Customer Reviews

Pirate and the Pagan

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Yes, I have been disappointed by Virigina Henley in the past. Some of her books have been just like reading raunchy porn and it was difficult to relate to characters through the smut...but sometimes she gets it right and The Pirate and the Pagan is perfected example of this.

Summer, or "Cat" as is her nickname, is a divine portrayl of humanity and survival, fire and passion. I loved her completely and understood her fiery tempers. She is just as the title of the book implies...a Pagan...a earthy Goddess.

Ruark is a man dominated by is passions. A master authoritarian and regal in bearing. He is devilishly handsome and sensual in his appetites. A man of two sides. Hot tempered and jealous in one instant and devistatingly tender the next.

They instantly feel each others pull.

So what do you expect when two incindiary spirits collide? They explode! The are passionate for each other even when they are tearing each other apart. Henley drags these two through the proverbial mud and I was left on the edge of my seat, so to speak, to see how on earth they would get through their mess.

The sex, as some complained about in their reviews, was in my mind absolutely appropriate. It wouldn't be at all appropriate for them to be luke warm for each other. And in my opinion what makes sex scenes in books unreadable is when the story is so poorly written that the book is reduced to paragraphs between episodes of smut.

Henley doesn't write ignorant books. Even the Henley books I hated (hated isn't the same thing as indifferent mind you)showed care in research and time and thought into story progression. Her writing is so important she never writes mindless filler you can skip over. You could never skim her book and know whats going on as you can with some other authors.

This book is going on my Forever--save them from a burning building--shelf along with it's equals, Whitney My Love and Kingdom of Dreams by Judith McNaught, Lady Sofia's Lover by Lisa Kleypas, The Lady Lies by Samantha Saxon, Knight in Shining Armor by Jude Deveraux, Outlander by Diana Gabaldon and All Through the Night by Connie Brockway.

I have just recently "found" Virginia Henley, and so far with the exception of just one book (The Raven and the Rose) I have loved them all. Set during the reign of Charles II Raurk and Cat's love story is a page turner. A wonderful love story with a surprise twist at the end. From the Court of Charles II to the wild wind swept Cornish coast to the wild and sexy pirate Rory this is a great love story. The characters are human and make mistakes but in the end what brings the characters together in the first place, ties them together in the end. Rich with historic accounts of the Great London Fire, the Plauge, and the Dutch war and actual historic figures you will not be let down.

This novel is both trash and an aphrodesiac. I put it down in disgust, and I pick it back up to read some more. I read parts out loud to the laughter of everyone in my carpool, then tell them to shut up so I can continue reading. The opening pages were so full of gaudy double-entendres that I nearly tossed the book in the trash when I first opened it. But I kept reading. I hate it, and I love it.

So why do I continue to read it? Better yet, WHY AM I ON MY THIRD COPY???

How many more times can you describe sex? And what is with the boardwalk t-shirt quotes? "If it swells, ride it." "Heaven doesn't want me and hell's afraid I'll take over!" This book should come with a sound-effects button to push for a flourish of trumpets after stupid sayings like that. Those phrases just don't work coming out of the mouths of 18th-century people.

Why do the heroines always swagger prettily and the men glare thunderously? Why do the heroines of Henley's novels ALWAYS have "upthrusting" and "impudent" body parts? Why do the men's descriptions defy reality? For the love of God...there's got to be a better way to word this!

And yet...for all the over-the-top descriptions, all the glorious flowing hair and hard, fur-pelted chests, all the sea spray and emerald eyes and upthrusting impudence, there's a decent story. A starving girl makes a desperate attempt to pay off a mortgage on her home, and all she has to pawn is her good looks and her keen mind. Her savior just happens to be the magistrate of the district, feared by many smugglers. What happens next, I leave to you to find out.

It's obvious Ms. Henley researches the time period, and she can tell a wonderful story, once you get past all the treacle, windswept nonsense, and fluttering lashes. This is my favorite of her historical/hysterical romances, and I'll probably be looking for a fourth copy soon.

I was an avid romance reader for over 20 years. I stopped reading a few years back as I simply got bored with the plot lines and characters - everything started blending after awhile. I returned to reading last year and found a handful of interesting and talented authors to fire up my interest and imagination again. I picked up Virigina Henley again. I thought I'd try her again all these years later and remind myself of her ability.

Sadly...memory came flooding back within 1-2 chapters of reading "The Pirate & The Pagan". I remembered clearly why I stopped reading VH books.

