The Matchmaker

Rating:
Summary: Deep and moving; pure romance
Review: Contrary to the impression made by the spiel on the back cover, "The Matchmaker" is not a breezy story. It has moments of humor and sweetness, to be sure. But Neville's problems are real and deep, and rightly give both him and Olivia pause. Nevertheless, I am romantic enough to adore a "love conquers all" story.

Neville is charming and responsible and sexy, and tortured and lonely and sometimes selfish. He is also the only hero with this wimpy-sounding name who made the name strong. Olivia is something of a prude and a bit self-righteous, but she's also warm and loving and generous and passionate. They make a good couple throughout the book.

The secondary characters are well-conceived and add to the story, though Olivia's steward and St. Clair could have been better developed. (I'd love to see a book about little sister Sarah!) The pace never really drags, and the story works beautifully without any intrigue or mystery; this one is just pure romance. The story is wrapped up a little too quickly, a little too neatly, but that's a minor complaint thanks to the strength of the rest of the book. The epilogue neatly and pleasantly provides a heartwarming look into the future.

Nice, rich, pure romance.

Rating:
Summary: Good!
Review: I had read "The Troublemaker" first. It was a good book and I am glad I read it first or I never would have enjoyed it. The Troublemaker made Olivia seem like the sweetest of women but in he Matchmaker which is Olivias story all she does is cry. I was hoping by the end that she would just kill herself. I had to put the book down so many times because the cry baby in Olivia was quite trying. The hero seemed like such a nice guy. What he saw in her is beyond me.

Rating:
Summary: Loved this book
Review: I loved this book. I think is the best one of the triology it is warm and romantic and you just love Olivia and Neville. Great read!

Rating:
Summary: I really wanted to like this too
Review: I read Ms. Becnel's novella in Scandalous Weddings, an anthology and was really interested in her other work so I picked up this. It sounded fairly interesting and humorous. A woman in the Regency era, keeping a journal which analyzses the suitablity of men in a marital sense. She doesn't use it for herself entirely so much as to match up others as a hobby almost. Somewhat similar to Emma by Jane Austen. The hero was scarred and the emotional conflict a bit dark but that's not what turned me off.

The real problem was just how boring it pretty much was. After the two main characters meet, there's just no motivation to keep the plot going. Everything begins to lag which is pretty bad since it was a fairly short story. The truth is that her novella was so sweet and original than I wanted to like The Matchmaker more than I really did. I think it was a bit forced, like the author was trying to drag it out, make it longer with just filler words that were simply boring. It was really hard to even finish it.

Rating:
Summary: Some of these reviews are bewildering!!!!
Review: I'm reading some of the other reviews and wondering if they are talking about the same book I just finished reading!!! And it's actually the love it or hate it aspect of those reviews that drove me to read this book in the first place. I just had to read it for myself.

I liked this book a lot. It's well written with some nice dialog and good descriptive text. Like another reviewer, I'm giving it 5 stars to off-set the negative reviews that this book doesn't deserve (though my true rating would be 4). First off, Olivia was neither a "cry baby" nor a "prude" as other reviewers stated. She cried maybe once and she was no more a prude than any well-mannered lady of the gentry of her time. She was cautious about men and didn't want to make the mistakes her mother made - multiple times! Maybe to some she was overly cautious, but hey, she had to live with the guy, not me!

Second, I hate the characterization of Neville as a "drunk" (though I suppose technically it's true). He used alcohol to deaden his pain and empty his mind of the memories from his war experiences. He is never drunk during the day or around anyone else (except for the one incident at the inn). And he doesn't insult Olivia, he teases her - and he could tease me anytime. He sensed that underneath her stuffy, proper surface was a kindred spirit that he wanted to get to know. I liked Neville and rooted for him to win Olivia over. He was handsome, charming, funny and mischievous. And when he finally figures out that he is in love with Olivia, he realizes he will have to change if he wants to win her. She brought out the best in him. Now Olivia was a bit uptight and she fought her attraction to Neville to the bitter end which may be why some found the book a bit too slow. I will concede at times some exasperation with her and wondered once or twice why Neville bothered, but I also knew that they needed each other. And hey, if I had a dime for every heroine in a romance novel that exasperated me, I'd be a millionaire! Believe me, I've read books with far more annoying characters than any in this book.

So, if you're interested, give this book a chance. Borrow it or buy it second hand if you're really on the fence. Lots of us enjoyed it, so you may too.

Rating:
Summary: Some of these reviews are bewildering!!!!
Review: This is a very good novel. The two protagonists are very well developed and their interactions are the highlight of the story. The secondary characters add sparkle and depth to the plot, as well as lightening up the otherwise serious topics. This is a great book for those who like emotional depth. It is NOT, however, a light read.

Rating:
Summary: One of my Favorite Romances
Review: This was an excellent romantic story that dealt with some serious issues quite delicately. The heroine's emotions were appropriate for a 21 year old girl, and the hero's actions were in synch with his recent war experiences and family losses. I most liked the fact that the hero had vulnerabilities that he was able to overcome, for the most part, on his own, yet the love of the heroine contributed to his healing.

