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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Summer Sizzler, May 2, 2009
This review is from: A Passion Denied (The Daughters of Boston, Book 3) (Paperback)
Julie Lessman is a master (or should I use the term mistress) of taking her readers on an emotional rollercoaster ride. Her characters, despite the fact she has so many of them involved in the story, come alive as real people and not caricatures gilded with religious veneer. The extended Connor family members are normally admirable but not flawless people. They try to cling to God, but the common struggles all humans must deal with in the areas of pride and passion never stray far from their door. The exposé of pride and its damaging effects is one of the highlights of this book. I would hazard a guess that pride has killed more marriages than lust. Julie does a great job of convincing her readers that if they want precious love to last, pride must be laid aside so the spouse can come astride and peace can abide. (Sorry, I just had a poetic moment). At times I was provoked enough to want to slap one of the characters on the side of the head and tell them to wake up and smell the Irish coffee. I had to keep telling myself, this is just a book.
This is not a lightweight work in more than one regard (it contains nearly 500 pages). Most of the action involves some aspect of romance, even among the married couples. This is not erotica, but the mention of sexual arousal and foreplay is not an infrequent visitor to the plotline. This book will not be confused with a Janette Oke story. I think it is healthy for Christians to acknowledge that they are human and have sexual appetites. This book might contain an excess of the sexual passion aspect, but the lesson is well delivered - sexual passion without God's love is a recipe for disaster. Decisions based on the heat of moment may freeze the blood in the future. So despite being prominent throughout the story, passion is not enthroned here. A wealth of scriptural references provide a counterbalance to the passion pitting desire to please oneself against desire to please God. Much of the conflict in the story arises within the characters dealing with this internal tug of war. Another cute element of conflict was the relationship between almost eleven-year-old Katie and a street Urchin named Cluny, a young teenager befriended by Brady. Katie's precocious comments massaged my funny bone.
The author seemed to take pains to spice up the story by introducing elements of the society in this timeframe. Thoroughly Modern Millie came to my mind as Lizzie's haircut was described in the beginning of the story. Ironically, the character pushing Beth to embrace modernism with her stylish new name of Lizzie and hairdo was named Millie. Things like Keds, toasters, Saltines, and basketball hoops made cameo appearances. I actually did some research to make sure the copy editor didn't mess up here and checked on a few dates to make sure they were around in 1922.
Julie even managed to smuggle in the dreaded submission clause from Ephesians. Her take on it was interesting: submission = respect. Men want to be respected above all else, and if they receive that precious commodity, they are able to cherish their wives, which is what women desire above all else. I'll buy that into philosophy though that is on the simplistic side of things. I had the audacity to include my interpretation of that passage in one of my books. One aspect of the spiritual tangent that I found perhaps out of tune with reality was the combination of Evangelical Christian jargon with Catholicism. I was raised as a Catholic in the 1950's and 60's. Perhaps we were behind the times in South Dakota, but Bible reading seemed to be something that was still the realm of the clergy at that time. I am aware the church has changed a lot since then.
There was a little mystique included which allows the romantic sleuths to engage their deductive reasoning. We're allowed to know that John Brady has a problem in his past and are given snitches of information to let us guess at what it is. That secret really drives the story since it seems to prevent John from letting himself accept Lizzie as a woman instead of just as a sister. Julie uses just enough hinting to give us insight, but not enough to totally solve the mystery. I had most of it figured out, but there were some surprising twists in the end that left me applauding the author. I suggest you get a copy and find out for yourself, unless you're afraid of emotional roller coasters.
Donald James Parker - Author
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Loved it, loved it, loved it!! Bravo. Encore! More, more!!, May 1, 2009
This review is from: A Passion Denied (The Daughters of Boston, Book 3) (Paperback)
Julie Lessman has done it again. A Passion Denied, is smokin' hot, has more twists and turns than a roller coaster on speed, and more passion than newlyweds on their honeymoon. But the passion isn't just physical; it's spiritual, emotional, and logical, with a twist of vixen and seduction. Julie takes passion to the edge. An edge you want to revisit time and again.
I absolutely love reading stories where strong romance is threaded throughout the entire book. A Passion Denied, is definitely one of the best of this kind. I know this will sound cliché, but I truly could not put this book down. Julie's characters are unforgettable, and there wasn't one boring spot in the entire 475 pages. And the other two in the, Daughters of Boston series, are equally as fabulous as this one. So if you haven't read, A Passion Most Pure, Book 1, and, A Passion Redeemed, Book 2, you've got to make haste and get them.
In, A Passion Denied, things aren't as they appear. Secret webs of betrayals, lies, deceptions, seductions, stolen kisses, passions denied, and haunting pasts are spun throughout this book, and only God's miraculous power can change things.
The heroine, Lizzie O'Connor is in love with John Brady and has been since she was thirteen. But John doesn't return her love and sees her only as his little sister. Can she convince him she's not a little girl anymore, but a woman--a woman in love?
Demons from the hero's past haunt John, perpetually tormenting and ravishing his spirit, soul, and body. Those same demons have him fleeing from the opposite sex like a rabbit being pursued by a starving bobcat. Why? What's he so afraid of? Will he ever be free to love? Or is John called to live a life of service to God, a service that means he can never marry? Or is he running away from something...or someone? If so, whom or what?
Charity is up to her old tricks. Is that bad or good?
Faith's husband, Collin, is on a mission to get his wife pregnant. Is it because he really wants children, or are other motives at work here?
Patrick O'Connor discovers a hidden secret that threatens to destroy his twenty-seven year marriage to Marcy, the respect of his children, and his walk with God. What is this secret?
These are just a few teasers to whet your appetite. If you want to know the answers to these question, then purchase a copy of, A Passion Denied, to find out the answers. You won't be sorry.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Julie Lessman's Done it Again!, April 30, 2009
This review is from: A Passion Denied (The Daughters of Boston, Book 3) (Paperback)
Passion, scandal, heartbreak, love, giving, taking, forgiving, lies, truths... redemption. Where to begin? Julie Lessman is most definitely not your average author. Do you want truth? Reality? Passion? Then she's your gal.
A Passion Denied hits all points, draws you into the O'Connor family and the lives of two different but perfectly matched people. One who is hungry for God and adores the man that feeds that hunger and then one who is everything a man of God should be, but holds onto a past that is anything but holy. But he is a real man. Having to deal with the fact that he's human and not perfect. He loves as a man should love and wants as a man should want. She, sweet and tenderhearted, has to come to terms that love isn't always a fairytale, it's real and alive.
A beautiful story of redemption and passion. Romance that makes your toes curl and heartbreak that makes you want to cry along with the characters.
Julie Lessman never leaves you bored, I felt like my brain was swinging from one thing to the next, completely caught up and seeing things in myself that related to these characters. An eye opener that made me thankful for grace and humbled that no matter what or where I've been God is merciful and he does indeed forgive the past and sets you on the right path, a new life with the testimony of the old.
A love that goes beyond all hurt, a love that gives and doesn't always take, a love that sees past all the indiscretions and misunderstandings, a love that is born only by God, this is the kind of love and passion that Julie Lessman writes about.
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