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Sweet Savage love

Historical Romance Review: Sweet Savage Love by Rosemary Rogers

historical romance review
Sweet Savage Love by Rosemary Rogers
Rating: four-stars
Published: 1974
Illustrator: Unknown, H. Tom Hall
Book Series: Ginny & Steve #1, Morgan & Challenger Saga #1
Published by: Avon
Genres: Historical Romance, Bodice Ripper, Western Romance
Pages: 636
Format: Paperback, eBook
Buy on: Amazon
Reviewed by: Introvert Reader


Historical Romance Review: Sweet Savage Love by Rosemary Rogers

TOTAL SPOILER ALERT ⚠

Sweet Savage Love, The (Other) Mother of Romance

Where to begin with this review? Sweet Savage Love by the great Rosemary Rogers is–along with Kathleen E. WoodiwissThe Flame and the Flower–the blockbuster historical that launched a new genre: the modern romance novel.

Published by Avon in 1974, this 700+ page doorstopper was a monumental game-changer in an era of social transformation. Sweet Savage Love showed readers that “good” women could have passionate sex with a hero outside of marriage and also have passionate sex with men other than the hero.

Of course, the hero was laying pipe across the United States and Mexico, the primary setting for Sweet Savage Love.

This is a true bodice ripper, featuring rape, forced seduction, abduction, cheating, adultery, multiple sex partners, a dominant, magnetic hero, and a heroine who stomps her feet in anger while her eyes flash in defiance.

sweet-savage-love-hall
Sweet Savage Love, Alternative Cover version, Avon, Tom Hall cover art

The Hero & The Heroine

Our heroine Virginia “Ginny” Brandon, is the half-French, half-American convent-raised daughter of a US Senator. She has fiery copper hair and flashing, slanted green eyes.

Ginny loves to dance like a gypsy, kicking her legs up in the air, her skirts swirling around her. You will hear this repeated constantly throughout the book.

Steve Morgan is this romance’s–ahem–hero. He is a darkly-tanned former Union soldier with deep blue eyes and black hair.

Rogers modeled him after Clint Eastwood, among others. I also got a Gregory Peck vibe from “Duel In the Sun” about Steve.

Imagine the most macho, virile man you possibly can. Picture ovulating women throwing themselves at his feet while low-T males shrink in self-awareness as that super-male confidently swaggers by.

That imaginary ideal isn’t fit to be a pimple sprouting hair on Steve Morgan’s muscular chest.

Steve is a soldier, a spy, a cowboy, and a Comanche ally. He’s a wealthy ranchero of mixed American and Spanish-Mexican descent. He is muy hombre, as we shall see.

Sweet Savage Love, Alternate Version, Troubador

The Epic Plot

Steve the Stud Meets Ginny the Dancing Gypsy

The lovely Virginia Brandon returns to the United States from France, where she had been raised in a convent. Her widowed father has remarried a gorgeous woman young woman. Much, much younger.

Ginny’s stepmother, Sonya, is quite familiar with Steve “The Stud” Morgan. They shared a passionate night together, where Steve practically raped her. Of course, Sonya enjoyed his illicit forced seduction. There are few women who haven’t fallen prey to Steve’s animal magnetism.

A scandal ensues from Sonya and Steve’s dalliance and Steve finds himself potentially facing the death penalty. He agrees to act as a spy in exchange for his life. It’s suspected that Senator Brandon is up to traitorous acts.

Senator Brandon has interests in Mexico, particularly with the controlling government of Emperor Maximillian. Steve–who is against the French–is charged with accompanying the Brandons across the country. He plans to draw them into a trap with the help of some Bandidos. The plot takes off from here.

Steve kidnaps Ginny, and though she fights him like a hellion, she–like all women with a pulse–falls for his ultra studliness. Circumstances find Ginny and Steve caught in a compromising situation and they are forced to marry.

But do you think marriage will stop Esteban Alvarado (Steve’s Spanish name) from being el tigere that he is? No way. He’s kissing broads in front of his new wife and banging other women on the side.

sweet savage love bodice ripper
Sweet Savage Love, Alternate Version, Troubador

Two Strong-Willed, Beautiful Idiots

The best part of the story is when Ginny and Steve are trekking through the Western wilderness. But Rogers doesn’t like her characters being happy. She throws everything imaginable at them.

The action takes us to Mexico, where Ginny and Steve are separated multiple times. There are lies, deceptions, and double-crosses. Mexican soldiers violate Ginny. A deranged doctor tortures Steve…and then some!

Ginny believes Steve is dead, so she becomes the willing mistress of a young señor.

When she finds out Steve is alive, she goes in search of him. Steve believes Ginny betrayed him, so he despises her, even as he lusts after her ravishing body. Lack of communication and big misunderstandings rule the day.

Oh, will these crazy kids just get over themselves and stay together forever?

My Opinion

Hablo Espanole?

One thing I recall about Sweet Savage Love is that much of the Spanish written was almost gibberish. This was a common occurrence in a lot of 1970s and 1980s romances, be they Harlequin Presents or bodice rippers. Rosemary Rogers’ good friend Shirlee Busbee had that same issue in her book While Passion Sleeps.

Spanish is, I think, the third most common language on Earth. It should have been easy for a former secretary like Rogers to get an English-to-Spanish dictionary and copy down a few words.

Ah, well, that’s a minor gripe.

rosemary rogers bodice ripper

Fast and Furious

The book is divided into sections and begins with a long prologue. It’s a hefty brick of a novel with words in tiny font. Thankfully, Rogers’ prose isn’t as purple and verbose as Woodiwiss’, so the pace is fast.

