Customer Reviews

Taming Lord Renwick (Zebra Regency Romance)

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

 

 

I really enjoyed reading this book, especially due to the fact that the hero was not the perfect physical specimen that appears in so many regencies. The way Sahib(the tiger) bring together two people who each believe they are unworthy of the other is truly touching. I would recommend this book to anyone.

Jeanne Savery did a great job using a large white tiger as cupid. You start out growing to like Jason, Lord Renwick, and end up rooting for love between two unlikely lovers. Sahib, the tiger, knew best when he brought Jason and Eustacia together. This one comes highly recommended.

Lord Renwick was blinded in a hunting accident in India, and retires to his country estate, where Eustacia signs on as his secretary to help him write his memoirs, of course they fall in love. She teaches him to adjust to his blindness. There is some awkward humor, especially with his pet tiger which acts like a seeing-eye dog. Not great, but not terrible. The quality of the writing is average for a romance with a light-hearted tone.

Lieutenant Lord Jason Renwick, baron of the Realm, was seriously wounded during a tiger hunt in India and returned to England a bitter man. He lives with his aunt, Lady Blackburne, in a reclusive way in the country. In one of his very rare outings, they meet Eustacia, a girl with the voice of an angel in an inn and Jason is immediately taken with her voice. This angel is no green miss but the disinherited granddaughter of an earl, traveling with her stepmother. In order to avoid the unwanted attentions of a disagreeable suitor and because she was fascinated by the sleek albino tiger that follows Jason, Eustacia agrees to an extended "visit" to Tiger's Lair.

You all know where this will end, but the author still manages to present a very enjoyable story, with the addition of a few other characters, as the spoiled Indian prince whom Jason saved in that hunt when he was blinded, a couple of titled friends and a kidnapping. It was a quick and good reading, most of all because there were no unnecessary sex scenes which would be terribly inappropriate for the time. If you find this book in your local library a I did, give it a try. It will be worth your time.
There is a sequel to this book, "Lady Serena's Surrender", that tells the story of one of Jason's friends, Ian McMurrey.

Taming Lord Renwick by Jeanne Savery was a recent reread for me. It is a Regency Period Romance novel published under the Zebra Regency label. Eustacia is the daughter of a Vicar who as passed away, leaving her in a precarious financial situation and in the care of her stepmother. Her stepmother, liking the finer things in life, has found the perfect husband for Eustacia, Mr. Weaver, a fat, elderly, smelly man. As Eustacia and her step-mother are discussing (okay, the step-mother is telling Eustacia) the marriage plans, Lord Renwick and his aunt, Lady Blackburn, can't help overhearing the stepmother's strident tones and Eustacia's quietly whispered "no". Lord Renwick, known as Jason to his friends, makes a comment to Lady Blackburn about how he likes the sound of Eustacia's voice before he leaves for bed. Lady Blackburn, willing to do anything for her nephew, interferes and whisks Euastacia off to stay at Tiger's Lair, Jason's ancestral home.

Jason having returned from India nearly a year before the incident at the Inn is nearly blind from a hunting accident where he saved the life of a prince, leaving him needing the assistance of those around him for just about everything. Jason has retreated into his house and his shell, believing that because he can't see he is not a full man and unable to function with others. Jason's only friend is the white tiger Sahib that returned with him and acts as his guide and protector. Eustacia breezes into the Tiger's Lair like a quiet whirlwind, upsetting the status quo and allowing Jason to realize that he is really not that limited after all. Just when things start to heat up between Jason and Eustacia the prince arrives with his entourage to learn English ways, unfortunately the 10 year old prince is there against his will and things start to get interesting.

This is a book is a part of a series about a group of boys who grew up together but all returned from the war and India with their battle scars. I like the book because Eustacia is the quietly determined heroine, who doesn't believe she herself is worth much but sees the value in others, I also like how she is able to be understanding about some of the motives of the other characters. Sahib is also a great addition to the story, how ofter do you read about a white tiger seeing eye dog?! He terrorizes the servants, make everyone to comes to visit Jason nervous and eventually saves the day, in more ways than one. I also like that the hero has self-doubts and an impairment. (I mean really, was everyone in Regency Period England beautiful and perfect! I don't think so!) I recommend the entire series and now need to go dig through my other books to find the rest of the books so I can reread them as well.

I enjoyed this book a lot. Anyone who has had a life altering injury or desease can learn quite a bit from the 'Taming...' of Lord Rewick. How what we now call "tough love" can give someone with a disability back their life. The description of the dispair one experiences is authentic. The smoothering solicitude of some loved ones is also true-to-life.

PLUS, it _was_ a lot of fun to read!