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Peregrine #1
The Taming
England's most valiant knights paid court to wealthy Liana Neville, but only the infamous warrior Rogan Peregrine made no secret of his powerful desires. His very caress melted Liana into liquid fire, and she vowed to capture this manificent, wild man. Boldly the delicate beauty gave him her hand -- and Britain's richest dower. Yet he was bound to a bitter feud: for love betrayed, brothers killed, and ancestral land usurped. In Rogan's war-ravaged castle, Liana would lay her tender seige...to redeem his embattled spirit and win his untamed heart!
384 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1989
211 people are currently reading
2348 people want to read
About the author
Jude Deveraux
199 books7,053 followersJude Gilliam was born September 20, 1947 in Fairdale, Kentucky. She has a large extended family and is the elder sister of four brothers. She attended Murray State University and received a degree in Art. In 1967, Jude married and took her husband's surname of White, but four years later they divorced. For years, she worked as 5th-grade teacher.
She began writing in 1976, and published her first book, The Enchanted Land (1977) under the name Jude Deveraux. Following the publication of her first novel, she resigned her teaching position. Now, she is the author of 31 New York Times bestsellers.
Jude won readers' hearts with the epic Velvet series, which revolves around the lives of the Montgomery family's irresistible men. Jude's early books are set largely in 15th- and 16th-century England; in them her fierce, impassioned protagonists find themselves in the midst of blood feuds and wars. Her heroines are equally scrappy -- medieval Scarlett O'Haras who often have a low regard for the men who eventually win them over. They're fighters, certainly, but they're also beauties who are preoccupied with survival and family preservation.
Jude has also stepped outside her milieu, with mixed results. Her James River trilogy (River Lady, Lost Lady, and Counterfeit Lady) is set mostly in post-Revolution America; the popular, softer-edged Twin of Fire/Twin of Ice moves to 19th-century Colorado and introduces another hunky-man clan, the Taggerts.
Deveraux manages to evoke a strong and convincing atmosphere for each of her books, but her dialogue and characters are as familiar as a modern-day soap opera's. "Historicals seem to be all I'm capable of," Jude once said in an interview, referring to a now out-of-print attempt at contemporary fiction, 1982's Casa Grande. "I don't want to write family sagas or occult books, and I have no intention of again trying to ruin the contemporary market." Still, Jude did later attempt modern-day romances, such as the lighthearted High Tide (her first murder caper), the contemporary female friendship story The Summerhouse, and the time-traveling Knight in Shining Armor. In fact, with 2002's The Mulberry Tree, Deveraux seems to be getting more comfortable setting stories in the present, which is a good thing, since the fans she won with her historical books are eager to follow her into the future.
Jude married Claude White, who she later divorced in 1993. Around the same time she met Mohammed Montassir with whom she had a son, Sam Alexander Montassir, in 1997. On Oct. 6th, 2005, Sam died at the age of eight in a motorcycle accident.
Jude has lived in several countries and all over the United States. She currently lives in Charlotte, North Carolina and has an additional home in the medieval city of Badolato, Italy.
She began writing in 1976, and published her first book, The Enchanted Land (1977) under the name Jude Deveraux. Following the publication of her first novel, she resigned her teaching position. Now, she is the author of 31 New York Times bestsellers.
Jude won readers' hearts with the epic Velvet series, which revolves around the lives of the Montgomery family's irresistible men. Jude's early books are set largely in 15th- and 16th-century England; in them her fierce, impassioned protagonists find themselves in the midst of blood feuds and wars. Her heroines are equally scrappy -- medieval Scarlett O'Haras who often have a low regard for the men who eventually win them over. They're fighters, certainly, but they're also beauties who are preoccupied with survival and family preservation.
Jude has also stepped outside her milieu, with mixed results. Her James River trilogy (River Lady, Lost Lady, and Counterfeit Lady) is set mostly in post-Revolution America; the popular, softer-edged Twin of Fire/Twin of Ice moves to 19th-century Colorado and introduces another hunky-man clan, the Taggerts.
Deveraux manages to evoke a strong and convincing atmosphere for each of her books, but her dialogue and characters are as familiar as a modern-day soap opera's. "Historicals seem to be all I'm capable of," Jude once said in an interview, referring to a now out-of-print attempt at contemporary fiction, 1982's Casa Grande. "I don't want to write family sagas or occult books, and I have no intention of again trying to ruin the contemporary market." Still, Jude did later attempt modern-day romances, such as the lighthearted High Tide (her first murder caper), the contemporary female friendship story The Summerhouse, and the time-traveling Knight in Shining Armor. In fact, with 2002's The Mulberry Tree, Deveraux seems to be getting more comfortable setting stories in the present, which is a good thing, since the fans she won with her historical books are eager to follow her into the future.
Jude married Claude White, who she later divorced in 1993. Around the same time she met Mohammed Montassir with whom she had a son, Sam Alexander Montassir, in 1997. On Oct. 6th, 2005, Sam died at the age of eight in a motorcycle accident.
Jude has lived in several countries and all over the United States. She currently lives in Charlotte, North Carolina and has an additional home in the medieval city of Badolato, Italy.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 163 reviews
November 13, 2023
Reread... I forgot how filthy the living conditions were...it's a little hard to get in the romance mood when I'm picturing everyone stinky. I also forgot how abrupt the ending is. I'm assuming it rolls into the next book, but it was SUPER rushed. (my friend told me the next book is the same)
3.5 Stars
Liana and Rogan
Liana runs her family estates; her stepmother is tired of it, and demands she find a husband. Liana has a brief encounter with Rogan and is smitten and decides from her many suitors that he is the one. Rogan is a pig, quite literally. He and his brothers live in filth (which is described at length) he has a different mistress for each of the days of the week, and he only cares about war and getting back at the Howards. As typical of Ms Deveraux's books the marriage is consummated with no warmth or tenderness. He pretty much throws her skirts over her head in a closet and does the deed. She is not upset, and still wants him to love her and spend time with her.