Still, Rogers has a penchant for repeating descriptions. Mentions of Ginny’s coppery hair and slanted green eyes and Steve’s lean, muscular figure seemed to be on every page. It got tedious.

Once the book got rolling, Sweet Savage Love was a gripping read. Rogers threw so much trauma at her characters; sometimes, I didn’t want to look!

This novel is not for the squeamish, sensitive reader. I first read this at 13, which I think was too young to truly appreciate the grand scope of this tawdry bodice ripper. Sweet Savage Love scared me. I couldn’t conceive heroes and heroines could act the way Ginny and Steve did.

It wasn’t until well into my twenties that I could handle that kind of behavior because my perspectives on romance novels had expanded to be open to new experiences.

sweet savage love rosemary rogers
Sweet Savage Love, Harlequin, 2014

Final Analysis of Sweet Savage Love

Sweet Savage Love is a seminal piece of fiction, a lusty saga all lovers of old-school romance should read.

I wouldn’t rank it the most incredible bodice ripper ever, however. Christine Monson’s Stormfire, Teresa Denys’ The Flesh and the Devil and The Silver Devil, and Anita Mills’ Lady of Fire are better written and engaging.

In my opinion, Rogers’ Wicked Loving Lies is her best book, with more sensitive characterization and deeper themes. It was just more fun than Sweet Savage Love.

The protagonists were wishy-washy and emotional, despite being adults. (At least Steve was a full-grown adult. I think Ginny was 16 or 17 in the beginning.) Steve was a slut. Ginny was a Mary Sue, too beautiful and desirable.

The immature duo couldn’t decide if they wanted to be together or not. The only thing these two could agree on was that they liked banging.

Even so, I enjoyed this overall. Ginny and Steve were larger-than-life people in a story that was larger-than-life.

Sweet Savage Love is an experience you won’t want to miss. It’s a thrilling co-progenitor of the modern romance genre.

I’d rate this bodice ripper between 4 and 4.5 stars. Although it’s not without flaws, I’d say it does merit a high mark.

4.24 Stars

Rating Report Card
Plot
4
Characters
4
Writing
4.5
Chemistry
4.5
Fun Factor
4.5
Cover
3.5
Overall: 4.2

Synopsis:

A tale of human emotion that lays bare the heights and depths of love, passion and desire in old and new worlds…as we follow Virginia Brandon, beautiful, impudent and innocent, from the glittering ballrooms of Paris to the sensuality of life in New Orleans to the splendor of intrigue-filled Mexico.

A tale of unending passion, never to be forgotten…the story of Virginia’s love for Steven Morgan, a love so powerful that she will risk anything for him…even her life.

SWEET SAVAGE LOVE by ROSEMARY ROGERS
texas fire

Historical Romance Review: Texas Fire by Caroline Bourne

Texas Fire is the sequel to Caroline Bourne’s previous Zebra Lovegram romance, Texas Conquest. While better than its predecessor, that’s not saying much.

book review historical romance
Texas Fire by Caroline Bourne
Rating: two-half-stars
Published: 1989
Illustrator: Melissa Duillo-Gallo
Imprint or Line: Zebra Lovegram
Book Series: Texas Duo #2
Published by: Kensington
Genres: Historical Romance, Western Romance
Pages: 498
Format: Paperback
Buy on: AmazonAbeBooksOpen Library (BORROW FOR FREE)
Reviewed by: Blue Falcon


Historical Romance Review: Texas Fire by Caroline Bourne

MILD SPOILERS 😉

The Book

This review is of Texas Fire by Caroline Bourne. This western romance, published by Zebra/Kensington in March 1989, is the sequel to her book Texas Conquest.

Heroine: Laureli Cade, 23, Auburn hair, blue eyes. Heiress to the Wildwood ranch empire.

Hero: Court McKennon, 35. Black hair. Gray eyes. Former detective at Scotland Yard, later Texas Rancher.

Locations: London, England. Brazoria, Texas. 1850-1967.

The Plot

Part I

Texas Fire begins in London in 1850 and will span 17 years. A woman is raped and, while trying to escape her attacker, she falls and suffers serious injuries. This will set the tone for the rest of the book.

The scene then shifts to Brazoria, Texas, where Laureli Cade, the heroine, lives on a sprawling ranch. Laureli is the only member of her immediate family in Texas right now. Her father, Matthew, and mother, Mariah (the hero and heroine of Texas Conquest), are in Europe, and Laureli’s younger brother, Timothy, is at West Point.

As she is introduced, Laureli is trying to catch a wild stallion. She will come into contact with two Englishmen. One is Court McKennon, the hero of the book, who arrives with a woman who Laureli erroneously believes is his wife. The other is Wynn Garrett, a man with many secrets.

Laureli and Court clash, but they are also very attracted to each other.

They become lovers. Soon, there is a dark cloud hanging over their relationship: Garrett. In particular, Laureli and Court’s disparate views of him. Lies and deception soon tear the lovers apart, making Court depart from Texas.

Part II

After leaving Laureli and Texas behind, Court goes to San Francisco, then to London. We learn a bit about Court’s family, including his high-in-the-instep relatives.

He then decides to return to Texas and Laureli. They marry and start a family. However, their happiness is threatened by a vengeful man who wants to harm them both.

Part III

In the end, the threat is neutralized.

Laureli and Court become parents. They have their Happily Ever After.

Upside

Laureli and Court are a well-matched couple, and the love between them is written in a very genuine way.

