Rating: 
Summary: What Happened!
Review: Boy, was this a dud! The characters lacked the fire so evident in many of her previous books. Chapter by chapter, I was hoping it to get better- to define a plot, build depth characters, etc. Even the sex sparks were lacking. This story could have easily been told in 50 pages!KEW's heroine, Adrianna, was rather impetious and immature- she was jilted (sort of) at the age of six. She overheard her betrothed refusing to marry her. From then, she professes to hate him. Actually, it was rather hard to discern her feelings through most of the novel and she seemed confused at all the male attention she recieved. A paragon of modesty...dull. The hero, Colton, was shallow. He wasn't the normal socially defiant man that you'd see in KEW's other novels. He claimed to refuse to want to marry her, but broke down easy enough. His reaction to his father's dead and subsequent cause was not how previous male charaters would have reacted. And the mistress thing- what a lame by-line! Couldn't she think of something better as the detterent to the main couple's coming together? The only one I read it for was Riordan, a Duke competing for the affections of Adrianna. KEW had to spoil him, too, pairing him off to the spoiled Felicity. Why not save a great novel for him? I would have read a book where he met his match- not a rude, haughty little brat! What can I say- the days of the great KEW reads are over.
Rating:
Summary: THE RELUCTANT READER
Review: I adore most of her books, and have been a fan for years, but this was grim. The basics first: the print is SOOOO tiny, and the margins so small with little white space that for a 40+ like myself it was really painful reading. So was the prose. Long winded descriptions of the decor when she is supposed to be giving us info on the hero, and even longer passages from the point of view of Roger the villain right at the start of the book make it exceptionally hard to get into. Basic rule of romance: the hero and heroine fall in love! They also usually need to be in the same room for this to happen, yet they all go haring off all over the place. I never get convinced about Colton really wanting to marry her and it takes until about page 375 of anything to hot up in the book. Fron them on it is all plot-driven and confusing as she tried to give us some 'surprising twists' and turns which quite frankly were not (even given the directionless mess of the narrative), and may offend some readers. Not just because of the gruesome subject matter, but because they are handled in such a gratuitous way. (miscarriage, rape, abuse, assault) The second strand of the plot with Felicity and the third with the identity of the baby all get in the way of was watching the couple as they supposedly fall in love. It is more like an exercise in willfulness than love, or even lust. Endless reams of detail on the wolfhounds also seriously detracts. The continual introduction of pets and babies into romances shold definitely be banned! As for the love scenes, by the time we get any we really could not care less. But they are so badly written, with the world's most unromantic dialogue that one wonders why they ever bothered to marry. And he is constantly grabbing her buttocks for the rest of the book-not the world's best idea of sweeping a girl off her feet except on the mundanely practical level. Really juvenile. Very disappointing. Above all, it could really have used a good editor who would have stopped all the maundering and repetitive sections that went around and around, supposedly adding to suspense or depth of character, but really just irking the reader. I will look forward to her next book, which hopefully will be as brief, but not be so rushed.
Rating: 
Summary: Gotta Love It!!!!
Review: I'm a major fan of Kathleen E. Woodiwiss. My mother used to read these books when she was younger and when she was pregnant with me. So it's no wonder that I'm hooked. I've read all of her previous novels at least 10 times a piece. They are that good. As for a review, I would tell any fan of her novels or any person reading any book, don't expect the characters from previous novels. Colton and Adriana are quite different. I found the twists and turns very intriguing. I'm not a big fan of spoilers so suffice it to say that these two lovers are well worth the time and adventure. Once again Kathleen has produced a novel worthy of herself and her fans. I just hope the next novel doesn't take too long to be written. Read and enjoy my friends!
Rating: 
Summary: VERY slow read
Review: Being a very avid Woodiwiss fan, I eagerly purchased this book on March 18th - the first date out on the shelves. I am very saddened to say that Ms. Woodiwiss has not redeamed herself from her last novel (which was absolutely horrible) with this novel which I have yet to finish. Even re-reading The Flame and the Flower for the 50th time, it seems, I find is enjoyable and very difficult to put down. This novel, The Reluctant Suitor, drags on and on and on and on ... until about three quarters of the way through the book, it gets interesting, only to get really stupid in the end. Honestly! I have 80 pages left to read, and I am dreading it but need to finish. I have a TON of respect for Ms. Woodiwiss as a highly talented author. She has a great talent for her literary art of using descriptive words and phrases so that you really can visualize what is happening and what each character feels ... but there is a limit! The Reluctant Suitor and her last novel (see its name doesn't even pop into my mind - while all her others do) are a great disappointment. I eagerly await her next novel because really, it can only get better. And I will buy it only because it is one of Ms. Woodiwiss' novels. I hope I am pleasantly surprised.
