Gabriel's Woman

Most of the other reviewers have summarized the plot quite well, with the ex-governess Victoria putting her virginity on the auction block at an exclusive men's club, known as the "House of Gabriel", and her subsequent unexpected sexual awakening. Gabriel, a man completely walled off by choice from his own sexuality, has become a sort of "voyeur" in his house of prostitution until Victoria comes into his life under suspicous circumstances. If you are looking for a sweet love story, this is not the book for you. The sex is hot, explicit, touches on the homoerotic and may be too much for some readers to handle . Mostly, the storyline is a mesh of the erotic/romance genre and is a sequel to Schone's previous work, "The Lover". I actually enjoyed "Gabriel's Woman" more than "The Lover", for I felt there was a bit more of a plot and I enjoyed the mystery/suspence aspects. The veiled references to the "second man" may be confusing to readers who haven't read "The Lover", and this is my biggest complaint about the novel.The relationship that develops between Gabriel and Victoria is something quite refreshing and unusual. Victoria is a virgin who once is awakened, becomes a tigress. This is the one aspect of Schone's novels' I have found a bit repetitive, as does her constant mention of the length of the man's penis size. The relationship shifts then into different sexual realms. However, it is the breaking down of all of Gabriel's sexual walls that make this novel so interesting and different from my usual romance fare. Gabriel's variety of inner demons made me literally cry.The "friendship" between Michael, the protaganist in "The Lover" and Gabriel seems to be hotly debated. For me, this was not homesexual, but there were shades of homoerotocism. The very existence of this is the essence of Gabriel's torment, so if anything, it really gave me something to ponder after I read this novel. By the end of the book, in my opinion, it is my conclusion they are friends who love each other, but there is a fine line btween homo and heterosexuality both men have resolved.I am shocked at readers who did not see the love between Gabriel and Victoria. Considering all the changes in Gabriel's life after he became involved with Victoria, and how he became able to recieve love and touch from another human being, their love was clear to me. I'd love to see more of them in Schone's future works. I've read all her novels/novellas and her growth as a novelist is wonderful.

Robin Schone once again challenges our notions of female sexuality and male power with 'Gabriel's Woman'. Like her previous short works and novels, neither Gabriel or Victoria are the stereotypical romance couple. Gabriel, a former prostitute and now owner of an exclusive brothel that bears his name, is a man tormented by an act so tragic, that it has shaped him into the untouchable being he now is. Wealthy women will pay any price for his services, but he knows they would never pay the price for loving the man he truly is, nor would they wish to see that part of him.Victoria is a dimissed governess whose only crime was that of not responding to a former employer's advances--a situation that was quite the norm in Victorian England. She boldly offers her virginity up for auction inside The House of Gabriel, and commands a staggering sum in the process.Ms. Schone's use of the gothic style harkens one back to the great gothic novels of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Nearly everything that occurs in this novel happens at night, or in the dark. Strangers from the past, mysterious motives, and the dark deeds that belie the gentility of Victorian England are woven skillfully.Gabriel could teach Jane Eyre's Mr. Rochester a thing about brooding heroes; and like Rochester, he too finds deliverance from the steadfast love of a woman who is as strong as himself. Victoria is a wonderful character, and no shrinking violet--she may not know what will come about in the end, but she dares what other women will not--to love a man with too many scars upon his soul.His best friend Michael des Anges (from Ms. Schone's previous novel, 'The Lover') is scarred on his face; Gabriel is scarred both body and spirit.An interesting note: There is an undercurrent of deep and fierce love between Gabriel and Michael, one that would suggest an almost homosexual bond. Like the frank eroticism, some readers may be put off by this, but I think Ms. Schone handles this matter wonderfully. In fact, I think their relationship goes beyond our notions of love between men, to see a deep and lasting committment that was forged in the most frightful of circumstances.The eroticism in 'Gabriel's Woman' is sexuality the way it should be written--passionate and intense. Ms. Schone's scenes drew me in and kept me there. Her atmosphere drips with the sounds, scents and sometimes overwhelming emotions of sex. In the shower scene (which I think was wonderfully written), I actually felt as if I were a voyeur, sharing this frightningly intense moment between two souls, and not merely two bodies.That, I believe, is what makes Robin Schone far superior to what has come before in the genre of erotic romance. Ms. Schone doesn't write textbook manuals on the act of sex, nor does she pepper her descriptions with silly metaphors ascribed to the various male and female genitalia (you readers who read steamy romances know exactly what I mean). Robin Schone writes about the emotions