Liana is a mixture of being tough, but a complete doormat when it comes to Rogan. she wants him to love her bunches and is always quick to forgive.
Rogan has split personalities he cares for Liana, has tender moments, but the minute h thinks someone is questioning his dedication or manliness he pushes her away and turns into a prick. After the first week of their marriage, he remains faithful and does not ever strike her. That's not setting the bar high, but it's what we have to work with.
The characters can act chauvinist and barbaric, and not PC by today's standards but it was written in the bodice ripper heyday. I read it with that in mind and enjoyed it.
to-avoid
March 6, 2009From Fani @ Ami:
'The hero sleeps with a different woman every day of the week (he actually names them Monday, Tuesday, etc. to keep track), after his marriage to the heroine.
I must confess that I liked The Taming myself (*blushes*). After all it was my first historical romance. But, it IS written in a humorous way. The hero married the heroine because he badly needed money, she married him because of his looks. He takes her to his castle and forgets about her as he goes on with his life the way it was before he married. That means he continues sleeping (after having consummated the marriage with the heroine) with his women (whose names he doesn't even know), one for each day of the day. When the heroine finds out, she takes a torch and sets the bed where he sleeps with his mistress, on fire. After that, no woman wanted to sleep with him, they believed the heroine would kill them. When at some point the hero says that he married her for her money instead of her looks (she's average), she covers her face with a cloth decorated with coins, so that he will look at something he likes instead of her "homely" face :-). There are many hilarious scenes in this one but he kind of redeems himself by saving her life. Also, unlike Gavin of the Velvet Promise, he does grovel and shows her how much she means to him in the end. I know there isn't anything I can say to make it sound as worth reading and maybe if I read it again now, after all those stories I've read, I would be disappointed too. But back then, I must have read it over 5-6 times!'
'The hero sleeps with a different woman every day of the week (he actually names them Monday, Tuesday, etc. to keep track), after his marriage to the heroine.
I must confess that I liked The Taming myself (*blushes*). After all it was my first historical romance. But, it IS written in a humorous way. The hero married the heroine because he badly needed money, she married him because of his looks. He takes her to his castle and forgets about her as he goes on with his life the way it was before he married. That means he continues sleeping (after having consummated the marriage with the heroine) with his women (whose names he doesn't even know), one for each day of the day. When the heroine finds out, she takes a torch and sets the bed where he sleeps with his mistress, on fire. After that, no woman wanted to sleep with him, they believed the heroine would kill them. When at some point the hero says that he married her for her money instead of her looks (she's average), she covers her face with a cloth decorated with coins, so that he will look at something he likes instead of her "homely" face :-). There are many hilarious scenes in this one but he kind of redeems himself by saving her life. Also, unlike Gavin of the Velvet Promise, he does grovel and shows her how much she means to him in the end. I know there isn't anything I can say to make it sound as worth reading and maybe if I read it again now, after all those stories I've read, I would be disappointed too. But back then, I must have read it over 5-6 times!'
April 2, 2021
Looked through my old reading notes, and what the heck was I thinking when I gave this four stars. My memory is failing me! This was a two star read at best.
As a teen, I loved Jude Deveraux but the one hero I HATED more than any was Rogan in The Taming (even more than Gavin in The Velvet Promise)! This book was the opposite of Highland Velvet, where the hero works his ass off to make his wife happy. Here, it is the wife working her fingers to the bone to help her lazy husband and his annoying siblings.
Rogan was such a lazy jerk with mistresses aplenty (one for each day of the week; seriously that's their names) and did not deserve Liana, a wealthy heiress who worked hard to make her husband's castle a livable place. I remember reading that the moat was so clogged with excrement and how it stank up and nobody cared! Plus he had no charisma. A hero can be a jerk, oblivious, even a pompous arse at times, but charm goes a long way. That one got me so angry I didn't even bother to read the sequel--and back then I read all Jude Deveraux's books!
2 stars
As a teen, I loved Jude Deveraux but the one hero I HATED more than any was Rogan in The Taming (even more than Gavin in The Velvet Promise)! This book was the opposite of Highland Velvet, where the hero works his ass off to make his wife happy. Here, it is the wife working her fingers to the bone to help her lazy husband and his annoying siblings.
Rogan was such a lazy jerk with mistresses aplenty (one for each day of the week; seriously that's their names) and did not deserve Liana, a wealthy heiress who worked hard to make her husband's castle a livable place. I remember reading that the moat was so clogged with excrement and how it stank up and nobody cared! Plus he had no charisma. A hero can be a jerk, oblivious, even a pompous arse at times, but charm goes a long way. That one got me so angry I didn't even bother to read the sequel--and back then I read all Jude Deveraux's books!
2 stars
September 10, 2022
It's great to finally read some historical romance after awhile.
As for the book itself, I think it was perfectly fine. The setting was interesting, reminded me of another book actually, where everything about the hero's castle is filthy. And I mean disgustingly filthy. Rats, mucks, shooting pees coming from above, bones, lice, inedible food and dead bodies in the moat.
I would've literally ran away.
As for the plot, it was annoyingly sweet and frustrating at times. The hero, as usual with books of this era, came with a huge commitment and trust issue while the heroine is this stunning spitfire who changed him for the better.
Hey, that plot works and still does for me, okay?
“Oh, Rogan, tell me anything about me, tell me I’m stupid, tell me that I’m a great nuisance and a bother, but please don’t tell me I’m ugly.”
Also that's my favourite quote. 🤭
As for the book itself, I think it was perfectly fine. The setting was interesting, reminded me of another book actually, where everything about the hero's castle is filthy. And I mean disgustingly filthy. Rats, mucks, shooting pees coming from above, bones, lice, inedible food and dead bodies in the moat.
