Scan barcode
gajeelsiron's review against another edition
was this supposed to be a romance??? 🤨
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape and Physical abuse
smithrachaelynn's review against another edition
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Things I liked:
- Somehow even with the things I didn’t like about this book, I was giddy with excitement about what came next. It was so compelling despite things that I didn’t love.
- Aislinn’s character, I liked that she had pride and a temper but was also loving and kind to people. She was a wonderful mixture of characteristics that were believable.
Things I didn’t like:
- Wolfgar was a huge asshole. He had his moments but he wasn’t pretty consistently an ass until the end 😂
- Graphic, there’s a lot in here was was intense from the very beginning like
rape scenes, abuse, verbal abuse, some torture, and war scenes. Most of them weren’t necessary to that extreme of a degree. - Pace & length, this book went on FOREVER. As much as I enjoyed it there was so much about things I didn’t care about and I really wish we got more of the ending instead.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy, Slavery, Death, Bullying, Rape, Gore, Blood, Classism, Sexual content, Violence, War, Grief, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Animal death and Animal cruelty
nightowlreview's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol, Murder, Death of parent, Sexual assault, Animal death, Rape, Sexual content, and War
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
reading_historical_romance's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
300 pages too long, slow, and silly. The romance genre was going thru it in 1974!
For those who really do love Kathleen Woodiwiss like I do... here is your tl;dr 😂
SPOILERS!
[The year 1066, Britain, Darkenwald keep]
Ragnor: I’m a big buff Norman here to pillage, plunder and r*pe, you filthy Saxons!
Lord Erland: Over my dead body!
Ragnor: Done!
Lord Erland: [dies]
Aislinn Erland: You killed my father! Prepare to—
Ragnor: [topples Aislinn to the bed]
Aislinn: [disassociates]
Maida Erland: My husband is dead, and now my daughter is worse than dead because she is no longer a virgin!
Wulfgar: I am an even bigger, buffer Norman and I am also very sexy. I wield a heavy sword.
Aislinn: All you Normans are bastards! You killed my father!
Ragnor: Ok but that guy is literally a bastard. Doesn’t know who his father is.
Wulfgar: Now it’s my turn to bed the pretty wench!
Aislinn: I will never become your wife!
Wulfgar: I’m not going to marry you. I’m going to bed you. I distrust all women because my mother abandoned me.
Aislinn: All men are pigs!
Wulfgar: [kisses Aislinn deeply]
Aislinn: Don’t awaken me to the depths of my womanness!
Wulfgar: [beds her]
Aislinn: [womanness awoken] Damn it!
Kerwick: Wait a minute, Aislinn is my betrothed!
Wulfgar: Is this true?
Aislinn: Yes.
Wulfgar: [beds her] [whips Kerwick and chains him up with the hounds]
Gwyneth: I’m Wulfgar’s half-sister come to stay because dad lost all our lands to you sleazy Norman bastards. I hate everyone.
Aislinn: Thank God, another woman is here!
Gwyneth: I’m in charge of this keep from now on. Give me all your possessions except the ragged dress you’ve got on.
Wulfgar: Here Aislinn, spend my fortune on buying jewels and pretty dresses for yourself. [beds her]
Aislinn: Are you ever going to marry me?
Wulfgar: Here is a new horse instead. [beds her]
Ragnor: I’ll marry you!
Wulfgar: What? You’ll have to fight me for her.
Ragnor: [loses fight]
Aislinn: You won! Marry me!
Wulfgar: I did think about it during the fight, but it’s still no. [beds her]
Gwyneth: Who’s that guy?
Aislinn: His name is Ragnor, and he’s a r*pist.
Gwyneth: [makes eyes at Ragnor]
Ragnor: [beds Gwyneth]
William the Conqueror: Wulfgar, I gift you the lands you pillaged, and that comely wench Aislinn. Ragnor is also my loyal vassal but he gets bupkis.
Aislinn: I’m pregnant.
Wulfgar and Ragnor: [look at each other]
Kerwick: I’ll marry you! I don’t care that you’re a whore and don’t have a clue who the father is!
Maida: The obvious solution is to run away to Scotland because every man except my dead husband is a colossal d*ck.
Aislinn and Maida: [run away]
[in the wilds of Scotland]
Wulfgar: [sees campfire] Seriously ladies? I found you in less than an hour.
