This latest Debbie Raleigh trilogy is certainly something out if the ordinary in that it deals with troubled marriages. Regency romance novels are usually about the finding of a husband or a wife, and very rarely do they deal with the trials and tribulations of a young and unhappily married couple. But that's what this trilogy is all about and that's what makes this Marriage trilogy something really special, and worth reading.

Adam and Adele (Addy) Drake are deeply unhappy in their marriage. Both from the same small village; though because of their circumstances, it looks as if both rarely came into contact with the other prior to their marriage. Adam happens to come from a very distinguished and proper family, while Addy (unfortunately) comes from a rather ramshackle and scandalous one. And when Addy's father looses most of his money gambling, everyone decides that it would be best if Adam and Addy make a match of it, esp since theirs was a match already arranged by both their grandfathers many years ago. Unfortunately, Adam, who works at the War Office and shudders at the very thought of scandal, saw fit to begin his marriage with a lecture to his wife on the kind of behaviour he expected from her!

Already bitterly unhappy that she has been forced to marry where she had no inclination, Addy's anger and resentment knows no bounds at Adam's attempts to bind and restrict her. And the gall of the man to actually lecture her as if she's some kind of recalcitrant child that needs supervision all the time! The up short to all this is that a rather icy atmosphere has descended onto the household, with Addy trying to avoid Adam as much as possible. And Adam who thought he was doing the right thing by giving Addy a hint of his expectations of her, now realises that he's beginning to miss the vibrant and lively Addy he used to know. But it's too late to undo the damage already done. Or is it? Fortunately for both Adam and Addy, their village vicar has decided to interfere. And with the help of this gentle, wise and whimsical man, there may be hope that both the Drakes discover that theirs is a marriage that was meant to be and worth treasuring...

I think that what Debbie Raleigh is really good at is giving us characters we really come to care about. She did this with the Rose trilogy and the Creswell Sisters trilogy, and she does this again with "A Proper Marriage." Both Adam and Addy are easily recognisable types and are easy to identify with. Neither character is totally blameless about the straits they find themselves in, and the authour does a really good job of showing us this as well as the grievances that both parties justifiably (and unjustifiably for that matter) feel. At the same time, Debbie Raleigh also manages to make both Adam and Addy sympathetic enough that it is easy to root for them to work out their problems and find happiness with each other. However, while Adam and Addy are undoubtedly the hero and heroin of this novel, the star of "A Proper Marriage" is very definitely the very gentle, wise and wily vicar, Vicar Humbly. And I'm really looking forward to the other books in this trilogy so that I can reacquaint myself with this delightful character.

"A Proper Marriage" is a rather enjoyable 3 1/2 star read (the plot is a rather basic and straight forward one with few surprises), that most would definitely appreciate.

I really enjoyed this story. Adam, the vastly proper husband of the once vibrant and dashing Adele, is that rare hero in romance novels who is rich, handsome and does realize fairly early on that he has made a mistake or two in dealing with his young wife. The visiting vicar helps on that score. Adele too learns to appreciate the husband she thought was too proper. My complaint would be that Adele was too immature and really did make for a silly wife early on. But she changes her tune pretty early on so it was not an endless reading of mistakes and missed chances. Good story and I look for the rest of the trilogy.

This is the story of a married couple who appear to be opposites finding a common ground. The hero, Adam, is very concerned with propriety and expects his wife to behave with decorum and modesty. The heroine, Addy, was a free spirit before her marriage but has now become a shadow of her former self and resents Adam for his restrictions and his lack of trust.

Adam soon realizes that he misses his wife's vivacity, while Addy learns to appreciate her husband's stability and dependability. Both POV's are very well portrayed. I thought Raleigh did a fine job of showing how they grew to understand and love one another. The relationship is the main focus. There is very little in terms of external plot but it held my interest throughout.

I also liked the device that links this book with the next two in the trilogy: A country vicar coming to Town to make sure that three worrisome marriages he officiated turn out well before he retires. The vicar was very appealing and provided the story with a gentle humor. I look forward to the next one!

Unfortunately "The Valentine Wish" is not quite as interesting a read as the first book in the Creswell sisters trilogy. Part of the problem for me was that while I could intellectually appreciate the reason why Emma holds so rigidly to the need for propriety and control, I still found myself still becoming a little impatient with her inability to accept the fortunate circumstance she suddenly finds herself in (even if it is a highly unconventional one) and go with the flow.

