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taisie22's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
medium-paced
5.0
Stephen is Michael's brother from the 5th book in the series, so I skipped here because I really wanted to see his story. He is the Duke of Ashburton, but at the beginning of the book, he has just received news that his illness is fatal, and he has 3-6 months to live. He takes off to reflect, escape his responsibilities and falls in with a traveling troupe of actors. Rosalind is the adopted daughter of the primary actors, and she and Stephen fall in love, all while his illness worsens.
I found it interesting that while many elements of the book were tropes that let me know where the story was going, I was still engrossed and tense while reading. Stephen is such a gentleman, and Rosalind is the cheerful, common-sense woman that he needs. In places, it's heartbreaking as they confront the short period of time they have left.
I also found the bits about the traveling actors fun and interesting. Ms. Putney does a wonderful job of describing their lives as they go from town to town, performing in barns and glades for appreciative villagers. It's another great book in this series and now I'm going to skip back to read the rest.
I found it interesting that while many elements of the book were tropes that let me know where the story was going, I was still engrossed and tense while reading. Stephen is such a gentleman, and Rosalind is the cheerful, common-sense woman that he needs. In places, it's heartbreaking as they confront the short period of time they have left.
I also found the bits about the traveling actors fun and interesting. Ms. Putney does a wonderful job of describing their lives as they go from town to town, performing in barns and glades for appreciative villagers. It's another great book in this series and now I'm going to skip back to read the rest.
writer595's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
sullivc5's review
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
showmethemonet's review against another edition
5.0
Adding Putney to the list! Looking forward to checking out more of her books!
dianem18's review against another edition
5.0
Loved this! Never read this trope before in HR (hero is dying) and it was great ❤️ 4.5 Stars
lailinightlight's review
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
jenne's review
3.0
Hee! This was completely charming. And it was kind of an unusual plot for a romance novel, with the whole thing where the hero is terminally ill...although if you are really worried that he's going to die, obviously you have never read a romance novel ever.
You see there's this duke, who thinks he's dying so he rides off across the countryside to get away from his cares and worries, and what with one thing and another he rescues a kid from drowning who turns out to be the son of these people who have a traveling theater company and also have a sexy daughter (who is really a mysterious foundling, of course).
And then he ends up joining the theater company under an assumed name, as you do in these sorts of situations, and then he marries the daughter (even though he is DYING!) and some other things happen and there is some tasteful but explicit sexing.
And you will figure out the cause of the "terminal illness" on approximately page 3--MJ is clearly not a mystery writer, bless her heart.
But I really appreciated that she didn't do the usual "they have a stupid misunderstanding about 3/4 of the way through the book and one of them runs away" thing.
You see there's this duke, who thinks he's dying so he rides off across the countryside to get away from his cares and worries, and what with one thing and another he rescues a kid from drowning who turns out to be the son of these people who have a traveling theater company and also have a sexy daughter (who is really a mysterious foundling, of course).
And then he ends up joining the theater company under an assumed name, as you do in these sorts of situations, and then he marries the daughter (even though he is DYING!) and some other things happen and there is some tasteful but explicit sexing.
And you will figure out the cause of the "terminal illness" on approximately page 3--MJ is clearly not a mystery writer, bless her heart.
But I really appreciated that she didn't do the usual "they have a stupid misunderstanding about 3/4 of the way through the book and one of them runs away" thing.
greymalkin's review
4.0
Wow, this was an interesting romance. It skirted close to so many romance cliches and then just refused to go there until the very very end (and it was well telegraphed so I wasn't too annoyed). I especially enjoyed how various characters were prepared to be so outraged by the mismatch of duke and actress but instead of becoming the villains, they tried really hard to give the actress a chance and be nice to her. I also appreciated the different ways an abusive father and neglectful mother impacted their children. Wounds that very believably took decades to start healing.
While the actual romance wasn't particularly compelling, it was delicately drawn and believeable (as being more than just lust) and I liked that they really cared about eachother and cared for eachother.
While the actual romance wasn't particularly compelling, it was delicately drawn and believeable (as being more than just lust) and I liked that they really cared about eachother and cared for eachother.
pauliree's review
4.0
I loved this final in the Fallen Angel series. Stephen Kenyon is not one of the fallen angels, just the brother of one, but his stoicness in the face of death made me love him the most of all the seven heroes in this series. My only bugbear was with the obviousness of the cause of his illness, as I called it practically from the first time it was mentioned, but that didn't stop me getting emotional during his almost final moments and to me that is a testament to Ms Putney's talent as a writer. Recommend this one wholeheartedly