The Beauty (Bride Quest, Book 4) [Mass Market Paperback]

Claire Delacroix (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 9, 2001

"I was born a woman. There are but two courses for my life -- marriage or the convent. I have chosen."

Certain that she will never wed for love, sworn to let no man possess her for her beauty alone, Jacqueline de Crevy has vowed to become a bride of God. But en route to the convent of Inveresbeinn, her party is ambushed by a knight, who snatches Jacqueline from her saddle and spirits her away with him.

He is Angus MacGillivray -- not the blackhearted ravisher she fears but a valiant man of honor who has returned to Scotland seeking justice ... and revenge.

Angus has come home from the Crusades to find his family murdered and his birthright seized. Sworn to reclaim his rightful lands, he has kidnapped the stepdaughter of Duncan, chieftain of Clan MacQuarrie -- Angus's avowed enemy. But his lovely captive refuses to be the chattel -- or ransom -- of any man ... until Jacqueline senses the yearning heart beneath Angus's embittered facade.

In spite of himself, Angus has let this defiant beauty touch his very soul. And as desire flames between them, a lady fair and her battle-scarred knight will fight for a love that could banish all the sorrows of the past....

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Romance and chivalry are alive and well -- Claire Delacroix brings them alive with her stunning talent for storytelling."
-- The Literary Times

Don't miss the acclaimed Bride Quest series:

The Princess
The Damsel
The Heiress
The Countess

From the Inside Flap

"I was born a woman. There are but two courses for my life -- marriage or the convent. I have chosen."

Certain that she will never wed for love, sworn to let no man possess her for her beauty alone, Jacqueline de Crevy has vowed to become a bride of God. But en route to the convent of Inveresbeinn, her party is ambushed by a knight, who snatches Jacqueline from her saddle and spirits her away with him.

He is Angus MacGillivray -- not the blackhearted ravisher she fears but a valiant man of honor who has returned to Scotland seeking justice ... and revenge.

Angus has come home from the Crusades to find his family murdered and his birthright seized. Sworn to reclaim his rightful lands, he has kidnapped the stepdaughter of Duncan, chieftain of Clan MacQuarrie -- Angus's avowed enemy. But his lovely captive refuses to be the chattel -- or ransom -- of any man ... until Jacqueline senses the yearning heart beneath Angus's embittered facade.

In spite of himself, Angus has let this defiant beauty touch his very soul. And as desire flames between them, a lady fair and her battle-scarred knight will fight for a love that could banish all the sorrows of the past....

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Dell (January 9, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440236371
• ISBN-13: 978-0440236375
• Product Dimensions: 4.1 x 1 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,192,623 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

NYT bestselling author Claire Delacroix always loved stories, both telling them and hearing them. She sold her first romance novel - THE ROMANCE OF THE ROSE - in 1992 and has been happily writing romances ever since. She makes her home with her family, a number of incomplete knitting projects and a lot of overgrown houseplants. Claire loves to travel, to cook, to ride her bike and to read.

In 2011, Claire has been re-releasing many of her historical romances in digital format. For more information about these releases, please visit her website at http://www.delacroix.net. You can also search for Kindle editions of her books right here on Amazon.

Visit Claire's website, Chateau Delacroix, at
http://www.delacroix.net

Find Claire on FaceBook here:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Claire-Delacroix/108553409224492

Claire also writes as Deborah Cooke:
http://www.deborahcooke.com

She blogs most weekdays at her blog, Alive & Knitting, at
http://www.delacroix.net/blog

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars As good as it gets in historical romance, January 9, 2001

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Beauty (Bride Quest, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)

In 1183 Ceinn-beithe, Jacqueline decides to take the vows of a nun, disappointing her mother who does not feel the calling is right for her beautiful daughter. Along the so-called safe road, four men, none soldiers, accompany Jacqueline. However, neither her nor her parents reckoned with Angus wanting vengeance on her father for betraying his family. Angus abducts Jacqueline as a pawn in the long-term clan feud.

As Jacqueline becomes acquainted with her kidnapper, she realizes that his obsession comes from the real murder of his kin. However, she believes her stepfather is innocent of any wrongdoing, but will do whatever she can to help Angus regain his birthright as she now loves him.

THE BEAUTY is a typical medieval romance except for the depth Claire Delacroix imbues in her lead characters. The duel of words between Jacqueline and Angus seems real and is THE BEAUTY of the tale. The secondary cast and the feel for the twelfth century augments the tension between the prime duo. In her fifth "BrideQuest" novel (see PRINCESS, DAMSEL, HEIRESS, AND COUNTESS), Clair Delacroix keeps her story fresh as if this was the opening gambit in the series.

Harriet Klausner

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars interesting plot, but some definite flaws in this story, February 2, 2001

By 

Jane James "homeschoolmum" (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Beauty (Bride Quest, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)

The basic plot and theme were interesting enough, but this is another romance novel that I really feel was just rushed through, with somewhat sloppy results.

The heroine had this "fear of men" which was told to the reader often enough - but not really demonstrated. The motivations of all the characters was stated in an overly straightforward manner - again and again and again. And both the dialogue and narration, as an another reviewer mentioned, were filled with "'twas" and "zounds", which would have been fine if it did not read in such a stilted manner.

The plot was actually quite good, and the characters themselves were interesting and fairly believable (although the heroine's attempted rape seems to have left her curiously unscathed.) All in all this is an acceptable romance novel, at least compared to most in print, but I do think that better editing would have made this a much more enjoyable story.

I wouldn't recommend this one unless you really have nothing better to do on a rainy day, but I haven't given up on the author. I think she could do better, and I will read her books again, hoping for better results.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another Winner, September 3, 2001

By 

"cathoney" (Richmond, VA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Beauty (Bride Quest, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)

I have read all the books in the Bride Quest and this author once again has used my favourite time period and made magic with it. Her characters really come to life and she really follows her plot line well. Her books always hold me in rapt attention and I love to read them over and over again.