[Meanwhile back at the keep]
Gwyneth: I hate Wulfgar, I hate Aislinn even more for reasons I will never explain. Will you help me plot their deaths?
Ragnor: Ok, why not.
[Wulfgar, Aislinn and Maida arrive]
Wulfgar: I’ve decided to do the right thing and marry you Aislinn. [beds her]
Aislinn and Wulfgar: [get married] [bed each other]
Aislinn: [has a son who doesn’t look like any of the Normans]
Ragnor: [kidnaps Aislinn and baby, rides off with them and Gwyneth]
Wulfgar: That guy is really starting to piss me off. [rides out]
[Stonehenge]
Ragnor: Here is a good place for us to make camp. Which comfy slab of stone can I use to bed Aislinn again, which is all I’ve really wanted to do all along.
Gwyneth: What?
Ragnor: Get thee hence, b*tch.
Gwyneth: You Norman bastard!
Aislinn: Told you so.
Wulfgar: I’m here to kill you once and for all.
Aislinn: I will pay this author to end this book.
Wulfgar: [sword fight]
Ragnor: [starts to die]
Gwyneth: [throws dagger at Ragnor and connects]
Ragnor: [finishing dying]
Gwyneth: [hits head somehow]
Wulfgar: We have absolutely no access to medical care.
Gwyneth: My last words are that you weren’t born a bastard, I was. Your life up to now has all been a lie. [dies]
Wulfgar: 550 pages and this is the big reveal?
Aislinn: Let’s head back to the house, I’m cold.
[the keep]
Aislinn: Mom, Ragnor is dead!
Maida: Fun fact, I knocked you both out with sleeping potions, he didn't r*pe you. I just pretended he did!
Wulfgar: I'm the only man you've ever known! And I’m never going to pillage or plunder again. [beds Aislinn]
Lord Bolsgar of Callenham: I’m Wulfgar’s dad and I’ve just found a birthmark on the baby that proves I’m his grandpa.
Wulfgar: I’m the father!
Aislinn: This book has literally been all about you.
Wulfgar: It’s a good thing I’m a total hottie who has learned you in the ways of your womanness. [beds her]
Aislinn: Damn it!
For those who really do love Kathleen Woodiwiss like I do... here is your tl;dr 😂
SPOILERS!
[The year 1066, Britain, Darkenwald keep]
Ragnor: I’m a big buff Norman here to pillage, plunder and r*pe, you filthy Saxons!
Lord Erland: Over my dead body!
Ragnor: Done!
Lord Erland: [dies]
Aislinn Erland: You killed my father! Prepare to—
Ragnor: [topples Aislinn to the bed]
Aislinn: [disassociates]
Maida Erland: My husband is dead, and now my daughter is worse than dead because she is no longer a virgin!
Wulfgar: I am an even bigger, buffer Norman and I am also very sexy. I wield a heavy sword.
Aislinn: All you Normans are bastards! You killed my father!
Ragnor: Ok but that guy is literally a bastard. Doesn’t know who his father is.
Wulfgar: Now it’s my turn to bed the pretty wench!
Aislinn: I will never become your wife!
Wulfgar: I’m not going to marry you. I’m going to bed you. I distrust all women because my mother abandoned me.
Aislinn: All men are pigs!
Wulfgar: [kisses Aislinn deeply]
Aislinn: Don’t awaken me to the depths of my womanness!
Wulfgar: [beds her]
Aislinn: [womanness awoken] Damn it!
Kerwick: Wait a minute, Aislinn is my betrothed!
Wulfgar: Is this true?
Aislinn: Yes.
Wulfgar: [beds her] [whips Kerwick and chains him up with the hounds]
Gwyneth: I’m Wulfgar’s half-sister come to stay because dad lost all our lands to you sleazy Norman bastards. I hate everyone.
Aislinn: Thank God, another woman is here!
Gwyneth: I’m in charge of this keep from now on. Give me all your possessions except the ragged dress you’ve got on.
Wulfgar: Here Aislinn, spend my fortune on buying jewels and pretty dresses for yourself. [beds her]
Aislinn: Are you ever going to marry me?
Wulfgar: Here is a new horse instead. [beds her]
Ragnor: I’ll marry you!
Wulfgar: What? You’ll have to fight me for her.
Ragnor: [loses fight]
Aislinn: You won! Marry me!
Wulfgar: I did think about it during the fight, but it’s still no. [beds her]
Gwyneth: Who’s that guy?
Aislinn: His name is Ragnor, and he’s a r*pist.
