Midnight Bride: A Novel [Mass Market Paperback]

Susan Carroll (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 26, 2006

In her award-winning historical novel The Bride Finder, bestselling author Susan Carroll bewitched readers with the legend of the St. Leger men--the descendants of a medieval sorcerer haunted by an unnatural past. Now Carroll once again conjures the unforgettable castle by the sea--a place where love is as mysterious and invincible as the family legacy. . . .

Valentine St. Leger is a healer with a wounded heart. Born with the amazing gift to eliminate the suffering of others by taking their pain into his own body, Val's gentle hands cannot change a tormenting truth: he will never marry. According to history, should he defy his destiny and wed, his unfortunate bride would be doomed to an early death. Though he aches for the one woman who knows all his secrets, he cannot return her passion. Until a night of magic transforms Val into a different man, a man with desires he can no longer resist.

Kate Fitzleger has loved Val almost her entire life and is not about to let a foolish superstition ruin her chance for happiness. Venturing into a forbidden room of the St. Leger castle to steal an ancient book of sorcery, she desperately hopes to find a powerful love potion. On All Hallow's Eve, when the spirits of good and evil mingle upon the earth, Kate tempts fate with an unholy spell that goes awry.

When Val awakens, he has no memory of the bizarre events that have changed him--the visit from an old enemy or the return of a lost heirloom that has altered his soul. All he knows is that life is for the living . . . and his fair Kate is ripe for seduction. He will tempt heaven and hell to have her--even if it means he could lose her forever.

Brimming with enchanting characters and stunning atmosphere, Valentine's Bride is a romantic masterpiece that will hold your imagination captive and provide a glimpse of a timeless world found only in dreams or the most treasured love stories.


From the Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Setting: Torrecombe, Cornwall, 1770s

Sensuality rating: 7

Hip, hip, hooray! Susan Carroll's Midnight Bride, the third in the St. Leger series, will delight readers with its piquant humor, fiery sensuality, and white-knuckled suspense. Dr. Valentine St. Leger, younger son of Anatole and Madeline St. Leger, is a gifted healer. But his gift, the ability to eradicate his patients' suffering by absorbing it himself, has left Val partially crippled after healing his brother Lance's battle wounds. That matters nothing to Kate Fitzleger, adopted daughter of the St. Leger's bride finder; Kate has loved Val all her life and will do anything--even turn to the dark arts--to make Val return her love and choose her for his bride.

But the St. Leger legend conspires against Val and Kate, promising an untimely death for any woman foolhardy enough to marry into the family. When fate intervenes in the form of a malignant stranger, Val finds himself transformed, ready to risk all--even Kate's life--to slake the passion burning for the mischievous sprite who loves him. Kate, initially thrilled by Val's passionate overtures, begins to question the changes in the man she loves. Could it be just the magic talking? Susan Carroll's suspenseful tale of the supernatural and sexy star-crossed lovers is a page-turner and sure to be another hit. Carroll's fans eagerly await each new offering; expect great things from this gifted storyteller. --Alison Trinkle --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

"It is always dangerous to use magic to trifle with the human heart." This declaration, uttered by Prospero, the ghost of a once powerful medieval sorcerer and now a ghost, offers a one-line plot summary of this simplistic yet bewitching 19th-century historical romance. Carroll continues the St. Leger family saga (The Bride Finder; The Night Drifter) with the story of Dr. Valentine St. Leger, a shy descendant of Prospero who possesses a supernatural gift for healing others by absorbing their pain into his own body. The 32-year-old Val has been condemned to a solitary life by a family superstition, which, if ignored, would result in tragedy. Beautiful and feisty Kate Fitzleger, however, has loved Val ever since she came to his English country village when she was adopted by a local. Not one to let family tradition stand in her way, Kate sets out to find a book of sorcery in Prospero's deserted tower. She steals the wizard's tome and, disregarding his warning, casts a spell on her beloved. In the meantime, a sickly midnight visitor appears at Val's home bearing a magic crystal that once belonged to the St. Legers. The talisman has a strange effect on Val, curing his disabled leg and stirring his darker passions. The stranger, whom Val recognizes as Rafe Mortmain, sworn enemy to the St. Leger family, escapes, but not without feeling a change in himself as well. Believing that her spell is the cause of Val's corruption, Kate desperately tries to revoke it. But the only one who can help her is Rafe, and that will mean ending a centuries-old feud. Carroll's swift-moving tale won't disappoint her fans. National ad/promo.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (December 26, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345436369
• ISBN-13: 978-0345436368
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 1.2 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #554,229 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Magically OUTSTANDING, December 12, 2002

