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Il fiore sbocciato
Lady Adriana Sutton è da sempre innamorata di Colton Wyndham al quale è stata promessa in matrimonio sin da ragazzina. Colton però, insofferente alle imposizioni paterne, parte improvvisamente per arruolarsi come ufficiale nell'esercito inglese impegnato nella guerra contro Napoleone. Al suo ritorno il suo cuore comincerà a cedere ad Adriana, divenuta una donna dalla bellezza e dalla vivacità straordinarie. Ma un segreto del suo passato e la comparsa di un rivale invidioso rischieranno di allontanare Adriana dalle sue braccia...
430 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2003
509 people are currently reading
1781 people want to read
About the author
Kathleen E. Woodiwiss
53 books1,931 followersKathleen Erin Hogg was born on June 3, 1939, in Alexandria, Louisiana, she was the youngest of eight siblings by Gladys (Coker) and Charles Wingrove Hogg, a disabled World War I veteran. She long relished creating original narratives, and by age 6 was telling herself stories at night to help herself fall asleep. At age 16, she met U.S. Air Force Second Lieutenant Ross Eugene Woodiwiss at a dance, and they married the following year. She wrote her first book in longhand while living at a military outpost in Japan.
She is credited with the invention of the modern historical romance novel: In 1972 she released The Flame and the Flower, an instant New York Times bestseller that created a literary precedent. The novel revolutionized mainstream publishing, featuring an epic historical romance with a strong heroine and impassioned sex scenes. The Flame and the Flower was rejected by agents and hardcover publishers, who deemed it as "too long" at 600 pages. Rather than follow the advice of the rejection letters and rewrite the novel, she instead submitted it to paperback publishers. The first publisher on her list, Avon, quickly purchased the novel and arranged an initial 500,000 print run. The novel sold over 2.3 million copies in its first four years of publication.
The success of The Flame and the Flower prompted a new style of writing romance, concentrating primarily on historical fiction tracking the monogamous relationship between a helpless heroines and the hero who rescued her, even if he had been the one to place her in danger. The romance novels which followed in her example featured longer plots, more controversial situations and characters, and more intimate and steamy sex scenes.
She was an avid horse rider who at one time lived in a large home on 55 acres (220,000 m2) in Minnesota. After her husband's death in 1996, she moved back to Louisiana. She died in a hospital on July 6, 2007 in Princeton, Minnesota, aged 68, from cancer. She was survived by two sons, Sean and Heath, their wives, and numerous grandchildren. Her third son, Dorren, predeceased her.
She is credited with the invention of the modern historical romance novel: In 1972 she released The Flame and the Flower, an instant New York Times bestseller that created a literary precedent. The novel revolutionized mainstream publishing, featuring an epic historical romance with a strong heroine and impassioned sex scenes. The Flame and the Flower was rejected by agents and hardcover publishers, who deemed it as "too long" at 600 pages. Rather than follow the advice of the rejection letters and rewrite the novel, she instead submitted it to paperback publishers. The first publisher on her list, Avon, quickly purchased the novel and arranged an initial 500,000 print run. The novel sold over 2.3 million copies in its first four years of publication.
The success of The Flame and the Flower prompted a new style of writing romance, concentrating primarily on historical fiction tracking the monogamous relationship between a helpless heroines and the hero who rescued her, even if he had been the one to place her in danger. The romance novels which followed in her example featured longer plots, more controversial situations and characters, and more intimate and steamy sex scenes.
She was an avid horse rider who at one time lived in a large home on 55 acres (220,000 m2) in Minnesota. After her husband's death in 1996, she moved back to Louisiana. She died in a hospital on July 6, 2007 in Princeton, Minnesota, aged 68, from cancer. She was survived by two sons, Sean and Heath, their wives, and numerous grandchildren. Her third son, Dorren, predeceased her.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 228 reviews
May 17, 2012
I feel sorry for readers who see Kathleen Woodiwiss's name and pick up this book because Woodiwiss is considered to be the Mother of modern mass-market historical romance. This book is awful. First, and most problematic, the treatment of the female hero is abysmal. She is supposed to be a very capable young woman, but weak storytelling here finds her falling apart whenever the uber-masculine hero is around. Really? Do we have to do that old trope again? But even worse: she is sexually humiliated -- literally exposed -- at least three times before her wedding. Yuck. Are we really supposed to be entertained by this? And just when it finally seems like the couple has achieved their (unlikely) HEA, the last 150 pages turn very dark -- with murders, sado-masochism (and not the consensual safe-word kind), abuse, more humiliation of women, and just stupid, unnecessary stuff. In this book, the aristocratic class is presented as "normal" and "nice;" the servant class is presented as simple or even stupid, with much of their dialogue written in phonetic dialogue, and the evil villains coming from the merchant class and working class. Offensive. The entire novel is also hopelessly overwritten, with stilted, convoluted constructions at the sentence level, and a fundamental lack of pace in the plotting. The first SCENE takes like three chapters and 70 pages. The first DAY of the story takes us to about page 130. In all, there is about 200 pages of actual story in this 580 page novel. I hope I've convinced anyone who might be tempted to read this novel that it's a waste of time. Not recommended. -cg
April 6, 2018
Reseña completa: http://masromance.blogspot.com.es/201...
Por fin!!!
Me pena decir esto pero ha sido un suplicio.
Si algo hay con lo que no puedo es que la base del argumento sea del todo increíble y aquí es lo que hay.
Vamos a ver, un jovenzuelo de 17 años se cabrea con su padre porque le ha concertado el matrimonio con la vecina y se marcha... 17 años!!!
La vecina (también noble) tenía 6 años… y todavía le perdura el reproche y el rencor.
Vaya por delante que lo del chaval me parece excesivo pero lo de ella no me cuela, por favor. Que era una niña ¡!!
Casi la mitad de la novela se basa en ese concepto, con disputas sin apenas sustancia y conversaciones repetitivas hasta la saciedad.
Luego él la ve desnuda en su bañera y el tema da un giro y dale que te pego a lo bella que es y lo excitado que está en todo momento.
Aplaudo este tipo de protagonistas arrojadas y con decisión propia pero cuando luego la autora hace que todos, pero todos, los personajes masculinos de la novela estén enamoradísimos de ella porque es la más guapa. Pues me cabreo mucho
El porqué ella termina también enamorada de él es, al mismo tiempo, otro misterio
A la primera parte ya le sobra la mitad. Y luego viene el giro y aquí es una sucesión más de situaciones de lo más absurdas, creadas para que a la autora le cierre bien la historia (todo tan fácil que resulta irrisorio). Con hechos que son explicados de unos a otros, lo que hace que el lector los lea varias veces. Cansino.