Gwyneth: [makes eyes at Ragnor]
Ragnor: [beds Gwyneth]
William the Conqueror: Wulfgar, I gift you the lands you pillaged, and that comely wench Aislinn. Ragnor is also my loyal vassal but he gets bupkis.
Aislinn: I’m pregnant.
Wulfgar and Ragnor: [look at each other]
Kerwick: I’ll marry you! I don’t care that you’re a whore and don’t have a clue who the father is!
Maida: The obvious solution is to run away to Scotland because every man except my dead husband is a colossal d*ck.
Aislinn and Maida: [run away]
[in the wilds of Scotland]
Wulfgar: [sees campfire] Seriously ladies? I found you in less than an hour.
[Meanwhile back at the keep]
Gwyneth: I hate Wulfgar, I hate Aislinn even more for reasons I will never explain. Will you help me plot their deaths?
Ragnor: Ok, why not.
[Wulfgar, Aislinn and Maida arrive]
Wulfgar: I’ve decided to do the right thing and marry you Aislinn. [beds her]
Aislinn and Wulfgar: [get married] [bed each other]
Aislinn: [has a son who doesn’t look like any of the Normans]
Ragnor: [kidnaps Aislinn and baby, rides off with them and Gwyneth]
Wulfgar: That guy is really starting to piss me off. [rides out]
[Stonehenge]
Ragnor: Here is a good place for us to make camp. Which comfy slab of stone can I use to bed Aislinn again, which is all I’ve really wanted to do all along.
Gwyneth: What?
Ragnor: Get thee hence, b*tch.
Gwyneth: You Norman bastard!
Aislinn: Told you so.
Wulfgar: I’m here to kill you once and for all.
Aislinn: I will pay this author to end this book.
Wulfgar: [sword fight]
Ragnor: [starts to die]
Gwyneth: [throws dagger at Ragnor and connects]
Ragnor: [finishing dying]
Gwyneth: [hits head somehow]
Wulfgar: We have absolutely no access to medical care.
Gwyneth: My last words are that you weren’t born a bastard, I was. Your life up to now has all been a lie. [dies]
Wulfgar: 550 pages and this is the big reveal?
Aislinn: Let’s head back to the house, I’m cold.
[the keep]
Aislinn: Mom, Ragnor is dead!
Maida: Fun fact, I knocked you both out with sleeping potions, he didn't r*pe you. I just pretended he did!
Wulfgar: I'm the only man you've ever known! And I’m never going to pillage or plunder again. [beds Aislinn]
Lord Bolsgar of Callenham: I’m Wulfgar’s dad and I’ve just found a birthmark on the baby that proves I’m his grandpa.
Wulfgar: I’m the father!
Aislinn: This book has literally been all about you.
Wulfgar: It’s a good thing I’m a total hottie who has learned you in the ways of your womanness. [beds her]
Aislinn: Damn it!
Content Warnings
Minor: Blood, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Animal death, Rape, Animal cruelty, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Sexual assault, and Violence
karend's review
If I hadn't been reading this for a challenge, I probably wouldn't have finished it. These old historicals are rife with stuff I don't want to read (see the content warnings). This one also had some plot points that were too far for me to stretch my credulity. For example, not tying up the traitor once they had been identified, leaving them free to continue to aid the bad guys. And the magical generation-skipping birthmark in a world where no magic was evident to that point. And the mother who didn't share with her daughter until a year later that she'd been drugged, not raped (at least not that first time).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape and Animal death
Moderate: Misogyny and Slavery
ericaereads's review against another edition
DNFing at 270 pages approx. 50%
Welp. Starting off 2023 strong with a DNF. (shrugs)
It's just too long and the characterization is all over the place. Plus the girl-on-girl hate/catfighting/mean girls behavior has really ramped up and I'm not here for it.
I'm actually really disappointed because the world-building/gothic vibes were chef's kiss.
Welp. Starting off 2023 strong with a DNF. (shrugs)
It's just too long and the characterization is all over the place. Plus the girl-on-girl hate/catfighting/mean girls behavior has really ramped up and I'm not here for it.
I'm actually really disappointed because the world-building/gothic vibes were chef's kiss.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape and Misogyny
The rape/sex scenes are all fade-to-black, but the rape culture throughout the book is so prevalent and dated (ie not discussed at all and normalized and, in the case of the male MC, romantacized) I'm listing it as graphic.
More...