Victoria Holt’s THE DEMON LOVER – Gripping Story of a Tumultuous Love Set in England and France

Just so you know, this is not your ordinary Victoria Holt gothic murder mystery. Set mostly in France in the late Victorian period, this tells the story of Kate Collison, of the famous (fictional) Collison family of brilliant painters of miniatures, each artist signing the portraits “KC.” In each generation, the next son takes up the art to astound patrons in England and in Europe. Unfortunately, Kate’s mother, the daughter of a duke, gave Kate’s father, Kendal Collison, only a daughter. But Kate was determined to become better than any son of the family who had gone before her.

 

When her father develops cataracts and his ability to paint the fine strokes diminishes, she becomes his eyes. Signing the portraits “KC,” as all in her family have, no one knows a woman has painted them. A new commission arrives from a baron in Normandy who wants miniatures of himself and his fiancée, a princess. So, Kate and her father travel to France, intending to do the miniatures together. At the baron’s castle, before he arrives, Kate begins to fall in love with the baron’s cousin Bertrand de Mortemer. And then she meets the Baron, Rollo de Centeville, who by his own description is “arrogant, overbearing, impatient and self-willed.” In addition to that, he is clever, soon figuring out that the miniature he comes to admire is being painted by Kate, not her father. He also intends to have his way with Kate, no matter the cost to her.

 

An ingenious, intricately woven plot that had me turning pages, it tells the story of a selfish man who, like his Viking forbears, thought nothing of raping a woman to get what he wanted. And so he drugs and rapes Kate and then holds her prisoner for the purpose of reminding Bertrand that he, the baron, is in control. I must say that I had a bit of trouble understanding how Kate, having gone home to England, could return to France after what happened to her, or how she could keep from those who loved her that she’d been brutally raped by the man they admired. Nor could I understand how the Baron’s mistress, Nicole, would, after being cast aside by the Baron, try to convince Kate she should be more understanding of him. But such are the twists and turns in this story.

 

I loved Kate’s spirit, her determination and her strength. And I thought the way Holt showed how the artist gleaned the nuances of the subject’s personality while painting was masterful.

 

As in all bodice rippers, there is a certain satisfaction is seeing the Baron have his comeuppance, though even then, one can certainly agree with the hatred Kate feels for the man who ruined, as well as benefited, her life. Unlike some of her stories, Holt brings the heroine’s feelings about the “hero” (sometimes the baron seemed more the villain) to the fore early on, and that was good.

 

Holt does a brilliant job of showing us what the people of Paris lived through in the 1870 siege of the city by the Prussians when the people were starved into submission.

Like her other novels, it is told in the first person. A well-written bodice ripper, it does contain rape; and while there are no details or vivid descriptions, the fact of it is no less horrible.

 

There’s a surprise ending awaiting you. The story is a keeper. I recommend it.

 

Karen Robards’ FORBIDDEN LOVE – Masterful Storytelling Will Keep You Reading Late Into the Night!

Seduced by her guardian, Justin, Earl of Weston, at his estate in Ireland when she was 17, Megan Kindead is made to pay the price. And oh, how she pays. Though Justin was very aware his behavior was despicable, he “couldn’t help himself” and ruined her just the same. In return, the young innocent fell in love. Of course, he forgot to tell her one thing: he could not marry her as he was already married. Finding she is pregnant, Megan knows to give her child a name, she must wed and soon.

Megan is a high-spirited young woman with courage and convictions. I loved her. Justin was an otherwise honorable nobleman who was obsessed with his ward. He would have her no matter the consequences, even making her his whore when he could not make her his wife.

It’s a bodice ripper, oh yes, it is, and a very good one. Originally published in 1983, it is just as good a read today. The emotions are at times subtle, at times violent, but in all, believable. And the tension is non-stop. Robards is simply a master of this sort of romance and I count myself among her many fans. She always tells a great story.

