Customer Reviews

Flower Under Ice

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Dominic Wyndham, to all intents and purposes a dissolute aristocrat and younger brother of an earl, with little purpose in life beyond drinking, gambling and indulging in seemingly-pointless wagers, is shocked to be told, without warning, that his estranged wife is dead. Shocked enough to hide his real grief and pain behind a mask of cold, sardonic humour - which, in turn, shocks the young woman who has travelled from Scotland to deliver the news.

Catriona, the bearer of the news of Harriet's death, is not surprised at Wyndham's reaction; after all, Harriet, whom she'd known for some time, had made clear to her that Wyndham was a wastrel and a harsh, unkind man. Harriet herself had left Dominic after their wedding night, claiming that he'd done depraved and humiliating things to her. As such, Catriona is fully prepared to believe the worst of Dominic - an impression which isn't changed one bit after their encounter later that night. She sneaks into his room to talk to him, to plead with him to come to Edinburgh with her because Harriet left a child, a son, whose care Wyndham must assume. However, Catriona is well aware that the boy isn't Wyndham's son - and she is surprised when he states that he could not possibly be the boy's father. All the same, he tells her, he will travel to Edinburgh to see to the child's future - on certain conditions.

Those conditions are that Catriona must travel with him to all intents and purposes as his mistress. On the way, he says, they will indulge in sin - one deadly sin for each day on the road. "Every day you will be besieged by a man who has a great deal more experience in the game than you do. I shall seduce you," he promises. "You will fall in love and I shall break your heart. I guarantee it."

Yet he also promises that he will do nothing without her consent - so to an earlier reviewer, I point out that Wyndham fully understands that 'no' means 'no'. Nothing is done with Catriona without her express consent - in fact, at times, her pleading.

For reasons of her own, Catriona desperately needs Wyndham to come, and so she agrees to his terms - showing no fear, but also desperately trying not to show him how truly tempted she is by him. By his seductive voice, by his beautiful hands, his handsome body and face, his touch... and his kisses. For she cannot afford to lose her heart, and never to an Englishman. Besides, Wyndham is a scoundrel and a rake... isn't he?

Wyndham is, in fact, far from being either, as any reader who hasn't already read Illusion will find out gradually as the book advances. Nothing he does is without a cause: to help a friend, to try to win back the wife he has persuades himself he loves, for the sake of his country. As for Catriona, he is tempted by her and intrigued by the mystery she presents, for he knows very well that there is something else behind her thin story about a fatherless, motherless boy. And so they embark on an intimate journey together, facing danger, facing trials... and facing temptation. But in the end, whose heart is most at risk? Catriona's - or Dominic's?

I didn't find this book quite as compelling as Illusion; the dramatic plot wasn't as gripping as that in the earlier book - the need to rescue the baby didn't really have the same interest for me. Yet Dominic and Catriona are similarly complex and driven by demons as were Nigel and Frances in Illusion - and fans of the earlier book will get the opportunity to see them again in this. So still a five-star review, but Illusion definitely has the edge.

wmr-uk

Dominic Wyndham, to all intents and purposes a dissolute aristocrat and younger brother of an earl, with little purpose in life beyond drinking, gambling and indulging in seemingly-pointless wagers, is shocked to be told, without warning, that his estranged wife is dead. Shocked enough to hide his real grief and pain behind a mask of cold, sardonic humour - which, in turn, shocks the young woman who has travelled from Scotland to deliver the news.

Catriona, the bearer of the news of Harriet's death, is not surprised at Wyndham's reaction; after all, Harriet, whom she'd known for some time, had made clear to her that Wyndham was a wastrel and a harsh, unkind man. Harriet herself had left Dominic after their wedding night, claiming that he'd done depraved and humiliating things to her. As such, Catriona is fully prepared to believe the worst of Dominic - an impression which isn't changed one bit after their encounter later that night. She sneaks into his room to talk to him, to plead with him to come to Edinburgh with her because Harriet left a child, a son, whose care Wyndham must assume. However, Catriona is well aware that the boy isn't Wyndham's son - and she is surprised when he states that he could not possibly be the boy's father. All the same, he tells her, he will travel to Edinburgh to see to the child's future - on certain conditions.

