Enthralling Sequel to DEVIL’S EMBRACE!Set in 1803 in the Mediterranean, this is the sequel to DEVIL'S EMBRACE (to which I also gave 5 stars), and tells the story of Adam and Arabella Welles, the children of Cassie and Anthony Welles. Equally intense and equally well written as DEVIL'S EMBRACE, this is a page-turner that will keep you reading late into the night. I am in awe at how well Coulter has done this duology. Simply marvelous.Arabella Wells is an independent, strong-willed young woman who at 20 declares she will not wed unless she can find a man like her father or brother. We all know what a rough wooing Arabella's parents had so you can expect a bumpy ride. Arabella and Adam travel from England to their second home in Genoa where they learn from their father someone has been taking their merchant ships, ships that sail under the protection of the Bey of Oran in Algiers to whom their father pays tribute. The current Bey is Kamal El-Kadar, also known as Alessandro di Ferrari, the son of our villain from DEVIL'S EMBRACE, contessa Giovanna Giusti, who in this book is seeking revenge for her years in the harem of Khar El-Din. When Arabella and Adam travel to Naples, seeking to learn the mystery of the missing ships, the contessa conceives of a plot to kidnap Arabella and send her as a "whore" to Kamal for his harem as bait to lure Arabella's father to Oran.There are two love stories in this novel, Adam and Rayna Lyndhurst (daughter of the Viscount who was engaged to Arabella's mother in DEVIL'S EMBRACE), and Arabella and Kamal. Both are very well done with a rich tapestry of characters and well described Mediterranean locations. Arabella and Kamal's "courtship" is every bit as tumultuous as that of Arabella's parents. I loved Arabella--such a feisty heroine! But she was the only one who was woman enough for Kamal. There are lots of twists and turns in this one and lots of action. I say Coulter has another keeper here. For all you alpha male hero lovers (like me), I highly recommend it.
I enjoyed most of this book...well-written in most respects but the hero was not heroic enough. I kept waiting for him to get his a$$ kicked by Anthony. *** SPOILER ***Am I the only one that caught the part where, before he has Arabella whipped, she sees one of the young girls in the harem starting to show a pregnancy but it can only be Kamal's as he has been at the harem for something like 6mos and using the concubines for his pleasure...the Western world part of me told me that there was all sorts of wrong going on there...:( I will be sure to stay away from harem-mentioning 'romance' novels from now on...
What do You think about Devil's Daughter (1985)?
This was the novel that introduced me to good historical romance. I've read it countless times. Now that I'm older, I do see its flaws - but it is hard to find well-written romance novels, and this is one of them. I like this novel so much I have two copies - both the original print and the revised edition (I favor the original). I find it is hard for me to read other romance authors because Catherine Coulter has set the bar so high.I love this story - set in northern Africa and parts of Europe. I find my favorite historical romance novels have a "foreign" flair to them.
—Kathryn
