Customer Reviews

Tender Triumph

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(12)
1 star:		(29)

 

 

I am an avid reader of Judith McNaught and greatly admire allof her other books. However, "Tender Triumph" made me closeit several times just the check the cover and make sure JM had really written it. From the first 15 pages, it was easy to see the book would be a failure. Katie proved to be not only racist but very shallow and self-involved. She automatically assumes that because Ramon has a Spanish accent that he is poor, uneducated, and not worth her consideration. Judith tries to make her character redeemable by having Katie apologize after each and every one of her numerous catty and sometimes vicious remarks but I just don't buy it. Katie remarks that many of her well-to-do friends are 'shallow' when she is the very embodiment of the word. Finally, when explanations are made as to why Katie is so very unaccepting of Ramon's love, it seems to be too late and still doesn't excuse her racist and classist remarks.

Ramon is also a total flop of a character. He falls in love with her on the first day because he sees her 'inner light' that sets her apart from her friends'? Please. All she has done is insult and degrade him. I wanted to shake him at one point and say, "Can you really be this pathetic?"

Throughout the entire book I kept waiting for the characters to become more real, more believable, and more loveable. In JM's other works, you come to love her characters and live the love story with them but no connections were made between the reader and these characters.

All I can ask is, "What happened, Ms. McNaught?"

Please, if you had the misfortune to read this book first, don't get the wrong impression. JM is a fabulous writer. I suggest starting out with "Kingdom of Dreams" and if you aren't just clutching your sides with laughter at the line 'Forty is *this* many' and then sighing at the love between Royce and Jenny a few chapters later, I shall say no more to convince you. And if you are into more contemporary works, I *highly* recommend "Paradise". Read them. I promise you it will be worth the time, effort, and money.

I was very afraid to read this book because of the horrible reviews that it received. BUT, while it was not her best work, I felt that it did not deserve such a scathing review.

Katie, daughter of an owner of a supermarket chain and Ramon, ex-one of the most powerful men on earth...meet as he saves her from a gropping ex. He asks for a date and Katie agrees...only to be surprised by the force of the emotions that this one man can evoke in her, when so many others have failed.

As Ramon is ashamed that he is now a failure since his business is filing for bankruptcy (because his father is a jealous and evil man), he lets Katie believe that he is only an ordinary farmer with a cottage in Puerto Rico and not a man who had once owned an island, several mansions and villas, and one of the most successful conglomerates in the world.

Katie, who has been married before to a man who she sensed was not himself, is afraid to trust Ramon as she senses that he also is not revealing the whole truth. Because of this, she tries to stall marriage to him, by paying for half of his expenses, making the cottage look like a bachelor pad, and unintentionally demeaning him by asking if he could swim or dance and giving him a $5 bill in compensation for him driving her home.

Not until the truth is discovered, does she realize the depth of Ramon's love for her and how much she wants that in her previously empty life.

He is not chauvinistic and if anyone had read the book closely enough, it is even explained in the end when Katie asks Ramon if he really thinks that a wife's "place" is at home. And Ramon responded by saying that the only reason he said that in the beginning was because he was trying to make her "settle of rless than she has a right to expect" since he barely had anything to offer and desperately didn't want to lose her. I felt that he had a right to be angry with her for spending money on their cottage because 1) he was already seen as a failure by the villagers for losing his company and now it seems as if he has a sugarmama paying his bills and 2) his entire house had not one drop of her personality to make it her space...meaning that she didn't plan to stay.

All in all, my problem was not Ramon's supposed chauvinism, but rather with the palpable hurriedness of the book. Though Matt and Meredith fell in love in a week in Paradise, this time, the length of their acquaintance was stressed a lot more, making it hard to ignore that they had only known each other for less than a week. Also, the ending felt too hurried as all of a sudden, everything was right again. Not enough detail was made to secondary characters, making them seem flat. These reasons made me want to flip through many of the pages so that I could get to the crucial moment when Ramon would reveal who he really is.

It's a fast read, but there is no chauvinist pig in Ramon, so if you were deterred by that, don't be. Not as enjoyable as many of her others, but still a decent read.

I was really surprised with this one. I love McNaught and have read a few of her historicals. Whitney My Love and Almost Heaven are my all-time favorite books... you fall in love with the characters - truly get to know them inside and out and you get 100% emotionally involved. (at one point while reading Whitney, My Love, I just had to put the book down, and find my husband in the other room and ask him to "just hold me". I am NOT an emotional person but this book just... touched me... when she was heartbroken, I was heartbroken, completely crushed.... Poor guy (my hubby) was so confused.... he was like "Honey, is everything alright?"! How foolish I felt when I had to tell him that I was heartbroken over the characters (Whitney and Clayton)! But that is why I loved that book.......... I laughed... cried..... ENOUGH OF THAT! I'm supposed to be reviewing Tender Triumph!)