Those conditions are that Catriona must travel with him to all intents and purposes as his mistress. On the way, he says, they will indulge in sin - one deadly sin for each day on the road. "Every day you will be besieged by a man who has a great deal more experience in the game than you do. I shall seduce you," he promises. "You will fall in love and I shall break your heart. I guarantee it."

Yet he also promises that he will do nothing without her consent - so to an earlier reviewer, I point out that Wyndham fully understands that 'no' means 'no'. Nothing is done with Catriona without her express consent - in fact, at times, her pleading.

For reasons of her own, Catriona desperately needs Wyndham to come, and so she agrees to his terms - showing no fear, but also desperately trying not to show him how truly tempted she is by him. By his seductive voice, by his beautiful hands, his handsome body and face, his touch... and his kisses. For she cannot afford to lose her heart, and never to an Englishman. Besides, Wyndham is a scoundrel and a rake... isn't he?

Wyndham is, in fact, far from being either, as any reader who hasn't already read Illusion will find out gradually as the book advances. Nothing he does is without a cause: to help a friend, to try to win back the wife he has persuades himself he loves, for the sake of his country. As for Catriona, he is tempted by her and intrigued by the mystery she presents, for he knows very well that there is something else behind her thin story about a fatherless, motherless boy. And so they embark on an intimate journey together, facing danger, facing trials... and facing temptation. But in the end, whose heart is most at risk? Catriona's - or Dominic's?

I didn't find this book quite as compelling as Illusion; the dramatic plot wasn't as gripping as that in the earlier book - the need to rescue the baby didn't really have the same interest for me. Yet Dominic and Catriona are similarly complex and driven by demons as were Nigel and Frances in Illusion - and fans of the earlier book will get the opportunity to see them again in this. So still a five-star review, but Illusion definitely has the edge.

wmr-uk

I read this book because Romantic Times listed it as one of the 200 best romances of the last 20 years. It's good but I don't think it's all that good.

Basically, the first quarter of the book is pretty conventional Regency farce including a rather absurd section on a day for each of the seven sins. Also, Dominic is a pretty self-centered jerk in the early pages. The book improves as the setting shifts to Scotland and Catronia's true mission (one with considerably more worth than her original story) emerges. The book is probably at its best when exploring the politics of Scotland in the early 19th century. The romance plot worked reasonably well but was nothing exceptional.

Bottom-line: Five stars for Scottish history and politics and three stars for a so-so romance = four stars overall.

Dominic returns home from the Napoleonic wars a hero but shunned by the upper ten thousand as his young bride, Harriet, fled from him on their wedding night as he tried to do depraved things to her. She slurred him and his name in front of all. Dominic lives outside the ton now. Harriet fled to Scotland. She also purposely loses the child by Dominic. Catriona, a lass from the highlands, comes to tell Dominic Harriet is now dead and that there is a child he must claim. Of course, he knows it is no child of his but he decides to go with Catriona and will only go if she is his mistress. I am getting the drift in romance vocabulary that "dark romance" means sadistic and unreal. Did Dominic ever hear the word "no" and understand what it means? Catriona, throughout the entire novel, tells him no and many ways and in many situations. Of course, the reader knows her no means yes but how would Dominic? It is ashame that with all that is going on in society today a silly book is published that women still find romantic when the hero, Dominic, does nothing but humiliate, belittle, scorn and use, yes, use, for his own dark demons. Hey Dominic and a memo to the author: No means no...