If you are offended by frank eroticism and unconventional sex in your romance novels, this book is not for you. For the rest of you, hang onto your hats - you're in for a wild ride! Robin Schone's unique talent blends emotionally intense love stories with imaginative and graphic erotic scenes, and she pushes those boundaries even further in "Gabriel's Woman." Gabriel is familiar to readers of Schone's "The Lover" as the aloof proprietor of an establishment that specializes in all kinds of sensual pleasures. Gabriel himself, however, is not a participant. As a youth he was trained to be a prostitute that pleasured men and women, but due to some unknown trauma in his past, he can no longer tolerate another's touch. "Gabriel's Woman" begins with the grand reopening of the House of Gabriel. An upper class woman appears and boldly offers to auction off her virginity. Gabriel immediately realizes that the woman, Victoria, is a pawn sent to him by the mysterious man who brutalized him in the past. For her safety and in order to discover the mysterious man's plot, Gabriel buys Victoria. Even though his phobia of intimacy remains, he is inevitably attracted to her and his long dormant sexuality is awakened. Victoria has been unjustly forced from her position as a governess and was driven to the House of Gabriel by desperation. Nevertheless, she too is immediately aware of the intense attraction between herself and Gabriel. As she begins to know him better, she becomes determined to help him fight his personal demons and allow him to experience all the pleasure he has missed in life.Both Gabriel and Victoria are immensely appealing characters, and the reader can't help but become invested in their quest to make each other happy. As usual, Schone gives us several erotic scenes, some so extreme that even the most jaded reader will be startled. At times the book reads like a sex manual, including step-by-step instructions for new uses for breath mints. The surrounding plot is necessary to explain Gabriel's reticence, but it was my least favorite part of the book. The overall gloomy atmosphere got tiresome, and when the climatic confronation with the bad guy finally came around, I was so sick and tired of ominous references to "the second man" that I wanted to scream. Still, you don't read Schone for the plot, so this is a minor nitpick at best.

I'm speechless. I know that's not what Robin needs in a review. As I sit here staring at the screen, trying to find the words to express my feelings, I'm speechless. I did, however, come up with the CORRECT title for this story. "Gabriel's Woman" isn't even CLOSE to what this story is really about. Michael might have been "The Lover", but Gabriel is "The Tortured". This is a story of a rising. A woman willing to sell her virginity but not her pride. A man unwilling to be touched in fear of the tide of emotion that touching will release. A story that tells us how all things are possible if the caring and emotions are strong enough to survive the pain of the journey. A story of passion and intensity that comes from the soul. It attempts to tear open your heart and make you bleed with Gabriel. And you will. I am so TOTALLY a non-review person. I HATE knowing about a story before I start it. But Robin has given us a love story that needs to be shared. About a love made possible through deception, temptation, mystery and hunger. Hunger of the soul. A hunger shared equally by a man and a woman. Pain crying out for help that physical love is the only sensation strong enough to conquer. I do want to say - and this is mainly for the readers that might hesitate to buy this story based on their reaction to "The Lover" - there is darkness in this story. And, although it is just as inhuman and torturous as that in "The Lover", for some reason it is more acceptable. Because it's more "of the mind" than "of the body", it's not as squeemish. Gabriel is an angel - someone deserving of all the love and attention we can give him.