Customer Reviews

Briar Rose

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

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.

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. This story could have been told in a lot less pages. The usual chemistry was not there.

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. It seemed long-winded - too much self-talk between actions. But as I got into it, Rhiannon won me over, and later so did Lion. What a gentle, forgiving creature she was! Redmayne has almost too many layers of pain to work through but Rhiannon kept at it. Certain passages brought tears to my eyes - always a sign of a 5 star book. Try it. Cates really is a master of romance.

I was intrigued by "Briar Rose" from the first time that I read an exerpt at the end of Kimberly Cates' wonderful romance, "Magic." Lionel was not the typical villian. He was dedicated to his responsibilities as an English captain, but was never cruel. I was very pleased that Lionel's better self was revealed in "Briar Rose" - Rhiannon was the perfect heroine to show him the path to love and true redemption. Ms. Cates has delivered to her readers a truly marvelous and moving romance.

At first I thought the book was too slow, dragging out, then it got better, but by then I really didn't care anymore. I think that the author went a little overboard on Redmayne's "bad" past.

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. It takes a woman like Rhiannon Fitzgerald to bring him out of his shell. You can see how ones past shapes ones future in both characters. Through the story the Captains evil "grandfather" hangs like a dark cloud over their heads. And at the end the truth will be revealed, but not too soon! The truth can surprise you!!

Who would have guessed that Captain Lionel Redmayne, the villain in Kimberly Cates' MAGIC, would turn out to be such a wonderful hero? Well, BRIAR ROSE is his story, and what a lovely story it is. No one would call Lionel Redmayne and Rhiannon Fitzgerald "soul mates," but somehow the incongruities in their backgrounds, dispositions, and circumstances only make their love story all the more enchanting. I wouldn't mind if the author had included an epilogue -- anything to keep from closing the book, to keep on reading about the charming couple . . .

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. As she has done with any sick or injured animal or person, Rhiannon begins to heal Lionel.

As the unknown assailant continues his quest to murder Lionel, Rhiannon quickly learns that friend or foe wants her patient dead. Still, she finds herself falling in love with an individual who appears to be her opposite. She heals while he destroys. How could one most likely born of fairy find a beloved hero in one most likely born of the devil?

No writer today provides more MAGIC in their stories than fan favorite Kimberly Cates. The latest enchanting romance from the award winning Ms. Cates is another dazzler. The story line of BRIAR ROSE is filled with charm and intrigue as the enchanting lead protagonists struggle with love and an unknown assailant. The fairies add otherworldly appeal while the mortal secondary characters provide a historical feel to what is sure to be another best seller by one of the best writers of the last decade.

Harriet Klausner