Unable to cope with the notoriety of being the Devilish Dandy's daughter (he is an audacious jewel thief that happens to be on the run) and the censure that the London ton, Emma Creswell has opted instead to take a job as the companion to Lady Hartshore, in deepest Kent. What Emma doesn't know however is that while Lady Hartshore is a kindly older woman, she is a mite unconventional, and that her household has the reputation of being a highly eccentric one. To begin with, there is Lady Hartshore readily admits to conversing regularly with her long dead husband; and then there is Lady Hartshore's brother with whom she resides -- because of a war wound, the once valiant general now believes that he is the pirate Black Bart. And then there is Lady Hartshore's gypsy housekeeper who dabbles in reading tea leaves... But none of these good people try Emma's peace of mind as much as Lady Hartshore's roguish nephew, Cedric Morelane, who seems intent on teasing and flirting with her. And Emma, who had hoped to find solace in working for a proper and respectable household, only to find herself in the middle of an eccentric one instead, (esp since Lady Hartshore is intent in treating Emma like a valued guest instead of an employee), now must contend with the uncomfortable possibility that she may forget her firm resolve and succumb to Cedric's charm. And then just as Emma is beginning to let her guard down, her rascally father turns up at the village, pretending to be someone else. What is the Devilish Dandy up to? And what will happen if someone recognises him? Torn between wanting to help her father, and wanting to have noting to do with him, Emma must make some hard decision and soon.

I think that Debbie Raleigh did a rather good job of charting the blossoming romance between Emma and Cedric. I do wish however that she had given us a little more of Emma's gradual loosening of her stiff manners and shown us more of how Emma comes to accept and enjoy being part of Lady Hartshore's eccentric household -- esp since everyone in that household is really nice. I also liked the manner in which Raleigh allowed for Emma and her father to resolve certain issues that lay between them. "The Valentine Wish" is not a bad read, in fact it is far more romantic read than the first book in this series, "The Christmas Wish." It's just the nature of expectations: having enjoyed the first book so very much, I naturally expected that I would "The Valentine Wish" as much. And this is not really fair to the book or authour. "The Valentine Wish" is a goodish read, and if you can get past Emma's initial stiffness and reservations, then you will enjoy this novel a lot more than I have led you to expect.

To give you an idea of how much I liked this book, I went and ordered the first book in this series, which is The Christmas Wish. I really wasn't expecting much from this book because Debbie Raleigh isn't one of my favorite authors. She surprised me by keeping my attention through the whole book.

The story is the typical story of a girl who is running away from her world because of her father and the Lord who takes the time to bring her back to where she belongs. But Ms. Raleigh doesn't end there. She makes you like Emma and Cedric, Cedric's wacky aunt Cassie and Cassie's brother Bart, the pirate. I didn't care much for Emma (hence only four stars), but I really liked the way the secondary characters came alive. Cedric likes Emma from the first and does his best to know her better. Of course, Emma doesn't want to get close to anybody because of her father, but even though Cedric doesn't have a clue who her father is, he falls in love with her anyway, and when he realizes who her father is and the crimes he has done, he doesn't even stop to think, he helps Emma's father to get away.

Cedric's aunt Cassie is also really a lovely character. Talking to her husband, who's dead, and her seemingly absent mindedness just makes you want to take her to your heart. The addition of the "pirate" Bart just adds to the story. I wish she could have had more about those two.

The Valentine Wish is very predictable and consistent with most romances that are available, but Ms. Raleigh makes you like the characters and care about the characters you are reading. I just hope in the next book, Rachel's story, she has more about the Father. Since I haven't read the first book yet, I don't know much about the Father in the stories, but it seems, Ms. Raleigh is getting you to like him, like you do with all her characters.

Sit back, read and enjoy this book. Just read the first one first. You don't need to, it just might help in the long run.

Okay, I admit to having a personal prejudice against reluctant heroes, heroes with mistresses, and debauched and cruel heroes, no matter how skillfully they have been rehabilitated by their authors. And maybe the reason these unsatisfactory types of heroes are so often dished up to Regency fans is that so many women are drawn to roguish men and truly wish to believe that such men are redeemable. Hah! I may be a sucker for a good romance, but I've listened to Dr. Laura far too long to be taken in by such drivel!

That said, I have to say that the hero in "The Valentine Wish" is my idea of the ideal Regency hero. Cedric is a man who cares for his family, looks out for the needy, and cares nothing for the formality and hypocrisy of London society. He is strong and sincere and cultivates roses as a hobby. The fact that he is also good looking and well-spoken is icing on the cake.

