Rating: 
Summary: STORY LINE GOOD
Review: The story line was good. It slowed down in the middle. Picked up towards the end. I found the type-o's were very distracting. I have never read a novel with so many errors in grammar or sentence structure. I hope the next one will be easier to read.
Rating: 
Summary: It was enjoyable
Review: The story was nice. I didn't like the rape in it so that's why I gave it a low rating. Love won out in the end. The story line was interesting and it kept by interest but Catherine Coulter has written far better stories. I will continue to read her books because they are entertaining.
Rating: 
Summary: Terrible: badly-written, unromantic, a turn-off and boring
Review: This is another variation on the old 'fathers arranging marriages between their offspring' theme, and in many ways pretty much like every other of that kind. In this book, Hawk, the Earl of Rothbury, chooses the plain and - to him - repulsive daughter, Frances, so that he can dump her and won't have to spend any time with her. Unfortunately for him, she's actually beautiful - now there's yet another cliche, and his behaviour when he finds out is disgraceful.The marriage gets off to a bad start when he insists that she let him have his conjugal rights - others have referred to his treatment of her as rape, and that's not a bad description. All their sexual encounters, up until the time that Hawk discovers she's beautiful and suddenly - surprise, surprise - starts to feel desire for her, are tantamount to rape. Humour? What humour? I know that humour is very subjective but, while Coulter clearly thinks, judging by her sleeve comments, that the fights between Hawk and Frances are hilarious, to me they seemed infantile and embarrassing. I was also turned off by Hawk's habit of discussing sex everywhere, no matter who was around. His explicit comments regarding the purpose of the cream were also distasteful. Like another reader, I could not see a single reason why the two of them should fall in love with one another; but in contrast, I think they deserved each other. Both were spoilt, silly and very immature. Coulter remarks, in her sleeve notes to the reissue, that this book did not require any revisions since it was 'fine and dandy' as it was. Well, at the very least she could have done something about the grammatical errors and anachronisms in language! 'The both of us' is grammatically incorrect and would *never* be used in speech by an English aristocrat - or by any English person, then or now. Neither did eighteenth-century aristocrats say 'I guess', or any of the other Americanisms which peppered Coulter's dialogue. And her female characters, in dialogue and behaviour, were very out of place for the period. Coulter also has a very bad habit of changing point of view frequently: in the early part of the book she not only did it in each successive paragraph, but *within* paragraphs. How on earth are her readers supposed to follow whose perspective is being given? It's a very sloppy writing style, one which an author of Coulter's experience should know to avoid. Not now experiencing the slightest desire to read another word written by Catherine Coulter, I will await the new Jo Beverley and Mary Balogh novels instead.
Rating:
Summary: Mildly enjoyable....
Review: This story left me slightly dissatisfied... I have heard and read many reviews regarding Catherine Coulter's work and it is very obvious that she is a fan favourite.....So I thought to give it a try...perhaps I picked up the wrong novel.... This story starts out pretty well.....interesting plot and character intro.......However, as it continues, it spirals downwards with a lightning speed... Hawk is the most clueless hero I have had the misfortune of reading about in a while...chauvinistic and full of himself (not in a charming, rougish way, either) I felt that Frances was a bit better developed...she had more substance to her character...Headstrong and sort of wild... Here is the whole scoup: an arranged marriage that neither of them want...alongside with a few deceptions and missunderstandings...consequensial rape(huge turn-off)...discovery of some mild passion between the hero and heroine....not much depth...and the story ends unresolved to my taste. However, the ongoing humour in the novel redeems it a few degrees, which is why a gave it three stars. All in all, a mildly enjoyable read....but not a keeper.
Rating:
Summary: How is rape romantic?
Review: This was my first Catherine Coulter book. I bought her book because she is listed as a best-selling romantic novelist, but it seems to me that she's a bit warped. How is rape romantic? And why are people so obsessed with her books? Rape seems to be a running theme...I won't be buying any more of her "romance" novels...This was a reissue so Ms. Coulter DID have the opportunity to delete the rape scenes but chose to leave them in...?????
Rating: 
Summary: THE BEST OF THE MAGIC SERIES
Review: This was the first, and by far the best of the Magic series. You fall instantly in love with Hawk and Frances, and they are a laugh when together. From the moment that Frances is dressed like a "Dowdy Mouse" to aviod marrying Phillip "Hawk" Hawksbury, you are unable to put the book down. You also get a visit from Julien St. Clair before he married Katherine Brandon in Rebel Bride. (Not part of the Bride Series). Coulter is by far the best author in my oppinion. Although her modern books are not as good as her historicals, I've loved all eight that I've read thus far.
Rating:
Summary: THE BEST OF THE MAGIC SERIES
Review: This was the first, and by far the best of the Magic series. You fall instantly in love with Hawk and Frances, and they are a laugh when together. From the moment that Frances is dressed like a "Dowdy Mouse" to aviod marrying Phillip "Hawk" Hawksbury, you are unable to put the book down. You also get a visit from Julien St. Clair before he married Katherine Brandon in Rebel Bride. (Not part of the Bride Series). Coulter is by far the best author in my oppinion. Although her modern books are not as good as her historicals, I've loved all eight that I've read thus far.
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't put it down
Review: This was the third book in the "Magic" series that I have read. It was just the right combination of romance, mystery and suspense - right up to the last chapter. It was the type of novel that catches your attention early and keeps you wanting to turn the pages. I have read as many of Catherine Coulter's books as I could find. And I look forward to reading her books in the future.
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't put it down
Review: This was the third book in the "Magic" series that I have read. It was just the right combination of romance, mystery and suspense - right up to the last chapter. It was the type of novel that catches your attention early and keeps you wanting to turn the pages. I have read as many of Catherine Coulter's books as I could find. And I look forward to reading her books in the future.
Rating:
Summary: I don't know...
Review: Well.. after all the rave reviews of this book, I must say something to the contrary. This is my first Coulter novel, and I admit I was hooked by the story line from the beginning. Frances is an intriguing character, and Hawk was also intriguing, at first. However, about halfway through it, I became more and more disgusted by Hawk and his superficial attitude towards Frances. He wants nothing to do with her when she is a "mousey dowd," then his attitude totally changes when her beauty is revealed. The dialogue between the two can be very entertaining, though. It is witty and funny at times, but it shows no depth. I did not feel much of anything for either Hawk or Frances because I knew so little of them, or that what I got from the dialogue. I also never got the impression that there was love developing. One minute they loathe each other, then all of a sudden, they want each other. I guess that sex suddenly brings about that loving feeling. Good plot.. no depth. I'm still deciding whether or not this will be my last Coulter book.
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