I would've literally ran away.
As for the plot, it was annoyingly sweet and frustrating at times. The hero, as usual with books of this era, came with a huge commitment and trust issue while the heroine is this stunning spitfire who changed him for the better.
Hey, that plot works and still does for me, okay?
“Oh, Rogan, tell me anything about me, tell me I’m stupid, tell me that I’m a great nuisance and a bother, but please don’t tell me I’m ugly.”
Also that's my favourite quote. 🤭
July 22, 2014
The first book in the Peregrine series by Jude Deveraux. Setting is England in the year 1445. Liana Neville is wealthy and much sought after. But she has avoided marriage for all these years and now her stepmother has given an ultimatum - either Liana gets married or she will leave. Liana has countless men parading before her, giving her compliments all in the name of her great wealth. When she meets Rogan Peregrine, she decides to marry him, even though she is warned of his barbaric and savage behavior. Liana finds his honesty refreshing. So Rogan marries Liana for her riches. Then he proceeds to be a jerk of the highest order. Totally clueless. I should hate him but it's written in such a way that I could only laugh. Okay, I admit the hero was a jerk but I loved this book. It kept me in stitches. Yes, there are elements that will not appeal to some people and elements that I would have a problem with if I read this written in today's more PC environment, but this was written in the bodice rippers heyday. It remains a favorite and I will continue to break it out and read it when I want something to make me laugh.
September 23, 2021
Plain Jane. Asshole manho with 7 mistresses.
Moc. After marriage is consummated with the h, he goes back to sleeping with his mistresses. He only married her for her money, not her average looks.🙄
I must’ve been on drugs to rate this book 5 stars 20 years ago.
Moc. After marriage is consummated with the h, he goes back to sleeping with his mistresses. He only married her for her money, not her average looks.🙄
I must’ve been on drugs to rate this book 5 stars 20 years ago.
April 27, 2010
Ever read a book and say to yourself "damn, I'm glad that's finished"?
I have.
This book was painful to complete and, truly, I am very surprised I didn't just put it down. If I said "ew" or rolled my eyes any longer I would have gone mad. Or maybe I did go mad as I kept on reading it.
Rogan was dirty and abusive, which, ok, men supposedly were during this time period, but he was also quite childish. Liana was, I don't even know what to say. Oh, and Rogan had women named for every day of the week along with one extra in case one of the Days had women issues. A real rutting beastie.
Painful.
Very.
I have.
This book was painful to complete and, truly, I am very surprised I didn't just put it down. If I said "ew" or rolled my eyes any longer I would have gone mad. Or maybe I did go mad as I kept on reading it.
Rogan was dirty and abusive, which, ok, men supposedly were during this time period, but he was also quite childish. Liana was, I don't even know what to say. Oh, and Rogan had women named for every day of the week along with one extra in case one of the Days had women issues. A real rutting beastie.
Painful.
Very.
dnf
December 5, 2012The overkill with how disgusting (though handsome!) the hero is, coupled with the utter stupidity of the supposedly brilliant heroine, is just too much for me at the moment. Maybe I'll be in the mood for gross and pathetic down the road.
November 25, 2024
This was such a guilty pleasure and it's one of those stories that is so incredibly problematic and has a million red-flags. You're supposed to be all up in arms about the behaviour of the characters but instead, you lap it up like it's catnip and can't help liking it all the same. This is an old-school bodice ripper that is very representative of the era it was produced. I used to read this type of fiction by the bucket load and I actually read this one way way back. The main and only thing I retained from this though was the days (Rogan's woman) and the utter filth.
If you're gonna give this one a go then be prepared for problematic stuff as there is loads. Rogan is your typical arrogant alphahole. He's also dirty, inconsiderate, boorish and totally apathetic to Liana in every way. His opinion and treatment of women is shocking and this includes the forceful deflowering of his virgin bride and he sees nothing wrong with any of his actions. Liana is chattel and what wealth she brings with her to this marriage is all Rogan is concerned with. All this coin will be put to use raging their endless war against their hated enemies the Howards.
The list of Rogan's undesirable traits is endless. He treats his tenants abysmally, beds the many women he has named by the days of the week and he does this under his roof. Allows his wife to be ignored and disrespected, he also has many unacknowledged illegitimate offspring in the village and to top it off he lives in absolute squaller and filth, lice i tell you and rats it's enough to make my skin crawl. The man's a real prince.
Liana is headstrong and a force to be reckoned with she chose Rogan after a random encounter and he doesn't even realise she's the same woman. She's a rich heiress and has a substantial dowry making her a catch and highly sought after. She does initially attempt the obedient route, that is until she can no longer suppress her own anger and in a temper sets Rogan's bed alight. he's also in it along with that particular night's flavour Wednesday. She definitely doesn't have an easy road everything to do with Rogan is an uphill battle and the man refuses to accept blame apologise and is stubborn personified
This all was made very easy to digest because of the matter-of-fact tone of conveyance. Being set in medieval times women were basically chattel so Liana is very accepting of a lot of Rogan's behaviour because it's what was expected and because she didn't have a massive problem with it this then made it feel like maybe not exactly acceptable but slightly condoned and normalised. There was also a very farcical vibe running throughout this and Rogan felt very much a caricature of what a medieval male was like. It was also quite comical just how ignorantly oblivious and unaware he was.
This was a definite vibe that's for sure but I was kinda digging the whole thing. I definitely enjoyed myself rereading so it's getting four stars on its good old engagement factor. Got to say though the ending was kinda abrupt it just sort of cuts off and felt somewhat unfinished also Rogan is definitely not father of the year material he barely acknowledges his numerous offspring or even enquires after his wife brings this to light.
So If you like yourselves a good old politically incorrect bodice ripper like I do that is also very representative of earlier historicals then this has you covered. I'm now planning on delving back into this genre and maybe revisiting some pure classics along with adding some new ones into the mix.
