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Pascal Trilogy #2
Небеса любви
Молодой француз Паскаль Ламартин, сирота, воспитанный английским аристократом, был, без сомнениия, обаятельнейшим и добрейшим человеком. Обожаемый всеми, сам он не знал любви... пока в его жизнь не ворвалась юная Элизабет Боуз, несчастная дочь богатого жестокого негодяя.
Паскаль спас Элизабет из когтей этого чудовища, женившись на ней. Но брак, на который он решился из сострадания, стал для него и спасенной девушки лишь первым шагом на пути к чуду под названием "истинная любовь"...
Паскаль спас Элизабет из когтей этого чудовища, женившись на ней. Но брак, на который он решился из сострадания, стал для него и спасенной девушки лишь первым шагом на пути к чуду под названием "истинная любовь"...
384 pages, Hardcover
First published August 1, 1993
26 people are currently reading
264 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
November 12, 2020
I really enjoyed this book. I was worried since it's an older book that the hero would falter and ruin it for me, but he didn't He was Saintly! I usually don't care for stories of forced marriages, but this one worked well for me because I think the "forced" idea was meant to seem as fate or the hand of God or however you want to see it. I always like the idea of fate or destiny moving people along to their life's purpose.
The story is too complex for me to summarize adequately so I will just put what I liked and didn't like.
Liked:
The wonderful saintly hero (Pascal). AH he was so perfect. Intelligent, sweet, spiritual, and so in tune with himself, nature and God.
Yes this book has a heavy theme of religion or "religions" is a better way of saying it. I cannot say if this would offend some so read at your own risk. The book speaks of God, of people who abuse religion for their own purposes. Of inner light, auras, miracles, angels, body & spirit, fate, and of Eastern philosophical views. I personally loved it.
Believe it or not I liked the heroine (Lily) too. Even when she was a bitch in the beginning. Oh how I wanted to strangle her! But I knew the author wanted us to feel that way, so I kept reading also knowing that the author was going to make her character change at some point. Thank God she did it when she did at about 30% or I might not have been able to continue. The heroine was completely redeemed and I was finally able to relate to her and love her.
Why I lowered a star?
- The conflicts seemed too easily resolved (especially with Passey and Jean-Jacques)
- I felt that more could have been shown instead of told. If done, there would have been more of an impact.
- I felt the story lost a little momentum at times.
The biggie was near the end. Logic waned for me at how the hero
I also think she should have been angrier with Pascal (Hero) when she finally went to him and
Secondary Characters:
The H & h were very well developed, but I think the Brother felt a little wishy washy, as well as most of the other secondary characters. But they were developed enough for their purposes I suppose.
I truly loved the monk Julian and my heart just broke in half when I heard
Lastly - the writing style is different than what I am normally used to but even still, it was well enough for me to enjoy the read.
Would I recommend it? Yes. Would I read more by this author? Probably. With me, as always, it depends on content.
Content concerns:
The story is too complex for me to summarize adequately so I will just put what I liked and didn't like.
Liked:
The wonderful saintly hero (Pascal). AH he was so perfect. Intelligent, sweet, spiritual, and so in tune with himself, nature and God.
Yes this book has a heavy theme of religion or "religions" is a better way of saying it. I cannot say if this would offend some so read at your own risk. The book speaks of God, of people who abuse religion for their own purposes. Of inner light, auras, miracles, angels, body & spirit, fate, and of Eastern philosophical views. I personally loved it.
Believe it or not I liked the heroine (Lily) too. Even when she was a bitch in the beginning. Oh how I wanted to strangle her! But I knew the author wanted us to feel that way, so I kept reading also knowing that the author was going to make her character change at some point. Thank God she did it when she did at about 30% or I might not have been able to continue. The heroine was completely redeemed and I was finally able to relate to her and love her.
Why I lowered a star?
- The conflicts seemed too easily resolved (especially with Passey and Jean-Jacques)
- I felt that more could have been shown instead of told. If done, there would have been more of an impact.
- I felt the story lost a little momentum at times.
The biggie was near the end. Logic waned for me at how the hero
I also think she should have been angrier with Pascal (Hero) when she finally went to him and
Secondary Characters:
The H & h were very well developed, but I think the Brother felt a little wishy washy, as well as most of the other secondary characters. But they were developed enough for their purposes I suppose.
I truly loved the monk Julian and my heart just broke in half when I heard
Lastly - the writing style is different than what I am normally used to but even still, it was well enough for me to enjoy the read.
Would I recommend it? Yes. Would I read more by this author? Probably. With me, as always, it depends on content.
Content concerns:
March 2, 2016
When I started the book, I thought wow I have found a new writer whose style I really like.