Rating: 
Summary: enjoyable Regency romantic suspense
Review: In 1815, James Colton returns home to England to claim his estate, recover from his war injuries, and to make restitution to his family and his "fiancée". When James was a teen he ran away from home to protest his father's insistence that he will eventually marry their neighbor's daughter Adriana Sutton. Now returning home, he sees his deceased father was right, Adriana is an intelligent beauty. Adriana hides her feelings from James with a cold formal façade. She does not trust him with her heart as he broke it once and could do so easily again. However, James wants Adriana as his wife as he loves her and so begins to court her. Though his return is triumphant, there are those who wish he never returned starting with his odious cousin who wants the estate to Adriana's most persistent suitor, but would any of them go so far as to attempt homicide? This enjoyable Regency romantic suspense contains all the elements that have made Kathleen E. Woodiwiss a legend among historical readers. When the story line focuses on James' efforts to prove men stay for love, readers will feel the flames of passion between the lead couple. However, an extremely exciting intrigue subplot takes readers into plenty of action, but away from covering the charming courtship. Ms. Woodiwiss does what few authors can do, provide a deep passionate love story that fans will not display any reluctance in showing their appreciation for her unique talent. Harriet Klausner
Rating:
Summary: The Reluctant Suitor
Review: I am a life long KW fan that was VERY disappointed with The Reluctant Suitor. The story lacked any type of plot development as KW concentrated on her poor use of sentence structure. I would classify this novel as an "evocative" boor that ran-on about nothing for 300 pages. It would have been a fine short story.
Rating:
Summary: A reluctant fan meets reluctant suitor.
Review: The best book I ever read is KW's "Shanna". I keep extra copies around just to loan out. And I keep waiting for another good book from her and have been disappointed. But I keep hoping, so I eagerly bought this hardcopy hot off the press. I've read 100 pages and still don't know what its about. A real waste of money. Thanks for Shanna BUT Sayonara, Kathleen.
Rating:
Summary: Flowery Historical Romance
Review: Hailed by many as the founder of historical romance, with her debut novel THE FLAME AND THE FLOWER thirty years ago, famed author Kathleen Woodiwiss woos readers once again with her latest, a tale of passion and deception. Embarking on a familiar plotline, this regency-era novel tells the story of beautiful Lady Adriana Sutton, the twenty-two -year-old contractually bound in marriage to Lord Colton Wyndham, the seventh Marquess of Randwulf. Sixteen years after rejecting this contract of marriage, Colton, the war hero, has returned to claim his title upon the death of his father. Unbeknownst to him, his sire reinstated the contract during Colton's lengthy absence. While Adriana has every intention of fulfilling the ninety days of courtship required under the new contract, Colton isn't sure he wants to be manipulated once again when he learns of the latest agreement. Admittedly, this novel is off to a slow start, with the lack of romantic tension between Colton and Adriana. And the standard villain of this novel in the persona of Roger Elston, is originally portrayed as more of a nuisance than any real threat. No one excels more at flowery prose than Ms. Woodiwiss, and it is her style of writing that holds the reader's interest at the somewhat sluggish start of this novel. When the romantic sparks begin to fly between Colton and Adriana, secondary plotlines keep the reader hooked with implications of an unknown pregnancy and suspicious murders. And the loose ends of the novel are neatly tied together making this if not a superb read, a very good one. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition
Rating:
Summary: The Reluctant Suitor
Review: As a life long KW fan, I was very disappointed in The Reluctant Suitor. KW should have used less lengthy description and concentrated more on development of the plot. I found myself skimming through paragraph after paragraph searching for the story to unfold. It never did.
Rating:
Summary: A Legend At Work!!
Review: No one can argue that Kathleen Woodiwiss is the first lady of romance and romantic epics. Ms. Woodiwiss is the reason that I love the romance genre so much. I was hooked the first time I read The Flame and the Flower. No other author in this genre has the ability to weave a story that transcends the pages and whose language is poetry in itself. Ms. Woodiwiss is a lengendary wordsmith, and her stories capture your heart, make you laugh and cry at the same time, and sigh after you've read the last page. Her latest literary accomplishment is The Reluctant Suitor, a tale of two people who've known each other all their lives,yet don't really come to know each other and love each other until 16 years later. The hero is Colt Wyndham, a war hero, the Marquess Randwulf, and a man running from a betrothal to the "scrawny" Adriana Sutton, whom his father feels is a perfect match for him. To escape the trap that he feels his father has set for him, Colt runs off and joins the military, not knowing that fate would intervene and bring him home to his destiny. Sixteen years later, Colt returns home to find that his "scrawny" bethrothed has now blossomed into a much sought-after beauty that no man can resist. Colt pledges that he will keep his father's promise of a 90-day courtship, but will resist falling under the spell of the bewitching Adriana, no matter the cost. Adriana is shocked to find that her reluctant bethrothed Colt has finally deigned to come home from the war. She resents the fact that he rejected her so long ago and vows to make him rue the day he met her. However, Adriana is amazed when the very man she hopes to keep at bay is the very man she finds herself fantasizing about and longing to be near. What a beautifully written love story. The story unfolds at a leisurely pace, with excitement, passion, adventure, heartache, and redemption added along the way. This is not a story that you can read in one sitting. The depth, beauty, and complexity of the written language must be savored to fully appreciate what a legendary author Kathleen Woodiwiss is. I promise you once you get past the venacular, you will enjoy The Reluctant Suitor immensely.
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