Reviewed By Beckie Bookworm
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 15, 2020
For the first 100pgs I thought " what the hell was she thinking !!!". She married him bc of his looks. Yes major ass with lice is soo sexy.
Then she improves his life, liking burning his bed with him and his mistress in it. She had tenacity. Loved her!
Slowly, Rogan softens though not too much. I enjoyed her "taming" of him. I'm ready for the next book in the series.
Then she improves his life, liking burning his bed with him and his mistress in it. She had tenacity. Loved her!
Slowly, Rogan softens though not too much. I enjoyed her "taming" of him. I'm ready for the next book in the series.
March 6, 2012
I had to take a few days to think about how I felt about the book before I rated or reviewed it. Then I decided that the book was just okay, I didn’t like it, and I’m almost on the verge of disliking it.
The hero is the most un-hero like hero I’ve ever ever ever read about. He’s a supreme cave-man-like asshole type hero the first half of the book, then he was just an ignorant-sometimes-tolerable asshole hero the rest of the book. I don’t particularly hate them though because… well… I don’t want to hate on the stupid. LOL
I like the heroine most of the time, but it almost seems as if the hero’s stupidity rubs off on her too.
So, the hero has this war going on between his family & the Howards. He needs money to help supply and train his “army” for the war against the Howards. He decides he will marry the heroine for her fortune. On his way to her place to demand her hand in marriage, he stops by the river to take a swim. The heroine was out and about that day, and because she’s soooo fed up with the whole world asking for her hand in marriage, starts to think that if she wasn’t so rich, and if she was just a peasant girl, maybe she will have a guy tell her how he honestly feels about her. So, she spys the hero sunbathing in the nude, and ask one of the peasant girl’s outfit, and creeps up to the hero. She inspect his clothes, sees that he has LICE crawling on them, throws his clothes into the mud, and the hero wakes up and mistreats her a bit & teases her with a kiss. She gets offended by his mannerism and storms back home.
He goes on his way to her place, and when she sees that it’s him, she decides to marry him. Her stepmother warns her about him and begs her not to marry. But, of course, she’s so stubborn & decides that he’s so beautiful that she just HAS to have him! Anyways, she marries him, and he practically rapes her on their wedding night. -.- Then! They set out for his home, and he’s so uncaring about her the whole time. They get to his place, and the place is worst than a friggin’ landfill. The moat is disgusting with dead bodies floating, the servants are practically throwing urine & human waste down from the tower, the house is filled with bones and grease and dust and cowebs. Oh yeah, friggin’ sick.
Of course… because she’s the heroine, she sets about cleaning the place up. Then she puts everyone in their place, and blah blah blah blah blah. What the fuck am I writing? Why am I retelling the damn story? Let me just get some shits across.
- The hero doesn’t remember her name until almost the end of the friggin’ book!
- The hero doesn’t BATHE half the time… so he’s full of stank! Ew. LMFAO.
- At one point, when she finds out that the hero keeps his mistresses (8 of them, 7 named after each day of the week, and 1 aside just in case one of the 7 has her period), she storms to the room & sets the mattress on fire… then he proceeds to have nasty smex with her even AFTER he just had smex with the servant girl. REALLY?! How sick is that. Between his BO & all that nasty bodily fluid that he hasn’t washed off yet… damn… that’s just sick. Ever heard of STD?!?!?!? -.-
- The hero is the most irresponsible asshole ever… he has so many friggin’ kids with his mistresses, and he acts like he doesn’t even friggin’ know! WTF?!?!? -.-
I kept reading and reading because I was expecting the hero to change & maybe have an epic grovel scene because of his mistreatment of her, but NOPE! Don’t expect it. He’s still stupid until the end of the story. Oh… and wanna know how it ends? He goes to save her after his enemy captures her, he believes she’s dead, makes his escape, she also managed to escape but he doesn’t know, so he cries and finally says her name right, and says that he loves her, she sees him, they say they love each other, and the end. LMFAO! It was almost like Jude Deveraux decided that she’s satisfied doing enough mind-fuck on the readers and decides to abruptly end the book.
So… even after all the “dafaq-ness” of the book, I still decided to give it a two star because there was some interesting things… like Zared’s character (book two of the series). One star for at least keeping me occupied for a certain about of time, and another star for writing a book so full of ??!@*&$@#(&*$#?? that I might not find something like this again for a while (and, goodness, please… don’t let me find something like this ever again).
The hero is the most un-hero like hero I’ve ever ever ever read about. He’s a supreme cave-man-like asshole type hero the first half of the book, then he was just an ignorant-sometimes-tolerable asshole hero the rest of the book. I don’t particularly hate them though because… well… I don’t want to hate on the stupid. LOL
I like the heroine most of the time, but it almost seems as if the hero’s stupidity rubs off on her too.
So, the hero has this war going on between his family & the Howards. He needs money to help supply and train his “army” for the war against the Howards. He decides he will marry the heroine for her fortune. On his way to her place to demand her hand in marriage, he stops by the river to take a swim. The heroine was out and about that day, and because she’s soooo fed up with the whole world asking for her hand in marriage, starts to think that if she wasn’t so rich, and if she was just a peasant girl, maybe she will have a guy tell her how he honestly feels about her. So, she spys the hero sunbathing in the nude, and ask one of the peasant girl’s outfit, and creeps up to the hero. She inspect his clothes, sees that he has LICE crawling on them, throws his clothes into the mud, and the hero wakes up and mistreats her a bit & teases her with a kiss. She gets offended by his mannerism and storms back home.
He goes on his way to her place, and when she sees that it’s him, she decides to marry him. Her stepmother warns her about him and begs her not to marry. But, of course, she’s so stubborn & decides that he’s so beautiful that she just HAS to have him! Anyways, she marries him, and he practically rapes her on their wedding night. -.- Then! They set out for his home, and he’s so uncaring about her the whole time. They get to his place, and the place is worst than a friggin’ landfill. The moat is disgusting with dead bodies floating, the servants are practically throwing urine & human waste down from the tower, the house is filled with bones and grease and dust and cowebs. Oh yeah, friggin’ sick.
