Intriguing Premise and Complex Characters"They called him the Demon Earl, or sometimes Old Nick. Hushed voices whispered that he had seduced his grandfather's young wife, broken his grandfather's heart, and driven his own bride to her grave."FINAL DECISION: Highlighted by a great premise that pushes the characters out of their comfortable existences, the story takes a saint and sinner premise and challenges the stereotypical categories in a way that gives the characters depth, complexity and ultimately a relationship that feels real and developed. A great start to a series.THE STORY: Nicholas Davies, the Gypsy Earl of Abderdare has returned to the family estate in Wales but the deep betrayal that sent him away from the estate four years ago has changed him. He has become more isolated, more distrustful and more cynical. When Clare Morgan, school teacher and daughter of a minister comes to Nicholas to plead for his help for the local people, he denies her his help unless Clare agrees to come and live with Nicholas for three months thus ruining her reputation. He his surprised when she agrees. Thus begins a battle, a friendship and a love that neither expects.OPINION: I loved the premise of this book. The best part is that the bargain begins as a challenge that Nicholas doesn't expect Clare to meet. The two then enter a relationship that is part friendship, part seductive relationship and part fighting. As the book begins, Nicholas is closed off, damaged and unwilling to open himself up to others. Clare challenges Nicholas and thus the book chronicles his growth. In return, Nicholas challenges Clare. The book begins with her playing the part of the saint even going so far as to sacrifice herself for those in the town. Nicholas challenges her construct of herself forcing her own growth as a person. The typical saint and sinner story is elevated and made more complex by characters that do not fit neatly into the saint and sinner categories. The relationship between NIcholas and Clare develops incredibly well. The two have a great chemistry. I loved how they interact. Even during their bargain, Nicholas always treats Clare with respect. Their relationship is allowed to develop over time rather than moving quickly to a sexual relationship and that permits the growth that occurs between the characters.The background of the story is the dangers of mining in the historical era. This is examined with great depth without taking over from the romance focus. The integration of this storyline with the romance is done well with several significant scenes taking place in and around the mine. There is also a dramatic story involving dangers to Nicholas and Clare's lives. I won't give spoilers here, but this dramatic story gives insight into the characters while also giving the story some momentum as the mystery plays out.WORTH MENTIONING: I enjoyed the depiction of religion in this book. The heroine is a Methodist and the book uses her faith as a part of the book without being preachy or dismissive. It's a hard line for many authors to travel and I appreciated the efforts made here.CONNECTED BOOKS: THUNDER & ROSES is the first book in the Fallen Angels series.STAR RATING: I give this book 4.25 stars.NOTE: I received a copy of this book from the author in order to provide a review. I also had previously purchased a copy of this book. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions contained herein are my own.
This story takes place in a small town in Wales. Clare is the daughter of the late Methodist minister for the community. She sees situations which need attention and money and she is determined to get Nicholas “The Gypsy Earl” to start doing his duty to the community. Nicholas has come home for the first time in four years. His past has given him so many bad memories that he did not want to ever again see his estate or deal with the pain from his past.Nicholas immediately makes a deal with Clare. If she will live with him for 3 months, he will make the mine safer for the workers, he will improve the financial lot of the people in the area and generally make life better in the village. He believes she will run back to the village and leave him alone. But, she surprises him and thus begins their bargain.Nicholas starts trying to seduce her and during the slow but certain seduction, both Clare and Nicholas learn things about themselves. He believed she would run away, but then he determines that would be the last thing he would want.Clare is a very strong young woman, but she feels that she has never actually acted as herself. To the world she has been a “preacher's” daughter and always done the right thing. She has never expressed herself nor has she ever allowed herself to feel free. She firmly believes she has been showing herself falsely to the rest of the world. As the story progresses, we learn a great deal about both of them, and to me Nikki was a very heroic man. He not only has a great deal of courage and compassion and he tries very hard to ignore the pain from his past and look at things with a sense of humor. But, he also has learned to shut himself off from emotional connections to others.Both of these characters are people who hold our interest and make the reader want to continue turning pages. The secondary characters add texture to the story. We are introduced to the other “Fallen Angels” and it is easy to see that each of them will bring a great deal to the rest of the series.We are also introduced to some of the villagers and we see why Clare loves them and Nikki learns to care for them. There are some villains in the story. There is also an essence of mystery to the story. As things move forward, a sense of danger is introduced. Along the way, we also learn about mining in the early 19th century and some of the customs of the Romany people who traveled in Wales at the time. I received this book from the author in the hope that I would write a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.
What do You think about Thunder & Roses (1993)?
3.75Una novela de las de antes, nunca mejor dicho. A medida que avanzaba me he dado cuenta de que ya la había leído. Sí, debe ser de esas primeras novelas que leí el siglo pasado y que "desaparecieron" de mi casa y no las tengo controladas. Una penaBuena trama, buenos personajes, los dos me han gustado. Esa metodista, falta de cariño y envuelta en una sociedad estricta e hipócrita que se ve abrumada por la sinceridad y el desparpajo de este pícaro protagonistaNicholas, un libertino de los que engañan, como se estilaba antes. Pero honesto, leal y un gran hombre. Me encantan estos hombres.No hay que fiarse de las apariencias.
—Pepa
I really enjoyed this book, but it was also a very strange, eccentric story. There were penguins in Regency Wales. There was weird gypsy mating dances. There was dueling fought with whips. There was Indiana Jones-esque escaping from burning buildings. There was naked billiards. There was Christian dogma. There were mine scenes that made me think of times when people fell down shafts in Little House on the Prairie. Did I mention there was skinny dipping with penguins?Anyway, it was a very interesting book and captured my interest. It was the first book I have ever read by Mary Jo Putney, but I believe I will read some more by her now that I have read this one. :)
—FlibBityFLooB
I love the whole indecent proposal plot scheme. In this book, Clare approaches the Demon Earl, Nicholas to help bring back jobs and life into her little village. Nicholas, a little drunk, agrees if Clare agrees to live with him in the hopes that she will one day agree to become his mistress. And oh yeah he's entitled to one kiss a day at a time and place of his choosing.So, I found this book really quite good at the moments when Clare and Nicholas were together and other 'village matters' were not encroaching on their time and the book. The steam was good and there were moments where I really got into the book. But for the most part, I struggled through it. I really didn't like Nicholas. He wasn't HORRIBLE, but he was very selfish in my opinion. He wasn't concerned about the sacrifices Clare was making or taking and he didn't seem to care that she would be losing everything she'd ever known - her entire life. Also, at one point in an argument, he flat out told her there were women more beautiful than her and once when a daily kiss went to far and she demanded he stop, he called her a teasing bitch. Big no no in my romance world. Calling the heroine a bitch is a tricky tricky slope and has to be handled very carefully for it to be pulled off. So as a hero usually makes a book for me, a hero also makes a book for me, and Nicholas was just no hero in my book.
—Bekah
