Beyond the Highland Mist

Rating:
Summary: 2 hrs I'll never get back
Review: Completely execrable! It's hard to know where to begin the list of all that's wrong with this book, but it is so bad as to be genuinely unreadable.

The writing is hackneyed, whatever research is used sloppy. There is a time travel element thrown in, but it's done so badly as to be pointless. But if I were to pick the worst thing about this story it would be the characterizations (or lack of them), especially in the unappealing hero and heroine. Instead of fleshing them out with actual personalities, all we are told is that they are "perfect" (as though there is such a thing), but of course, due to the dimness of the author, she only meant physically. It's revealed on page 12 that Hawk, the hero, is so good-looking that he's slept with 5000 women. First, that's mathematically impossible (he's only 33) and second, euwwwww! That's gross (think no birth control or disease prevention in the 16th century) and not romantic at all.

The story becomes a pissing contest with two "perfect" -looking men vying for the attentions of the "perfect" -looking heroine with a bunch of cardboard supporting figures thrown in to admire them and tell them how perfect they are, and yet there is not one admirable character in the bunch. They are all jerks, and you wouldn't care if they all ended up killing each other.

Painful to read, it's one of those books you wonder how it ever got published. I noticed on the copy I read a big sticker on the cover "Only $3.99" but I wouldn't recommend it even if they were giving it away.

Rating:
Summary: Highland Series...Off To A Good Start
Review: Although I did not begin reading her Highland series in order, this is a good start to her extraordinary, imaginative Highlander series. It introduces the sinfully sexy, wickedly arrogant Adam Black - "The Immortal Highlander".

Heartbroken over her breakup with her fiancé Eberhart, Adrienne de Simone has sworn off ever becoming emotionally involved with handsome men. Mischievously, the dark jester of Queen Aoibheal's courts, Adam Black, takes Adrienne's vow seriously and transports her back in time to the 16th century mediaeval Scotland. Here she meets and finds herself betrothed to "Hawk", a handsome Earl forced to become a male whore for the then ruling King. Because of his morals and personal preferences in women, Hawk does not bed just any woman available and is selective with his lovers. Therefore, women that he would normally rebuff must petition the King to have him order Hawk to lay with them. Out of spite and vengeance towards Hawks deceased father, the King forces him to submit to this humiliating occupation.

Aoibheal, Queen of the `Tuatha De Danaan', over hears her husband and jester intimately comparing her to a human female, and they found her lacking. Vengefully, she decides to make up a story telling them that her new lover, Hawk, was a superior lover in comparison to any she's ever had. Provoked by his jealousy over the Queen, maliciously Adam (the Fairy Fool / jester) schemes to design repeated rendez-vous which appear to ruin Adrienne and compromise her relationship with Hawk - humiliate Hawk. Even with Adrienne's stubbornness and occasional vicious tongue / comments towards Hawk, he still is not persuaded to stop pursuing her hand in marriage. Hawk is a man determined to have and love her despite the upsetting situations and his misgivings about her sanity (i.e. confessions of time travel, being from the future).

Believing her unfaith he kidnaps her and begins a peculiar seduction, resembling his training of his falcons (i.e. tying her up and covering her head). The seductive imagery is that she's with her `mysterious' lover who's sole aim is to slowly coax her into submitting to his lascivious will...and he succeeds.

All and all, this is a good and mockingly humorous read at times.


Rating:
Summary: Don't think too hard.
Review: I have decided to write this review only because of some of the truly heinous reviews I have read for this book and others of Ms. Moning's. I have heard things such as the history doesn't fit, and that things don't entirely seem believable. Honestly to those people I have to say "stop thinking too hard". This is a romance novel and as such it should be enjoyed for the romance aspects which this reader thoroughly enjoyed! Also, if you have read any other reviews made by such haters one would also notice that creativity is never in their lists of what the author lacks. Creativity is a key factor in writing romance, if readers wanted reality they would read more self help books and autobiographies instead of romance novels. The essence of these romance novels is an escape ... what kind of escape is it if you constantly over analyze the historical content? As for the validity and creativity of Ms. Moning there are few who can match her and if you leave this book unread (or any other by Ms. Moning) then you are missing out on something special, heart warming, and truely captivating. Analyze that!

Rating:
Summary: Very choppy and frustrating
Review: I was really prepared to love this book. I give her kudos for the sheer strength and eroticism of the hero, Hawk. But he never really clicked with the heroine--I never felt they were really in love or would make it as a couple. They really only had one happy scene that was described in narrative--the others were of them snapping each other's heads off. So, the chemistry wasn't believable.

Then there were too many contrived plot devices to keep them apart. Adam who swore by a vow to only take Adrienne (and the two names beginning with 'Ad' was distracting) if she came to him, then getting a personality transplant toward the end and backing down on his word. And why did Hawk take that aphrodisiac? It was as though the author read about it, thought it sounded cool, so threw it on in there. Then Grimm out of the blue doing a 180 on his attitude toward Adrienne simply to have another "reason" to keep them apart.

The last third was so choppy, it seemed as though scenes written in different times and places--by different people! And so many "ciaims"! He claimed her mouth, he claimed her body, he claimed his title...And almost everyone was "purring."

But I do like the way she creates a believable setting that I can picture in my head, so...

Rating:
Summary: I do believe in Magice! I do I do
Review: If only life could be real like say a book, or a movie, I would love to be transported back into a time when men cared about their women, loved their women, and made made passion love, not lust, but real love, to their women. Wives. I don't think that kind of love is real. I think you can only read about it in books like this one and all the other ones that Ms. Moning has written. I love her stories and I love Adam and I can't wait to read his story in the book the "Immortal Highlander". I like his arrogance, I love his humor, and I think he is beautiful, in a dangerous way. And yes, I know it's a book, just a story, but it's a good story. Like all her books.

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic book!!!!
Review: This was the first book I have read by Karen Moning. I could not put this book down. I can't wait to buy more of her books! Loved it!