THE BRIDE BY JULIE GARWOODOnce upon a time di negri yang jauh sekali di tahun 1102 di Skotlandia dan Inggris, kisah ini di mulai....In my opinion, this is a really sweet love story..let’s begin. Alec Kincaid di gosipkan membunuh istri pertama nya dua tahun yll, dalam kondisi seperti itu dia di minta mengambil pengantin baru dari orang Inggris, atas permintaan Raja nya.Di pilh lah anak-anak perempuan keluarga yang malas membayar pajak,keluarga Baron Jamison, yang memiliki 3 anak perempuan,dan 1 anak tiri, bernama Jamie (kayak Cinderella ya hihihihhiii). Saat diminta ayah nya untuk menerima saja pernikahan tidak jelas dengan para ksatria dari Highland itu, si kembar menangis habis2an sementara Mary merencanakan kabur,dan Jamie si bungsu, malah mengatakan mereka harus menghadapi saja hal itu. Disini banyak terjadi dialog2 lucu antara keempat anak gadis itu.Beak, penjaga kuda dan sahabat Jamie, menginginkan Jamie yang menjadi salah satu pengantin para lelaki Skot itu,agar Jamie bebas dari kungkungan ayahnya.Di atur lah, saat Alec dan Daniel tiba 3 hari lebih cepat dari perkiraan, dia mesti melihat Jamie dulu. Alec langsung memutuskan untuk mengambil Jamie jadi istri nya , walau pun dia sempat mendengar dialog lucu antara Jamie dan Mary mengenai otak orang Skot yang Cuma seperti domba atau orang Skot yang memakai gaun wanita, Beak tentu protes, katanya itu plaid, bukan gaun.Tetap aja Mary gak paham dan bilang,lagian kan mereka suka perang, apa gak repot tuh perang sambil ngurusin gaun mereka....wakakakkak...asli ngakak baca dialog yang ini.... Sampai pada saat yang di tentukan,Jamie maju jadi pahlawan kakak2nya saat si kembar nangis bombay,ketakutan melihat dua “raksasa” di hadapan mereka. Jamie, yang gak biasa tersipu, di buat blushing oleh pandangan Alec yang seolah menelanjangi nya. Alec, tanpa memandang ayah Jamie, langsung aja nanya, ada pendeta kan disini...bwahahhaha....sudah gak tahan dia mau menikahi Jamie yang energik, dan memiliki nama lelaki itu. Alec dan Daniel gak bisa melepaskan pandangan dari Mary dan Jamie, hm, mereka langsung jatuh cinta pada pandangan pertama bo’ ...apalagi Alec,suka banget liat Jamie yang pemberani, dia pikir,pasti cocok nih buat alam Highland yang keras, dan beberan pengen buru2 malam pertama hahhahaha....sabar dong Alec, ih dasar lelaki....(hm, tapi memang can not help to fall in love with Jamie sih, aku juga suka karakter Jamie, lovable banget)...Jamie akhir nya sadar kalau dia yang di pilih Alec jadi pengantinnya, dan bertekad jika dia gak mau jatuh cinta pada Alec, biarpun dia tau Alec tuh ganteng,dan Jamie (agak) tertarik sih sam Alec. Sementara Mary pingsan waktu tau dia akan menikah dengan Daniel. Kocak nih Daniel dengan Mary.Seru juga ya jaman dulu cara milih pengantinnya, tembak langsung hahahhahaha....Udah gitu, pas Alec bilang,pake baju putih ya, eh Jamie malah pake baju hitam di pernikahan mereka dan tetap aja cantik di mata Alec, Alec langsung ngakak abis liat Jamie yang membangkang,dan bertekad menaklukkan si keras kepala yg cantik itu.Mulailah perjalanan panjang menuju Skotlandia di atas kuda, berempat,dua pasang pengantin yang masih asing satu sama lain.Di tengah perjalanan mereka di hadang oleh perampok, dan dengan tenang nya si Alec melawan dengan tangan kosong,gak samapai semenit lho... sayang nya bbrp dari mereka berhasil menyandera Jamie dan mengancam membunuh Jamie.Alec sok2 ga butuh gitu sama istri nya,saat penjahat nya lengah,matilah penjahat itu (Jamie juga behasil lho membunuh satu orang dengan belatinya). Malam pertama mereka after bahaya berlalu deh, soalnya si Alec ga tahan lagi, habis sengaja membiarkan Jamie kedinginan habis mandi,dia sengaja menyelimuti Jamie dengan plaid nya (soalnya dia janji, dia baru mau malam pertama,kalo Jamie sudah menggunakan plaid nya)... Hm,Jamie nya mau juga kok, soalnya menurut Alec,sejak pertama kali ketemu , Jamie sudah gak tahan kan mau menyentuh Alec ...oh,Alec,kau sungguh geer deh...Lucu juga waktu Jamie beresin rambut Alec yg berantakan, alesan nya kalo gitu Alec jelek,kayak rake, mesti potong rambut, padahal, dia ga tahan aja pengen ngelus2 rambut Alec. Pisah arah dengan Daniel dan Mary,mereka jalan berdua.Alec yang berjanji gak akan menyentuh Jamie lagi sebelum sampai rumah mereka (karena takut jamie kesakitan), gak tahan juga sebenernya, makanya after 5 hari perjalanan, melihat Jamie ketiduran di meadows, dia segera aja menggendong dan memeluk istrinya dengan sangat erat sampai Jamie kesakitan... lucu pas Jamie sebelum nya