Customer Reviews

The Pirate Prince (Ascension Trilogy)

5 star:		(55)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This is a sweeping tale of adventure and betrayal set in the 1780's on the (fictional) island kingdom of Ascencion--off the coast of Genoa, Italy, and on the high seas. I think that Gaelen Foley is a very talented writer, although at times her work is a bit uneven. I found the plot and setting of this story to be both unusual and engaging and the characters are well-drawn.

At 13 years of age, Prince Lazar di Fiore had miraculously escaped during the slaughter of his entire family by his father's political enemies by jumping off a 200 foot high cliff. Fifteen years later, Lazar, now the captain of a pirate ship, returns to Ascencion to exact his revenge upon his father's betrayer--Ottavio Monteverdi, the current Governor of Ascencion--and all of the Monteverdi family. But when Allegra Monteverdi, the Governor's lovely daughter, pleads with Lazar for the lives of her family and offers herself in return for his mercy, he relents and sails away with Allegra as his captive.

Lazar is a first-rate tortured hero. He feels guilty, guilty, guilty! about running away and surviving while the rest of his family was murdered. After his escape, he was pulled from the sea by Barbary corsairs who promptly sold him into two years of dehumanizing slavery with a sadistic master; then he escaped with the help of a cruel pirate captain into his life of piracy. Since everyone he has ever loved has died (even his dog got washed overboard!), Lazar believes himself to be cursed and avoids getting close to people. He feels unworthy of his birthright--the Kingdom of Ascencion.

Allegra is a good (but long-suffering) heroine. She has a very strong social conscience and is even willing to marry someone that she doesn't love for the good of the citizens of Ascencion. When she realizes that her pirate captor is really the lost Prince Lazar, she shames and bullies him into facing up to his responsibilities to his kingdom. She is a pretty plucky heroine and I liked her.

The plot is exciting and moves along for the most part. There is the usual "sexual tension on the pirate vessel" plotline (Will he be able to overcome her moral scruples with his practiced seduction???? Of course!!! But when?????) At one point a weary and confused Allegra asks, "Why don't you just rape me and get it over with?" Lazar tells her that he would never do that "Because I know how it feels." A good answer and good reason for the consumation of their relationship to be so drawn out, I think. The eventual love scenes are *very* steamy--a Gaelen Foley specialty it seems.

I have a few quibbles with the book:
The writing is generally very good, although I find the use of modern slang expressions to be very jarring in a historical romance (the characters say things like "Have at you", "Hello there, beautiful." and "Huh?") The public displays of affection in the book would have been scandalous in the time period of its setting. The secondary characters are mostly underdeveloped (with the exception of Darius) and the villains are flat. The love between Lazar and Allegra is very beautifully developed, but Lazar's treatment of the heroine is not always first rate (to put it mildly) and I am not sure that he did enough of a grovel at the end to warrant forgiveness.

In summary, this is a well-written historical romance with an unusual setting and engaging characters.
Recommended to historical romances lovers, especially those who like high adventure tales with tortured heroes.

I decided to read this book based on the reviews and it having won best first book by an author. I read at least one to 2 romances a week and I can honestly say I have never read a book I enjoyed more than this one. Lazar the hero is sweet tortured and absolutely gorgeous. The heroine, Allegra, is strong, compassionate and delightful. I loved this book and can't wait to read Princess and Prince Charming the second and third books in the series. Gaelen Foley is now on my list of favorite authors.

The Pirate Prince..... how shall I review this book so that addict romance readers like me will go out and buy it? Well... BUY THIS BOOK AND READ IT! IT'S SO GOOD, IT'S SO GREAT!

A reviewer/reader from South Africa titled her review "A Fairy Tale of a Romance", well she's right! From the start till the end the story is just so wonderful it will keep you reading till late in the wee hours of the morning.

There are author's who write romance novels and gives you the feeling of being in the book yourself... well Gaelen Foley is one of those authors and made me feel like I was part of the novel. Reading The Pirate Prince made me wish that Ascencion (a make believe island near Italy) really does exist and that Lazar and Allegra really are the rulers of the kingdom.