 

This book grabbed my attention and would not let me go. Though no date is given it seemed to be roughly set in the Regency era, and while there were some errors in forms of address and clothing color choices (a mauve “coming out” gown when it would have been white, and reference to a white wedding gown when it would have been a color), the story still gets full marks from me because these errors did not distract from what was a well-written, captivating story.

Margaret Tanner’s FALSELY ACCUSED – Love Among the Transported Prisoners in Australia

Set in the 1820s in Australia when England transported prisoners to Sydney Town for crimes as meager as poaching, this is a realistic telling of the perils of one female prisoner. What she experienced in this page turner will be enough to make you shudder.

 

Maryanne Watson was the daughter of a twisted parson who raped and killed her sister. (That’s how the book opens.) When Maryanne attacked her father, her stepmother came to his rescue with a large knife. In the struggle, Maryanne was the one falsely accused of trying to kill her stepmother. For that, she was transported to Australia to serve 7 years.

 

On board the ship, Maryanne makes a friend of Libby, a warmhearted prostitute, who helps her to survive. Soon, the men on the ship choose which women will share their beds (the women have no choice); the officers are the first to choose. Libby tells Maryanne to be nice to a certain officer because he only likes boys. Maryanne takes the hint and ends up with the officer who doesn’t touch her. But there is a prisoner who does, the American Jake Smith.

 

Jake is a guy who takes what he wants. He decides to have Maryanne and because she has fallen in love with him, she gives him her innocence. But Jake is a troublemaker and ends up in solitary confinement, destined for a chain gang.

 

Once in Sydney, Maryanne endures one man after another. You couldn’t help but sympathize with her as she tries to do what is right but cannot avoid the lust of both the gentry and her fellow prisoners.

 

Halfway through the story, Jake shows up again with a new identity… his own.

 

I enjoyed this book and it kept me turning pages though I did shudder at all Maryanne experienced. And we are missing much of Jake’s perspective. Still, if you want a realistic look at the fate of those transported to Australia, this might be the one for you!

 

Note: Tanner has a sequel to this story: Dangerous Birthright, the story of Maryanne’s daughter.

Lisa Gregory’s BONDS OF LOVE – Exciting Civil War Love Story—a Classic!

What can I say about this book? It’s a well-written page-turner, a bodice ripper and Lisa Gregory’s (aka Candace Camp’s) first novel, published in 1978. Set during the Civil War, it tells the story of Katherine Devereaux, the only daughter of a wealthy Boston shipbuilder, who is abducted by one of the Confederate prisoners working in her father’s shipyard.

 

Katherine is witty, independent and capable, and when we first meet her in Boston, she is intent on marrying a Union naval officer, Lt. William Perkins. But that plan would soon change.

 

Captain Matthew Hampton is arrogant and selfish. He desired the haughty Miss Devereaux from the moment he laid eyes on her. And since he takes what he wants, when he escapes with a ship and his men, he kidnaps Katherine and takes her to sea, and then to England. In Katherine’s own words, “He stole me! He raped me! And now he refuses to release me, locks me in here like a dog in its kennel.”

 

When she does escape him in England, it is to a terrible fate. I kept thinking all the while it is Hampton who is responsible for ALL her misfortune since he abducted her in the first place. For me, it was sort of a “loved her, hated him” story. When he finally comes to realize he loves her, he just couldn’t grovel enough to compensate for what Katherine experienced. I just could not like him, no matter how contrite he became. To my mind the real hero here was the constant Lt. Perkins, who still wanted Katherine even after all she had experienced.

 

For all that, if you’re looking for a good bodice ripper with a very worthy heroine, I recommend it.

 

 

Karen Robards’ ISLAND FLAME – An Exciting Bodice Ripper with Pirates—very well done!

 

You cannot beat Robards for an exciting read. This one and its sequel Sea Fire are bodice rippers, too. Every now and then, an arrogant alpha male (in this case a sea captain) can be cathartic, reminding us that all historical romance heroes are not all nice guys. This one certainly wasn’t. The heroine starts out as a 17-year-old innocent brat, but she quickly grows up and actually develops a very mature outlook. She may take longer than some to get there, but eventually, she sees the light.

