Rating: 
Summary: short stories are better
Review: i really enjoyed robins other books, this one fell of the cliff and crashed. i kept waiting for the power of her short stories, what a disapointment.
Rating: 
Summary: I had high hopes...
Review: I have found Robin Schone to be a really interesting storyteller and the first book of hers that I read, The Lady's Tutor, was sizzling. This book tried to do alot and didn't really accomplish much and the convoluted way the spirits were transmigrating was laughable, BUT, you really felt for our hero being saddled with a frigid wife and then a woman who teased him unmercilessly without trying to. It's a good read if you don't try to unravel the more ambiguous sections.
Rating: 
Summary: Very erotic, but the story could be a bit better
Review: Elaine, a 39 years old computer analyst has been married for 17 years to passionless and frigid Matthew who somehow managed it to never have French kissed his wife (!) and to make things worse avoids to have sex with her (when it comes to it he claims to have a headache!). Although Elaine has a very passionate nature she has remained faithful to Matthew which must have been a superhuman effort on her side. Schone explains this with the fact that Elaine is short and plump. O.K. we have to swallow that although I find it quite far-fetched that short and plump women cannot have extramarital affairs. One of the biggest lies in Holly wood is that only beautiful people have sex. Schone seems to have seen to much American movies and soap operas with rail-thin actors in them. The story actually starts when sexually frustrated Elaine awakes in the year 1882 and in the body of Morrigan, the 21 years old, beautiful but slightly crippled wife of Lord Charles Alcott, who has waited one year to bed his wife because of her extreme coldness. He is just as frustrated as Elaine because he thought he has found a woman of rare passion in Morrigan and now feels thoroughly deceived. How he managed it not to see the true nature of his wife during his courtship and engagement to her is never explained. You get the impression that he one day saw her dancing entranced in the forest and the very next day he was married to her. We also have to swallow this. When he sees Morrigan/Elaine he finds his wife changed for the better and renews his erotic pursuit of her. Charles is the ideal lover, handsome, passionate, experienced and romantic (he believes in life-long love and passion). He gives Morrigan/Elaine an erotic pillow book to enthral her mind and uses Tantric techniques to seduce her. But Morrigan/Elaine resists at first because she doesn't want to be unfaithful to her husband, Matthew the refrigerator. Instead of ravishing Charles (what an opportunity!)she prefers to play the part of the Victorian virgin. Schone could have made so much more out of the story. Why has Elaine to be more Victorian than a Victorian woman ? A 39 years old woman does not react in such an uncool way when a man happens to see her looking at erotic pictures in a pillow book. She would grin and make some fun instead of reacting like an immature school-girl. And that she does not talk most of the time for fear one might notice her different accent greatly annoyed me, especially when Morrigan's horrible family tries to walk right over her. She is much to submissive for my taste. I would have liked Charles to be confronted with a thoroughly modern woman who teaches him a lesson or two in and outside the marital bed. Charles should have met a personality like that from Carrie from "Sex and the City" or a character like my all-time-favourite heroine Ally McBeal. I nevertheless liked the story very much. Charles is a great hero, a really sexy Victorian macho with a romantic side and the erotic tension and the sex scenes are sizzling hot. It is also romantic, especially in the end. And I give Schone four stars alone for her daring beginning of the story. I'm really fed up with the 25 years old Regency heroine who doesn't know desire or her "magic button" before the hero appears on the scene. But be warned: The real Morrigan has a rather dark secret, not for the faint-hearted.
Rating:
Summary: Arouses an awakening of your desires
Review: For the 39 years of her life, Elaine Metcliffe grapples with a passionless marriage with Matthew until she gets mysteriously transported to the 19th century and her soul now seeks refuge in the body of Morrigan, the wife of the devilish Charles Mortimer, Lord Arlcotte. She walks on the tightrope of passion and committing adultery as she struggles to fend off Charles and his sexual advances. As an expert on Tantric sex, Charles gives Elaine the pleasure of her lifetime - but what bounds eventually to Charles is her heart. When she comes to realize this, their tenuous relationship is threatened by Morrigan who comes to claim back her body - and Elaine will discover and unravel truths that will shock her ultimately....AWAKEN, MY LOVE as a representation of Schone's foray into erotic romance shows her adroit mastery at balancing romance with suspense. Her style of narration is unflinchingly bold and graphic, steamy in the narration of sex between Charles and Elaine. It boils to an intensity that is unrivalled in many of the erotic romance novels, and the ending is unpredictible. Yet even so - the ending may prove too abrupt for its own good, which will take readers a second read to absorb Druid magic and sorcery. Schone's novel even takes on incest and abuse which is shrewdly eschewed in romance boundaries to forward her courage and bold narration. It is indeed groundbreaking. AWAKEN, MY LOVE is definitely eye-opening for Schone's relentless style of passion and as a maiden piece of work - it sizzles and beckons an awakening of your most secret desires lushly.