Anyway, what I really want to say is that this is truly a fairy tale romance, the characters are truly wonderful and believable. I wish they would make a movie out of this!

I already have the books Princess and Prince Charming and I have also finished reading them. Actually I bought all 3 books at once and boy am I glad I did because when I finished The Pirate Prince I started on Princess right away never wanting the story to end.

So buy the Pirate Prince, no not just the Pirate Prince, buy Princess and Prince Charming as well 'coz like me you won't want the story of the di Fiores to end. Enjoy!

Since childhood Allegra Monteverdi has dreamed of the lost Prince Lazar of Ascension, dreaming that the myth was true and he was still alive after his family had been murdered and their government overthrown by her father. Now, fifteen years later Allegra prepares to marry when Prince Lazar comes back for revenge.

For many years Lazar has lived a life of piracy, finally returning to his homeland for revenge upon Allegra's father. His plans for revenge don't go as planned when he sets eyes upon Allegra and realizes he must have her. When he prepares to take his revenge upon her family she throws herself at his mercy telling him she'll do anything for Lazar to spare them. Lazar agrees, planning on taking Allegra's virtue that very night. But things don't always go as planned.

Lazar is awed by her beauty and her spirit. Allegra and Lazar fall in love, but Lazar has too many demons in his past to truly love and feel loved. Allegra must try to get past his demons to find the true man beneath.

I read this series out of order, reading the second in the series, Princess first. I loved this book and found Princess equally as good. I give The Pirate Prince my highest rating and am looking forward to the March release of Prince Charming.

This is the fourth book by Gaelen Foley I have read this past year. I also read, "The Duke" (excellent!), "Devil Takes a Bride" (extremely good too) and "Prince Charming" (not bad - better than average but, not great). I have read some of these books out of order as I didn't do enough research before buying and reading but, they still worked fine even out of order. The Pirate Price comes first, then Princess (I am reading that now) and then Prince Charming. That was one series. The next series begins with The Duke and has about 4-5 books that follow regarding the brothers Knight and/or family relations in which Devil Takes a Bride follows.

I like Gaelen Foley as an author. Even thought sometimes her story lines jump a little and some of the action and emotions become rushed at points and would have done better slowing down...she still has the gift of making her characters come alive, the story lines taking you to another place and the endings are always pleasing. She knows what makes a romance works - depth, intensity, emotion and passion. She does these things well.

The Pirate Prince deals with Lazzar di Fore' - a boy born a prince with a kingdom on the island of Ascencion that was ruthlessly taken from him in the prime of his life. The enemies of his kingdom who killed his family, took away his land and left him to flee and survive as he could. The years away turned the gentle and loving boy into a hardened, bitter and angry pirate bent on vendetta to get back at those who took away his life. Lazzar returns to his boyhood home to kill his enemies and seek revenge. Part of the plan involves killing his enemies lovely daughter Allegra Monteverdi. But as all best laid plans...Allegra ends up being more than his research provided and more woman then he ever planned. She is proud, determined, intelligent, honorable and lovely - the things even the strongest man has trouble over-looking or winning against. And...Lazzar was no different.

I won't re-cap their story as it is told by others and part of the publisher/editors notes. Suffice to say...the story was not completely creative or original but, it still had a fresh feel to it in places. I especially liked how spunky and determined Allegra was to be kind to everyone on the island and do good for those less fortunate. Even when Lazzar takes her captive, her goal is to bring out the good in him again which had been lost over the years due to heartbreak, death and destruction. She softens him where he is hardened, she gentles his wildness with her tender ways, she makes him see past rage and revenge with kindness and new dreams and she loves him until his hate dissolves and is no more. They are opposites destined to attract.

I enjoyed their conflicts as much as their moments of combined passion. They sparred often but, made up as frequently. Their attraction was immediate from day one and never wavered. The reality of the real world often intruded but, they found ways to still find each other through the fog of all that is ugly in this world - perhaps because they both saw in the other the beauty that was still possible if they would just work and fight for it.