 

Set in 1842, this is the story of Lady Catherine Aldley, whose father sent her on a military ship to London from Lisbon where he was an ambassador, never knowing it is a silver transport ship and bate for an American pirate named Jonathan Hale, who thinks nothing of ruining an innocent wellborn lady half his age to have his pleasure. Cathy may be young and innocent but she is not tame. When Captain Hale captures her and sets out to tame her in a most brutal way, he has no idea that he will become her victim.

 

Say what you will about the old romances that don’t reflect 21^st century sensibilities, but I can tell you this: this story kept me reading hours past my bedtime and that, folks, is a well-told tale. The pacing is fast, the action never ceasing and the chemistry between the two is compelling. Great sexual tension.

 

Modern historical romance authors can learn much from Robards. She makes some masterful twists and turns, I must say. All believable, which counts for much in my book. However, there was definitely some Stockholm syndrome going on as Cathy came to see herself at fault (“she had brought her injuries on herself”), and the captain as heroic. Yes, he saved her from a band of nasty thieves and murderers in Cadiz, but she never would have been exposed to them in the first place if he hadn’t taken her captive.

 

I also thought Robards did a great job with the ship setting and the sailor/ship jargon, bringing to life the ship’s culture. You might take that for granted, but having done that work for my novel, Wind Raven, I know it required much work on her part. Her descriptions put you in the setting, trust me. If you love a good bodice ripper…this is a great one!

 

Lisa Gregory’s BONDS OF LOVE – Exciting Civil War story!

What can I say about this book? It’s a well-written page-turner, a bodice ripper and Lisa Gregory’s (aka Candace Camp’s) first novel, published in 1978. Set during the Civil War, it tells the story of Katherine Devereaux, the only daughter of a wealthy Boston shipbuilder, who is abducted by one of the Confederate prisoners working in her father’s shipyard.

 

Katherine is witty, independent and capable, and when we first meet her in Boston, she is intent on marrying a Union naval officer, Lt. William Perkins. But that plan would soon change.

 

Captain Matthew Hampton is arrogant and selfish. He desired the haughty Miss Devereaux from the moment he laid eyes on her. And since he takes what he wants, when he escapes with a ship and his men, he kidnaps Katherine and takes her to sea, and then to England. In Katherine’s own words, “He stole me! He raped me! And now he refuses to release me, locks me in here like a dog in its kennel.”

 

When she does escape him in England, it is to a terrible fate. I kept thinking all the while it is Hampton who is responsible for ALL her misfortune since he abducted her in the first place. For me, it was sort of a “loved her, hated him” story. When he finally comes to realize he loves her, he just couldn’t grovel enough to compensate for what Katherine experienced. I just could not like him, no matter how contrite he became. To my mind the real hero here was the constant Lt. Perkins, who still wanted Katherine even after all she had experienced.

 

For all that, if you’re looking for a good bodice ripper with a very worthy heroine, I recommend it.

 

Jennifer Blake’s GOLDEN FANCY – An Absorbing Bodice Ripper from the Old West!

I am a fan of Jennifer Blake and love her “Love and Adventure” stories (she has two boxed sets of them—all eBooks). This one is a bodice ripper from the Old West and very well told.

Set in 1893, it tells of 19-year-old Serena Walsh who has lost her parents to typhoid and is forced to travel with a Mormon wagon train heading through Colorado where her father had planned to mine for gold. But the crazed Mormon Elder Greer has eyes for Serena and decides she will become his wife whether she is willing or no. When he thinks to take her by force, she stabs him with a fork and flees to the prairie. There, she is rescued by Ward Dunbar, owner of the Eldorado saloon, who sees her safely to Colorado and thinking she is a loose woman forcibly takes her innocence (yes, indeedy, this is a bodice ripper).

