Dawn of the White Rose

Roses Series #2

by Mary Pershall

Isabel de Clare. Her tawny beauty was a King's prize, to be locked within a brooding castle until she exchanged its gray walls for a husband's tyranny...William Marshal. The towering knight armed with a will of steel, he conquered Isabel's senses in a single blazing night.

Lovers bound by destiny. His power matched her pride. Their passion was a battlefield with no quarter given - and none asked. And with every battle they gambled what they held most dear...the tenderest of loves, in the heat of ceaseless challenge so dearly gained, and so easily lost...

Genres: Historical Romance, Historical Fiction, Romance

408 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1985

About the author

Mary Pershall, who writes under the pen name "Susan Shelley," is an author of a number of historical romances, including a series about the family of William Marshal.

Reviews

[Tanzanite · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars. At a very low point in my life a few months ago I decided I needed to read some totally mindless fluff that would allow me to forget my problems while at the same time giving me some hope for a happily ever after in the midst of a relationship full of seemingly insurmountable problems. Having read one of Pershall’s previous books, I decided this one might fit the bill. It did. The subject of the book is my historical hunk, William Marshall. But Elizabeth Chadwick’s The Greatest Knight this is not - as it falls more into the bad-bodice-ripper variety – but that’s OK. With a brooding, moody William, an irritating Isabel and a series of misunderstandings that made more sense to the characters then they did to me, this was a mess. But admittedly, a mess I couldn’t stop reading! Maybe it was my mood. But it did what it was supposed to do at the time and so that counts for something.

[Soph · Rating 3 out of 5]

The dog pictured on the spine of the book was in fact included. Thanks, Pino!

I considered knocking off a star for the bizarre final chapters about Isabel’s slut son but decided against it for the vibes~

[Charles · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm sure romance readers might find this intersting but I thought it was really boring. I read it for two reasons, 1) I'd read a historical/romance by Kathleen Woodiwiss called "The Wolf and the Dove" and really liked it. I decided to try another and this was a mistake. 2), my wife at the time read these like cupcakes and I wanted to see what all the fuss was about since I loved to read. This one put me off romances for good. Well, almost for good.