Downside

Ms. Bourne tries very hard to write an emotional book but doesn’t quite get there. Among the issues preventing this: Laureli and Court aren’t well-developed or particularly interesting characters; the supporting characters are in a similar vein. Ditto for the storylines.

Sex

A few love scenes between Laureli and Court, which don’t generate a lot of heat.

Ms. Bourne is more focused on the emotional aspects of lovemaking and not the act itself.

warm heat

Violence

Assault, attempted rape, battery, shootings, and killings all take place during Texas Fire. None of the violence is graphic.

Bottom Line on Texas Fire

Caroline Bourne’s Texas Fire generates all the heat of one lit match.

It’s a better book than her previous outing, Texas Conquest, but that’s not a particularly high bar to get over.

Tropes: Enemies-to-lovers. Historical romance. Texas.

Rating Report Card
Plot
3
Characters
3
Writing
2.5
Chemistry
2.5
Fun Factor
2.5
Cover
4
Overall: 2.9

Note: Cover points don’t count!


Synopsis

SHE WANTED HIS LOVE
From the moment the arrogant Englishman had arrived at her ranch with a very pregnant woman in tow, he had made Laureli Cade’s blood boil. Not denying his desertion of his wife and baby, the handsome rogue had taken Laureli in his arms and given her the most passionate kiss she had ever known. Outraged, she had ordered the blackguard off her land, hoping never to see him again… But as he stood before her now, she could not forget the way he had caressed her body with his eyes, and the warmth of that kiss he had brazenly taken from her. And she wondered what it would be like to be loved by him, or if she should send this virile stranger away, leaving her to long for him forever….

HE WANTED HER PASSION
For the past seven years Court McKerinon had never once abandoned his mission to hunt down the man who had brutally raped his sister. Until he saw Laureli Cade. She was a goddess, with hair like a sunset on a summer day and lips as pink as roses in first bloom. And he had not forgotten the taste of her sweet mouth nor this fiery creature’s anger when she had pushed him away. Cherishing that memory, all he wanted was to relive it once more, to take from her again and again…

Texas Fire by Caroline Bourne
the kings pleasure

Historical Romance Review: The King’s Pleasure by Shannon Drake

historical romance review
The King's Pleasure by Shannon Drake, Heather Graham
Rating: four-stars
Published: 1996
Illustrator: Franco Accornero
Book Series: Zebra Historical Romance
Published by: Kensington
Genres: Historical Romance, Medieval Romance
Pages: 382
Format: Audiobook, eBook, Paperback
Buy on: AmazonAbeBooks
Reviewed by: Introvert Reader


Historical Romance Review: The King’s Pleasure by Shannon Drake

MILD SPOILERS 😉

The Book

Shannon Drake‘s (aka Heather Graham) The King’s Pleasure is set amid the intense medieval backdrop of the Hundred Years’ War and the Black Death. It’s a solid romance in a historical age that always grips my attention.

theking'spleasurecover

Captive of The King

The story begins with a prologue. The heroine, Danielle, is hiding from her husband in an inn as he searches for her. He’s under the impression that she’s there to have a tryst with a fellow Frenchman. Her husband is a Scottish knight, Adrien MacLachlan, who’s pledged to the English King. Danielle is not there to have an assignation with another man. However, she is there against her husband and his King’s wishes.

Adrien confronts Danielle, and the two have a fiery argument that ends in them making love. They look back at the stormy past that preceded this encounter.

Thus we’re flung back nineteen years prior. King Edward III of England is laying siege to Aville in France. The castle is defended by the resident Countess Lenore and her retinue. A young page, our hero, Adrien, at age 10, discovers a weak point in the walls. This allows the English King to breach it. King Edward takes triumphant control of the castle. He also takes the Countess as his captive back to England after enjoying a few nights of passion with her.

The brief yet intense affair culminates in a pregnancy. Lenore is returned to France, along with their daughter Danielle, as Edward’s vassal. Danielle grows to be more beautiful than her mother. When her mother dies years later, she is made the King’s ward and placed under his absolute control.

Torn between two worlds, the temperamental and fiercely independent Danielle finds it difficult to adjust.

Wed By the King’s Command

As time passes, events form a path to our protagonists’ destinies. On several occasions, Danielle meets Adrien, now fully grown and made a knight. Danielle finds him arrogant and unlikeable. Dislike turns into hatred when she discovers it was he who enabled Edward to take her beloved home. Adrien thinks Danielle is shrewish and detestable.

The King plans to give Danielle’s hand in marriage to Adrien in gratitude for all of Adrien’s victories in battle. Adrien, on the other hand, would prefer Lady Joanna, the daughter of an Earl.

The onset of the Bubonic Plague will change things drastically. Both Danielle and Joanna suffer from the horrific disease, although only one of them makes it out alive.

Danielle finds herself an unwilling pawn in the game of royalty. She is forced to obey the King’s order to marry her enemy Adrien MacLachlan. Danielle hates him for political and personal reasons and vows she always will. While Danielle believes she has a duty to serve the French King, how can she do so? Especially now that she’s bound to a man under service to the English crown?

Intrigue, betrayal, passion, and romance mark the rest of the book. Danielle and Adrien are a fiery combination despite their antagonism toward each other (or, more likely, because of it). Their love-making is explosive. How can they reconcile their differences while war rages on, both literally and figuratively, within their hearts?

