The rebel prince

REVIEWS BY BARBARA SAMUEL

Something for every romance reader this month—a lyrical historical novel, a lush and intelligent romance, a juicy potboiler and a rip-roaring ghost story.

A tale of the turbulent English Civil War, The Winter Prince by Cheryl Sawyer is a fiercely romantic portrait of two real-life members of the court of Charles I of England. Mary Villiers, Duchess of Richmond, and Prince Rupert of Bohemia meet again on the eve of the Civil War. The two dignified and loyal members of the court are drawn against their will into the brewing conflict, and thrown into uncomfortable and eventually irresistible contact. The beautiful Mary is already married, and Rupert is a soldier with enough troubles for 10 men without adding the difficulty of falling in love. Still, fall in love they do. This is an elegantly written tale layered with meticulous historical detail and highly complex emotions. Beautiful and moving.


A kiss for all time

At the other end of the historical romance spectrum is Claiming the Courtesan, a study of the nature of sex and love. Anna Campbell's debut is a refreshingly different and very romantic novel that was so admired by its editors that it was included in Avon's Romantic Treasure line for rising stars. It's easy to understand why. When beautiful courtesan Soraya—known to herself and her brother as Verity Ashton—reaches the end of her contracted year as the Duke of Kylemore's mistress, she has finally accrued enough resources to leave London and retire to a small village. She disappears overnight, leaving the duke thwarted and furious. Obsessed with the beauty, Kylemore tracks Verity down and kidnaps her, holding her prisoner on his Scottish estate. There, his plans for sensual conquering fall to pieces, and two tortured characters find that sex is sex, but love is an entirely overwhelming proposition. Campbell delivers a lusciously sensual exploration of love with one of the best kiss scenes in recent memory.


Timeless love

In Night Echoes Holly Lisle explores the depth of eternal love from another direction. Artist Emma Beck, adopted at birth, has been haunted all her life by visions of a certain house and the face of a particular man. While on a trip to find out more about her long-dead mother, she stumbles over the very house of her dreams, abandoned and dilapidated, and buys it on the spot. She hires a local contractor, Mike Ruhl, to help fix it up, and the two unwittingly unleash a long-unsolved mystery. Emma is sleepwalking, unknowingly painting violent scenes in the middle of the night. She hears whispers and drips of water no one can find. Is the house haunted? Is Emma losing her mind? As if that weren't enough to worry about, it seems that everyone Emma talks to ends up getting murdered—and no one seems to know what really happened to her mother. A gripping, fast-paced, mystery-within-a-mystery with an excellent romance woven in.


A bubbly bonbon

Finally, for a frothy escape into the world of the decadently rich try Sparkles by best-selling English author Louise Bagshawe. Sophie Massot, the young and beautiful widow of aristocratic French jewelry magnate Pierre, takes control of her husband's business and sets in motion a battle for control of the massive fortunes and secrets of the Massot family. Sophie is, of course, the uncorrupted and sweet beauty who can bring healing to the tortured heart of the man who would have been her enemy. Here is a world where the women are tiny and fragrant and wear diamond studs the size of walnuts (without a trace of vulgarity, bien sûr), the men are dashing and own castles, and everyone, of course, flies first class. The rich are different and we love to read of their trials and tribulations and imagine it's our chateau, designer clothes, trim body and rubies. Or maybe that's just shallow, shallow me. Sparkles would be a great hefty book for a long airplane ride or that spring break holiday.


Barbara Samuel's Lady Luck's Map of Vegas has been named a Target BreakOut Book.

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