Customer Reviews

The River Devil

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

 

 

I first discovered Ms Whiteside with her prior book, THE IRISH DEVIL which I enjoyed to a degree. THE RIVER DEVIL shows her growth as a writer and I enjoyed it very much. It's better than THE IRISH DEVIL IMO.

The first indication that Hal Lindsay's life is about to change comes when he rescues a stray dog from being beaten by some riverbank bullies. He intends to give the dog away, but the dog becomes so attached to him that he allows him to stay. Hal is not a man interested in emotional attachments, canine or human - they just wind up causing pain. Hal has had enough pain in his life, especially his difficult childhood and his relationship with his emotionally distant parents. While attending a poker game he becomes intrigued by fellow poker player Frank Carstairs. He looks familiar to Hal and the more he looks at Carstairs, the more he begins to suspect that he is actually a she. Long, elegant fingers, delicate features and not even a hint of a beard. And quite possibly this she is missing railroad heiress Rosalind Schuyler! Hmmm he may just need to get a closer look at "Carstairs" and find out for sure.

Rosalind Schuyler is on the run and hiding from Nicholas Lennox who is determined to marry her for her substantial fortune. She's seen first hand how cruel, violent and dangerous he can be and she is determined to hide from him until she comes into her fortune. But that's not until her 25th birthday some 15 months away! How can she keep hiding when he has Pinkerton detectives looking all over for her? First, she's dressed as man as she used to do with her brothers and father who taught her how to move like a man, play poker and shoot (unforunately they're all dead now). Second, she will avoid the railroads where Lennox will surely look for her. Instead she decides to travel by riverboat eventhough she has a very real fear of water (her mother and brothers drowned in a boating accident). Up to this point, no one has seen through her disguise - not until Hal Lindsay that is. Will this golden god of a man keep her secrets?

Hal agrees to hide her after they spend a steamy night getting acquainted so to speak! He hires her/Frank Carstairs on as his cub pilot and arranges for her/him to share his cabin (a cot is set up for her but quickly becomes his dog, Cicero's resting place!). Hal's sister Viola and her husband William Donovan (from TID) have joined Hal on this trip and it is nice to catch up with them. Unfortunately for Hal, his parents also show up unannounced. This makes things uncomfortable for all as Hal has a strained relationship with his parents and Viola is completely estranged. Those who read TID know that their mother Desdemona was a southern sympathizer who committed some treasonous acts of which neither Hal nor his father are aware (though Viola is). Well, we discover that's not all she's done and this book details her many transgressions and character flaws. We also find out that Hal was cruelly beaten by his father as a child resulting in his vow never to have children and pass that legacy along. But most importantly, we watch as Hal and Rosalind come together, first sexually, then professionally as she begins to learn the basics of piloting a riverboat and lastly emotionally as bonds, no matter how unwanted begin to form between them. Hal is impressed with her intelligence, her resourcefulness and her sensuality. Rosalind is smitten almost from the start admiring Hal's inherent goodness, fairness, smarts and obvious sex appeal. But what will happen at the end of this trip upriver? Will they part forever? Will Rosalind successfully elude Lennox?

I really enjoyed this book and I liked both Hal and Rosalind. The plot of this book had more depth and less emphasis on sex as her last book, though don't get me wrong, there's still plenty of steamy sex scenes to satisfy. The only things keeping this from 5 stars for me come down to personal taste. My eyes glazed over at times as the author details the navigation and workings of riverboats. I also found myself skimming the poker games which I found boring because I do not know how to play the game. But both those aspects also provide an authentic period atmosphere and the author's obvious love of the riverboat period and poker really comes through.

I highly recommend this book and look forward to Donovan friend and partner Morgan Evans' story THE SOUTHERN DEVIL due in 2006.

For Ms. Whiteside's latest effort we've left the west and have travelled to the mid-west. This story is set on the river...The mighty Mississippi and the Missouri rivers to be exact. Our hero is a river boat captain and he lives his life as he pleases doing what he wants when he wants. One night though is about to change the path that he has taken.

Rosalind Schuyler is on the run for her life. Nicholas Lennox will do what ever he has to do in order to insure that her wealth is his. Rosalinda can think of no worse fate in life so she dress as a man and heads out. She must stay "free" for 15 months and than her money is hers with no strings attached. She is soon running out of options and one night at a poker game she runs into Hal Lindsey and he is breath taking and handsome. To bad she's dressed as a man. Of course what she doesn't realize is that Hal sees through her disguise. He wants her and is going to have her. But for how long? Little do they know they share a enemy that will stop at nothing to get what he wants. Will they find a happy ending or will that be taken from them with help from close by?