menggerutu kalo Alec tuh kayaknya ga bisa berhitung deh, soalnya bilang nya 3 hari lagi,eh udah 5 hari gak sampai2 juga ! Uhuk2nya lebih seru disini,sampai Jamie ketiduran kelelahan hihihihihii..bayangin sendiri aja ya... Sampai juga mereka di kastil Kinckaid, terheran2 lah Jamie, kok guede banget, trus pas di tanya ada berapa orang disini tentara nya Alec, Alec bilang sekitar 700an deh, hm, Jamie agak ga percaya,krn menurut dia kan Alec ga bisa berhitung...hihhii..nah pas semua warga pada keluar dan raksasa semua, sadarlah Jamie kalo Alec tuh emang pemimpin klan yg banyak pengikut nya.Dan terpesona sama plaid yang d kenakan mereka, saat itu Jamie baru tau kalau Alec nguping pembicaraannya dengan Mary di kandang kuda soal Skot yg pakai gaun. Mulailah Jamie menyesuaikan diri dengan lingkungan suamiNya, dan dia di terima dengan baik lho disana, dan itu membuat Alec makin bangga sama istrinya.Sampai Jamie membuat suami dan seluruh klannya terkagum2 dengan keahliannya mengobati Angus, teman Alec yang dikira dying dan sudah di panggilkan pendeta segala buat sakramen terakhir. Alec takjub sama istri kecil nya itu. Angus juga lucu,waktu dia kira dia sudah masuk surga dan liat angel, eh pas denger logat nya Jamie , dia bilang, hah,ternyata aku di neraka, kau terlihat seperti angel, tapi sounds like...English...hahahahhaha.... Walau agak menyebalkan nih si Alec after dia tiba di rumah,arogannya keliatan, dia katanya memiliki istri, gak boleh mencintai istri, aneh juga ya...tapi tetap aja Jamie berhasil membuat Alec kelimpungan dan gak kuat buat gak mencintai istrinya itu (dengan diam-diam).Jamie disayang banget sama pendeta,Gavin (asisten Alec) dan hampir semua warga. Kecuali Marcus, Edith yang ipar2 Alec dari istri pertamanya.Uhuk2nya asik, Alec paling suka di atas plaid, di padang rumput di alam terbuka, atau sambil berdiri, dasar barbar hahhaha...tapi Jamie suka banget tuh.... Sayang nya after uhuk2 ke 3 (di buku), yg mereka nikmati di padang rumput setelah Jamie ngambek karen gak boleh mindahin dapur, Jamie mengalami percobaan pembunuhan, dengan di jebak di gubuk yg terbakar,untung Alec dan Gavin cepat sampai disana menyelamatkan Jamie. Alec mau mati aja rasa nya tau ada yg mau membunuh “his precious Jamie”...kayaknya ada yang gak suka Alec menikah dengan Jamie. Seperti dugaan Jamie juga sih, kalo Helena, istri pertama Alec tuh bukan bunuh diri, kecelakaan,....atau...dibunuh??? (siapa pembunuh nya? ga seru kali ya kalo di share)Hmm,akhirnya boleh juga mindahin dapur,dg Alec sebagai mandor nya. Mereka uhuk2 lagi after Jamie mandi dan membersihkan diri, disini paling seru, soalnya Jamie mulai berani oralit, yang bikin Alec melayang ke surga...ahaaay..... Beberapa misteri terungkap dan beberapa orang lagi di taklukkan Jamie termasuk Marcus,dan Edith,keluarga istri pertama Alec, dengan dukungan penuh Father Murdoch,yg sayang banget sama Jamie...menaklukkan Alec juga dia, tentunya hahahhahaa...... Jamie emang agak rese ya,dia mau tau semua nya,termasuk ekberadaan Mary Kathhleen anak Helena dengan suami pertamanya,Kevin (ternyata Alec Cuma menikah 2 bulan dan jarang ketemu sama Helena karena perang melulu).Ada juga yang seru waktu si Alec terbengong2 waktu Jamie pamer dia bisa berkuda bareback dan pinter manah dengan jitu, makin terkagum2 dan bangga dia sama Jamie. Alec juga di buat terkagum2 sama istrinya yang ga tergoda di gangguin Justin si ganteng nan playboy, malah di kemplang hahha...dan dia kasih kejutan pada Alec dengan memakai plaid Alec.... Dan gak peduli ada orang lain ,mereka uhuk2 di balik tirai hihihihihii dan saying "I love you" dengan bahasa Gaelic...huuuu Alec highlander ter-unyu sedunia deeehhhhh Ada sedikit bumbu suspense, tapi ringan banget dan tiap Jamie dalam bahaya,selalu ada orang2 yang menyayangi dia di sekitar nya. Sampai pada satu saat,Andrew,calon suami nya sebelum dia diambil Alec datang dan menuntut sesuatu dari Jamie, dengan dukungan seluruh klan,termasuk klan tetangga,tuntutan Andrew di penuhi, dan Andrew diancam Alec buat jangan pernah kembali lagi ke Highland, karena dia ga welcome disana. Alec juga benci banget sama bokapnya Jamie yang memperlakukan Jamie beda dengan saudari2nya yg lain,pokok nya Alec bertekad, dia akan memberikan segala yg terbaik buat Jamie,termasuk hati nya...terharuuuuuuu...*peyuk2 Alec*...Dan waktu Jamie bilang, Alec, kamu tuh bukin si Andrew jadi kaya raya, Alec dengan kalem nya bilang, aku lebih kaya dari siapapun,Jamie, I have You... (huuuuu...mau deeeh ada yang bilang gitu ke aku)...Pengen kasih bintang 6 tapi ga ada.Ga salah kalo ini bisa menang award deh..dan one of the best JG book yang aku baca, terkesan luar biasa dengan Alec, yg barbar, tapi melting menghadapi Jamie yg hiperaktif,keras kepala dan super duper cerewet...Hihgly recommended..satu lagi, jangan tunda baca buku bagus ini, karena aku menyesal kenapa gak dari dulu baca... sigh...
