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Paperback, 362 pages
Published September 1980
by Avon
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My Rating: ❀ ❀ ❀
Genre: Historical Romance
NEVER A VIKING'S CAPTIVE
Lovely and dauntless, abducted by invaders from across an icy sea, Lady Brenna vowed vengeance -- swearing no Viking brute would be her master...no barbarian would enslave her noble Celtic heart.
FOREVER A VIKING'S LOVE
Yet Garrick Haardrad, the proud and powerful son of a ruthless Viking chieftan, claims her with a primitive abandon that leaves her breathless, igniting fires of passion that blaze through the cold Nordic nights and forge the unbreakable bonds of a fiery, eternal love.
Recently, I felt like I needed something different than my usual go to genres. I was feeling restless and pent up and so I decided I needed something light and yet with a good plot and polished writing. Johanna Lindsey was not an author I'd read before, but she's popular and well liked so I decided to take a chance and jump into a "bodice ripper" romance.
I'm not exactly sure what I thought. The story in and itself was not bad. Two stubborn, proud characters flung together always produce sparks in romance, and the sizzle and banter made for good reading. But I don't know that I ever really liked these characters. Brenna struck me as somewhat spoiled and obstinate to the point of being ridiculous. I understand her determination not to be held as a slave, and to resist Garrick's orders and advances. But her attitude struck me as one that would produce the opposite effect than she desired, and it did on many occasions. She simply wasn't smart and a lot of her actions left me wondering as to what exactly she was thinking.
Our hero was not one I really connected with, though I came to like him better at the end. He fores Brenna into bed with him on at least two occasions and while I was expecting something of a forced seduction, I was still expecting seduction and not shady non-consensual acts. I didn't like the way that played out. Garrick is sorry for it at the end, and Brenna even manages to forgive him but I was definitely not swept away by the romance in this story, or its hero.
The plot and ending were definitely engaging as the action in the story picks up, and I did enjoy how Garrick and Brenna finally come together and confess their love for one another, but I think the old bodice rippers are a bit lack luster for my tastes. I am however, curious to try some other reads by this author as it's clear she is a talented writer.
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