by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss
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Product Description
Historical romance was born when the remarkable Kathleen E. Woodiwiss gifted the world with her groundbreaking love story, The Flame and the Flower. Now, twelve consecutive New York Times bestsellers later, "the first lady of the genre" (Publishers Weekly) returns with her most breathtaking masterwork to date--a glorious celebration of a secret love that is dangerous, irresistible, forbidden, and . . . Once, Abrielle's name was on the lips of every unwed nobleman in London as a proud exceptional lady coveted for her bearing, her breeding, her wit, and her beauty. But when her stepfather--respected for his courage and valor during the Crusades--is denied his rightful title and the wealth that accompanies it, Abrielle finds herself suddenly disgraced, no longer a suitable match for any proper gentleman. Only one would still have her, though he desires no more than physical pleasure: the oafish and grotesque Desmond de Marlé. His dark and scandalous reputation is legend, and Abrielle has heard rumors that his first two wives perished by his hand. Yet no one else can rescue her once-proud family's honor and keep her stepfather from debtor's prison, so she is left with no choice but to accept the cruel and hateful de Marlé's offer of marriage and sacrifice her virtue to a scoundrel she fears and detests . . . even as she yearns for another lover. Dashing, handsome, tall, and kind--a black-haired Scotsman with vivid blue eyes--Raven Seabern is an emissary for his king, and quite unlike any man Abrielle has ever encountered. From the very first moment their eyes meet, he intrigues and mesmerizes her--and dancing in his arms at a royal banquet leaves her weak with the desire to surrender. But their love can never be, for Abrielle is betrothed to a monster. And the well-being of everyone she cares for demands that she honor her promise. Still, the fire lit that night will not be doused. Raven knows he has found the true one and must never let her go--though secrets, deceptions, dishonor, and unimaginable peril will surely be their fate if they follow the dictates of their hearts.
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Average Customer Review:
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
 Long, boring, and wordy, 2008-12-29
This novel was unbelievably boring and pointless. The heroine's reasons for rejecting the hero were just dumb and could have been fixed by her listening for five minutes to any other character in the book. It took almost 200 pages to get rid of the odious fiance who you knew had to die by page 9. Abrielle was not a sympathetic figure in any way and she doesn't grow or change at all over the course of 386 pages. Raven wasn't much better, his line of thought through the entire book is: "I must have Abrielle". His plan was to wait around until he has to save her from dastardly villains (lost count at 6 times). I only finished this book because I was stuck on a plane, and then only be reading 1 out of ever 5 pages.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
Not this time...., 2008-12-18
Usually I like to go into a tad more detail then this but...Nope, it wasn't good...wasn't good at all.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Don't Bother, 2008-12-18
This book was long and dull! The heroine was weak and kept needing to be rescued because of her own stupidity. The plot was weak and by chapter 2 you knew exactly where the book was going and it took over 300 pages to get there! Don't waist your time!
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
 Fantastic, 2008-12-17
I loved it. Definitely up there with the best sellers. In hind sight it may have been too much of the she loves him but doesn't think he wants her kind of thing but every bit worth the read.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
 Sad finale of a great writer's career, 2008-12-16
Note: this review contains overall feedback on Kathleen Woodiwiss in addition to her last and latest reviewed book, "Everlasting." I apologize for the length, but I felt the need to embellish. I learned that Kathleen Woodiwiss passed away about a week after her death and at the same time learned that she had a new novel coming out. Naturally being a long-time fan I was anxious to read her last story. Unfortunately, like many others, I was disappointed in the book and realize that it was the culmination of the downward spiral her writing had taken over the past several years. I had been reading KEW's works since 1979, approx 7 years after her first published novel "The Flame and the Flower." I received it plus "The Wolf and the Dove" and "Shanna" as a boxed set. I still have those original three books and cannot count how many times I had read them. Her writing style back then was superb. I used to pooh-pooh those who read "romance novels" thinking that these people had no lives or who were living vicariously through storybook fiction. I admit that once I started reading this genre, I too was hooked on it! I thoroughly enjoy escaping into the past and peeking into the lives of these characters. I lead a busy life as most people do and relish the time I have to myself, quietly reading, as an escape from the rat-race.
