Customer Reviews

Love a Rebel, Love a Rogue (Leisure historical romance)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Mrs.Henke does a wonderful job, she has masterfully created two romance stories in one! It does switch from one couple to another, but not in a way that cofuses or irritates! She has created wonderfully rich and in-depth characters that you will remmember long after you turn the last page!!

If you read a lot as I do, you are always looking for a different approach. Henke does a great job here setting this story during the american revolution with 2 heros and 2 heroines and connecting it all masterfully. The Blackthorne cousins are Quinton and Devon. Quinton is the heir of a father who despises him, abuses him and taunts him. The father is loyal to the king and arranges a marriage for Quinton.(Quinton of course spies for the rebels partly to defy his father). Quinton has been taught to distrust women and this "issue" rules his life so he takes a bride reluctantly, believing that madelyn will be a seen and nor heard wife. Madelyn is a throw away child herself and desparately wants a home, family and love and turns out to be a bit too spunky.....and honest..for quinton. (He doesn't treat her very well as he fights his attraction to her.) And she can hold her own with her dictatorial father in law.........Devon is like a brother to Quint but he is a half breed from his fathers second and unaccepted marriage with a muskogee woman. (There is the pre reqisite older brother and heir.) Devon was raised largely with his mothers relatives. Interesting how the line of succession in this tribe goes via the mother's side instead of the father. Devon is a charmer and a delight. He fights with the English because he feels his indian family will fare better under english rule. He is devastated when he learns that his cousin Quint is a traitor. Devon falls in love with a spoiled, noble brat who was sent to the colonies as punishement......her mother doesn't like her either!!! (There weren't any outstanding parents in this book!) Devon, of course, is totally persona non grata in her family. The stories of Quint and Madelyn and Devon and Lady Barabara intertwine throughtout the book. And the ladies become best friends and cohorts to save their men. There is no graphic war stuff and a little too much descriptive info on the indians for me BUT there's more than enough story to make this enjoyable.Theres also a lot of action, scheming women and villains to make it a page turner. I would read it again so it got a 5*.....Hope this is helpful.

Both Quint and Devon are, in their own ways, "bad boys" who give their women a lot of guff. You know, you could intellectualize this tale and compare Madelyne and Barbara to the ragged colonial troops in the book who battle and finally defeat the arrogant British. But hey, save the intellectual stuff for the professors. This is a story crafted to entertain and satisfy readers. And it does both.

In this book, the romance reader gets a double helping of good stuff, two sets of lovers. Quint Blackthorne and Madelyne are a perfect match in an ironic way. Both possess a strong sense of duty -- only his is to America and hers is to England. In that sense, the conflict between the lovers reflects the conflict between the nations. Devon Blackthorne and Lady Barbara are also a perfect match. He's a half-breed, hell-raising rogue (love it!) and she is noblewoman banished by her family because she is too rowdy for polite London society. Their personal conflict also reflects another of the struggles portrayed in Henke's tale, that between the Muskogee Indians and the white society that is destroying their way of life. All in all, this book gives you twice the romantic turmoil you would usually expect in an historical romance. But Shirl Henke also gives you some authentic and fascinating glimpses into how life really was lived back then, and it all ties together very, very nicely.

This was an interesting, enjoyable book. I liked Quint even though he was usually nasty to Madelyne. That was the problem I had with the book and why I could not give it five stars. Quint is nasty to his wife and untrusting. He leaves her for long periods of time, questions the legitimacy of his son and virtually anything that his wife says. I think that would be very, very hard to love.

Love a Rebel...Love a Rogue by Shirl Henke is one of my all time favorite historical romances. Set during the American Revolution, Ms. Henke brings the history to life in vivid detail. The imagery takes the reader back in time so that you feel you've stepped into a time machine. And it is here we meet the dashing Blackthorne men, Quintin and Devon, cousins who share the bonds of brothers yet find themselves upon opposing sides of the battlefield. Spys, smugglers, miscretants and war threaten Quintin's marriage as he and his new bride Madelyne struggle to find common ground. Part Creek Indian, part white, Devon Blackthorne is a man from two worlds, and when he meets the Lady Barbara, he will question everything including his allegiance to the crown. I've owned the print version of Love a Rebel...Love a Rogue since I was a teenager and am tickled pink that I can add it to my kindle collection! Maggie Mae Gallagher

Shirl Henke handles a double love story brilliantly, although I particularly enjoyed the romantic tussle between half-breed Devon and the aristocratic lady Barbara. Talk about culture shock! You won't want to miss it.

I don't know how Madelyn survived with this jerk of a husband, or why she loved him. He was awful. I would not have waited so long for him.

Also, the story was pretty unorganized. I think certain things should have been switched around. It would have been easier to understand her struggle with him. If he had been around long enough, it would have made sense for her to feel the way she did. But he was so nasty and terribly full of immature angst.