Customer Reviews

By Grace Possessed (The Three Graces)

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

 

 

3-1/2 Stars

First off, the product description about this book is so wrong. The King never issues an order for Lady Catherine Milton to seduce the Scottish Ross Dunbar. There is no flirtations among royal parties and balls. Unless this decree happened in book 1, which I didn't read.

Lady Catherine Milton is a ward of the King and attends his royal court. At a royal hunt, Cate hangs back at the kill (like always) and ends up lost in the forest and at the mercy bandits, until Scot Ross Dunbar comes riding to her rescue. They are forced to spend the night in the elements. When the pair shows up the next morning, propriety dictates that they wed, which the king commands. But Cate fears marriage because of the curse--Cate and her sisters can only marry for love or death comes to the intended. After Cate watched 4 betrothed men die, she doesn't want any more blood on her hands. But the alternative would be marriage to a man she loathes.

BY GRACE POSSESSED was a bit different than I was expecting...as my rant in the beginning. I really liked both Catherine and Ross and their struggles to come to terms with their true feelings. I liked how Ross would turn the tables on Cate and how Cate kept Ross on his toes.

There was quite a bit of suspense and intrigue going on. For me, the intrigue really was center stage of this book, not the romance. A lot of royal names were thrown out there and how who was related to whom and how so-and-so betrayed someone-and-other and so on. I found myself glazing over at these points, which made it not make so much sense to me at times that I'd have to go back and re-read parts to understand what was going on and trying to care about it.

For those who read the first book might be happy to know that the hero and heroine of the first book have a good length cameo and purpose in this story. I liked them.

As for the curse, I could never figure out if they were actually cursed by a witch or something or if this was something the girls just invented once they all had so many suitors die before they made it to the alter. The curse did give Cate an interesting viewpoint on marriage and men in general.

The Three Graces
By His Majesty's Grace (Three Graces)
By Grace Possessed
Seduced by Grace (The Three Graces)

I liked this book so much more than By His Majesty's Grace. The story centers on Lady Cate Milton. She's one of the so-called Three Graces, a trio of sisters said to be cursed. Any man who tries to marry one of them for a reason other than love, is destined for death. Cate's older sister, Isabel, has managed a happy marriage, but Cate doesn't believe it's in the cards for her.

That doesn't stop her from appreciating an arresting man like Dunbar. The sexy Scotsman saved her from a band of men who would have kidnapped her in the woods. Circumstances forced them to spend the night together, and he was a perfect gentleman. But in the 1400's, appearances meant a lot. And before they knew it, the couple was betrothed at the insistence of the king.

Cate goes back and forth with her feelings. She wants Dunbar, but she fears for his life because of the curse. He is just as torn because while he wants nothing more than to bed the lady, he knows that if they wed, his father will disown him. On top of that, he wonders if Cate has anything to do with an attempt on his life. But when push comes to shove, the king gives neither of them much choice in the matter.

I enjoyed watching Cate and Dunbar come together. And there was plenty of intrigue going on in the background. It was a little too historically complicated for me at times, but there was enough action and danger to keep me interested. That, and watching the relationship between Cate and Dunbar unfold. (I am such a sucker for a burr and a kilt.) I was also excited to see that David... a favorite of mine from the last book... appears to be the love interest for the last sister and will be featured in the next book. Yay! Almost 4 stars.

Compromising position or not, King Henry VII's ward or not, Lady Catherine Milton has accepted the word of Ross Dunbar, himself the son of a Scottish laird and current enforced guest...of a sort...to the Tudor king. He swears his loyalty is to his own king and his obligation to his own people. He swears he has no wish to be commanded to take a Sassenach bride. He swears he shall tell King Henry VII that very thing when the inevitable summons comes. He did, after all, spend the night with Lady Catherine. Not for any impure purpose, of course. He had, in fact, saved her from capture by outlaws. The result of that rescue, however, was the loss of their horses and a night stuck in wintry woods during a storm, nothing but a a hastily made shelter and a bonfire standing between them and a tragic, frozen end.

In other words, positive ruination of her good reputation unless he wed her.

Lady Catherine has no more desire to be wed to Dunbar than Dunbar does to have her as wife. In truth, even less. Second sister of the notorious Three Graces and as such protected from an unsuitable match by the curse that befalls anyone who is given her hand in marriage without the benefit of love, Lady Catherine is quite adamant in making sure her hand is not given to Dunbar. He's a rather fetching man, for sure, but he rescued her and shouldn't have to die for the deed.

King Henry VII gives no credence to curses, and he is a wily monarch intent on securing his tenuous reign against a new threat that has cropped up. Though it has been mere months since the last attempt to dethrone him, another uprising is brewing and a detente between Scotland's King James and himself would do nothing but serve. Henry VII commands their betrothal. Dunbar and Lady Catherine can do no more than grimly accept, their understanding of their roles as pawns quite clear to them both.

