Rosehaven (Song Series) (Mass Market Paperback)

~ (Author) "HER FATHER DIDN'T LIKE HER, BUT HE WOULD NEVER DO THIS to her, never..." (more)
Key Phrases: solar stairs, damned marten, mewled loudly, Dame Agnes, Lady Moraine, Sir Roger (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Medieval England provides the background for Coulter's latest spirited romance, a tale that pits willful young heiress Hastings of Trent against her new husband, doughty warrior Severin of Langthorne. The union has been decreed by Hastings's dying father, the Earl of Oxborough, to save her?and the castle and estate?from the evil depredations of Richard de Luci. As de Luci's forces advance on the castle, Severin consummates the marriage with practical dispatch. He explains away his harsh commands and brutal deflowering expedient behavior (if Hastings is no longer a virgin, de Luci cannot claim her as a bride), but Hastings feels she has been raped. Seeking counsel from several older women, she is told she must change her attitude and try to please her husband. She takes their advice and, to her surprise, Severin's behavior toward her changes dramatically. Then, just as the relationship begins to grow, beautiful Lady Marjorie, Severin's long-lost first love, arrives at the castle, perhaps, Hastings fears, to try to win Severin back. Compounding her worries is her discovery that the earl had maintained a mysterious second household at Rosehaven, a keep on the English coast. After an angry confrontation with Severin about Marjorie, Hastings sets out alone to find Rosehaven. The secret of the secluded castle is part of the requisite happy ending, but Coulter's (The Valentine Legacy) portrayal of an abusive husband as a romantic hero may leave some readers less than pleased. Although it is presented in the context of the era, her suggestion that a woman can, by changing her behavior, alter the pattern of abuse in a relationship is frightening. The notion that a physically brutal man can be tamed by an intelligent wife is difficult to accept. Major ad/promo; Doubleday Book Club main selection; Literary Guild featured alternate; author tour.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

To her usual successful mix of romance, humor, and spicy sex talk (think Wife of Bath with a pinch of dominatrix), the author of the Legacy trilogy (The Valentine Legacy, 1995, etc.) adds a rather substantial leavening of Disney-esque animal characters to a story set in 1277 England. They include Gilbert the castle goat, who gives milk and eats gauntlets; Edgar the Wolfhound (to whom Severin of Langthorne ties Hastings, his young wife, when he wants to humiliate her); Alfred, the huge housecat and familiar of Hastings's teacher, a recluse called the ``Healer'' who hates all men until she's smitten with Severin's man Gwent (``that lack-witted oxhead''); and Trist, the cute marten who cuddles beneath Severin's tunic. Besides comic relief, Trist's loving presence signifies to Hastings that the fierce-looking stranger to whom she's been betrothed isn't the scary warrior she first imagines. Severin has just returned from the Crusades to find his brother dead, his mother mad, and his estate penniless. With the blessing of King Edward, he has come to Oxborough Castle in East Anglia to wed Hastings, an heiress. He wants a sweet submissive wife who will give him an heir and leave him alone. Instead, he finds a strong-willed young woman well versed in self-preservation and herbal healing. (Borla root in ale makes a ``manhood'' flaccid; mugwort and primrose heal a swollen nose.) Beneath the usual conventions of the genre and some spirited good humor is Coulter's standard grim underpinning of domestic violence and marital rape--though this time, while not dispensing with them, she does suggest that men are not as deadly as they seem, especially if skillfully handled. Standard bawdy fare, Coulter-style, though the violence may offend the growing number of romance readers who are dissatisfied with rape in any form. (Literary Guild featured alternate; Doubleday main selection; author tour) -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Jove (June 5, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 051512088X
• ISBN-13: 978-0515120882
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (57 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #361,285 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

• This is item 5 in The Song Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Subtle humor and great love story regardless!, December 11, 2003

By	"readinganddreaming" (Green Country, Oklahoma) - See all my reviews

This review is written and ready to go online. As I prepare to enter it, I am amazed at the tremendous criticism of this book I see already posted. It is apparent my views differ greatly from some other reviewers. I tend to read a book within the context the author has created. If I don't like that author's writing style, I don't read their books again. Coulter is a writer that is on the rougher side of romance. Many would tame that by stating that her writing is politically incorrect. However, when I pick up a Coulter book, I know it is probably not going to be warm and fuzzy and it will probably contain an overly aggressive hero. And since I believe overly aggressive heroes are common then and now, I submerge myself into this different type of romance. I am not making a political statement with this review. I really enjoyed this book and am not ashamed to admit it. I liked the hero and the heroine and don't believe this writing or me to be sick. I think it was very entertaining. Now for my review in it's original form:

I have only recently discovered Catherine Coulter. While I know her writing style can cause great controversy, I have found most of the four Coulter books I have read to date to be quite entertaining. I am somewhat bothered by the hero's ruthlessness in some of her books but I am also one that accepts such ruthless behavior as part of the story and can accept a tarnished man as a hero. Rosehaven is my favorite Coulter book to date. It has a delightful underlying subtle humor and both of the lead characters were well written. I especially liked the heroine, Hastings and how easily she spoke her mind without hatefulness. Usually I don't relish the presence of too many secondary characters but they were so interwoven into the overall story and lives of the hero and heroine that I found them quite interesting. Overall, I had a great time reading this book and put it down only with great reluctance. I eagerly watched for the next time I could continue reading it.

