Rituals of Passion

Brides of Caralon #1

by Lacey Alexander

Brides of Caralon - Rituals of Passion By Lacey Alexander Book One in the Brides of Caralon series. When Maven, the eldest daughter of Caralon's mighty ruler, is given in marriage to the fearsome Dane of Rawley, she's horrified. Bad enough that she should be any man's possession, but she's heard the dreadful tales about Dane, tales of force and brutality. She goes into the marriage refusing to submit to him in any way—the only problem is, the sensuously forceful Dane demands her submission, especially in his bed, and he's determined to get it. As Maven begins to clash with the Beast of Rawley, she needs all her wits about her to win their erotic battle for control.

Genres: Erotica, Erotic Romance, Romance, Fantasy, Historical Romance, BDSM, Historical

199 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2005

About the author

Lacey Alexander's books have been called deliciously decadent, unbelievably erotic, exceptionally arousing, blazingly sexual, and downright sinful. In each book, Lacey strives to take her readers on the ultimate erotic adventure and hopes her books will encourage women to embrace their sexual fantasies.

Lacey resides in the Midwest with her husband, and when not penning romantic erotica, she enjoys history and traveling, often incorporating favorite travel destinations into her work.

Lacey's romantic erotica combines hardcore erotica and romance. The sex scenes are very graphic, detailed, and plentiful, including graphic language and extreme sexual situations, but entwined is a romantic, loving relationship that will reach a level of monogamous commitment by the end of the book. Perfect for the reader who enjoys extremely hot, graphic sex and fantasy-type situations, but who also finds satisfaction in traditional romance and wants to see characters fall in love.

--from the author's website

Lacey Alexander also writes romance under the name of Toni Blake.

Reviews

[Riverina Romantics · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is so damn hard to rate. Do I give it 3? Do I give it 4?

And its not as clear cut as that.

This story....well really isn't too much of a story, it's just a whole heap of HOT AS HELL, steamy ass, kinky, raunchy, SEX.

Is that a bad thing??? Well no, it's not because Lacey Alexander can write one FREAKIN amazing sex scene. But if you are looking for an erotic romance that is equally balanced with a deep and meaningful story line well this probably isn't the story for you, because apart from a little bit of story, this book is just all sex.

Now, is the sex vanilla? Hmmm, let me think. HELL NO. The storyline is kinky, the sex scenes are kinky and to be honest I wouldn't feel comfortable recommending this to anyone as it could easily offend people who are very specific about the sort of sexual content they like....but did I enjoy it? Yes, I did and I am quite aware that my declaration makes me a naughty, naughty girl.

3.5 STARS

[Kyle]

I don't really know how to rate this. I downloaded it from Amazon because it was free, and I certainly got my money's worth. I didn't read the description so I wasn't expecting it to be quite so porny. It's basically just sex scene after sex scene, which was not what I was looking for (what *was* I looking for? I'm not sure), and it got kinda repetitive. That said, the prose could've been a lot worse. The plot was dumb, but the setting was both ridiculous and also kind of delightful: 3585 AD, in a postapocalyptic North Carolina (possibly South Carolina) where people wear a lot of leather, have a lot of sex, and play sacred sexy games of mahjong. I won't explain the sacred sexy mahjong. I don't want to ruin it for you. It's all very improbable and filthy, and wanting to find out the secret of sacred sexy mahjong is what kept me going through the first half of the book (I kind of skimmed the second half of the book).

The world-building does leave something to be desired, like if the royal daughters are supposed to be so insulated from any knowledge of sex, why are they just allowed to wander all over the place when apparently everyone else in the kingdom is just going at it like rabbits all day long? (The heroine stumbles across two couples in flagrante in a space of days - that could have been prevented if they were serious!) They should keep those girls shut up, possibly with eunuchs! But being critical of that sort of thing is probably not the best way to enjoy this book. Or maybe the author explains more in the sequels.