 

Ward, a lawyer turned gambler, wasn’t looking too good when he took Serena’s innocence and, making it worse, forced her to become his kept woman, holding her prisoner in a room above his saloon. Then, too, Ward’s partner, Pearlie, is jealous of Serena and resents her presence. But all is not lost; millionaire Nathan Benedict discovers Serena and wants her for his own, offering a fortune to Ward to leave her alone. And, oh yes, someone is killing ladies of the night.

 

It’s a tightly woven plot with lots of tension and very well written. Based on thorough research, Blake brings to life the gold mining town of Cripple Creek in the late 19^th century with all its colorful characters and more than one villain. The story is told through the heroine’s perspective so you’ll be wondering what Ward is thinking much of the time, as I did, at least until he tells us what’s been on his mind. This is one story that will keep you turning pages.

Teresa Medeiros’ LADY OF CONQUEST – A Bodice Ripper set in Ireland’s Long Ago Past

Set in Ireland (Eire) in the 2^nd century at the time when the High Kings reigned, this is the story of Conn of the Hundred Battles (a real historic figure), who as High King governs Eire through the Fianna, his legion of warriors. When Conn learns that someone is killing his men, he goes in search of the killer and finds Gelina O’Monaghan, who, along with her brother, is taking vengeance on Conn for destroying her family.

 

Since Gelina seems to Conn more a child than a woman, he decides to take her as his foster child. Back at Tara, Gelina develops a crush on the man who allowed her to live when he could have taken her life. Conn tells Gelina that he killed her brother when he (and she) attacked him, but in truth, Conn does not know if the brother lives. In the time that follows, Gelina defies Conn at every turn while falling in love with him. It’s a battle of wills and they come to both love and hate the other.

 

It’s a story that will hold your attention though there are some improbable moments and perhaps some disturbing elements (the bodice ripping comes late but it does involve rape). Then, too, Conn believes the worst of Gelina in places where the evidence would suggest otherwise. He is strong and stubborn. She is strong and resourceful, and will not suffer his betrayal easily. I liked her for that.

 

Medeiros has written a page-turner and included some wonderful secondary characters, perhaps my favorite being the dwarf Nimbus, who befriends and trusts Gelina and would marry her if he could. Some of the dialog is witty and endearing. I can recommend it but just be aware of the elements I mentioned.

Constance O’Banyon’s VELVET CHAINS – Superb Storytelling in this Privateer Adventure from the American Revolution

Set during the American Revolution, 1779-1781, this tells the story of Lady Season Chatsworth, a young English beauty who fakes a tumble in the hay with the stable boy on their English estate to avoid a dreaded arranged marriage. Her reputation in tatters, her father the duke sends her away to America to marry her cousin, Sir Edmund Kensworthy, captain of His Majesty’s Guards in New York. But her reputation as a loose woman, false though it may be, has followed her to the Colonies.

Both Edmund and his handsome friend Lucas Carrington, to whom Season is immediately attracted, assume she is free with her favors, much to her chagrin. Meanwhile, there is an American privateer called “the Raven” terrorizing the British and winning the praise of the patriots.

This is a great story of a worthy heroine who is constantly faced with the foibles of men who underestimate her. She put up with so much one could only wonder at the wisdom of a 19-year-old girl. When she is captured by the Raven and held for exchange of an American prisoner, the adventure begins and Season finds herself in love with the masked man who takes her innocence.

O’Banyon vividly portrays the emotions of the Colonists with the British living among them. Our hero is a spy as well as a privateer and I loved that! This is one that will hold your interest. And though I might not have wanted to wait until the very end for Season to learn The Truth, I cannot deny I was absorbed enough to hang in there.

A few nits: With her careful attention to historical details, it was surprising O’Banyon got the forms of address wrong for the British nobility. If her father was the Duke of Chatsworth, their surname would not be “Chatsworth,” and she would not be “Lady Chatsworth” (that would have been her mother); she would be “Lady Season (surname).” Also, I just have to say that naming your daughter “Season” in England at that time (when “Season” referred to the London social season) would be like naming an American girl “Cotillion.” Seemed bizarre and it distracted. But these were minor in the scheme of the whole story.

