Customer Reviews

Stormswept

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

 

 

"Stormswept" sat on my TBR shelf for ages, the sleazy cover disuading me each time I picked it up. Imagine my surprise to find inside a piece of witty, elegantly crafted historical fiction. This author (who also writes as Sabrina Jefferies, et al) has done a wonderful job of bringing the beauty, atmosphere, and politics of late 18th century Wales to life. The romance is touching, the characters are flawed--but realistically so. If you love history and romance, ignore the cover and the silly back-blurb and buy this book. It is money well spent.

From the back cover:

The first wedding night that Lady Juliana St. Albans spent with her bridegroom, the dark and daring Rhys Vaughan, was one of devine discovery, as she realized the fiery fulfillment of a man's driving hunger and her own awakened sensuality.

The second wedding night that Juliana spent with Rhys Vaughan was six years later, after he had mysteriously vanished and then returned to claim her just as she was about to wed another. This time he possessed her with a vengeance, turning her ecstasy into a tempest of conflict between them. Yet there was that blaze of passion to light their way through the maze of mystery, menace, and mistrust--to the love they once shared and would have to find again.

And my review:

This is an author who is probably better known today for her books written under her pen name 'Sabrina Jeffries'. In fact, I bought this book because it was written by the same author.

On her home page, the author warns that her "Deborah Martin" books are much heavier than her newer "Sabrina Jeffries" stuff. She's absolutely right. This is much more raw romantic tension and much less humor in this book when compared to her SJ books. That's not to say that this isn't enjoyable, because "Stormswept" was certainly entertaining.

Rhys and Juliana are forbidden to one another because she's a highborn English Lady, and he's a Welshman. Despite the difficulties keeping them apart, they fall in love and elope. Unfortunately, a devious inn-keeper sends word to Juliana's family, and her two brother arrive to end the couple's marriage. They have Rhys impressed (forced into service in the English navy) and try to convince Julianna to have the marriage annulled. The poor couple if forced to spend the next six years apart, each believing that the other betrayed them.

When Rhys manages to return, Julianna, believing him to be dead, is set to marry someone else. Rhys refuses an annullment, instead forcing Julianna to return to him. He wants his revenge for her supposed betrayal. And the stage is set for the sparks to fly.

This story was very good, and I dare any woman not to feel equal pain for both lead characters for what they suffer. The author aptly portrayed their struggles to overcome their doubts and mistrust to find true love again. I found this novel to be quite heart-wrenching in places.

There was also a secondary romance featuring Julianna's maid and Rhy's best friend. This secondary storyline was also quite well done, and did not in any way detract from the main plot.

I've read many historical novels, many of which deal with the English oppression of other races, including their oppression of the Colonists/Americans, the Scottish, and the Irish. This was the first book I'd read that dealt with the English oppression of the Welsh, so that made it very interesting. The author does a marvelous job of weaving in the historical detail without having it distract from the main storyline, which is the romance. I've tossed many a book aside for being too focused on the political situation, but this novel does not do that.

My only complaint was that the last 100 pages or so started to drag for me, thus making this a four-star book rather than a five-star. But even then, I think that this is a book worth reading, and I do recommend it, along with this author's works published under her "Sabrina Jeffries" name.

I checked this book out at the library and renewed it twice because I couldn't bear to part company with it. I searched the stores for a copy and finally ordered one. This book touched me profoundly. I have re-read this numerous times. I can not wait to read more by this author.

I really enjoyed the first half on Stormswept. There is a sweetness to new love and a genuineness in this portion of the novel which the second half just does not have.

Juliana is a proper English lady who loves her Welsh home and her servants; in fact she is intrigued by all things Welsh so she attends a political rally with her maid. She is disguised as she knows the English are mistrusted by the Welsh and her father is not especially liked as it is believed he unfairly won a Welsh holding in a card game.

When Juliana eyes speaker Rhys Vaughan she is quite taken with him. He is fiery, passionate and incredibly handsome. He meets her after the rally and they have an instant connection but when he discovers her identity he confronts her father convinced she was sent to spy on his organization. He soon realizes that Juliana acts contrary to her father's edicts and they begin a clandestine love affair that is full of Welsh poetry and some heated kisses, all of which takes place in her bedroom. They elope because they are madly in love, however Juliana's brothers interfere with their marriage and after just one night Juliana's husband is impressed into he Navy. Juliana believes all the lies her brothers tell her about her husband, (she knows he is in the Navy but she does not know her brother's were behind it) and she is heartbroken.

Six years later Juliana is ready to marry and English nobleman, she believes her husband is dead after her brother's investigator reported this information a year earlier. She is stunned to see at her engagement party none other than Rhys.

This begins the second half of this novel and I must state that it just lacks the charm of the first half. Juliana has lied to her fiancé', she never told him she had married and she was going to fake her virginity, this lowered her greatly in my esteem. She was marrying him only to have children but she was willing to leave her beloved Welsh estate. Was there no one in Wales to marry? When she sees Rhys for the first time she never greets him properly but is instantly infuriated with him for interrupting her life. I thought she loved her husband but she almost looks fickle here, not even a hug is given to the man.

Rhys is cynical but this is understandable, he was impressed for years, beaten, flogged and worked for the American Revolution. He is tired and changed. Juliana has had a pretty easy life compared to her husband, running the estate with so little funds is not comparable to getting shot at and flogged to an inch of your life. She bemoans the fact that her husband does not trust her but she doesn't do a whole lot to earn it at first either being snippy and distant.

Finally in the last chapters Rhys becomes a man who is more like his old self, charming, and affectionate. Juliana is insistent that her husband prove himself to her and seems quite surprised that he balks at the idea, uhm, who was the one sent away in chains? Juliana lacked compassion for her husband and she was very weak willed when it came to her brother's machinations for her over the years. Her character shifted considerably from the first half and I did not believe that her non- married life at the estate was a big enough reason for this transformation.