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Word and Deed

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Death or an arranged marriage, Verity refuses to accept the choices.

Verity Favian's father dies unexpectedly. Her half-brother, Verdon, lays claim to all their father left behind: title, castle, and her. Verdon cannot touch the land set aside for her dowry so he offers her hand for sale to the highest bidder. Lord Silvanticus, a man renowned for his military power and close ties to the king, makes the winning bid. Despite the rumors of Silvanticus’ madness and cruelty, Verdon accepts.

Verdon locks her away in a tower. She is not sure if he seeks to prevent her from fleeing the marriage or spreading the truth only she seems willing to speak: Verdon killed their father. Either way, her time is running out.

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First published January 11, 2012

11 people are currently reading
140 people want to read

About the author

Rachel Rossano

26 books453 followers
Rachel Rossano is a happily married mother of three children. She spends her days teaching, mothering, and keeping the chaos at bay. After the little ones are in bed, she immerses herself in the fantasy worlds of her books. Tales of romance, adventure, and virtue set in a medieval fantasy world are her preference, but she also writes speculative fantasy and a bit of science fiction.

She loves to read, discuss, and listen to comments on a wide variety of topics, both fiction and non-fiction.

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5 stars
50 (33%)
4 stars
44 (29%)
3 stars
41 (27%)
2 stars
15 (9%)
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1 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
Profile Image for Tifferz.
263 reviews
March 8, 2012
I highly recommend this powerful story of love and learning to trust. Rachel has crafted a wonderful romance packed with mystery, murder, a crazy abusive brother and a hero that is unforgettable . I consumed Word and Deed in one sitting and I had a smile on my face, satisfied with the story and ending. I did not want to say goodbye to Bryn and Verity. I only wish the story was longer. Maybe even just an epilogue with them a few years down the road. This is a clean heartwarming story. I can't wait to get my hands on another Rachel Rossano story. You really can't go wrong. I will be reading this story again as I can't seem to get it out of my mind. I love when a story sticks with you.

source: author
Profile Image for Jaimey.
Author 21 books167 followers
January 15, 2012
My rating: 4.7 of 5 stars
Sensitive readers warning: None. There's no language, no graphic violence, and no graphic sex.

In case it matters to you: I know the author; she happens to be a good reading/writing/cover designing buddy of mine. So I got to read this before it came out and I liked it so much that I bought it. And no, I do not buy all the books written by my friends, just so you know. I'm too poor (i.e., cheap) for that.

That said, I loved it! It was sweet, gritty, fast-paced, and impossible to put down. Though there's no clear indication of time period or setting, it was not hard picturing a Medieval setting for this story.

My only complaint is I would have LOVED for it to be longer, with more tension (not that there isn't any--there DEFINITELY is), more mystery, just more, more, MORE! Ms Rossano does a good job of character-building despite the short length, so I have no complaints in that area. I just would have loved to spend more time with these characters.

Disclaimer: I purchased this book from Amazon. I was not paid in any way for my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
384 reviews7 followers
July 26, 2016
I really enjoy Rachel Rossano's writing. Instead of "telling" a story, she "shows" you and you can't help but be pulled in and immersed in the worlds she creates. The only complaint I have is that they are too short, which is also probably a good thing...lol. Otherwise, I would lose myself in her worlds and not want to come back to reality.
Profile Image for Serethiel ⏾.
271 reviews74 followers
April 17, 2018
3.5 stars

Fascinating , but the plot felt a bit harsh, due to the abuse Verity suffered. But the ending tied it all together into a happy, sweet li'l bow with plenty of room for healing. ^_^
Profile Image for TJ.
3,341 reviews307 followers
February 12, 2012
4.5/5.0

Absolutely fabulous storytelling! This story has everything a romance reader dreams of - except the length to turn it into a can't-put-down keeper and that's the very frustrating part.
Profile Image for Shantelle.
Author 2 books375 followers
November 24, 2015
Word and Deed is a quick and captivating story telling of Verity, a young woman in the cruel hands of her murderous half-brother, and doomed to an arranged marriage to man she's never met. She must chose who to trust with her words, and her heart, in this tale.

As I mentioned, it was a fast read. I read it all through almost in one sitting. Thoroughly entertaining and quite sweet, with a dash of chill and evil plots, it was definitely worth it! :)

It was a clean read, though the romance would call for about 16 and up; and there was no overmuch violence.

