Tagged: anne
The Rose Master by Valentina Cano
(Cover picture courtesy of Goodreads.)
The day Anne Tinning turns seventeen, birds fall from the sky. But that’s hardly the most upsetting news. She’s being dismissed from the home she’s served at since she was a child, and shipped off to become the newly hired parlor maid for a place she’s never heard of. And when she sees the run-down, isolated house, she instantly knows why:
There’s something wrong with Rosewood Manor.
Staffed with only three other servants, all gripped by icy silence and inexplicable bruises, and inhabited by a young master who is as cold as the place itself, the house is shrouded in neglect and thick with fear. Her questions are met with hushed whispers, and she soon finds herself alone in the empty halls, left to tidy and clean rooms no one visits.
As the feeling of being watched grows, she begins to realize there is something else in the house with them–some creature that stalks the frozen halls and claws at her door. A creature that seems intent on harming her.
When a fire leaves Anne trapped in the manor with its Master, she finally demands to know why. But as she forces the truth about what haunts the grounds from Lord Grey, she learns secrets she isn’t prepared for. The creature is very real, and she’s the only one who can help him stop it.
Now, Anne must either risk her life for the young man she’s grown to admire, or abandon her post while she still can.
[Full disclosure: I received a free ebook through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]
One of the things that stood out for me from the beginning in The Rose Master was the writing. Valentina Cano has a beautiful descriptive writing style that just sucks you into the world of her story. Of course it’s not as verbose as the writing style of the time, but it is different enough from most styles that you get a sort of authentic “gothic mystery novel” feel. Which is probably what she was going for, considering the plot and the subject matter.
The characters ring true both to the modern reader as well as to the times they live in. Anne is a servant at the age of seventeen and when she’s sent away to Rosewood Manor she’s on her own for the first time in her life. So you can imagine her terror when it seems like there’s something funny going on at the manor, what with the odd noises, mysterious bruises on the staff members and an absentee Lord. One of the things that I admired so much about the book is that Anne is brave and resourceful without resulting to the modern ‘kick-butt action girl’ trope that would ruin the authentic Gothic feel. She’s not helpless, but she is bound by her upbringing and the expectations of the times. I don’t want to give much away but when she finally does meet our mysterious Lord Grey, she definitely does grow out of that enforced timidity.
The plot is not fast by most modern standards but it is fascinating. Valentina Cano sucks you into her world with her writing and she is a master of suspense. Even if you’re like me and could pretty much predict the next events, you just had to keep reading to see how they would unfold. She creates an air of mystery, suspense and more than a little horror throughout the novel that I really admire her for sustaining. Sure, there are some happy parts between characters, but there’s always that ominous other lurking about on the sidelines.
Even if you’re not a huge Gothic novel fan, I can’t recommend The Rose Master enough. It is just so beautifully written and Valentina Cano does a wonderful job keeping her readers in suspense. The characters are so well fleshed out, both major and minor, that you can’t help but fall in love with them. I particularly liked Anne; she’s a very memorable main character. Basically? Just go and buy this book. I think you’ll love it as much as I did.
I give this book 5/5 stars.
The Runaway Highlander by R. L. Syme
(Cover picture courtesy of Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours.)
Anne de Cheyne has a choice. She can play the dutiful daughter and allow her mother to sell her to a greasy English sheriff, or she can take control of her own life and find her own match. After a frightening run-in with her promised husband reveals a dark secret, she makes a desperate choice. Flight.
Aedan Donne needs easy money and no-questions-asked. When Milene de Cheyne offers him enough to pay all debts, requests complete silence, and pays half up front, just for a simple recovery, he can’t believe his luck… until he meets his mark. Anne’s beauty and passion ignite something Aedan can’t ignore, even as she leaves him in the dust. Suddenly, he finds himself wanting to capture the runaway Highland lady for himself.
[Full disclosure: I received a free paper copy of this book in conjunction with the blog tour in exchange for an honest review.]
