Blind Aphrodite

by Renee Bernard

A bold historical romance with characters unlike any others. Lady Claire Aylesbury is brave, beautiful and blind. When her twin brother, Edward, mysteriously disappears, she is forced to venture out alone to find him. Desperate to escape a limited future and loveless marriage, she meets Captain Rutger Grayson, a man equally desperate to escape his own past and the demons of fate. Together they discover that true love is the only sanctuary left in Blind Aphrodite.

Genres: Historical Romance, Regency Romance

220 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2000

About the author

What in the world is a retired Navy chaplain’s daughter doing writing scorching hot historical romances and paranormal graphic novels? Renee Bernard is applying a great education from traveling all over the world to story telling and doing her best to keep her father proud. Truthfully, her father is her number one fan, even though he has sworn never to read a single word of her books (a vow he has kept to this day!) Nothing stops him from telling everyone he knows that his daughter is now a USA Today Bestselling author or from handing out bookmarks on the golf course. Love can make even a minister do strange things!

Renee Bernard is a freelance writer and host of “Canned Laughter and Coffee” on Readers Entertainment, as well as a contributor to Romantic Times BookReviews magazine. Renee currently lives in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in Northern California. (Note an interesting proximity to great wineries!)

Reviews

[Ellie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I liked the book all the way until the very very end.

This book should have had a trigger warning because the "bad" woman, married to the main villain (or his lover) admits that he had her "taken advantage of" for his enjoyment as he watched her suffer. I'm pretty sure after this she has a breakdown and ends her own life.

Kind of puts a damper on the entire rest of the book and completely catches you offguard since it's vile and nothing that bad happens elsewhere. Gratefully, the author doesn't make you read about it, I don't think, and it's only a throwaway line. But it's alarming to me it's mentioned at all.

[Lucimar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Esperei mais do livro. A autora focou as cenas ardentes aos vilões das história. Enquanto, as cenas do casal principal ficou a desejar. E o tema era interessante: Um homem solitário, cujo apelido era Muck - algo sujo e sem valor ou mesmo destruído- e com ferimentos no rosto que o fazia se isolar e se distanciar das mulheres já que sua aparência as assustava, e muito cuidadoso com àqueles que amava. Ela tinha muita personalidade e enfrentava tudo apesar de sua cegueira.
Eles se sentiram atraídos mais pouco cenas rolou na história toda. Uma espécie de versão da Bela e a Fera.

[Alene · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don't think I have ever read a book whose concept and title held so much potential for greatness, and yet failed so miserably to deliver on that potential or even meet basic expectations. A glaring continuity error, apparent missing content or poor editing, and a romance that is chaste to the point of being almost childish make this book one of the worst romance novels I have ever read. The author does not do justice to the age old and treasured theme of beauty and the beast.

[Wendy Tavenner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved the book!! It was a redemption for Rutger not able to save young Benji and his shipmates!! Claire goes to see Capt. Rutger to see where her brother might be with the descriptions of his location from the last letter he sent. When Claire enters his cabin and she doesn't scream at his scared face he is elated until he realizes she is blind. When he reads her brothers letter he said he doesn't understand since it says right in the letter he was in Savannah in the Colonies. That's when Claire realizes her companion has been lying to her. Claire finally comes up with a schema to have the Captain help track down her wayward brother. Buts there more at stake besides both their hearts. A good hearted read!!!

[Diane Peterson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I genuinely enjoyed this book from Renee Bernard. Claire was a lovely heroine, brave and determined. She accepted her blindness, but strove to be a whole person with a full life. Grayson was thoughtful and patient. I love how their relationship developed slowly. The evil plot that surrounded Claire was intricate and compelling, however, disappointment hit me when both villains turned out to be what I call "crazy bad." I think it's enough for villains to be just bad without them being crazy. Sometimes I think that romance authors are such nice people that they can't imagine someone being bad without being crazy. Overall, I found this book to be a quick and intriguing read and I enjoyed it.