[Lelyana's Reviews · Rating 2 out of 5]

Entah kejadian di tahunberapa nih..spt nya lumayan primitif, orang2nya masih tinggal di benteng dan naik kereta kalo kemana..pdhl di pembukanan katanya thn 3589 AD..lho??? [image error]
Hm,gini ceritanya...si Teesia ini anak ke 2 dari 3 bersaudra (ttg Laela aku udah ceritain yaa), naksir berat sama Ralen ,pemimpin salah satu wilayah tetangga nya, dua tahun yang lalu dnegan bandel nya dia menyerahkan diri di raba2 Ralen tuh sambil ngaca di salah satu pesta [image error] ...padahal dia vi lho..saking ga tahan nya, yah, mau aja dia di colok2 sama jati nya si Ralen yg emang cowok yg terkenal gatel....

Nah 2 tahun kemudian, Teesia ini sudah waktu nya di nikah kan, siapa kah calon suami nya? m ..tak lain dan tak buakan adalah bang Ralen ni...senang nyaaa hati Teesia [image error] ...eits...tapi tunggu dulu...Ralen yang gak senang, karena dia mengenali Teesia sebagai gadis yang menyerah kan diri dan minta2 ...di "f*ck me...f*ck me..." gitu....
Nah dasar laki2 emang KEBANYAKAN egois....mau nya dapet virgin sementara dia boleh aja colok sana colok sini sebelum menikah... [image error] ...kurang ajaaaarrr...

Jadilah si Teesia ini menikah dengan Ralen tanpa tahu nasib nya....ternyata, Ralem mau bales dendam karena kegatelan Teesia 2 thn yll., pdhl Teesia udah bilang,kalo ygdia godain cuma Ralen aja karena naksir..ini juga perawan yg aneeeeehhh .......
Ralem memutuskan bahwa Teesia, sbelum di akui perawan apa tidak, dan layak apa tidaak jd istri nya,mesti mau jadi sex slave nya.... [image error] .. Mau aja lagi tuh si Teesia...
Mulailah malam pertama itu si Teesia di iket di meja persembahan gitu dengan rantai dengan tangan kaki terentang...si ralen ini ternyata ada kelainan, selain kasar, dia koleksi dildo (sex toys) yang bermacam2....
Biarpun akhirnya tau kalo Teesia masih virgin, tetap aja Teesia di ikat dan di tambah assesoris, vagina nya di gembok, breast nya di kasih cincin yg katanya biar keren.... [image error]
Dan satu lagi yg paling menjijik kan, di anus nya Teesia di kasih ekor kudaaaaaaaaaaa.........buseeeeeeeeeeetttttttttt............terpana gue....kayaknya jangan2 si Ralen ini suka main2 colok2an sama kudakali yeeee [image error] [image error]

Ada juga saat2 orgy, mereka uhuk2 berempat,sama mantan mistress nya Ralen dan pengawal ralen,ngerjain si Teesia...ada ML di atas kuda juga (hm, remind me of Colt Thunder nih).....Dan Ralen ini kayak nya sadomasokis juga, si Teesia suka di pukulin waktu ML..dan Teesia nya bilang kalo ternyata kesenangan dan rasa sakit itu merangsang dan seksi....hadoooh..pantes cocok...satu suka menyakiti dan satu nya suka di sakiti... [image error]

Lovemaking nya serem...paling benci sama ekor kuda yg di pake Teesia kemana2 bahkan saat jalan2....ih,najis banget sih [image error]

Biarpun akhirnya hepi ending..tetep aja....ga menyenangkan ...yah, berhubung ini eroro...sah2 aja kali ya..tapi ini bukan eroro yg terlalu seru, bahkan jelek sih menurut aku....
Dan warning juga nih...buat gadis2 yg masih lugu dan hijau, para alim ullama, emak2 yang kesepian dan orang2 yg lembah lembut...hihiihihi....pliiis don't read this.... [image error]

Tapi,pada akhirnya, ini balik2 lagi ke selera sih....the choice is all yours.... [image error] [image error]

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a much better book than I expected, though I love Lacey Alexander, so I'm not sure why I doubted. But it's a change of pace for her, set in a futuristic sci-fi world. The world-building isn't really significant or very involved, in fact it feels almost medieval at times. But the main purpose for this book is sex. There are several unique customs in this society, such as Orientations to prepare the royal daughters, who are virgins, for marriage and these rituals on the wedding night, all of which are hot and somehow not gratuitous, which Lacey always masters.

