The Crystal Rose [Mass Market Paperback]

Rebecca Brandewyne (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 2006

A stranger presses a letter into her hand . . . and unlocks the past she thought had been destroyed

England, 1851: As she makes her way through London's crowded streets, Rose Windermere is nearly knocked to the ground by a man who whispers a dire warning . . . and presses a letter into her hands before fleeing. The letter seems innocuous enough -- merely plans for a gentleman to meet his married lover. But for Rose, the mark with which it is sealed recalls her idyllic childhood in India and a world that was destroyed one terrible night, when an uprising left her dearest friend, Hugo, dead.

Amidst a city enthralled by its Great Exhibition, Rose is pulled back into the exotic land of her youth, as the past comes unimaginably alive. Caught in a web of deceit and intrigue, she must unravel the strange machinations of a man whose lust for power will threaten a monarchy -- and Rose's own heart.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In romance veteran Brandewyne's latest entry, idyllic days in India in the 1830s are cut short for young Rose Windermere when her best friend, Hugo Drayton, is murdered, along with his parents. Fearing for their own safety, Rose's family moves back to England. Fifteen years later, Rose is shopping at the market when a strange man thrusts a letter into her basket and, before fleeing, cautions her to guard it with her life. Seeing the seal of Hugo's family on the letter, Rose surmises that it must concern the business of Hugo's cousin, and the veiled message inside indicates a lovers' rendezvous. Soon, however, Rose suspects she's being followed, and with a little investigation finds that her pursuer is Raj Khanna, a handsome Indian businessman, who's after the letter for reasons far graver than romance; amid rising suspense, Rose uncovers a plot to assassinate Queen Victoria and the truth about what happened to her beloved Hugo. Fast-paced, rooted in solid period details and supported by a fine cast of secondary characters—especially the scrappy street urchins who come to Rose's aid—Brandewyne's latest is another winning romp. (Dec.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Rose Windermere dreams about her life back in India when she was eight and saw the house next door burn to the ground, taking her best friend, Hugo, with it. Her family left India and moved back to Victorian-era London, settling in a less-than-fashionable neighborhood. Rose and her five sisters have little chance of making a good match with their lowly address and lack of wealth, so she is resigned to spinsterhood and a simple life until a day at the market leads to intrigue. Raj Khanna, a stranger who looks like her beloved deceased friend, gives Rose a letter to protect. Raj changes Rose's life as together, with her family, they try to save Queen Victoria and restore Raj, who, yes, turns out to be Hugo, to his rightful place in society. Enduring Brandewyne gives her readers what they crave--a well-researched, detail-rich, and gentle historical romance about deserving characters and evildoers who get their comeuppance. Patty Engelmann
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Mira (December 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0778322963
• ISBN-13: 978-0778322962
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 4.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,334,112 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Brandewyne has so lost her edge, July 26, 2008

By 

The LIterary Critic (Dallas Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Crystal Rose (Mass Market Paperback)

What has happened to Brandewyne? She used to write rich passionate romances that turned the reader on. The Crystal Rose is a sad attempt at bringing back her art. I don't understand what happened. And where are the love scenes? They kiss and fade to black...then nothing! This is nothing compared to what she used to write. And Hugo is so boring. What happened to her deep brooding heroes who were scarred and afraid to love? Hugo is so thin he waves in the wind.

She seems to be attempting to write something Dickensian with the 1850s setting, but it doesn't work. Plus the plot to kill Queen Victoria is just thrown in. Why not focus on Hugo having to prove who he is? And the claim that Victoria was seriously concerned with social reform is totally bogus!

All together this book was a disappointment. I miss the old Brandewyne. Some of her heroes were too abusive, but at least they had more dimensions. And the heroines had more depth. Oh, the eighties...

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Sweet Rose, December 3, 2006

By 

Leah Lane (IA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Crystal Rose (Mass Market Paperback)

I've been a long time fan of Ms. Brandewyne's novels and I've read them all. Her latest offering, The Crystal Rose, reads like a young adult historical novel. It's an interesting enough premise, youngsters Rose and Hugo are separated by a tragedy in Hugo's family. They meet many years later (1850 London) and quickly find themselves invovled in political intrigue. There was more romance (ala young adult) in The Crystal Rose than the last Brandewyne novel, The Ninefold Key (it was a historical novel with a dash of romance thrown in), but as much as I liked the Crystal Rose I was also disappointed that the dark, passionate and sexual intensity that has been Ms. Brandewyne's trademark was TOTALLY absent in this book. The main characters were pale imitations of previous wonderful Brandewyne creations and I am sad to see this happen. Ms. Brandewyne has been writing for many years and she has a right to change her style, but from the past few books she has had published, I feel her heart isn't in writing extremely sensual novels any more. That's too bad, because at her peak, she was the best in the business and that's how she made a name for herself.

If you like historical novels with an old-fashioned, formulatic G-rated romance then you will enjoy The Crystal Rose. If, like me, you miss the passionate, larger than life characters of Ms. Brandewyne's previous works, reread some of her backlist titles.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Good premise but very weak story, March 8, 2007

By 

Buffyvs "Buffyvs" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Crystal Rose (Mass Market Paperback)

I really wanted to like this book but I was unable to make a connection with the cardboard characters. There was little to no emotional, or sexual tension between Rose and Hugo. The worst part of the book were the research dumps interspersed throughout the book. There is a fascinating paragraph about the history of Mayfair, and many others like it, but they were completely out of place, pointless and disrupted any flow of the story.
I recommend that you pass on this one.