A SEAL's Oath: a second chance romance

A SEAL’s Oath by Cora Seton is the first book in the SEALs of Chance Creek. Navy SEAL Boone Rudman and his friends are creating a sustainable community with the hopes that, if successful, can be replicated anywhere in the world. When Martin Fulsom offers them land in Chance Creek, they take it. However, Fulsom is expecting families in the new town. Boone and his friends are as single as they come. Now Boone needs to find a wife or lose his chance at his dream. When he arrives at Westfield, he finds that it is already occupied by Riley Eaton, the woman who got away and has occupied his mind ever since. Riley is at a crossroad in her life. With no job and no prospects, she and her friends throw caution to the wind and decide to stay at the ranch her uncle inherited and create a Jane Austen style vacation for six months in Chance Creek. As Boone and Riley realize their plans for the land clash, can they find a way to help each other? Or will they destroy their chance for the futures they dream of? 

I love novels that feature military men and second chance romances. Of course, the cover caught my eye. Marriages of convenience as a trope seem a little far fetched but can make for a good romance. When I bought this book, the Jane Austen aspect in the blurb didn’t register. I added it to my To-Be-Read list and moved on. It came up on the list and I started reading. Boy, was I disappointed. I am not a fan of Jane Austen. And I do not get the appeal of someone who wants to live in “a simpler, more beautiful life-one that allows time for art, literature and music.” What? The Regency Era, simpler? Seriously? Whatever. But then Boone and his friends lecture endlessly about global warming and sustainability that it bogs down the story and you forget you’re reading a romance novel. I found Boone and Riley too immature and stubborn. Sadly, this book was not what I thought it was and by the end, I didn’t care if Boone and Riley found a common ground. I certainly will not be finishing the series. If you enjoy stories of Navy SEALs and love Jane Austen, you may enjoy A SEAL’s Oath. 

A SEAL’s Oath is available in paperback, eBook and audiobook

Pride, Prejudice and Other Flavors: a new twist on a Jane Austen classic

Pride, Prejudice and Other Flavors by Sonali Dev is the first book in the Rajes series. The Rajes are an immigrant Indian family, who descended from royalty, have built their lives in San Francisco. Dr. Trisha Raje is an acclaimed and well-respected neurosurgeon. However, that is not good enough for her family. Her family has gained wealth and notoriety by following three simple and non-negotiable rules: Never trust an outsider, Never do anything to jeopardize your brother’s political aspirations, and Never, ever defy your family. Trisha is guilty of breaking all three rules which is why the overachieving daughter is considered the black sheep of the family. But she is determined to redeem herself. DJ Caine is an up-and-coming chef who is well aware of people like the Rajes. But he needs the lucrative and prestigious jobs that they can offer. He immediately clashes with Trisha only to discover that she is the only surgeon who can save his sister’s life. Can they overcome their differences and find the life they both crave? 

I am not a Jane Austen fan, although I do enjoy movie adaptations of her books. Pride, Prejudice and Other Flavors was widely praised and I was eager to read it. It is beautifully written with descriptive language that I could almost taste the food that DJ made. There is a lot going on in this story. However, I was bored. I couldn’t stand the arrogance of Trisha. While she may be a genius surgeon, she missed the class on patient care and bedside manner. DJ was the only character who was likable and yet it was hard to like him. It was hard to find the parallels between Austen’s Pride and Prejudice and this story. There was so much going on with this book that I had a hard time wrapping my head around the events as they happened and “resolved.” Overall, I did not enjoy Pride, Prejudice and Other Flavors and will most likely not finish the rest of the series. However, if you are a fan of Jane Austen, you may enjoy Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors. 

Pride, Prejudice and Other Flavors is available in paperback, eBook, and audiobook

The Daughters of Allamont Hall

The Daughters of Allamont Hall by Mary Kingswood is the story of six sisters, Amy, Belle, Connie, Dulcie, Grace and Hope. They are forced to marry in order from eldest to youngest in order to receive their inheritance. With a sizable dowry, the girls should have no problem finding a match, right? I recently read the first three books in this six-part series.

Amy is book 1. She is a shy, timid soul, intimidated by her domineering father until she’s terrified to do or say anything without his approval. She never rebelled or dared to toe the line. When her father dies suddenly, his will leaves large dowries for his six daughters, but only if they marry in the proper order, the eldest first. Amy must now find herself a husband, and soon, so her younger sisters can marry in their turn. She’s willing to get married simply so that her sisters can marry, although she always thought she would a spinster. And at 24, she’s almost there. There are several possible suitors but will any of them be suitable. Mr. Ambleside had asked for Amy’s hand third times, after her father’s last refusal, he left the country. When he learns that her father is gone and she now must marry, he drops everything and seeks to win her hand. As the word gets out about her sizable dowry, how will Amy choose without her father to guide her?

  

Belle is book 2. She is known as the plain one of the sisters, quite happy with her books. With Amy betrothed, now Belle must find a husband. Reluctant to parade herself at balls and card parties, she intends to accept the offer of her cousin, James, a pragmatic but loveless choice on both sides. Mr. Burford is the village clergy and love in with Hope, the youngest sister. His income is not enough to support a wife so he is content to wait before he can ask for her hand. Belle hopes to marry soon so that Hope and Mr. Burford can then find their own happiness. It's just too bad that she soon discovers that she and Mr. Burford would make a perfect couple. But what happens when friendship blossoms into something more? Will they follow their hearts to keep with their careful plans? Or will they take a risk for their happiness?