Yes...like many other reviewers I agree that the book moved along well until about the middle. Up to that point the story reviled itself in many layers and the plot as well as the characters blossomed in believable ways. Then...in the middle and end of the book there was definite inconsistencies to the way Lazzar acted and felt toward Allegra and then in her response back to him. It was fine in the beginning for Lazzar to fight his feelings for Allegra - his background made his action and reactions made sense. But...once he got close to her, admitted his love and need for her to be by his side...then he acts like a crazy man after his friend the Vicar died. From there on in...one minute he is ugly and nasty to Allegra, then a minute later his is dying for her and giving in. Too much going back and forth for me. Allegra in turn was hearty and strong emotionally until this moment too. At the point he turns on her...it's almost like she got a bit weak and was so in love she became a door mat and took whatever he dishes out and crumbs at times were fine. She often begged him to say he still loved her, wanted her in his life. She seemed to turn from a strong, proud woman of dignity to a weak, emotional woman craving security instead. I prefer a strong woman who fights back tooth and nail for her own dignity and respect - regardless of her level of love. She gave him all - she should have demanded the same in return. She gave him all she had to give - she should have required no less in return for her gifts of love, loyalty, trust and honor. Also...it took Lazzar quite awhile to realize he couldn't marry Princess Nicolette and merge their kingdoms for money and power. He should have understand before his "revelation" that only Allegra was right for the Queen of Ascencion. Perhaps the earlier opium years he endured clouded his brain a little and it took awhile for Lazzar to see the light . But...at least he redeemed himself in the end. I liked his apology and heart felt confession of sorrow and sadness. That was enough for me...I don't want to see a proud man beg like a child...he acknowledged his wrong and she forgave him - as she should.

The passion between Lazzar and Allegra was strong. I liked that the author did not have them become completely intimate until the middle to end of the book. I liked that their relationship developed to a deeper level than just pure lust and sex. They were finding out about the other and their respect and love made the future joinings more meaningful. This author is almost always pleasing in how she builds up and describes her love scenes. But...there was one odd part to this book that threw me off. After Lazzar & Allegra have a rather powerful and desperate scene of intimacy with him behind her, the passion is spent, he tells her the act of coupling was "incredible", he smooches her on the cheek and says "thanks" with a smile and walks away. That was quite simply - odd and out of place. It made her seem like some kind of easy hussy or street trollop - not the other half of his heart and soul. This seemed out of character for him. This scene should either be re-written later or removed - it detracted from the rest of the emotion of the story and didn't work.

I also didn't like Lazzar calling Allegra a nasty name (whore) to get her to leave him alone when he felt a curse would get them if they stayed together. Grant you...he didn't really mean it but, he said it nonetheless - regardless of his reasons and it was an ugly thing to call her. This too was harsh and out of character for him if you ask me. But...these were some small things that fell into an otherwise pleasing story.

Some of the side characters will show up later in the Princess story and also the Prince Charming story. There was actually a lot of people in this story - her family, his family, his fellow pirates, the old Ascension cabinet members, the evil doers running the current government and more. Lots of people to keep track of but...none got so deep that you couldn't follow the plot line well.

I hear that this is the first book this author ever wrote and she spent a long time working out the details and polishing it to shine. I give her a lot of credit - this is one great coming out story to begin your career as a writer. She has promise galore if this is her first attempt. Thus...I give her a lot of credit for a fine start. If you have not tried reading this author yet, I recommend you pick up her stories and begin. My feelings so far is that she was fine tuning her craft in the Prince series and she has gained full steam in The Duke series. If you love reading romance novels, I think all will please you. Enjoy the stories, characters and books for what you will and don't be too picky. Love is what counts after all - not the perfection to get there. Enjoy!