Final Analysis of The King’s Pleasure

As I always find when reading medieval romances I enjoy, it’s the history that draws me in. I appreciated the attention to detail and authenticity of the time period. Shannon Drake’s writing is strong. She excels in writing love scenes. The road to getting the actual love was a rocky one, however. Danielle and Adrien enjoy fighting for fighting’s sake. It seemed to act as a sexual stimulant for the two!

I also could have done without Adrien’s back story of his engagement to another woman. Fortunately, he didn’t dwell over much on the loss of his first love, as Shannon Drake/ Heather Graham has made her heroes do in the other books.

Besides being stubborn and misguided, Danielle and Adrien were well-matched, and their HEA was believable. I can imagine them spending many years within their castle walls arguing and then quickly patching matters up for wild make-up sex.

4.24 Stars

Rating Report Card
Plot
4
Characters
4
Writing
4.5
Chemistry
4.5
Fun Factor
4
Cover
4.5
Overall: 4.3

Synopsis

From the bestselling author of Tomorrow the Glory comes a captivating new novel that sweeps from Scotland’s untamed highlands to the Tower of London and war-torn France. Here is the powerful story of two people destined to love in a divided land.

Danielle D’Aville, the ward of Edward III, was sworn to obey the King’s order to marry her enemy Adrien MacLachlan, the legendary Scot who masterminded the fall of Danielle’s beloved home, Aville. Suddenly she was the arrogant knight’s reluctant wife, pledged to a marriage neither desired. But swept off to his castle in the Scottish highlands, and into his strong embrace, Danielle was soon possessed by a raging passion for the husband she had vowed to despise.

The King’s Pleasure by Shannon Drake
A> Loverboy

Category Romance Review: A> Loverboy by Judith Arnold

category romance
A> Loverboy by Judith Arnold
Rating: four-stars
Published: 1991
Illustrator: Unknown
Imprint or Line: Harlequin American Romance #389
Book Series: A Century of American Romance #10
Published by: Harlequin
Genres: Category Romance, Contemporary Romance
Pages: 256
Format: eBook, Paperback
Buy on: AmazonAbeBooks
Reviewed by: Introvert Reader


Category Romance Review: A> Loverboy  by Judith Arnold

MILD SPOILERS 😉

The Book

Published in 1991, Judith Arnold‘s A> Loverboy is the final installment in the Harlequin American Romance line “A Century of American Romance” series. There were ten books in the series, each one focusing on a decade in the 20th century.

Even though they were published in a category romance contemporary category romance line, all the books could be considered “historical” romances.

All that is, except A>Loverboy, which is more like historical fantasy or speculative fiction. Take your pick.

Because instead of taking place in the actual 1990 when this book was published (1991), A> Loverboy is set at a fictional end of the decade, the end of a century, and the end of a millennium.

The Future Past

A> Loverboy is a funny romance about two coworkers falling in for each other in an unusual way. Before there was “You’ve Got Mail” with Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks, there was this book.

Lucy Beckwith is an uptight divorcee working in tech. You can tell I know nothing about computers because of the phrasing I use.

Back in the 1980s, Jim Kazan was a prodigy who’d hacked into the Pentagon. This brought him notoriety and put him on the covers of every major magazine.

Years later, he’s still working in computers, this time in the “new Silicon Valley” of Kansas. In this reality, “The Big Earthquake” finally hit California in the early part of the 1990s. The economy was disrupted, causing many businesses to move out of state.

Lucy doesn’t think much of Jim, except that he’s an egoist who lives off his hacker reputation.

The Future Present

One night Lucy starts getting mysterious messages on her work computer.

A> I crave your body.

Why would anyone crave her body? Lucy wonders. Her ex-husband hadn’t thought much of her shape. Her breasts were the size of lemons, for goodness sake!

A> I want you, Lucy Beckwith.

The messages continue. Rather than being disgusted, Lucy is intrigued. Who was this mysterious admirer?

A> Call me Loverboy.

The flirtatious glowing words on her screen bewilder Lucy.

It’s no surprise that the man behind the messages is the arrogant big-shot Lucy can’t stand, Jim Kazan. Jim tries his best to woo her online and in real life.

Lucy finds Jim’s confidence isn’t so off-putting once she gets to know him. And being desired by a secret admirer is working wonders on her own confidence.

The Future Future

Although the vision of the 1990s depicted herein has “not aged so well,” it’s worth assessing what Arnold’s ideas of a not-too-distant future (that has now passed) entailed. This aspect categorizes A> Loverboy as speculative fiction and romance.

Reading this American Harlequin was akin to watching movies from the ’80s that predicted hovercars and aliens by the year 2020.

I mean, yes, aliens are here hiding in plain sight, as lizard people are wont to do. But we were promised hovercars, too, dammit!

People in this book’s version of 1999 have to wear special lightweight jackets to block out harmful UVRs.

In our genuine “Current Year,” almost everybody wears no less than a minimum of SPF 30 sunblock when they go outdoors in summer. I remember when they sold SPF 5 in tubes, and anything over 10 marked was for only the palest or easily freckled skin. And it was always PABA-free! (Does any modern sunscreen contain that anymore?)

Arnold did get reality TV right. Or at least, programs like “The Bachelor” where people find “real love” in front of cameras and millions of viewers.

Another Element in This Futuristic Romance

There’s a subplot about a teenager named Dara Lynn, who believes that Jim is her father.

Her unmarried mom birthed Dara Lynn during an IVF pregnancy. Jim Kazan–supposedly–donated a specimen to a fertility clinic right before Dara Lynn’s mother sam. She’s connected the dots and set her hopes on Jim as her father.

That subplot is a minor one, however, taking backstage to the main love story.