1) Although her heroines are feisty, full of passion and beautiful...they often have serious potty mouths, attempt the most unusual activities, go over-board in everything they do and are usually self-centered chits - they are simply NOT believable or truely likeable main female characters. It took Summer having a baby and being imprisoned for her to stop being a selfish, spoiled and rotten little chit.

2) Although her hero's are often hot looking, well built, clearly well endowed and passionate leads...they are also hot headed, violent, angry, and a bit on the condescending side of things - not likeable traits in our main male leads.

3) Sex occurs early and often and many of the love scenes border on the female being smacked around and/or being taken by force or worse - not appealing at all.

In this book, Rory/Ruark tossed and slapped Summer around one too many times for me. They forced her into sex scenes after dark arguments and heated fights. She may have been sexually attracted to them and wanted to be together but, not under those circumstances and she made that clear. He/they never apologized for their actions when out of line. She got angry each time but, almost seemed to accept this behavior because "she loved the man". Yuck! Smacking a woman around was never in fashion - whether this book was written in 1880, 1990 or 2006!

Some readers felt the twist of the twin brothers "Ruark" and "Rory" was great. I thought it was poorly written, easy to see around and wasn't believable in the least. Each time one brother was around, the other was missing. They looked like each other, acted like one another, smelled like the other and Summer was supposed to be so attuned to each man? Her soul mate? Rory laughed and joked, Ruark was deep and serious - you mean a woman who loves you beyond all else couldn't see past this until the very end? Summer was clueless along with beautiful and self-centered.

I didn't find it enjoyable that Summer could so easily have sex with one brother, get pregnant while married to the other and play all these games with each of them. In turn, they played games with her. Back and forth it went. Sex, adultry, lies and more lies. Hard to find redeeming characteristics in any of the main characters - Summer, Ruark and Rory. Frankly, the butler was the most honrorable and decent person in the whole book!

I could go on and on about all the foolish things in this story but, really it was simply about two people hot for each other. They fought, made up, had hot sex scenes, got mad again, misunderstandings abound, a few smacks occur now and then and it's back to fighting again. It was one big cycle. I don't feel the sex scenes were gross or untasteful - for sex scenes - they were written fine. It just happened too often to be interesting and exciting. You knew within each chapter Rory/Ruark would meet up with Summer and fireworks would fly no matter what and off they would go - mating away like rabbits in the spring.

If you are looking for a stimulating, imaginative and emotional read - this is not for you. If you just want some heavy sex scenes and a few man dominating woman passages, this is for you. I would recommend you don't waste your money on this book. It's outdated, boring and predictable. There are so many great books and authors out there - both older ones and newer ones. DON'T buy this book if you have any quality standards when it comes to a romance story.

Recommended stories:

Jacquie D'Alessandro - Not Quite A Gentleman, The Bride Thief
Mia Ryan - The Duchess Diaries
Laura Guhrke - His Every Kiss
Sam Garver - One Night To Be Sinful
Anne Grace - The Last Waltz
Pat Grasso - To Love a Princess
Gaelen Foley - The Duke, Devil Takes a Bride
Katherine Sutcliffe - Dream Fever, Fire In The Heart, Shadowplay
Brenda Joyce - After Innocence, Secrets, The Prize
Judith McNaught - Whitney My Love, Almost Heaven
Meagen McKinney - Till Dawn Tames The Night, My Wicked Enchantress, When Angels Fall
Lisa Kleypas - Dreaming of You, Because You Are MIne, Then Came You, Where Dreams Begin
Victoria Alexander - When We Meet Again, The Husband List
Cathy Maxwell - The Lady is Tempted, Because of You
Karen Ranney - Till We Next Meet
Connie Brockway - All Through The Night
Liz Carlyle - No True Gentleman
Kat Martin - Wicked Promise
Sabrina Jefferies - The Pirate Lord, One Night With a Prince
Jillian Hunter - Daring, Abandoned, The English Scoundrel

These books offer deeper characters, passionate love scenes and an intriguing plot. It's a solid combination of emotional intensity and physical bonding. Enjoy these others - they are much more worth it!

I know I won't be popular for what I said but...it's at least truthful and from someone who has read hundreds if not thousands of books in 20 years. To each his own I guess is how we should leave it...and leave this one I will!