Emma's background as the daughter of a scandalous jewel thief makes her reluctant to trust people. She is determined to hide her passionate nature under a facade of propriety. The last thing she is looking for is a slightly loony employer who treats her as an honored guest, whose charming nephew sweeps her off her feet with compliments, roses, and romantic picnics. While most young ladies would swoon to be in her situation, Emma knows from past experience that fairy tales rarely come true and that all roses have thorns.

Debbie Raleigh has outdone herself in this delightful story of a Renaissance man and how he convinces a wary woman to risk her heart for the promise of true love. I enjoyed this book so much that I plan to read "The Christmas Wish"--the prequel to this book--next, even if it is the wrong order.

Far from perfect, the regency atmosphere lacks depth, the characters lack depth, the plot is a simple formulae that moves mechanically forward. But this love story will fadge. We realy believe that they both care, if only there were a bit more substance to the whole.

I liked the heroine Miss Cassandra Stanholte, she is independent, strong willed and stubborn. The Hero, Lord Mumford also has these last two traits, which makes for many good scenes where they both argue and deny their feelings for each other. Luke (Lord Mumford) constantly insinuates himself into Cassies life, feeling that if he doesn't stay close and protect her; that her impetuous ways will land her in great danger, and of course they do, (how else could we have such an interesting story?) You must read Lord Mumford's Minx and find out just what kind of trouble Cassie gets herself into and why.

One more thing: I think that Luke was the perfect name for the hero, but his last name of Mumford just did not fit, I found myself wanting to rename him. But this was the only fault I found with this book. Maybe I should not even have mentioned it; But I wonder if other readers will feel the same? just curious.

A character-driven portrayal of Sir Walter Ralegh, largely told in flashback, but also involving some fairly fast realtime action.

Nye writes well on a sentence level. Generally, I found his historical portrayal believable, and his characters multifaceted, although I don't quite buy that Ralegh would be such a political innocent that he wouldn't realize why Elizabeth could by no means risk becoming pregnant. The plot is exciting; it bogged down a bit for me about 3/4 of the way through, but Ralegh's attempts to escape execution are fast-moving and gripping.

The different portrayals of Elizabeth in historical fiction are interesting. She's always larger than life, even when, as here, she has aspects of the grotesque. And generally, as here, she's shown quite negatively. I like the darkness of the way she torments her favorites in the book, though I rather doubt it's what really happened.

I disliked the homophobia with which James I and his lover Villiers were portrayed -- it's fine that James is a negative character, but the prejudice here seemed to go beyond Ralegh's normal Renaissance-era reaction.

In the final analysis, there's something self-indulgent about this book, about Ralegh and his endless self-recriminations and maundering. Still, readers of Elizabethan historical fiction will probably want to have a look at it.

With famed courtier Sir Walter Ralegh as his speaker/writer, author Robert Nye creates a fictional journal which includes all the elements of high drama the reader would expect of this vicarious peek into Ralegh's very private and intriguing world--his climb from obscurity to the highest levels of court life, the nature of his tumultuous relationship with Queen Elizabeth, his career as a soldier, his secret courtship and marriage, his loathing of the venal King James, his thirteen years in the Tower of London on false charges, and his eventual release by King James to search for gold in the New World.

The journal, which begins in 1618, moves back and forth in time, alternating vivid tales of Ralegh's tenuous existence aboard the Destiny, a ship off the coast of Guiana, with his colorful reminiscences of life in Elizabeth's court, when, as a young man he was living the heady life of a courtier. The ebb and flow of the journal creates its own narrative movement and conveys both the vibrant excitement of Ralegh's days as a young man and the melancholy self-reflection which dominates his old age. Sensuous descriptions and self-deprecating wit characterize his revelations about his younger days, while the privation and trauma he experiences at the end of his life elicit both sympathy and admiration as he tries to redeem his pride and reputation while walking a tightrope between his mutinous crew, his duplicitous king, and his Spanish enemies.

