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indolentfop's review
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death and Pregnancy
blodeuedd's review
3.0
How to describe this one? It was not one of those typical historical romances and therefor I would not want to call it that. It was the book in between H and HR. Also with a dose of mystery, spies and suspense.
The heroine, oh Emily, you were hard to like you ungrateful idiot. I get why she was like that, but she lived in a time where she had no rights so at least be civil to your husband and not a shrew. Yes I confess that at one time I wish Angus had throw that ungrateful strumpet out on the street to fend for herself. But I am not gonna be totally evil because she changes, there is romance there after all.
Angus, awww Angus, he was so kind, he waited, he hoped, aww my heart. A perfect man. Sure he too had made mistakes before, but how he adored her.
As you can see they really really have to work for the love to grow. It's not easy, it's hard, almost impossible. But slowly things fall into place and they find what they want.
As for the suspense. There are spies, secrets, and the ongoing conflict between France and England. The book gave me a few surprises.
A different sort of love story.
The heroine, oh Emily, you were hard to like you ungrateful idiot. I get why she was like that, but she lived in a time where she had no rights so at least be civil to your husband and not a shrew. Yes I confess that at one time I wish Angus had throw that ungrateful strumpet out on the street to fend for herself. But I am not gonna be totally evil because she changes, there is romance there after all.
Angus, awww Angus, he was so kind, he waited, he hoped, aww my heart. A perfect man. Sure he too had made mistakes before, but how he adored her.
As you can see they really really have to work for the love to grow. It's not easy, it's hard, almost impossible. But slowly things fall into place and they find what they want.
As for the suspense. There are spies, secrets, and the ongoing conflict between France and England. The book gave me a few surprises.
A different sort of love story.
robinwalter's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The romance was clunky, especially given the shallowness of the FL, but the espionage/intrigue bits worked better
b00kr3vi3ws's review
4.0
http://www.b00kr3vi3ws.in/2014/01/TheReluctantBride.html
As news of the death of Jack is delivered, Emily Micklen finds herself in a tight spot. Pregnant, alone and suffering from the loss of her fiancée she marries Angus out of convenience and not love. Little does she realize that this the turning point in her life that would reveal many secrets, truths and reality to her. Angus on the other hand isn’t completely truthful to her either, but he has loved her from the moment he had seen her for the first time. With the French Revolution rising and Angus’s duties calling to him, Emily and Angus have a long way to go before they can find love in each other’s arms.
My first impression about this book, from its cover and blurb, was that this was a romance novel. Now that I have finished reading it, I realize that it is so much more. Granted, the main focus of the story is the relationship between Emily and Angus, this book also brings doses of action and mystery with it. The plot was interesting and more so because of its setting during the French Revolution Era of which I knew only the outline.
Emily is an interesting character with many different shades. At the very beginning of the book we see her as this free spirit with a streak of rebelliousness in her. Soon the character grows as she is faced with much sufferings, betrayal and shocking (to her) revelations. She comes across this naïve girl who is perfectly fine at taking everything at its face value till she is forced to grow up and look around. And the best quality about her is that she is not afraid to admit when she is wrong. Angus on the other hand is this strong character with a soft spot for Emily. He rescues Emily and loves her so much that it would make any girl sigh!
The narration and descriptions are good enough and suits the setting of the plot. The romance and adventure in the story kept the pages turning. I enjoyed it quite a bit.
As news of the death of Jack is delivered, Emily Micklen finds herself in a tight spot. Pregnant, alone and suffering from the loss of her fiancée she marries Angus out of convenience and not love. Little does she realize that this the turning point in her life that would reveal many secrets, truths and reality to her. Angus on the other hand isn’t completely truthful to her either, but he has loved her from the moment he had seen her for the first time. With the French Revolution rising and Angus’s duties calling to him, Emily and Angus have a long way to go before they can find love in each other’s arms.
My first impression about this book, from its cover and blurb, was that this was a romance novel. Now that I have finished reading it, I realize that it is so much more. Granted, the main focus of the story is the relationship between Emily and Angus, this book also brings doses of action and mystery with it. The plot was interesting and more so because of its setting during the French Revolution Era of which I knew only the outline.
Emily is an interesting character with many different shades. At the very beginning of the book we see her as this free spirit with a streak of rebelliousness in her. Soon the character grows as she is faced with much sufferings, betrayal and shocking (to her) revelations. She comes across this naïve girl who is perfectly fine at taking everything at its face value till she is forced to grow up and look around. And the best quality about her is that she is not afraid to admit when she is wrong. Angus on the other hand is this strong character with a soft spot for Emily. He rescues Emily and loves her so much that it would make any girl sigh!
The narration and descriptions are good enough and suits the setting of the plot. The romance and adventure in the story kept the pages turning. I enjoyed it quite a bit.
suzannemsabol's review
3.0
i don't know. I felt like i read two different books; the first half a regency romance and the second was a napoleonic spy novel.
swathiblogs's review
3.0
I like reading historical romance novels. This one was an okayish read. A little slow , set in early 1800s.
theresidentbookworm's review
3.0
The Pros and Cons of The Reluctant Bride
Pro: It is one of those marriage of convenience stories, which I always love, and set in a fascinating point in history.
Con: The main character, Emily, is (in my opinion) bratty and naive. As is so correctly titled, she is reluctant to give her trust and affection to a man who seemingly adores her for the memory of her dead fiance who actually cheated on her.
Pro: Angus McCartney is a true gentleman, and no one is afraid to call Emily out on her coldness.
Con: He is really the only person I liked in this novel.
Pro: There is plenty of mystery and suspense. As far as a historical thriller goes, this is pretty good.
Con: There is very little romance. Emily tolerates this guy for half it, starts to like him, and then things get complicated.
Pro: Those complicated things are splendid to see all come to a head.
Con: It did get confusing at times.
Pro: It was free.
Con: Grammar and spelling mistakes and a book that could've been richer historically.
Pro: It is one of those marriage of convenience stories, which I always love, and set in a fascinating point in history.
Con: The main character, Emily, is (in my opinion) bratty and naive. As is so correctly titled, she is reluctant to give her trust and affection to a man who seemingly adores her for the memory of her dead fiance who actually cheated on her.
Pro: Angus McCartney is a true gentleman, and no one is afraid to call Emily out on her coldness.
Con: He is really the only person I liked in this novel.
Pro: There is plenty of mystery and suspense. As far as a historical thriller goes, this is pretty good.
Con: There is very little romance. Emily tolerates this guy for half it, starts to like him, and then things get complicated.
Pro: Those complicated things are splendid to see all come to a head.
Con: It did get confusing at times.
Pro: It was free.
Con: Grammar and spelling mistakes and a book that could've been richer historically.
emmalg's review
4.0
I'm usually wary of reading romance by an author who is new to me and I certainly wasn't grabbed by the first page, in fact I thought I was going to hate the book, instead I couldn't put it down.
There seem to be few authors in this genre whose writing really is good and I'm pleased to say Beverly Eikli is one of those few. The plot is strong though entirely predictable and the characterisation good. I will definitely look for more books by Beverly Eikli.
There seem to be few authors in this genre whose writing really is good and I'm pleased to say Beverly Eikli is one of those few. The plot is strong though entirely predictable and the characterisation good. I will definitely look for more books by Beverly Eikli.
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