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23 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A masterpiece story!, December 1, 2002
This review is from: The Dumont bride (Mass Market Paperback)
A masterpiece story that exemplifies historical romance at its finest, THE DUMONT BRIDE receives a perfect 10 from Historical Romance Writers. Depleted physically and mentally Christian's days are numbered as he and his brother waste away in prison. Paying the price for their father's traitorous deeds, who has already met his fate with the hangman, Christian receives an offer from King Richard he simply cannot refuse. Sent to Queen Eleanor to do as she bids, he blindly accepts this offer to have his lands, titles, and wealth restored to his family IF he agrees to what the Queen requests of him. Not knowing what this request is, and realizing this will be his only chance to save his brother, Geoffrey, who is dying and to save himself, he agrees. He arrives at Greystone Castle, an impressive land holding to meet with Queen Eleanor. There he discovers he is to be wed to Emalie Montgomerie. Protected by the Queen Eleanor who has devised a plan to remove her from the grasp of the vile Prince John, Emalie finds herself a pawn in this power play for her land and her wealth. A victim of a rape she can not remember, she is now at the mercy of the royals and her fate is yet unsealed. Still dealing with his physical depletion from imprisonment he finds himself dealing with fever and weakness, something he is not accustomed to. He wants to hide his predicament until he finds out what role he plays in the political maneuvers of Queen Eleanor, King Richard and Prince John. Both Emalie and Christian are powerless to fight the love that develops between them despite the mistrust, confusion, and politics surrounding their marriage. This story was riveting from start to finish. It defied conventional storylines and continued to surprise each step away. Traditional resolutions that were expected did not come. Ms. Brisbin weaves a tale of love, passion, acceptance, and political intrigue that is sure to become a classic. Bravo, Ms. Brisbin!
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Solid Gold - RIVETING Historical Romance, July 30, 2003
This review is from: The Dumont bride (Mass Market Paperback)
Anjou Province, France 1194 - Christian Dumont, was once known as the Comte de Langier, before treasonous acts against Richard, Coeur de Lion, by his father brought he and his brother Geoffrey close to deaths door. Now he has been summoned by the King and given an offer he cannot refuse. He is to have his title, wealth, and lands restored if he travels to England and consent to a royal command from Queen Eleanor. He knew not what the task would be but knew that whatever it was, if it meant saving his beloved brothers life, he would agree. Arriving in England, weak from months of imprisonment, he cannot help but be impressed by the demesne of Castle Greystone, and more so by the Countess, Emalie Montgomerie whom he finds he is to wed. Queen Eleanor, has contrived a plan to protect Emalie, from the vile and corrupt Prince John who is trying his best to wrest control of the valuable lands belonging to her. Emalie and Christian find themselves as helpless pawns as the feuding royals battle one another over territorial control. Christian thinks himself lucky to find himself in such a situation, until he finds that the young woman he is married to carries a child of rape, a rape that she refuses to name or remember. Both hide the truths of the dishonors dealt to them dishonors that stemmed not from their actions but from the actions of others. Yet, in spite of this, a love develops between them based upon the honor and goodness they finally discover in one another. This was an amazing story that I finished in one sitting it was so riveting. From the political machinations, to the heartbreaking love that was almost torn apart, and to the most surprising ending! The characters came alive on the pages with vivid historical background, sparkling dialogues and beautiful and very passionate love scenes. This was indeed a phenomenal read that gets solid GOLD ratings! Put this on the keeper shelf!
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A well written romance novel...., December 30, 2010
I really enjoyed this book! I look at several things when reading a romance novel....1) how quickly was I motivated to finish? 2) How much skimming did I do? 3) How often did I roll my eyes? 4) How easy was it for me to picture the characters/scenes/scenery/etc?
On the first item it was a solid 5 stars....I began reading around 9 PM and finished around 2 AM....I could not put it down despite how tired I was, and only stopped reading once or twice because I had a few nighttime chores to accomplish...otherwise I would have read straight through and probably finished it sooner! I was very motivated to find out how the main characters would get themselves out of a terrible predicament, and I could not figure out how it would be accomplished.
On the second item it was 4-4.5 stars....I did do a little skimming in the beginning mostly because descriptions of horrid prison conditions kind of gross me out. I can only recall another one or two times in the book where I felt the descriptions or the dialogue was a little long winded....I don't recall specific examples, so it wasn't that big of a deal.
On item 3 again it was a solid 4-4.5 stars....I rolled my eyes only once during the first love scene....for a "maid" who was taken against her will by a slimy and perverse man (although she can't recall much of the details)and who was now about to bed a man (her husband) she barely knew a week or two, I felt her burning desire and lack of shyness a little unrealistic....BUT it wasn't a huge issue, and I quickly got over it.
Lastly on the 4th item I gave this a solid 4 stars. I liked the characters well enough....I felt a little more time could have been spent describing Emmalie because I honestly can't tell you what color her eyes are and I can only give a good guess as to her hair color (blonde I think) and I read it 12 hours ago. I had a much easier time picturing the hero of the story because it seemed to me like a little more time had been spent describing him....the author did a good job in describing the scenery and some of the historical points of the story....I appreciated the fact that we didn't get long drawn out descriptions of gowns, jewels, hair styles, and decor....I find that stuff gets really tedious really fast...especially if the main character changes her clothes a lot or they visit a lot of homes. :)
One discrepancy I noted while reading the story....an editorial mistake made me confused as to the time frame....at one point the author said they had finished the harvest and was invited to a wedding right before winter....and then when the H&H returned from the wedding the author said something to the effect of "as late summer turned into fall..."....a minor mistake, but one that briefly confused me as to what time of year it really was...an important detail when dating the heroine's pregnancy.
All in all a solid 4 star book....the plot was easy to follow along and interesting enough that I had to finish it "that night"....the characters were likable enough, and the author did a decent job of at least trying to make this historically accurate. I was interested enough in their story that I couldn't put it down, and found it an enjoyable read. I would gladly recommend this book.
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