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Heart Duel

Heart Duel

List Price: $6.50
Your Price: $5.85
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: INTERESTING RETELLING OF A WELL WORN PLOT
Review: "Two households, both alike in dignity,
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
From forth the fatal loins of these two foes
A pair of star-cross'd lovers..."

So begins the original. While HEART DUEL isn't an exact duplicate of ROMEO AND JULIET there is no doubt where the basic premises for the story came from. A woman and a man fall in love but are separated by feuding families. Sound familiar?

Alright it isn't exactly the same. You still have the fascinating world of Celta with it's novel blending of psi-powered humans and hierarchical oligarchy. That's different, but to be honest there really isn't any new ground broken in that direction with this volume. Neither are some of the common storylines from her other two Celta novels, that is boy finds HartMate, girl doesn't know it (this must be some kind of sex linked trait), boy pursues girl, girl resists boy but in the end...well lets just say at the heart of it all it is a romance so you guess the ending.

Tired premises? Weary storyline? Yeah a little, that's what shades it more toward the average than above. The writing is still exceptional, the characters well fleshed out, believable and compelling. Technically HEART DUEL is well done but it certainly loses points in the originality category.

By no means fatally flawed HEART DUEL is an admirable bit of poolside fluff. Something pleasant and unpretentious to enjoy while wiling away the hours this summer.

I RECOMMEND it.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: INTERESTING RETELLING OF A WELL WORN PLOT
Review: "Two households, both alike in dignity,
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
From forth the fatal loins of these two foes
A pair of star-cross'd lovers..."

So begins the original. While HEART DUEL isn't an exact duplicate of ROMEO AND JULIET there is no doubt where the basic premises for the story came from. A woman and a man fall in love but are separated by feuding families. Sound familiar?

Alright it isn't exactly the same. You still have the fascinating world of Celta with it's novel blending of psi-powered humans and hierarchical oligarchy. That's different, but to be honest there really isn't any new ground broken in that direction with this volume. Neither are some of the common storylines from her other two Celta novels, that is boy finds HartMate, girl doesn't know it (this must be some kind of sex linked trait), boy pursues girl, girl resists boy but in the end...well lets just say at the heart of it all it is a romance so you guess the ending.

Tired premises? Weary storyline? Yeah a little, that's what shades it more toward the average than above. The writing is still exceptional, the characters well fleshed out, believable and compelling. Technically HEART DUEL is well done but it certainly loses points in the originality category.

By no means fatally flawed HEART DUEL is an admirable bit of poolside fluff. Something pleasant and unpretentious to enjoy while wiling away the hours this summer.

I RECOMMEND it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The third is the best so far!
Review: A mistake many writers in the fantasy/romance genre make is to spend so much time describing place and circumstance that they forget that it is best left to the characters to tell the story. Time after time I have been disappointed by stories with one-dimensional characters who seem overwhelmed by their gadgets or by the mysterious powers surrounding them.

Robin D. Owens knows this and has done just the opposite. Her characters tell the story through their thoughts and words. The world of Celta seems familiar and not at all contrived as the reader is drawn into the story by appealing and multi-faceted characters.

When books are written as a series, many writers seem to be compelled to reiterate everything that happened in previous books during the first several pages. As a method for setting the tone for the rest of the book, this leaves a lot to be desired. It certainly doesn't draw the reader into the story. More likely, it puts the reader off if they haven't read the previous entries, or it bores those who have. Ms. Owens reintroduces characters from her previous books, but does so gradually and naturally, never interrupting the flow of the story.

Heart Duel is a wonderful story which, I believe, surpasses both HeartMate and Heart Thief. Lark is a healer, strong yet caring and gentle. Holm is a warrior with vulnerabilities and hidden pain. Neither of them are weak and each makes the other stronger. The story was told through them, as any great story is character driven. In this book the reader is given insights into the structure of the Families - not only Families of power, but Families of love.

I truly enjoyed this book. My only disappointment is that we don't get a chance to see Lark and Holm triumph together in their new life. I hope more of their story is told in future installments. Such multi-dimensional, multi-faceted characters will surely not be forgotten.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Exciting futuristic romance
Review: After three failed passages to find his HEARTMATE, warrior Holm Holly, heir to the House of Holly, believes he has none. Likewise healer Lark Collinson of the Houses of Hawthorne feels the same way as she never met her HEARTMATE during her three passages.

Lark heals the haughty Holm Holly, but while she works on his wound, he shockingly realizes she is his HEARTMATE. However, winning her over and forging the bond with her will be very difficult as Holm also knows that their respective families hate one another. As he works to win Lark's love and ultimate bond with her, her kin stabs his mother using a poisoned blade. The family feud explodes even while Holm continues his quest to gain the love of his HEARTMATE, who shares his feelings but feels their love is meant to fail.

The third Celta tale (see HEARTMATE and HEART THIEF) is an exhilarating love story with psychic powers to add to the feuds that threaten to keep the lead duo apart. The delightful story line is cleverly executed so that he audience can understand the planet's society and customs especially the bonding ritual and how deep a cut bad blood flows. Robin D. Owen proves once again that she is among the top rung of fantasy romance authors with this fantastic tale that will have the audience wondering if perhaps the Celta version of Taming of the Shrew will follow.

