Destiny's Embrace (Destiny, #1) in Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge

Jul 03, 2016 Sarah rated it liked it

Shelves: romance-historical

I think Beverly Jenkins is a terrific writer - her settings are great and her pacing and style of being descriptive but not too descriptive is really right on. Her characters are interesting without leaning too far into a complete caricature. With that said, the conflict was a bit lacking here (is there a conflict? other than hesitation?) and Mariah's total personality switch from doormat to spitfire just didn't seem authentic in this case. And is it wrong that I wanted Mariah to be a hard worke ...more

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Mar 06, 2019 Cathy rated it really liked it

As always, Beverly Jenkins does not disappoint when it comes to a sexy romance in which the female protagonist actually has some agency. Let's just say that Mariah leaves an abusive mother in the cold city of Philadelphia, and comes out west to some sweeping vistas and a fine man. What could go wrong? Well, I'll tell you. Lots of arguments and misunderstandings ensue, but it is a charming tale of autonomy, shaking off trauma, and falling head over heels in love. So, in essence, the perfect book ...more

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Mar 04, 2016 Akilah rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: cover-love, global-majority, historical-fiction, read-harder-2016, 2016, diversity-on-the-shelf-2016, books-for-grownups, dos-poc-2016

I don't typically read traditional romance stories, but this one seemed to check all the boxes pretty well. I was more intrigued by the character of Alanza than Mariah, but it was fun reading about life on a ranch and all of the other fun historical tidbits that you get from historical fiction.

Read Harder 2016: Read a book of historical fiction set before 1900 ...more

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Oct 17, 2017 Laurie rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2017

I thought the writing was a bit stilted and awkward at first,but in the end I was totally swept up in the loving family relationships and the 1880s California setting.

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