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Kat Martin

Rule’s Bride by Kat Martin

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Welcome to Sugarbeat’s Books – The Home of the Romance Novel!

It’s Sunday and that means we are celebrating series of books.  As you all must know by now, I love historical romances that occur in series.  I love joining a family, and spending some time with them as the various members interact and let’s face it, they are romance novels, people get married!  Kat Martin’s Bride Trilogy is one set that I read a bit ago and enjoyed.  I think I liked this last one more than the others, but they made up a good set overall!

 

Rule’s Bride by Kat Martin

ISBN: 0778327744
Publisher: Mira
Release: April 27, 2010
Source:  I purchased this book to read and review

 Unrepentant rake Rule Dewar is living the good life when a most surprising event occurs—he falls in love with his wife.
After their strategic “marriage of commerce” three years ago, Rule quite forgot about Violet Griffin, the teenage heiress to a Boston manufacturing fortune. He simply spoke his vows, took over her father’s business and returned to England to resume his usual pursuits: high-priced wine, high-stakes gambling and highborn women.
Yet when Violet, now a sophisticated woman, unexpectedly appears at Rule’s London town house, husbandly duties no longer seem so odious—he can’t wait to take his stunning bride to their marriage bed. Violet, however, is not so easily led: she has her own ideas and is seeking an annulment to marry another. But as Rule attempts to win her over, someone else is determined to frame him for murder and keep him out of the way for good….

Rule Dewar promised his father who was on his deathbed, to expand the Dewar holdings into America.  To forge trade connections with American companies.  Rule’s father felt that the future of English survival was in partnerships with America.

Years after his father died, Rule is in Boston visiting Howard Griffin, the owner of Griffin Manufacturing.  When he finds out that Howard, a man who he respects, is dying and wants to secure his daughter’s future, he agrees to marry her.  The marriage will be in name only until Violet, who is currently 16, reaches her majority, and Rule gets half ownership of a gun manufacturing firm that has two plants, one in Boston and one in London.

After the wedding, Rule returns to London and tells no one.  He returns to his life of debauchery.  Three years later, Rule is at loose ends having ended his affair with his latest mistress, and is considering going to Boston to claim his bride.  What he doesn’t realize is that Violet is on her way to England with her cousin and the intent to get an annulment so that she can marry another man.

One of the funniest parts of the story is when Violet arrives at Rule’s London house and announces herself as his wife to the butler.  Talk about busted!!  She realizes quickly that he has told no one that he has been married for the past 3 years and decides that getting an annulment should be easy.  The remainder of this book I’ll leave for you to read.  I found this book to be heart warming, touching, and unbelievably romantic.  Finally an example of what Kat Martin is capable of when she puts her mind to it!

One of the most beautiful passages describing what love is can be found in this book. Royal is trying to help Rule understand what love is by saying:

“Love is when you think of someone no matter how far away they are.  It’s when you would rather be with that person than anyone else.  It’s when the sound of their laughter makes you smile.  When you admire them for standing up to you, instead of getting angry.  It’s when you look at another woman and think how beautiful she is but there isn’t a chance you would rather make love to her than the woman in your bed….Love is when you can’t sleep at night unless the person you love is beside you.  When you can’t imagine a future without her in your life.  It’s when you secretly thank God that He gave her to you.  Love is when you feel sick to your stomach because you have hurt her.”  Royal looked into Rule’s haggard face, felt the tension in his shoulders.  “Which I have a strong suspicion is the way you are feeling right now.”

 

I felt that this book was a wonderful closure to Kat Martin’s latest trilogy.  This book will be added to my list of most romantic books!

Thanks for sharing your Sunday with me!  Drop by next week when we start a new series.  What will it be??
Amazon purchase link for Rule’s Bride (Bride Trilogy)

Reese’s Bride by Kat Martin

By

Welcome to Sugarbeat’s Books – The Home of the Romance Novel

Today is Series Sunday on Sugarbeat’s Books!  Every Sunday I’m posting a review of a book in a series – in the order that they are supposed to be read!  Nothing worse than reading out of order 🙂  Today is the second book in Kat Martin’s Bride Series – Reese’s Bride.  Although I like the fist book in the series, I had some problems with errors in this book as you will read.  Let me know your thoughts on historical and other inaccuracies in books.  Do they drive you batty?

Reese’s Bride by Kat Martin
ISBN: 0778327442
Publisher : MIRA
Release: Dec 29, 2009
Source: I purchased a copy of this book to read and review

Wounded in battle, Major Reese Dewar returns to England—but his injuries are nothing compared to his shattered heart
Years ago, love-struck Reese departed his home at Briarwood with a promise from raven-haired Elizabeth Clemens that she would make a life with him upon his return. But mere months later, she married the Earl of Aldridge, attaining wealth and status Reese could never match. Memories of that betrayal make his homecoming far more bitter than sweet.
Seeing Elizabeth on his doorstep dressed in widow’s garb twists the knife even deeper. But fear for her young son’s safety has overcome her pride: she begs Reese for protection from those who would see the boy dead to possess his fortune. He agrees to an uneasy alliance, sensing Elizabeth still harbors deep secrets—and Reese knows that he’s placing himself in danger…of losing his heart all over again.