En mi opinión a la novela le sobran la mitad de páginas y le falta un mucho de rigor histórico. No se puede escribir una novela romántica histórica saltándose tan a la valiente las costumbres más básicas. Es mi opinión y con detalles tan poco reales como que los perros vivan más de 17 años
Y el malo es muy malo!!!
No sé, tengo muy buen recuerdo de esta autora a la que hay que aplaudirle que diera un giro muy revolucionario al romance histórico. Tengo novelas de ella con 5 estrellas, que ya me da un poco de miedo releer por si mis gustos han variado tanto.
De todas formas, soy consciente de que esta novela no se encuentra entre sus mejores, por eso he tardado tanto (más de 4 años) en leerla después de comprarla.
Por fin!!!
Me pena decir esto pero ha sido un suplicio.
Si algo hay con lo que no puedo es que la base del argumento sea del todo increíble y aquí es lo que hay.
Vamos a ver, un jovenzuelo de 17 años se cabrea con su padre porque le ha concertado el matrimonio con la vecina y se marcha... 17 años!!!
La vecina (también noble) tenía 6 años… y todavía le perdura el reproche y el rencor.
Vaya por delante que lo del chaval me parece excesivo pero lo de ella no me cuela, por favor. Que era una niña ¡!!
Casi la mitad de la novela se basa en ese concepto, con disputas sin apenas sustancia y conversaciones repetitivas hasta la saciedad.
Luego él la ve desnuda en su bañera y el tema da un giro y dale que te pego a lo bella que es y lo excitado que está en todo momento.
Aplaudo este tipo de protagonistas arrojadas y con decisión propia pero cuando luego la autora hace que todos, pero todos, los personajes masculinos de la novela estén enamoradísimos de ella porque es la más guapa. Pues me cabreo mucho
El porqué ella termina también enamorada de él es, al mismo tiempo, otro misterio
A la primera parte ya le sobra la mitad. Y luego viene el giro y aquí es una sucesión más de situaciones de lo más absurdas, creadas para que a la autora le cierre bien la historia (todo tan fácil que resulta irrisorio). Con hechos que son explicados de unos a otros, lo que hace que el lector los lea varias veces. Cansino.
En mi opinión a la novela le sobran la mitad de páginas y le falta un mucho de rigor histórico. No se puede escribir una novela romántica histórica saltándose tan a la valiente las costumbres más básicas. Es mi opinión y con detalles tan poco reales como que los perros vivan más de 17 años
Y el malo es muy malo!!!
No sé, tengo muy buen recuerdo de esta autora a la que hay que aplaudirle que diera un giro muy revolucionario al romance histórico. Tengo novelas de ella con 5 estrellas, que ya me da un poco de miedo releer por si mis gustos han variado tanto.
De todas formas, soy consciente de que esta novela no se encuentra entre sus mejores, por eso he tardado tanto (más de 4 años) en leerla después de comprarla.
May 25, 2015
Read this several years ago, and just realized I never rated it. But I do remember loving it.
July 12, 2019
1 Estrella. Éste libro me ha supuesto una tremenda decepción, sobre todo de ésta autora que me dejó un listón tan alto en novelas como “Una rosa en invierno” o “Shanna” ¿Dónde está ésa genial escritora en “Pacto de amor”? Quizás será eso que dicen que algunas autoras no envejecen bien, o su estilo no mejora con el paso del tiempo. Como sea, éste libro es malo, malo y malo.
Lo que ha tenido de malo el libro empieza desde el principio, con un planteamiento que podría haber estado mejor, si al menos la historia tuviese algún punto verosímil, original o directamente atractivo. Pero tenemos una historia enrevesada que no hay por donde cogerla. Para empezar porque a los protagonistas se los concertó su matrimonio cuando eran niños, Colton tenía dieciséis años y Adriana seis, y como él no estaba conforme con el acuerdo de sus padres, se largó de casa y se alistó en el ejército. En dieciséis años no había pisado su casa hasta que pasa Waterloo y se da la casualidad de que su padre ha fallecido y debe volver para reclamar su título.
¿Qué descubre Colton a su llegada? Que la niña que dejó atrás se ha convertido en una joven bellísima, admirada por todo el mundo y pretendida por todos los hombres ¿Y ahora se acuerda de ella? ¿Ahora le parece hermosa? Por el hecho de ser hermosa y haber dejado de ser ésa pesada niña que lo seguía a todas partes ¿cree que puede tratarla como a una buscona? Pues eso me ha asqueado toda la novela.
La actitud de Adriana puedo entenderla más. Es la típica hija de la nobleza que desde la cuna la han dicho con quién debe casarse y la han preparado para ello. A pesar de tener solo seis años cuando Colton se largó, él era su héroe, el chico al que siempre quiso y admiró, y su rechazo desde muy niña le dolió. Como lectora ¿puedo esperar que ella le haya hecho sufrir por ello? Sinceramente no mucho, o no más de lo que debe, pues como protagonistas han dejado mucho que desear, con actitudes y formas de pensar que no cuadran.
Para mi sufrimiento no sabía si la novela era mala porque lo era, o he querido echarle la culpa al traductor; después de haber sido capaz de terminarlo y leerlo entero, creo que puedo decir que el libro es malo, y compadezco al traductor que haya tenido que pegarse semejante pestiñazo.
¿Tiene algo interesante la novela? Nada, un típico cliché que no hay por donde cogerlo. Protagonistas que debían haber acabado juntos si él no se hubiese largado. Él es un auténtico energúmeno, y ella es una joven que probablemente se merecía algo mejor, pero es que además disfrutaremos de otros personajes que no tienen desperdicio, como un pretendiente de Adriana que no dejará en paz a los personajes en toda la historia hasta ser el malo malísimo, insoportable y asqueroso. Una jovencita que al principio parece amiga, y luego no es más que una estúpida arribista, a la que después de darle muchos palos la vida ¿luego cambia? No me dejo atrás a la ex amante malvada, que podría haber traído más chicha, y que su sola aparición no fue otra cosa si no ridícula.
Un general, un bodrio insufrible, malo e inverosímil, un culebrón lleno de clichés que no tiene nada interesante. Si algo lamento es haber perdido una semana de mi vida leyéndolo; pero soy débil e incapaz de dejarme un libro a medias. Tengo en mi haber otros libros pendientes de Kathleen Woodiwiss, solo espero que no sean tan malo como éste.