It is in part because Dunbar so appeals to her that Lady Catherine is so vexed. She doesn't wish him to fall victim to the curse. Yet when an unhappily spurned suitor and enemy to her betrothed turns his frustrations against crown and county as well as Catherine's own well being, it becomes clear that the curse may only be one of very many potential thorns in the rose bed of Ross Dunbar's continued existence.

~*~

After the complex medieval history lesson that was By His Majesty's Grace, the first book in Blake's The Three Graces trilogy, I debated continuing the series. I was and still am very impressed with the research that went into that book and the authenticity it lent to the series, but felt the balance between history and fiction was too skewed towards the nonfictional elements for me to really embrace it. Obviously, I finally decided to try the second book, hoping the fiction elements had been improved while maintaining the authenticity and legitimacy of the historical setting in the story of the second Grace sister, Lady Catherine.

I was quite happy to see that they had, and the book had a romantic plot arc that was far more satisfying to me than the one in the previous novel. For that reason, I found By Grace Possessed to be a more entertaining romantic read.

What I realized, though, is historically accurate medieval romances may not be my cuppa. I find the rigid constraints and grim reality for the position of women, as well as the lack of control the noble women had in their own futures and lives, to be counterproductive to romance. Is it realistic that both Lady Catherine's wishes and Ross Dunbar's loyalties would be utterly ignored in favor of a new king's political machinations? Absolutely. It just isn't an atmosphere that breeds or sustains romantic notions for me, and not even Blake's adept writing could quite convince me that love was a powerful motivator in the book.

I was thrilled that Dunbar and Cate weren't as personally close to, or as deeply involved with Henry VII as Isabel and Rand, and enjoyed the character of Cate more than I did Isabel (though I liked Dunbar just as much as I enjoyed Rand). The threat of Lord Trilborn seemed a bit close in theme and events to the conflict generated by Isabel's stepbrother in the first book, but I think the whole of the external conflict was better developed and incorporated in the storyline of this book, so the similarities were noted, not begrudged.

Unfortunately, I quickly became fed up with the repeated referrals to the dreaded curse and the way such a silly superstition affected Lady Catherine's thoughts and feelings. I had hoped that she'd be more sensible. I had also seriously hoped that Blake would ease off on repetitious mentioning of it. I was disappointed on both counts. I'm tired of the curse, which in the previous book readers learned was concocted by Lady Isabel to protect herself and her younger sisters from being made pawns to men's ambitions. I do not understand why the sisters have now glommed onto the curse as if the coincidences of its intended purposes are truly proof of its existence. And I don't like that they have.

That being said, I did have moments of pure pleasure as I enjoyed Lady Catherine and her Scottish laird-to-be, Ross Duncan. They were strong characters, and Catherine had a bit more fire to her blood than even Isabel did. That, along with my deep respect and appreciation for the work Blake put into nailing the historical accuracy and tone of the series, was why I found this one as entertaining as I did.

Disclosure: An ARC of this book was provided to me by Mira Books publisher Harlequin via NetGalley. This rating, review, and all included thoughts and comments are my own.

~*~*~*~
Reviewed for One Good Book Deserves Another.

I really enjoyed this book. I had read the other two books in the trilogy and wanted to finish up. They flowed together to create a visual scene of that period in English history.

4-1/2 stars

While I thoroughly enjoyed the first book in this series, By His Majesty's Grace, I enjoyed this book much better---and it's because rather than giving a dry recounting of the history that happened before the story started (the end of the War of the Roses that led to Henry VII's taking the throne of England), in this book, the history happens ON PAGE in the form of action and interaction and conflict for the characters, rather than just long paragraphs of dry history.

But I couldn't quite give it five stars---because I wish there had been more of Ross's viewpoint scenes, especially during the time he and Cate are apart when he's at Grimes. The story glosses over several months, but only from Cate's viewpoint. I'd really liked to have seen the development of his character, the development of his feelings for Cate, during that time rather than just have it assumed that he came to some of the same conclusions about her that she did about him during that separation.

I appreciated the fact that while there were misunderstandings between Cate and Ross, Blake never "went there"---never had the relationship break down because of their assumptions or misgivings about each other. While they didn't just talk it out, either, at least the author didn't rely solely on conflict that could have been easily solved by a conversation. I thought the relationship developed at just the right pace to match the action of the story (with the exception mentioned in the previous paragraph).

And, of course, I've always been a sucker for a man in a kilt! ;-)

Now I'm really looking forward to starting the third book in the series, Seduced by Grace, since there was just the slightest hint at Marguerite and David's relationship in this book that whetted my appetite for their story.

I loved By His Majesty's Grace, the first book of the series. So I couldn't wait to read By Grace Possessed when I found it at NetGalley.

Lady Catherine Milton is still haunted by the curse. If she doesn't marry by love, her fiance would die. It has worked for her the last few years, but King Henry doesn't believe in curses, and he commands her to marry Ross Dunbar, a Scottish son of an ornery borderland laird.

