Cherished Enemy

The Golden Chronicles #5

by Patricia Veryan

High-spirited Rosamond Albritton must work closely with the elusive Dr. Robert Victor when they discover the crucial cypher leading to Bonnie Prince Charlie's treasure

Genres: Romance, Historical Romance, Historical, Historical Fiction, Georgian, Fiction, Georgian Romance

372 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1988

About the author

Patricia Valeria Bannister was born in London. After World War II, she married Allan Louis Berg and moved to the United States; she lived on the West Coast and was the author of many historical novels from 1978 until 2002, using the pen names Patricia Veryan and Gwyneth Moore.

At the time of her death, she was living in Bellevue, Washington, USA.

Reviews

[Tweety · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic! The first half I was slightly annoyed by misunderstandings, even though I knew why they had to be. But the second half is so exciting and the ending is superb! Which more than makes up for my irritation. On to the last! :D

[Christa Schönmann Abbühl · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is my least favorite book in the series. I could not quite like the heroine, even though I liked her family. And the hero, for plot reasons, stayed very distant for most of the book, so that I had a hard time connecting to him either.
It is also a book that hardly stands on its own feet. Many situations and reactions only get a deeper meaning if you already know about the people involved from other books.
All the books by Veryan have unrealistic, sometimes nonsensical plot elements. Usually I don’t care, I just go with it and enjoy the ride. As I said before, I am not reading her for realistic content. I am reading her for fantasy and romance, for old fashioned values and heroics. And at least her setting feels always very real to me.
But with this book the nonsense went too far. The hero is terrible at concealing his Scottishness. He slips so many times, it is hard to believe that he ever even got to England. And so many people know him! It is not only a stupid risk to take, it simply makes no sense.
And the stories he and her brother tell Rosamond to explain things away are just silly. Also it is disrespectful to her. Geoffrey for example wants to tell Prudence early on what his game is - he has to wait for her father to agree, but as soon as she finds out part of it, they include her in the plotting.
Rosamond does seem very bad at pretending anything, so maybe they are right not to trust her. But the way they treat her does not really improve the situation, as she just jumps to different conclusions that are equally dangerous.
Because of my not liking it all that much, I have only read this once or twice. Which made the reread pretty interesting, as I did not remember most of the story.
Some of the dialogue, for example the conflicts between the main couple, was very fine. But at other times I could not stand the pathos - something I am usually there for. It felt off.

[Misfit · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the fifth book in a six book series, and terribly weak compared to the books preceding this. The funny stuff wasn't funny, the animals weren't charming scamps, more like annoying brats The H&h didn't have a lot of chemistry, and there weren't any cute kids. Nothing really happened to tie this pair in with characters and events of the previous books, and I found myself skimming a lot until things picked up around page 250.

[Mela · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have had a good time with this part of series too. Many threads from previous parts (and from The Wagered Widow) were here continued/entwined. [Although, one can read it as a standalone book too.]

Mrs. Veryan used the theme of the Jacobite rebels (and more generally: friends/enemies because of the political idea) simply splendidly in her series, especially in this one.

But I agree with my GR-friends it was a weaker part than the others.

On the other hand, I can see it was needed to show another stage of Roland's evolution and to advance the main thread toward the conclusion.

Nonetheless, as a standalone book it deserves 'only' 3 stars.

[Rebekah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of this book was kind of a chore to get through. It is the second time I have read it. I found the hero and the heroine likable and admirable but rather run of the mill. It was very "talky", with little or no advancement to the plot or character. It was not as funny as many of her books. There was no joy in it. Still, it is key to the series. It is the one where all of the cyphers are finally put together and the puzzle is solved after much struggle. It sets up the 6th and last entry, The Dedicated Villain, perfectly. I love the character of Fr. Charles Albritton. He has been a mystery figure up to this book, and he finally comes out of the shadows. Also, to a lesser extent, does his love, Deborah Singleton. The other big draw to this book is that all of the "league" make appearances or we learn something about them. The re-appearance of Treve and the"Little Parish" of Wagered Widow is particularly welcome. We even get a reference to visiting Willowvale! The hiding place of the Jacobite Treasure will be featured in a book 50+ years hence in one of the Sanguinet Saga. So although I appreciated some things PV did in this one, I agree with most reviewers that it was one of the weakest in the series, indeed, in her canon.

[Frany · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boring

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was fun - I enjoyed it a lot, although it was a bit slow in spots. I didn't like it quite as much as Love Alters Not or the Tyrant, but better than the others. I think the enemies to lovers trope is my thing.... fun characters and great plot. Not sure if it will hold the same charm on a re-read though. Maybe.

[Frances · Rating 3 out of 5]

My least favorite of the series.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one starts "Autumn 1746" and has many connections back to earlier books, and clearly places The Wagered Widow as earlier (Treve de Villars is already engaged to Rebecca Parrish) and after Mistress of Willowvale (Mariner Fotheringay's loss of the list of contributors is mentioned, and I assume that's a reference to Willowvale. Zachary Troy is also mentioned).

I suspect I'd place both Wagered Widow and Mistress of Willowvale between books 4 and 5 of the GC, but reading them first also works.

Rosamond Albritton (sister of Charles, the cleric who has has appeared in all previous novels) is in Paris at the start of the story. Captain Holt is present as is Roland Otten. Upon her return to England, she's escorted by "Dr. Victor" to her home (in fact, he's Rob MacTavish, brother of Prudence MacTavish) and they are driven by "Billy" (who I think proves to be Treve de Villars.)

Roland Otten c0ntinues his not-quite-bad-enough guy schtick, letting them escape. Captain Holt continues being creepy. Deb Singleton (fiancee of Charles sister of Rosamond's fiancee who died at Culloden) proves to be the kitchen maid, Becky, from Practice to Deceive. I figured that would get revealed! Thaddeus Briley shows up a couple of times.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

#5 in the Golden Chronicles series. Set in England in the aftermath of the attempt of Prince Charlie to take over the throne. His supporters are being hunted and destroyed. Enjoy all of this series.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am a big fan of Patricia Veryan--read all of her titles when they were first printed and am currently rereading them. The joy of a series is visiting various characters again and again. The animals--Rump and Trifles were fun to read about also.

[Mary23nm · Rating 3 out of 5]

So far, my least favorite of the series, but still an enjoyable read. The overly mischievous dog, Trifle, plays a large part in the book and it became very annoying after awhile. (Why can't they handle this dog/why doesn't someone discipline this dog? )3.5/5 stars

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good! I love the characters and I love the writing. Each book is a continuing story and yet each segment is so different. I'm so glad I kept with this series.

[Tressa (Wishful Endings) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was disappointed in this one. Definitely my least favorite of the series.