Customer Reviews

Wicked

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

Ms. Drake as taken the fairy tale "Beauty and the Beast" and has made it her own. This talented author takes the reader to Victorian England and with a mystery to solve wonderfully dynamic characters the reader is in for a treat. BUT...readers may find fault with our moody, dark hero. He plays the part of "beast" to perfection and as a result readers may be put off by Brian Stirling. I recommend that readers give this book a fair chance. Ms. Drake always delivers and this read is really no exception.

Camille Montgomery has a less than stirling past. Her mother was a prostitute that fell in love with a lord. She dies early in life leaving her daughter alone and unprotected. Camille is saved by a true friend Tristan and guardian. Well, Tristan finds himself behind the walls of Castle Carlyle and in the "beast" clutches. Camille goes to rescue her guardian but instead becomes a reluctant guest of the Earl of Carlyle. It's not long before she becomes a pawn in a deadly game of revenge that could end badly. But will Camille allow herself to finally see the gentleness in Brian, and be willing to help him end his pain?

Brian Stirling is living a life of a recluse. He wants revenge for the death of his parents and he thinks he knows who caused their tragic deaths but he can't be sure. When Camille comes to rescue her guardian the perfect chance falls into his lap and he will use it if it means bringing an end to his pain. Problem though is he reluctantly starts to feel things for the beautiful Camille, and what starts out as a ploy turns very real. But, will this stubborn man realize it before it's too late?

Brian and Camille are very interesting characters. Again, most will probably be put off by Brian's gruff, and "un-hero" like qualities. I beg the reader to give him a chance. Throughout the story is tenderness, and goodness can be seen. Camille is a fiesty and strong heroine, and more than able to hold her own. This story is really almost "gothic" in nature. I found it to be a good read and one I have no trouble recommending. Ms. Drake is a very talented author and one that always delivers when penning a creative, and different romance.

Official Reviewer for www.romancedesigns.com

I really liked this book. Couldn't see why there was so much bashing of it. It kept my interest from beginning to end. Hero's written in this time frame always see to have a good/bad side to them and really isn't it why some of us women, in particular, fall in love with the guys in these romance novels? They are everything we love and hate rolled into one. Brian Sterling wearing his mask kind of reminded me of the phantom in a way. I loved the spit fire personality of Camille. Tie these feisty personalities together with the mysteries of Egypt and it holds your attention I think. I would recommend it. It was the first of Shannon Drakes I have read.

I have read all of Drake's vampire romance novels and the last few have certainly been lacking. This novel, to my surprise, was well written and full of suspense. I thoroughly enjoyed the character development of "the Beast" and somewhat expected this novel to have a modern Beauty and the Beast twist! The mystery in combination with the romance made this a fun novel to read. I loved it! I would definitely recommend this novel to other Shannon Drake fans!

This is the first book I read by Shannon Drake. I thought the book was terrible. The hero wore a leather mask and is "rude" through out the book. He comes across as a mean and uncaring. Also the plot was overcomplicated(there are mulitple characters that don't add to the story). I could not get into the the story and ended up reading half of it and skimming the rest.

I agree with the last reviewer. I Love Shannon Drake's books. I could not get passed the first few chapters. I went back several times and even skipping through the book I couldn't get engaged in the story. There were too many characters. I think this book had trouble deciding if it was a romance novel or a historical.

I checked the date of publication on this book several times thinking that this was a reprint of one of Ms. Drake's early books. The writing is so sophomoric that, other than the sex scenes, it could have been written for teenagers (or by a teenager). Do yourself a favor and order MR. IMPOSSIBLE by LORETTA CHASE. The story takes place in Egypt and is a GREAT read. Pass on this one.

First I have to say that I love Shannon Drake and every one of her books have always kept me ensnared. This is the exception. I couldn't get past the third chapter. I tried and tried to get into the book, but it was impossible. She used so many exclamation points (!) that it distracted me. I didn't know if they were yelling or being extremely cheerful for no reason at all. The dialogue was horrible and the characters were not intriging. The hero wore a leather mask, which made me think "silence of the Lambs" and didn't endear me to him at all. I'm so dissapointed that she didn't do a better job. Her last regency romance was great, but this one needs some serious editing, and character changes. I wish that she'll give up the regency and write another medieval romance where she really shines.

This was my first book by Shannon Drake, I actually read its version in Spanish but i loved it. To me it was a magical mixture of a fairy tail (like the beauty and the beast), egyptian elements and great suspense with murders included.I thought it was so original!! Different elements that one could think impossible to be mixed and that surprisingly, in the end, resulted in a magnificient and entretaining love story that made impossible to stop reading!! Thanks to that book I ended up buying books by Shannon drake in English and she has become one of my favorite writers!!

I had a hard time finishing this book. It jumped around too much, was disjointed, and I felt no connection to the hero or heroine. For example, they would be eating dinner, and two sentences of dialogue later the meal was finished, and I felt like I missed something. It didn't flow at all. There was very little internal dialogue that helps the reader "feel" for the characters, and be able to understand why they fall in love. It just wasn't there.

This book seems to be the first in a trilogy (Wicked, Restless and Beguiled) and I believe the prequel is When We Touch, featuring Jack the Ripper. It's the story of Brian the Earl of Carlyle, who is wearing a mask (his reputation is that he's hiding the beast beneath caused by war injuries) while he hunts for the murderer of his wonderful parents who were bitten by cobras while on an expedition to find Egyptian treasures. He meets Camille Montgomery, a beautiful self-taught Egyptologist working at the museum his parents were so involved in and decides he can use her in his quest. Ah, but the chemistry between the two will lead them to love as they each follow clues to discover the culprit. It's a fun romp through the late 19th century England and the time of Queen Victoria in her later years when England was an Empire and the British sought higher learning and knowledge. And Shannon Drake (aka Heather Graham Pozzessere) does a great job of keeping up the suspense until the end.