Jim is a charming rogue, an Alpha nerd who is determined to get the woman he wants. He desires Lucy not only for her body but her brain as well.

What will happen when Lucy realizes the man who’s won her heart like a cyber Cyrano de Bergerac is really the smart-ass, genius whose superior airs and sexy smile drive her crazy?

Final Analysis of A> Loverboy

Despite A>Loverboy not accurately representing the 1990s, I really enjoyed this engaging funny romance.

Lucy was an authentic depiction of an insecure woman who flourished under some much-deserved adoration. Jim was a cute, witty hero.

Judith Arnold‘s humorous handling of this romance left me smiling.

Rating Report Card
Plot
4
Characters
4.5
Writing
4.5
Chemistry
4
Fun Factor
4.5
Cover
3.5
Overall: 4.2

Synopsis

“I crave your body.” Seeing this message on her computer screen, Lucy Beckwith wondered if she’d finally gone mad. It had to be a mistake; at the very least, someone’s idea of a bad joke.

“I want you, Lucy Beckwith.” Her admirer certainly knew who she was—but when Lucy asked for his identity, all he said was, “Call me Loverboy.”

“I dreamed you were in my bed. ” Erotic messages … homespun poetry… outrageous flattery—Lucy couldn’t help but fall for Loverboy’s brand of old-fashioned romance.

“My heart is yours.” Lucy couldn’t believe two people could fall in love when they’d never even seen each other. But at the dawn of the twenty-first century, anything is possible…

A> LOVERBOY by JUDITH ARNOLD
Sarina by Francine Rivers

Historical Romance Review: Sarina by Francine Rivers

historical romance review
Sarina by Francine Rivers
Rating: four-stars
Published: 1983
Illustrator: Morgan Kane
Published by: Jove
Genres: Historical Romance, Bodice Ripper, Western Romance
Pages: 408
Format: Paperback
Buy on: AmazonAbeBooks
Reviewed by: Introvert Reader


Historical Romance Review: Sarina by Francine Rivers

MILD SPOILERS AND CONTENT ALERT ⚠

The Book

Sarina is a bodice ripper-lite written by Francine Rivers, the best-known and most successful author of Christian-centered or “inspirational” romances. This romance is set in mid-19th century California, a time of radical changes.

Some Things We Don’t Talk About In Public

This book was written before Rivers became “born again.” However, she was nominally Christian at the time. Rivers has tried to distance herself from her first 11 books, including Sarina, dismissing them as:

“BC (before Christ) books. They are all out of print now, are never to be reprinted, and are not recommended.” 

FRANCINE RIVERS, regarding her first 11 romance novels

She purchased the rights to all those and will never allow them to be republished as she feels they don’t represent her faith today.

As a free speech proponent, I think it’s unfortunate that Rivers has deemed these books verboten. Furthermore, I disagree that their sexually explicit content dishonors Christianity.

WARNING! I Talk Religion Here, Sort Of

A Non-Church Goer Goes to Church

I worked for a small company many years ago where the boss’s wife (BW) took a friendly liking to me. She was Evangelical, and I was a lapsed Catholic (My mother worked for this company, too & BW was close to her. So Mami told her about my “lack of faith,” which they both found disturbing.).

Long story short, I got hoodwinked into attending a two-day, one-night religious revival at a local hotel. Gathered to worship, there were hundreds of people. I’m Hispanic (Dominican heritage), and I’d say the racial makeup there was 80% European-American, 10% African-American, and 10% Mixed/Other. For two tedious days, I sat through mass, concerts, prayers, and a couple of conferences. It was charismatic-based: laying of hands, people speaking in tongues, collapsing, crying, etc.

I felt…uncomfortable. I had no patience for the ceremonial Catholic Mass as a child: Sit, rise, sit. Kneel, rise, consume the Eucharist. Kneel, sit, rise, kiss a stranger, sit. Rise, wait for twenty minutes while churchgoers socialize, go home, take off church clothes, and see if any good cartoons are on TV.

Mass had been dull but at least predictable. This was strange to me.

Sex and Religion

Anyway, the best part of that weekend (besides the rum cocktail I was able to sneak during a rare minute of solitude) was a panel given by a Black married couple who talked about the importance of sex in Christian matrimony. They did not speak obscenely but openly and honestly, and yes, biblically. The couple talked about how sacred sex is and how physical bonding reinforces spiritual bonding in a marriage. They spoke about the equal pleasure both men and women receive in sex and how it joins two people together just as much as faith and children and everything else that matters.

I sat fascinated. This spoke to me! Finally, something that had actual utility!

However, like George Costanza, I can sense discomfort in other people. I saw it in that audience through the awkward expressions and the fiddling of hands. Afterward, the couple asked if anyone had questions, which no one did. The session ended, and the room quickly emptied out. No one remained to chit-chat with the speakers–as was usual with these panels–except for me, who complimented them on a speech well done.

My Point, And I Do Have One

The point of that extemporaneous babbling–and there is a point–is from this non-adherent’s perspective, sex and Christianity do go hand in hand. It’s lamentable that Rivers views her “BC romances” through a lens of shame. She now writes works that, in my estimation, preach to the choir rather than spread the Word to “unbelievers,” for lack of a better term.

I am a believer. Although I’m not entirely sure about what.

Now, About the Book!

Sorry for all that. You know me and my meanderings. So, let’s focus on the plot of Sarina and my opinion of the book.