Lo que ha tenido de malo el libro empieza desde el principio, con un planteamiento que podría haber estado mejor, si al menos la historia tuviese algún punto verosímil, original o directamente atractivo. Pero tenemos una historia enrevesada que no hay por donde cogerla. Para empezar porque a los protagonistas se los concertó su matrimonio cuando eran niños, Colton tenía dieciséis años y Adriana seis, y como él no estaba conforme con el acuerdo de sus padres, se largó de casa y se alistó en el ejército. En dieciséis años no había pisado su casa hasta que pasa Waterloo y se da la casualidad de que su padre ha fallecido y debe volver para reclamar su título.
¿Qué descubre Colton a su llegada? Que la niña que dejó atrás se ha convertido en una joven bellísima, admirada por todo el mundo y pretendida por todos los hombres ¿Y ahora se acuerda de ella? ¿Ahora le parece hermosa? Por el hecho de ser hermosa y haber dejado de ser ésa pesada niña que lo seguía a todas partes ¿cree que puede tratarla como a una buscona? Pues eso me ha asqueado toda la novela.
La actitud de Adriana puedo entenderla más. Es la típica hija de la nobleza que desde la cuna la han dicho con quién debe casarse y la han preparado para ello. A pesar de tener solo seis años cuando Colton se largó, él era su héroe, el chico al que siempre quiso y admiró, y su rechazo desde muy niña le dolió. Como lectora ¿puedo esperar que ella le haya hecho sufrir por ello? Sinceramente no mucho, o no más de lo que debe, pues como protagonistas han dejado mucho que desear, con actitudes y formas de pensar que no cuadran.
Para mi sufrimiento no sabía si la novela era mala porque lo era, o he querido echarle la culpa al traductor; después de haber sido capaz de terminarlo y leerlo entero, creo que puedo decir que el libro es malo, y compadezco al traductor que haya tenido que pegarse semejante pestiñazo.
¿Tiene algo interesante la novela? Nada, un típico cliché que no hay por donde cogerlo. Protagonistas que debían haber acabado juntos si él no se hubiese largado. Él es un auténtico energúmeno, y ella es una joven que probablemente se merecía algo mejor, pero es que además disfrutaremos de otros personajes que no tienen desperdicio, como un pretendiente de Adriana que no dejará en paz a los personajes en toda la historia hasta ser el malo malísimo, insoportable y asqueroso. Una jovencita que al principio parece amiga, y luego no es más que una estúpida arribista, a la que después de darle muchos palos la vida ¿luego cambia? No me dejo atrás a la ex amante malvada, que podría haber traído más chicha, y que su sola aparición no fue otra cosa si no ridícula.
Un general, un bodrio insufrible, malo e inverosímil, un culebrón lleno de clichés que no tiene nada interesante. Si algo lamento es haber perdido una semana de mi vida leyéndolo; pero soy débil e incapaz de dejarme un libro a medias. Tengo en mi haber otros libros pendientes de Kathleen Woodiwiss, solo espero que no sean tan malo como éste.
Read
February 14, 2009I read "Come Love A Stranger" and enjoyed it, so I signed out two more books by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss from the library and have been a bit disappointed by them.
In The Reluctant Suitor the 'bad guy' attempts to rape Lady Adriana and she is rescued in time by Colton...but once the bad guy is taken care of, Colton then looks at the Lady whose clothing is torn and gets to see some flesh. Colton's mind runs wild with thoughts and we get to read all his perverted thoughts. *yuck* The lady was just about raped and now, instead of helping her up and taking care of her, you're going to lear at her with wicked thoughts and then call it love...hmm...That was it for me. I wasn't too enthralled with the book to begin with.
Colton suggests taking her to bed and Lady Adriana, being a lady is embarressed and maddened by his suggestions....yet, as we all know she is secretly falling in love with him.
He is a pig and she deserves him if she puts up with this treatment. I'm not even going to finish this book.
In The Reluctant Suitor the 'bad guy' attempts to rape Lady Adriana and she is rescued in time by Colton...but once the bad guy is taken care of, Colton then looks at the Lady whose clothing is torn and gets to see some flesh. Colton's mind runs wild with thoughts and we get to read all his perverted thoughts. *yuck* The lady was just about raped and now, instead of helping her up and taking care of her, you're going to lear at her with wicked thoughts and then call it love...hmm...That was it for me. I wasn't too enthralled with the book to begin with.
Colton suggests taking her to bed and Lady Adriana, being a lady is embarressed and maddened by his suggestions....yet, as we all know she is secretly falling in love with him.
He is a pig and she deserves him if she puts up with this treatment. I'm not even going to finish this book.
January 31, 2012
I generally like Kathleen E. Woodiwiss' books, but this one was atrocious. The book is long (normally not an issue for me) and incredibly tedious to wade through. The story line is really poor and not "believable," and the prose made me want to vomit because it was ridiculously cheesy. If I had to read the word "orbs," describing both breasts and eyes, one more time, I would've stabbed my eyes out. Same deal with "fleshy horn of passion."
I really don't know what happened with this book, but it's so far off from Ms. Woodiwiss' typical style that it makes me wonder if she had this published as a joke, knowing how bad it was. Seriously, don't waste your time with this one. If you want to read something good by Ms. Woodiwiss, try The Flame and the Flower or Petals on the River. Heck, try any of her other books, but spare yourself the hours of torture and agony with this one.
I really don't know what happened with this book, but it's so far off from Ms. Woodiwiss' typical style that it makes me wonder if she had this published as a joke, knowing how bad it was. Seriously, don't waste your time with this one. If you want to read something good by Ms. Woodiwiss, try The Flame and the Flower or Petals on the River. Heck, try any of her other books, but spare yourself the hours of torture and agony with this one.
January 22, 2011
I'm not saying this book was boring. I'm saying this book was really, really, really-stab yourself in the eye--boring. Fortunately I read chapters before bedtime and it had quite the soporific effect.
Ah, Katie. In your day, you were the reigning queen of the historicals. Alas, my dear, this falls quite short of your usual abilities.
Ah, Katie. In your day, you were the reigning queen of the historicals. Alas, my dear, this falls quite short of your usual abilities.
November 16, 2009
There are so many things wrong with this book. I haven't even finished it yet. I don't know if I will (out of spite) or if I'm just going to give up, but I'm only halfway through and there is such an astonishing lack of basic research.
For one thing, why the hell is the heroine bathing at the hero's house? She lives next door! It's an excuse for the characters to see each other naked on the first day they met, but it might be one of the most contrived things I've ever read, and fairly inappropriate for the period.
For another, there's a long (too long) section revolving around a funeral of a maid, which is obviously put together to show how well the hero and heroine deal with children, and applies some forshadowing with all the subtlety of a sledgehammer. One problem. WOMEN DID NOT ATTEND FUNERALS IN THE REGENCY. And the children are rather appallingly cheerful considering their mother died about two days before.
