Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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35 of 38 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent beginning, great characters, January 16, 2001
I loved this book from beginning to end, and I thought Beverley did a great job of handling the complex story. Eleanor, our heroine, is raped at the start of the book by the Earl of Stainbridge - a rape organised by her own brother, who wishes to blackmail the Earl. Eleanor does not shrug it off - did that reviewer read the book, as opposed to just skimming it? - she was actually contemplating throwing herself into the lake to drown when she met Stainbridge again. Consumed by guilt, Stainbridge - who was already on his way to Eleanor's brother's house at the time - takes Eleanor under his wing, but lies and claims it was his brother who'd raped her.Nicholas Delaney (who, as the son of an Earl, should actually be Lord Nicholas) is engaged on crucial espionage work, and under orders to conduct an affair with Therese Bellaire, suspected to be involved in a Napoleonic plot. However, he agrees to bail his brother out, hoping that he can tie up his investigation quickly and end his affair. Nicholas is like no other man Eleanor has met: he is kind, considerate, values her opinions and treats her in many ways as his equal, unlike most men of the time and unlike her own experience with men. On their wedding night, she learns the truth about her rape, and he makes love to her gently and considerately - yet another hangover from the rape is that she's, naturally, afraid of sex. Of course, the affair in the background means that Nicholas's behaviour is erratic; some of the time he is loving to Eleanor and willingly seeks her company, but as Therese becomes more and more unco-operative and Nicholas comes to care more for Eleanor, he has to distance himself from her and act as if their marriage had never seemed likely to become more than one of convenience. Eleanor, who had guessed that Nicholas has a mistress, accepts it because it was the norm for men at the time, and because their marriage *was* arranged, and the understanding was that she and Nicholas would lead separate lives. Neither of them, after all, she thinks, had anticipated that she'd fall in love with Nicholas. And who wouldn't fall in love with Nicholas?! He is a wonderful creation: charming, amusing, considerate, very capable, intelligent, a great lover, and - best of all - he has a vulnerable side. He also has some fascinating friends. I wish I'd read this book before reading An Unwilling Bride (publishers, *please* make it more clear when books are part of a series, and what their place in the series is!); I would have understood Lucien a lot better if I'd read this first, much as I loved Luce's own story. Francis also appealed enormously, and I hope he gets his own story at some point. Nicholas and Eleanor make a wonderful couple, and I hope to have many glimpses of them in future Company of Rogues books.
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Straining the boundaries of political correctness ..., June 30, 2003
This is the first romance novel I have read where the hero spends at least 3/4 of the book sleeping with another woman.
Jo Beverley strains the boundaries of political correctness in AN ARRANGED MARRIAGE, her most controversial story I have read to date. There is no denying Ms. Beverley is a master storyteller and perhaps because of this political incorrectness she delivers a powerfully fresh stage for her story. Eleanor Chivenham is drugged by her manipulative brother and raped by an equally drugged Lord Delaney. Lord Delaney hazed into the brutal act and not quite having his wits about him completes the deed but comes back the next day to find out exactly what happened. Upon meeting Eleanor planning to jump to her death, and understanding a child might come from this act, concocts a story that it was actually his twin brother Nicholas Delaney who stole her maidenhood. A marriage is arranged, and Eleanor and Nicholas are soon married. She quickly discovers that it was not Nicholas who raped her, but his brother. Nicholas, a charming and handsome man is soon off spending time with his mistress. Serving his country, Nicholas is actually involved in a plot to foil the mistress who is involved in Napoleonic activities. Eleanor finds she is with child and also that she loves her dreadfully neglectful and cheating husband. Nicholas, knowing he will be gone most of the time, has surrounded her with his Company of Rogues, a group of handsome and dashing young men to act as her protectors and escorts. The hero Nicholas is not one I liked much at all. His sleeping with this mistress for the greater good of the country and at the expense of his marriage is hard for any woman to swallow I think. The very idea that this romance began in a rape, although not by the "hero" is still distasteful and gives a dark shadow over the entire story. That said, the story is incredibly engaging and tightly woven from start to finish and is a very entertaining read. Jo Beverley once again takes us for a ride and doesn't let go until the end. This is Book 1 in Jo Beverley's Company of Rogues Series.
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
When duty turns to love, April 29, 2003
When the Earl of Stainbridge calls him for help, Nicholas Delaney is far from imagining that this time, his brother is in deeper trouble than he'd ever expected. Kit has been misled by a rather unrespectable friend, Lionel Chivenham, and ravished Lionel's sister, whom he thought willing whereas she was drugged and unable to defend herself.To save the honour of the family, Nicholas agrees to marry Eleanor, since his brother won't. But Kit makes things worse by claiming to Eleanor that it was Nicholas who raped her on that night, and Eleanor only learns the truth on her wedding night. Indeed, even if the marriage doesn't involve any feeling from either Eleanor or Nicholas, Nicky insists that it needs to be consummated: if Eleanor is with child, Nicky wants to think that it is his and not that of his brother's. Follows a beautiful scene where Nicholas treats Eleanor with extreme care and tenderness. When I got to this early scene, I wasn't convinced that the book would keep me interested the way it did. I was afraid that their story would be a bed of roses. However, I had forgotten the thorns. Marriage doesn't stop Nicholas from entertaining a relationship with Therese, his French mistress; his affair with this woman makes him appear as a dissolute rogue, but couldn't thee be more to him than what Eleanor expects? At first, Eleanor thinks she can accept the situation. Her union to Nicky is nothing more than a marriage of convenience, so she can't expect more from him than the protection he offers. But can she deny that her husband's charm affects her in ways she would rather deny? My main regret was that we didn't get more of an epilogue. I would have wished for a better denouement, particularly where Therese and Lord Stainbridge are concerned. Therese, after all, kept Nicholas to herself for most of the first months of his marriage. And of course I still have doubts about Lord Stainbridge's honesty. I couldn't bring myself to like him. I was a bit frustrated with parts of the book that were kept silent, even though those nitpicks weren't enough to spoil my enjoyment. But I would have liked to see more of Nicholas, see more proof of his blooming love for Eleanor, and how and when he started to be aware that he felt more than a simple affection for his wife. I didn't see him be transformed by the experience of love; his feelings for Eleanor seemed like a completely natural thing that had existed from the start, and yet it's not possible under the circumstances. He wanted to protect her, yes, but he didn't love her at first. And then quickly enough he comes to feel a deep love for her, which is half driven by his guilt and fear to hurt her. What saves his feelings from looking completely out of the blue is that they seem indeed to develop naturally, but I wish we'd *seen* them develop through more introspection parts from his point of view, about Eleanor. On the other hand, there were scenes in the book that were so beautiful that they made up for that, though. For example, the poignant conversation where Nicholas tells his friend about the feelings that his wife arouse in him. It was a beautiful confession, and I wish there had been more of that. All in all, it was a delightful book, where the characters' reactions were unpredictable and kept me interested throughout.
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