This is a bodice-ripper, a privateer tale and an American patriotic romance. And it’s a keeper.

Jennifer Blake’s THE STORM AND THE SPLENDOR – Captivating Adventure with a Mysterious Ship’s Captain Sailing From New Orleans to London to Algiers!

Set in 1818, three years after the Battle of Waterloo, this is a sweeping saga that begins as a group of Napoleon loyalists in New Orleans plot to free the former emperor from his captivity on St. Helena. Well-educated and independent Julia Marie Dupre, a beautiful French Creole, is deeply involved, her father being one of the conspirators. 

Joining the group is a handsome English sea captain, Captain Rudyard Thorpe, who looks down on Julia as a mere woman. He says he’s in it for the money, and offers his ship the Sea Jade to assist in the daring attempt to free the former emperor, but Julia doesn’t trust him. By her father’s bidding, and her own desire, she and her father will accompany the Sea Jade on its mission. Soon, however, she is alone and far from home. Left with no other option, Julia must become Rudyard's bride or abandon the undertaking.

Many adventures befall them including treachery at sea as they travel to London and onto St. Helena and then toward Rio. A wild storm at sea results in Rud and Julia being captured by pirates. Julia, deceived by the man she was forced to trust, ends up in the harem of the dey of Algiers where dangerous games are played and her wisdom will be tested. Rud becomes a privateer for the dey’s nephew, a contender for the next dey.

It’s a brilliant, captivating tale, well told with wonderful characters, rich historic detail based on considerable research. Absorbing storytelling at its best! I highly recommend it.

Shirlee Busbee’s LADY VIXEN: A Classic Privateer Love Story!

I could not put this one down and highly recommend it. It's on both my Best Pirate and Privateer Romances List and my Best American Patriotic Romances list. Oh yes, it’s also a bodice ripper and a keeper.

Set in England during the years 1808-1814, this is one of those rare and wonderful love stories that sweeps you away to another time and place where you are caught up in the lives of people whose actions will affect not only their own and others' lives but America and England during the War of 1812. Deception and treachery born years ago lead to revenge and then to heartache. Busbee uses real characters, such as the pirate Jean Lafitte, to bring realism to her story as she seamlessly weaves history into a compelling tale. It's what I call a "dense" historical: one where the writing is so complex and so tight you're getting double the story you'd expect in the 538 pages.

Young Nicole Ashford led an idyllic life in Surrey with her wealthy parents and her twin brother until a boating accident one summer took them from her. Made the ward of an uncaring and barely related aunt and uncle who only want her fortune, and learning of their plans to marry her off to their ne'er-do-well son, at 13 Nicole dons the disguise of a young boy and runs away to sea as the cabin boy for Captain Saber, an American privateer.

For 5 years, Nicole sails with him as a boy and Saber pays her little attention. When she is 18, Saber observes her swimming naked on a tropical beach and decides he wants her for his mistress. He bides his time and when Nicole and a seaman (who is really a British spy) decide to destroy English codebooks that Saber has captured, the two are caught.

Using the life of the English seaman as a bargaining chip, Saber forces Nicole to become his mistress, until the American, on a mission to spy for his new country, decides to sail home and resume his identity as Christopher Saxon, grandson of a baron.

And so begins a complex, worthy tale of adventure, rich in history (both England's and America's) and a love that could not be denied.

Should you want to read more, here is the whole Louisiana Series (stand alones but each with a connection to Louisiana and with some overlapping characters). Many are available in Kindle:

·               Gypsy Lady

·               Lady Vixen

·               While Passion Sleeps

·               Deceive Not My Heart

·               The Tiger Lily

·               Midnight Masquerade

·               Whisper to Me of Love

·               Each Time We Love

Heather Graham’s ONDINE – A Great 17th-Century Romance!