Reese’s Bride is the second book in Kat Martin’s latest trilogy. This story starts with Elizabeth Clemens, now the Countess of Aldridge, showing up on Reese Dewar’s doorstep with her son in tow, in desperate need of his assistance. She is seeking protection from her brother-in-law whom she is believes is trying to kill her son, and is drugging her. Her son stands in her brother-in-law’s way of inheriting the title of Earl. Reese and Elizabeth have a history, and she is the last person that Reese wants to see; especially now that he is back from fighting the war with a damaged leg!

Major Reese Dewar left home several years ago to serve his country with a promise from Elizabeth that she would marry him when he returned. Due to a pregnancy from their one night of passion, Elizabeth’s father forces her into marriage with the Earl of Aldridge. Reese feels betrayed that Elizabeth didn’t wait for him, but was unaware of her pregnancy. To protect Elizabeth and her son, Reese marries her and offers her the protection of his name and his brother the duke.

The story then turns into 2 stories. The first one is Reese, his brothers and their friends working to clear the name of their friend Travis, who has been accused of spying for the Russians. The second one is the love story between Reese and Elizabeth. As in all good love stories, Elizabeth tries to hide the secret of the identity of her son’s father and when Reese finds out, there are some fireworks. Reese and Elizabeth try several methods to get Elizabeth’s brother-in-law off their backs but they seem to spend more time clearing Travis’s name.

What distracted me in this story were the issues with editing!! There were inconsistencies in several places in the book. There were two obvious ones that I felt someone should have caught before the book went to print. Firstly, Travis, Reese’s friend who lost an arm in the Crimea puts his hands (plural) on Annabelle’s shoulders several times. Secondly, towards the end of the book, we find Reese getting busy with his lovely wife and unzips his pants. This story is supposed to be set in 1855. There are no zippers on any pants in 1855. Modern zippers were invented in 1917 and not in common use on men’s pants until around 1937. I don’t have any trouble with some literary license, but someone editing this book should have caught this historical inaccuracy!!

Aside from the inconsistencies, this is a good story.  It engrosses the reader and serves as a good second book for this series.  I am looking forward to the third book in the series!

“Reese’s Bride is hot, sexy and mesmerizing. The pages are rich with history, taut with tension and steaming with passion.” RT Book Reviews
Amazon purchase link for Reese’s Bride

Royal’s Bride by Kat Martin

By

Welcome to Sugarbeat’s Books – The Home of Romance Novels!

Welcome also to the first Sunday in a new weekly event.  Since I’m so fond of books in series, I’ve decided to create Series Sundays.  Perfect for the lazy day of the week, I think!  Every Sunday I’m planning on posting a review to a book that is part of a series and in the order that they belong in this series.  Today we are starting with a series from two years ago – the Bride Trilogy from Kat Martin.  I started reading her books many years ago and have read quite a few.  Today we start with with Royal’s Bride.

ISBN: 77832642X
Publisher: MIRA
Release: Aug 25, 2009
Source: I purchased a copy of this book to read and review

Though he is a titled nobleman,

Royal Dewar is singulary unlucky …

forced to choose between his soul mate …

and his salvation.

After years abroad, Royal has returned to Bransford Castle to find his father dying and the family treasury nearly empty. Then the old duke wrests a final promise from his guilt-ridden son: that Royal will marry heiress Jocelyn Caulfield and restore the estate to its former glory. However, it is not his fiancee who quickens Royal’s pulse, but rather her beautiful cousin Lily Moran.

Penniless Lily knows that nothing can come of their undeniable attraction?but there is a way she can help Royal. Enlisting some questionable characters from her past, Lily concocts an elaborate ruse to recover some of the Bransford fortune from a notorious confidence artist. As the dangerous scheme unfolds, Lily and Royal are thrown together in pursuit of the very thing?money?that keeps them part …

Royal Dewar, the current Duke of Bransford, promised his father on his deathbed that he would marry Jocelyn Caulfield and bring the family’s estate back into the black. We start this book when his year of mourning is over and although Royal Dewar has been busy trying to rebuild the estate, he realizes that it is now time to claim his bride.

Jocelyn is breathtakingly beautiful and very wealthy, but Royal is more attracted to her poor cousin Lily Moran than Jocelyn. When Lily arrives at Royal’s estate early to prepare for the arrival of Jocelyn and her mother, Royal mistakes her for Jocelyn. He seems puzzled that Lily requires several days to prepare when he has a full slate of servants to see to their whims. (certainly sets Jocelyn in a bad light!) As the book progresses, Lily offers to help Royal recover some of his father’s money from the con man who swindled his father. It seems that Lily spent her early years learning the art of the con from her less than respectable uncle. As this story line progresses, Lily and Royal become closer and closer. As Royal and Lily are becoming closer, we discover that Jocelyn really doesn’t want to marry Royal as she is in love with someone else.

Although I was somewhat disappointed by the previous trilogy by Kat Martin, I felt that this book has this trilogy off to a good beginning! Royal’s Bride is a good start.  I’m an avid reader of Kat Martin’s historical novels and I feel that this book is closer in quality to the “Necklace” trilogy from some years ago than the previous “Heart” trilogy. The book has a mature and interesting plot. The characters are well rounded and well thought out and all seem consistent to their basic characters. The sex scenes are hot and spicy in true Kat Martin style! Although I’ve read many negative reviews for this book, I have to disagree. I liked the book and look forward to the next in the series.

 
Amazon purchase link for Royal’s Bride