Our hero, Dominic Wyndham, is shunned by the Ton ever since his young wife, Harriet, ran from him on their wedding night after the marriage was consumated because he was replusive to her. She not only ran to her parents home, but ran to them in a middle of a ball with Dominic following her. There, she declares to all, that he used her in an awful manner. Thus, the ton gives him the direct cut and excludes him from their circle. Dominic than has to enlist in the army where he becomes a valued spy. Harriet wants the marriage annulled but then she was pregnant. WHen she finds out Dominic is returning from war she throws herself down the stairs to purposely lose their child. Oh, than she leaves for a convent in Scotland. First of all, this is just stupid. Dominic is a gorgeous man who was very popular with the ladies both before and after his marriage. And with many women of the Ton so obviously they would know if he has strange bed habits, which he did not. So why was he shunned for so long? Also, he was a bit of a hot head and the reason Harriet was so turned off by him was that she preferred women, not men. One would have expected a young hot male to defend himself against her slurs. Not just sit by and say nothing. Than Catriona Sinclair, a miss from the highlands, comes to tell him Harriet is dead and that there is a child. He knows it is no child of his and he knows Harriet did not like men so whose child is it? So off he goes with Catriona with an inspid seven deadly sins wager. Who cares? Why was he even interested in Catriona? And I hate when authors portray men as unable to keep it in the pans, that he was so overwhelmed with lust that he must have her sort of thing. Dominic was a spy for goodness sakes. I think he could manage to control himself, especially towards a female who is, by his own admission, not pretty and she finds Dominic a jerk and he knows it. The book really insulted my intelligence!

I do wish they had a different rating system, this book was better than average (a 3 star) but not quite up to a four star rating. Dominic and Catriona are embroiled in an interesting tale held in the Scottish Highlands and set in Regency times. I really enjoyed the plot and both the hero and heroine, but there was just something in the writing style that I couldn't quite grasp. Usually a story just flows over me, drawing me in. With Flowers Under Ice, I felt as if I was dragged, pulled and pushed in. Although the characters are well defined and great to read about, as are the descriptions of the Highlands, the people living there and their plight in the three quarters of a century following the defeat at Cullodon, each segue was rough. There are many times I got lost reading the dialogue and had to reread a section to get the gist of what happened. It was as if the characters were too smart for themselves, talking around one another, alluding to this and that. I don't necessarily need everything spelled out for me, but I do enjoy not having to fight to understand what is unfolding. Other times I got the impression that there was something going on, and I should know what that something was, but for the life of me I couldn't figure out what I was missing. Did I read over a paragraph too fast and miss something? When I went back to check, I could never find what it was.

On the positive side, there are many literary references, both obvious and obscure, which even if you are not well read is great to read and learn about. Ms. Ewing is obviously a well-informed writer and takes great pains to bring the details together in her book. In that she succeeds magnificently. Loose threads from Illusions, the interaction of the secondary characters, the slow peeling away of the mysteries surrounding both Dominic and Catriona are wonderful to watch unfold. Despite my seemingly negative review, I did thoroughly enjoy reading this story and look forward to more writings from Ms. Ewing.

Previous reader reviews express much better than I can what an incredible book this is! The depth of the characters (Catriona and Dominic)is deeply moving. Next to buy for me is "ILLUSIONS" ~ I can hardly wait.

Don't miss this wonderful, beautifully written Historical Romance ~ it's a keeper!

I am sad that Jean Ross Ewing does not have more books in print, but I hope she writes many new ones in the future. This book was beautiful and better written than most. I loved the detailed ending.

This is a wonderful book. I've haven't seen a writer bring Scotland to life like this since Gabaldon. Ewing's descriptions of the country and people brought them to life.

And let's not forget the romance<g>. Dominic is my favorite kind of hero, the embittered veteran of the Napoleonic wars who comes home to deviltry and drink because he's unwilling to face his past. He's not ready to allow himself to become attached to anyone, until a Highlander woman drags him to Scotland to save a child. The journey there is one filled with mystery, passion, and self-discovery for both the hero and heroine. Don't miss this one!

Flowers Under Ice brings to life some of the great elements of romance... vivid characters, an intriguing plot with action and adventure that are never boring, a beautiful setting and, oh yes, ever growing romance and passion. Jean Ross Ewing has a flair for language and knows how to strike sparks between a determined heroine and a witty, wicked rake hero. Don't miss a great read!