Briar Rose [Mass Market Paperback]

 

 

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I enjoyed the book tremendously. The time Cates spent developing Redmayne's character was wonderful. Cates reminds me of Laura Kinsale in her novel 'The Shadow and the Star' which also delves into the male lead's psyche.

I really enjoy reading about Rhiannon, who has the character and integrity to 'do the right thing'. This book provided just the escapism I was looking for with delightful characters who weren't too perfect to like.

-- and no one took it.

Yes, it lingered forlornly on the table for days! I was tempted to throw it in the recycling bin, but I had too much respect for it as a book.

Personally, I don't ask much from a romance novel, because I read them as pure escapism, especially during finals. I want the romance to be believable, historical facts to be fairly close to accurate, and above all, the heroine must have a brain! I don't know if this book delivers on the first two, although I'm betting not on the historical side. I didn't get far enough into it, because the heroine was such a flake! She was saccharine and clueless, and I'm surprise the book isn't *still* sitting in the student center.

After taking a tentative step into the world of romance with Julie Garwoods' 'Ransom' and systematically devouring everything else the woman had ever produced, I was at a loss- what else could I read? Then, slumped despondantly against a bookshelf in a second hand bookshelf, a title caught my eye. A great lover of anything even hinting of celtic, magic or fairy tales, I snatched Briar Rose off the shelf against my father's rather desperate protests. In the end, my battles were not in vain. See, Cates, unlike Garwood, doesn't dodge in and out of relationships, blending the times between outpourings of love and desire into grey. I, like most people I know, don't believe that love and passion go necessarily hand in hand, but Garwood's books seem to promote this view. Ransom, yes, was great, but some of the others seemed kind of. . . . Well, fake. Unrealistic. Cates didn't fall into the same trap, though. We met her characters and began to love them for all their faults- at least, in my case- from the very beginning. Lion, with his fear to trust, his painful childhood, won my sympathy, even in view of his conniviving attempts to force Rhiannon into taking him back to his garrison. Rhiannon with her love for animals, her fairy-born magic, captured my sense of wonder, my belief in the unbelievable. The war between the British and the Irish, the hatred, the eye for an eye mentality, all are portrayed with fullness and impartality. Unlike many authors, Cates also abstains from putting all her good characters on one side and all her bad characters on the other. The romance between Rhiannon and Lion almost reminds me of the famous play Romeo and Juliet, though certainly I like this ending better. I agree that the romance is admittedly slow, but it's nice to see an author whose characters don't jump in and out of bed like hyper two year-olds. (Not to say that all romance character do, and certainly not pretending any real knowledge of the subject- this is simply my jaundiced opinion from observation of Garwood and a few other, select romance writers) In any case, the author uses her time to build up their memories, to show us all the wonderful and sometimes not so wonderful differences between hero and heroine. Rhiannon with her tender heart rolled out like a carpet, Lion, who locks himself into a mask, tries to hide his pain even in his dreams, truly are characters you can understand, empathize with. And Cates does this with beautiful, vivid imagery and distinctive style. I've read a lot of reviews that claim Kimberly Cates overdid the page count on this particular novel, but I can't help but think that a good romance novel, like a good cup of coffee on a rainy day, is best if it's drawn out. Say what you will about tedious prose, but after the occasionally unbelievable romances of other writers (also known as the lightening bolt from the heavens syndrome) I believe Cates did the right thing, and that Briar Rose is all the richer for it.

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1.0 out of 5 stars Not worth reading
Most of the time I love Kimberly Cates work, but this time I was really disappointed. This book was really slow going, only the last 50 pages are worth reading. Read more

Published on Mar 27 2000

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful!
Okay, okay - at first I was going to criticize this book, saying it had none of the magic of Cates' previous book GATHER THE STARS. Read more

Published on Aug 3 1999

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best romances that I have read this year
I was intrigued by "Briar Rose" from the first time that I read an exerpt at the end of Kimberly Cates' wonderful romance, "Magic. Read more

Published on July 1 1999

2.0 out of 5 stars Slow moving, but not bad
At first I thought the book was too slow, dragging out, then it got better, but by then I really didn't care anymore. Read more

Published on Jun 26 1999

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderfully sweet!
Briar Rose is a wonderful story and well worth the readers time. Captain Redmayne seems so stern, almost cruel but inside beats the heart of a compassionate man. Read more

Published on Jun 10 1999

4.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful story of love and redemption
Who would have guessed that Captain Lionel Redmayne, the villain in Kimberly Cates' MAGIC, would turn out to be such a wonderful hero? Read more

Published on Jun 8 1999

5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful tale
Along the lonely Irish road, British Captain Lionel Redmayne knows that the sniper's bullet killed him. As Lionel lies dying, healer Rhiannon Fitzgerald finds him. Read more

Published on Mar 30 1999

5.0 out of 5 stars A fairy-kissed love story that will knock you out!
Kimberly Cates always writes a magical, heart-rending story and this is no exception. Maybe her best book yet, BRIAR ROSE is the touching tale of a wounded English captain known... Read more

Published on Mar 24 1999

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