Rating: 
Summary: Too Little, Too Long in Coming
Review: After waiting since 1986 for Kurtz to return to Kelson and the plot threads left hanging in "The Quest for Saint Camber", this book was a disappointment. Instead of following up on the quest for Camber, Kelson gets married. Granted, after the tragedy of Rothana, Kelson deserves some happiness, but this book felt rushed, almost as if Kurtz decided to stop writing Deryni novels all together and wrapped things up in one fell swoop. Kurtz has shown that she has a knack for tragedy, notably in "King Javan's Year", and the previous series on Kelson tended to mix in a good part of that. If she continues this into a trilogy, let's hope she gets back to what she's good at.
Rating:
Summary: Dissapointly Dull
Review: This book is dissapointingly unlike Kurtz's other Deryni novels. The intrigue, magic, style and depth and style of her earlier works is missing. At times I found myself wondering if Kurtz even wrote this book. That, or was just a contractual obligation and she didn't really want to write it? The earlier Deryni novels are much better written, and this one does not come up to the same standard. Kurtz's previous Deryni novels are like stepping into a whole other world. This one is a lot like stepping into a tired and trite romance novel.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointed
Review: The worst of the Deryini novels by far. I hate to give one of Ms. Kurtz's Deryini novels a bad review because her work has given me great pleasure over the years, but this novel stinks. Any one of her others in the series I'd give a 4 star rating at worst. Even the look of the cover has a look one wouldn't expect from this author--a cheesy romance. She has changed publishers. Could this have anything to do with the turn towards the worse her writing has taken? Normally her novels are serious page-turners for me, keeping me up to all hours of the morning, but I had to force myself over the course of several months to finish this one. If you are a fan go ahead and buy it; if new to the series, don't bother.
Rating: 
Summary: long time in coming...
Review: I really love Katherine Kurtz. I've been reading her books since 1983. Perhaps that span of time was a detriment to me when reading this one. It seems that it was 12 or 15 years ago when I read the previous books in this particular sequence, and it took me a while to recall what had last happened to Kelson in the books that preceded this one. I think perhaps some background/review at the start of this novel would have helped.Once I pulled out my old books and got back up to speed (which I *had* to do), this was a pleasurable read. (...) I don't know that this was one of Kurtz's better works. It almost seemed to me that this novel was a work she felt obligated to write - that she had left poor Kelson hanging too long, and needed to tell the next chapter in his life. I don't think it really advanced the story of the Deryni universe as a whole as much as it got Kelson (and half his family!) married off, finally. I'd recommend it strongly to anyone who has read all of Kurtz's other Deryni books, as how could you NOT read it? I would, however, recommend that anyone new to the Deryni world start with Deryni Rising or the Camber of Culdi series and work forward from there.
Rating:
Summary: Good, but where's the romance?
Review: I thought that this book by Katharine Kurtz was incredible, but what happened to the romance that I thought was going to be so much a part of this book??? The title is King Kelson's Bride so naturally i thought that much of the book would be devoted to Kelson finding and falling in love with his "bride". Not so. Much of the book revolves around Liam's enthronement and Maheal and Teymuraz's treachery. I think that Kelson is a very honorable man but many of his actions and thoughts in this book were self serving. He constantly whines about how he will never get to be with Rothana, how he wants Nigel to accept Albin, he is so wrapped up with his own problems he doesn't even notice that Derry is being controlled by Morag and Teymuraz. Actually I don't really even think that he deserved Araxie!! She was so beautiful, gentle and sweet and all he could think about for most of the book was how he loves Rothana! Get over it! I really loved the Christian aspect of this book though. So often you read fantasy books and there are all these strange gods and such that it was refreshing to read a fantasy novel that incoporated real values and beliefs in it. When Kelson and Araxie did have scenes together it was sweet, but where's the passion, the true love? Both Araxie and Kelson claimed they were contented with each other but contentment seems sorta bland somehow. Ms. Kurtz should have made them fall passionately in love erasing from Kelson's mind all thoughts and regrets about Rothana and Sidana. I agree with another reviewer who thought kurtz should have given Araxie and Kelson an adventure together! She should have had Teymuraz kidnap Araxie and Kelson could have rescued her and realized how much he loved her. Another thing I really loved about this book was the descriptions of people and places. Everything was so vividly and realistically depicted, i felt like i was right there. I also liked how Kelson had this very close circle of honorable, sweet friends. So often in books it seems like the protaginist has every one againest him and no allies, but Kelson had some great friends. Something that really annoyed me was how Araxie was so accepting when it came to Kelson's love for Rothana. How could she not have been jealous at all? That just seemed a little unrealistic. And not only was she understanding of their relationship but she manipulated Rothana to come closer to court where Rothana would be in constant contact with Kelson! Overall, i thought that this book was great and i still feel very attached to it so i would recommend it to everyone!
Rating: 
Summary: Its Okay, But....
