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Romance Book ReviewsPage One of TwoThe Offer by Catherine CoulterTopaz, Oct, 1997.378 pages. ISBN: 0451407946 Paperback. Ordering information: Amazon.com. | Amazon.co.uk 
Sabrina Eversleigh runs away from her home to escape her sister and
despicable, lecherous brother-in-law. Lost in a blizzard, ill and
close to death, Sabrina is saved when a handsome stranger, Phillip
Mercerault, stumbles upon Sabrina, finds them shelter in an
abandoned hunting lodge and nurses her back to health. When she
recovers and returns to society she discovers that she has been
"ruined" by having spent a week in seclusion with one of London's
most notorious rakes. Realizing her predicament, Phillip offers
to marry her. Sabrina, idealistic, naive and strong-willed, refuses,
to Phillip's (and everyone else's) complete amazement and instead insists on
telling the world the truth. Much to her chagrin, the hypocritical
and judgmental high society of her social world simply cannot believe
that a man and woman could remain in the same house for a week in a
platonic relationship, regardless of the fact that she was deathly
ill the entire time. Upon Sabrina's discovery of how society will
treat her, she then proposes to Phillip and he accepts. But these
two headstrong people have a long way to go to reach a state of
mutual understanding -- and mutual passion.
This historical romance set in England is vintage Coulter: full of complex characters, plot twists and turns and, of course, romance. A wonderful story, The Offer is action-packed, enthralling and will keep readers very interested. Highly recommended, especially for those who like a suspenseful tug of war in a relationship. --Barbara Paschall Averitt Captain Jack's Woman by Stephanie LaurensAvon Historical Romance, Oct., 1997.252 pp. ISBN: 0380794551 Paperback. Ordering information: Amazon.com. | Amazon.co.uk 
After 6 years in London with her scheming aunts, Katherine "Kit"
Cranmer is delighted to be returning home to her ancestral home in
West Norfolk and the grandfather she adores. Always a free spirit,
Kit eventually grows bored with country life and slips out at night
dressed as a lad to ride her beloved black Arabian, Delia, along the
English coastline. While on a midnight ride, Kit runs into a band of
smugglers, and ends up saving the group from certain capture and
becoming their leader. While masquerading as the brilliant lad
leader of the smuggling gang, she meets Captain Jack the leader
of the infamous rival Hunstanton gang. What she doesn't know is
that Captain Jack is really Lord Hendon, undercover operative for
Whitehall and notorious rake. Jake soon penetrates her disguise
as a lad and their passion for each other flares when the gangs join
forces. Jack decides to extricate Kit from her dangerous role as
midnight smuggler in order to facilitate making her his mistress,
thinking she is an illegitimate byblow of Lord
Cranmer, instead of the highborn lady that she really is. But
Jack fails to reckon with Kit's thirst for adventure and her
unwillingness to give up her smuggler's masquerade. As Jack
grows closer to catching the spies he is ordered to locate he
finds it harder and harder to deny his feelings for the tempestuous
and beguiling Kit, while she is both astonished at the passionate
feelings he incites in her and infuriated by his determination to
keep her out of the action and out of danger. As they both struggle
to deny their feelings for one another and to penetrate the
secrets that keep them apart, events are converging to a climactic
ending where they must face enemy swords and the English Revenue
before they can finally be together.
Captain Jack's Woman is a passionate, action-packed, historical romance with love scenes so hot they sizzle and smoke off the pages. The heroine Kit is a strong, independent female character who is still believable within the context of her historical period. Captain Jack is a strong, fascinating lead with enough animal magnetism to keep readers glued to the pages. Stephanie Laurens has penned a passionate winner that will be sure to inspire legions of fans who will eagerly await her next novel. A smashing debut from a talented and passionate author. Click Here for Page Two of Romance Reviews. Return to Book Reviews Index ** To visit the archives of romance novels reviewed in The IWJ, please click here. |