Hello everyone!
So I normally go through books that aren't necessarily romantic in genre, or there's some romance in there somewhere but the prevalent message is something else (most notably, I'm currently burrowing through The Bourne Ultimatum, which is a rollercoaster if I've ever seen one!), and that's fine. I'm not one for the mushy, sappy things that happen in a lot of, say Amanda Quick's novels (although granted, I like at least two from that collection, oops). Most of my books are either based on historic facts (like, Genghis Khan or Julius Caesar facts), crime (think Tess Gerritsen or Agatha Christie), intelligence agencies (The Company, Vince Flynn, Stephen Coonts), etc.
But every once in a while, my brain starts screaming at me that I need to take a rest. So I either do it with fantasy novels (Tolkien anyone?), or I go to find some sort of romance story that's easy on the mind and not that long to get through. I'll admit, there are certain offers I read from that genre, but I think one of my favourites has to be Kathleen E. Woodiwiss ... because she has historical romance, not just romance in general.
Colour me surprised? I thought not. My choice of relaxation the last time was her novel titled 'Petals on the River'. (image not mine)
Shemaine O'Hearn (and I'll freely admit here that I never could get over the mind-boggling name, since I'm Slavic my origin and Irish names are way on the other side of the spectrum for me) is engaged to be married to the most eligible bachelor England has to offer. But circumstances appen, and she is accused of thievery, and packed up onto a ship bound for the colonies, there to be sold as an indentured servant.
In the colony of Virginia, she's bought by wealthy carpenter (and aspiring ship-maker) Gage Thornton (luckily HIS name's easy), because he wants a woman to look after his young son. The boy's mother, Gage's wife, died of still-unresolved circumstances, with a lot of people thinking Gage himself pushed her off the prow of the ship-in-making, thus killing her. As a reader, with all the descriptions going on here (Shemaine with her fiery hair and lithe body, Gage with his ruggedly handsome looks) and a cabin in the middle of Virginia nowhere, it's quite obvious to you what's going to happen eventually. But we do get to see life out there in the wilderness with some rather comical examples of how unprepared the upper classes of the Old Continent were for the New World (I'm referring to a rattle snake being unknowingly transported into the cabin with the linen). There's also the reunion of father and soon, as Thornton Sr makes his way overseas to find Gage, and stays put quite happily.
But, peace and harmony is not to last, since at least two people from the ship Shemaine was on have sworn vengeance on her, and try killing her, and then there's the blacksmith's daughter who's wanted Gage for her own since ... well, forever. Problem is, she's not exactly Shemaine-beautiful, and so there's a crux right there.
Gage and Shemaine marry, the blacksmith's daughter goes completely mental and swears vengeance, collaborating with the two already after Shemaine ... and surprise surprise, the reason our heroine was sent from England in the first place? The wealthy bachelor's grandmother didn't think she was good enough for her precious boy, but she wasn't counting on the man himself going after Shemaine to eventually find her, only to be thwarted since she's already married to Gage (never fear, he finds love with another woman, quite fast actually). He also, once he puts two and two together, confronts his grandmother and tells her to stuff it, striking out on his own with none of his wealth, so the old lady has basically alienated her own flesh and blood with what she did. Ha!
There's some dramatic shooting, a bit of murder going about as the plot begins to unravel, but finally there's peace and a happy ending - with Shemaine's family eventually moving to America as well, and Shemaine and Gage having a child of their own, a boy, and planning a big family.
There was and is nothing complicated about this book at all, the plot is fairly straightforward and what I enjoyed the most was that the two heroes didn't mess around with the he loves me - he loves me not thing for too long. It happened rather fast, without complications, which was good since everything else was fairly complicated around them in their lives! The reader gets to see some of the life in the colonies at that time, and a whole lot of people being bad guys, but in terms of relaxing and not thinking about it all that much, I doubt you'd ever find better books than these. A compelling, easy read that warms the heart.
What kind of books to you like to read for relaxation?
xx
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