Ugh. Just.... ugh.
For one thing, why the hell is the heroine bathing at the hero's house? She lives next door! It's an excuse for the characters to see each other naked on the first day they met, but it might be one of the most contrived things I've ever read, and fairly inappropriate for the period.
For another, there's a long (too long) section revolving around a funeral of a maid, which is obviously put together to show how well the hero and heroine deal with children, and applies some forshadowing with all the subtlety of a sledgehammer. One problem. WOMEN DID NOT ATTEND FUNERALS IN THE REGENCY. And the children are rather appallingly cheerful considering their mother died about two days before.
Ugh. Just.... ugh.
June 30, 2024
This is what romances are supposed to be. There were no lewd sex scenes, no smutty talk about how this guy was going to F this woman and visa versa. There was still lots of action, adventure and true love without the vivid descriptions and bawdy language.
I have to say that I was afraid that these other series I've been reading (Fifty Shades of Grey and the Crossfire series) ruined any sort of feeling I would be able to muster for these characters. Writing styles have changed so much since this book came out in 2003 and it was really refreshing to read something that wasn't borderline pornography and still made me feel like there really is true love to be had in books.
I was really sad to read that Kathleen Woodiwiss passed away awhile back. I loved her work and I think when she passed, we lost a true master of romance. She had a way of drawing me into her stories and just forget about all the hassles and crap that goes on in the world. This book was a romance in its purest form.
I loved the characters. I loved the story. It took me back to a time when romances were really romances.
~~~~
Second read
My first review was pretty lame, so I went into this blind. I didn’t read the blurb and I didn’t remember a thing about it, so it was all new.
I did enjoy this book, but I must admit that it did drag for about the first half. I never thought to give up on it because…well, it’s Kathleen Woodiwiss. One does not give up on works written by the queen of romance. I’m glad I persevered.
A little about the story:
Adriana and Colton were intended when she was just six years old and Colton was 16. Their families were friends and Colton’s younger sister, Samantha, was Adriana’s best friend. Theoretically, it was perfect. The reality with it was Colton didn’t want his father choosing a bride for him and joined the army.
Fast forward more than a few years, Colton’s father has passed away, leaving Colton the title and assets. It also left him with the betrothal contract that said he had to court Adriana earnestly for three months then could make the decision to marry her or not.
In the years that had passed, Adriana has grown up to be quite beautiful and has a lot of potential suitors, but the mean things Colton said all those years ago about not wanting to marry her kind of jaded her on marrying anyone. Colton has made it clear that he wishes to maintain his bachelorhood, but will court Adriana for three months. She wasn’t exactly open to that and had no aspirations of marrying Colton, but she felt she owed it to both their fathers to see it through.
But there are sinister players, working to thwart any chance at love these two might have. Mid-way through the book was a huge plot twist that I thought would end everything then there were even more that added suspense and a few “OMG” moments.
Absolutely a five star read
I have to say that I was afraid that these other series I've been reading (Fifty Shades of Grey and the Crossfire series) ruined any sort of feeling I would be able to muster for these characters. Writing styles have changed so much since this book came out in 2003 and it was really refreshing to read something that wasn't borderline pornography and still made me feel like there really is true love to be had in books.
I was really sad to read that Kathleen Woodiwiss passed away awhile back. I loved her work and I think when she passed, we lost a true master of romance. She had a way of drawing me into her stories and just forget about all the hassles and crap that goes on in the world. This book was a romance in its purest form.
I loved the characters. I loved the story. It took me back to a time when romances were really romances.
~~~~
Second read
My first review was pretty lame, so I went into this blind. I didn’t read the blurb and I didn’t remember a thing about it, so it was all new.
I did enjoy this book, but I must admit that it did drag for about the first half. I never thought to give up on it because…well, it’s Kathleen Woodiwiss. One does not give up on works written by the queen of romance. I’m glad I persevered.
A little about the story:
Adriana and Colton were intended when she was just six years old and Colton was 16. Their families were friends and Colton’s younger sister, Samantha, was Adriana’s best friend. Theoretically, it was perfect. The reality with it was Colton didn’t want his father choosing a bride for him and joined the army.
Fast forward more than a few years, Colton’s father has passed away, leaving Colton the title and assets. It also left him with the betrothal contract that said he had to court Adriana earnestly for three months then could make the decision to marry her or not.
In the years that had passed, Adriana has grown up to be quite beautiful and has a lot of potential suitors, but the mean things Colton said all those years ago about not wanting to marry her kind of jaded her on marrying anyone. Colton has made it clear that he wishes to maintain his bachelorhood, but will court Adriana for three months. She wasn’t exactly open to that and had no aspirations of marrying Colton, but she felt she owed it to both their fathers to see it through.
But there are sinister players, working to thwart any chance at love these two might have. Mid-way through the book was a huge plot twist that I thought would end everything then there were even more that added suspense and a few “OMG” moments.
Absolutely a five star read
Read
July 25, 2022I planned on reading it, but it was so boring and the pace was so slow that I soon stopped reading.
I then just scrolled to find the intimate scenes between the H and the h.
I remember that in the 90’s I used to like Woodiwiss’ books. I don’t know what happened here that she thought it would be cute to write a book of almost 600 pages.
Only the intimate scenes were worth reading. The book was way too long and someone should have stopped the writer at least 300 pages earlier.
Because I’ve only read the intimate scenes, no rating.
I then just scrolled to find the intimate scenes between the H and the h.
I remember that in the 90’s I used to like Woodiwiss’ books. I don’t know what happened here that she thought it would be cute to write a book of almost 600 pages.
Only the intimate scenes were worth reading. The book was way too long and someone should have stopped the writer at least 300 pages earlier.
Because I’ve only read the intimate scenes, no rating.
June 3, 2012
The Reluctant Suitor by Kathleen Woodiwiss. It was published in 2003.
This is the first book I have read by this author. I picked it up at the library,as the Summary sounded interesting. This book is 580 pages long and in my opinion could have done with some decent editing. There are so many things that kept on screaming at me:"what the .....?".
The book starts in 1815.
Our Hero Colton Wyndham is now 32 years old. He has been away from his home for 16 years. He left because his father had arranged a marriage contract for him and the youngest daughter of a neighbour, the Earl of Sutton,which would have resulted in them marrying after her 17th birthday. The families have been friends for years. After an angry row with his father, our hero Colton left the Manor at 16 years old,telling his father he would not marry Adriana who is then 6 years old. Why did he leave at 16 years old? He did not have to marry her for another 11 years.
