Customer Reviews

The Bride Price (Avon Romance)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This was interesting if farfetched plot for the period. The heroine comes off as too mature and then bounces between distrust and attraction toward the hero, not very mature. One would think she could see through his tricks. A bit too cliche at times. The female secondary character who is the prize of the tournament is too one dimensional until she finally gets a backbone and stands up for herself. Unfortunately, we don't see how it happened and learn about it in dialogue rather than her own action. Had this only been hinted it could have led to a spinoff book because her suitor was an interesting character who was sort of there but not really. To bad because this author's talent was in making interesting male characters: good or bad. In this book the hero stole the limelight: he was a blend of the bad boy we all love and yet right from the start he displays a sense of integrity born not of blood but of character. It is the hero that makes this book a better than average read.

There are a few surprises that explains things if the readers can hang on to the end. Though not one I would read again, I am glad that I hung in until the end. This author has the gift for creating yummy tortured heroes if only she could give them more interesting heroines and a believable plot.

The Bride Price, has an interesting set up with an amoral hero who is the illegitimate son of a Duke. Sebastian is so delusional and as anti-hero as you can get. He enjoys seducing the innocents and being as reckless as he can, which is the perfect way to give his father the middle finger. Sebastian joins the other bastard sons of the aristocrats, who don't have a chance of being accepted in polite society or having a name for themselves, in a competition where the winner will be able to marry a gentlewoman, known as the bosom of the ton. If Sebastian can win, he will have a title, a massive fortune and a piece of land that was his mother's that his father owns and holds over his head. Sebastian accepts because there is nothing more important that belonging even though he acts as if he doesn't care.

Caroline Martin is a widow who married the wrong man, so much so, she must be ever so respectful so she is not the topic of rumors. She is a friend and confidant to Sarah, the bosom of the ton. She is so disgusted by what Sarah's father, the Earl of Cheevers is doing. But Caroline can not be too vocal because she relies on the Earl for her livelihood. Caroline is also quite the artist and Sebastian comes upon her as she is drawing a cottage that is on the property Sebastian wants so badly. Out of the blue, one thing leads to another and before Caroline can find out his name, Sebastian as given her the best orgasm of her life on the garden bench. From that moment on Sebastian will find a way to seduce Caroline and even places a bet that he can do so.

I do love an amoral hero, but Sebastian was more of a whiny brat if anything. Caroline feels she must take the moral high road because of the way she eloped with her deceased husband, and because of that she must gain her respectability back. She acts like she can't stand Sebastian because of who he is and the way he treats people, but when it comes to sex, she opens her arms to him and let's Sebastian do all types of naughty unrespectable things to her. The chemistry between these two were so lacking and I wanted to tell Sebastian to grow up and get over his issues he has with his daddy.

Disappointing read all around.

Katiebabs

Anne Mallory is one of those authors who almost hits the mark but doesn't quite make it. Every book that I have read has had some great elements but there's issues that let's it down - this book is no different. The first half I found really improbable and cliched. But things started to hot up and I enjoyed the second half when I feel Sebastien became more human and Caroline grew up. I truly believe Mallory has the potential to be a great romance writer in this genre but she needs to get the balance right between melodrama and sex for the sake of sex, and people who totally captures your imagination and empathy.

The illegitimate son of a Duke, Sebastien, is pitted against his legitimate brother and others in a competition to win the home in which he grew up. Winning the competition also brings the victor a title, other properties and a bride, Lady Sarah - the daughter of an earl. Sebastien's only interest is the ability to keep the only place he's ever called home. His father, the Duke, added the home to the competition to force his son to participate in the competition. Throughout the story, the Duke constantly attempts to manipulate both sons into behaving as he wishes.

The heroine, Caroline, looks after the happiness and best interests of the prize bride Sarah. She believes this competition will ruin Sarah's chance at happiness and wants to do whatever she can to make sure that Sarah is not forced into an unwanted marriage. In doing so, she encounters Sebastien and sparks fly from the moment they meet.

I liked this book because the story was new and a little different. The tension between the hero and heroine was intense and enjoyable. In the beginning, where there is so much focus on the games, I thought it might become a little boring, but it picked up and focused more on the characters than on the details, which made it much better. I liked all of the characters and the tensions between them as well. The romance was hot and the h/h seemed so real...emotions, personalitites, fallibilites, vulnerabilities. It also showed of the nuances of falling in love. It shows the love rather than just tells you the h/h love one another and that it isn't just lust....you actually see that it is so. Good read!

*4.5 Stars*

After discovering Anne Mallory last year I bought her backlist and have been working my way through them. Usually I would read them all immediately, but this time I wanted to spread it out and savor it. This is the last book I had left to read and I'm glad to say that I went out with a bang.

I was a bit hesitant about reading this because revenge plots have to be handled a certain way for me to enjoy them. Luckily the revenge plot was nothing like what I expected. Indeed, I would be hesitant to say that this is even a "revenge plot" book. The back cover gave me the wrong impression on that.

I really loved how this book was setup. It put the spotlight on the bastards and younger sons of the nobility; an area that I don't often get to read about. It really highlighted how hard it can be for them, especially if they don't have a parent who cares for them. It's even worse when the parent plays the bastard son against the legitimate son, as is the case with Sebastian's father, the duke.

The duke warped Sebastian into a cold, hard man who had little regard for other people. His every move was calculated to put himself on top or to piss off his father. He didn't start out very likable, but I found him fascinating. I enjoyed watching him slowly change and fall for Caroline.