I liked the idea of the story but found it a little hard to believe that they could feel for each other after only 1-2 days....... The ache that was there in my chest for Whitney and Elizabeth (Heaven) was not there for these characters. I picked up this one and expected to get into another really great book... I even saved it for a beach vacation, because I hate to rush her books- I enjoy them that much! Well, what a let down... character development was non-existent... they meet and a day later are in love... he's losing his multi-million dollar business, coping with major changes in his life (makes a career change--- a farmer? ) and decides at this point in his life to go to a bar and find a wife? I just don't get it. I had absolutely no feelings for these characters, just didn't care one way or the other what happened to them... But please.... if you read this book and hate it too <g>- do not let it turn you off to McNaught. What a shame it would be to miss out on her finer works... Read Almost Heaven and Whitney, My Love. You won't regret it. I have also heard that Something Wonderful and Once and Always are just as great... hope so :) Also just read a GREAT book Wicked Angel by Julia London- truly heartwrenching, but with a happy ending (my favorite kind of book)! HAPPY READING EVERYONE!

As an avid and loyal reader of JM's books, there are many things I have come to expect from her stories; strong characters with whom the reader may relate and an interesting and captivating story that is difficult to forget. To my sheer horror, the story of Ramon and Kate was utterly forgettable, having none of the usual characteristics of Mrs. McNaught's novels that delight and entrance the reader. Both Ramon and Kate were arrogant and I found the idea of a harmonious union between these two characters unrealistic. Kate lacked the wit of other heroines, though the constant reminders of her beauty try to distract the reader from this flaw. Ramon was a pale copy of Jordan Townsende, Jason Fielding or any other of JM's male characters. Overall a disappointing piece from an otherwise excellent author.

I have read all of Judith McNaught's full length novels and this is one of my favorites. In fact, when I pick this book up with the intent of glancing through it, I always end up reading the entire book all over again.

JM dealt with a subject that many authors have steered clear of - an interracial romance and I think she handled it well. She created a character who was not quite comfortable with the idea but over the course of the book, she discovers that her views are misguided. There is no doubt that Katie made stereotypical assumptions about Ramon but I think they were based in ignorance, not racism as some of the other reviewers have suggested.

Katie is not a perfect character by any stretch of the imagination and she almost loses everything because of her fears. I liked this book because Katie is forced to learn that she does have some flaws but she overcomes them. I found this to be a refreshing contrast to so many books where the hero and heroine are so wonderful that you can't imagine why they don't get together and live happily ever after in two pages.

As for Ramon, he is one of my favorite JM heroes. He saves the book. He is strong and sexy and keeps the romantic tension high.

In my view, this is classic McNaught.

Judith McNaught is one of my favorite romance authors. I read her historicals first, then I gave her contemporaries a whirl. Aside from Paradise, Perfect and Double Standards, I'd found her contemporary efforts lacking the magic of her earlier work. Tender Triumph is contemporary, but one of her earlier efforts from the early eighties. There are some flaws that I will mention later, but overall I found this love story wonderful and charming and it brought me back to JM's style before she decided to jump the romantic mystery bandwagon. Katie Connelly is the daughter of wealthy grocers. She is pampered, spoiled and only knows of the world and the people around her, which is why she doesn't know what to make of the tall, dark and handsome Puerto Rican man who rescues her from the harassment of a drunken ex-boyfriend outside a bar one night. Ramon Galverra is gorgeous, sensual, charming, regal, smooth, but temperamental and alpha male-ish -- not to mention a major male chauvinist -- and Katie is terrified of him. Physically, he reminds her of her cheating, abusive ex-husband, and she senses that Ramon is hiding something from her. Ramon is a powerful tycoon on the verge of bankruptcy and he has nothing to offer Katie other than a simple life in a small cottage in Puerto Rico. Will that be enough for Katie? Will Katie learn to trust Ramon and will she want to marry him? There are some twists throughout the novel.

At first, I resented Katie's assumption that Ramon worked in produce just because he was Puerto Rican, but after a while I realized that McNaught wasn't advocating racism and hatred here, quite the opposite. Katie isn't racist, just clueless about the Hispanic culture. Many Anglos have made the same unfair assumptions that she makes here. Ramon's male chauvinism could easily be interpreted as another unfair stereotype, but while I know that that sort of machismo is no longer as strong in this day and age, it was probably still around in 1983. Furthermore, Ramon's explanation about ego and pride at the end makes sense, but I think the explanation applies to most men regardless of his race. So, as a Latina, I am familiar with all of this and am not as fazed or as outraged as some of the other reviewers here. Now that that's out of the way, I enjoyed the story and the character growth between these two protagonists. Ramon is one sexy hero -- passionate and tender who isn't afraid to express his true feelings. He may be old-fashioned and a male chauvinist at times, but, unlike most of the other McNaught heroes, he isn't a cad who mistreats the heroine for a large portion of the novel. Katie is kind of annoying at first, but I understood her better when I learned about her past. The cultural clash between the protagonists is quite realistic... until Katie moves to Puerto Rico. Aside from a very brief mention of her wanting to go home after she sees the state of Ramon's cottage, she is never homesick after that, never wary of the new surroundings and the different customs. She seems to fit into her new life quite well. I found that unrealistic. I like how McNaught describes the architecture and the picturesque countryside of Puerto Rico, but she mentions very little else, like the music, food and different beach resorts on the island. I know this isn't a tourists' guidebook, but a fleeting mention of the aforementioned things would have sufficed, but everything was completely glossed over. The language is questionable as well. Puerto Ricans don't address a woman as "senorita" as much as they do in other Latin countries. They often use the term "muchacha" (young woman) instead. A few other forms of address are inaccurate here, but I'll spare you the details. Oh, and the author never mentions the name of the village Katie and Ramon reside in. And I see that JM wanted Ramon to be Spaniard, but had him born in Puerto Rico (from Spaniard parents) so that he could be an American citizen. Ah, well. All in all, Tender Triumph is a wonderful novel. This book reminded me of how much I enjoyed discovering Judith McNaught during the past few months. I disagree with the reviewers here that say this is her worst effort, for a couple of her other books were far less impressive to me. I encourage others to give this book a whirl, for you may just be surprised!

