Rating: 
Summary: Another disappointment from Mrs. Small
Review: This is the very first Small book I have read and it was excellent! The history between Wales and England was supurb, I have never read such acuracy before in a romance book. Small is so detailed she even brings to life the smells around you and the tastes. I was astounded. The love story was so different from what i was used to in other romances, Rhonwyn is the Welsh Prince's daughter and is used as a "bargaining" chip in the Prince's cooperation with the King of England. She is forced into a marriage with Edward, a mere Lord who has knowledge of Welsh language and culture. The marriage is a political one and the King feels assured the Prince of Wales will not give him trouble. Rhonwyn is a wild and spirited woman who was raised by her father's soldiers without a mother or female influence. Edward is not happy with this, but tries to make the best of a strange situation. Soon he is called to fight in the Crusades alongside (then) Prince Edward, son of King Henry. She begs to acompany him, because she wants to fight too. He relents and soon finds herself captured and given to the Lord in a harem. We as the readers learn alot about Rhonwyn's character in this time she is there and learn about a terrible secret she has hidden from her husband. After a year of longing for Edward, she escapes and finds her way home, only to learn of another horrible truth that she must now face. It was such a wonderful story and I loved how strong and independant she was. I agree with the other readers too, I wish Rafe were introduced much earlier. Besides Rhonwyn, he was my favorite character. The secondary characters, her brother and her aunt are wonderful, and I loved when they appeared, alos her devoted Welsh guards made me smile with their utter devotion to her. This is a wonderful story that should not be missed, and now I am going to read everything from this talented author that I can get my hands on!
Rating: 
Summary: A great induction to Bertrice Small...
Review: This is the very first Small book I have read and it was excellent! The history between Wales and England was supurb, I have never read such acuracy before in a romance book. Small is so detailed she even brings to life the smells around you and the tastes. I was astounded. The love story was so different from what i was used to in other romances, Rhonwyn is the Welsh Prince's daughter and is used as a "bargaining" chip in the Prince's cooperation with the King of England. She is forced into a marriage with Edward, a mere Lord who has knowledge of Welsh language and culture. The marriage is a political one and the King feels assured the Prince of Wales will not give him trouble. Rhonwyn is a wild and spirited woman who was raised by her father's soldiers without a mother or female influence. Edward is not happy with this, but tries to make the best of a strange situation. Soon he is called to fight in the Crusades alongside (then) Prince Edward, son of King Henry. She begs to acompany him, because she wants to fight too. He relents and soon finds herself captured and given to the Lord in a harem. We as the readers learn alot about Rhonwyn's character in this time she is there and learn about a terrible secret she has hidden from her husband. After a year of longing for Edward, she escapes and finds her way home, only to learn of another horrible truth that she must now face. It was such a wonderful story and I loved how strong and independant she was. I agree with the other readers too, I wish Rafe were introduced much earlier. Besides Rhonwyn, he was my favorite character. The secondary characters, her brother and her aunt are wonderful, and I loved when they appeared, alos her devoted Welsh guards made me smile with their utter devotion to her. This is a wonderful story that should not be missed, and now I am going to read everything from this talented author that I can get my hands on!
Rating: 
Summary: Back to the Harem
Review: This may seem strange from a male point of view but I love Mrs. Smalls books. A few years ago while I was laid up in the hospital my sister gave me book to read (Skye O'Malley), seeing what it was I dismissed it completely. Well two days later, dying of boredom I started to read the book. BAM--I loved the characters. From that day forward I've read every book of Mrs. Smalls. This one is just as good as the first that I've read. Thank you Bertrice. Even a guy wants a little romance once in a while.
Rating:
Summary: Nobody does it better!!!
Review: This may seem strange from a male point of view but I love Mrs. Smalls books. A few years ago while I was laid up in the hospital my sister gave me book to read (Skye O'Malley), seeing what it was I dismissed it completely. Well two days later, dying of boredom I started to read the book. BAM--I loved the characters. From that day forward I've read every book of Mrs. Smalls. This one is just as good as the first that I've read. Thank you Bertrice. Even a guy wants a little romance once in a while.
Rating:
Summary: Back to the Harem
Review: This romance does not involve the Skye O'Malley famiy, but it might as well. It has all the qualities of this family. I really thought she was going to turn out to be a distant relative. This book is set in a much earlier time period than most of her books-around the 1200s. Though there is not huge amounts of detail to really place it in that period.The heroine is the illegitimate daughter of a nobleman. She is close to her brother. Their mother was murdered when the children were a very young age. Their distant father bundled the children off to live in a castle with his relatives and basically never bothered with them until they were grown and could be of use to them. Dad then comes back to discover his daughter has grown into a beautiful young blonde haired...soldier. She can fight and wrestle with the best of the guys and better than her dreamy brother. Dad then bundles her off to his sister's convent to learn the art of being a woman. She learns this all in short order, whereupon, she is married. Readers of Ms. Small's books will note that after the marriage is when the all-too-familiar formula kicks in. She is young when married and never is fulfilled in the marriage bed. The couple then go off to fight the Crusades. Where--gasp--she is kidnapped into a harem, where she learns to love and become a fulfilled woman. Stop me if you have heard this all too familiar Bertrice Small story before...she loves her lord, but longs for the far away England. So she manages to escape the harem and the East and make her way back to England. Here we find Ms. Small's other plot device..the forced marriage by the king/queen. I will leave you here. I really do love Ms. Small's writing. She has done a lot for the historical romance genre. But I say, please, enough with the harems!! Sky O'Malley's family ALL were kidnapped into various harems across the East. They all go out riding in the morning and are kidnapped on to a ship and sold. If all of your family...your aunts, your mother, your grandmothers all were kidnapped into harems...would you not see some sort of pattern? If all the books you wrote all had an early unhappy marriage, scenes of being beaten, forced into slavery and then back to England..would you see a pattern developing? The book is interesting in itself; but I do wish Ms Small would pick some new plot devices.
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