Of course… because she’s the heroine, she sets about cleaning the place up. Then she puts everyone in their place, and blah blah blah blah blah. What the fuck am I writing? Why am I retelling the damn story? Let me just get some shits across.
- The hero doesn’t remember her name until almost the end of the friggin’ book!
- The hero doesn’t BATHE half the time… so he’s full of stank! Ew. LMFAO.
- At one point, when she finds out that the hero keeps his mistresses (8 of them, 7 named after each day of the week, and 1 aside just in case one of the 7 has her period), she storms to the room & sets the mattress on fire… then he proceeds to have nasty smex with her even AFTER he just had smex with the servant girl. REALLY?! How sick is that. Between his BO & all that nasty bodily fluid that he hasn’t washed off yet… damn… that’s just sick. Ever heard of STD?!?!?!? -.-
- The hero is the most irresponsible asshole ever… he has so many friggin’ kids with his mistresses, and he acts like he doesn’t even friggin’ know! WTF?!?!? -.-
I kept reading and reading because I was expecting the hero to change & maybe have an epic grovel scene because of his mistreatment of her, but NOPE! Don’t expect it. He’s still stupid until the end of the story. Oh… and wanna know how it ends? He goes to save her after his enemy captures her, he believes she’s dead, makes his escape, she also managed to escape but he doesn’t know, so he cries and finally says her name right, and says that he loves her, she sees him, they say they love each other, and the end. LMFAO! It was almost like Jude Deveraux decided that she’s satisfied doing enough mind-fuck on the readers and decides to abruptly end the book.
So… even after all the “dafaq-ness” of the book, I still decided to give it a two star because there was some interesting things… like Zared’s character (book two of the series). One star for at least keeping me occupied for a certain about of time, and another star for writing a book so full of ??!@*&$@#(&*$#?? that I might not find something like this again for a while (and, goodness, please… don’t let me find something like this ever again).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 23, 2010
This was one of my favorite romances when I was younger and, between my Medieval glom and discovering the Kindle edition, I had to reread it. It remains one of my favorite romances, though I was a lot more annoyed with the heroine's TSTL moment that precipitated the crisis this time around. And it ends a little abruptly, but I still sighed a happy sigh when I finished it.
July 28, 2015
This is a re-read for me. I like Jude Deveraux and her books well enough. This book is however not my favorite from her.
The hero is, well, not a hero. I mean, most of the romance novels have alpha males and they all pretty much act the same with minor variations. This hero is of the dirty variation, the most unhygienic kind, in the literal sense. He does not shower often and keeps a week supply of mistresses with extra to spare in case of their "monthly flux". The mistresses, are named after the weekdays. Quite funny, actually. He married the heroine for her money, took her virginity in a rather indelicate manner and treated her like garbarge he was bringing with him only until he found a garbage can, if he ever cared about public hygiene.
I rarely have so much to say aobut an alpha hero.
The plotlines are the usual: revenge, money, land, honor, betrayal, blah blah blah. All good.
I however, have a bone to pick with the heroine.
Dear Heroine of The Taming,
Please allow me to be blunt with you. What is wrong with you? I know you are capable and all, but must you lord it over everyone else? Your father married again and there is a new lady in the house. Think of it as a mother-in-law situation. No woman, wants to share the household. You should know well enough to back the hell off. In this case, you are the mother in law who wouldn't let go!
Secondly, I know you are capable and all, yes yes I know, you are very good. How can I forget it when you keep throwing it at our faces and want to prove your worth to everyone? You can clean, you can boss everyone around and you are very very very smart. Without you we would all perish.
Thirdly, what is about this man that you love so much? I don't know about you but I have a pretty strong sense of self-worth. A man like this, damn, he can lick my shoes. I would not bother to tame him. NOT WORTH THE TIME.
I have to say lady, you are everything I don't like in a woman. I respect you but I probably wouldn't fall in love with you. As for your supposedly besotted husband, well, I still doubt his sincerity. I know Ms. Author made him love you but well, I am not buying it. I am sure your happily ever after would invoke some hopes in some females' hearts but, not mine, not mine. A man loves you because he does, not because you make his life better. At least, I prefer to be loved just because, not because I can cook and clean and perform the sexual act with a certain degree of enthusiasm.
I wish you, a happily ever after.
Sincerely yours,
A disgruntled reader
The hero is, well, not a hero. I mean, most of the romance novels have alpha males and they all pretty much act the same with minor variations. This hero is of the dirty variation, the most unhygienic kind, in the literal sense. He does not shower often and keeps a week supply of mistresses with extra to spare in case of their "monthly flux". The mistresses, are named after the weekdays. Quite funny, actually. He married the heroine for her money, took her virginity in a rather indelicate manner and treated her like garbarge he was bringing with him only until he found a garbage can, if he ever cared about public hygiene.
I rarely have so much to say aobut an alpha hero.
The plotlines are the usual: revenge, money, land, honor, betrayal, blah blah blah. All good.
I however, have a bone to pick with the heroine.
Dear Heroine of The Taming,
Please allow me to be blunt with you. What is wrong with you? I know you are capable and all, but must you lord it over everyone else? Your father married again and there is a new lady in the house. Think of it as a mother-in-law situation. No woman, wants to share the household. You should know well enough to back the hell off. In this case, you are the mother in law who wouldn't let go!
Secondly, I know you are capable and all, yes yes I know, you are very good. How can I forget it when you keep throwing it at our faces and want to prove your worth to everyone? You can clean, you can boss everyone around and you are very very very smart. Without you we would all perish.
