Customer Reviews

The Hellion Bride (Sherbrooke, Book 2)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

I wanted to like Ryder. I kind of liked him in The Sherbrooke Bride. As I've mentioned in my reviews of the other 2, I bought these all together and for some insane reason felt a compulsion to finish them. I will forever regret that choice. I have a surprisingly good memory and surprisingly good reading comprehension, so unfortunately I remember waaaay too much of Ms. Coulter's books now.

I don't know how much I'd classify the sex here as "rape" (coercion definitely, but there is a difference). There was obvious rape in The Heiress Bride, but the only actual rape I thought occurred in this book was actually perpetrated against Ryder by the prostitute and Sophia and her uncle.

I have more a problem with the fact that Ryder was more upset that Douglas saw Sophia naked than by the fact that his wife had just run scared from the room because of her husband's "love making". Douglas, who claims to have felt the same type of compassion for Sophia as he does for his own wife (which was pretty darn low, so maybe that explains it), just hands her back to Ryder despite the fact that she was in a panic and bloody.

Ryder was not considerate of Sophie on any level. A person who has suffered from physical abuse, manipulation, coercion, etc. is going to be a bit frightened and traumatized. What's the best way to keep her in line? Threaten to beat her, of course! He does that numerous times. He is not compassionate to her in any of their interactions (as people or sexually).

Seems to me that the whole book was about Ryder trying to control her and Sophia trying to fight off her fears of that control after having been abused for so long. I cannot think of one redeeming quality in their "relationship", let alone any indication of why they would "love" each other.

I can honestly and truly say that having read the first 3 books of the "Bride" series, I will never, ever, ever read a Catherine Coulter book again, and I will seriously recommend that none of my friends or even mere acquaintances do, either. We must put a stop to the belief that abusive and manipulative "heroes" are acceptable, and that rape scenes are somehow erotic. THIS is the type of "romance" novel that is a danger for young girls to read. It will give the impression that these interactions are somehow "normal" in any way shape or form.

Ryder Sherbrooke, a devil may care rake with seven illegitimate children, has journeyed across the ocean to Jamaica. His purpose is to investigate the reported supernatural occurrences at Kimberly Hall, the Sherbrooke sugar plantation.

"It was said she had three lovers." This was the rumor circulating about Sophia Stanton-Greville, a nineteen-year-old English born lady who, after her parents died, was sent to Jamaica to live with her abusive uncle. Sophia is used to controlling men and getting what she wants. And what she wants is to add Ryder to her collection of lovers. Ryder believes she has ulterior motives for wanting him, and intends on finding out what they are, and showing her who's in control. Sophia may not be who she seems, and the more Ryder gets involved, the greater the danger.

This is the second book in the Sherbrooke Bride series. A very enjoyable read that once begun, I had great difficulty putting down. When not reading it, I found my mind wandering back to the story until I could pick the book back up. In some ways this story was even better than the first book, "The Sherbrooke Bride". I love the character of Ryder, a fun-loving rake with a harem of lovers and a brood of illegitimate children. However, we find out some interesting things about Ryder, which make him even more endearing. Sophia was also a likeable character, and I felt the progression of her and Ryder's relationship, in regard to her history of trauma, was believable and handled well. While this story did have its humorous moments, it lacked the laugh out loud humor found in "The Sherbrooke Bride". On the other hand, the subplot of intrigue surrounding Sophia was more engrossing than the subplot of the first book.

I gave the book four, instead of five stars, because of the ever-present theme of sexual molestation. And I'm not actually referring to the love scenes between Ryder and Sophia. I never got the impression of rape from those, although I feel he did coerce her. What I'm actually referring to are instances where a secondary character demanded sexual favors, or intended to rape Sophia. Off the top of my head, without searching through the book, I can come up with at least seven occasions where this occurred. But the most disturbing for me was what happened to Ryder at the cottage where he was drugged, stripped by the uncle, and the prostitute "had him" without his knowledge. Regardless, I 'm still enjoying reading this series, and this book in my opinion, does deserve those four stars. I do wish the sexual molestation theme were toned down a bit though. This story is still worth recommending, and I'm looking forward to reading the next book, "The Heiress Bride".

