Customer Reviews

Once upon a Star

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

This collection of short stories is a sequel of sorts to last years short story collection, Once Upon a Castle, and unlike most story collections there is not a stinker story in it. These are imaganitive short romance's that feature a star as an important part of the story line and a fantasy element to each of the short romances.

Having read ONCE UPON A CASTLE, I couldn't wait to read ONCE UPON A STAR. I can honestly say, each author has her own magic and each story has it's own enchanting gift of entertainment.

Ever After by Nora Roberts You know Nora Roberts; she's yet to write one that isn't a winner. The woman can paint a picture with her words--it's amazing! Allena buys a magical necklace and finds herself on a magical trip. When Conal meets Allena, he realizes his fight with the past is going to be even more difficult than he ever imagined. A fanciful, entertaining read.

Catch A Falling Star by Jill Gregory Jill Gregory's historical short story is light on magic and heavy on romance. I love historical reads and found this one enjoyable. Princess Lianna is being forced into a marriage with Ambrose the Barbarian. She hates the thought of being married to a barbarian and resents that he will not let her use her special gift. While Ambrose fights for the right to keep his inherited property, Lianna finds her self fighting for the right to keep her heart. They will teach you a lesson in love and loyalty.

The Curse of Castle Clough by Ruth Ryan Langan A ghostly read. This is one of two that I enjoyed the most. Warming up to the characters (especially Jamie) was no problem at all! When dropped off at her next assignment, the driver warns Estelle that the castle is cursed. Her job is to estimate and sell some family antiques for Lord Cameron, who is being forced to liquidate his precious family heirlooms. A delightful read!

Starry, Starry Night by Marianne Willman This is the second of the two that I enjoyed the most. It's a Time Travel that will captivate you, and a romance that will move you. After coming to Cornwall, Lily finds her self lost and in danger. A stranger appears to save her, yet disappears again. Rees finds himself haunted by the site of a woman in a white dress, and each time he reaches for her, she disappears. A wonderful experience of love reaching through time.

A great read.

"Once Upon a Star" is a delightful anthology filled with four fantastic tales of magic and true love. Every story is well-written and utterly enthralling, making it nearly impossible for me to pick a favourite. Each of these four talented authors shines in the original and intriguing stories they have created.

"Ever After" by Nora Roberts tells the story of Allena Kennedy, who just can't find her place in the world. While in Ireland helping her stepsister Margaret run her tour company, Allena buys a beautiful star pendant. The next thing Allena knows, she has missed the ferry she was supposed to be taking, but then finds a boy with a boat to take her where she needs to go. But Allena ends up on Dolman Island, miles from where she should be, in the midst of a wild storm.
Reclusive Conal O'Neil finds Allena out in the storm and reluctantly brings her back to his home. Though at first he is rude and standoffish, Conal can't resist Allena's charms, as she makes his house feel like a home for the first time in years. But Conal knows from the star pendant around Allena's neck that she is the woman the fates have chosen for him. Determined to make his own destiny, and not allow his life to be dictated by fate, Conal tries to push Allena away, and may just be throwing away his one chance at happiness and true love!
Being a Nora Roberts story, "Ever After" is undeniably a fabulous read.

"Catch A Falling Star" by Jill Gregory is a wonderful historical romance with just a dash of magic thrown in. Princess Lianna of Penmarren has promised to marry Ambrose the Barbarian to keep peace in her father's land. But Lianna is terrified by the prospect, as Ambrose is a ruthless warrior who supposedly murdered his first wife. The day before the wedding is planned, Ambrose arrives in the middle of the night demanding Lianna marry him at once and return to his home at Crow's Keep. Ambrose's homeland of Blackenstar is once again under attack, and he must go at once to defend it. So Lianna marries Ambrose, counting on her father's promise that a great army will come to rescue her soon.
But as Lianna gets to know Ambrose, she finds he is not the heartless monster she has heard about. Lianna discovers the real Ambrose, a fair and compassionate man who his people regard with affection and respect, forced to defend his lands against a never-ending onslaught of invaders. Lianna finds incredible passion and tenderness in Ambrose's arms, and falls deeply in love with him. But soon the day Lianna has dreaded comes, when she learns the attack on Crow's Keep is imminent. Will Lianna find a way to save Ambrose's home? And will Ambrose believe that Lianna truly loves him, or will he be too shattered by her apparent betrayal to see the love she feels in her heart?
This was an excellent tale, that had me really caring about Ambrose and Lianna, and praying for a happy ending.

"The Curse of Castle Clough" by Ruth Ryan Langan tells the story of Lord Robert Cameron. Rob's heartless and incredibly wealthy ex-brother-in-law, Griffin Mackenzie, lent his late father fifteen million pounds for his many debts. Knowing Rob will never be able to come up with that much money, Griffin gives him one month before Castle Clough becomes his. Desperate to keep his beloved home from Griffin, Rob hires a highly regarded auction house in the U.S. to sell his precious family heirlooms in hopes of raising the money that way.
When Professor Estelle Sinclair arrives, she is in awe of Castle Clough's beautiful antiques. But when she finds out about Rob's plight from a helpful spirit, she joins him in his fight, and falls head over heels in love. As Estelle and Rob search for a way to save Castle Clough, they get a glimmer of hope from their spirit helper, the ghost of a young boy named Jamie. If Jamie can just lead them to the "Star of Scotland", a priceless diamond lost hundreds of years ago; their problems would be solved. But does the Star of Scotland really exist? And if so, will they be able to find it before Castle Clough is lost to the Cameron family forever?
This was a heart-warming tale containing a truly lovely romance and just the right dose of fantasy. I loved everything about it!