Then I read more about the heroine Lily. My admiration for a new writer for me was quickly replaced by annoyance. I disliked Lily intensely and it got worse as I pushed on. Pascal was ok, thought I did think he was too good to be true.
At about 50% Lily started to change, so did the relationship between Lily and Pascal. I knew from the beginning that Lily suffered abuse so I really tried to be patient with her character. It got a little better when she finally showed a little remorse about all the stupid things she asid to Pascal.
Then all of a sudden these 2 started fantasizing about each other sexually. I like an enemy-turned-lover story as much as the next person but in this book, I did not buy it. The childish shrew and the noble saint? Suffice it to say that my feelings toward the book have been colored by my initial reservation about Lily's character. I was thinking: Pascal you pushover (he wasn't, he was rather firm in his decisions and did not let Lily have her way but I couldn't help it. I thought Lily did not deserve his forbearance), this woman is not a woman but a child who needs to learn respect and discipline. God it sounds horrible, I sound like a bully. But I really thought man, I hate childish tantrums and female hysteria. And Lily excelled at both.
Katherine Kingsley did something unusual in this novel. She created a monk-like hero Pascal, with a touch of devine intervention, and I mean it in the religious sense. Pascal had "the touch". He was a healer and obviously had "help". He had a way wit him, that is probably the best way to say it, with his patients. If it was in the medieval times, he would have been witch-hunted. To top all that religious references, Pascal was a 30-year-old virgin. The character is original, alright. His virginity did not really make a difference for me. If it was intended as an interesting tweak in characterization, its significance is lost on me.
Since I was not able to establish some kind of a connection to the characters, I really did not care what they did. The only thing that kept me going was Kingsley's writing. I will definitely read her books again, with different character types.
Then I read more about the heroine Lily. My admiration for a new writer for me was quickly replaced by annoyance. I disliked Lily intensely and it got worse as I pushed on. Pascal was ok, thought I did think he was too good to be true.
At about 50% Lily started to change, so did the relationship between Lily and Pascal. I knew from the beginning that Lily suffered abuse so I really tried to be patient with her character. It got a little better when she finally showed a little remorse about all the stupid things she asid to Pascal.
Then all of a sudden these 2 started fantasizing about each other sexually. I like an enemy-turned-lover story as much as the next person but in this book, I did not buy it. The childish shrew and the noble saint? Suffice it to say that my feelings toward the book have been colored by my initial reservation about Lily's character. I was thinking: Pascal you pushover (he wasn't, he was rather firm in his decisions and did not let Lily have her way but I couldn't help it. I thought Lily did not deserve his forbearance), this woman is not a woman but a child who needs to learn respect and discipline. God it sounds horrible, I sound like a bully. But I really thought man, I hate childish tantrums and female hysteria. And Lily excelled at both.
Katherine Kingsley did something unusual in this novel. She created a monk-like hero Pascal, with a touch of devine intervention, and I mean it in the religious sense. Pascal had "the touch". He was a healer and obviously had "help". He had a way wit him, that is probably the best way to say it, with his patients. If it was in the medieval times, he would have been witch-hunted. To top all that religious references, Pascal was a 30-year-old virgin. The character is original, alright. His virginity did not really make a difference for me. If it was intended as an interesting tweak in characterization, its significance is lost on me.
Since I was not able to establish some kind of a connection to the characters, I really did not care what they did. The only thing that kept me going was Kingsley's writing. I will definitely read her books again, with different character types.
May 12, 2009
Kingsley has written a remarkable novel mainly about spirituality, but the main theme is about trust and allowing love to "set you free".
Pascal is a wonderful hero. He has a secret that boarders on the occult but it is positive because he helps things heal from people to plants and the one he helps heal the most is the heroine Lily.
At first Lily comes across as a very spoiled child, very similiar to the character Kate from Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew. Through a misunderstanding on Lily's part, Pascal and Lily get married mainly because of her tyrannical father. Lily truly has had no love in her life. Her mother left when she was a young girl, her half-brother is an immature lout and her father allows their priest to disipline his daughter in ways you wouldn't want to imagine.
Lily and Pascal have much to work on and to figure out who each other is. They have no trust with each other in the beginning of their relationship but slowly they reach out to each other and learn to trust and love. Lily has an anger against God and faith in general. Pascal has alot of faith and is so nice at times it is hard to believe.
There is an old mystery to be solved and the reader learns who Pascal really is and why Lily's mother left.
The love scenes are not just sweet, but very hot and touching at the same time. FYI- Pascal is not experienced at all for fans of that type of hero!
This is definitely a winner from Kingsley.