Though very exciting and full of fascinating period detail, Nye's novel is more than a biography, however. Ralegh tells us that his journal is ultimately a log of three voyages: first, the voyage of the ship Destiny--his present, day to day life; second, the voyage of his history--his past and his fortunes; and, third, the Voyage of Destiny, not his life or his ship but something more than the present, the past, or both together. This third journey is an internal one, and we observe Ralegh making an effort to achieve deeper understanding, not only of himself, but of the real values which give meaning to man's existence, not the values imposed by society. He is accompanied, on both his real and his symbolic journey, by an Indian named Guayacunda, a mysterious man whose tribe was wiped out a hundred years earlier, and whose ancestral heritage, language, culture, and even real name have vanished completely, leaving him without the ancestral values he thinks would give meaning to his existence. As they share their dreams, they search for an understanding of truth which will give value to their separate realities.

Multi-leveled and totally satisfying, The Voyage of the Destiny uses the fascinating life of Sir Walter Ralegh to illuminate the search of a thoughtful man for truth and meaning in life beyond what society and its values have imposed, not one truth at the expense of others, but truths which come from a life lived with respect and humility, not with pride or a need for recognition. In that way, Ralegh discovers, he may achieve true honor. Mary Whipple

Since recently moving to the Triangle area, I've been looking for walking trails to enjoy with my dog. This book has been very helpful in describing a number of beautiful walks in the Raleigh area. It includes all of the general information for each area such as length, difficulty, access and hiking time but also gives anecdotes on nearby activities and lists of different types of hikes such as those good for children, historic hikes and those for cyclists. One notable hike I've taken is the one at Harris Lake - a reservoir created for the Harris Nuclear Power plant. It is a very quiet and beautiful trail, leading you almost five miles through swamps, forests of loblolly pines and lots of wildlife, all eerily within sight of the cooling towers! The only drawback of this book is that the maps can be difficult to read. Often there is no scale, and north is not necessarily located at the top of the map. All in all, the book is definitely worth buying for its succinct discriptions, variety of hikes and fairly accurate maps.

The book caught my attention because (1)I like historical novels,(2) my last name is Mireles but no relation to author and (3)the fact that it's written by a woman. It's amazing how this manuscript remained hidden out of fear of what the "gringo" community would do/say mainly because the book addresses what it was like for Mexicans/Mexican Americans of the period and well into the 70s. Being a Chicana this book also told me a lot about how the mujer was treated but inspite of it how brave Jovita was and finally finding the courage to release her manuscript. It proves the courage that toda mujer finds.

I enjoy the short story regency because you can usually finish one of the stories in a sitting. Unfortunately, the first story in this book is totally unbeliveable. I read regency romance faster than a cat can lick his whisker and I enjoy the regency era and know quite a lot about that time in history. What makes the first story so unbelievable is that a servant, and believe she is now a servant no matter what she was before, could become the princess. Yes, this could be a Cinderella story, but the author is unable to make it believable.

Okay, as my title says Christmas Joy is just that. A Christmas Joy. This second story completely makes up for the first one. It made me cry, laugh and all things in between. Wilma Counts is one of the lucky ones. She can write great books and great short stories, too. There are not many who can, but she defintely hit the mark with this book.

The third story is okay. I enjoyed it because it had cats, christmas and regency love story. Three things important in my life. It's an enjoyable read.

So, skip the first one if you are a hard core regency fan. It's too unbelievable, but read the second and third. It makes up for the first.

This book is about Sir Walter Ralegh's first Guiana Voyage of 1595. Having read and admired Nicholl's earlier book, The Reckoning: The Murder of Christopher Marlowe, I picked up this one with great expectations. And, although not as good as The Reckoning, it was well worth the read. The chief flaw to this book is that Nicholl's deconstructionism is often overplayed here, leading him to conclusions or hypotheses that just aren't supported by the documents. He often reads more into Ralegh's and others' words than I think they meant. I do recommend this book, although don't accept all Nicholl's "readings" at face value.

The Golden Oriole is the story of 200 years of the Trevelyan family in India. Trevelyan, born on the sub-continent, travels back five times to trace his ancestry and tour the country. His storied relations served the empire as soldiers and civil servants holding positions of power and influence. It is a charming book, enlightened, and not the least bit exculpatory. Trevelyan records his travels with wit and humor, takes an objective view of British rule, and catalogs the accomplishments and failures of his illustrious forefathers.

Trevelyan's shift from past to present can be abrupt, which takes some getting used to. And, a peculiar omission of standard comma usage also requires some adjustment from the reader. However, these are but minuscule obstacles in what is an insightful, often touching, and highly interesting look at an amazing family and the country they loved. I recommend it highly.

We found this book very informative with our trips to Raleigh, and would highly recommend it to anyone who plans a visit to this delightful city. We really dug the museum, a good time was had by all. GRANDPA!!!