According to this book, Adriana, at 6 years old had her heart ripped out because Colton refused to honour that agreement. Now 16 years later,at age 22, she is a beautiful young Lady with lots of suitors and Colton has come back because his father died rather suddenly and he is now the new Marquess of Randwulf. The marriage contract is still in place with some additional clauses and Colton agrees to court Adrina for 3 months after which time he will make up his mind if he wants to marry her. Because she is so beautiful, he lusts after her, makes some inappropriate propositions and tries to seduce her. In the end they marry, but not before there are some really strange plot twists. Colton marries his actress-mistress because she just had his baby daughter and is dying? Don't think so. At best, he would have acknowledged his baby daughter by having her grow up on one of his properties as a servant.In the end the baby girl turns out to be the daughter of his mother's niece.
There is a villain named Roger Elston, who was brought up in an orphanage, but is now being groomed to take over his father's Mill and who has become obsessed with Adriana, wants to marry her and is stalking her.
He is not of nobility, not of their class and yet he is inviting himself to tag along to functions that Adriana attends? Roger asks for Adriana's hand in marriage? She is an Earl's daughter, with a large dowry, Roger would have been flogged for asking to marry her.
There are other characters in this book that are just left hanging with no conclusions as to why they were introduced in the first place.
There are major plot holes in this book and I found it all a mishmash.
Would I recommend this? No.
This is the first book I have read by this author. I picked it up at the library,as the Summary sounded interesting. This book is 580 pages long and in my opinion could have done with some decent editing. There are so many things that kept on screaming at me:"what the .....?".
The book starts in 1815.
Our Hero Colton Wyndham is now 32 years old. He has been away from his home for 16 years. He left because his father had arranged a marriage contract for him and the youngest daughter of a neighbour, the Earl of Sutton,which would have resulted in them marrying after her 17th birthday. The families have been friends for years. After an angry row with his father, our hero Colton left the Manor at 16 years old,telling his father he would not marry Adriana who is then 6 years old. Why did he leave at 16 years old? He did not have to marry her for another 11 years.
According to this book, Adriana, at 6 years old had her heart ripped out because Colton refused to honour that agreement. Now 16 years later,at age 22, she is a beautiful young Lady with lots of suitors and Colton has come back because his father died rather suddenly and he is now the new Marquess of Randwulf. The marriage contract is still in place with some additional clauses and Colton agrees to court Adrina for 3 months after which time he will make up his mind if he wants to marry her. Because she is so beautiful, he lusts after her, makes some inappropriate propositions and tries to seduce her. In the end they marry, but not before there are some really strange plot twists. Colton marries his actress-mistress because she just had his baby daughter and is dying? Don't think so. At best, he would have acknowledged his baby daughter by having her grow up on one of his properties as a servant.In the end the baby girl turns out to be the daughter of his mother's niece.
There is a villain named Roger Elston, who was brought up in an orphanage, but is now being groomed to take over his father's Mill and who has become obsessed with Adriana, wants to marry her and is stalking her.
He is not of nobility, not of their class and yet he is inviting himself to tag along to functions that Adriana attends? Roger asks for Adriana's hand in marriage? She is an Earl's daughter, with a large dowry, Roger would have been flogged for asking to marry her.
There are other characters in this book that are just left hanging with no conclusions as to why they were introduced in the first place.
There are major plot holes in this book and I found it all a mishmash.
Would I recommend this? No.
April 16, 2014
3 STARS - I LIKED IT (WELL ENOUGH)
AUDIOBOOK
I was in the mood for a mindless Regency Historical Romance and I mostly got that. This book isn't the typical HR... it gets a little dark toward the end, but of course things work themselves out to give us our happy ending.
In truth, I didn't much care for the hero, Colton. I found him flippant and mocking in the beginning and then he and his past just bothered me. I didn't really see why Adrianna was so taken by him. She goes on about how much she loved him before he left... she was six years old. She couldn't have possibly had those kinds of feelings for a 16 year old and hold onto them for 16 more years. This book also gets a little dark toward the end when the "bad guy" really starts showing his colors. All I can say is that Adrianna is a very forgiving and kind woman. I was actually wishing she'd forget about Colton and marry a different man in the book but of course that wasn't going to happen.
Overall, this book was okay... I liked it well enough. The words used felt really old and stiff and the love scenes had really flowery description, even for a regency type book, but the overall writing was good. I'm not sure that I will seek out more books by this author but I wouldn't snub one if it came my way. I wouldn't pay for another book, but I would probably do an audiobook from the library.
August 18, 2013
This book is intimidating to look at, being double the size of a normal romance. And in truth, it seems like two books in one. I was left with absolutely no questions about any aspect of the plot. It was very descriptive, and at points you will wonder why is it so wordy but then you'll read something and know that what you read was important. It seems like every small thing is a clue. I loved the mystery and the last third of the book I couldn't read fast enough.
July 27, 2025
Kathleen E. Woodiwiss is definitely a favorite of mine. Sadly, this book just fell short. I couldn't find it in me to give it any higher rating than 2 stars.
August 4, 2020
DNF
He is NOT a reluctant suitor. Not at all.
He is NOT a reluctant suitor. Not at all.
May 24, 2024
Oh my God! There was so much wrong with this book I'm not even sure where to start.
Its soooo boring!!! Nothing happens for pages and pages and pages, then something minor happens and then again nothing for pages and pages...
The dialogues are exceedingly long and they hardly ever say anything interesting whatsoever. Sometimes the dialogues are held by only two characters and they go on and on, which leaves you wondering what the hell are the rest of the characters doing while they're just standing there listening to the other two chattering. More than once I completely forgot there was supposed to be someone else in the room.
The author has a bad habbit of rambling on for pages, so at some point you completely forget what was going on in the first place.
The bath scene was ridiculous!
The hero is a prick and a pig! He never stops telling the heroine how hot he is for her and basically how much he wants to fuck her.
I honestly couldn't even finish it and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.
Its soooo boring!!! Nothing happens for pages and pages and pages, then something minor happens and then again nothing for pages and pages...
The dialogues are exceedingly long and they hardly ever say anything interesting whatsoever. Sometimes the dialogues are held by only two characters and they go on and on, which leaves you wondering what the hell are the rest of the characters doing while they're just standing there listening to the other two chattering. More than once I completely forgot there was supposed to be someone else in the room.
The author has a bad habbit of rambling on for pages, so at some point you completely forget what was going on in the first place.
The bath scene was ridiculous!
The hero is a prick and a pig! He never stops telling the heroine how hot he is for her and basically how much he wants to fuck her.