Ondine is right up there with Heather Graham’s best historical romances. Set in England in the reign of Charles II in the late 1600s, Graham masterfully weaves in history that makes the era come alive.

It is a complex tale of Ondine, the young and very beautiful Duchess of Rochester, whose father is slain by jealous relatives who want his lands—and Ondine—while they also attempt to make it look as if Ondine and her father were trying to slay the king. Ondine, fearing the fate of a traitor, flees into the forest where she joins up with the poor just trying to stay alive. Arrested with them for poaching, she ends up facing the gallows. But in a quirk of history that really happened, she is saved from the noose by an offer of marriage by a passing nobleman, Warrick, Lord Chatham.

Warrick is looking for a woman to be his wife as bait to trap the murderer of his first wife. Both Ondine and Warrick have mysteries to solve and neither confides initially in the other as they soon fall in love without admitting it. Warrick had no intention of consummating the odd marriage to the commoner he saved from the gallows, but then he finds his new wife irresistible. Her name “Ondine” represents a mythical mermaid who is given mortal life by the love of a man.

I loved how Drake wove the mythology into the story. The romance held my interest throughout and one thing I really liked is that the hero was never mean or cruel to Ondine (though he did pretend it out of concern for her life). There were no disturbing elements, only splendid writing, a well-woven plot and incredible characters you will come to love. I highly recommend this one!

Karen Robards’ ISLAND FLAME – Classic & an Exciting Bodice Ripper with Pirates—very well done!

It’s Classics & Bodice Rippers month! Did you know some of the very best historical romances are bodice rippers? Yes, they are, as you’ll see from my best list I’ll post later this month.

You cannot beat Robards for an exciting read. And this one and its sequel SEA FIRE are bodice rippers, to be sure. Every now and then, an arrogant alpha male (in this case a sea captain) can be cathartic, reminding us that all historical romance heroes are not nice guys. This one certainly wasn’t. The heroine starts out as a 17-year-old innocent brat, but she quickly grows up and actually develops a very mature outlook. She may take longer than some to get there, but eventually, she sees the light.

Set in 1842, this is the story of Lady Catherine Aldley, whose father sent her on a military ship to London from Lisbon where he was an ambassador, never knowing it is a silver transport ship and bate for an American pirate named Jonathan Hale, who thinks nothing of ruining an innocent wellborn lady half his age to have his pleasure. Cathy may be young and innocent but she is not tame. When Captain Hale captures her and sets out to tame her in a most brutal way, he has no idea that he will become her victim.

Say what you will about the old romances that don’t reflect 21st-century sensibilities, but I can tell you this: this story kept me reading hours past my bedtime and that, folks, is a well-told tale. The pacing is fast, the action never ceasing and the chemistry between the two is compelling. Great sexual tension.

Modern historical romance authors can learn much from Robards. She makes some masterful twists and turns, I must say. All believable, which counts for much in my book. However, there was definitely some Stockholm syndrome going on as Cathy came to see herself at fault (“she had brought her injuries on herself”), and the captain as heroic. Yes, he saved her from a band of nasty thieves and murderers in Cadiz, but she never would have been exposed to them in the first place if he hadn’t taken her captive.

I also thought Robards did a great job with the ship setting and the sailor/ship jargon, bringing to life the ship’s culture. You might take that for granted, but having done that work for my novel, Wind Raven, I know it required much work on her part. Her descriptions put you in the setting, trust me. If you love a good bodice ripper…this is a great one!

Jane Toombs’ BRIDE OF THE BAJA – A Bodice Ripper from Old California and a well-told tale with pirates!

First published in 1980 with the author listed on the cover as Jocelyn Wilde (which is the pen name for John Toombs), the cover of the new edition shows the author as Jane Toombs. While I cannot confirm it, this may have been a collaborative effort of husband and wife.

