Review: Already deleted my first review, but rating stays the same...
Rating: 1 out of 5
Date: 01 20, 2012
When I initially reviewed this book I was angry and frustrated, and it showed. I want to be honest about the book, but I feel I could do without the sarcasm. My rating of the book, however, stays the same and for the same reasons.The initial idea behind the plot is interesting. Bree is sent as a replacement bride to marry Ruan. There are people who wish to harm both of them, and they struggle to build their relationship while fleeing their enemies.Great, but there really IS Not a build-up of a relationship between the two main characters. What I experienced was a Moe and Curly routine a la Three Stooges; an unfortunate series of sight gags and pratfalls. Bree, who had managed to survive her own hard life, suddenly becomes a klutz and injures herself repeatedly. Additionally, Bree cries copiously, and Caine uses words to describe Bree's crying that are very unappealing. "Sniveling" is one such word, repeated often. I don't know if the author is aware of the very negative connotation this word has because I am sure she would not have chosen it if she did. When Bree is not crying, she really doesn't DO much until the final few chapters of the book when she finally developes a backbone. Other characters talk and react to events, but Bree is usually silent. I soon became frustrated and bored with the character.There are numerous problems that I have with the book, but the lack of any believable relationship between Bree and Ruan is a close second to the lack of a likeable heroine. The big romantic scene never comes, and I don't mean a big sexual scene, but just a point in the novel when they both characters show their love for each other, with words and actions. The final culmination, after watching the two meander through the plot, is a nonevent. I was left not feeling much of anything for the two characters because they seemed to feel very little themselves.Caine, however, does a credible job when it comes to the settings of the story. Caine does a nice job in describing the scenery, the buildings and the atmosphere that the characters step into, so the reader can "see" what the characters see. I wish she could have transferred some of that detail to the fleshing out of her characters.