Sign in with FacebookJess the Romanceaholic's Reviews > High Plains Bride
High Plains Bride
by Jenna Kernan (Goodreads Author)
by Jenna Kernan (Goodreads Author)
Jess the Romanceaholic's review
bookshelves: frontier-romance, secret-child, betrayal, kidnapped, child-or-children-play-a-big-part, raped-or-abused, 2010-read, angsty-read, child-molestation, forced-marriage, military-or-special-ops, native-americans, on-the-run, second-or-more-marriage, tortured-hero
Jan 16, 10
bookshelves: frontier-romance, secret-child, betrayal, kidnapped, child-or-children-play-a-big-part, raped-or-abused, 2010-read, angsty-read, child-molestation, forced-marriage, military-or-special-ops, native-americans, on-the-run, second-or-more-marriage, tortured-hero
Read on January 16, 2010
** spoiler alert **
So if you pay attention to all the bookshelves I used to label this book, you'll probably end up mightily confused if I don't mention that they pertain to two main characters -- Lucie and Sarah both. Each gets almost half of the storyline to themselves, and so I felt it appropriate to label accordingly.
I loved the romance between Sarah and Tom. There was understandable bitterness on both sides, and it was heartbreaking to think of all the lies and misconceptions that caused them to be apart for so long.
However, my reasoning for not giving it a higher rating is that I didn't care for how Lucie's story ended up.
I admit it. I liked Eagle Dancer. I realize that Lucie'd been kidnapped, and I realize that horrid things were done to her by various members of the tribe, but I was so hoping that they'd find a HEA together... Yes, the age difference squicked me (he was "nearly twenty" and she was 14 almost 15), and yes I wish he'd waited to marry her and therefore delaying their consummation (which, for the record, is done completely "off-camera" so to speak -- they're married in a tribal ceremony then a while later someone mentions that they'd lain together, but there's no kiddie porn in here so nobody freak okay?). However, I do think it's important to remember, as even Lucie notes in the story, that it wasn't uncommon for girls to wed that young in those days. Nowadays, uber creepy. Those days, barely raised eyebrows.
Unfortunately, theirs was not a true "secondary romance", despite the fact that Eagle Dancer obviously cared for and treasured Lucie (possibly even loved her? His reaction to the bread thing kind of hints to that you know..).
In light of that fact, while I know it was necessary to detail Lucie's experiences with the tribe, it made the book feel cluttered. There were several times, I admit, that I read very quickly over the portions relating to Tom and Sarah (whom are the main characters here, mind you) just to find out what was going to happen next with Lucie and Eagle Dancer. I almost felt like Kernan needed to choose one couple or the other, especially since it wasn't a situation where both couples ended up in a romantically HEA...
Because of that, my final rating is going to be 3.75 Stars.
I loved the romance between Sarah and Tom. There was understandable bitterness on both sides, and it was heartbreaking to think of all the lies and misconceptions that caused them to be apart for so long.
However, my reasoning for not giving it a higher rating is that I didn't care for how Lucie's story ended up.
I admit it. I liked Eagle Dancer. I realize that Lucie'd been kidnapped, and I realize that horrid things were done to her by various members of the tribe, but I was so hoping that they'd find a HEA together... Yes, the age difference squicked me (he was "nearly twenty" and she was 14 almost 15), and yes I wish he'd waited to marry her and therefore delaying their consummation (which, for the record, is done completely "off-camera" so to speak -- they're married in a tribal ceremony then a while later someone mentions that they'd lain together, but there's no kiddie porn in here so nobody freak okay?). However, I do think it's important to remember, as even Lucie notes in the story, that it wasn't uncommon for girls to wed that young in those days. Nowadays, uber creepy. Those days, barely raised eyebrows.
Unfortunately, theirs was not a true "secondary romance", despite the fact that Eagle Dancer obviously cared for and treasured Lucie (possibly even loved her? His reaction to the bread thing kind of hints to that you know..).
In light of that fact, while I know it was necessary to detail Lucie's experiences with the tribe, it made the book feel cluttered. There were several times, I admit, that I read very quickly over the portions relating to Tom and Sarah (whom are the main characters here, mind you) just to find out what was going to happen next with Lucie and Eagle Dancer. I almost felt like Kernan needed to choose one couple or the other, especially since it wasn't a situation where both couples ended up in a romantically HEA...
Because of that, my final rating is going to be 3.75 Stars.
Sign into Goodreads to see if any of your friends have read High Plains Bride.
sign in »