The couple comes together through an arranged marriage and have a variation of the love/hate relationship at the beginning. She believes he's a barbarian but overwhelmingly attracted to him, which makes for some great scenes. The heroine did start to annoy me toward the end with beating a dead horse about her moral high ground. It got frustrating, but I did really like the hero/heroine pairing and their chemistry is sizzling. Somehow it all works, and I'm definitely excited about the following two books.

[Suz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lacey Alexander write some high quality smut, and for that, I salute her.

In this case, it was a little weird, it's a like a historical/post apocalyptic romance/erotica story and I couldn't quite enjoy it, because I actually wanted just a tad more story/background.

Maven, daughter of Enrick and Jalal, has been promised to Dane of Rawley, a warlord along the northern border of Caralon. Because Enrick has no sons, the marriage to his daughter pretty much makes him the defacto heir to Enrick's throne (along with securing Enrick's north border). Jalal and Enrick enjoy and equal marriage, so Maven is unhappy to be married off to a barbarian, and your typical romance/erotica stuff ensues.

Dane (and really, is it possible to take a name like "Dane" seriously?) believes that Maven is his, as rich/royal brides belong to their husbands, and Maven wants a marriage of equals. Eventually, it's all good, because the power of the pussy compels Dane to give into Maven, just as the power of the penis compels Maven to give into Dane. And we get to live sexily ever after.

The P/A portion is the part that threw me off. It seems that there are relics of the "before times" which seem to be things that we have (mirrors, clawfooted bathtubs), so we don't know what happened. Also, everyone enjoys complete sexual freedom, except for the women/daughters of royalty/the wealthy, which I have a hard time with. The girls have NO IDEA what's going on with sex until their "Orientation", which seems a bit unbelievable.

But my very favorite part was that on their wedding night, the bride (as far as I can tell) plays Mahjong and that determines what happens during her "Ritual of Passion."

[Nessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

A SOLID 3.5 STARS!

THIS ONE WAS DEFINITELY GOOD FOR THE SMUT. IT WAS HOT.
BUT ROMANCE WISE...IT WAS TOO SUPERFICIAL TO BE TRUE.
WHAT ANNOYED ME WAS HOW LONG WINDED IT STARTED OFF.

DANE is notorious for his sexual prowess and political congress. He's brutal and ruthless when it comes to getting what he wants, and this time he agreed to a marriage of alliance between the beautiful, young Maven in order to get her Father's lands in future. Their relationship began rocky since they were practically strangers BUT their chemistry did scorched the pages. It was the only connection between the two at first, until something more meaningful blossomed.

OVERALL this was a quickie smut read. Don't expect much on the emotional development.

[Gypsie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definately erotica! I love a story that is packed with intimacy, love, and early sexual encounter of the H/H. This story was over the top with SMS, F/F, M/F, F/M/M/M, F/M/M/M/M, and public sex. Not for young readers or the faint of hearts. The marriage ritual was a complete shock. There was a storyline with a HOT alpha male hero (only reason I finished the book). The heroine needed more work. She spent most of the book flipping between, "I hate you,  I want you, I hate myself, I want you, I hate you." This may have been used to fill the void for an absent nemesis or enemy plot.

[Amber Dawn · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF

I got to about 80% before I ran into a scene that made me to uncomfortable to finish. And despite knowing he comes around to appreciate her, some of the ways he treated he were just to disturbing to to ignore and enjoy the sex. It is hot but not worth the read.

[Lady Raven RAVE! · Rating 5 out of 5]

Story: GOOD
Intimacy Level: D.R.I.P (Don't Read In Public) + GOOD
Enjoyment: GOOD
Lenght: 220 pages
Style: Historical Erotica
Series: Brides of Caralon book#1

When Maven, the eldest daughter of Caralon's mighty ruler is given into marriage to the fearsome Dane of Rawley, she's horrified. Bad enough that she should be any man's possession, but she's heard the dreadful tales about Dane, tales of force and brutality. As time goes on she refuses to submit to him but Dane wants her submission. Dane was feared by many but yet this maiden, Maven stirs him with her defiance But once these two are married, omg, they set each other on fire.