Rating:
Summary: Warning: don't try this at home!
Review: This was not my favorite book, for a variety of reasons, many of them personal to me. I don't generally review books that don't hold my interest, because there are a lot of books out there, and I don't think it's fair to give a book a negative rating just because of my personal preference, especially if a book is well-written, as this book is. But Ms. Becnel does make some assumptions in this book, and I would like to be the first one to address these issues realistically.

Ms. Becnel makes her story believable, that true love can indeed cure addiction, mental illness. Now, I am just as romantic as anyone else, and I would truly love to believe that this kind of scenario could happen, but truthfully, it can't. Not in real life. Anybody who's married to someone with an addiction problem knows that no matter how much the person loves his spouse, or anyone else, the addiction is going to win. The addiction is always going to win. That's why it's called an addiction.

So, if Neville overcame an alcohol addiction by himself, there are only two likely scenarios - either it wasn't *really* an addiction, or he didn't really overcome it. From the way it is described in this book - Neville's issues - guilt and trauma from his part in the war, plus heavy drinking to overcome that trauma - qualifies as a full blown addiction. This kind of addiction is never cured by just *deciding* to stop. Think about it, how easy is it to just decide - I am not going to be addicted any more, and stop? It's not. That's why there are programs, with highly trained professionals, and even *they* don't have a 100% success rate. Far from it.

Ms. Becnel explains Neville's addiction by showing us that the reason he drinks is because he is in so much emotional pain - plus he has terrible nightmares which don't let him sleep, and guilt because of what happened in the war. This explanation is supposed to make him understand him, and not judge him for drinking. I have news for you - most, if not all, of people addicted to alcohol are drinking to drown their pain, whatever their pain may be. But you knew that. So, although it does make us understand Neville better, it doesn't help him get out of the addiction, it doesn't change the fact that he is addicted to alcohol.

Actually, his emotional issues add, rather than detract, from the severity of Neville's drinking problem. In this story, Neville has terrible nightmares whenever he goes to sleep. Since he has these nightmares only at night, he tries to stay up all night, and sleeps in the morning. From the way it's described in this story, it seems to me that this is a serious emotional disorder. Ms. Becnel addresses it in a very perfunctory way - talk about it, and it will go away. I think therapists would love to have treated Neville - he responds so easily to the slightest therapy! Unfortunately, I think this part of the story is also very unlikely - serious emotional illnesses do not go away so quickly.


Can people be helped by the love of those close to them? Yes, I think so, I wouldn't be reading romance books otherwise. Can people overcome serious depression/addiction issues through the love of those close to them? Yes, yes, but not love alone. Today there is medication, therapy, all these things which were not available in those days, and frankly, today, even with all the knowledge that we have today about depression/guilt, addiction, not everyone can be helped. I don't even want to think about what the success rate was before these things became available.

What I think I am trying to say is that there are a lot of problems that I believe can be overcome with the right person, but serious mental issues and/or addiction is not one of them. Addiction is simply too strong, which is why addicts will sacrifice everything - family, friends, and ultimately sometimes their own life, they will throw everything that is precious to themselves into the garbage - all because addiction is more powerful than anything else in the world.

(For a more realistic view of Neville, read 16 Lighthouse Road series, by Debbie Macomber - although Dan and Neville are very similar, Dan never gets over his issues, and this is portrayed sadly, but realistically, by Ms. Macomber).

So, I am writing this review as a warning. I am not upset about this story, I understand it's just a story, not real life, and an author has total autonomy to make her characters act exactly the way she wants them to. But, if you are reading this, please don't confuse it with real life. Most of all, please, please don't make any life decisions based on the assumptions made in this story. Although I am not saying that people shouldn't marry someone who has any emotional issues, you should however go into such a relationship with your eyes open. Don't expect things to fall into place easily.

Recommendation: If you are looking for a very straight, complex, and realistic look on male depression, read "I Don't Want to Talk About It" by Terrence Real.


Rating:
Summary: I thought it was wonderful!
Review: Twenty-one year old Lady Olivia Byrde kept a private journal with her to enter information on her pers. Over 40 gentlemen were listed, each with notations of all the observations Olivia had made. With the information, she had helped several of her girl friends notice gentlemen that normally they would have overlooked. In fact, Olivia could boast of many happy marriages between couples she had helped. However, no one seemed right for Olivia. Then a fate filled, middle of the night, unexpected event happened and Olivia met Lord Neville Hawke. The meeting was much less than friendly. Olivia left him, too upset to remember her journal, which Neville found and read without guilt.

Lord Neville Hawke had thought Olivia a mistress and the journal where she kept her information on possible future protectors. Upon returning the journal he was proven wrong and found himself very disappointed that she was really a lady of quality. Even so, he could not get Olivia out of his mind. The attraction between them was too strong. But Olivia hated him and he had a horrible secret that kept him from even considering courting her.

**** An excellent read! This is pure romance at its finest! I adore books where the hero will do anything to marry her (even compromise her) and the heroine is attached but has reasons to deny or hate him. Fabulous! ****