Sarina Azevedo-Cahill is the daughter of a Californio family who’ve lived in southern California for centuries. Her father, Dale Cahill, married into the Azevedo family to take control of those lands. The time is the 1850s, and new American settlers are moving into the newly-minted 31st state by the droves.

Sarina’s father, also known as El Señor, is a stern, cruel patriarch who gives his daughter no affection. Their ranch Vallecitas and his legacy are all he cares for. Sarina tries to be a dutiful daughter but finds herself butting heads with her father instead.

The hero is Lang Rossiter, the son of an Anglo family that runs the neighboring Val Verde ranch. Incidentally, El Señor would love to have the Rossiter lands, as they would combine with Vallecitas to form the greatest ranch in the area.

Sarina and Lang first meet while out riding alone. There is an instant attraction between the two. They arrange to meet again. However, when they are caught in a compromising position, Lang becomes furious with Sarina, accusing her of arranging a setup. Obviously (insert eye-roll here), she’s scheming with her father to snag Val Verde.

Lang’s enchantment with her turns into bitterness. He’s a big dick and becomes an even bigger dick before he gets nicer.

A Marriage Made Neither In Hell Nor In Heaven

So, their families force Sarina and Lang to marry. Sarina finds herself tied to a man who is attracted to her but resents her. Lang is at times incredibly cruel to Sarina, who fights back with a resilient will (until the end of the book, where both she and Lang get personality transplants).

Despite their rocky beginning, Sarina and Lang find unity through their passion and faith, which helps them through strife. During a sensually charged love scene, when they finally come together after those rough patches, the ever-dominant Lang places Sarina’s hands upon his body and tells her: 

“A woman has the real power…” 

And then they erotically wash each other before engaging in passionate love-making. 

“A kind of baptism. Washing away the past and beginning again.”

Final Analysis of Sarina

Sarina is a wonderful romance. Lang and Sarina’s tale is of a love transformed from innocent sweetness to resentment to a lifelong bond affirmed in myriad ways.

The two stern heads of the different families receive nuanced characterization. Well represented here are the politics and contentiousness between the old Spanish families and the new Americans. (I do question the authenticity of the name Azevedo as a Spanish surname because I’ve always thought it was Portuguese, but that’s a minor quibble.)

Lang and Sarina’s faith helps fortify them during difficult times in the story. Religion is not hamfistedly inserted anywhere. It plays a historically accurate and natural part in their story, just as Sarina’s complicated relationship with her father does.

I do not understand why Rivers feels that her “BC” romance Sarina is a misrepresentation of Christianity. Actually, I think I do, but that would require a much more extended essay.

Suffice it to say, if you can get your hands on this hard-to-find book, give it a chance. It may surprise you as it did me. And that’s a good thing.

4 Stars

Rating Report Card
Plot
4
Characters
4.5
Writing
4
Chemistry
4
Fun Factor
4
Cover
3.5
Overall: 4

Synopsis:

Fiery Sarina Azevedo was a Californio, with a heart as wild and proud as the magnificent untamed land she loved. Yet her desire and her destiny were both denied her. Her first love was the land, Vallecitas, the magnificent ranch that was her birthright.

But fate had drawn her into the demanding arms of her father’s bitterest enemy, Lang Rossiter, the land-hungry Anglo whose touch set her smoldering passions aflame…

There was only one way Sarina could have them both: the land that was her legacy, and the man her body and soul cried out for…and though her father, el senor, would never forgive her, she would defy her very heritage to seize the happiness she knew love promised…

SARINA by FRANCINE RIVERS
a happily unmarried man

Category Romance Review: A Happily Unmarried Man by Kate Hoffmann

A Happily Unmarried Man, Kate Hoffmann, Harlequin, 1995, cover artist unknown

Harlequin Temptation #533

MILD SPOILERS 😉

4 Stars

Rating: 4 out of 5.

This review is of A Happily Unmarried Man, #3 in the Bachelor Arms series published in April 1995 by Kate Hoffmann.

Bachelor Arms Series Book #3

The story begins at a mall in Los Angeles. Tru Hallihan and Josh Banks have come to the mall to shop for gifts for their respective wives. Tagging along is their friend Garrett McCabe, the hero of the book and a columnist for The L.A. Post newspaper. When Tru and Josh discover that domestic diva Emily Taylor is having a book signing in the mall, Tru and Josh decide to get autographed copies of her books for their spouses. Garrett, meanwhile, decides to write a vituperative column about Emily, ripping her up one side and down the other. He thinks the column is funny.

Others, however, don’t see it that way. Female readers call to cancel their newspaper subscriptions, and Richard Parker, Garrett’s boss, orders him to apologize to Emily, the heroine of the book. (There are other reasons Parker wants Garrett to apologize; he’s trying to buy “At Home,” the magazine Emily owns with her business partner, Nora Griswold).  At first, Garrett refuses to apologize, proffers a “sorry/not sorry” apology, then he and Emily meet face-to-face. Parker then orders Garrett to be Emily’s L.A. chaperone.

As they spend more time together, Emily and Garrett start to realize they have feelings for each other, later becoming lovers. 

In the end, Emily refuses Parker’s offer for At Home, Garrett quits his job at The Post to take a job with The Boston Globe to be with Emily (she lives in Rhode Island). Emily and Garrett marry and have their Happily Ever After.

Upside

Emily is a really easy heroine to root for, a woman who has had self-esteem issues all her life (exacerbated by her mother and bastard ex-husband) who took the skills she has–domestic arts–and turned them into an empire. She’s a very sweet, likable heroine.

At first, Garrett is a bit of a jerk, but as the book goes on, he shows a more caring side, which works well with Emily’s soft, low-key style. 