This was another good read by a very talented author. Ms. Whiteside brings river life...well, to life. Hal and Rosalind are complex characters and their romance although fast and steamy was entertaining. William and Viola return for this story and it was fun to visit with them again. This is one read that I recommend and I look forward to reading Ms. Whiteside in the future.

Official Reviewer for Romance Designs

I find this book BORING! I've tried to force myself to keep going but my mind will start to wander and I'll find some excuse or another to set it down and do something else. I find that I don't care at all about the riverboat thing and I don't find either H&H all that compelling, can't really seem to care what happens to them. They're likeable characters well enough, they just don't have any kind of special spark that pulls me in, they fell flat for me. I thoroughly enjoyed The Irish Devil so I thought I was in for another terrific read but it just hasn't happened on my end.

I also find it odd that in 1872 this heroine is so casual about sex and not just willing but eager to jump into bed outside of marriage. That aspect of her character pulled me out of the story because it feels very contemporary rather than historical. There is an early line in there that just makes me go back and re-read it and think surely I must have read this wrong, the heroine (while in disguise) has just literally bumped into the hero's mother and is shocked to see her in this area, as she mulls this over in her mind -

**Could she have been visiting a lover given the streak of semen high on her cheek? Rosalind had brushed similar streaks from her skin, after private times with David.***

What?! The streak of semen high on her cheek?? Not only does that sound weird to me but I just can't wrap my mind around a heroine from this time period thinking or having a background of such a thing. Especially when she seems to have come from a wealthy up-bringing and all this experience is coming from her relationship with her previous fiancé who comes across as fairly prim and proper in what I read about him.

I thought the sex scenes in The Irish Devil were buring hot with excitement but with these two I found myself skimming..very ho hum.

I wouldn't recommend it for the trade size price, maybe at the most in paperback but this is one that is not a keeper for me. I give it three stars because the writing technically is good, smooth and professional - it's just what she's written that didn't pull me in.

The one plus I can say about it is that it was an awesome cover!

Hal Lindsay and Rosalind Schuyler are both on the run.
Hal from a terrible past and Rosalind from a dangerous man. Rosalind disguises herself as a man and ends up under the protection Hal on his riverboat, dressing as a man by day but spending her nights with Hal.

Their relationship is complex, the story suspenseful and the main characters from The Irish Devil (also highly recommended) reappear for a welcome and necessary part of the storyline.

Get out your fan! This is one erotic and beautifully written historical romance.

Hal Lindsay is more relaxed now that he has reestablished his relationship with his sister Viola and knows that she is happily married to William Donovan (protagonists of The Irish Devil). But then the Union Army hero and river boat captain meets Rosalind Schuyler and his life is turned upside down. Rosalind is running away from Nick Lennox, Paul Lennox's younger brother, who wants to force her to marry him so he could take her money. She assumes the identity of a male professional gambler and travels from state to state with the attempt of avoiding Nick until her twenty-fifth birthday, when she is old enough to keep her inheritance. Hal Lindsay recognizes the gray-eyed beauty through her male disguise and embarks on a hot love affair with her and promises to protect her. However, he doesn't know just how perverse Nick's plans are and hadn't anticipated falling for Rosalind. He swore to never fall in love or become attached to anyone, but fate has other plans...

I'd like to point out the good points first. The sex scenes in this novel are as not hot as the ones in The Irish Devil, but still good. The first encounter, despite some problems I had with its execution (more on that later), is the best sexual encounter in the book. It was also nice to have Viola and William back in this offering. This story had a good premise because it is a continuation of the previous novel and not just a spin-off character love story. Nick Lennox is even more ruthless than Paul Lennox -- a villain through and through. Hal and Viola's mother, Desdemona Lindsay, is a self-absorbed, traitorous woman and I hated her very much. Despite the aforementioned good points, this novel isn't as good or as riveting as the first effort. Hal and Rosalind aren't as compelling as Viola and William and their sex scenes, though hot, aren't as erotic as the former protagonists' encounters either. But the problem I had with this novel the most is how contemporary the tone, voice and characters' actions sound. During the 1870s, Americans had customs that were not unlike those of England, which followed the strict regimen of Queen Victoria at the time. I couldn't believe how easily Rosalind surrendered to Hal. The scene was not unlike something from a contemporary erotic novel. It would have been more believable to me if Rosalind had been either a libertine or a financially challenged woman who isn't concerned with etiquette and not the rich, well brought up, inexperienced woman the author painted. Yes, Rosalind had been involved with her fiancé prior to meeting Hal, she is no virgin, but their exploits were nevertheless unrealistic. The overall language of the novel sounds too modern for me. Other than that, The River Devil is still an enjoyable read. I hope the next Devil installment, if there will be one, will be truer to the time frame than this one.

