A Message from Cupid [Mass Market Paperback]

Victoria Barrett (Author), Elizabeth Bevarly (Author), Emily Carmichael (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1998

Four beloved romance authors strike arrow to bow to bring readers a Valentine's collection to savor throughout the year! Set in contemporary America, this anthology has an irresistible theme: Cupid, in disguise, brings lovers together. Stories include Victoria Barrett's "Cupid's Arrow", Elizabeth Bevarly's "Top Cat and Tales", Margaret Brownley's "Winning Ticket", and Emily Carmichael's "Wheels of Love". Ads in "Romantic Times". .

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

This charming collection of stories celebrates Valentine's Day with tales of lovers who need a little nudge from Cupid to smooth the path to true affection.

In "Cupid's Arrow" by Victoria Barrett, lovely Amanda Jensen wants to make her card shop a success, but her mother wants her to marry well and has even picked out the man: Bradley. An eccentric bag lady, Chatty, encourages Amanda to live her own life and introduces Amanda to her handsome son, Max. Max warms Amanda's heart, but can she refuse her mother and Bradley? If Cupid doesn't shoot his arrow quickly, Amanda may find herself with more than one bridegroom.

Author Elizabeth Bevarly contributes "Top Cat and Tales," a delightful story of a teenaged Cupid who runs afoul of his mother, Aphrodite; as punishment, he is sent to modern-day America in the guise of a cat to do a good deed. But Cupid's matchmaking work is cut out for him: a shy professor, Abby Walden, may lust after her upstairs neighbor in secret, but confronting him in person is another thing entirely.

Cupid must rise to innovative heights in Margaret Brownley's "Winning Ticket" when he's required to reunite Paige Roberts and her ex-husband, Jeff. Will sharing a $3 million lottery ticket be enough to reconcile these star-crossed lovers?

In "Wheels of Love" by Emily Carmichael, Cupid's agent, Hearts, disguises herself as a 1966 Austin Healey recently purchased by Eric Neal. Eric's engaged to his childhood sweetheart, Mary Elizabeth, but is she really his one true love? And is Eric really Mary Elizabeth's? It's going to take the help of Hearts and her co-agent, Flowers, to find soul mates for Eric and Mary Elizabeth.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press (February 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312964838
• ISBN-13: 978-0312964832
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,958,858 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Victoria Barrett is an early pen name for the award-winning author, Vicki Hinze. Please visit the Vicki Hinze page on Author Central or Vicki's website www.vickihinze.com for more information.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Charming!, June 12, 2001

By 

Tanya V. "Bookwyrm" (Pittsburgh, PA United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Message from Cupid (Mass Market Paperback)

This is one of the better "novella" anthologies I've read in awhile.

Carmichael's "Wheels of Love" is a cute story of two people who are initially willing to marry for pragmatic reasons but find that true love is actually out there waiting. The comedic intervention of "romantic instigators," taking the form of a car and a computer, add a bit of spice, and the characterization of Samantha and the development of her relationship with Eric is especially well-drawn for a short story.

Barrett's "Cupid's Arrow" is also very charming, with wonderful development of the main character, Amanda, and her "bag lady" friend, Chatty. My only complaint is that Barrett includes several different romantic impasses between Max and Amanda that aren't explained or developed, so I ended up feeling confused as to why, exactly, they were problems at all. I know that the novella can be an impediment to such development, but even a short explanation (even an short sentence that said Amanda recognized Max's name and position) would have helped.

Bevarly's "Top Cat and Tales" was my personal favorite (although I must admit that Bevarly is one of my favorite authors of contemporary romances anyway). I laughed out loud repeatedly as I read the tale. I thought Cupid incredibly cute, and Abby was well-drawn and easily understood and liked. (Personally, I wish a Joel lived in MY building!) My only quibble is that the novella format, and the way the story developed, meant that the main characters "fell in love" without any real reason or provocation.

I thought Brownley's "Winning Ticket" was the weakest tale in the bunch, although it's by no means a bad story. Speaking honestly, it was probably the story where the characters "falling in love" made the most sense in the novella format, since they had a relationship and memories on which to build. But I didn't end up liking either of the characters all that much, and sometimes felt the motivations of the characters were too shallow.

All in all, though, this is a lovely book, full of stories I thoroughly enjoyed and will definitely re-read! A keeper for anyone that likes anthologies, and for anyone looking for new authors to discover.