Pascal is a wonderful hero. He has a secret that boarders on the occult but it is positive because he helps things heal from people to plants and the one he helps heal the most is the heroine Lily.
At first Lily comes across as a very spoiled child, very similiar to the character Kate from Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew. Through a misunderstanding on Lily's part, Pascal and Lily get married mainly because of her tyrannical father. Lily truly has had no love in her life. Her mother left when she was a young girl, her half-brother is an immature lout and her father allows their priest to disipline his daughter in ways you wouldn't want to imagine.
Lily and Pascal have much to work on and to figure out who each other is. They have no trust with each other in the beginning of their relationship but slowly they reach out to each other and learn to trust and love. Lily has an anger against God and faith in general. Pascal has alot of faith and is so nice at times it is hard to believe.
There is an old mystery to be solved and the reader learns who Pascal really is and why Lily's mother left.
The love scenes are not just sweet, but very hot and touching at the same time. FYI- Pascal is not experienced at all for fans of that type of hero!
This is definitely a winner from Kingsley.
July 23, 2023
H has a number of unusual skills, and he decides the young h is spoiled and judges her. Later he realises she's been abused. It's a good story with great characters but I struggled to like the judgmental H as runs away when he doesn't get a perfect life or wife. She's the quiet hero who was judged by everyone.
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January 8, 2013Hilllllllllarious Book, or at least for my odd sense of humor
August 8, 2021
This is my first book from this author and it was a pleasant surprise because the synopsis of the book was kind of misleading. I expected it to be a warrior and a maiden kind of Viking story and never thought it would be about a man of many talents and a duke’s daughter. I wouldn’t have minded reading about a warrior and a maiden story though. I noticed that this author’s writing style is with short and sweet sentences and paragraphs and I liked that. This is very important to me as it is easy for me to lose interest if the paragraphs are too long.
As for the characters, I hated Elizabeth at first. She acted like a spoilt shrew. She’s the type who thinks money can solve everything, that the whole world revolves around only her, and treats everyone as if they are in a lower position than her. She constantly does things without thinking of the consequences, always fighting or provoking Pascal verbally.
On that note, I loved Pascal because he did not allow her to treat her as if he was inferior to her, doesn’t hesitate to tell her the harsh truth about her being spoilt, and yet is still gentle and caring to Elizabeth. I felt he was the right person to teach Elizabeth how to live like a normal person without money; cooking, cleaning, and teaching her how to treat people with good manners. He also did not back down when speaking to Lily’s brother and I admire that straightforward and no-nonsense attitude of him.
I almost stopped reading the book a few chapters in because of how much I hated Lily, but with Pascal slowly teaching her and her becoming a much more pleasant person, I decided to continue. It was nice seeing her try things for the first time, making mistakes along the way and being helped by Pascal. However, she does occasionally throw her tantrums in the first few months of their marriage and keeps on switching between nasty and civilized to Pascal because she was afraid of her feelings for him. To me, it seems like she didn’t know whether to be nice or bad to Pascal. That is the part that prevents me from loving her completely.
At the start, Pascal also did not have a very nice attitude towards Lily but once Lily starts being a civilized person, he starts to become nicer to her and has more humor. As I progressed more into the story, it was heartwarming to see Pascal do God’s work and Lily just by his side, supporting him, and then slowly becoming a true married couple. After they made love for the first time, I felt they became even closer as a couple and they are definitely happy to get it on, even outdoors and in the day. Their sex scenes are hot and heartwarming and I loved it.
The part where they were separated broke my heart and it was just painful to read about. It did take them quite some time to get back to one another though, 10 weeks! I felt Lily could have gone to Pascal directly instead of crying every day and whining about him not replying to her letters.
One thing about this book though, was that it spoke a lot about God and while Pascal and Lily were catholic/Christian, it bothered me in terms of not understanding what they were speaking about as I wasn’t a religious person. So some of the conversations about God, no offense to God, did not interest me.
I was also confused about Pascal’s parents and felt that this could have been either left out or made easier. It was hard for me to connect who was who, with so many different names. I enjoyed the middle of the book more because it was the time where Lily and Pascal were living the most enjoyable time of their lives--than the first part (due to Lily’s bad attitude) and the last few chapters (Pascal’s confusing birth). The last 2 chapters were a little draggy but the epilogue wrapped it up well.
I did wonder why Elizabeth’s nickname was Lily because those are 2 completely different names and did not sound close to each other at all. It confused me at first as I thought Elizabeth and Lily were 2 different people. I think her nickname could have been something closer to her name, like Beth, or Liz. Despite my issues, I felt this book still deserved 4 stars for how enjoyable it was.
