Briar Rose

Rhiannon, the Irish heroine, is so loving and forgiving that she is almost angelic. She rescues and nurses the British officer, Lion, back to his grumbling, cold, reserved self. Her affinity with broken things whether people, animals or even tea cups is sweet. Lion has no idea how to treat this fey creature. She travels in a gypsy type wagon, has an old horse and dog and a one eyed cat for company. When Lion and Rhiannon argue they lapse into the silences that go right along with their character. Rhiannon goes into the quiet sulk and Lion into the reserved macho male. Ms. Cates understood their personalities and didn't write them into screaming matches. Rhiannon realizes Lion needs her long before he does. He is emotionally scarred and she is determined to help him heal, risking her emotions and even her life for him. Such self sacrifice is again consistent with her character. The one drawback in this book is that there are just too many coincidences between these two people. All and all though this book is a keeper.

After taking a tentative step into the world of romance with Julie Garwoods' 'Ransom' and systematically devouring everything else the woman had ever produced, I was at a loss- what else could I read? Then, slumped despondantly against a bookshelf in a second hand bookshelf, a title caught my eye. A great lover of anything even hinting of celtic, magic or fairy tales, I snatched Briar Rose off the shelf against my father's rather desperate protests. In the end, my battles were not in vain. See, Cates, unlike Garwood, doesn't dodge in and out of relationships, blending the times between outpourings of love and desire into grey. I, like most people I know, don't believe that love and passion go necessarily hand in hand, but Garwood's books seem to promote this view. Ransom, yes, was great, but some of the others seemed kind of. . . . Well, fake. Unrealistic. Cates didn't fall into the same trap, though. We met her characters and began to love them for all their faults- at least, in my case- from the very beginning. Lion, with his fear to trust, his painful childhood, won my sympathy, even in view of his conniviving attempts to force Rhiannon into taking him back to his garrison. Rhiannon with her love for animals, her fairy-born magic, captured my sense of wonder, my belief in the unbelievable. The war between the British and the Irish, the hatred, the eye for an eye mentality, all are portrayed with fullness and impartality. Unlike many authors, Cates also abstains from putting all her good characters on one side and all her bad characters on the other. The romance between Rhiannon and Lion almost reminds me of the famous play Romeo and Juliet, though certainly I like this ending better. I agree that the romance is admittedly slow, but it's nice to see an author whose characters don't jump in and out of bed like hyper two year-olds. (Not to say that all romance character do, and certainly not pretending any real knowledge of the subject- this is simply my jaundiced opinion from observation of Garwood and a few other, select romance writers) In any case, the author uses her time to build up their memories, to show us all the wonderful and sometimes not so wonderful differences between hero and heroine. Rhiannon with her tender heart rolled out like a carpet, Lion, who locks himself into a mask, tries to hide his pain even in his dreams, truly are characters you can understand, empathize with. And Cates does this with beautiful, vivid imagery and distinctive style. I've read a lot of reviews that claim Kimberly Cates overdid the page count on this particular novel, but I can't help but think that a good romance novel, like a good cup of coffee on a rainy day, is best if it's drawn out. Say what you will about tedious prose, but after the occasionally unbelievable romances of other writers (also known as the lightening bolt from the heavens syndrome) I believe Cates did the right thing, and that Briar Rose is

Okay, okay - at first I was going to criticize this book, saying it had none of the magic of Cates' previous book GATHER THE STARS. It seemed long-winded - too much self-talk between actions. But as I got into it, Rhiannon won me over, and later so did Lion. What a gentle, forgiving creature she was! Redmayne has almost too many layers of pain to work through but Rhiannon kept at it. Certain passages brought tears to my eyes - always a sign of a 5 star book. Try it. Cates really is a master of romance.

I was intrigued by "Briar Rose" from the first time that I read an exerpt at the end of Kimberly Cates' wonderful romance, "Magic." Lionel was not the typical villian. He was dedicated to his responsibilities as an English captain, but was never cruel. I was very pleased that Lionel's better self was revealed in "Briar Rose" - Rhiannon was the perfect heroine to show him the path to love and true redemption. Ms. Cates has delivered to her readers a truly marvelous and moving romance.

Kimberly Cates always writes a magical, heart-rending story and this is no exception. Maybe her best book yet, BRIAR ROSE is the touching tale of a wounded English captain known for his fierceness and an Irish maiden with a healing hand and gentle heart. Caught in a web of danger and secrets, they have no choice but trust each other--and their trust blossoms into a truly memorable love. Kimberly Cates's Ireland is such a delicious place! If ever there was a magical setting in which anything is possible, this is it. And her characters are passionate, full-bodied, full of life and emotion. I adored this book!