Lost Love Found [Mass Market Paperback]

Bertrice Small (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 13, 1991

Despite her breathtaking appearance at Queen Elizabeth's court, Valentina's innocence was shattered when she discovered that her true father may have been the lusty Sultan Murad of Istanbul. Needing to learn more, she set sail for the East in a dangerous erotic journey toward the truth....
"Bertrice Small creates cover-to-cover passion, a keen sense of history and suspense."
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

Despite her breathtaking appearance at Queen Elizabeth's court, Valentina's innocence was shattered when she discovered that her true father may have been the lusty Sultan Murad of Istanbul. Needing to learn more, she set sail for the East in a dangerous erotic journey toward the truth....
"Bertrice Small creates cover-to-cover passion, a keen sense of history and suspense."
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (October 13, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345374193
• ISBN-13: 978-0345374196
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #500,324 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Bertrice Small is a New York Times bestselling author with more than 34 novels in print. She lives in the oldest English-speaking town in New York state. Her website is bertricesmall.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My favorite in the O'Malley Saga, June 15, 2000

By 

J. Austin "jodylync" (Dublin, OH United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Lost Love Found (Mass Market Paperback)

Valentina is my favorite heroine in the O'Malley series and more like Skye than Skye's offspring is. When Valentina goes to court to serve Elizabeth I, I was heartbroken. Mrs. Small's exceptional writing and incredible detail showed me how the lively days of courtlife in Elizabeth's youth had dramatically changed and become a somber place as Elizabeth approached her last days. When a family secret is revealed, Valentina shows us her adventurous spirit and heads East! Her adventures are incredible! I appreciated how Mrs. Small touched on "The Kadin" through the duchy of San Lorenzo and reintroducing us to Esther Kira (who met Valentina's mother in "A Love for All Time"). Also, the appearance of Cica Pasha tied into "Love Wild and Fair." Wonderful! (A note to Mrs. Small: Since you have touched on Esther Kira so often, how about a book dedicated to her entire life. Just a thought.) I wept at least 3 times and was filled with anger, frustration, joy, fear, and triumph as Mrs. Small weaved her magic spell of words and phrases and pulled me into her story. If you haven't read the O'Malley series, you might get a little confused. You should at least read "A Love for All Time" which is the tale of Aidan, Valentina's mother, and is the basis of much of this book's plot.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of my favorites in the Skye O'Malley saga, May 13, 2000

By 

J. Austin "jodylync" (Dublin, OH United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Lost Love Found (Mass Market Paperback)

I truly enjoyed Valentina and thought her character better than Velvet and Jasmine. I loved how this book touched on so many other stories. The Mediteranean island where Janet Leslie was taken (see "The Kadin") and the return of Cica Pasha. (see "Love Wild and Fair"). Of course, I loved seeing Esther Kira again. Valentina is stronger than Aidan, but very much her mother's daughter. I can't say enough good things about this book. There is romance, adventure, and on-the-edge-of-your-seat-suspense.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great Heroine, Strained Plot, September 14, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Lost Love Found (Mass Market Paperback)

Of all the O' Malley heroines (including Skye herself), Valentina St. Michaels Barrows is by far my favorite. Small portrays her as GENUINELY clever, kind-hearted, brave and witty; we're told she's beautiful, but that somehow doesn't seem important in light of her warm personality.

Why this wonderful heroine had to be dropped into a muddle of a book is a mystery. Suddenly Valentina is made to doubt her paternity and faster than you can swear "God's foot!" she's off to "the East" to discover the truth (even though candidates two and three are presumed dead). Worse, she's burdened with two clods for suitors--Tom Ashburne and Padraic Burke who is Valentina's own cousin (smacks of incest, no?). Once in "the East" Valentina falls into all kinds of melodramatic, sadistic sexual traps which I did not find erotic so much as disturbing and a little disgusting. Methnks Small needs to lay off the harem intrigue--it really does get dull. Finally, this book includes threads from Love Wild and Fair and the Kadin, in addition to previous O'Malley novels. This makes for more of a curtain call than a book.

In closing, I did find Valentina's special relationship with Elizabeth I to be tender and touching. The two characters seem to bring out the excellence in each other. Why not dump the questionable romance and craft a novel between England's great ruler and her favorite servant?