Catherine doesn't want to marry, and she's nervous about her fiance's fate. And Dunbar doesn't want to marry either, specially with an England lady. But he decided to save her at the forest when she got lost, spent the night with her, and now they have to marry.

Of course, neither of them can hide their attraction to each other. It was easy for Catherine to fall in love with Dunbar. He was good with her, treated her with respect, and was totally hot. But for Dunbar is was more difficult, specially because he was surrounded by enemies and he always was suspecting of Catherine's motives.

I don't usually read medieval romance because women are usually quiet and in need for protection. Catherine definitely needs Dunbar's protection, but she's not quite at all. She has a fire inside her that made me like her immediately, and I was very pleased (and surprised) that she was the one who sought him.

Overall, I enjoyed By Grace Possessed. I really liked Dunbar's and Catherine's story, but I wished they would have been more open with their feeling since the beginning, it would have been much more easier to them to just accept they were meant to be together, hehe. Still, I'd love to read the next book, Seduced by Grace.

This was an enjoyable read. I'll admit that I haven't read the first in the series yet and some things probably would have made a little more sense early on if I had, but it didn't really detract from my enjoyment of the story. This book does catch you up on the major things you need to know about the Three Graces and their "curse", though I'm hoping that book one does a better job of convincing readers that the curse is real (this one really just has the characters confirm it through their own beliefs; you don't really see any evidence yourself). I haven't read much set in this time period--I've read a bunch of later Tutor period works, and a few set earlier in the Middle Ages--so I wasn't terribly familiar with the politics of the times, but the author did a nice job of explaining what was going on throughout the novel. Her research of the period really shows--it gave a great flavor to the book. At times Cate and Ross did seem to be a tad bit obtuse, but this was only a minor distraction. Overall I am looking forward to reading book one and finishing up with Marguerite's story afterwards.

The second in the Three Graces of Graydon series. Lady Catherine Milton knows that the curse is real. Anyone who tries to marry her without love will die. When King Henry VII decides she must marry Ross Dunbar she fears for his safety. Ross keeps surviving things that could kill him. Maybe Lady Catherine is wrong about the curse or maybe Ross loves her. Another good romance with a well-researched historical background.

This book was WAY better than the first one!--- 4.5 STARS. The couple totally and expertly matched one another. Although there was no surprise as to who the villain turned out to be, the story had good action, suspense and a beautiful romance that was very sexy.

I did tire a little bit on how the author kept reminding us of the curse (the accursed Three Graces of Graydon) and it really created too deep of a wedge in the relationship that was unnecessary in my opinion. Our hero being a Scotsman and our heroine being an English lady of the royal court and King Henry VII's ward was ample enough material to carry the story successfully. The couple couldn't get passed this alleged curse to the point that they couldn't even profess their love for one another out of fear of the hero potentially dying from said curse. This couple didn't say the three little magic words to one another and held emotionally tight to the very last page of the book; although, our hero was reminiscing back to when he did fall in love with our heroine after being prompted, but our heroine remains steadfast and doesn't tell him that she loves him as well. She simply confirms that she claimed him as her husband and is very eager to bed him again - uh, not too romantic for me.

However, the ending does end on a witty and playful note. But I do have to say that if the author kept us on pins and needles why the "three words-I Love You" were not exchanged, to then have us wait until the very last page for our couple to see if they finally do profess their love for one another to never have them say the words to one another, can only allude me to think that the author wanted and still wants to make something of a great deal out of the alleged curse than the ridiculous superstition that it really is. I only hope that the next book of the installment remains just as exciting, suspenseful and romantic enough that this curse doesn't overshadow the story's main plot.

On an overall basis and eliminating the trite repetitious reminder of the curse, this story is witty, suspenseful and brilliantly written enough to make me feel that I was actually "living" in the lives of these characters in medieval England.

I'm a firm believer that the way you view a book is directly related to the kind of day you're having when you read it; therefore, save this one for that long, rainy Sunday afternoon and savor it slowly, allowing yourself to be drawn into the story. Live it and enjoy.

Ross Dunbar is a Scotsman with "broad shoulders squared in defiance" and eyes "blue as the lochs of his native land". You feel sympathy for the man, held as pledge at the court of Henry VII, to assure his father's good behavior. When he rescues Lady Catherine Milton from outlaws, he is rewarded with a hard choice: wed an Englishwoman, which will result in his being disowned by his family or certain death in the Tower of London. Cate, the middle sister of the three women known as the Three Graces of Graydon, is attracted to Ross, but fears the Curse has brought him dire luck and will take his life before she can come to know him. Old enemies and the threat of war loom as the couple strive to make a life together. As pawns in a Royal game, it is a struggle to determine whether they must save each other or if the enemy is, in fact, sleeping next to them.