Thirdly, what is about this man that you love so much? I don't know about you but I have a pretty strong sense of self-worth. A man like this, damn, he can lick my shoes. I would not bother to tame him. NOT WORTH THE TIME.
I have to say lady, you are everything I don't like in a woman. I respect you but I probably wouldn't fall in love with you. As for your supposedly besotted husband, well, I still doubt his sincerity. I know Ms. Author made him love you but well, I am not buying it. I am sure your happily ever after would invoke some hopes in some females' hearts but, not mine, not mine. A man loves you because he does, not because you make his life better. At least, I prefer to be loved just because, not because I can cook and clean and perform the sexual act with a certain degree of enthusiasm.
I wish you, a happily ever after.
Sincerely yours,
A disgruntled reader
October 1, 2017
Hmm. I was ultimately entertained, but it was really hard for me to get past the whole disgusting habits/poor hygiene thing going on with the hero for a good part of the book. I'm mad I had to make a stinky-hero tag. Also, Rogan was really shitty when it came to taking care of his MULTIPLE bastard kids. Even at the end, he didn't seem to care about any of them, they were that irrelevant. I get that this was all part of the times, but sometimes realism is not always best.
April 20, 2013
Cannot yet post a review about this one as I have an urgent need to go to the pharmacy and buy anti itching creme first.
January 26, 2025
3.75 stars Jude Devereaux was one of my favorite authors when I first started reading HR way back when this book was written. I was in the mood for a medieval romance so I settled on this book. Rohan the H is one of her least appealing characters that I have read. He is dirty, smelly has lice and has piles of bones, shiz, rats and dead animals laying around indigos castle and moat. Yuck! Also he can’t remember the fmc’s name for 70 percent of the book and is an assholery fire 95 percent. Dude I don’t care how good looking you are— you are nasty! The fmc started off as feisty but turned Into a lovesick ninny. I have to say the book did hold my interest and moved along at a good pace. I only did a little skimming… but be prepared to be grossed out and want to throat punch the H for 99.5 percent right up to the abrupt 3 sentence ending.
March 9, 2016
Cette romance historique fait partie des premières que j'ai lues et je garde une tendresse particulière pour ces histoires, même si leur schéma est très convenu avec la petite intrigue qui se résout dans les dernières pages (ce qui fait que la fin arrive trop vite !). Les personnages sont aussi très caricaturés. Certains détails de l'histoire me restent aujourd'hui en travers de la gorge (relations à la limite du viol, héros infidèle...) mais ces détails mis à part, cette romance est très touchante ! J'adore voir Liana apprivoiser petit à petit Rogan.
D'ailleurs, je lis à chaque fois en diagonale les premières pages du livre jusqu'à ce que Liana cesse de vouloir se comporter en parfaite épouse – à ce moment cela devient intéressant ;) !
D'ailleurs, je lis à chaque fois en diagonale les premières pages du livre jusqu'à ce que Liana cesse de vouloir se comporter en parfaite épouse – à ce moment cela devient intéressant ;) !
March 9, 2011
The book started out great...had an interesting story and I wanted to see where it was going and how the characters developed. The story did have an interesting twist or two and I was happy to follow along, and the then..bam...it was like the author decided she had other things to do and just ended it.
I sat there and looked at the end of the book and wondered just what in the world happened. There were several lose ends that just remained out there blowing in the wind and they weren't resolved.
I have read other books by this author an I liked what she did. This however, was a huge disappointment with a slap shod ending
I sat there and looked at the end of the book and wondered just what in the world happened. There were several lose ends that just remained out there blowing in the wind and they weren't resolved.
I have read other books by this author an I liked what she did. This however, was a huge disappointment with a slap shod ending
June 7, 2012
I found this book funny! Having to read it in the light of times, I had to keep a sense of humor. H was just awful! Mostly because of his hygiene. The story is like most, but with this twist of a filthy husband, castle, and brothers added a very nice touch to it. Good for a light read without a bunch of dark agnst. Loved how he made up for evrything in the end.
December 28, 2017
I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/13158805
I surprised myself and really enjoyed this book. I have no clue what there is in this book that made me laugh and smile so much but I did. I am glad that I took the day to read it.
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/13158805
I surprised myself and really enjoyed this book. I have no clue what there is in this book that made me laugh and smile so much but I did. I am glad that I took the day to read it.
July 7, 2018
First up, I don't read many romance novels, so I may have had a slightly negative bent before starting the book. Also, I found there were horses spread throughout the novel so I'm tagging this as one of my 50 horse books read in 2018.
Liana is a young noblewoman who runs her father's estates in the middle ages (I think). She doesn't want to marry anyone, but her stepmother forces her hand and she picks some random bloke who abused her in the forest. He's a nobleman and a bit of an a-hole, by a bit, I mean a lot. She then proceeds to get raped (although not phrased that way in the book) and spends the rest of the book trying to make him fall in love with her.
If this is the way most romance novels are written, it's really really not for me.
Oh, and every man in the book is very two dimensional, they all have one trait. Her father is obsessed with his birds so ignores everything else, her husband is filled with aggression and thoughts of revenge, her brother in law is self-centred, even the bad guy is just revenge with nothing else. If I spent my time reading these I don't believe I'd have a very high opinion of men - and maybe that's the point.
I wouldn't recommend this.
Liana is a young noblewoman who runs her father's estates in the middle ages (I think). She doesn't want to marry anyone, but her stepmother forces her hand and she picks some random bloke who abused her in the forest. He's a nobleman and a bit of an a-hole, by a bit, I mean a lot. She then proceeds to get raped (although not phrased that way in the book) and spends the rest of the book trying to make him fall in love with her.
If this is the way most romance novels are written, it's really really not for me.
Oh, and every man in the book is very two dimensional, they all have one trait. Her father is obsessed with his birds so ignores everything else, her husband is filled with aggression and thoughts of revenge, her brother in law is self-centred, even the bad guy is just revenge with nothing else. If I spent my time reading these I don't believe I'd have a very high opinion of men - and maybe that's the point.