By 

M. Rondeau (West Springfield, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Midnight Bride (Hardcover)

Susan Carroll's Midnight Bride, the third in the St. Leger series, is absolutely awesome! Dr. Valentine St. Leger, younger twin son of Anatole and Madeline St. Leger (from The Bride Finder), is a doctor. As most all St. Legers, he has a gift that enables him to draw the pain of his patients into himself - draining at first, but after resting, he can then recover. Unfortunately, when he first used this gift to save his twin brother Lance's life, he wasn't able to control the gift and it left him with a crippled leg. Val is often referred to as Saint Valentine because of his unrelenting quest to serve those in pain and would never be or do anything that would inadvertently hurt another person.

To Kate Fitzleger, adopted daughter of the St. Leger's bride finder; Val has been her hero, confidante, teacher and friend - the man she knows she will love for all time - no matter what her adopted mother, Effie Fitzleger, the `Bride Finder' says. She is determined that Val will be hers someday and will do anything to have it happen - including braving the old tower and the lair of the legendary ghost of Prospero St. Leger to find a `love spell' to cast over Val. Kate would not believe the warnings and would disregard the legends that promised an untimely death to women not chosen by the `Bride Finder'.
Adding to this, enter an old enemy, Rafe Mortmain, whose sole purpose in returning to Cornwall, is to exact revenge upon Saint Valentine - whom he blames for all the bad things that have happened in his life, including the loss of the one true friend he ever thought he had - Val's twin brother Lance.

At the moment the determined Kate is casting her love spell another supernatural and evil event is taking place. As a result, Val turns into a real dark and nasty person and lets his lust for Kate - who he once treated with the dignity of a lady - take over - releasing the `dark side' of his soul. Kate, delighted at first, by the change in the quiet and courteous Val, comes around to finally understanding that you can't force love but would this realization come too late to save the soul of her best friend.

This book is a real page-turner with suspense filled action. Best-selling author Susan Carroll has created a magnificent series here that I hope will continue beyond this third book. The resident guardian ghost - Prospero - seems to play a much stronger role in this story only adding to the mystical feeling. Bravo Ms. Carroll you've created a most charming and wonderfully warm family of new `friends' for me!

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome!, June 21, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Midnight Bride (Hardcover)

I read romance novels like they are going out of style. At times I feel as if I have read it all. It seems at times as if all romance novels are just one great repeating book with different characters. However, Midnight Bride was a breath of fresh air. I found the plot to be new and exciting. I even began to feel compassion for the villian. I thought it was well written and delightful. Kate was unlike any heroine I have ever read. This was actually the first Susan Carroll book I have ever read but I plan on reading the first two books in the St. Leger saga. The third book didn't really give too much away on the other stories, I am sure I will enjoy the first two books just as much as I enjoyed the thrid.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE MIDNIGHT BRIDE - great!, May 29, 2001

By 

Wanda Scarpinato (Houston, Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Midnight Bride (Hardcover)

Ms. Carroll has written a wonderful sequel to THE BRIDE FINDER and THE NIGHT DRIFTER. Val St. Leger is a doctor who has the ability to absorb his patient's pain. He has been told by the Bride Finder that he will never have a bride. However, Val is feeling the St. Leger "need to wed" and wants Kate Fitzleger who is the adopted daughter of the Bride Finder. Kate wants Val, even if it means going against the tradition of the Bride Finder and its potential for tragedy. A shard of magic crystal and the return of a family enemy begins this interesting and exciting novel. As an avid reader, I constantly weigh the price against how badly (and how quickly) I want to read the novel. I wanted this one and paid the hard-back price. It was money well spent.