"Starry, Starry Night" by Marianne Willman is an excellent tale that rounds out the book perfectly. Lily Kendall is on a much-needed vacation in St. Dunstan's village in Cornwall. When she takes a nighttime walk along the beach, she gets caught by the rising tide, and narrowly escapes a watery grave because of a star-shaped window and the help of a handsome and mysterious man. The man, Rees Tregarrick, takes Lily home, leaves her with his housekeeper then rudely disappears. But when Lily awakes the next morning, she is no longer in Rees' home, but instead in a museum where Rees Tregarrick lived over a hundred years ago. Confused and off-balance, Lily is convinced it was all a dream.
Several more encounters with Rees, however, convince Lily that she has somehow found a doorway into the past. But Lily has fallen deeply in love with Rees, and wants to spend her life with him. Are Rees and Lily destined to spend separate, lonely lives yearning for what can never be? Or is their love strong enough to overcome time itself?
This is beautifully written and captivating tale that left me sighing over the magic of true love.

"Once Upon a Star" is a superior romance anthology that doesn't contain even one poor story. I loved all the tales in this book, and I highly recommend it. This is a terrific read and one you definitely don't want to miss!

There are a couple good and very descriptive in depth reviews written already, so this is just my opinion:

Ever After by Nora Roberts
It's Nora. Excellent as usual.

Catch A Falling Star by Jill Gregory
An historical. Not my genre, but this story is very good. I liked the female lead.

The Curse of Castle Clough by Ruth Ryan Langan
My favorite and an introduction to Ms. Langan. Since reading this book, I have read other novels by her. I wasn't disappointed.

Starry, Starry Night by Marianne Willman
Passionate love story. Beautifully written.

All in all you will read these stories again.

I wouldn't say that this book is great nor a waste. The stories were pretty good actually even though I find the pace quiet slow and some of the stories do not keep with the track. I simply adore the story by Jill Geogery, 'Catch a Falling Star'. It was wonderfully woven, and the love that flourish between Lianna and Ambrose was wonderfully done. I pitied Ambrose for his dark past and I adore Lianna for her stubbornness to stand for her own love. As for Nora Roberts story, entitled 'Ever After', the story is as enchanting as it was in a romantic faraway place that any woman could dream of; on an island, with your man, far from civilisation. The other two stories do come to my standard although I didn't enjoy the stories very much. But, I do encourage you, if you love these authors, do buy the book since I consider it will worth your money.

And that's why I bought it. "Catch a Falling Star" is by far the best one and that's why I purchased the book in the first place. I didn't really like all the other three stories. The only con about "Catch a Falling Star" is that it's TOO short. That means I want more, MorE, MORE!!! But kinda figures since I knew it was an anthology and all the stories are bound to be short. Dang it!

I'm a sucker for stories like how everyone thinks of this guy as an "ass" but he's not really how everyone perceives him...kinda like Mr. Darcy;-P Sure proves how wrong everyone is and how the guy is sooooo sweet...(sigh)

*** NORA ROBERTS-EVER AFTER- I assumed her story would top the others but I found it rather bland. I must give this author her due, however; she has an uncanny ability to give depthful insight into the careers of her heroines, whether it's a chef, an artist, a dancer, or in this case, a homemaker, Allena's true calling. Conal was okay, but this guy was supposed to be a famous painter yet very little was said about it; one line only, I think. Allena was a wonderful girl with a sparkling personality, the only saving grace to this story.

***** JILL GREGORY-CATCH A FALLING STAR-The best of the lot, I was hooked from the first sentence. Ambrose was a true hero, vulnerable yet strong, and extraordinarily handsome to boot. Princess Lianna was quite the heroine, she would have done anything to prove her love to Ambrose. I truly didn't want this one to end.

****RUTH RYAN LANGAN-THE CURSE OF CASTLE CLOUGH-I liked the premise of this story; Estelle goes to Scotland and gets to live in a castle surrounded by fabulous, historic antiques, and is rewarded with a magnetic hero, a handsome lord named Rob Cameron. But...as adorable as Jamie was, the heart and depth of this story came at his expense; his existence was sad.

****MARIANNE WILLMAN-STARRY, STARRY, NIGHT-This was a really good story; Rees was moody, but I didn't find him offensive in the least. Lily was great, half the time she didn't know if she was losing her mind, though! There was no great mystery here and the love scenes are definitely more detailed compared to the other 3 stories.

I am a huge Nora Roberts Fan! Plus I love the fantasy -romance novels. This book, by 4 fantastic authors, offers 4 great love stories each with an extra twist. I liked the idea of four shorter stories because then I was able to get in my reading "fix" during my limited free time.

I had already read the Nora Roberts Spellbound in another book, but the additional stories were absolutely wonderful. I am glad I bought the book. Now I want all of the Once Upon books!

I really enjoyed these short reads. They are just the perfect length. I loved the originality of them and encourage everyone to read them. I read a story each night and found myself dreaming of the wonderful plots and characters in the book.