I wouldn't recommend this.
November 8, 2023
3.5 rounded up
This needed an epilouge desperately, but I really enjoyed it, so I'm giving it 4 stars. I loved Liana. The stuff she pulled was hilarious from setting the bed on fire to winning the bet and then to the coins. She didn't pull any punches, and Rogan honestly didn't know what to do with her.
So, all in all, i really enjoyed this one. This is definitely NOT safe for any safety readers that wanted to know.
This needed an epilouge desperately, but I really enjoyed it, so I'm giving it 4 stars. I loved Liana. The stuff she pulled was hilarious from setting the bed on fire to winning the bet and then to the coins. She didn't pull any punches, and Rogan honestly didn't know what to do with her.
So, all in all, i really enjoyed this one. This is definitely NOT safe for any safety readers that wanted to know.
April 1, 2017
Šajà paplānajā dāmu romānā liekas, ka atrodami visas iezīmes, kas raksturīgas šāda tipa literatūrai- stūrgalvīga, bet sirdī trausla lēdija, viduslaiku pils, klusējošs un sākumā pabaiss iecerētais utt! Galvenais, kas man liekas pievilcīgākais, ir tas, ka beigās tu vari būt drošs- viss būs labi! Happy ever after būs sasniegts.
February 21, 2019
Maybe the parish register will be in the next book, The Conquest. And I hope The Lady is in the next book also.
April 23, 2018
Labi lasījās. Pie kafijas un bulkām. :)
Read
February 19, 2024DNF.
On a usual note, the hero having mistresses doesn't bother me. In fact, I live for the angst, but STUPIDITY is where I draw the line. I was convinced this would be an epic read when most of my favourite reviewers and authors rated this 4 or 5 stars. Now, possibly they rated this based on the applaud of realism - the fact that medieval times mean body odors, lice and having no proper hygiene. Other than that, I don't fancy myself a redhead hero, and what really put me off right off the bat is how the heroine was supposed to be intelligent, and I was rather impressed by the fact that she runs her father's multiple estates. The story started off with the whole Cinderella's evil stepmother vibe, and wants to marry Liana off.
Okay, now what really had me ditching the book was how ridiculous and surprisingly even having low self-esteem, Liana spots the hero half naked basking under the sun, and suddenly decides she wants to what HAVE FUN with him? That idea was so impractical based on what we know about her so far. She doesn't seem like the type of woman who shirks her duty for fun, but then she changes clothes with a peasant woman and attempts to befriend him? I got annoyed when she snooped on his clothes, and when she found lice in it, she threw it into the bog (even if by accident). I felt angry on Rogan's behalf. I mean, if I were him, I'd react the same way and shove her into the bog to fetch my only shirt she discarded and have the galls to try to run away? THAT WAS SO FREAKING STUPID.
Now, I know their relationship's supposed to progress after, and it's a marriage before love troupe but the characters were sooooo not up my alley. Rogan's a lusty sloth and Liana's a woman cleaner than a church nun. Liana's also being taken advantage of throughout the story, and I don't know how their relationship will even progress into SWEETER waters, but heck, I don't know, all the reviewers are just talking about LICE and MEDIEVAL HYGIENE, and the fact that Rogan has several mistresses. In a nutshell, even if this was good to some readers, I guess I'm going to have to pick team NO, I'LL GIVE THIS A HARD PASS.
On a usual note, the hero having mistresses doesn't bother me. In fact, I live for the angst, but STUPIDITY is where I draw the line. I was convinced this would be an epic read when most of my favourite reviewers and authors rated this 4 or 5 stars. Now, possibly they rated this based on the applaud of realism - the fact that medieval times mean body odors, lice and having no proper hygiene. Other than that, I don't fancy myself a redhead hero, and what really put me off right off the bat is how the heroine was supposed to be intelligent, and I was rather impressed by the fact that she runs her father's multiple estates. The story started off with the whole Cinderella's evil stepmother vibe, and wants to marry Liana off.
Okay, now what really had me ditching the book was how ridiculous and surprisingly even having low self-esteem, Liana spots the hero half naked basking under the sun, and suddenly decides she wants to what HAVE FUN with him? That idea was so impractical based on what we know about her so far. She doesn't seem like the type of woman who shirks her duty for fun, but then she changes clothes with a peasant woman and attempts to befriend him? I got annoyed when she snooped on his clothes, and when she found lice in it, she threw it into the bog (even if by accident). I felt angry on Rogan's behalf. I mean, if I were him, I'd react the same way and shove her into the bog to fetch my only shirt she discarded and have the galls to try to run away? THAT WAS SO FREAKING STUPID.
Now, I know their relationship's supposed to progress after, and it's a marriage before love troupe but the characters were sooooo not up my alley. Rogan's a lusty sloth and Liana's a woman cleaner than a church nun. Liana's also being taken advantage of throughout the story, and I don't know how their relationship will even progress into SWEETER waters, but heck, I don't know, all the reviewers are just talking about LICE and MEDIEVAL HYGIENE, and the fact that Rogan has several mistresses. In a nutshell, even if this was good to some readers, I guess I'm going to have to pick team NO, I'LL GIVE THIS A HARD PASS.