Based on the real characters and events and one date late in the book of 1813, it is set in the early 19^th century in Alta California, the waters off the coast and in Mexico. It begins as Alitha Bradford is traveling with her father on his ship from Boston to California with the intention of sailing on to the Sandwich Islands where she is to wed her betrothed, Thomas, who is a missionary. As they leave Valparaiso, she sees a handsome American captain standing on the deck of his ship. She will only learn later he is Jordan Quinn.

Off the coast of California, Alitha’s father’s ship, struck with cholera, goes down in a storm and Alitha ends up stranded on a coastal island with a young Indian boy who saves them both.

Meanwhile, Jordan Quinn, the Irish American captain of the Kerry Dancer out of Portsmouth, sails to Santa Barbara to wed the beautiful Margarita Mendoza. When the wedding is delayed, Jordan steals away with Margarita aboard his ship—only to be accosted by pirates, led by the Frenchman Bouchard.

Alitha, having been taken captive by a tribe of Indians, is rescued by Esteban Mendoza, Margarita’s brother, and taken to his hacienda where Jordan shows up in a trade of captives by the pirates. When Esteban and Alitha travel to Mexico, Jordan goes too, but with a hidden agenda. To round out the players, Alitha’s betrothed, Thomas will come to California, looking for her.

This is a well-told, absorbing saga of early California bringing in all the cultural elements: the Californios, the Padres, the Indians and the Americans (who have designs on the land0. And, lest I forget, there are pirates. The scenes on the ships are very well described, and the characters well developed.

I could not put this one down, wondering what next would happen next and if Alitha would wise up about her future with Mendoza and make a good choice. Still, it’s not for every reader of romance as there is violence aplenty, even rape, which for pirates would have been the norm. And the heroine, a spirited but in some ways naïve young woman, goes on a major detour with Mendoza who takes advantage of her innocence.

Constance O’Banyon’s VELVET CHAINS – Superb Storytelling in this Privateer Adventure from the American Revolution

Set during the American Revolution, 1779-1781, this tells the story of Lady Season Chatsworth, a young English beauty who fakes a tumble in the hay with the stable boy on their English estate to avoid a dreaded arranged marriage. Her reputation in tatters, her father the duke sends her away to America to marry her cousin, Sir Edmund Kensworthy, captain of His Majesty’s Guards in New York. But her reputation as a loose woman, false though it may be, has followed her to the Colonies.

Both Edmund and his handsome friend Lucas Carrington, to whom Season is immediately attracted, assume she is free with her favors, much to her chagrin. Meanwhile, there is an American privateer called “the Raven” terrorizing the British and winning the praise of the patriots.

This is a great story of a worthy heroine who is constantly faced with the foibles of men who underestimate her. She put up with so much one could only wonder at the wisdom of a 19-year-old girl. When she is captured by the Raven and held for exchange of an American prisoner, the adventure begins and Season finds herself in love with the masked man who takes her innocence.

O’Banyon vividly portrays the emotions of the Colonists with the British living among them. Our hero is a spy as well as a privateer and I loved that! This is one that will hold your interest. And though I might not have wanted to wait until the very end for Season to learn The Truth, I cannot deny I was absorbed enough to hang in there.

A few nits: With her careful attention to historical details, it was surprising O’Banyon got the forms of address wrong for the British nobility. If her father was the Duke of Chatsworth, their surname would not be “Chatsworth,” and she would not be “Lady Chatsworth” (that would have been her mother); she would be “Lady Season (surname).” Also, I just have to say that naming your daughter “Season” in England at that time (when “Season” referred to the London social season) would be like naming an American girl “Cotillion.” Seemed bizarre and it distracted. But these were minor in the scheme of the whole story.

This is a bodice-ripper, a privateer tale and an American patriotic romance. And it’s a keeper.

Bertrice Small’s A MOMENT IN TIME – Unusual Medieval Historical Romance Even for Small that is also a Fantasy

A fantasy as well as a historical romance set in 11^th century Wales and England, this is the story of Wynne of Gwernach who, because of a past life, does not believe in love. She loves her family (her brother and sister) and her family estate in Wales. As she is about to become betrothed to a demanding suitor, Madoc of Powys enters her life, claiming they have been betrothed since she was a babe. What she doesn’t know is that Wynne and Madoc were lovers in another life where she was the Princess of the Fair Folk who fell in love with a mortal who ultimately failed her miserably.

