Customer Reviews

The Damsel: The Bride Quest #2

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

 

 

I have to be honest with you. I was tempted several times in the first half of this book to give up and not to finish it. But my curiousity got the better of me and I continued on. And I am soooo happy that I did! Once I past the half way mark, I couldn't put it down. The pace picked up, the characters came to life, and it was wonderful! I encourage anyone who starts this book not to give up on it. I believe you will find the patience worth it once you get to the end. I sure did!

I bought this book because I'd really enjoyed one of this author's earlier books, ENCHANTED, which is a Harlequin release. If an author can write a good book in the oppressive restrictions of catagory romance, I usually deem them worthy of a try with a full-length novel, where there are fewer rules.

At first, there were a lot of things to like about THE DAMSEL. Though it's the second book in a trilogy, it works perfectly well as a stand-alone. The reader doesn't have to have read THE PRINCESS, the book that preceded THE DAMSEL, to make sense of the story. I hadn't read THE PRINCESS and never felt lost.

Delacroix has a nice, flowing writing style to this book that has a medieval feel to it without feeling to heavy or "textbooky" (yes, I know that's not a real word!). There are lots of humorous scenes in the book that had me smiling and almost laughing out loud. There was also lots of conflict between the hero and heroine.

But THE DAMSEL ultimately falls flat. The heroine comes across as childish. She's spurned once, and acts like it's the end of the world. And even when she finds out that she was lied to by her evil aunt, and that the hero actually did want to marry her three years ago (and still does), she refuses to believe it. Now why would she believe an aunt that beats her over the man who professes to love her? It just didn't make sense. She continuously misconstrued the hero's actions. It didn't matter how many times he saved her or was nice to her, she was convinced that he was up to no good, and nothing would change her mind. I want to smack some sense into her after the first few chapters.

That was what got to me in the end: the heroine's childish attitude, and the series of BIG MISUNDERSTANDINGS being all that kept the hero and heroine apart. It might have been okay if they had never been able to speak to one another and clear things up, but they were together all the time. The hero would try to clear the air, and the heroine would always misunderstand or just not believe him. I would have rather that they freely admitted their feelings and circumstances keep them apart than this constant miscommunication. It was really annoying.

This is the second book by Delacroix since the enjoyable ENCHANTED that has let me down. I'm leery of trying another. If you're still determined to read THE DAMSEL, I recommend that you borrow it from the library, rather than buy it. It's not worth the money.

Burke, there are lots of "fishes in the sea". This could not have been a match made in Heaven. Heck, I don't even think Hell would have it. With Burke's honor, trust, charm, loyalty, love, not to mention good-looks, Alys still manages to shun the man. Ye Gods! What's wrong with the woman? The only thing a liked about this story was when Alys finally met her dad. A King's Ransom, indeed.

This is a must read book. I found the story to be exciting. I must disagree with Ms. Giggles review above. What does a castle without guards have to do with this story? NOTHING! I plan on reading The Princess and the Heiress now.

I honestly tried to finish this book. The writing was wonderful, and it felt decidedly medieval, but I couldn't get the fact that the heroine, who had only been spurned by her love ONCE, made it seem like she'd tried to love many times without avail. I mean, I'd understand a certain hesitancy for her to trust the man she thought had left her, but she goes too far!! She (the heroine) is totally irrational in her refusal of the hero. The side characters were interesting to say the least; I didn't get into the book as well as I could have (in other words, could not finish it) but they seemed to be good. Perhaps the story was good, but the heroine in the first half (which is where I stopped) just was too resistant: our hero was trying to win her back, admits to being mistaken, says he loves her (how many times do you hear that in the beginning of the book), wants desperately to get her away from her scheming aunt and uncle, and she says no! *sigh* Didn't like the book, and wouldn't recommend it. I would, however, be willing to try other books by her because I liked her writing STYLE. :-)

Sarah Pearson

I am not one for prose, but I did want to say that at some point Alys needs to grow up. The constant conflict or confusion was just too much. I could only get half way thru the book before I decided to quit reading. Read at your risk.

Years earlier Burke de Montvieux fell in love with Alys of Kiltorren. However, she was an illegitimate orphan mistreated by an aunt determined to capture Burke for one of her own daughters. Caught together in a compromising position, Burke is sent away and Alys becomes little more than a slave to her family. Years pass and Burke still cannot forget his lost love. Bidden by his sister-in-law, Princess Brianna, to seek the woman who holds his heart and to win her hand, Burke returns to Kiltorren.

The Alys he finds, however, believes that he betrayed her. Believing he has arrived to take one of her cousins as a bride and her as a mistress, Alys spurns him. Undaunted, Burke agrees to several conditions to prove his sincerity and regain her trust. Finding out that Alys cannot wed unless her cousins marry first, he vows to find husbands for her cousins. A daunting task, indeed.

Claire Delacroix has crafted an enchanting retelling of the story of Cinderella complete with wicked relatives and even a pair of slippers fit for a princess. Readers will want to cheer Burke on as he woos his lady fair and feel for Alys as she struggles to overcome years of abuse. Medieval Ireland comes to vivid life in this story, filled with interesting characters that we come to care about. Will Alys ever find out the truth about her parents? Will her repellant relatives get their just desserts? Can Burke find husbands for the cousins? All will be revealed between the pages of THE DAMSEL!

TheSchemer

Delacroix is a very talented writer, however, it felt as though she was attempting to make certain the required number of pages were filled. I skipped about 50 pages and was still aware of the plotline. Burke was toooo wishy washy for a knighht, Alys' character didn't come alive for me at all. There were some feelings of life in the middle ages, however, the plot could have been in 1999 and played out virtually the same way. I'm all for happy endings, but this was a bit too contrived. THE PRINCESS, also written by DeLacroix is fabulous!!! Strong characters, great plot. Be sure to read that one. And, I will of course read the third part of the trilogy, and hope, with fingers crossed, the charcters jump out at me!

The Damsel is one of the best books that I've read in a while. Guarantee to set your heart beating. If you like Cinderalla and happy endings, this is it!

I disagree with both prior reviews of this book, because I think they miss the point. Maybe this book isn't historically accurate, but it has the ingredients that make it utterly charming. A take on a Cindrella story, it draws you back to your childhood, and fulfils the longing for the Knight in Shining Armour. And yet Claire Delacroix brings in a couple of nineties touches - the hero doesn't have any money, and the heroine saves the day! (I'll say no more...) I like that Alys didn't immediately throw herself into Rourkes arms - I can understand the hesitency in believing that it wasn't all too good to be true. The characters are engaging, and the side plots too are intriguing. Not the most deep profound book perhaps, but sweet, charming, and great to curl up in bed with. I grinned and sighed my way through it...