence
In addition to Devlin’s rape of Lauriette, he grabs and shakes her several times. She also slaps Devlin a few times.
There are scenes of assault and battery, including one where Devlin wins a duel with Brimley.
Bottom Line on Rapture’s Heaven
Lauriette forgives Devlin. I don’t!
And that goes to Cyndy Carpenter for writing Rapture’s Heaven!
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| Overall: | 1.8 |
Synopsis
PASSION’S HORIZON
Enchanting, innocent Lauriette Claymoor could hardly believe such happiness was hers! Over a year had passed since she had seen her English fiancé, the aristocrat Sir Evan Brimley, and she was finally sailing to be in his arms, take his name and share his future. But when the blue-eyed beauty reached her destination, she was devastated by the truth: her smooth-talking lover had utterly deceived her and betrayed her for another…ECSTASY’S DAWN
RAPTURE’S HEAVEN BY CYNDY CARPENTER
Alone, desperate and heartbroken, Lauriette had nowhere to turn…until dashing Devlin Essex rescued her from her plight. He held her against his broad masculine chest and sheltered her in his strong powerful arms. Lauriette knew it was wrong to so completely trust a stranger – especially one who was surely not a gentleman. But he soon ignited her passions with the fiery touch of love, and they were lost in a swirling dream of desire’s splendor and RAPTURE’S HEAVEN.
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