Lion's Bride [Mass Market Paperback]

Iris Johansen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1996

Woven with searing sensuality, here is the unforgettable story of a woman who is carried away by a powerful Lord to a secret stronghold, where she becomes his prisoner, his tormentor...and his lover.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Johansen (Dark Rider) writes to her strength in a medieval romance filled with action, sex and the lively working-out of 12th-century gender differences. Indentured to a silk merchant, Thea of Dimas steals a basket of wriggling worms and sets out for Damascus to start her own embroidery-design studio and then effect the escape of her little sister, Selene. After her caravan is destroyed, Thea is rescued by blustery knight Lord Ware and carried (pressed up against his hard, unyielding armor) to his desert fortress, Dundragon. Ware, hunted by the Knights Templar because he's discovered the secret of their Lion Throne, must protect Thea from the deadly consequences to anyone who gets close to him. Thea, an ambitious career woman, must stop Ware from running roughshod over her big plans. Together the feisty lovers battle crusaders, Muslims and their own misguided agendas before settling down in the Scottish Highlands to breed lusty little bairns.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From the Inside Flap

Woven with searing sensuality, here is the unforgettable story of a woman who is carried away by a powerful Lord to a secret stronghold, where she becomes his prisoner, his tormentor...and his lover.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 480 pages
• Publisher: Bantam; Regular Print/Single Titl edition (January 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553569902
• ISBN-13: 978-0553569902
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 1 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #184,250 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Iris Johansen is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Pandora's Daughter, Stalemate, Killer Dreams, On the Run, and many more. She lives near Atlanta, Georgia.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars good but not best, April 30, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Lion's Bride (Mass Market Paperback)

Overall, I enjoyed the book. In the beginning, the hero is totally crass and I did have to wonder where his redeeming graces were. The heroine was well drawn and feisty.

But the people who REALLY intrigued me were the side characters of Selene and Kadar. I literally have dog-eared their pages and reread them. I would sit through this book if only to get to sequel with them.

Setting was great, there was lots of action (and mulberry trees). Good knights. Bad knights. Knights that you think are bad but maybe are not so bad. Evil assasins. Silk.

But Jo, if you ever read this...give us Kadar and Selene. Their ending left me unsatisfied. I wanted to follow them and then you stopped!!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Still a good story, October 3, 2002

By 

Kelly "chezkelly" (Singapore) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lion's Bride (Mass Market Paperback)

The story was set in a place where and when women were viewed with a little more respect than a commodity. That setting gave a lot of allowance for the extent of crude treatment of women, for exmaple: female slaves were treated almost like whores if they were comely, Ware had women to service his sexual needs at his beck and call, existence of harem and total submission to the men etc. One should bear in mind that such was oppressive setting thus not to expect it to be too romantic.

My main complaint about the book was the rivalry and alliance between the various tribes and factions, which I had problem following. Also, the talk of the legends and God were confusing.

Ware was a hard man who tried to be heartless. Thea was determined and single-minded about what she wanted. But the most enjoyable exchanges were those between Kadar and Selene. I noticed that Iris Johansen's books always have a secondary character with amusing sense of humour, whom we often liked as much if not more than the lead characters. And Kadar was, as usual, delightful.

A minor disappointment in the book was that I wished Ware and Vaden could be together as brothers again after they left behind their baggage, but it didn't happen.

Overall, it was not a flawless and impressive story as compared to other IJ's books, but enjoyable still. Wish there were more steamy scenes though.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars BOY, WAS I SURPRISED---, March 4, 2010

By 

SJ - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Lion's Bride (Mass Market Paperback)

This was not a romance novel--it was a dismal account of child labor and exploitation, revenge, betrayal, bitterness, and war. The plot was a jumbled choppy mess and at most times boring, almost all of the characters were one-dimensional and produced no interest or emotion. The story tried to pick up at the very end, but it was a wasted effort. The only thing that kept this tale from being a total bomb was Kadar, however one good character can't save a sinking book.

Speaking of no romance, this is from the hero and heroine's first (of only a few) encounter of 'love making'--- "His lips were curled back from his teeth as if he were in pain as he positioned himself...'Stop looking at me,' he said roughly. 'I can't let you go now. It's not my fault you're a virgin. You're the one who came to me: It will be over in a minute.'"

I purchased this one after I enjoyed reading the first chapter "teaser" presented at the end of another novel. The location, time-setting, and possible story line really captured my imagination. Little did I know that was practically the only good part of this whole book.