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Summary: Riveting opening will make you want to read more
Review: A sexy pirate and a forthright female--what more could you want in a pirate romance? The ending tugged at my heart and the well-drawn characters kept me reading. Enjoy!
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Summary: Tell Me Lies
Review: A woman must seduce a pirate captian in exchange for her life. I was completely riveted by the story. The heroine's bid for survival, the author's imagery, the crew's dissension, the intense emotions between the lead characters--all held my attention so that I couldn't put the book down. Until she jumps overboard in her escape. The heroine survives...the story doesn't. I wish the story had ended at that point. It's as if two different authors had written this book. Imagery is all but forgotten, the emotions between the characters is unintresting. I find myself wanting to rip the book down the middle so that I could keep the first half and burn the second!While this story had a disappointing finish, I still look forward to Ms. Dain's second novel. She has the ability to becomes a very powerful writer.
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Summary: Hot and Cold
Review: Although the first five chapters were HOT the rest of the book seemed cold to me.
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Summary: Kinky cover...good book
Review: First off..the cover..This scene never occurs in the book, but the characters are described as looking very much like this. I loved this book. Lydia is captured by pirates. She has to plead with the captain with her eyes and movements to save her from the mob of pirates. It works and he takes her away to his cabin.....the book is pretty sexy for about 4 chapters. Lydia is very frightened and does anything just to live. Very seductive reading. She has the opportunity to jump ship and escape...she does. I was rooting for her all the way. The pirate, Dan, goes looking for her and finds her in Williamsburg. She is the real Lydia there...a prim and proper girl from a loving family. It takes him awhile to figure this out. He finally realizes who she really is and continues to pursue her. I loved the ending where lies met the truth. It takes him nearly all of the book to see the truth but he eventually does. I liked Lydia very much. I enjoyed seeing Dan faced with himself in the end. Claudia Dain wrote that part very well. Good book.
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Summary: Remarkable first effort
Review: I almost didn't buy this book because the of the kinky cover...! And I'll bet the title was decided by some editorial committee, not the author. If I were to have been on that committee, I would have picked "At All Cost" for the title.I read a couple of reviews back, and wonder if someone hasn't sent in a review by mistake of another "Tell Me Lies," there are two contemporary books out at this time by the same title--this book by Dain is not remotely humorous, and shouldn't be. These quibbles aside, this is a lyrical, haunting, cohesive story with an intense theme of survival-vs-transcendent love. How many romances have such an unusual theme? Usually it's revenge, misunderstanding or simple lust. The heroine departed from the now-tiresome spitfire cliché, and was an intense, thoughtful and spiritual survivor who had me "rooting" for her with every paragraph. Often in romances, I itch to slap the bad-tempered Scarlett wannabes and tell them to grow up. The hero behaves very badly, and gets both his justice and mercy. He is not quite as fully realized as the heroine. The auxiliary characters are authentic and frequently sympathetic. How about a story on Lydia's sisters?
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Summary: This book never got it's land legs!
Review: I found the first part of this book to very captivating and well written. However, I was very disappointed with the turn that the story took after Lydia and Dan left the ship and arrived in Williamsburg. The plot just lost it's sizzle! Lydia lost all of her passion and fire and became an introverted, almost neurotic recluse and I just couldn't relate to her at all. Dan's persual of her semmed to be somewhat lackluster ,after the passion that was generated between the two of them on the ship. I do think however, that Ms Dain shows great promise as a romance writer. I think that I would probably buy her next novel to see if she can come up with a story that has the same flair and fire that the first part of this book had.
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Summary: Terrific Debut Novel
Review: I had not read a romance novel for many, many years before I picked up Claudia Dain's debut novel. I meant to glance at a few pages before actually sitting down to read it, but found myself 150 pages into the book before I had to force myself to put it down and finish it later. It is an entertaining read with all the finer points of the romance novel genre. Claudia Dain should be congratulated on a great first novel.
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Summary: Innovative and exciting romance author...
Review: I had the good fortune of meeting Claudia Dain at a romance writer's workshop and purchased this book soon after mainly because she was holding a signing. I'm more of a Scottish/Celtic romance fan and had never read many pirate novels -- this one changed my mind! For a first novel, this book, I think, is remarkably innovative. It starts out with the heroine, a virgin, having to give herself over to the ship captain because she thinks this will keep her alive...she never bargains on having feelings for him, and he's the same way!
The love scenes were HOT in my opinion and I liked the conflict and mental turmoil Lydia goes through upon her return home. The description of colonial times was also interesting, and I liked the other characters. The few flaws here are, I think, because Dain was a new novelist. Read this if you want to experience something DIFFERENT in romance...then try her book "The Holding" to see she definitely is an author to watch!
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Summary: i loved this book
Review: i loved this book!But there would be some things i might change like the amount of steamy sex parts and how she describes everything REALLY REALLY good!She would say a simple thing like the chocolate smelled like...and she would take like 2 pages to describe it!but a greats storie but i think if i was lydia(the girl in the story) i would do everything a lot different!but over all a great book!
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Summary: My First Romance Novel
Review: I picked up this book on Friday night and I cannot put it down. I'm at work on Monday, and I can't wait to go to lunch to read some more. I have never read what is called a "romance novel", and I have to say I was intrigued by the cover which is somewhat "kinky". The main character, Lydia, is wonderfully full, and I can more than imagine being in her shoes and going wild for this beautiful pirate. I can't wait 'til Ms. Dain's next book!
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