Once Upon a Pillow

This book was really good. It tells the story of 4 couples who end up in the bed over the centuries. Despite being written by 2 people the book flows well, thanks to the background story of the manor.... I enjoyed each story separately--good humor, good dialog, intrigue, and of course a little action between the sheets.... this book will be published in mass market paperback early 2004...but it's worth buying now.... one of my new favorites thanks to the authors....

This was a pretty nice quartet of stories encompassing an old manor and ruin of a castle with one common element tying it all together - the Masterson BED. It is told from the perspective of the modern day curator, Laurel, who is quite devasted that this small museum would be closing. So this, her last tour day, all the stories of the 800 year old 'bed' are being told. It starts out with the first Masterson. A Knight from the crusades and how the bed came into being in the 1200s - Really liked this story 5*! Then jumps 300 years to the mid 1500s with another rather impoverished mercenary knight who must find an heiress to pump money into the castle and surrounding town to save his soldiers and serfs - This was wonderfully romantic and exciting - Give this 5*Then another 300 years later we have the story of the Pip and Ned Masterson in the 1800's when smuggling was ripe along the coast and Pip's efforts to save her brother and thwart the man she lusts for. - This offering a 4-1/2*It is finally completed with our curator, Laurel, and Max - he being the supposed handy man making the manor house ready for the mysterious 'new' owners - a good story but I can only give this 4* (honestly,I am not a contemporary story person) plus the plot was weaker than the rest.All in all, this was a very enjoyable quartet of stories telling the 800 year history of 'the bed' and what went on 'once upon a pillow'.

On the Devon-Cornwall border, Masterson Manor is either an economic elephant draining one's assets or a beautiful historical landmark worth preserving. To the owner, the house costs way too much to maintain so he is selling the manor and its contents. To Master Museum curator Laurel Whitney, the sale is a ghastly tragedy. Still on her last guided tour, she remains professional and tells the tourists three tales of three pairs of lovers who have shared the renowned eight century old Masterson bed. 1200, 1583, 1815, and the present as a fourth tale starring a sad Laurel and the modern magic of the bed closes out the stories of love.The quartet of novellas spans the history of England with three historical periods that rank among the most popular amidst romance readers. Medieval, Elizabethan, Regency, and a contemporary provide the backdrop to four great tales linked by the bed. Each story is well written and enticing, as readers will get into the sheets. Though the tales are connected, Christina Dodd and Connie Brockway insure their contributions stand alone as the audience knows the era is well represented and described. The concept is sort of like the movie the Yellow Rolls Royce, but spans eight hundred years as Ms. Dodd and Ms. Brockway gift the sub-genre with a powerful tour-de-force.Harriet Klausner

This is a wonderful group of interconnected stories, centered around a huge, ornately carved bed and its history with the Masterson family. Each story is a little gem all by itself. These are *hot* reads to be sure, but with the sort of to-die-for heroes and heroines you expect in longer books. I was only sad the book was so short. When you read the last story and see how cleverly it all ties together, you just want to go back and start all over again.