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19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
My thought + Book sleeve description, January 17, 1998
By A Customer
On the back of the book: A Lady's Scorn. Wrongly branded a spy, the dark and handsome Viking lod Selig Haardrad suffered greatly in the dungeons of Lady Erika of Gronwood. And as he hung in chains, his magnificent body wracked with pain and fever, on thought sustained him: revenge! A Vikings Vengeance. Now Destiny's great wheel has turned-and Selig's exquisite, honey-haired tormentor has been delivered into the Norseman's hands. Now it is Selig who is the maste, bound and determined to break the proud spirit of his captive "ice queen" and to conquer her with passion's sword-never dreaming that his own heart will be vanquished by sensuous desire... and vicorious love..... My thoughts on the book: Selig is a character who first appears in "Heart Aflame" as the heroin Kirten's sister and manages to steal some of the limelight. A man much loved by women all his life this book deals with a presumed action by a woman agianst him. He is as much in shock as he is out for revenge and actually finds he has a hard time really carrying out his revenge but it makes for good tense reading at times as you don't know just what Selig might do. A great read, I loved the two lead character of Selig and Erika. She is in a tense kidnapping situation and is brave and strong without being overbearing or unbelievable [unlike Kirsten in Heart Aflame] given the situation. .....An exciting read.
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17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Why Was Selig's Story Ruined?, July 14, 2004
The third in a trilogy, "Surrender My Love" lacks in the romance department. The story is about a Viking exacting vengeance on his beautiful Danish tormenter - oh yeah, and then they fall in love in the last 50 or so pages.
I have nothing against Selig, the angel-faced Viking hero. I loved him as the twice-blessed baby in "Fires of Winter" and as Kristen's returned-from-the-dead brother in "Hearts Aflame." He is so charming! But in "Surrender My Love," Selig doesn't get much opportunity to use that charm. Instead, he's wounded and beaten so badly in the beginning of the book that the whole story revolves around his pain, slow recovery, and revenge. I for one wished Selig hadn't suffered yet another wound, as his previous injuries in "Hearts Aflame" were bad enough. But Johanna Lindsey felt the need to hurt poor Selig once more - and screw up his much-anticipated love story in the process. Why?!?
Selig is paired up with Erika, a Danish Viking maid - and the girl who had him lashed. So, in Viking tradition, he takes her prisoner (only to fall in love). But, unlike the stories involving his mother and sister, Erika is no spirited vixen of a captive. She's not even witty. She accepts her chains and humiliation without a peep. Again, why does Selig fall in love?!?
I can't say this story was terrible. After all, lots of characters from the earlier books returned, so it was a fun family reunion. But, it was bogged down with back-story. Secondary characters like King Alfred and Meghan, who were so alive in the previous books, were carbon cutouts in "Surrender." New characters, like Turgeis the Shadow, were actually intriguing, but so little used, it was sad. Worse, there was no passion or hanky panky until about page 330 - the last 80 or so pages of a 400+ page book. And, on top of that, WHY were Kristen and Brenna - both ex-slaves - so cavalier about Erika's enslavement?
I'd much rather read "Fires of Winter" and "Hearts Aflame," the first two of the trilogy, then bother with "Surrender My Love." Maybe we'll be lucky and Johanna will redeem herself by writing Meghan's story, putting in a good dose of charming Selig and not wounded and vengeful Selig, which is all "Surrender" seems to be about.
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A lady's scorn provokes a Viking's vengeance . . ., August 19, 2004
While this third book in Ms. Lindsey's infamous Viking Trilogy takes a bit longer to pull the reader in than the previous books, it's still a wonderful read. Definitely not one to be missed if you love the Haardrad family.
Selig Haardrad has been blessed since the time of his birth when his father defied Viking law and brought him back to life. Now a grown man, Selig is, for lack of a better word, beautiful. With his beauty has come a lifetime of pampering from every woman he's ever come in contact with. All this doting has certainly gone to his head for he believes that all women will succumb to his charms and each of them can be wrapped around his little finger with no work whatsoever on his part. Add this conceit to the already overblown Viking arrogance and you're left with a man who could stand to be taken down a peg or two. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that I dislike Selig -- quite the contrary, actually -- I just feel it wouldn't hurt him to have a woman who didn't immediately give in to his every little whim.
While on a mission for his brother-in-law's King, Selig is set upon by thieves who leave him gravely wounded assuming that he's dead. When he's finally able to pull himself together enough to search for help, he happens upon Gronwood castle and the lovely Lady Erika. Falsely branded a spy and sentenced to a lashing, he vows to seek revenge on the first woman who's ever caused him pain.
Even though Erika might not have been the heroine I'd had in mind for Selig, I came to accept her and yes, like her very much. While she's not as tough as Brenna, or even as over-the-top as Kristen, she has a gentle grace, a quiet strength and a strong possessive streak (which she'll definitely need with a husband like Selig). She's tough when she has to be, but often regrets her actions once they've been doled out. As is the case with her imprisonment of Selig. I'm really shocked at all the reviewers who seem to think Erika was in the wrong to treat Selig the way she did. She was only doing what anyone in her position at that time would have done -- protecting her keep in a time when the memories of war were still fresh in everyone's mind. She didn't overstep her bounds or even do anything that was remotely shocking.
Probably my favorite part of the book was the inclusion of characters from both the previous books. Unlike some authors who rarely keep consistency between books in a series, Ms. Lindsey is a master at keeping well-loved characters true to form. Brenna, Garrick, Kristen, Royce, Meghan and Alden all make an appearance, giving the book a sort of family reunion feel for the reader. As for new characters, Ms. Lindsey doesn't disappoint in that area either. From Erica's brother Ragnar (whose story I definitely wouldn't mind reading in the future!) to Erika's best friend Turgeis, the reader finds new characters to love who shine with the same vividness and color that any Lindsey fan has come to expect from her work. Also, keep a look out for Kristen's children!
Unlike most of the reviewers, I wasn't at all upset with the way the scenes of the book were laid down. In fact, after the slow start, I felt the book really picked up and turned out to be one of the best reads I've had in a long time. The scene towards the end at the lake is priceless and had me laughing out loud for quite some time.
As a long-time fan of Ms. Lindsey's work I wasn't disappointed in _Surrender My Love_. In fact, the only thing that disappoints me about the book is that so far it's the last of the series. I hate to say goodbye to the Haardrad clan and fervently hope Ms. Lindsey plans to revisit this amazing family sometime in the near future.
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