I honestly couldn't even finish it and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.
August 7, 2020
When I read a Book I look for it to take me to place I've never been I try not to be critical of the actors in the book I try to feel something other than the world I'm living in.If I can relate to a character or if I dislike a character or love a character then I feel that author has done their job.Kathleen E woodwiss Is 1 of my favorite authors.I can remember waiting 5 years for 1 of her books to come out.
August 11, 2011
This is the First book I read from this Author... It was completely slow in the Beging... But if you stick with the book within the 12, 13, Chapter, It get's so good that it makes up for being slow... I loved this book. The characters were Awesome... Except for the Villians,"of course" Some Parts of this book are completely Repulsive.. But a Good read anyway
August 16, 2008
Over the top with stilted prose. How could she write this thing. "she strove to unmount the iron-thewed thigh" come on now. Woodiwiss is much better than this. What happened? Was she hit over the head or is this a case of identity theft. Don't bother with this one.
August 28, 2010
Best subtitled "when historical romance goes really, really bad..." Back in the seventies, Woodiwiss spearheaded the historical romance genre, now she writes pallid sad novels. Urgh! Not worth it.
For the longer review, please go here:
http://www.epinions.com/content_95903...
For the longer review, please go here:
http://www.epinions.com/content_95903...
March 7, 2024
Very enjoyable story. I stayed up many a night, because I couldn't put this book down. It was a touch predictable at times, but then it also had some really good twists and turns which I did not see coming. I would highly recommend this book.
January 8, 2008
Hard to read sometimes because of the language, and of the personal musings that seem to last forever, but Woodiwiss wrote a great story. Hooked me and soon I was staying up late to finish it!
August 8, 2008
I used to read Kathleen Woodiwiss years ago--I'm not sure if I'm just jaded now, or if the writing in this book is just too predictable and wordy...either way, I couldn't even finish it!
September 27, 2022
TW: sexual abuse, murder, miscarriage, domestic abuse, fat phobia
If you take anything from this review, it should be that this book is trash and you can't convince me otherwise. If you want to know why, keep reading....
At first glance the storyline of "The Reluctant Suitor" sounds pretty good. Adriana and Colton got more or less arranged to be married when they were children. Both of them never thought it would actually come to this wedding, but when Colton returns home a bit unexpected to take over his family's estate, he realises:"Damn, Adriana got hot! Gotta shoot my shot!" And that's already when things started to go down, because Colton questioned how he could have rejected 6-YEARS-OLD Adriana when she became such a beauty in her 20s. No comment.
But let's start with my biggest object of hate in this book: Colton. I never hated a character as much as I hate him. This man thinks with his dick and his dick only. And you know, I don't mind the whole desperate horny-guy-trope in books when it's done right. But it wasn't done right here. Colton takes one look at Adriana is goes "I'm gonna hit that." He turns down their engagement once again, but proposes to Adriana that they should have sex anyway, because he wants to and she is beautiful. He exposes his erected manhood in front of her after knowing for like 1 hour and expected that to work. Later on, he pushes his erection into her back at an event, because she should know what she does to him. Did I mention that Adriana never initiated or teased him for such actions? Because she didn't! And to top it all of, after Adriana almost got raped, all Colton could think about was how hot she looked in her shredded clothes and he couldn't help himself but to kiss her and grope her ass. How this man is supposed to be a charming rake is beyond me. This man possesses no communication skill whatsoever. Like he can't even flirt, he is just straight up creepy. When Adriana's mind screamed "HIS AUDACITY!", I couldn't agree more, because this guy is the worst. He is like the creepy frat boy at a party who think talking about how good in bed he is, would score you. Yikes!
Adriana could have been a character I could have liked. She was quite strong minded, smart, natural and caring. She often was the funny one and actually was charming. My biggest problem with her was that her personality felt very inconsistent. One moment she was this fierce woman with a mind of her own and the next, she was dumber than a piece of bread. The book starts off with her running away from Roger, because apparently he is the creep, and like one chapter later, she is like "Roger...mmhh...I don't think he is a threat to my well-being. I'm just hiding and running away when he is near, but I am not scared of him." *Insert facepalm here* I also still wonder how she could have been so upset at 6-years old that 16-years-old Colton rejected her hand in marriage. She was a literal child. I don't think most first graders are like "Damn, this old dude doesn't want to marry me. My life is ruined." Just Stupid.
Roger is the villain of the story. That's why he is the poor, titleless guy who doesn't take no as an answer. Without the killing and raping of people, he probably would be the Hero in modern historical romances, because this guy is persistent and possessive. I still wonder how it is possible that he is convinced, if he rapes Adriana and gets her pregnant, she'd be his happy, jolly wife...but ok.
One thing that I disliked about all the aristocratic characters is that they were extremely snobby. Not one was kind and open to the non-aristocratic characters that mingled between them. Even though they were richer as them. Even though they claimed to be friends with them.
The plot itself could have been good. I liked the whole idea of the 90-days-courting period in which both of them wanted to proof that their relationship wouldn't work. Their quarrels at times were entertaining. Overall, this book is very character-driven. The main turning point is the relationship between Colton and Adriana which could have been fine, but the author really had to push tons of unnecessary side plots. This book could have been 200 pages shorter. Without the unnecessary last 200 pages it might have been a two or three star read, but these last chapters just ruined it even more. Just a bunch of unnecessary twists that were just stupid. Roger as the big villain wasn't really crucial to the story, he was there to make Colton look good, even though he still pretty bad in my opinion.
The pacing was meh. The chapters are very long and the one scene of consists of multiple chapters which means around 50+ pages in the same scene with an uncountable amount of POV switches. The books felt really slow. Not only because of the pacing, but also because of the writing style. I usually like a more whimsical writing style, but the one in this book was not good. First, it took me a while to get used to the writing and then I just found it annoying how so many unnecessary details were explained for like a whole page. Plus, there were just too many repetitions in this one. If I have to read the word orb one more time, I am going to jump out of my window. But it's not just repeating words, I feel like the same two paragraphs about how attracted Colton and Adriana are to each other appeared in every chapter, over and over again. If you have to keep reminding your reader that often that the MCs are interested in each other, maybe they aren't. Maybe you try to convince yourself that the creepy advances of Colton are justified by Adriana's attraction towards him.
Another masterpiece was the description of boobs as melons...seriously. Or the metaphor of a sword and its sheet instead of penis and vagina. It's just bad writing. Sorry not sorry.
I also disliked the heavy dialect all non-aristocratic people in this book had. And I get it, you want to make it visible that there are the rich, educated people and the poor, uneducated people, but as an international reader, as someone not familiar with every English dialect there is, it was a bit too much. Like I barely understood what they said.