Successful riverboat captain Hal Lindsay is quite surprised to look across the poker table and into the eyes of railroad heiress Rosalind Schuyler, especially since she is disguised as a man. Rosalind is running from a marriage to a truly evil man whose plan to marry her will be immediately followed by a plan to kill her to get his hands on a significant inheritance. She is terrified when Hal discovers her true identity for fear that he will let the truth slip. Hal has no intention of exposing Rosalind. He finds her fascinating and would rather keep her under his protection, in masculine disguise in pubic, with the pretense of her being in his employ as his cub. She will be with him every hour of every day, even bunking in his stateroom without any questions. As the two of them spend time together, passions explode and Rosalind finds herself falling in love with Hal. Hal likes to have a good time with a woman, any woman, but compared to the feminine warmth that he has found with Rosalind, those interludes are cold and meaningless. He does not care for the feelings that Rosalind arouses in him when they are alone together. Hal had a dark, violent childhood and fears that he may have inherited his father's taste for violence; he has vowed to never marry and father children. Rosalind, on the other hand, dreams of a loving husband and children. Hal and Rosalind are the sort of characters that historical romance readers long for. They are well suited, despite the refusal of either to act upon their dreams of more than a brief,erotic, sexual affair. The secondary characters of Hal's adorable sister and her loving husband are a target; their very presence a virtual bright spot and a wonderful compliment to Hal and Rosalind. Hal is one of the most sensual heroes ever written. He is smooth and polished, always hiding the physical and emotional scars of his vicious childhood. Rosalind is a sophisticated woman, tall, beautiful and full-bodied. Evil characters are ruthlessly so, with Ms. Whiteside deciding in the end who amongst them is redeemable and who is not. This book is a must-read for lovers of well-written historical romance.

Courtesy Laurie/Romance Junkies.

This book was as interesting as...well...traveling down the river and watching the scenery roll by for six weeks. Which is what the characters did, and what the author felt the need to portray in excrutiating detail. I'm sorry, but there's nothing about working on a riverboat, even as a "cub" to the captain, that is the slightest bit interesting, especially in what's supposed to be a romance novel! I have no idea why the author felt this aspect of the story would be compelling.

I agree with other reviewers that, although this is erotica and therefore expected to be fantasy based, the heroine's lax sexual mores were completely unbelievable for the times. The sex scenes were repetitive and uninventive. The hero was emotionally uncompelling.

In short, this book was a definite letdown after Irish Devil.

The River Devil by Diane Whiteside takes you to life and times on the mighty rivers after the Civil War.

Hal Lindsey is his own man, his love of the river shines through via his boat the Cherokee Belle. Hal has vowed to never marry or to have children after the way he and his sisters were raised. Hal had met Rosalind Schuler before she disappeared but now she is at a high stack poker game dresses as a man. This woman intrigues him greatly.

Rosalind is running for her life. After the death of her father, she is trying to outrun an unscrupulous man who wants her inheritance. If she can stay hidden just a few more months the money is hers. She takes to the gambling cities off the river disguised as a man. Only Hal figures out her disguise and takes her in as a cub trainee on his boat to protect her. But he also wants to continue their affair.

As they travel the byways and rivers across the country their affair deepens. The danger continues to follow them and even targets his family.

The River Devil is a mesmerizing book. The glory of river travel sparkles and draws you in to days gone by. Hal and Rosalind have one of the most tantalizing and compelling relationships, which is deeply sensual as it is intellectual. It was great to revisit Viola (Hal's sister) and William Donovan from The Irish Devil. I really hope Morgan Evans gets his own tale soon.

This is a deliciously erotic book! Diane Whiteside has created an intelligent, sensual heroine in Rosalind Schuyler and a luscious alpha male hero in Hal Lindsay. Their adventures in and out of the bedroom will have your heart beating faster. Nobody does historical research better than Diane Whiteside, or weaves it into a book as skillfully, and I found it added a great deal to my enjoyment of the book.

I found this book nothing but porn,sex from page 1 to the middle of the book,I did not finish reading it.I am not adverse to reading sex scenes but this went overboard.A women with dried seman on her face,come on.The sex was too explicit.I don't know why she wrote so many sex scenes unless it was to fill up the book.
















111 and and the sex was too explicit,I don't know why she had to write about sex so often umless it was to fill up the book.