Severin is the hero, a medieval knight who has performed well in the Christian Crusades and is recognized as an accomplished, courageous, and talented man. The Earl of Oxborough has chosen Severin to wed his only daughter, Hastings, claim all of the family's vast estates and riches, and continue the family line. When he first appears at Oxborough Castle, he seems an unfeeling, dominating man who definitely believes he is in charge. He does not hide his disdainful attitude towards his bride-to-be. He is wedding her to obtain lands, title, and riches and in turn will provide heirs and excellent management of the estates. At this point, I was not too crazy about Severin. He seemed totally without feelings as was well noted by Hastings as she told Severin that he had the feelings of a toad.

Hastings is a vivacious and fun heroine forced into an unwanted marriage to this most insensitive man. She attempts to talk her dying father out of the forced wedding but he refuses and insists they marry immediately before he dies. And then there is yet another reason for the urgency - the villain is coming to attack the castle and steal Hastings away and thus obtain her family's lands. Through it all, Hastings keeps her chin up and is quite charming.

One of the greatest criticisms of this book is the abusive hero. Yes, he is an aggressive husband who is definitely tarnished in that he forces the marriage bed. He also humiliates Hastings as he disciplines her for her violent behavior. Although I did not like his choice of discipline, I have to admit that Hastings's continual temper tantrums and many attempts to physically hurt Severin were tiring. She would lose all control and I am amazed a medieval hero would tolerate it as well as he did. Overall I found Severin to be quite a pleasant guy. It was very amusing to watch his love for her grow and grow although he didn't realize it was happening. And that is what I liked best about Rosehaven. Through many trials and tribulations, we get to see the love develop between Severin and Hastings little by little throughout the book. It is not a love that comes together suddenly at the end. We are given pages and pages to savor the growth of this relationship and their romance is the primary storyline. We actually get to see them happy together prior to the end of the book. There are quite a few sensual scenes that rate about a 3.75 out of 5.0 (see More About Me for rating guidelines). Although these scenes are not explicit, they are definitely sensual. There is a lot of great chemistry between these two.

Overall, I loved this book! I have not been this enthusiastic about a book in some time. My ability to accept some politically incorrect behavior as part of medieval times definitely plays into this high rating. I realize not everyone can accept the hero's negative behavior. But since I have read other Coulter books, I can compare him to a few of her other heroes. Compared to the heroes in The Devil's Embrace or Season of the Sun, this hero is tame. I am looking forward to yet another Coulter adventure. One thing I have discovered about her writing is that her books can vary tremendously.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Please people let's take the time period into account.., May 4, 1998

By A Customer

I HAVE to say, I disagree with the reviews I am seeing here about this book. I found it engaging and fun to read. I DO agree the title is a bit irrelevant, but the story, on the whole, is well done. I feel those negative comments are written by people who want to take modern characters, actions and attitudes, and put them in a castle and call THAT a historical novel. By the way, the author never proclaims rape as "right", but she does show that the hero in the story would have considered it so, as IN THOSE DAYS she would have been considered property. Catherine Coulter makes her stories as real and believable as she can, so if reality bothers you, don't read this. Otherwise, I think you'll find it a great read!

20 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Rape-fest Romance! So bad it's good!, June 13, 2003

By	L. J Lewis "Miss Amii" (Collierville, TN United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

As to the people trying to excuse this mess with the 'historical accuracy' argument, I think the other reviewers neglected to mention that Sevrin's behavior would be easier to swallow if this had been a story about a woman trapped in a marital nightmare. Asking the audience to believe that Hastings can honestly love Sevrin and vice-versa in all seriousness is just insulting.
This book is awful, but it holds a sick, twisted charm. It's kind of like those home videos where men get hit in the groin by a football; it has tears of laughter running down your cheeks even as you cringe in sympathy. I swear that these characters are the medieval equivalent of guests on the Jerry Springer show. I've read this thing twice, and both times I've had conflicting feelings of disgust and amusement.
It starts out innocently enough. Impoverished, misogynic, yet handsom and manly Lord Sevrin arrives to marry the only child of the dying land-owner and inherit the property. The daughter, Hastings, is a defiant girl with a hot temper. It becomes apparent from the first time Servin opens his mouth that he is a jerk. He also happens to be a close friend of Grealem de Morten, another of Coulter's power-mad rapists. Birds of a feather folks.
The first few rape scenes are brutal, shocking, and disturbing, but after getting past the initial abuse I struck comedy gold!
Watch as characters' personalities change drastically for no apparent reason. Drink some beer every time Servin yells "I will beat you!" Marvel as characters come back from the dead. Everyone is so over-the-top, from the evil ex-lover Marjorie in her quest to lure that abusive lout, Servin, back into her bed to Hastings, the heroine, as the hissing spit-fire to whom abuse, humiliation, and rape are like water off a duck's back.
In every Coulter book, the author always picks some reoccurring theme in which to be cute and funny, but ends up lame and annoying: here it's an obsession with William the Conqueror and Trist, the marten. At least it's not racing kittens.
However, the ending isn't very funny. These are obviously two very dysfunctional people if they earnestly feel love towards each other. Sevrin has am obsessive need to dominate the people around him and he isn't squeamish about being brutal to achieve his ends. Hastings is proud and defiant. Though she does try to go along to get along, she has a limit to how much she can take from him. When this limit is reached she can erupt explosively. Servin probably won't be satisfied until he crushes her spirit completely, which Hastings will fight against. I can really see him killing her one day when she doesn't give into his demands. I really don't think the power of love can change Servin that much. He did revert back to a brutish lout after the part where he and Hastings started to finally get along after all.