October 18, 2011
suka banget ama Liana, geram ama Rogan dan terkagum2 pada para simpanan Rogan yang dinamai Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday dan Saturday (sesuai hari mereka ditiduri), yang bikin Liana langsung menyulut tempat tidur Rogan dengan obor
[image error]
paling terkakak waktu baca Liana ngasih tau Rogan CS kalo makanan mereka udah diludahi ama juru masaknya yang minta ampun jorok [image error]
above all, suka ama karakter Liana yang tegas dan tanpa ampun, langsung mengusir para "days" dari kastil bahkan bersedia menampung anak2 haram Rogan yang seabreg2 banyaknya (bisa bikin kampung sendiri kalo ditambah dengan saudara2 luar nikah Rogan, hasil peninggalan ayahnya) [image error]
selain itu dia juga bisa merubah Rogan yang jorok, tukang selingkuh dan chauvinist menjadi suami yang mencintai Liana seutuhnya sehingga bersedia menempuh mara bahaya untuk menyelamatkan Liana dari penculikan musuh keluarganya [image error]
ini medieval pertama yang saya baca, suasananya agak beda dengan Season 1800 yang sopan dan beradab. tapi tetap menyenangkan kok bacanya :)
paling terkakak waktu baca Liana ngasih tau Rogan CS kalo makanan mereka udah diludahi ama juru masaknya yang minta ampun jorok [image error]
above all, suka ama karakter Liana yang tegas dan tanpa ampun, langsung mengusir para "days" dari kastil bahkan bersedia menampung anak2 haram Rogan yang seabreg2 banyaknya (bisa bikin kampung sendiri kalo ditambah dengan saudara2 luar nikah Rogan, hasil peninggalan ayahnya) [image error]
selain itu dia juga bisa merubah Rogan yang jorok, tukang selingkuh dan chauvinist menjadi suami yang mencintai Liana seutuhnya sehingga bersedia menempuh mara bahaya untuk menyelamatkan Liana dari penculikan musuh keluarganya [image error]
ini medieval pertama yang saya baca, suasananya agak beda dengan Season 1800 yang sopan dan beradab. tapi tetap menyenangkan kok bacanya :)
November 11, 2015
Liana is a heiress running her father's castle, until her new step-mother decides she wants control so she harps at her lazy husband to marry Liana off. After countless suitors Liana chooses to merry arrogant, penniless but beautiful to her Rogan. Rogan is dirt poor, needs money to continue his war against the Howards. Liana was awesome, smart, fair with radical notions of cleanliness, education and keeping her subjects feed. I liked her a lot but she turned stupid around Rogan, who was a big jerk to her. I hated Rogan as much as I liked Liana, he slept with a new woman every day (The Days, they wern't even worthy of a name) while newly married, hurt Liana on her wedding night, had bastard children running around the village, arrogant, and boorish. There was no reason for Liana to like Rogan except his hard body and looks. She brought more to the marriage then he did, she fixed his clothes, his castle, took in his bastards, feed him and his subjects. Like i said Liana was awesome and it was too bad she didn't get an awesome husband.
April 28, 2013
This is not a historical I would recommend... it's funny in a way but just not my cup of tea.
Liana seems like a strong independent smart heroine but I still don't SEE what's so fantastic about Rogan. To straddle yourself onto Rogan willingly? That's stupidity.... or plain insanity.
Rogan is one of the most dumbass hero I've ever read. And he names his mistress according to days, Sunday Monday Tuesday etc and a Waiting just in case one of them couldn't do it.
He rapes his wife, cheats on his wife and has not a single ounce of remorse or conscience. A total asshole.
Did I mention how filthy Rogan and his family and village are? Have they no sense of hygiene? And he has litters of little kids running around and not realise their existence! AND he doesn't even know his wife's name until WEEKS later!
if it wasn't for the humour element and that some sense has FINALLY knocked into Rogan's miniature brain , this would have easily be a 1 star.
Liana seems like a strong independent smart heroine but I still don't SEE what's so fantastic about Rogan. To straddle yourself onto Rogan willingly? That's stupidity.... or plain insanity.
Rogan is one of the most dumbass hero I've ever read. And he names his mistress according to days, Sunday Monday Tuesday etc and a Waiting just in case one of them couldn't do it.
He rapes his wife, cheats on his wife and has not a single ounce of remorse or conscience. A total asshole.
Did I mention how filthy Rogan and his family and village are? Have they no sense of hygiene? And he has litters of little kids running around and not realise their existence! AND he doesn't even know his wife's name until WEEKS later!
if it wasn't for the humour element and that some sense has FINALLY knocked into Rogan's miniature brain , this would have easily be a 1 star.
August 10, 2012
N'étant pas fan de Jude Deveraux je n'ai pas été surprise de ne pas accrocher ce livre...
Décidemment je n'aime ni le style, ni les intrigues et encore moins les personnages féminins!
Même en remettant les choses dans leur contexte, Liana m'a tapé sur les nerfs pendant tout le livre!! Complètement asservie, sans réel tempéremment ni caractère, elle m'a semblée complétement effacée.
Par contre j'ai adoré le personnage de Rogan!!!! Il est parfait pour se genre d'histoire!! et tout ce qui a pu rebuter certaines lectrices - le manque d'hygiène du château et encore plus de ses habitants, la sysogynie de Rogan, etc... - moi m'ont bien fait rigoler tellement elles sont à l'opposé de ce que l'on s'attend d'un héros!!!
Une histoire pour celles qui aiment les héros sans aucuns scrupules et que l'on pourrait qualifier de "pourritures"!! lol
Décidemment je n'aime ni le style, ni les intrigues et encore moins les personnages féminins!
Même en remettant les choses dans leur contexte, Liana m'a tapé sur les nerfs pendant tout le livre!! Complètement asservie, sans réel tempéremment ni caractère, elle m'a semblée complétement effacée.
Par contre j'ai adoré le personnage de Rogan!!!! Il est parfait pour se genre d'histoire!! et tout ce qui a pu rebuter certaines lectrices - le manque d'hygiène du château et encore plus de ses habitants, la sysogynie de Rogan, etc... - moi m'ont bien fait rigoler tellement elles sont à l'opposé de ce que l'on s'attend d'un héros!!!
Une histoire pour celles qui aiment les héros sans aucuns scrupules et que l'on pourrait qualifier de "pourritures"!! lol
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