I loved this story. It was my second book by the author and I think I will be buying more books from her and this series. What is there not to love about this read, a ruler with three daughters who chooses the men they are to marry, and once they a given to these men, it became pop corns popping sexy. Can't wait to read the other sisters.(Warning, a lot of sex and kinky things so prepare yourself) so if that's not for you then this is soooooooooo not your type of book. You will fall into two categories, I love it for the sexual acts and chemistry with an interesting storyline, or you don't care for it because it doesn't have much of a story line and too much sex.

Also if you like the series, the author has a short story about their parents, I have re read the parents story so many times it was good. For the readers who like the demanding take control men and has a tiny bit of loving to them but take what they want from you no matter what, then this is your series.

Books in Series:
Seductress of Caralon (Brides of Caralon)
Rituals of Passion (Brides of Caralon, Book One)
Master of Desire (Brides of Caralon, Book Two)
Carnal Sacrifice (Brides of Caralon, Book Three)

www.romancenoveljunkies.com

[C Joy · Rating 4 out of 5]

For those who have read "Seductress of Caralon", the series' heroines are Enrick and Jalal's daughters, and this story is about Maven, the eldest daughter, to be married to Dane of Rawley.

Maven is a headstrong female who's really independent and wants to be and equal to her husband, so when Enrick announced she is to be married to Dane the Dreadful, she violently reacted. Dane on the other hand, built his reputation as such so he would be respected by his peers and feared by his enemies.

I really liked the Orientation the royal virgin daughters go through and Ms Alexander's sex scenes lack kissing, but they are very sensual and erotic. My favorite parts were with the F/F scenes and there's also a menage a quatre (foursome), where her mentor in the Orientation was aided by three virile young men. Some scenes you could see in porn but I liked the presentation.

The Maran tiles are here again and we'll see how it's played and what becomes of it at the end of the game.

Maven has seen how her father favors her mother and respects her opinions regarding matters of Caralon, and she felt that Dane just wants to own her as his possession, a means to end, to be the ruler of Caralon someday. While Dane admitted wanting those things, he truthfully desired Maven for his wife, they just miscommunicated.

To borrow the words of one character, it sometimes takes tragedy to realize one's love for another. When Dane was called to defend the smaller towns of the estate, Maven realized she has fallen in love with him even after planning to run away. In turn, Dane realized what Maven was truly asking for, to be loved and cherished and not be treated as a possession.

I loved how they made a new start and all the making up they did.

[Kate Dirty Girls' Good Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Taking place over 1500 years in the future, in a time when it is completely acceptable for the average citizen to have multiple casual encounters but royal daughters must remain pure until marriage, this story starts off with a bang (pun definitely intended). Maven, an aforementioned royal daughter, has finally reached marrying age. Her father gifts her to Dane of Rawley, a man who is known across the land for his brutal and aggressive nature.

Dane has worked hard to earn his reputation. However, he is determined to give this marriage a chance. He knows Maven is innocent and he is looking forward to introducing her to the joys of sex. But Maven is nothing like the shy, timid virgin he was expecting. Maven is very strong willed and though she knows it is the role of a wife to be submissive, she has no intention of submitting to Dane.

While there was a lot of talk of submitting this didn't really qualify as a BDSM read for me. There is no Dom/sub relationship between the two. No whips or chains. However, don't doubt the inferno rating I gave the book. There is enough exhibitionism, voyeurism, and multiple partners to satisfy even the highest of heat ratings.

Incredible. Lovely. Beautiful. Marvelous. Tremendous. Majestic (my personal fave). No, I am not describing a unicorn as my husband guessed. These are some of the adjectives used to describe Dane's *clearing throat* (as a romance reader you know what I mean). By the end of the book, I was so in awe I almost broke into song. "Oh say can you see, Dane's magnificent..." Well, you get the picture.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

2 & 1/2 stars.