Connie is book 3. Connie’s older sisters have managed to find husbands. Now it’s her turn and she’s not sure she wants to marry at all. Having only just escaped her late father’s restrictive control, she’s reluctant to surrender her freedom to just any man. Connie wishes to fall in love with someone who adores her so completely, he would do anything for her. Does such a man even exist? But when the Marquess of Carrbridge comes to the village to visit his aunt, Connie finds herself smitten to his good looks and charm. She believes she doesn’t have a chance with him. The Marquess is tired of being chased because of his title and sees Connie has just another gold-digger after his title and money. Can anyone change his mind?

These books reminded me of Jane Austen. Unfortunately, I am not a big fan of Jane Austen, so it was hard to really liked these books. I liked each sister in their own way. Amy reminded me of me in that she was shy, timid, cautious when taking a risk. Belle is very bookish like me and I liked Connie’s desire to be adored by her husband and not just married to be married. But the story itself, the action, the dialogue seemed bogged down for me and it was hard to finish. If you are a fan of Jane Austen, you may enjoy The Daughters of Allamont Hall series.

The Daughters of Allmont Hall series

is available in eBook and audiobook

Pride and Prejudice or Jane Eyre: a comparison and contrast of two classic novels

Among booklovers, Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte are beloved and revered. It is common knowledge that Charlotte Bronte was not fond of Jane Austen and didn’t understand why her books were so popular or praised. So I decided to read their most famous books, Pride and Prejudice (1813) and Jane Eyre (1847) again and compare them. Both books have many similarities. There were both written by a woman. The interest in both books is between a wealthy landowner and a woman who is socially beneath him with a woman of class vying for his attention. Both books take place in the English countryside. Both main characters refuse to consider a marriage of convenience. Even though about different eras, Austen’s Regency England and Bronte’s Victorian England, both display the restrictions under which women lived. Elizabeth Bennett and Jane Eyre were both more independent than the eras would suggest but that is true for their authors. Jane Austen never married and Charlotte Bronte eventually married a man she, at first, did not love. The contrast in these books which I will discuss are in the main characters, societal class and the mindset of women.

In Pride and Prejudice, Elizabeth is upper class, beautiful and outspoken. She is socially inappropriate, often speaking with a sharp tongue to those above her. She ends up with her man, Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy and all is well. The tone of Pride and Prejudice, is light and a witty comedy between men and women. In Jane Eyre, Jane is poor and orphaned. She’s plain and speaks her mind with decorum that is unusual for someone of her status. She’s socially awkward. She ends up with her man, Mr. Edward Rochester, but only after tragedy. The tone of Jane Eyre is dark with Gothic elements. Even contrasts are seen in the love interests of each woman. Mr. Darcy is dashing and portrayal of a wealthy man pride and a sense of obligation and consequence. Whereas Mr. Rochester behaves inappropriately with the governess, Jane, and holds nothing back. He crosses a line when he decides to marry his governess which leads them both heartbroken and lost. Rochester is tormented by a secret he must keep and yet he pursues Jane who seems to be a relief from the monotony of high society.

Both books features class, although in different manners. In Pride and Prejudice, the Bennett family is lower landed gentry who are on the edge of poverty if one of their 5 daughters doesn’t marry well. Mrs. Bennett’s whole goal in the book is to marry off her daughters to men who can handle their affairs as well as lift them up on the social ladder. While in Jane Eyre, Jane is orphaned and sent to a charity school at the age of ten. She is forced to find work as a governess. She later comes into an inheritance from a long lost uncle. In Pride and Prejudice, Mr. Darcy is the only son, raised and groomed as the heir of the family fortunes as well as the family societal responsibilities. While in Jane Eyre, Mr. Rochester is the second son, raised as the back-up and is only in his position because of the death of his older brother. Therefore the attitudes between the two men are extremely different. One of duty and the other blasé as to his social requirements.

 Both books display the mind set of women. In Pride and Prejudice, the overall attitude is that all women think about is marriage. The famous opening line says it all: “It is a truth universally acknowledge that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.” While two of the Bennett sisters, Jane and Elizabeth, display cool and calm attitudes about marriage and men, the younger sisters, Kitty and Lydia, are young and too forward. Lydia is so desperate to be married that she runs off regardless of what it would do to her family. The middle daughter, Mary, views marriage in disgust. In Jane Eyre, Jane never gives marriage a thought. As an orphan with no family fortune, Jane is forced to work and marriage would be an afterthought and may be a conscious decision not to as it could interfere with her livelihood. When Rochester proposes, she is shocked and questions his sincerity. When she realizes that he sincere, only then does she give in to the idea of marriage and love.

In conclusion, I’ve always enjoyed Jane Eyre more than I have of Pride and Prejudice. While I enjoyed seeing Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy finally put aside their social restrictions and give in to their feelings for each other. However, Jane Eyre has a darker intensity to the atmosphere and the characters that Pride and Prejudice just doesn’t have. There are certain scenes in Jane Eyre, when I feel my heart race with the events. I feel Jane’s fear, her sadness and her attraction to Mr. Rochester. Also, I am also drawn to the wildness of Mr. Rochester. His “rules be damned” attitude and go after the woman he loves. He is tortured and flawed in ways that Mr. Darcy isn’t. To me, Mr. Darcy is the man your parents hope you bring home but it’s Mr. Rochester who captures your attention. Both books are classics and deserve the attention they received since their publications. In my opinion, Jane Eyre is the better and more exciting book.