This is actually the second book in the Highland Renegades series, but they can be read as stand-alone novels, luckily for me.
As I’ve said in the past, I know very little about Scottish history. Still, R. L. Syme managed to suck me into the period and really gave me the feeling that I was there along with the characters. The dark, unstable atmosphere of the time particularly rang true and you could feel this sense of doom throughout the whole novel. Scotland is highly unstable and in the middle of it, the main character Anne is being sold off to the highest bidder so her mother can prove her loyalty to the English overlords.
Anne is a decent enough character but I won’t say that she’s one of the most memorable heroines I’ve ever encountered. She’s feisty, determined and brave but at the same time I just had trouble connecting with her. It’s not that there wasn’t enough background information about her, but I had a hard time connecting with her emotions. I didn’t feel what she was feeling, whether she was sad, angry, happy or in love. But maybe that’s just me. Aedan I could connect with a little more but like Anne he’s not the most memorable character I’ve ever read about.
However, the plot was fast-paced and quite exciting. You can’t call The Runaway Highlander anything but a page-turner simply because of R. L. Syme’s talent with suspense. There are twists and turns everywhere and just when you think you know what’s going to happen everything changes. It definitely keeps the reader on the edge of their proverbial seat.
This was an essentially good novel. It will never be one of my favourites but it was good enough that I’d recommend it to romance lovers as well as Scottish history fans.
I give this book 3.5/5 stars.
Shadows of the Past by Carmen Stefanescu
(Cover picture courtesy of Goodreads.)
When Anne and Neil leave on a one-week holiday hoping to reconcile after a two-year separation, little do they know that destiny has other plans for them. Their discovery of human bones and a bejeweled cross in the hollow of a tree open the door to the supernatural realm and the anguished life of Genevieve, a nun from medieval England.
Can Anne save her relationship and help Genevieve her eternal rest?
The twists and turns in this paranormal tale keep the reader guessing up to the end and weave themselves together into a quest to rekindle love.
[Full disclosure: I received a free ebook copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.]
For me, this book was pretty average. The plot was fast-paced, the premise interesting if not entirely unique and it was generally well-written. The characters were well-developed as well. The main problem I had with this one, however, was the dialogue.
The dialogue was pretty bad. Everyone states exactly what they’re thinking, feeling and what their situation is in perfect English. It’s just not realistic to say something like, “Gerard, I feel that our present situation is intolerable. We are stuck in an automobile in the middle of nowhere in the Rocky Mountains. I am cold and by the expression on your face and your shivers I can tell that you are as well.” That’s my own example, but most examples of dialogue (even for the modern characters) in this book were similar and usually much longer.
Other than the dialogue, this book was fairly well-written. I quite enjoyed the plot with all of the flashbacks to Genevieve’s life in the abbey and the premonitions of Anne in the modern day. The descriptions were vivid and the little details are what really made the story. I won’t speak to the historical accuracy because I don’t know enough about the period, but Shadows of the Past certainly made me feel like I was back in Medieval England.
The character development was very good. I enjoyed Genevieve’s transformation from brow-beaten girl to happy nun to a discontent young woman yearning for love. I also liked Anne’s slow forgiveness of Neil for his transgressions. She didn’t forgive him right away but through their trip in the mountains they bonded at a natural rate. I personally would never have forgiven Neil but I’m glad that the two eventually made up and solved the mystery of Genevieve’s tragic death. The novel was more character driven than most but one thing I would have liked to see was more of a spin on the past life trope. It would have been nice to have some sort of twist but Carmen Stefanescu played this trope straight. That’s not necessarily a bad thing in this case but it would have been nice if the ending hadn’t been so predictable.
So overall, despite my dislike of the dialogue I actually quite enjoyed Shadows of the Past and if it sounds interesting to you I’d definitely recommend it.
I give this book 3.5/5 stars.