I greatly look forward to reading more by Rachel Rossano!
Profile Image for Roseanne Wilkins.
Author 9 books58 followers
January 17, 2012
As a busy mother with small children, Rachel knows well the value of a mother's time. She is able to create wonderful stories that feel complete in a few short chapters. Verity is a strong female character. She is drawn to Bryn, a soldier connected to the company of her betrothed. Rachel has plenty of action and romance wrapped up in a tight package. Highly recommended.
Profile Image for Tara Chevrestt.
Author 25 books315 followers
February 11, 2013
I was really impressed by this novelette. At first, I thought how strong can a woman trapped in a tower be? And I was immensely pleased and surprised when she turned out quite strong indeed.


Even though she knows she'll be slapped and beaten, Verity speaks the truth, about her brother, her father's death, her feelings. It is what gets her thrown in the tower.

She's truly fearless though, even when a man shows up in the garden...and when presented with knives, she doesn't screech and run away, but instead, secretly learns to use them. She's not afraid of speaking the truth, seeking justice, voicing her two cents, throwing knives, or of killing when her own life is threatened.

I saw the ending's twist coming a mile away. That would have to be my only quibble.

The writing is almost poetic, very literary. I felt as I read this that the author is just meant to tell a tale. Unlike many of the books releasing nowadays, it doesn't come off as juvenile or simple in its telling or prose.

Full review on Book Babe. Check it out: http://wwwbookbabe.blogspot.com/2013/...
Profile Image for Abigail Harris.
Author 53 books266 followers
March 22, 2021
This is wonderful!

I loved the characters, well, the good guys, not so much the bad guys. There was quite a bit of meanness, cruelty, and abuse from Verdon so this is a book that I recommend for 16/18+

If you have rules for how much you spend on ebooks (like I do) and think this one is a bit expensive for a short story, let me tell you. It is totally worth it!
Profile Image for Penelope Bartotto.
Author 3 books109 followers
June 20, 2012
First, it is important to make this perfectly clear... this is a short story, a novella, not a full length novel. With that in mind, my first statement... more, please, I would really like some more.
What is good about this novella? So much. There is a great cast of characters, a solid story with a grand plot. There are details that so many when writing a short story, tend to think are unimportant and let slip away. Rossano doesn't do this, she packs her punch solidly and seriously leaves you wishing this was a full length novel. I seriously wanted to get to know the characters even better, and go into more of the back story, but understand that as an author you do what you can with a story and sometimes you reach a point where stopping is the best thing you can do. Trust me, as a freelance writer myself and aspiring author... many a time I've gone overboard, while other times I have left things incomplete. Ultimately Rossano does neither with this work.
The only fault I had with this story... and maybe it is petty, but I felt that one aspect of the storyline was an oft overused ploy within fiction, historical or contemporary. I do not want to say what it is as it is also an integral part of this story, but it nagged at me. I remember the same tactic used numerous times by authors such as Kathleen Woodiwiss.
Regardless, my advice - read this story. I also know that I have other works by Rossano on my to-be-read stack.
Profile Image for Donna.
1,401 reviews26 followers
April 12, 2012
I would have given it more stars but it was too short. I wanted more!
Profile Image for Carol Potenza.
Author 12 books119 followers
December 29, 2019
This is a novella, but it packs a wonderful punch and can be read in a few hours. A simple love story with an HEA taking place over a few days, Verity is the sister of the new king in a medieval realm--not sure when or where, but it doesn't matter--who has been 'sold' by her brother to a war lord named Silvanticus. She defies her brother with her words, and he is brutal with her (trigger warning for violence) because she has seen something evil that he has done. But for now, she is worth more alive and is kept in a tower with a walled garden, as a prisoner. In the garden, she is visited by a large man with an eye-patch, Bryn Wolfe, a representative of Silvanticus, with whom she develops a friendship. But she is also attracted to this man, who treats her with dignity and trust. She wants to marry a man who will win her love in word and deed, and she sees this in Bryn Wolfe. Events and actions move quickly in the last third of the book, and Verity must choose her path forward and decide between Bryn and Lord Silvanticus--sort of. The author uses first person with a deep POV to snag the reader into her story and, except for the violence (and it is violent), the book is a 'clean' romance (no sex or language), which I loved. Sometimes it makes a nice change. The author builds great tension between Verity and Bryn in very few pages. I recommend and have actually read it or parts of it a number of times (because I really like it).
Profile Image for Angie Thompson.
Author 51 books1,115 followers
June 14, 2019
I liked the main characters in this story a lot, although it's very hard to talk about--one of them--without spoilers. Verity was a great mix of strength and softness, wanting to stand on her own but unconsciously longing for love and affection as well. I did see the plot twist coming from the very beginning, but I didn't really mind, especially since I'd have been much more uncomfortable with a certain plot point without it.

