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20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Last of the Bar Cynster Takes His Fall!, February 7, 2001
This review is from: All About Love (Cynster Novels) (Mass Market Paperback)
All About Love is just that. This story answers the question that has been asked through the centuries - what is love? I'll let Lucifer give his opinion: "It took a while to work out, but there's only one explanation." His lips twisted wryly; he looked into Phyllida's eyes. "And I now know what Martha was trying to metaphysically jog my elbow about that first day." "What?" "You. Not just you but the possibility of what we could share. Martha was trying to tell me to open my eyes so I wouldn't miss it." He glanced around again; his arms tightened as he brought his gaze back to her face. "Horatio re-created Martha's garden because he realized, as I now do, that you can't turn aside from love. You can't choose to love - it doesn't work like that - but once you do love, you love forever. You can't move counties and leave it behind; it stays with you, in your heart, your mind - it becomes part of your soul. Horatio re-created the garden for the same reason Martha created it in the first place - as his expression of his love for her and recognition of her love for him. Martha was still with Horatio when he died - I know that as definitely as I stand here with you. They're still here, both of them, memories living within this garden. Their love, shared love, created it; while it lives, their love lives, too." His lips twisted again, this time in self-deprecation. "For all that we - the men in my family - try to avoid love, for the best and most logical of reasons, when it strikes, there's not one of us, not through all the generations, who has turned his back and walked away. For us, not walking away is harder, more frightening, than fighting any battle, but if there's one thing I've learned from my family, its that surrendering to love, to the demands of love, is the only road to real happiness." "While I've seen love in action in my family, I've learned a great deal from Horatio and Martha. Love simply is - it asks no permission. Acceptance is all that love asks, the only demand it makes, but it is an absolute one. You can either admit it to your heart, or refuse it, but there's no other option." Isn't that the most romantic passage you've ever read?!? Stephanie Laurens has the unique ability to create a series where each book is a masterpiece unto itself. No two stories are alike yet all share a common thread: Love, family, honor, adventure and protection. Stephanie has my sincerest gratitude for a series so wonderful it leaves me breathless! The epilogue was a beautiful tribute to the Bar Cynster and a wonderful closing to a story well done! Alasdair Reginald "Lucifer" Cynster is a hero in every sense of the word. His sensuality is only surpassed by his intelligence, and he needs every ounce of both to sway his ladylove - not to mention protect her from a killer and herself. Phyllida Tallent, beautiful in her own right is independent to a fault. As the caregiver of an entire village, she is not ready to relinquish control to an amazingly handsome rogue. Little does she know the choice was never hers to make! The Series: All About Love is the final chapter of the Bar Cynster and I, for one, am sorry to see it end. Devil's Bride, A Rake's Vow, Scandal's Bride, A Rogue's Proposal, A Secret Love and All About Love is a collection that deserves your undivided attention. I look forward to the spin-off books about the Twins, Chillingworth, Devil's parents and Simon. You will too!
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48 of 58 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
All About Love = All about BOREDOM, February 15, 2001
This review is from: All About Love (Cynster Novels) (Mass Market Paperback)
I ask myself: How many times can Stephanie Laurens write the exact same story and still get published? Obviously, she can do it six times. This novel is just like Devil's Bride, which is just like Rake's Vow, which is just like Secret Love, which is... Well, we get the idea. Hero meets heroine, decides she's the one for him, she doesn't think so for most of the book, someone is murdered, hero will investigate but doesn't want heroine's help, heroine is bound and determined to inject herself into the action, heroine decides she likes hero after all, they have sex, hero marries heroine, murder gets solved, everyone lives happily ever after. This is the plot of every Cynster novel. If it's not bad enough to recycle the plot over and over, the characters are always the same. What's the difference between any of the Cynster men, or the Cynster women besides changing a few minor details? Characterization is much more than changing eye color, or hobby. And I swear, even the dialogue in this book is the same as all the others in the series. This is the conversation that every Laurens Hero and heroine have in every single book, for at least half of the book: Hero: You will marry me. Heroine: Never! Repeat until nausea is induced. Stephanie Laurens has a true talent for atmospheric writing and, sometimes, can actually display a decent ear for dialogue. If only she would use it! Writing by template is never attractive, and it only gets worse with each additional installment. And to think that there will be MORE books in the Cynster series, which I'm sure will be exactly like all the others. I could have just read Devil's Bride 5, 6 or 7 more times rather than getting more books in this series. Recommendation: Buy Cynster books used. Please send a message to all authors that only those who bother to be original with each and every book deserve our hard-earned money.
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32 of 39 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This romance series, especially this novel , is great, February 1, 2001
This review is from: All About Love (Cynster Novels) (Mass Market Paperback)
Fleeing his brother's wedding before he becomes the next catch of the season, Alasdair "Lucifer" Cynster goes to the countryside to visit his friend, mentor, and fellow collector Horatio Walham. In Colyton Manor, Lucifer finds someone murdered Horatio. However, Phyllida Tallent accidentally knocks over a halberd, knocking out Lucifer. On her way to get help, she happens to notice a brown hat. Phyllida's dad, the magistrate concludes Lucifer is innocent of murder. Lucifer vows to uncover the killer's identity and Phyllida agrees to help him. As they investigate, several attempts to kill Phyllida occur. As Lucifer and Phyllida fall in love, they make love. He knows he made love with her because he will marry her, while she knows she made love because she loves him. However, a killer remains free with Phyllida being the prime target because she saw something at Horatio's house that identifies the murderer. New York Times best-selling author Stephanie Laurens has written an exciting historical romantic-mystery that freshens up her popular Cynster series. Lucifer and Phyllida are a wonderful couple who readers will adore and the tidbits that allow the audience to absorb the 1820 English countryside adds value to the tale. However, it is the amateur sleuthing of the lead couple that turns ALL ABOUT LOVE into a winning regency tale. Harriet Klausner
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