(from my book blog)Some of you may remember that I had an ambitious (for me) TBR list that included two SRS books, and The Hunger Games. It will surprise none of you that I made it through The Hunger Games before I decided that was enough heavy shit and people dying. I decided it was time for some lighter fare, or at least a book that didn’t prominently involve death. Enter The Bride by Julie Garwood and its 172 5-star reviews on Amazon. Because apparently the fanatically positive reviews for Sherrilyn Kenyon have taught me nothing. The Bride is a Highlander romance, in which a bonny and spirited English lass is wed to a menacing Highland laird and they learn to love each other in spite of their cultural differences, usually through nonstop newlywed fucking. Handy that kilts provide such easy access! That reminds me - there will be at least one joke about Scottish lairds being naked under their kilts. So anyways, the Bonny and Spirited English Lass (TM) in this situation is Jamie. Oh, we’re going to have a little chat about Jamie. Garwood apparently couldn’t settle for just one Spirited English Lass (TM) cliche, so she went for them all. Here’s a list of facts about Jamie: She can read and write She speaks perfect Gaelic She is an expert physician (the kind who can heal otherwise-fatal wounds with a few crushed leaves and a tincture) - She can shoot a bow and arrow with incredible accuracy - She can throw a knife with incredible accuracy - She rides her spirited horse bareback, with incredible skill - Her riding skills are so incredible that she frequently stands up while riding her spirited horse bareback - She can instantly charm even the most stubborn Scottish soldier - She is constantly saving small children - She is constantly being saved by her laird husband - She is flawlessly beautiful (violet eyes, streaming raven hair, etc) - She single-handedly unites the Highland clans - I kind of want to punch Jamie by now, don’t you?She has a couple of token flaws: she has a poor sense of direction, and she’s an insufferable know-it-all (Garwood may not have intended that reaction, now that I think about it). Still, she’s doing pretty good for a woman in 1100! I know suspension of disbelief is important for all novels, but at this point I think the time-traveling nurse from Outlander is a more realistic. Her Highland Laird is Alec. Here’s a few facts about Alec: - He is very big - He wears kilts - He gets angry a lotIn the beginning, I was having a lot of fun. Alec and Jamie meet and get married and journey to Scotland, and it’s pretty good! The sex gets going early in the book (Alec sees Jamie bathing, which happens so frequently in romance novels I’m starting to think authors have Frequent Plot Device cards and are cashing in on hotels stays and discounted flights somewhere), and their sparring is fun, if not terribly inventive. Then they get to Scotland, and the whole book turns into a mess. I should have known it was coming. It was like going out on a bad date. You know the signs. The dude might order a Zima, or casually mention Ayn Rand. But you don’t REALLY know what you’ve gotten yourself into until you find yourself listening to him tell an obviously-exaggerated story about his spring break trip to Gulf Shores with his main brahs. The story gets to be episodic and kind of boring. In one day, Jamie is chased down by a wild boar, saves a small child, is almost burned alive in a cottage (somebody wants her dead or something I don’t even care at this point), and she probably starts a war or whatever (she’s always starting wars). And yeah, that’s STILL boring. There’s too many characters, I kept losing track of the action, and by the end, I started flirting with the other books on my Kindle. I have to say, it wasn’t unpleasant. There were a lot of redeeming moments throughout the book, and I even laughed out loud a few times. That said, there are so many talented romance novelists writing great books right now, and you don’t have to spend your time and money on a book that’s “not unpleasant.” Go check out Braveheart or Outlander if you need a kilt fix. I’d skip this.