Bertrice Small’s historical romances often lead the reader down a winding path with many trails leading away from the main love story. This is one of those. After having wed Madoc, Wynne is taken captive by Madoc’s evil brother and sold into slavery in England. There, Wynne leads another life away from Madoc. (Here’s where the story becomes a bodice ripper.)

The story gets off to a slower start than one might like but there are enough historical details to let you know the story set in a true historical time. Still, there are flights of fantasy (the hero, Madoc, can change his shape into a raven) that let you know this is something of a fairy tale. I prefer Small’s deeper historicals like the Border Lord series.

Shirlee Busbee’s DECEIVE NOT MY HEART – A Case of Mistaken Identity and an Intriguing Love Story from old Louisiana—and a Bodice Ripper!

Originally published in 1984 and updated for the eBook version, this is a classic romance from a great historical romance author.

Set in New Orleans and environs beginning in 1799, this is the story of 16-year-old Leonie Saint-Andre, whose only living parent is a gambling grandfather who has impoverished their family’s plantation.

Knowing he does not have long to live, her grandfather decides to take care of Leonie’s future by finding her a wealthy husband. Unfortunately, the man he picks, Morgan Slade, is a bitter man whose first wife married him for his money and then left him for another. And what Leonie’s grandfather does not know is that Morgan has a lookalike cousin who, unbeknownst to Morgan, has assumed his identity in order to wed Leonie to steal her dowry.

Busbee has done her research and the history of Louisiana in the late 18^th century is vividly portrayed. It was a time of plantations and the French creole families; and it was a time of dramatic change. Originally claimed by Spain, Louisiana was also claimed by France, and in 1803 most of it was acquired by America.

The plot has many twists and turns, and while the reader knows what is going on, the characters don’t. Lots of sexual tension and angst here as Leonie is deceived, yet she rises as a courageous heroine to triumph in the end. I recommend it.

Johanna Lindsey’s A PIRATE’S LOVE – a Privateer and the Woman He Seized

Set in the 17^th century beginning in France in1667, this is the story of Tristan Matisse whose family was brutally slain by a Spaniard who plundered the coastal towns of France, and Bettina Verlaine, who was betrothed by her father to a wealthy count living in St. Martin. On her way to meet her betrothed, who she does not know, Bettina’s ship is seized by the privateer Tristan who sails for England plundering Spanish ships.

From the beginning, it is clear that Tristan intends to have Bettina in his bed. He considers her spoils, no matter she is an innocent. And high-spirited Bettina will have none of it, so he rapes her. Though he told her he was taking her to St. Martin for ransom by her wealthy betrothed, he decides instead to take her to his island hideout and keep her some months until he “tires of her.” What quickly becomes apparent is that he has no intention of letting her go. While he holds Bettina, he searches for the man who killed his family, Don Miguel Bastida.

Lindsey does a superb job of describing the emotions experienced by Bettina—she could not give in to the pleasure she might experience with Tristan because to do so would be to betray her betrothed. She was feisty and courageous and I loved her. While it was a bit difficult to understand Tristan’s comfort with his own actions given his childhood, somehow Lindsey made us believe it was possible. And I came to like Tristan in spite of his treatment of Bettina, for he genuinely cared for her. Eventually, his more noble side comes out, and even Bettina, who has suffered his “ruining her life,” comes to see it.

There are many well drawn characters along the way, including Jules, the man who watches Tristan’s back, and Bettina’s mother who confesses to Bettina the cold man she thought was her father actually is not. Lindsey makes this an exciting tale with subplots and twists and turns—and the visits to many ports in the Caribbean. She had me turning pages late into the night.

It’s on both my Best Bodice Rippers and my Best Pirate and Privateer Romances lists. A keeper!