I am going to lose my smut reader card but dare I say this book had too much sex? Not so much that I don't enjoy a good smutty book but there were cocks and p@ssys EVERYWHERE and the word f@cking came out of everyone's mouth (pun intended) every five minutes I was wondering if it was a book written by someone with Tourettes.

Best one so far..... The Male MC showed his soon to be in-laws his cock as he picked up his virgin fiance. Come on. I was half waiting for the 70s music to turn on and there it be a freaking orgy with her parents after Dane showed them his junk.

Points for him saving himself for her and then not doing anything else with the 9,934,892 ex-lovers working in his castle/fortress after he had taken his bride.

Points for the staff of both characters getting a little some-some. I would like to volunteer to be an Orientation Trainer. Just saying.

And extra points for the Maran Tiles. Where can I get some of those?

[Sheena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Plot: 5 stars
steam factor: 5 stars
Story length: 5 stars (just nice for me.)

I must say i am very...how should i put it.. amused by how the people in this story expresses things.
For example, Dane had to hold back a release on his way to bringing his to be wife, Maven, home. ( Poor him.. but damn imagine the size of his cock if he held it all back for days.) When Enrick pass Maven to him.. and making him promise they would have many babies. Dane just showed Enrick his amazing HUGE cock.
I nearly fell off the chair when i read it.
I was also stunned by Maven innocence. She only to know about sex just before her marriage.
This was an amazing read though.

[Kerry sullivan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am not sure why I gave this book a go as I know I dont like historical books. I guess as this is fantasy I thought I would try. It is set after the fall of time as we know it. It is a feudal society so very middle ages. I found it to be annoying and Maven to be a prissy bitch I got as far as page 147 and that was a struggle. To be fair for those who like this kind of fantasy book it is great it just doesn't float my boat.

[LMM · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh. The Heroine was really rather annoying. She was whiny & he justifications were not valid enough for her behavior toward Dane, IMO. There are some interesting concepts in this series but over all, it wasn't very strong & I felt the sex scenes were a bit redundant (I read the prequel & shorts all in a row so in fairness, that could be why).

[Felisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very sensual and erotic. A very good depiction of learning to understand how to love and how to commit to it. I love the idea of the game Maran, I would change the rules a little but it is definitely something to think about.

[Noor · Rating 4 out of 5]

i really loved the story, i love the whole idea of the man being the boss in bed but a partner out of it... also it was very cute to see Maven fall for her husband even if he did not want to =P love wins all

[Bonnie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn't finish this book. It read like a way out there, adolescent idea of science fiction porn. In addition, the author used "you're" when she should have used "your" which is a fingernail on a chalkboard to me.

[Domino (aka Meme) · Rating 3 out of 5]

this was a nice quick read. it was my first from Alexander and i'll def be reading more from her. the main characters relationship was a bit rushed in the end, but not disappointing. i thoroughly liked the love scenes and some of the side characters. overall a good read.

[Tae · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yay

I thoroughly enjoyed the book. I don't think that anyone would disagree with me on how good the book is. the next book will be just as good as the first. I loved Maven and Dane. I want to read more of them in the future.

[Peggy Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great read, all about a young woman who resisted but found the love of her life. She travels far from her home and is presented with many challenges that she and her hero have to overcome. But love will prevail.

[Cindy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Erotica with same sex interaction [among other things:]. Needed more sexual tension and less sex - it almost felt like the author was flipping through a sex manual for inspiration...

[Jessica · Rating 1 out of 5]

the whole story is only about f*ck. slightly about Maven-Dane marriage.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written for what it is. The "Bride" was mighty annoying though.

[Mandy Saial · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a storyline I will definitely put on my TBR shelf to come back to read over and over again.
Loved it !!

[Huluriasquias · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strange setting. The story happens 15 centuries in the future but it feels utterly medieval. Nevertheless, quite an entertaining read.

[Shanelle · Rating 1 out of 5]

Did not like this book. thought it was rather stupid in places.

[Donna · Rating 2 out of 5]

For me i found this book a bit lacking sorry

[Chris · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just could not get into this one. I really like Lacey's other books, but this series isn't the one for me.

[Melody · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first book that I read with this author.
And I found it Hot Hot Hot! *sizzles*