What do You think about The Bride (2002)?
I need to say first, that I freakin LOVE this book!!!! Now, let's crack up the review, shall we? "It will be a frigid day in heaven before I marry you, milord, a frigid day indeed."" You've just described the Highlands in winter,lass. And you will marry me.""Never."Exactly one hour later, Lady Jamison was wed to Alec Kincaid. By orders of his king, Alec Kincaid must take an english bride. So alongside with Daniel, he goes to pick one of baron's Jamison daughters.And well, after getting some advice he picks Jamie, the youngest daughter, the one her father didn't include for them to "choose". But well, if one thing we know of this Highlanders, is that they don't ask, they TAKE. He'd deliberately lengthened his speech, giving her time to react to his announcement. He thought he was being most considerate. She thought he was demented. It's always a good start for a marriage, isn't it? *snorts*This 2 are just priceless!Anyway,Alec's first wife was murdered but everyone believes she killed herself. How do we know she was murdered? We get some parts of the murderer POV and how easy and how exciting it was to discard one life and don't be caught. The person even managed to beside putting Alec through grieve, by faking a suicide, she couldn't be properly buried.And well, now that the laird got a new wife, we know that the murderer will try to strike again!So between the delicious bantering between the MCs, the insane chemistry (yep, it will leave all hot and bothered),the alpha male attitude from our highlander and a our very one kick ass heroine... you also get mystery too, because you'll try to guess who the murderer is!!(view spoiler)[ Which I did!!! *evil laugh* Ok, it was not my first choice, but I get it right on my second! Not bad,right? (hide spoiler)]
—Joana
Just great fun!! Unrealistic at times, but the characters are so charming and absorbing that you just want to see where the story takes you. Oh Alec...YUM! I wanted to peel him off the pages of the book. Set in his ways he is challenged on every level by Jamie, his snarky, sassy, no sense of direction, always pondering new bride. She has no clue as to the effect she has not only on Alec, but everyone who she comes in contact with. He, as well as his entire clan, are totally smitten with her. As she finds her place amongst his people the impending arguments over their different points of view, and the resolutions that they agree upon, are fun to read and very loving and passionate. Just a wonderful love story.My only wish would have been that the story would not have ended so abruptly. I just needed a little bit more, especially where some of the secondary characters were concerned. I am a huge fan of an epilogue, and while every story does not need one, I felt that here it would have brought about more closure. The rest of the book was so good it still warranted 5 stars.
—Karla
Llamarlo La novia rebelde me parece exagerado, Jamie es un amor *^*.Es una mezcla de inocencia, perseverancia, ingenuidad, dulzura. Me hacía reír con sus ocurrencias o sus ideas sobre algunos asuntos. Alec tiene un sentido del humor que Jamie no comparte, así que es gracioso cuando están juntos, porque él le toma el pelo y ella ni se entera. XDEs increíble cómo Jamie hace tanto lío en tan poco tiempo. Tiene un don de guerras (?)Dato curioso al azar, esta prota, al igual del último libro que leí, tiene un pésimo sentido de la orientación. Se me hizo una lectura similar. Solo que esta funcionó mejor :DMe gusta la pareja que hacen, aunque Alec siempre la subestima, pero Jamie siempre lo termina sorprendiendo.Lo que no me gustó es que hacia el final, volviera media estúpida a Jamie. Ingenua sí, pero no me tomen el pelo. Rebelde, no debe ser nunca sinónimo de imprudente. Me sale la maestra que llevo dentro =.=Con respecto al villano, me pareció bastante obvio, y lo resolvió al tun-tun hacia el final. PD: Soy curiosa, pero hay alguna razón por la que esta sea la tercera historia donde leo que a unos gemelos los llamen Justin y Phillip? Se debe a algo que paso por alto? D:
—Laura V.
