Customer Reviews

High Tide

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(21)
2 star:		(25)
1 star:		(17)

 

 

I consider myself a huge Jude Deveraux fan, however it's hard to believe she wrote this particular book.

The good parts: The relationship between Fiona and Ace.

The not so good parts: The entire cast of other characters and the whole convoluted plot.

There were way too many secondary characters, none of them fleshed out very well. And, for the most part, none of them the least bit likeable or interesting.

There is a strange side trip into a retirement village that seems to be inhabited entirely by these weird secondary characters.

The plot involves a murder, a doll, a map, some gold lions and a host of old weirdos from Fiona's past.

And, if Fiona was so beloved by her father, why is her middle name the same as one of the "bad" characters? Confusing and too scattered to be interesting.

I truly hope that I must have missed the entire gist of this book because if this is where she's headed with her writing style I really do want to enjoy it.

But she's written enough great historical romances that she deserves to do anything she wants.

I'm still a fan of hers, but not of this book.

I have been in love with Jude Deveraux's writing since I was a teenager. Her historical novels are the best that I've ever read. I normally love her modern tales, too, but there was something odd about this one... almost as if she hadn't written it.

The style of this latest book didn't seem to be hers. I felt an abrupt change at the end of Chapter 18, and from then on it was as if an amateur writer had taken over-- there were too many "baby" this and "baby" that phrases which were totally out of character for Ace Montgomery. The murder-mystery concept was a good one, and it was fairly well done and quite enjoyable, but I kept getting the sense that I wasn't reading Ms. Deveraux's normal style. It was very unsettling. The love plot within it was subtle and growing nicely, but it came to too quick of a climax and resolution, almost as if Deveraux decided, "Oops, I've written too many pages! Must end the story NOW!" In the end, I was left very disappointed.

If you are a Deveraux fan looking for another great read, you're not going to find it here. I've given my copy to my mother to read to confirm my bad feelings about it, and then it's going to Goodwill. I refuse to add it to my collection of her other novels.

HIGH TIDE is a major improvement in Jude Deveraux's writing of late. It is much, much better than AN ANGEL FOR EMILY and THE BLESSING. The writing is cleaner and while the story is not "true-to-life," it is at least credible. It moves well and the characters are interesting.

The main problem is that this is a Taggert novel, not a Montgomery except in name only. When Ace Montgomery finds himself in trouble, he does not go to his Montgomery family but to his Taggert cousins. His brother is mentioned in an aside and never by name, but Michael and Frank Taggert are heavily involved in helping Ace and Fiona clear their names. If this book was supposed to be a return to the Montgomerys, why didn't we see any of them other than Ace? It would have been more interesting if Ace had gone to Reid Stanford and Dougless Montgomery Stanford (from A KNIGHT IN SHINING ARMOR) for help, rather than the Taggerts. I love the Taggerts but wanted to revisit old favorites from the KNIGHT.

All in all, HIGH TIDE is worth the cover price, but it does not measure up to classics like A KNIGHT IN SHINING ARMOR and SWEET LIAR.

After hours & hours of reading pleasure, I found my self wondering if I was really reading a Jude Deveraux book. Romance/mystery/suspends is not her cup of tea, she needs to go back to what she knows. Deveraux has a Montgomery interacting with Taggerts, without another Montgomery in sight. Be for real, this family just does not roll that way. There are too many holes in this story, and no answers. Who the heck was Rose? Why would the main characters trust Susie right out of the blue? Why would four childhood friends sit in New York and wait while their friend was being hunted down for murder, and not one of them try to reach her? I have read everything Ms. Deveraux has written, but I will not buy another of her books just because she wrote it. She has been going down hill since An Angel for Emily & The Blessing.

I gave this book 4 stars because I'm sure it would deserve that, had Jude Deveraux not been the author. What I mean by that is that the book was good, it just was not what we have learned to love and expect from our beloved author. What has happened to you Jude, that you think you must change your writing style and "expand" from historical to current day? Don't you realize that it would be hard to improve on the "perfection" you represented in your historical romances? (my favorite like many other's is Knight in Shining Armour). We miss your historical romances (and it's hard having to wait forever for your next book to be published). Although there really wasn't anything "wrong" with High Tide... it's just not your style. Will the "real" Jude Deveraux please come home? We miss you! I won't give up on you!

I have enjoyed all her previous works- but this one was very uncharacteristic of Ms. Deveraux. The story was cheesy and unbelievable (even for a romance novel) and I didn't care about the characters. I hope her next book keeps in the former tradition that rocketed her to fame because this one was a loser!

I just want to know where Jude Deveraux was while this book was being written. If it hadn't had her name on it, not only would I have not recognized her, but I wouldn't have read past the first page. The lead characters were unlikable at best.They both had the temperament of three year olds, were uncontrollably violent, (sorry, I don't find shoving each other in anger acceptable, much less sexy), and who would have a dead person lying on top of them and wonder if they are looking sexy? The plot jumps around and contradicts. It was as if the author,(whoever that was), got tired of the whole thing and decided to end it suddenly.And, it couldn't have ended soon enough for me. C'mon Jude, we want you back! I hope this isn't the first Deveraux book someone reads, because she is usually an extraordinary author. Read my favorite, "Wishes", or "Knight in shining armor". Those are classics in the romance genre.

I LOVE JUDE DEVERAUX AND THE MONTGOMERY/TAGGERT SERIES BUT FELT THAT THIS BOOK WAS NOT UP TO JUDE DEVERAUX'S NORMAL INTENSE STORYTELLING. THE CHARATERS WERE GOOD BUT THE STORY CAME TO AN ABRUPT END JUST AS WE WERE GETTING INTO THE STORY. IT NEEDED A FEW MORE CHAPTERS TO WRAP IT UP.

I've read most all of JD's books beginning with the Velvet series and I must say this one was a total disappointment. The plot was stupid and senseless and the there were so many unended sentences that I was totally frustrated. I find it hard to believe this was even written by Jude Deveraux--more like a 10th grade ghost writer. If her next one is this bad, I think it will be my last one.

High Tide, though enjoyable, would not be my first recommendation for a Deveraux book. The characters in this book are less well-defined than they are in her other novels I've had the pleasure to read. Her "Montgomery" heroes are normally "to-die-for" types with a great sense of humor. The humor in "Ace", the leading male character, is lacking as well as the three dimensional qualities normally present in Deveraux's other work. The plot, while interesting, is also less in depth than I am used to seeing in her novels. High Tide would be a pleasure to read, however, if you're looking for a nice way to spend an afternoon or a day at the beach reading. If you are looking for a better example of Deveraux's writing, I may suggest A Kight in Shining Armor. That book is a gem.