The Forever Kiss: a novel of Erotic Romance [Paperback]

Thea Devine (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2003

From the national bestselling author whom Romantic Times calls "the queen of erotic romance, " comes a sensual new tale of desire, lust, and total surrender. On a bloody Victorian battlefield, the penniless soldier of fortune, Dar St. Onge, has just been recruited for a covert mission to uncover the dark secrets of a mysterious family by taking the place of its dying heir, Ducas Sangbourne, a man who looks enough like him to be his twin. From the moment he arrives at Sangbourne Manor, Dar enters a world of unimagined privilege and wealth, where every decadent craving is gratified, every erotic fantasy is fulfilled, and the sins of the past simmer just below the surface. Dar must navigate a minefield of things he doesn't know, and raw emotions he's never felt before to even scratch the surface of the secrets of Sangbourne Manor. But nothing can prepare him for the half-gypsy Angene, who is determined to become Ducas's mistress. Wholly feminine, exotically beautiful, and too suspicious of him by far, she has the power to destroy him--when she isn't bringing him to his knees with her warm, willing sensuality. . . Now, as darkness settles over Sangbourne Manor, a powerful and unholy menace is gathering force, fueled by an unnatural bloodlust that hides behind the veneer of society and threatens everything Dar has ever wanted. In this opulent world where everything has a price and no payment is too steep, two suspicious lovers will have to learn to trust each other as Dar battles body and soul to claim his woman and his destiny.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"With sophisticated erotic escapades on nearly every page, Thea Devine's historical romance, Bliss River, lives up to its name."

Product Details

• Paperback: 282 pages
• Publisher: Kensington (June 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0758203993
• ISBN-13: 978-0758203991
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,212,657 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Suspenseful? Yes! Hot? Yes! Cheesy Words? Yes!!!, June 27, 2003

By 

Elena (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Forever Kiss: a novel of Erotic Romance (Paperback)

If I had one day to spare which I had absolutely NOTHING to do, I'd probably take my copy of The Forever Kiss and count how many times the word 'penis' is used. Or....how many times Dar (Ducas) refers to his mistress' sex as a 'honeypot' or his incessant nipple fetish. I don't even think hardcore porn has the female character saying to the male character "I want your penis....I'll never refuse your penis....I need your penis.....I'm here for your penis......I live for your penis...", well you get it.

However, if you can get past that cheesiness, the story is quite good. Unless you read very carefully, you may get confused at times, since the hero (Dar) is impersonating a supposed dead traitor (Ducas) for whom he looks exactly alike, in order to uncover evidence of Ducas' treachery and treason at his manor.

But.....Ducas really isn't dead - well, he is on the inside, not on the outside. Turns out...he's a vampire and he returns from his 'dead' state to go back to his manor to kill the man (Dar) who's there impersonating him and trying to move in on his woman (Angene - the penis lover).

With Ducas and Dar now in the same house, (although cleverly avoiding each other) Ms. Devine see-saws back and forth between Dar and Ducas' point of view and, because Ducas is a vampire, we have scenes were Dar is pummeling the life out of Angene's 'honeypot' only to be invaded with Ducas' thoughts.

If you can follow along, you'll find this plot very taut and nailbiting and I would have given it higher marks if not for the cheese factor. Ms. Devine should make her heros tone down their nipple obsessions and find other words synonymous with the male appendage just so the reader doesn't develop 'penis' envy!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars [$$$] book with 2 cent story - Thea Devine's worst!, July 25, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: The Forever Kiss: a novel of Erotic Romance (Paperback)

I have previously ready Ms. Devine's books and found them okay. At least they had a coherent story line to go along with the hot sex scenes that are her trademark. This book was a huge disappointment. The story was stupid, the ending was so abrupt and seemingly disconnected from the story all I could think was 'HUH??' Even the 'hero' in this book didn't have clue what was going on and what he was supposed to be looking for while impersonating someone else. The 'heroine' was always in heat for no apparent reason - just the thought of the 'hero' sent her into a frenzy without any explanation why she was so 'in love' with him. ... Look and see how many used copies are for sale of this book. If it was any good, people would be adding it to their keeper shelves and not trying to unload it. I had preordered this book based on my previous experiences with Ms. Devine's books. Next time, I'll wait until after it's published and read reviews and see how many used copies are trying to be unloaded before I drop [$$$] on one of her books again.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Erotic? Not Really. Romantic? Not Really. Confused? Yes!, June 8, 2003

By 

Sires "I enjoy mysteries, historical and proc... (Chesapeake, OH, United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Forever Kiss: a novel of Erotic Romance (Paperback)

Sometimes Thea Devine has written some great erotic romances, sometimes she totally misses the boat. In this case she is standing on the dock as the boat pulls out of sight.

The hero in this case, Dar, is asked to take the place of a dying man, Ducas Sangbourne, who just happens to be his double. The reason for this masquerade involves the hunt for a traitor, but this seems to be just an excuse for the writer to plop Dar down in the middle of Ducas' life, including his realtionship with Angene, who is determined to become Ducas' mistress for no clear reason.

Things are very lively at the Sangbourne estate (get the name?) with the older Sangbournes arranging happy little sexual swapmeets. Then who should turn up but Ducas. That's when things go from merely being vague to downright confusing. Ducas, you see, is a vampire of the evil sort-- hardly a spoiler. He and Dar engage in a round of identity swapping and battling that is never adequately described or explained. It would have been nice if someone had just sat down and told the reader what is going on in the book.

So it's an erotic vampire romance that is not particularly erotic or romantic but does have some vampires. One out of three is not good.