Reasons I thought I wouldn't go wrong with The Pirate Prince: I love pirates, I love heroes with wounded souls, and I love Gaelen Foley novels. And so, in spite of the awful back cover of the scantily-clad man on a ship, I bought it and sat back and gave it a whirl. Well, this effort is definitely not much different from Foley's Knight Miscellany series, but it is a great first part of a trilogy. Set in the island of Ascension, pirate prince Lazar di Fiore plans the perfect revenge against the man who had taken everything from him, and the best way to achieve this is by kidnapping the man's daughter and killing her. However, things don't go his way when he discovers that he doesn't have the conscience to kill an innocent, especially when Allegra Monteverdi is beautiful, spirited and dangerous in that she could ruin his careful plans by stealing his heart away. There are some twists in the novel.

I like the setting of Italy in late eighteenth century. Foley does a wonderful job in describing the setting and I pictured a gorgeous Italian island in one of the most romantic eras I have read about. Foley doesn't focus much on the mores of the era, rather she focuses more on the action/adventure part of the story. The novel is also quite sensual and romantic in the signature Foley way. This is a fast-paced feast and I looked forward to what happened next. I loved Lazar. He is dark, brooding and sexy. I loved the scene in which his head is uncovered and reveals a short-crop haircut (a look that was rare in that era). The kind of vulnerability he shows in that scene touched me because, in spite of his protestations about being soulless, his reaction showed he was definitely not devoid of feelings. Things went uphill from there. The sexual tension between Allegra and Lazar is worth the price of the book. The scenes are wonderful! This book, like all other books I've read by this author, has its villains and suspense sequences, but it is more appropriate here than it was in the Knight series. All in all, I loved The Pirate Prince. I look forward to reading the rest of the Ascension Trilogy. It's really too bad about the back cover. That kind of detracts from my overall reading enjoyment. I have low tolerance for tacky covers, front or back ones.

I picked this book up at the bookstore because I had read Foley's Born in Fire and Born In Ice. I wasn't expecting to read a book that was any different than other historical romances. Boy, was I wrong.

Lazar di Fiore is the only survivor of his royal family that were betrayed and murdered. He just so happens to be a prince, too. He has traveled back to his homeland of Ascension for revenge against the governor of the island for orchestrating the murders. His plan is to kidnap his daughter and murder her in front of him. However he ends up rescuing her from her over zealous betrothed. After an intense fight, Lazar sweeps her on his horse and kidnaps her.

Allegra Monteverdi is the daughter of the governor of Ascension. She finds herself on the back of a horse with some stranger that has defended her honor. He takes her into tunnels that only a royal would know about...or a thief. She had always believed that her prince charming would come and save Ascension from it's downfall. Instead she finds herself kidnapped and put through a battle of vengeance. Her anonymous kidnapper has lined up her whole family for execution for a vendetta she doesn't understand.

Her tears and innocent looks keeps Lazar from killing her or her family. Instead he takes her with him as trade for her families lives. What follows is a love that is made from hardship, trust, and passion.

I've never in my life read a novel that is so imaginative. You can smell the fire from the battles and see the anguish on the tortured hero's face as he struggles with his inner demons. This book reads like a movie. From the first page you are drawn into the emotions of Lazar and Allegra. If you want to read an historical romance with deep feeling and vivid imagery, then pick up this book, or any of Gaelen Foley's books. I promise that you will never forget these characters.

The Pirate Prince is one of the best Foley books out there...and Foley is not a second-rate author! It will take you on a fantastic voyage that you'd never expect in a romance book.

Lazar di Fiore was cheated from his rightful throne as king of Ascencion and Allegra is the daughter of his archenemy.

As he fights to conquer his inner demons and find the strength to return to his kingdom and continue his family's seven hundred year rule, the connection between him and Allegra grow deep, with Lazar revealing nearly all his secret anguish.

Allegra, now knowing what a traitor her father is, is determined to help Lazar gain back his pride, honor, and kingdom at any price...even if she has to give up her heart.

As always, Ms. Foley brings a whole new dimension to romance, faultlessly bringing her characters to life and weaving an intricate tale that involves so much more than your ordinary fairytale, yet there is no denying that the characters' love for each other is soul-binding and everlasting.