To top it all of, this book is littered with fat shaming and fat phobia. All good character are petite and thin, and the bad, "disgusting" (yes, the author literally used disgusting to describe an oversize body) characters are plus size. There is constant commentary on how much they should eat or that they shouldn't have eaten that. Colton literally shamed his ex-lover by thinking that even though his wife is pregnant, she still is skinner and more attractive than Pandora with her wide hips. Adriana worried that her husband would find her pregnant body unattractive, because of its roundness and her gaining weight....I just can't. Listen, I am a small person, but this is just unacceptable. This is textbook fat phobia. Especially, in a time period where none of this would have mattered, in a time period where having a bit more fat on your body was considered attractive. Most people in the regency era didn't strive to look like a Victoria secret angels...women were allowed to look like normal people with some fat on their body.
I am not going to talk about how the author used miscarriage as a trauma trope...because it is already bad as it is.
All in all, don't read this book, unless you want to torture yourself for almost 600 pages.
If you take anything from this review, it should be that this book is trash and you can't convince me otherwise. If you want to know why, keep reading....
At first glance the storyline of "The Reluctant Suitor" sounds pretty good. Adriana and Colton got more or less arranged to be married when they were children. Both of them never thought it would actually come to this wedding, but when Colton returns home a bit unexpected to take over his family's estate, he realises:"Damn, Adriana got hot! Gotta shoot my shot!" And that's already when things started to go down, because Colton questioned how he could have rejected 6-YEARS-OLD Adriana when she became such a beauty in her 20s. No comment.
But let's start with my biggest object of hate in this book: Colton. I never hated a character as much as I hate him. This man thinks with his dick and his dick only. And you know, I don't mind the whole desperate horny-guy-trope in books when it's done right. But it wasn't done right here. Colton takes one look at Adriana is goes "I'm gonna hit that." He turns down their engagement once again, but proposes to Adriana that they should have sex anyway, because he wants to and she is beautiful. He exposes his erected manhood in front of her after knowing for like 1 hour and expected that to work. Later on, he pushes his erection into her back at an event, because she should know what she does to him. Did I mention that Adriana never initiated or teased him for such actions? Because she didn't! And to top it all of, after Adriana almost got raped, all Colton could think about was how hot she looked in her shredded clothes and he couldn't help himself but to kiss her and grope her ass. How this man is supposed to be a charming rake is beyond me. This man possesses no communication skill whatsoever. Like he can't even flirt, he is just straight up creepy. When Adriana's mind screamed "HIS AUDACITY!", I couldn't agree more, because this guy is the worst. He is like the creepy frat boy at a party who think talking about how good in bed he is, would score you. Yikes!
Adriana could have been a character I could have liked. She was quite strong minded, smart, natural and caring. She often was the funny one and actually was charming. My biggest problem with her was that her personality felt very inconsistent. One moment she was this fierce woman with a mind of her own and the next, she was dumber than a piece of bread. The book starts off with her running away from Roger, because apparently he is the creep, and like one chapter later, she is like "Roger...mmhh...I don't think he is a threat to my well-being. I'm just hiding and running away when he is near, but I am not scared of him." *Insert facepalm here* I also still wonder how she could have been so upset at 6-years old that 16-years-old Colton rejected her hand in marriage. She was a literal child. I don't think most first graders are like "Damn, this old dude doesn't want to marry me. My life is ruined." Just Stupid.
Roger is the villain of the story. That's why he is the poor, titleless guy who doesn't take no as an answer. Without the killing and raping of people, he probably would be the Hero in modern historical romances, because this guy is persistent and possessive. I still wonder how it is possible that he is convinced, if he rapes Adriana and gets her pregnant, she'd be his happy, jolly wife...but ok.
One thing that I disliked about all the aristocratic characters is that they were extremely snobby. Not one was kind and open to the non-aristocratic characters that mingled between them. Even though they were richer as them. Even though they claimed to be friends with them.
The plot itself could have been good. I liked the whole idea of the 90-days-courting period in which both of them wanted to proof that their relationship wouldn't work. Their quarrels at times were entertaining. Overall, this book is very character-driven. The main turning point is the relationship between Colton and Adriana which could have been fine, but the author really had to push tons of unnecessary side plots. This book could have been 200 pages shorter. Without the unnecessary last 200 pages it might have been a two or three star read, but these last chapters just ruined it even more. Just a bunch of unnecessary twists that were just stupid. Roger as the big villain wasn't really crucial to the story, he was there to make Colton look good, even though he still pretty bad in my opinion.
The pacing was meh. The chapters are very long and the one scene of consists of multiple chapters which means around 50+ pages in the same scene with an uncountable amount of POV switches. The books felt really slow. Not only because of the pacing, but also because of the writing style. I usually like a more whimsical writing style, but the one in this book was not good. First, it took me a while to get used to the writing and then I just found it annoying how so many unnecessary details were explained for like a whole page. Plus, there were just too many repetitions in this one. If I have to read the word orb one more time, I am going to jump out of my window. But it's not just repeating words, I feel like the same two paragraphs about how attracted Colton and Adriana are to each other appeared in every chapter, over and over again. If you have to keep reminding your reader that often that the MCs are interested in each other, maybe they aren't. Maybe you try to convince yourself that the creepy advances of Colton are justified by Adriana's attraction towards him.
Another masterpiece was the description of boobs as melons...seriously. Or the metaphor of a sword and its sheet instead of penis and vagina. It's just bad writing. Sorry not sorry.
I also disliked the heavy dialect all non-aristocratic people in this book had. And I get it, you want to make it visible that there are the rich, educated people and the poor, uneducated people, but as an international reader, as someone not familiar with every English dialect there is, it was a bit too much. Like I barely understood what they said.
To top it all of, this book is littered with fat shaming and fat phobia. All good character are petite and thin, and the bad, "disgusting" (yes, the author literally used disgusting to describe an oversize body) characters are plus size. There is constant commentary on how much they should eat or that they shouldn't have eaten that. Colton literally shamed his ex-lover by thinking that even though his wife is pregnant, she still is skinner and more attractive than Pandora with her wide hips. Adriana worried that her husband would find her pregnant body unattractive, because of its roundness and her gaining weight....I just can't. Listen, I am a small person, but this is just unacceptable. This is textbook fat phobia. Especially, in a time period where none of this would have mattered, in a time period where having a bit more fat on your body was considered attractive. Most people in the regency era didn't strive to look like a Victoria secret angels...women were allowed to look like normal people with some fat on their body.