Downside

Somewhat nitpicking, but A Happily Unmarried Man lacks some of the, for lack of a better word, juice, that Ms. Hoffmann’s first two books in the series had. The book starts on a low boil and remains there for the entire book. 

Sex

One love scene between Emily and Garrett, which is more romantic than erotic.

Violence

None.

Bottom Line

Kate Hoffman gets the “Bachelor Arms series off to a great start with her three contributions to the series. 

Reviewed by Blue Falcon

tender feud

Historical Romance Review: Tender Feud by Nicole Jordan

Tender Feud, Nicole Jordan, Harlequin, 1991, Pino cover art

MILD SPOILERS 😉

4 1/2 Stars

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

The Book

Nicole Jordan’s Tender Feud is an engaging Harlequin Historical where the enemies-to-lovers trope is used against the backdrop of 18th-century Scotland.

The Plot

Katrine Campbell has left staid England behind for adventure in her ancestral Scottish homeland. Unfortunately, her Campbell relatives are feuding with the Macleans. On her first night in her family home, Katrine gets caught in the middle of it all and is kidnapped.

Her captor is hunky Raith Maclean, leader of his clan. Maclean is a widower, not looking for remarriage, and certainly not looking for love with his half-Scots-half-English enemy.

There are tons of sparks flying between the fiery Katrine and stubborn Raith. They argue lots but are secretly attracted to one another. The romance takes time to unwind, as Katrine is one of those “spunky” heroines, and Raith is determined to “dominate” her by his will.

Instead, the two learn to build a relationship on trust. Raith has a young female relative with whom Katrine builds an endearing friendship. Raith’s sexy cousin Callum flirts with Katrine. Although she’s not interested in him beyond friendship, Raith glowers and disapproves.

A romance begins to unfurl between our protagonists in due course, as they always do in these books. Katrine finds herself falling deeply for Raith.

Eventually, Katrine is finally released. But is that what she wants?

Final Analysis of Tender Feud

Tender Feud is one of the better Scottish clan feuding and kidnapping love stories I’ve read. Or maybe it only seems that way since I read it when I was young, and other books with similar plots seem to be derivative.

(Side note, just to point out how old I am, every time I think of this book, I recall at the time also listening to one of deceased Spanish crooner’s Camilo Sesto‘s Greatest Hits albums, which was filled with so many romantic songs. Solo Tu (Only You) is my favorite. So perhaps the music swayed my tastes about this book a teeny bit.)

Still, I consider this a more than satisfying read, as I would always contrast books with comparable plots to Tender Feud and find them inferior. There are many romances with this same story and setting, but to this day, this one still holds a certain charm for me. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that Nicole Jordan is quite a talented author.

I wish Raith’s sexy cousin Callum had gotten his own book. It doesn’t seem to me that he did, but I’d love to be updated if anyone knows for certain.

uncommon vows

Historical Romance Review: Uncommon Vows by Mary Jo Putney

Synopsis:

Lady Meriel de Vere had deceived Adrian, Earl of Shropshire. Standing in the royal forest, her falcon perched on her arm, she boldly claimed to be a Welsh commoner, not a noble Norman. Lord Adrian beheld in wonder her raven-black hair and defiant blue eyes, heard her lies, and felt a dark, primeval passion rob him of all reason.

In one irrevocable move of fate, he ordered this fair beauty locked in his castle’s tower, vowing to entice her into surrendering her kisses with lips as hungry as his own. Never to give in, to die if she must, was Meriel’s vow … until one rash moment of impetuousness swept them both up in the royal battles of kings … and into a dangerous intrigue of sweet caresses … and fiery, all-consuming love. 

UNCOMMON VOWS by MARY JO PUTNEY

VERY MILD SPOILERS 😉

The Book

I’ve read Mary Jo Putney‘s Uncommon Vows several times and have always enjoyed the compelling romance. It’s a passionate medieval bodice ripper about obsessive love.

The Plot

Lord Adrian was set for a life of priesthood when a family death changes his destiny. Lady Meriel seemed fated for a life in a nunnery. But twists and turns made it, so neither of these things came to pass. Instead, Adrian becomes the Earl of Shropshire and Meriel renounces her calling to live under the protection of her brother, a knight.

One day Adrian comes upon Meriel in a field and believes her to be a commoner. Adrian becomes fixated on Meriel’s stunning beauty. He takes her captive. Meriel, who is half-Welsh, deeply values her freedom and cannot understand how Adrian supposedly loves her if he keeps her prisoner.

She refuses Adrian’s attempts to seduce her so forcefully. Meriel throws herself out a stained-glass window, causing her to lose her memory.

Without all the baggage hanging on, Adrian is able to woo Muriel into loving him. But will her feelings remain the same when her memory returns?

When writing about the Medieval Era, many authors avoid religion. They treat it as a third rail topic. Here, in Uncommon Vows, it’s used uniquely and romantically. Adrian and Muriel cite phrases from the Bible–the Song of Solomon–to each other during their lovemaking. It works beautifully and poetically to enhance this thrilling love story.

Final Analysis of Uncommon Vows

Uncommon Vows is a fantastic battle of wills between a hero who is obsessed with the heroine and will do anything to have her and a heroine who refuses to submit to her enemy. Putney’s writing is at her best here, although maybe it’s because she so often borrows from one of the most poetic books ever written!

PS: I wish Mary Jo Putney had written a sequel about Adrian’s illegitimate brother. Does anyone know if she ever did?

