The Man Behind the Mask

Viking Brides #4

by Christine Rimmer

He had been in hiding for years, but the sight of Dulcie Samples, with her girl-next-door appeal, was enough to finally draw Prince Valbrand into the light. Yet Valbrand, whose face--not to mention spirit--had taken a serious hit from the assassination attempt that had driven him underground, was sworn to spend all the rest of his days hunting down the enemies who had done this to him. And even if he had the time for love, who could see past his scarred face to the man inside? Certainly not the beautiful Dulcie....

Or so Valbrand thought. But despite the darkness and mystery that surrounded him, Dulcie knew that the half-masked man before her was her destiny. Now, if only she could convince him that she held both the key to his heart and his kingdom in her trembling hands....

Genres: Romance, Historical, Ebooks, Harlequin, Beauty and The Beast

304 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published May 1, 2004

About the author

New York Times bestselling author Christine Rimmer has written more than one hundred contemporary romances for Harlequin Books. She has won Romantic Times BOOKreview’s Reviewer’s Choice Award for best Silhouette Special Edition. She has been nominated seven times for the Romance Writers of America’s prestigious RITA award and five times for Romantic Times Series Storyteller of the Year.

A California native who first longed to be an actress, Christine earned her theater degree from California State, Sacramento and then went to New York to study acting. Later, she moved to Southern California, where she began her writing career with short stories, plays, and poems. Her poems and short stories were published in a number of small literary journals. Her plays were produced at The Back Alley and Group Theaters in Southern California and have been published by Dramatists Play Service and West Coast Plays.

She now lives in Oregon with her family and two very contented cats named Tom and Ed.

Reviews

[Megan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Hands down, one of the worst books I have ever read. I didn’t want to give it 1 star, as I usually reserve that rating for books that I can’t finish, however, I had to make an exception. This book is particularly bad. I know it’s the fourth book in a four part series, and I wasn’t confused, the author did a good job in letting you know what had happened previously. The plot is lame and boring; I disliked all the characters, but most especially Brit, the heroine’s (Dulcie’s) best friend. If Brit is Dulcie’s best friend I shudder to think how her enemies treat her, or wait, the enemy at the end of the book did treat Dulcie poorly, but actually she didn’t seem that bad… The scarred hero, Prince Valbrand, (that’s right a prince, I forgot to say that they are at a fictional country island- Gullandria- for Brit’s wedding [Brit and Valbrand are brother and sister:])… so as I was saying, Prince Valbrand, my favorite type of hero- scarred seemed like a normal guy with a scarred face. He wasn’t ashamed of how he looked or made apologies for it, and he wasn’t dark, brooding, or tortured (as in tortured soul). Again, boring. It was love at first sight for Valbrand and Dulcie. No sexual tension at all. The love scenes were awkward and cringe-worthy. Oh, and at the end of the book, even though Dulcie loves Valbrand more than anything, she refuses to marry him (no explanation to why given) for a YEAR before she accepts on the last page. I am so upset I wasted my time reading this book, and I will not read anything by this author ever again. I only found this book on Amazon Lisotpia for “Beauty and the beast type romances” and boy, was this a disappointment.

[Lynz Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great end to am awesome series

I enjoyed this series alot and was glad to finally read this book. There was some formatting errors where it would switch POV and wouldn't break or say there was a switch.

Not my favorite of the series but I still enjoyed it and how it brought everything to an end including updates ob the others.

[lia⋆ ଳ ‧₊˚ ⋅ · Rating 3 out of 5]

got me giggling nd kicking my feet

[Kate Cardenas · Rating 5 out of 5]

His disfigured face had kept Prince Valbrand in hiding for years, but the sight of Dulcie Samples was enough to draw him into the light. Could Dulcie see past his scars to the man inside? Original.

This was an awesome read that is all about a price who has a scarred face with a past to go along with it. he meets the American Dulcie who is friends with his sister the princess and fall in love at first sight. Lots of action and steamy scenes.

[Anais101 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un rostro en la sombra

[Rita Sassatelli]

Um favorito de sempre. Vibe de Bela e o Monstro.