KEW was the first of several authors that I will read anything they publish. I enjoy a meaty novel with well developed characters, plots that are interesting but relatively believable, an emphasis on the historic time period and - of course- happy endings. I admire a strong heroine that is not portrayed as the anti-woman who so much needs to be validated in a man's world that she does everything from dueling and espionage to sword-fights and miracle-healing! (some of the attributes these women are given are a bit far-fetched!) And the men who are angry at the world, scarred from a miserable childhood (abusive parent, no parent, envious sibling or cruel twist of fate), or hard-hearted due to a scheming woman from his past do not make for an ideal leading man. It seems that KEW avoided that common pitfall and conjured up the best qualities in many of the heros and heroines while mixing a few flaws in as well. Her stories were lengthy which gave the characters a chance to grow both intelectually and emotionally. Some of her novels could even be invisioned a movie or mini-series. But that was in the past. Her first 5 or 6 books were wonderful -- some of the best I ever read. Then things started to change. Perhaps the setting of the novels just weren't inspirational enough or, once a plot line was selected it simply ran out of steam?? Whatever the reasons, after "A Rose In Winter" the balance of KEW's books started going downhill for me. This seemed to coincide with the new tendancy to release books in the larger format (to command more $$) Do authors need to adhere to a specific number of written word to fill these pages? That could be an excuse, as it seems that KEW's rambling stories and excessive fluffly prose just pepper these final 5 or 6 books. You'll note that I don't cite the book titles because they are simply not as memorable as what I call the "classics"
With each new release, the reader is left hoping that this book is going to snap the trend boring and uninspired previous books. I was so eager to read "The Reluctant Suitor" and boy was I disappointed in that one! (review already given for that)
And so my rambling brings me to "Everlasting." Like many others, I bought the book with mixed feelings: loyalty to a favorite author who's no longer with us; and hopeful anticipation that this final novel would, indeed, be everlasting. Sadly, this is just not the case. Another beautiful heroine with stunning looks, strong sense of duty, charming personality, sharp wit, intelligence beyond what the average girl of that time period would have, plus an attractive friend who doesn't tragically die. (all that and a bag of chips!) Add a gorgeous, principled man who was (surprise) raised by loving parents, who fights for the little guy and who is instantly smitten by the one woman he can't have. Naturally, that little item doesn't stop him and so begins the battle to win his love!
Of course, you must toss in the bad guy and boy, is he a doozie. The usual instances of saving the damsel in distress (multiple times over) and the requisite stranding of the hero/heroine together so that the reluctant spark of attraction on one side (hers) meets with the determined seduction on the other side (his) Then it's like the heroine is bonked on the head because when she comes to, she finds she has fallen into the deepest and most delirious state of love ever imagined. A little more conflict, the good guys/gals against all the evil-doers and a neat resolution where everybody is happy in the end including the hero's devoted dad and the heroine's devoted best friend (acutally, a nice surprise with that pairing) Notice again the lack of "names" in the review of "Everlasting." Certainly not everlasting in my memory, yet ask me to name all the characters in the early books and I can rattle them off instantly!
All in all, the points of this lengthy posting by me are: I was/am truly a fan of Kathleen Woodiwiss. I am sad that she is no longer with us. I will continue to read my favorite books from her. I will continue to recommend that others read my favoirte books from her. I would like to think that her later works were efforts from her based on her desire to weave beautiful stories for her loyal fans and not so much because she had a contact to write more books. I will sadly not recommend much of anything including and after "Come Love a Stranger" because I feel that, with the exception of "Petals on the River" just about everything else falls into the ho-hum category. I think the only reasons I liked "Petals on the River" were: love the setting of Colonial Virginia, the story was actually not so far-fetched and there was the pleasant surprise of the Beauchamp family woven into it. (one negative was that the heroine was way too perfect; i.e. she never cooked a thing in her life but she saw the family cook whip up biscuits and gave it a try and her guesswork proved her to be a gourmet!) The two sequals to "The Flame and the Flower" are recommended to those who want to revisit with favorite characters but not outstanding as stand-alone books.
Borrow "Everlasting" from the library or buy it used if you want to read it. Spending over $20 for the hardback is really a waste and even the paperback is too costly at face value. That book and the several before it are not true representations of Ms Woodiwiss' unique and trend-setting talent. I continue to regret that she has not met the quality of her earliest novels - which were true novels in every sense of the word. If you want to read beautifully written stories, rich in history and period settings, wistfully beautiful leading ladies and stunningly handsome leading men, please pick up "Shanna" "The Rose In Winter" "Ashes in the Wind" "The Wolf and the Dove" and "The Flame and the Flower." You will surely understand that we lost a great writer but I believe we lost her several years ago, when her much anticipated books turned into disappointments.
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