Overall, while it's not my favorite story from the author, I enjoyed it quite a bit. And now I'm sad because I'm entirely out of new Rachel Rossano books to read... :( ;)

3.5 stars

Content--mentions of beatings, poisonings, threats, fights, and murder; mentions of wounds, blood, and deaths; mentions of vomiting; some touching and kissing; one use of "bastard"; mentions of married couples sharing a bed; mentions of men giving a woman lecherous looks; a man makes a woman change clothes while he is in the room, but she makes him turn his back
Profile Image for hanawesternberg.
210 reviews18 followers
April 30, 2022
THIS WAS TOO SHORT . I NEED MORE. SO GOOD SO GOOOOD.

I love the setting of this book. Reminds me the series Merlin. So historical and so vivid.

The plot, despite being just a very short novella is well crafted, solid and executed perfectly.

The development of the characters was so well done. The entire story packs a whole lot of elements and I CANT GET ENOUGH. i wish the book was longer 😩

Bryn Wolf, our charming mysterious knight that comes to Verity every now and then, claiming he is to be the judge of her character to Silvaticus, her betrothed.

I love their meetings. So short and quick, but it feels so complete.

But Silvaticus is just so 😩. Was expecting him to be the bad guy but noooo. When he listened to Verity, i mean, ACTUALLY listened to her. My heart did a thing.

I aint spoiling anything here but PLEASE READ AND FIND OUT THE PLOT TWIST HERE. IT WAS SO GOOD 😭

• HEA
• no explicit content
• just a light kiss, and soft gestures
• plot twist 👌🏻
Profile Image for Patricia.
2,958 reviews18 followers
June 18, 2017
This is a novella, a short novella. The story had some interesting elements in it. Hence the three stars, but I really don't like novellas--I decided to read it before I found out it was a novella. The ending just seemed so abrupt. That is a sometime problem with novellas. This was a clean romance, however.
2 reviews
April 27, 2021
Too short, predictable

the bad guy is too openly known. Same for hero, you know up front that Bryn and the lord are the same person. The writer could put more effort in plot, build out the story, misdirection to support why she live long enough to be saved, and a few surprises that the read would want more.
67 reviews
May 26, 2021
Great build, rushed ending

Intrigue, tension, desire, fear, courage. This story is filled with good stuff. The rushed ending left me without a desire to read more from this author.
33 reviews
January 29, 2022
Even when you know...

I figured out Bryan was our hero from the start, but the story was captivating enough that it didn't matter. Even so she still managed to surprise me a time or two.
Profile Image for Iris.
521 reviews
July 18, 2020
Content:
Language: none
Sexual: kissing only
Violence: poisoning, knife attack
Profile Image for Kimberly A..
Author 56 books43 followers
May 22, 2015
This was a quick read. A true short story, but one that I enjoyed.

Plot - Grade B+

I enjoyed the plot. It was simple and straightforward in a couple areas to the point where it was really easy to guess the ending. However, short stories tend to be predictable due to the restricted amount of plot twists and layers. What I really like is that there is a whole story contained within the 48 pages. The ending resolves the pertinent matters while allowing the reader to imagine a pleasant future.

Content - Grade A-

This was a clean read. There is some violence occurring on the page, though. There are attempted murders, a successful murder in the past, as well as beatings.

The sensuality was handled delicately. There are references to bedding and sharing a bed. There are also references to men staring lecherously at a woman. There is also conflict for Verity as she starts to fall for a man who is not her betrothed. I do wish that had been explored a little more.

There is one use of true language where Verdon calls Verity's betrothed a "bastard." I could have lived without it but other readers might not even bat an eyelash. The good thing is that it only occurred the once near the end.

Spiritually, the book was on the lighter end. There's not much beyond prayer. However, it worked for the length of the story. I did like how the conflict of emotions for Verity was handled as she struggles to match rumor of her betrothed with the report given to her by a soldier who knows him as well as can be because she wants to hate him but his reputation makes it difficult, which in turn makes her situation feel more difficult to resign herself too. I also liked how Verity was spirited but she didn't feel anachronistic like a 21st-century woman wearing a medieval costume.