After reading the reviews posted here, I took a chance and tried this book -- not expecting much. Well, was I in for a pleasant surprise! This is one of the most enjoyable historical romance novels I've read in years. From their first meeting, the sparks flew and it was obvious Summer and Ruark were a perfect match for each other. The problem is, both were too stubborn to admit it to each other. I was totally shocked by some of the actions both characters took, but it made for a pleasant change from the typical historical novel. The book was filled with adventure, fun, daring, and love, and the characters were likeable. After having read this book, I'm happy to say I've found another good author and I'm looking for another Henley novel.

This book is a rollercoaster of emotions. It is brilliant the way Ms. Henley makes Ruark/Rory so different from each other but one in their love for Summer. Both men separately are any woman's dream man but when put together Ruark/Rory makes anyone want to scream with pure joy. I laughed when Summer sleeps with Rory thinking that he was Ruark and I cried when Ruark sees the cell in which Summer had been prisoner and he stats to weep. The love/hate ralationship that Summer has with both men is simply histerical. I loved every word of this book and I highly recomend it.

When I saw that this book has an everage customer reviews more than 4 stars, I unquestionably believed it's the most overated book I've ever read.

Though the book got my whole attention very quickly from the beginning, I felt something wrong just after the hero and heroine getting together. This couple, Cat and Ruark, spend too much, and I mean TOO MUCH, pages after that showing their spectacularity, eagerness and variety in making love with a little progress in the story. I found myself read past the first quarter of the book very fast because I skipped most of those unnescessary and meaningless sex scenes. When I finished the book and returned to read those part, I knew that I didn't miss a thing by skipping them.

However, the most disgusting thing in this book is the heroine. Cat is potentially the most annoying, bitchy and stubborn female character in romantic fictions. Some might think she's a strong and independent girl for her love to take care of her own bussinesses without accepting any help from someone -even when she should. I'd have though the same if it wasn't for the fact that she's never solved her problems successfully by herself and that made me unable to admire her and felt sorry for her instead. Her anger and her erratic pride drove her to do a lot of silly things that cause her more troubles and in the end it caused her the worst. Most of arguements she had with Ruark (especially the one I hate the most when she got mad at him about her beloved brother) weren't suppose to happen if only she'd known a civilised way to control her temper and try to be reasonable. Moreover, she did a very shameful thing by sleeping with Rory and even fancied him when she'd been in love with Ruark, no matter what's her excuse. And in the end it seemed to me that she didn't really feel guilty for those silly things she'd done, nor did she appologise for her lack of loyalty.

Ruark isn't my ideal hero either. He's abusive, cruel, and often unreasonable. The unusual thing he'd done just to have a peace with his crazy wife made me felt sorry for him.

Even the twist in the end couldn't satisfy me. I knew all along the true identity of Rory. It's very predictable that I'm still wondering why should I call it a twist in the first place.

I admitted that the love story between Cat and Ruark is a page turner because I couldn't put the book down no matter how frustrated I was. The historical background was great as well as the secondary characters. However, to feel like stabbing someone's face throughout the story certainly isn't an ideal outcome I've expected from reading a romance. I knew how much I hate the book when I finished it and still thought the leading character didn't deserve a happy ending.

This book was the first "historical romance" I have ever read. One I got started, I could not put it down! Stayed up until 4:00am just so I could see how it ended. V.H. wrote this book with such a passion between Summer and Ruark that it jumped off the pages. Since this book I have read several historical romances and most have been fluffy and predictable. The Pirate and the Pagan has much more substance and less predictability. If you plan to read this book, do not read through all the reviews; too many people gave away too much good info that really makes the story.

A stimulating novel that explored the depths of the heroine's mind. Summer is a headstrong female who goes after what she wants. Roark and Rory are two virile men who will stop at nothing to get the girl. If I could have given this book more than five stars I would have. I couldn't put it down there were so many twists and turns this book kept me guessing until the end. I've suggested this book to all of my friends and I plan on giving it as a gift to my grandmother. Virginia Henley is under-rated.

I loved this novel.....First Summer is a great heroine who would do anything in her power to save what is rightfully hers...like any good woman would. Second, the contrast between Ruark and Rory is so powerful... it shows that Summer wants her cake and to eat it too! It also shows that Ruark would go to any lengths to be with the woman he loves...even if that does mean tricking her to be with her. Third, Summer is so brave and headstrong, something most women wish they were, and Ruark is powerful, sensual, and definitly a rake...something every woman wants in a man. Hensley did a fantastic job on this novel!