This was one of Mallory's heavier books, so the banter wasn't quite as pronounced as it usually is. The tension and the slow building emotion was just enjoyable as usual, though. The only thing that I would have changed about the book was the ending. I would have liked if it had been more drawn out and leisurely. The epilogue helped a bit, but it would have been nice to have more.

I love this book! I read it 3 months ago and find myself going back to it again and again now, especially to the juicy parts. I am so thankful for Anne Mallory for writing the books she does. The Bride Price has an interesting story as a backdrop, dotted with very intense sex scenes here and there. It helps that the heroine is not a virgin, so the naughty scenes could begin almost right from the get go. But it goes beyond just sex. I think the author succeeded in blending sex with historical romance, a concoction that is just right for women like me, married, mature, but need some excitement in our daily lives that's not porn. Anne Mallory's books hit that spot. I just read Three Nights of Sin, like it too, but I don't think it's as good as the Bride Price. I look forward to reading the rest of her books.

I have now purchased and read 5 out of 8 of Anne Mallory's books. Every single one of them is amazing. I cannot believe that they have gotten such poor ratings from some readers when I truly love them. She makes every hero so intriguing and lovable that I can't really pick a favorite out of the 5 I now know. The books are not your typical lover's spat and make up romance novels that most readers like. I on the other hand love the build up that Mallory creates in each story. You want it to last forever but it kills you to have to wait to see how life changing the sex is going to be. This book was no different. There was really only one thing that I might have changed and that is the ending. I felt like there were some things left open. Some unfinished business between The Duke and Sebastian as well as The Duke and Caro.

I have been an avid romance reader for a really long time now. I only just discovered Mallory and have put her above some writers who I never thought could have been beat. I won't mention any names but lets just say some are considered Goliaths in this genre:)

The Bride Price has an original plot for a Regency novel; the crown sponsors a tournament for a title, lands, and the hand of a nobly born woman. It is sort of the Bachelorette meets Survivor in 19th century England. For that alone I knew this novel would be starting at a three star. Unfortunately it did not rise much higher.

Sebastian Deville is angry. To obtain his mother's lands he must compete with other illegitimate and later born legitimate sons in a game sponsored by the king to win the hand of Lady Sarah.

Caroline is a dear friend of Sarah's and is appalled that The King has agreed to this scheme. She sets out to sabotage the games as much as possible since she cannot stop the tournament. Even more disturbing to Caroline is Sebastian's presence. She quite forgot herself with him prior to the beginning of the games and has heard wicked rumors about his debauched ways. She definitely does not want her friend to end up with him.

Sebastian is almost too arrogant when it comes to Caroline. When he sees her at the tournament he is determined to bed her. He has not forgotten their intimate interlude. Caroline is self righteous with Sebastian and tries to pretend nothing has ever happened between them. (BTW I find this annoying, when heroines will not admit the truth or pretend that they experience no physical pleasure with the hero when they obviously do).

Sebastian goes after Caroline with same determination he has to winning the tournament. His father, the Duke is in attendance and is really pitting Sebastian against his legitimate brother. The reader easily sees the hurt both men feel.

Caroline keeps a distance from Sebastian and at first is willing to believe all kinds of innuendos about him. It is only in the second half of the novel that she softens her heart toward Sebastian. He falls in love with her but is now in a quandary, if he wins the tournament he is bound to lose Caroline but if he doesn't win then he has no property or power.

This was a nice read but not a great one. Caroline's prickliness and her belief that she had real control over the outcome of this tournament was a bit off putting. I admired her loyalty to her friend but Caroline had a habit of not accepting the reality of a situation. Sebastian was bitter and at times selfish. He knew Caroline was close to Lady Sarah but pursued her without thinking of possible consequences. I give this novel 3 ½ stars mostly for the ingenious plot.

I finished the book in 1 day - I wasn't able t put it down! I lost myself in it and would read it over and over again and I have thus far read it three times now. My husband thinks me mad for this, however, I loved it. The passion - I LOVED IT!

When reading a book it helps if the reader actually believes in the fundamental plot thread undergirding the action. In the case of 'The Bride Price' I found the competition between 15 illegitimate or third-or-fourth sons to win an aristocratic title, some land and property and a particular woman as a wife, to be laughably unlikely. As a tool for our hero Sebastien Deville, illegitimate son of the Duke of Grandien, it worked well enough; he had a chance to shine in the traditional noble pursuits of gambling, horse riding, fencing and the rest of it, but it also gave him an excuse to spend two months amongst other men (including his half brother) and a passel of women, including the heroine, Caroline Martin.

The competition also allowed Caroline to do some sabotaging as she doesn't want Sebastien to win as he would win the hand of her friend Lady Sarah as a bride and Caroline knows Sebastien and Lady Sarah won't suit. Sebastien doesn't seem interested in Sarah, however, but he is interested in Caroline - very much so - and although his pursuit might be put down to a bet, there might actually be much more to it. Caroline has thrown her life away on a worthless man once before, will she make the same mistake again?

So the competition is a useful device upon which to hang various events. But it's so incredibly unlikely, along with many of the events that take place in this novel, that I was unable to take the story seriously. There were some interesting vignettes into people's lives changing, people growing up and learning what's important, but it was all emeshed within the threads of the competition and so it lost its force for me. The author also made some errors of language where people speak American rather than English, including a reference to people behaving like 'chickadees', a word for a bird unused in England (we have the rather more amusing 'tits' instead). The behaviour amongst the houseparty guests seemed very unlikely too and the neatly-wrapped ending didn't convince. Overall this is a story with some good points but equally many points of annoyance and unbelievability.

Originally published for Curled Up With A Good Book © Helen Hancox 2008