Review: It is always a pleasure to return to the world of Gwynnedd. I came to this series a few years ago, while I was in my twenties, and I was pleased with the matuirty with which Ms. Kurtz handled her themes and characters. That being said, one of the great attractions of the series, was the author's skilled descriptive style, and her clear appreciation for things medieval, mixed with mastery of the convnetions of heroic fantasy. These strengths continue in "King Kelson's Bride". What is missing, however, is Ms. Kurtz's ability to starkly draw conflict. Her plot sails smoothly along, with King Kelson rather easily implementing all of his plans,with the almost universal compliance of every other character, both major and minor. Even the villains, seem curiously unexercised. In fact, they are overcome rather easily. All in all, everything seems to fall into place a little to conveniently for a Gwynned novel. I never had the sense that almost anything could happen, as I did in Kurtz's previous efforts in this series. Therefore, this lastest novel feels a little sweet and airy. A good read, but not up to her usual standards. If this is, in fact, our last visit with King Kelson, it seems an anti climactic and half hearted (if sweet) way to close out this series.
Rating:
Summary: Deryni "lite"
Review: I did enjoy this book, although I must admit that I hesitated to pick it up for quite some time. Being accustomed to frequent torture, death, heartbreak, and general grim reality in the previous novels of this series I felt the need to prepare myself for the next installment. Imagine my surprise when good things happened to the characters, not just once but throughout the book! Upon reflection, I would say that I enjoyed the book but found it to be quite a bit lighter than those that came before. The characters don't suffer; even Kelson's anguish as he selects a bride for logical rather than emotional reasons is a bit forced. Is this the final installation, the tying off of all the lose ends?
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyed, but disappointed (warning - part of plot revealed)
Review: I did enjoy this book, until I thought about it after reading it. I agree with the review that said the characters, except for Kelson and his bride, were treated rather poorly. I was really disappointed that Morgan seems to have become a background character, far from the powerful Duke in The Chronicle of the Deryni or The Histories of King Kelson series'. Although it would be natural to see the younger nobility come to the fore, even they are not really given much. Dhugal is no more than a device to give Kelson a reason to voices his thoughts. Derry's role was always a bit of a mystery to me. Is he Morgan's aid/seneschal? There always seems to be more he should be doing. The part about Torenth was just enough to point out that they are different enough from Gwynedd to be an interesting enigma. I have always wondered, though, why do the Deryni seem to dominate the humans there, and not (except occasionally) in Gwynedd. Surely all the Deryni there are not as evil as the royalty. Speaking of which, I was not so much bothered by Morag's death, as by her seeming to second guess her long held hatred of her enemies. She even started to think of Morgan as noble! Still, with all this, I enjoyed the story. I just hope it is a platform for better things, and not just an all-in-one tying up of loose ends.
Rating:
Summary: Well, I enjoyed it, but...
Review: I've recently finished with the latest book in the Deryni series by Katherine Kurtz, King Kelson's Bride. As a long time fan of Mrs. Kurtz's writing, and especially of her Deryni series (this would be number 13 in the series, not including anthologies). So it was with great anticipation that I opened up this book. So what do I think of this book? Well, it depends. As a Deryni fan, I enjoyed re-entering the world of King Kelson and company. This book is quite a bit lighter than many of the previous books in this series. No horribly catastrophic events, and no killing off of central characters, which typify most of the Deryni books, occur in this book. As a matter of fact, most events in this book have favorable results in the end for the main protagonists (if you want further details, read some of the other reviews posted here). However, I expect some tragedy, adversity and heartbreak from a Deryni novel, and this one did not deliver it. Not that that is a bad thing, but this book just seemed bland compared to previous ones in the series. Even some of the characters seem to be shadows of themselves from previous novels. And the plot is unoriginal, just a wrap up of previous plot elements, with a few loose threads left for the next book. But in the end, I actually wanted to keep reading, and any book that can keep me interested can't be bad. If you are a newcomer to the Deryni series, I strongly suggest you do not read this book first. Not only will you be frequently confused, you will not gain a true appreciation for how good this series has been. But if you're an old hand to this series, I think you will, for the most part, enjoy a lighter return to the Deryni series.
Rating: 
Summary: Well - Not What I Expected (Spoilers Warning!)
Review: Hard for me to believe, but I have been a fan of the Deryni series for about 25 years now, and I waited eagerly for this installment. I guess since I read about Kelson and company first, I enjoy those books much more than the Camber books (although the Camber books are probably better written). I have to agree with the readers who found King Kelson's Bride a disappointment. The book read more like a history, almost as if Ms. Kurtz has become so wrapped up in the genealogies of the Deryni families, and the history of Torenth (although I did find that kind of interesting), that she forgot to tell an entertaining story. Other folks have commented that Kelson seems like a whiny, love-sick teenager; I agree that he seemed more mature in the first series at the age of 14. Morgan is hardly more than a walk-on character in this book. And Derry -apart from the fact that the mind-control plot from High Deryni was rehashed (and less convincingly this time), when the heck did Derry turn into a babysitter for Morgan's kids? Not enough that the old favorites seemed like strangers, in my opinion, Ms. Kurtz made a serious mistake by killing off the two most interesting villains in this installment - Mahael and Morag. What was the point of this - just to introduce yet another Torenthi brother? Finally, the title of this book is misleading; it's hardly the story of Araxie, who actually grew on me (much more than the martyr Rothana) and seemed too good for the Kelson of this book. The final straw was Queen Jehana's lickety-split change into a Deryni-lover. I enjoyed her more as the harpy who was out to save Kelson from the "evil" Deryni influence. Having really grown fond of the characters in the Kelson series (and impressed by Ms. Kurtz's writing), it pains me to have to give this book such a poor review. Here's hoping the next one will be better.
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