Harriet Klausner

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Heart Duel maintains the high standard
Review: HEART DUAL, the third book in Ms. Owens Heart series, is definite keeper, from the beginning I was entranced with this book. I'd been waiting for Holm's story and I wasn't disappointed. I truly enjoyed her kittenfams, who are portrayed so vividly I half expect my cats to start talking in my head. What I found most appealing about HEARTDUEL is the inclusion of human frailties and foibles that I personally related to. Holm's character, which was introduced in Heart Mate as the arrogant and confident heir to a Great House shows us a softer more vulnerable side that reminded me of the insecurities we all hide. Most 1st born children will relate to Holm's struggle with the "perfect child" syndrome, I know I certainly did. Lark's efforts to maintain a civil relationship with her father while keeping her independence brought back vivid memories of my struggles as a young woman to establish myself. The love that these two manage to find against the odds of their feuding family made me feel warm. The surprise twist toward the end had me in tears and then cheering Ms. Owens for her choice of resolving the Romeo and Juliet type story she had crafted. Obviously HEARTDUAL spoke to me on a very personal level as both Holm and Lark struggled with emotional difficulties I too have battled with. The book will always have a place in my heart.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: one of the best writers in paranormal romance
Review: I adored Heartmate and the whole world of Celta with the Fams. I think Heart Thief is perfection. So was fearful Owen's third book would not live up to the first two. She does! The books is a delight with the Fams, the romanctic characters that pull you into this very vivid world Owens as created.

I cannot wait for the next Celta tale.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: one of the best writers in paranormal romance
Review: I adored Heartmate and the whole world of Celta with the Fams. I think Heart Thief is perfection. So was fearful Owen's third book would not live up to the first two. She does! The books is a delight with the Fams, the romanctic characters that pull you into this very vivid world Owens as created.

I cannot wait for the next Celta tale.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Robin's Celta series continues with another winner!
Review: I first became aware of Robin D. Owens in a writers chat. It was just after she had gained recognition for her first book HEARTMATE. Word of mouth was so good, my curiosity was tweaked. So, naturally, I dashed off to order a copy and read it. Rarely is a first book so full of heart, so brilliantly conceived. Generally, if it is, it falls into the Harper Lee Syndrome of being so perfect the writer cannot achieve that level ever again. So when I was asked to review Robin's second book, I frankly feared being let down. Instead, I was blown away. She did not achieve that same wonderful magick of HEARTMATE...she surpassed it! HEART THIEF was just that, a complex tale of an outcast, a thief and the Judge whom falls in love with him. The KittyFams were such a draw. I love cats, and Robin gives the KittyFams such life and personalities to her telepathic kitties, not cutesy, but oh so heartwarming. Having so enjoyed her first two works, I was eagerly, but once more cautiously looking forward to the next in the Hearts of Celta series.

HEART DUEL, just does not measure up to the first two, it shines with such amazing emotion.

This time we are treated to two KittyFams, Meserv and Phyll, tom brothers, gifts from T'ash to his friend, Holm Holly (prominent character in the first two books as the heir to House of Holly) and Lark Collinson, a healer from the Houses of Heather and Hawthrone. A wee touch of Romeo and Juliet is the undercurrent to HEART DUEL as the Houses of Holly and Hawthorne are ancient enemies. Lark heals the arrogant, but gorgeous Holm Holly, a man she grew up with, and watched from a far. He was the handsome, brash warrior, she quiet women with a Flair for healing. Both have undergone the three passages and neither saw their Heartmate that set their Flairs free, so both assumed there would not be one for them. Lark married a commoner, also a healer, but he died three years before the tale opens. So it is shocking to Holm to recognize as she heals his wound, that Lark is his Heartmate. Winning her will not be easy. Neither family will welcome their bonding, especially as the long animosity is edging toward open war between the two families. But Holm will let nothing stop him from forming the Heartbond, not even Lark herself.

However, his resolve is tested when his mother is stabbed by a Hawthorne youth, the blade carrying a poison that nearly kills her. As the feud escalates, so does Holm's determination to win his Heartmate. Lark sees the situation as hopeless, thus Holm must fashion his Heartgift to win her love.

People who love HEARTMATE and HEART THIEF...will be thrilled with this next entry in the Celta series. Long may Robin D. Owen's thrill us with her very special talent.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Not the ending I had hoped...
Review: I have enjoyed Robin Owens work with her first two books, Heart Mate and Heart Theif. I also very enjoyed this third book Heart Duel. The book was facinating with such a great story and developing relationship between Lark and Holm. However, I was very disappointed with the "bittersweet" ending. Not what I had expected or hoped for. Ms. Owens is very talented and I will be anxiously waiting for her next book. Hoping for a HEA epilogue to the Heart Duel story line

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A little disappointed but very little
Review: I have loved all of Robin's books. I waited so eagerly for this one. However, I was somewhat disappointed. Yes, Holm Holly is a great character and we know so much about him from the other books. I truly felt for him as he strives to convince his heartmate of their connection. But she was a stubborn, aggravating woman. She knows that her feelings are unique and special but she lets family and to much emotion about his personality or rather his lifestyle interfere with what she knows and feels in her heart. The feud and animosity between the families was too detailed and boring. I just wanted to scream at them to get over it already! And the ending was a disappointment. Where was the Holm Holly from Heartmate and Heart Thief? This guy didn't have a clue who he was. I thought the passages were supposed to help them grow and understand who they were. Obviously neither Lark nor Holm had very helpful passages. I will continue to read everything she writes about Celta. I love the place. I hope at a future date I will understand whatever it is that I obviously missed in this book. I am looking forward to her next book about Blackthorn and Mitchella.


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