5 Stars

highland velvet 2

Historical Romance Review: Highland Velvet by Jude Deveraux

historical romance review
Highland Velvet by Jude Deveraux
Rating: five-stars
Published: 1982
Illustrator: Harry Bennett
Book Series: Montgomery Velvet #2; Montgomery/Taggert Family Saga #3
Published by: Pocket Books
Genres: Highland Romance, Historical Romance, Medieval Romance
Pages: 368
Format: eBook, Paperback
Buy on: AmazonAbeBooks
Reviewed by: Introvert Reader


Historical Romance Review: Highland Velvet by Jude Deveraux

MILD SPOILERS 😉

The Book

Jude Deveraux‘s Highland Velvet, the second entry in her Velvet series about four Montgomery brothers set in the early 16th century, is one of my favorite romances.

Highland Velvet, Jude Deveraux, Arrow, 1984

The Plot

Forced into marriage to the English nobleman Stephen Montgomery, Scotswoman Brenna Mac Arran, the leader of her clan, vows to make his life miserable.

Deveraux’s heroes in the Velvet Series had their bad moments, particularly Gavin, and to a lesser extent, Miles and Raine. In Highland Velvet, Stephen Montgomery was made from the stuff of girlish dreams.

“You’ll regret that! Someday you’ll know that one drop of my blood is more precious than any angry feelings you carry!”

Stephen was kind and loving to his sister-in-law, Judith, always taking her side whenever Gavin preferred his evil mistress. He stayed by her bedside during her painful miscarriage and supported her throughout.

When Stephen saw Bronwyn for the first time, he fell instantly in love with her. He worked his butt off to get the approval of the men in Bronwyn’s clan and had to fight that creepy Roger Chatworth for her hand in marriage, even though they were already betrothed.

Heck, he even changed his last name so that her Mac Arran family name wouldn’t die out. And he was no wussy male, but a deadly soldier willing to work hard and rethink his value system when faced with contradictions.

If anything, Bronwyn was the “bad” one: she stabbed him on their wedding night; she was the one who betrayed Stephen again and again. He deserved a much better heroine.

“Together,” he whispered. “For once, let’s do something together.”

Final Analysis of Highland Velvet

After over thirty-plus years, Jude Deveraux’s Highland Velvet‘s Stephen Montgomery remains one of my most beloved heroes in romance. He was a real nice guy, the kind of man any woman would be happy to have in real life.

I wonder why the terms nice guy and beta male get conflated so often. A man can still be an “alpha,” a leader to his people, but that doesn’t mean he has to be an over-bearing, woman-hating douchebag.

Bronwyn was awful, but her woe-is-me attitude wasn’t enough to overshadow Stephen, who was such a great character that he made this book. Other pluses were the wicked antics of Roger Chatworth and the doomed love story of his brother Brian with the Montgomery’s sole sister.

I really loved this one. Highland Velvet is a keeper. Of only I had the British Arrow edition of this book!

5 Stars

Rating Report Card
Plot
5
Characters
4.5
Writing
5
Chemistry
5
Fun Factor
5
Cover
5
Overall: 4.9

Synopsis

Bronwyn MacArran was a proud Scot. Stephen Montgomery was one of the hated English.

He came to Scotland as a conqueror, saw her beauty and was vanquished. But still she would abhor him.

She owned a temper hot enough to forge the armors of battle or inflame a valiant soldier’s passion. Yet still she would resist him.

She became his reason to live, his reason to love. And still she would deny him.

But while clan fought clan, while brother took up sword against brother, and the highlands ran with blood — their destiny was made… and this mighty warrior pledged himself to his woman’s pride, her honor and her name — and made of their love a torch to burn through the ages

HIGHLAND VELVET by JUDE DEVERAUX
arafura pirate

Category Romance Review: Arafura Pirate by Victoria Gordon

Arafura Pirate, Victoria Gordon, Harlequin, 1989, Will Davies cover art

Harlequin Romance #3025

From the back of the book:

Marine biologist Jinx Beaumont had the sinking feeling her given name foretold the voyage ahead of her. She was jinxed, all right – stuck with Race Morgan, a merciless buccaneer of a captain. Studying shark life on the rough seas north of Australia kept Jinx busy enough. She definitely didn’t need the unnerving distraction of a human predator like roguish Captain Morgan! Jinx fought against the magnetic pull and her desire. She didn’t want to become one of Race’s romantic conquests. But her inner turmoil only increased when she felt challenged by a rival who was stunningly beautiful…and vicious.

3 Stars

Rating: 3 out of 5.

The Book

Arafura Pirate by Victoria Gordon was one of the first adult romances I read, although from what I recall, this is more of a sweet and mild read, rather than a steamy one.

Arafura Pirate was set in coastal Australia. It starred a spunky heroine named Jinx, a blond, short-haired marine biologist who was tough and independent. She sets out with her team of fellow scientists to tag sharks in the ocean waters.

When she met the hero, Race Morgan (what a typical hero name that was!), she wore a shirt that said, “Kissing a smoker is like licking an ashtray.” Race was a gruff ship captain who smoked, of course. But I remember when they first kissed, Jinx certainly wasn’t thinking of ashtrays!

Jinx and Race butt heads, but their attraction is too strong to deny.

The supporting cast on the ship was a fun crew, and I enjoyed the way they all bonded. There was some “other woman” scenario that wasn’t too dramatic, as it was obvious the captain’s eyes were on Jinx alone.

Final Analysis of Arafura Pirate

Simple and sweet, but I have fond memories of it. 3.24 stars

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