First things first: Catherine Coulter can write well. Her style, while not innovative, is solid and works, which was the main reason I kept reading "Hellion." But her characters and plotlines are all monotonous and boring. The hero, Ryder, is a holier-than-thou loverboy whom the author keeps congratulating for his charitable deeds and irresistable manliness. The heroine, Sophie, is equally annoying. Despite her bravery in the hands of the Two-Dimensional and Uninteresting Bad Guy, her manhating fury and other idiosyncracies get tedious fast. The bedroom scenes are hot, sexy and kinky enough to catch the attention of the modern reader, but they're hard to enjoy because of the marital rape in them, conveniently disguised as Ryder showing Sophie just how good sex can be--because of course he's right about everything. These people just aren't appealing or intelligent in any way, despite Coulter's attempts to paint them as such by oh-so-subtly throwing in an allusion to Rosseau. Their personalities don't make sense, the plot is thin and contrived, and just WHY the hero and heroine come to love each other is beyond me. Let's hope Ms. Coulter does better next time, because I get the feeling that she can.

Re The Hellion Bride, I agree with the reader from San Diego: marital rape IS RAPE. I thought it was disgusting. (And how could anyone warm up to Graelam de Moreton in Fire Song after the rape he commited in Chandra?) I had LOVED The Sherbrooke Bride, read earlier; how very disappointing Hellion was! Her best? Anything with Dillon Savich and Lacy (Sherlock) (The Maze and The Target).

This is the second disturbing book I have read by Coulter. Her novels seem to be riddled with abuse; both mental and physical.

If you're looking for a fairytale romance or any romance at all skip this book. This book was about an Englishman who goes to the Carribean to investigate ghosts/spirits haunting his brother's property. That storyline flatlines and instead Coulter focuses on this odd, completely disturbed, man-hating young lady that is forced to wed the Englishman for her own protection. That sounds heroic, but trust me it's not.

There is absolutely nothing in this novel that makes you want to keep reading further.

I've read the reviews that others have put in on this book. Let's face it, it was a book containing martial rape, but hey! It happens. Atleast Coulter shows ways that it can be overcome and dealt with. She shows that the male can have remorse and work through the woman's fears. I thought it was an insightful book about the trials and errors of the mental anguish Sophie had dealt with. The story line was intriguing. I will agree that it wasn't one of Coulter's best, but it was a good read. If you are looking for a book that will pull on your heartstrings, and make you love and hate the same character, then pick up The Hellion Bride and give it a go.

I swear to god, how many times do heros have force heroines to have sex because 'they know better'? THAT said, Ryder was still just a sweet man under the wolf coat of a debauchee, and poor Sophie, all the things that happen to her. Ugh.

I have mixed feelings about this book. I found it disturbing, not that I believed that the heroine was by any means 'raped', that is verging on the ridiculous, it was merely a painful first experience for her, no force whatsoever. What disturbs me is the fact that Sophie had an insane fear of men and the marital act.

In the beginning, Sophie played her seductress role quite convincingly, she was vibrant, retortful, but suddenly after her 'rescue' she becamesa meek mouse type person, with absolutely no personality or 'fire' to speak of.

While the story flowed smoothly, and the hero Ryder is quite captivating as the 'knight in shining armor', there wasn't any chemistry between the two characters. Their moods switched off and on like lamp switches. I also would really like to understand why Ms. Coulter finds it always necessary to have her heroines abused and always fearing the opposite sex.

The story is good and it is interesting if you like Coulter's work. This is basically classic Coulter.

THIS IS DEFINETLY ONE OF HER BEST BOOKS YET. THIS IS THE SECOND IN THE BRIDE TRILOGY. THE FIRST DIDN'T DISAPPOINT ME AND NEITHER DID THE SECOND. THE HERO IN THIS STORY WILL AT FIRST MAKE YOU THINK HE IS JUST A WOMANIZER AND NOT THAT LIKABLE. BUT TOWARDS THE MIDDLE YOU WANT TO SCREAM AT THE MAIN WOMAN SOPHIE TO STOP BEING A BRAT AND LOVE THIS MAN. IT HAS GOOD VILLIANS AND GOOD MAIN CHARACTERS, BUT BE SURE TO START WITH THE FIRST IS IN THE TRILOGY THE SHERBROOKE BRIDE. I CAN'T WAIT TO READ THE FINAL BOOK.

I enjoyed the basic plot of this book and the others in this series, but I have to wonder why almost all of Ms. Coulter's Heroines have to be afraid of sex and why most of the Hero's feel it necessary to force themselves on the women they supposedly love. Of the 3 original books, the sex scenes in this one are the most disturbing. I hate that Sophie ends up thanking him later for what was essentially rape. While the Bride series and the Song series are both very entertaining, I find I have to be very careful about which of Ms. Coulter's books I buy.