Rating:
Summary: Not what it's beefed up to be
Review: Though Schone's book was interesting and she has a nice flow to her writing, this book wasn't as good as the many reviews I had read made it out to be. I must admit that the book did move quickly for me in the beginning, but then somewhere along the middle, it seemed to levy off. Much of the ending was very disturbing to me. What happened to Morganna also distracted from the romance and eroticism of the relationship between Elaine and Charles. There wasn't enough space and resolution in between one scene and the next, nor enough logical emotional propulsion. I was still disturbed by the Morganna and her uncle scene to fully enjoy the relationship between Charles and Elaine. It went from one extreme right into almost as if nothing had happened. As far as the eroticism, I personally felt that there wasn't as much as others made it seem to be. From what I've read, I thought there'd be a sex scene every 20 pages, but nope. The sex scenes were a tad bit more graphic then your usual run of the mill. Personally, I don't see how or when they could've fallen in love, since there was really very little between them except for sex. Elaine really did very little talking. There was very little dialogue, revelation, or shared memories between the heroine and hero. Nonetheless, Schone's writing style saves the book from being too boring. The book lacked in depth, but was indeed a very original concept in many aspects. I am giving this book only 3 stars because I felt like there really wasn't much of a relationship nor was there much character definition. In my estimation, Elaine didn't act convincingly enough. She put up with far too much bullying. Not even other heroines that DIDN'T come from the future would have stood for so much bullying, both from the hero and the antangonists. Scarlet O'Hara would have piped up long ago and put them ALL in their places, accent or no. So, over all, it was alright, and I will probably read it again, but I wouldn't rank it along my favorites.
Rating:
Summary: Opinions make the world go round ...
Review: ... and never have I experienced this more than with Awaken, My Love. I had read wonderful reviews regarding this book, and as time travels are my favorite, couldn't wait to read it. While I think Robin Schone is a gifted writer, this story just didn't happen for me. Elaine, the heroine is weak, allowing others to bully her; Charles, the hero did absolutely nothing for me, and the old hag is simply annoying. The author doesn't show us what's happening to Morrigan in the twenty-first century, we're briefly told about it later in the book, which I found disappointing. And I must add, one plot line in particular left me disgusted. I knew I was done when I began skimming through large sections of the book just to finish it. Obviously many others enjoyed Awaken, My Love. Unfortunately, I am not one of them. For a really good time-travel read, pick up a copy of Lynn Kurland's A Dance Through Time.
Rating:
Summary: Promising early work by Robin Schone
Review: I've read and enjoyed Robin Schone's later works and was delighted when "Awaken, My Love" was re-released. All of Schone's trademarks are here - an emotionally intense relationship, sensual erotica, historical accuracy - and they make for a compelling read. Schone stumbles a bit in spending too much time trying to make her premise plausible and developing a mystery plot that is not terribly interesting. Nevertheless, when she focuses on the core relationship, this book is nearly as good as any she has written and will be a delight for fans of her work. A word of warning: Schone's love scenes can be very graphic. If that makes you uncomfortable, this book is not for you.
Rating:
Summary: Wish someone had told me ...
Review: ... before I bought the book that this was a reprint of one of her early books that come out in 1995. If someone had mentioned it, I might have saved myself some money.
Rating: 
Summary: Where's the fantasy? Too much reality to make it fun.
Review: I like historical romances and the premise of this story is interesting. A plain jane 40 year old 20th century woman wakes up in the body of a beautiful 20 year old in the 17th (?) century married to a handsome, masterful man. This story could be a lot of fun but Ms. Schone likes to use too much reality which just kills the fun of reading romances. The 20 year woman has a disfigured, twisted leg that is shorter than the other. This leg is mentioned several times so you never forget about it. Schone also mentions that the heroine has unshaven hairy legs many times throughout the book. She also rarely bathes and is fairly disgusting in the beginning of the book. All this reality just kills the fun of reading romance novels. When I read them I want to be the beautiful, spirited heroine with the killer figure who seduces the handsome, sexy guy against his will. Where's the fun if I have hairy pits and a disfigured leg? I can be that in real life. Robin Schone is a good writer but has an unfortunate tendency to put too much reality and not enough fantasy in her books. In her other books, the heroines are 40 years with flabby stretch-marked stomaches. Envisioning myself as the heroine is not fun and just not worth reading the book for.
Rating:
Summary: Wish it had lived up to her newer books
Review: I have enjoyed all of Ms. Schone's books. I have found them well written and with a clear and compelling plot line. Unfortunately,Awaken, My Love can not compare with her later works. The senuality level was not nearly as well concieved and I found the characters less than compelling. I look forward to Ms. Scone new books, but not rewritten older ones.
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