I am not going to talk about how the author used miscarriage as a trauma trope...because it is already bad as it is.
All in all, don't read this book, unless you want to torture yourself for almost 600 pages.
January 23, 2018
I don't know if it's because I haven't read a standard author in a long time or if my tastes have changed, but this is not my favorite book by Kathleen E Woodiwiss. I remember coming into the genre and she was a go to author for me, but this story missed the mark as far as heroine's go.
Lady Adrianna Sutton was an independent young woman who lived her life but was never married as she was betrothed to Lord Colton Wyndanham but he was a ghost in the wind for 16 years. He came back home after his father's untimely demise to become the Lord of his Estate. He was very straightforward in his mission to win back his Lady though she didn't trust him to stick around after being gone so long the first time around. He realized that he did want to court his betrothed but he wanted to wed her on his timetable and not just because written edict would force his hand. Lady Arianna was a bit irritating because she tried to dismiss Colton without allowing him to explain himself after they were courting and things were going well. I didn't understand what she was doing or where she was going from there. I won't say that I don't like Kathleen E Woodiwiss anymore as I know I did like her stories, its just that this particular one missed the mark of the standard that I had of her in my mind.
Lady Adrianna Sutton was an independent young woman who lived her life but was never married as she was betrothed to Lord Colton Wyndanham but he was a ghost in the wind for 16 years. He came back home after his father's untimely demise to become the Lord of his Estate. He was very straightforward in his mission to win back his Lady though she didn't trust him to stick around after being gone so long the first time around. He realized that he did want to court his betrothed but he wanted to wed her on his timetable and not just because written edict would force his hand. Lady Arianna was a bit irritating because she tried to dismiss Colton without allowing him to explain himself after they were courting and things were going well. I didn't understand what she was doing or where she was going from there. I won't say that I don't like Kathleen E Woodiwiss anymore as I know I did like her stories, its just that this particular one missed the mark of the standard that I had of her in my mind.
October 18, 2021
Me decepcionó bastante. Si mal no recuerdo es una buena autora y otras novelas que he leído me han gustado pero leer esta fue súper tedioso.
Los protagonistas la verdad insoportables.
Ella es lo más rencorosa que hay en la vida y él no es más histérico porque no le da el tiempo. Además parece las viejas telenovelas mexicanas... Siempre que están bien, felices o a punto de serlo aparece alguien a joder. Y el malo de la historia parece Bruce Willis en duro de matar. No se muere nunca el desgraciado y siempre sale ileso de todo.
La verdad una decepción.
Los protagonistas la verdad insoportables.
Ella es lo más rencorosa que hay en la vida y él no es más histérico porque no le da el tiempo. Además parece las viejas telenovelas mexicanas... Siempre que están bien, felices o a punto de serlo aparece alguien a joder. Y el malo de la historia parece Bruce Willis en duro de matar. No se muere nunca el desgraciado y siempre sale ileso de todo.
La verdad una decepción.
April 21, 2019
I hate giving one star reviews, but if possible this book would get a .25 star. I just spent hours of my life reading almost 600 pages filled with a weak heroine, an arrogant hero, a sado-masochist villain, and the densest prose I’ve ever read. This comment doesn’t even note the various issues I had with supporting characters. I wouldn’t even know where to begin nor do I wish to waste any more of my time. If you are a fan of intelligent banter, strong female leads, and respectful men, then don’t read this book.
September 4, 2018
this book put me through the ringer.
there were things that could have and should have been left out.
like when the guys mistress makes him marry her because shes "pregnant." i was so mad and upset i couldnt even see straight. and when the girl didnt wanna marry him because of it i was like yes! but in the end,she gives in.i mean sure, the baby wasnt his cause it turns out his mistress and her cohort stole it,but thats beside the point.i think he still ended up marrying her or w/e and that was still his mistress. i was disgusted. the whole mistress thing is disgusting and im not sure why authors write about them.whats romantic about reading about the guys mistress?!
I remember the mistress had a birthmark painted on the baby in the same place that the hero had. She knew of the birthmark on his butt, I believe, which I hated, because it was obvious that she was his mistress then, to know of such a thing. So for a while, readers were led to believe it was his kid.
So he totally could have had a kid with her. I just don't understand why authors would write such a thing. It's the opposite of romantic. It's so upsetting. And btw, when guy's have mistresses, they could get any one of them pregnant, and then never know about it if the mistress doesn't tell them, so they could have kids out there running around that the heroine would never know about. It's just disgusting.
there were things that could have and should have been left out.
like when the guys mistress makes him marry her because shes "pregnant." i was so mad and upset i couldnt even see straight. and when the girl didnt wanna marry him because of it i was like yes! but in the end,she gives in.i mean sure, the baby wasnt his cause it turns out his mistress and her cohort stole it,but thats beside the point.i think he still ended up marrying her or w/e and that was still his mistress. i was disgusted. the whole mistress thing is disgusting and im not sure why authors write about them.whats romantic about reading about the guys mistress?!
I remember the mistress had a birthmark painted on the baby in the same place that the hero had. She knew of the birthmark on his butt, I believe, which I hated, because it was obvious that she was his mistress then, to know of such a thing. So for a while, readers were led to believe it was his kid.
So he totally could have had a kid with her. I just don't understand why authors would write such a thing. It's the opposite of romantic. It's so upsetting. And btw, when guy's have mistresses, they could get any one of them pregnant, and then never know about it if the mistress doesn't tell them, so they could have kids out there running around that the heroine would never know about. It's just disgusting.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 1, 2009
Eh. It just takes SO LONG for ANYTHING to happen, but at the same time there's a weird lack of detail. At the end of their forced three-month courtship the lady protagonist still feels like the gentleman protagonist doesn't truly love her - although I couldn't for the life of me figure out why. The back cover refers to the writer as as "the groundbreaking author who created romantic historical fiction"; maybe that's why there are so many incredible clichéd lines.
His words seemed to resonate through her being, much like a lover's caress stroking vulnerable areas.
His eyes, however, spoke volumes, but she was deaf . . . and blind to the pleas they conveyed.
And obviously much later:
He could only marvel at her willingness to offer her virginity upon the fleshly horn of passion so they could complete their union, and yet, she had done just that in her sacrificial desire to be one with him.
His words seemed to resonate through her being, much like a lover's caress stroking vulnerable areas.
His eyes, however, spoke volumes, but she was deaf . . . and blind to the pleas they conveyed.
And obviously much later:
He could only marvel at her willingness to offer her virginity upon the fleshly horn of passion so they could complete their union, and yet, she had done just that in her sacrificial desire to be one with him.
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