This book really deserves 6 stars!!! It is one of the best romance novels I have ever read (and I've read many!!!)! Lazar is so dashing, so charming, so irresistible! I love him, I love him, I love him: The world should be filled with men like him. He's such a great person and you can't help but fall heda-over heals in love with him. Even from the start of the book we realise what a great guy he is! He's amazing! He's really sensitve towards Allegra's feelings and the fact that he is a pirate on the verge of being king makes this book's plot fantastic!

Allegra is a brilliant heroine too! I deeply admire her and I must say that I've probably never admired a person more! She's amzing the way she deals with things - especially at the end were she's treated as a whore heavy with child. She is the best woman for Lazar (as much as i loath saying that it must be said!!!) and Lazar is the best man for her.This book is charming and you'll find youself giggling at some parts and weeping at others!!! At least I did!

I TRUE ROMANTIC NOVEL! A TRUE LOVE AND A TWO TRULLY BRILLIANT HEROES! IM SO JEALOUS OF THEM!!!!
What a romance... sigh.
RECOMENDED - A DAZZLING BREATH-TAKING NOVEL for all those who are as helplessly into romance as I - A KEEPER.

Gaelen Foley has a gift for turning out tortured and vulnerable heroes. She does it again here, as the story revolves around a man who is destined for royalty but has to first battle the inner demons that make him feel unworthy of his destiny.

Lazar di Fiori is the prince of the island kingdom of Ascension, but as a child he watched his family be murdered by those who intended to take over the throne. While he escaped death, he had to suffer years as a slave before becoming a pirate. His experiences have left him feeling suicidal, as he feels his experiences have turned him into a coward who was victimized by his master. The one thing keeping him alive is vengence against the people who murdered his family.

Allegra Monteverdi is the daughter of the mayor of Ascension...the same guy who ordered Lazar's family to be murdered. Allegra isn't emotionally close to her father. She is loyal to the people of Ascension who are suffering at the hands of her father's reign. Her family used to be close to the royal family and therefore, she knew Lazar as a child and even now fantasizes about Lazar returning to take over his kingdom and restore the faith and fortune of his people.

Lazar's plan for revenge includes kidnapping Allegra, staging an uprising where he'll capture her family, including her father, then execute all of them at dawn. However, the night before the deed is to be done, Lazar ends up having to rescue Allegra from her fiance' who is attempting to rape her. The attraction is instant and electric and Lazar finds he cannot kill Allegra. He instead decides to kidnap her back to his ship. Allegra doesn't know Lazar is the prince she's been waiting for until much later, so there is some sexual tension while she pines for the prince (in other words, Lazar is in competition with himself!)

The story from there centers on Lazar's inner turmoil. The events of his childhood have left him feeling as though his soul is too evil to save and that his life is going to end without salvation. Upon seeing Allegra again, he realizes he might have found his salvation, if only he could get past the feelings of guilt and shame he's feeling. What makes him such a wonderful hero is the fact that while his experiences have made him a hardened pirate, they have not made him invincible. he still suffers from images of what he had to go through during his enslavement and it's truly heartwrenching to read.

Allegra is a wonderful heroine in that she's compassionate, strong, courageous, and feminine. Her love for the people of Ascension makes her determined to help Lazar accept his place as their king. She doesn't back down when they find themselves in danger and in willing to jump into danger to save Lazar if she has to.

In this story, the reader sees how love can redeem even the most blackened of souls. The relationship between Allegra and Lazar is powerful as Allegra's love gives Lazar the strength to take back his kingdom. There was action, but not a whole lot, with the focus being on the developing relationship bewteen Allegra and Lazar.

The love scenes were luscious and varied. Foley is generally very descriptive with her scenes, but not so much that you think it's porn. She does a great job of making the connection between the emotional and physical aspects of being sexually intimate.

The only thing that prevents this story from receiving five stars is the fact Lazar goes on a bit long with the self-loathing thing. I wish he had realized his worth a little sooner so Allegra wouldn't have had to suffer as much as she did while he tried to figure out what he wanted to do. there's a bit about a curse that was just plain ridiculous to me, seeming as little more than an unnecessary plot device.

Other than that, you'll love this book if you like reading about the redemptive power of love and how it can give a man strength enough to overcome his fears and feelings of unworthiness.