The Silver Rose [Unabridged] [Paperback]

Jane Feather (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1997

Dear Reader,
Like the rose in the haunting tale of "Beauty and the Beast," a silver rose on a charm bracelet brings together a beautiful young woman and a battle-scarred lord....

In my story, Ariel Ravenspeare has been taught to loathe the earl of Hawkesmoor and everything he represents.  Their two families have been sworn enemies for generations.  But it's one thing to hate him, and another to play the part her vicious brothers have written for her--trapping Hawkesmoor into a marriage that will destroy him, using herself as bait.  Forced into the marriage, Ariel will find her new husband unexpectedly difficult to manipulate, as well as surprisingly--and powerfully--attractive.

But beneath the passion lurk the strands of a long-hidden secret...a secret embodied in a sparkling silver rose.

I hope you will be as caught up in Ariel and Hawkesmoor's love story as I was.

Warmest wishes,

Jane Feather

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The second book in Jane Feather's Charm Bracelet trilogy, The Silver Rose offers a dark look at feuding families. Tired of the bloody, long-standing feud between the Ravenspeares and the Hawksmoors, Queen Anne commands Ariel Ravenspeare to marry the Earl of Hawksmoor. Ariel's selfish brothers are only too happy to agree with the Queen's decree because it allows them to concoct an evil plot that will rid them of the Hawksmoors forever. But first they must persuade Ariel to go along with the plan. Ariel, though, has her own secrets, and her plans for the future don't include marrying a dreaded family enemy nor do they include familial camaraderie of any kind. Ariel, who is intelligent and a gifted horse raiser, plans to breed the animals--and live free of her brothers. She doesn't expect to find Hawksmoor to be a kind and temperate man who teaches her that not all men are as selfish and exploitative as her own family.

From Booklist

Feather, author of the best-selling Diamond Slipper, has written another light romance novel that is sure to be popular with her readers. In this book, set in early-eighteenth-century England, young, beautiful Ariel Ravenspeare has been leading a troubled existence on her family's estate. Dominated entirely by her cruel older brothers, she quietly nurses a plan to raise and sell prize racehorses, hoping to make enough money to escape from their evil clutches forever. Her escape is foiled, though, when her brothers force her to marry the family's arch enemy, Lord Hawkesmoor, in a scheme to destroy him and seize his lands after the marriage. To her own surprise, Ariel falls in love with the hated Hawkesmoor, and together they emerge victorious from the web of deceit and destruction woven by her brothers. The novel is well written and fast moving, and romance fans will appreciate the entertaining story line and the "they all lived happily ever after" ending. Kathleen Hughes

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Fanfare; 1st edition (July 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553575244
• ISBN-13: 978-0553575248
• Product Dimensions: 4.1 x 1.1 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #636,182 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Heroine: Bratty, Bitchy, had a Sadist for a Lover *grimace*, March 13, 2000

By 

"mallika" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Silver Rose (Paperback)

An avid reader, I have ALWAYS finished books, no matter how bad they are, but I didn't finish this one. You can guess just how bad this book is then. Things that really made me mad were:

-Ariel is not a virgin; she has a lover who doesn't love her and who she doesn't love. The guy is an S&M kind of guy and it sickened me to read about their "relationship." She is also bitchy and bratty and is totally under the control of her murderous, conniving, SOB brothers. (see below)

-Hawkesmoor (the hero) is not only scarred from battle, he is strangely naive in his dealings with Ariel's murderous brothers. Come on!

-Ariel's brothers. Perfect SOB chauvinists who would murder in cold blood. They brought up Ariel (ewww). They just totally dampened the story that I thought I'd drown in frustration and tears of anger.

Save your money. I wished I'd saved mine.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Flawed Heroine equals Flawed "Love" Story, November 2, 2000

By 

E.L. Cruz (Mission Viejo, Ca United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Silver Rose (Paperback)

THE SILVER ROSE takes place in England during the early 1700s. Queen Anne has ordered that a marriage take place between two dueling families to unite them in hopes of extinguishing their deep-rooted loathing for each other. However, the cruel and vicious Ravenspeare brothers secretly want to kill Simon Hawkesmoor after his wedding to their sister, Ariel.

Compared to the beautiful story of Cordelia and Leo in THE DIAMOND SLIPPER, which was the first of Jane Feather's charm bracelet trilogy, THE SILVER ROSE was somewhat disappointing. From the very beginning there is no apparent passion or chemistry between Ariel and Simon. (Ariel even thinks that Simon is hideously ugly when she first meets him.) In fact, their attitudes and arguments give the impression that despise each other. Ariel is cold-hearted, stern, and lacks any sense of emotion. Nowhere in this story does she reveal any heart felt love for humans around her. She would rather breed champion horses in order to raise enough money to escape Ravenspeare Castle than pay attention to anyone, let alone her husband Simon. In retrospect, all her love is dedicated her two devoted wolfhounds, Romulus and Remus. However, her strange characteristics are not surprising because she has been raised by her cruel, vicious older brothers who have treated her like dirt since she was a child. In the end, neither Simon nor Ariel say "I love you" to one another.

Although Ariel was cold and dull, Simon was a well written character. He possessed warmth and selflessness, especially when he realizes that he loves Ariel even though she never really loves him back. His character alone makes this book worth reading.

Jane Feather is a WONDERFUL author, but this is probably her worst book, even though it wasn't remotely terrible. If you are easily irritated by loveless, selfish heroines and if you are squeamish when encountering Nazi-like cruelty, then I suggest you stay away from this book. Ariel's brothers are the cruelest, most evil humans I've ever encountered in a romance novel.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Second in Charm Bracelet series, August 17, 2001

By 

Stacy Wallace (Lumberton, TX United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Silver Rose (Paperback)

Like the rose in the haunting tale of "Beauty and the Beast," a silver rose on a charm bracelet brings together a beautiful young woman and a battle-scarred lord...Ariel Ravenspeare has been taught to loathe the Earl of Hawkesmoor and everything he represents. Their two families have been sworn enemies for generations. But it's one thing to hate him, and another to play the part her vicious brothers have written for her-trapping Hawkesmoor into a marriage that will destroy him, using herself as bait. Forced into the marriage, Ariel will find her new husband unexpectedly difficult to manipulate, as well as surprisingly-and powerfully-attractive.But beneath the passion lurk the strands of a long-hidden secret...a secret embodied in a sparkling silver rose. I was not into this story as much as the first in the series. Call me old fashioned but I like my herorines unsullied and the fact that Ariel came to her marriage bed not a virgin did not sit well with me. I just could not like her that much. Her only saving grace was the love of her animals. But Simon was a true hero, if alittle on the scarred side. He made the story tolerable. I hope the third book in the series is better.