To sum it up: All of England rejoiced on her wedding day, but Judith vowed that her husband would get only what he took from her. ...At the flower-bedecked altar, the first touch of their hands ignited an all-consuming passion. The tall, broad-shouldered Gavin Montgomery looked deep into her golden eyes, stroked her rich auburn hair, and burned with desire for her- But his heart had been pledged to another.Humiliated and alone in a strange castle, Judith resolved to hate this husband who took her body, but rejected her love. She would never admit her fear of losing him, even after she faced Gavin's icy, blonde mistress, who schemed to keep the handsome knight to herself by any means, even murder.... But destiny held another fate for Judith, than the cold and loveless one she had chosen- A fate as rich in rapture as their wedding had foretold long before... A fate that would keep at last, the velvet promise...Be Warned: I apologize in advance for this review having such a negative feel to it- I also apologize for the fact that this review is not only long, but probably just going to end up being a laundry list of reasons why I didn't enjoy this book- With that being said... I wish you all the best of luck while reading it.Where do I even start? Bare with me here, because this was definitely a difficult review to write. I really wanted to like this book- Truly I did. It seemed like a book that held potential; A book that I would normally be interested in... A hero who can come off as a complete jerk... An arranged marriage... A jealous she-devil ex-lover... I mean, this definitely sounded like my cup of tea. Now I must admit, I've never read a bodice ripper novel before- I've heard many things about them... Some good, and some bad... At first I assumed "bodice ripper" meant that it was just a love story involving a heroine being emotionally abused by the hero for some reason or another- Never once did I assume it meant that the hero actually physically abuses the heroine in some way, and that includes rape. I mean, don't get me wrong... For some sick and demented reason or another, I'm a sucker for a book where the hero can be completely and utterly cruel to the heroine. But physically hurting and raping her? Ehhhhh... No thank you. Now to be fair, since this was my first bodice ripper novel and I wasn't sure what to expect while reading one, I can fully understand that it could have played a big role in why I didn't enjoy this book, as well as why I might be coming off as a bit critical.The Velvet Promise just turned out to be a Velvet Mess in my opinion. I didn't particularly care for any of the characters in this book- The constant jealousy and bickering just became too much for me, and made the book a complete chore to read. The writing style seemed a bit childish, and the simplistic sentence structures I found to be a complete bore- They also did nothing to lend to the sense of passion and actual feeling that's just a must in reading about romance. Even at the end of the book, I still felt that Gavin's love for the psychotic ex-she-devil Alice, was greater than anything he ever felt for the heroine Judith. He did nothing but protect Alice throughout the entire novel- He allowed no one to speak ill of her and as far as he was concerned, you better not even think of laying a hand on her or there would be hell to pay. As for Judith... Well... She was basically just his property- Romantic, huh?Let's talk about the hero Gavin, shall we? -Life isn't going his way? He lashes out and everyone suffers. -The new wife doesn't accept him just the way he is? He smacks her one. -She doesn't want to sleep with him? He'll just rape her. ...Now if those aren't some swoon-worthy qualities we all want in our man, I don't know what is. Moving on to the lovely heroine Judith: -She gets slapped by her husband? Check. -Raped by her husband? Check. -Enjoys to constantly get busy with him, sometimes only seconds after being both slapped and raped? Check, check, and check. I've heard many positive things about this series, so maybe this just turned out to be an "Everyone loved but me" incident- I myself, love a book involving a lot of deceit and jealousy, as well as cruel villains and many problems and conflicts to over-come... But this was just a tad bit too over-the-top for my taste, and was missing that love and emotion that's an absolute must for me. If you like reading about one-dimensional characters... A story revolving around a hero who gives his love to one woman while desiring another... And a heroine who pined for a man's caresses that she despised, then this is definitely the book for you- Unfortunately for me though, this turned out to be nothing but a disappointment.
UNREDEEMABLE MALE LEADI'm really trying to resist having a rant about this book. I've heard much about this author and being a lover of historical romances I'm not sure how I've not read anything by her before, needless to say this is my first and last book by her.Gavin Montgomery is in love with Alice Valence their secret meetings cannot go on, marriage is what he wants to the beautiful and doe eyed Alice. But what Gavin doesn't realise is that she has no intention of marrying him, she wants a title, money and lands. But with little or no dowry she must rely on her beauty. So she coaches her drunken father to refuse Gavin's request for her hand then plays the tearful victim to his face. She's cold and manipulative, but Gavin is blind to this. When a rich Earl asks for her hand she's ecstatic.Gavin in turn is offered the hand of Judith Revedoune, she's the daughter of an Earl and will bring many riches and lands to the marriage, no one knew that she existed she has been hidden away from the outside world as her father despises females. But with the death of his two sons he will rely on her to give him grandsons. Judith who had always been meant for a covent is devastated that she is to be marriedJudith does not lay eyes on Gavin till the day of their wedding, but is pleasantly surprised at this tall handsome man who is to be her husband. In turn Gavin is overwhelmed by Judith's beauty. Things look bright till during the wedding festivities she overhears Gavin promising his undying devotion to Alice. Judith confronts him, but all she gets for her trouble is a backhander and to be forced on her wedding night.My goodness this book is awful. The villainess Alice was OTT and better suited to a part in a pantomime. Judith was a better character, but even she grated on my nerves, even after he had forced her on their wedding night she melted into a puddle every time he touched her. But it was Gavin that I hated the most, he was as thick as two short planks. How on earth he didn't see Alice for what she was beggared belief. It never seemed to occur to him that giving it up to him without marriage meant that she was doing the same with numerous other men was so annoying. Worse when others tried on many occasions to set him straight he wouldn't hear a word against her. I kept hoping he would fall off his horse and break his neck.
What do You think about The Velvet Promise (1991)?
I've read a lot of historical romances and this is one of my favorites!!I love Judith!! She's got spunk and class. She's determined to make the best of her circumstances and stay strong!!The part about her miscarriage broke my heart, so readers should be forewarned, particularly if they have recently had a miscarriage or are pregnant.I was surprised that he wasn't actually having sex with his "mistress." It doesn't seem like real drama on that front. Even though it seemed he was still infatuated with her, they didn't have much of an "affair."He wasn't all that bad to her in comparison to how it could have been and considering the circumstances. It was an arranged marriage while he was still infatuated with another, so it's not going to be all roses.I like the vivid sense of medieval history it showed. :)I like how they eventually overcame the struggle and developed an affection for one another.It did disappoint me that she didn't beat the crap out of the "ex-girlfriend." ;-)
—Ashley Cassidy
This is Jude Deveraux's first book. As always, I’m impressed with Jude’s easy writing style. She pulls you right into her story effortlessly, introducing several characters, like the Montgomery brothers, and you get to know them and care about them pretty quickly. I think Judith is one of Jude’s best characters. She’s a strong woman, hard working, and pretty ingenious. I liked her a lot. I like the fact that she had ambitious plans to be an abbess, although I think Deveraux probably should have
—Willow
Bu yorum aynı zamanda Romancekolikte yayınlanmıştır.This review also shared in Romansholic.English Review;Story begun with besotted hero knowing his lover soon to be marry. That shrew girl is like an actress and fool him that she marry by force. Our besotted hero believes her. But he asked for a marriage an earl daughter. So hero accept. He think with him marrying too he could accept the fact his lover soon to be marry. Wedding took place and our hero was surprised to see such a lovely wife he
—Hanife