I have read all of Mcnaught's romanitc novels, and while this is not her best work, it is a far cry from the awful spotlight reviews seen on top of the page!!

I would even give Tender Triumph a 5 star-rating compared to the myriad of mediocre romances I have read through out the years that have unjustly received higher ratings.

I really believe the bad reviews have stemmed from comparing this book with other superior Mcnaught novels.

Tender Triumph is a lighter, shorter, shallower novel than any other of Mcnaught's romance fiction-excluding her mystery-based contemporary work. So my advise is to read those magnificent novels first and leave this one for a light read.
Paradise, Perfect, Double Standard, Almost Heaven, Until you, Something Wonderful,Once and Always, and a Kingdom of Dreams are my top choices-basically all her romance novels, that's how great she is!

The previous reviewes for Tender Triumph ridiculously exaggerated when it came to depicting the main characters' personalities as "disgusting and idiotic".
Ramon is traditional, conservative, and has a hispanic background. Since I am from the mediterranean area, I found Mcnaught's depiction of his personality, his values, and his jealousies towards the heroine were very realistic and rightfuly passionate. The heroine is a spoiled and shallow rich girl, but that's exactly how she was brought up! Meeting Ramon changes her and her character slowly evolves into an admiring and mature woman.

The plot is also realistic and not implausible whatsoever. I will not go into ridiculing other romace novels and their bizarre story-lines. I have seen many women in real life give up far more for far less than the heroine did in this story for the sake of love. Mcnaught clearly states the heroine's frustration and boredom with her sheltered and pampered lifestyle and seizes, albiet hesitantly and in what she believes will be, an exciting dramatic change with Ramon-do not see where the "unrealistic" decision the heroine made that so many were talking about.

And I am sorry, but I have to say this:Americn-Hispanic-African American-Italian-Asian WHATEVER type of man, they ALL have issues-as in huge ego deflator that causes many problems with real-life relationships-when the woman has more money than the man. I do not care if it's the year 3000, it will always be the same! So, the problem Ramon made when she bought the furniture for their home that he clearly told her he would and could pay for was not an atypical reaction from an overly money-sensitive man who just lost his million dollar empire!

In short, Tender triumph is light, heart-tugging, emotional, and passionate romance that churns your insides until the climactic finale.

Unless you confuse a romanitc fantasy for a reflection of reality and have issues with dominating hispanic men, go ahead and read it, ENJOY!

I don't know about anyone else, but I got really sick and tired of hearing about Katie's red gold hair and blue eyes. The author didn't waste any opportunity to mention those particular attributes. It was as if the author was repetitively trying to describe how beautiful Katie was to make up for the fact that she was shallow, bigoted and snobby. She assumed that the hero, Ramon, drove the dumpy produce truck she saw on the street because he had a spanish accent and she continously treated like he was a stupid, uneducated moron throughout the book. And Ramon was no better. He decides that he loves her because she insults some guys in a singles bar even after she insults and offends him throughout the whole book. The overall book was boring and I started hoping that they would not end up together.

I love Judith McNaught's books, and own them all. However, I was very disappointed in this novel. Katie is a fool who assumes that Ramon drives a Farm Truck because he is Puerto Rican! All of this despite the fact that he is fluent in several languages and speaks about international business with knowledge. Ramon is a typical McNaught hero, but Katie is a disappointment! This novel was written in 1983 and may explain my total dislike of the heroine. Read her other books, but leave this one on the shelf!

This book lacked the sort of wit, passion and sexual tension we've all come to expect from Judith McNaught. And it was boring (I only finished it because I had nothing better to do). If you buy this book expecting the usual magic from Judith Mcnaught - forget it, buy another book. I've read most of Judith Mcnaught's books and all had been excellent, that's why I was so disappointed with this one. No where near the class of "Until You", "Perfect", and "Something Wonderful".