As for the characters, I hated Elizabeth at first. She acted like a spoilt shrew. She’s the type who thinks money can solve everything, that the whole world revolves around only her, and treats everyone as if they are in a lower position than her. She constantly does things without thinking of the consequences, always fighting or provoking Pascal verbally.
On that note, I loved Pascal because he did not allow her to treat her as if he was inferior to her, doesn’t hesitate to tell her the harsh truth about her being spoilt, and yet is still gentle and caring to Elizabeth. I felt he was the right person to teach Elizabeth how to live like a normal person without money; cooking, cleaning, and teaching her how to treat people with good manners. He also did not back down when speaking to Lily’s brother and I admire that straightforward and no-nonsense attitude of him.
I almost stopped reading the book a few chapters in because of how much I hated Lily, but with Pascal slowly teaching her and her becoming a much more pleasant person, I decided to continue. It was nice seeing her try things for the first time, making mistakes along the way and being helped by Pascal. However, she does occasionally throw her tantrums in the first few months of their marriage and keeps on switching between nasty and civilized to Pascal because she was afraid of her feelings for him. To me, it seems like she didn’t know whether to be nice or bad to Pascal. That is the part that prevents me from loving her completely.
At the start, Pascal also did not have a very nice attitude towards Lily but once Lily starts being a civilized person, he starts to become nicer to her and has more humor. As I progressed more into the story, it was heartwarming to see Pascal do God’s work and Lily just by his side, supporting him, and then slowly becoming a true married couple. After they made love for the first time, I felt they became even closer as a couple and they are definitely happy to get it on, even outdoors and in the day. Their sex scenes are hot and heartwarming and I loved it.
The part where they were separated broke my heart and it was just painful to read about. It did take them quite some time to get back to one another though, 10 weeks! I felt Lily could have gone to Pascal directly instead of crying every day and whining about him not replying to her letters.
One thing about this book though, was that it spoke a lot about God and while Pascal and Lily were catholic/Christian, it bothered me in terms of not understanding what they were speaking about as I wasn’t a religious person. So some of the conversations about God, no offense to God, did not interest me.
I was also confused about Pascal’s parents and felt that this could have been either left out or made easier. It was hard for me to connect who was who, with so many different names. I enjoyed the middle of the book more because it was the time where Lily and Pascal were living the most enjoyable time of their lives--than the first part (due to Lily’s bad attitude) and the last few chapters (Pascal’s confusing birth). The last 2 chapters were a little draggy but the epilogue wrapped it up well.
I did wonder why Elizabeth’s nickname was Lily because those are 2 completely different names and did not sound close to each other at all. It confused me at first as I thought Elizabeth and Lily were 2 different people. I think her nickname could have been something closer to her name, like Beth, or Liz. Despite my issues, I felt this book still deserved 4 stars for how enjoyable it was.
August 9, 2018
Such a sweet and romantic read. Loved how the lead characters fell in love with each other. How they grew up and developed throughout the story.
December 28, 2018
I read this book about two decades ago n I never stopped looking for this book to read again
July 20, 2010
If you survive the first 76 pages with the annoying heroine, you thereafter actually get explanations for why she is like that and lots of lovely character interaction. Then of course the hero has to walk through a BIG MIS at the end, although the way he treats it is not AT ALL according to character.
The idea an English duke would be Catholic at that time and simply marry only child to another Catholic who supposedly has compromised her, although the father is pretty sure that is not the case - a Catholic who may have been raised in a well-bred house but has lived for a few years in the gutters of Paris... is pretty preposterous.
On the plus side - the matter-of-fact appreciation for miracles by God and the fact that both heroine and hero are virgins (and the hero doesn't really mind at all). Trigger for child sexual abuse, though, even though it's in the past.
Looks like the first one was best, after all
The idea an English duke would be Catholic at that time and simply marry only child to another Catholic who supposedly has compromised her, although the father is pretty sure that is not the case - a Catholic who may have been raised in a well-bred house but has lived for a few years in the gutters of Paris... is pretty preposterous.
On the plus side - the matter-of-fact appreciation for miracles by God and the fact that both heroine and hero are virgins (and the hero doesn't really mind at all). Trigger for child sexual abuse, though, even though it's in the past.
Looks like the first one was best, after all
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 5, 2016
Lost souls, gardening, religion, love and miracles the perfect combination for me. The only reason I don't give it 5 stars is the ending. I think she could have ended the book earlier and it would hae been better. One of the characters acted out of character at the end. It seems like the author just felt the need to wrap everything up which I personally don't think was necessary.
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September 1, 2013Pascal Book 2
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