Technical - Grade A-

There were two or three places where a word was missing but they were articles so it didn't significantly change the meaning of the sentence. I liked the nuances of the language used. 'Maid' was substituted for 'Lady' and I thought it was interesting choice but it added a bit of unique flavor to the world Rossano created. The story is described as being "loosely set in the middle ages" and it definitely follows through on that. You can tell that it is medieval but the setting is ambiguous enough that you don't know whether it's England or France or another kingdom. There's no clear tie to Catholicism either so one can easily imagine this story as taking place in one of Rossano's fantasy worlds. If the story had been longer, I definitely would have liked to see more definition in regards to the setting. But the ambiguity works for this short story.

My biggest complaint is that I do wish there had been more and we could have gotten to know the characters more as well as see what else happened in their lives.

Final Grade - A- or 4.7 Stars

Overall, I liked the story. It's a good quick read that doesn't feel like you're missing most of the real story. It's the sort of story that could have been a novel but it's complete and self-contained as is. I would recommend this story for fans of Rachel Rossano's other works and for those who enjoy medieval-esque romances and a quick but satisfying read. Recommended for ages 15 and up.
Profile Image for English .
855 reviews
April 9, 2016
I own about five Kindle books by Rachel Rossano, but chose to read this one first as a short introduction to her work- and frankly because, as I am part way through about three other titles, I did not want to start another full-length book yet.

Overall, I was very pleased with this short story. It rather reminded me of traditional tales, with the pretty girl locked in a tower, and paid homage to traditional ideas, beliefs and values such as chivalry, honour and true love.
Yet there was a contemporary spin, as the heroine was said to be able to use a sword. She was also strong-minded and intelligent enough to cater to modern tastes- but (and this is something I apprecaite), was not some stuck up feminist superhero. She used her brains, but was not adverse to accepting help from men, and whilst being headstrong, was also vulnerable, and her outspokeness nearly lands her in very hot water.

I also appreciated the nice, refreshing twist on the usual cliched 'forced marriage' story. I confess, I don't have a lot of time for tales like that the annoy me, as do the attendent myths and historical inaccuracies. As this was historical fantasy, the author could have gone along the typical route, ignoring the ban on forced marriage in he actual, historical Medieval past- yet she did not.
I don't want to give away too much of the ending but lets just say that the chosen husband is not as bad as is initially thought, and certainly does not meet the arranged marriage stereotype of horrible and abusive.
Rather he fitted in well with the over-arching theme which (I think) was about not judging people by appearances, or by what others say about them. That there may be a lot more below the surface- hence the clever title- Word and Deed. I personally guessed one of the main plot twists quite early on, but that did not really detract from my enjoyment of this story.

My only complaints were a few typos in the story which sadly slipped through the editing process, and some of the content, which might make the story more approporate for older readers, and not a YA audience. Overall though, I consider it £1 well spent.
Profile Image for Valerie.
62 reviews1 follower
August 21, 2016
Wow, for an extremely short love story, I found this very compelling, I still can't stop thinking about the H and h! I wish the story had gone on longer, but the ending was perfect for its length. It certainly gave wings to the imagination, both for their immediate future, and for the longer time of learning each others ways in their marriage.

Usually I like mushiness in a love story (I really liked Edenbrook), but this one was decidedly unmushy, similar to Shards of Honor which I also liked a lot. I appreciate the author's use of blunt, plain talk from the H without any explicit scenes. I much prefer this middle ground between so clean that the two never have any chemistry, and way too much description.

The two main characters were well matched I felt, and I could follow their story for years. Will the author please expand this story?! In any case, I will certainly read more from Rachel Rossano.
Profile Image for Nicole.
Author 17 books145 followers
November 22, 2015
4.5 stars - Very sweet and engrossing. I appreciated the detail and depth given to this story in spite of its short length. I was able to picture the setting and characters, and felt drawn in as I would with a story much longer. I finished and wished I could spend more time with the characters! Very well done.
Profile Image for Sandie Mixa.
545 reviews4 followers
February 24, 2013
It was a great way to pass the time in a dr. office waiting room. I liked the plot and the characters, but the shortness of the book (43 pp.) did detract from several things. Like developing the relationship. I found the descriptions of the scenery lacking and also some of the characters motives. I was confused about half the time.
Profile Image for Kathie (katmom).
689 reviews51 followers
May 2, 2013
This was a very short story. But I enjoyed it all the same!

A bit of drama, a bit of mystery, a bit of romance.

It was nice to sit inside on this blustery afternoon, a handful of Swedish Fish, a cup of half and half laced coffee...and read!

I really must check out more of Ms. Rossano's books!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews