Pearl's World of Romance - Reviews with a Passion: MacCarrick Brothers Trilogy

Showing posts with label MacCarrick Brothers Trilogy. Show all posts

May 13, 2008

If You Deceive - Kresley Cole

11:05 PM |

CAN A RUTHLESS HIGHLANDER EVER LEARN TO LOVE . . .?

Burning vengeance . . .
Ethan MacCarrick was a heartbreakingly handsome rake until a powerful nobleman ordered him brutally beaten and his face scarred for a crime he didn’t commit. Ethan’s reprisal—bankrupting the nobleman and forcing his exile—does little to appease his wrath. Ten years later, a haughty, mysterious beauty enchants Ethan—the daughter of his enemy. At last, Ethan will have the revenge he’s craved; he’ll promise her marriage, seduce her, then cast her aside.

Bitter hardships . . .
When Madeleine Van Rowen’s family was suddenly plunged into destitution and dishonor, she steeled herself against further heartache. She never weakened, never trusted, until a towering, scarred Highlander relentlessly pursues her, breaking down her defenses.

At what price forgiveness?
The passion between them burns hotter than Ethan’s fury, and soon he finds he can’t let her go. But when Madeleine uncovers the truth about him, can Ethan convince her to accept all he now offers—when he once destroyed everything she had?

Ethan MacCarrick has only lived for his revenge on the family responsible for his scars, both physically and emotionally. Since that terrible night his life changed forever he has been cold and determined. This combined with his scarred face and the curse that hangs above him and his brothers, he believes he'll never want or need a woman, much less that a woman would ever want or need him. Until Madeleine van Rowen, the daughter of the two people who ruined his life but whose lives he ruined in turn. His plan to seduce her and cast her aside backfires at the very first move and he is doomed, doomed to fall hard and deep at the hands of the woman destined for him, just as his brothers did.
Madeleine Van Rowen has been forced to lead a terrible life in the slumps of Paris after Ethan's justifiable revenge on her parents. She goes to London to seek her last chance of finding a, preferably rich, husband so she can live in some measure of safety and security and escape the horrors she deals with everyday. Little does she know that that safety and security is going to be provided by the very man that set her terrible life in motion.

Ethan is a complicated and fascinating hero. He is a man of contradictions. A brutal, cold and calculated man that at some points I didn't even really like but still could admire since the motivations for his actions were legitimate and his revenge was something that had to be acted on, the only thing was that Maddy was caught in the middle. On the other hand his harshness and coldness is compromised by his feelings for Maddy, feelings he fights with all his might and desperately tries to ignore and deny, but this is truly a lost battle. I've said it before: when the MacCarrick men fall, they fall hard and deep and Ethan's fall was enormous.

I thought I had read my fair share of intimidating, coldhearted and detached heroes on a vengeance, but I hadn't encountered Ethan yet. He sets them all to shame. But beneath this cold-heartedness and detachment he has donned for self-preservation there is a very passionate and caring man who can only be brought to the surface by Maddy and her feelings for him. He has never cared for anyone but his brothers and now he finds that a woman, the woman whose life he ruined when she was just a little girl, has crept under his defenses and under his skin, never to leave again.

And then Maddy.... she has shot straight to the top of my favorite heroines list. What a woman! At only 21 she has gone through so much and still she bounces back every time, picking herself up and going on despite all the horrible things life throws at her. Her life is unbelievably deplorable and the things she has gone through just sent shivers over my whole body while reading. Yet she survives thanks to her courage, wit and spirit. She never gives up, knowing somewhere, someday her luck will change and she will have a better life. She is smart and she counters Ethan on every move. She doesn't let him corner or dominate her. She is resilient, brave and resourceful. A true heroine in every way.

When she discovers Ethan's role in her past, she is crushed, devastated but of course it wouldn't be a true romance if there wasn't a happily ever after. And here I must applaud Kresley Cole's talent. As she did in the whole book, the whole trilogy actually, she didn't rush it but wrote an ending with forgiveness and redemption in the most beautiful way, heart wrenching and honest, bringing tears to my eyes.

The attraction and chemistry between Maddy and Ethan is instant and flaming hot! I was surprised the pages didn't catch flame reading some of the love scenes. Kresley Cole knows how to write some amazing scenes where she doesn't even go all the way but the sensuality of them is something I've seldom read. Ethan is really wicked in the best sense of the word and in the beginning he really tries to bind Maddy to him by pleasure and Maddy is fearless and eager to learn how to please Ethan. Erotica eat your heart out is all I can say.

Another winner by Kresley Cole. A book I will always treasure in a trilogy that has tilted my world on its axis.
I suspected Ethan MacCarrick's story was going to be good, but truly this book shook me to my core. From the prologue to the epilogue the story was intense, sensual, heart wrenching and breathtaking. A story of seduction, trust, betrayal and redemption. A story of struggle and hardship but also of passion and love.

Kresley Cole has a descriptive and vivid writing style with a talent for displaying emotions that will almost rip your heart out. Be it from anger and disbelief or from the compassion and sorrow. She was able to lure and capture me into a world with characters that kept me enthralled and mesmerized. She mixes characters, plot, history, scenery and romance in a way that I can only call perfect and masterful. I just couldn't stop reading.

In the span of 356 pages of this last book in the trilogy she put all it all together, especially emotionally. I went through the whole scope of it: I was outraged with Ethan and some of the things he did, I felt sorry for Maddy and the harsh life she has led, I was holding my breath for them both to accept their feelings and each other, I laughed at their smart and witty bantering, I was aroused by their love scenes and I cried and cried when they realized how they both had been wronged by the same people and in another occasion I won't disclose here because of the spoiler’s nature of it. But if you read this book and you can keep away from the tissues at that point, I guess you must be one tough cookie.

IF YOU DECEIVE for me is a true keeper that sent me on that rollercoaster of emotions that I crave so much in the books I read. In my opinion it deserves nothing but my highest praise and admiration.
And now, in awe, I proceed to Kresley's Cole paranormals (The Immortals After Dark series) and hope they will rock my world as hard as the MacCarrick Brothers did.

Quotes:
"Well I see now why you wouldn't take of your mask." She tilted her head. "You had to cover the ten-inch-long scar twisting across your face"
His eyes narrowed. "Aingeal, there is only one thing on my body that's ten inches long and, if you'll recall, the scar is no' it."

Ethan:
"I look at your wee body and reasoned thought leaves my brain. So if you want to see a man lose his mind, you'll come to me and let me touch you some more."

Rating: 10 out of 10

Labels: Historical Romance, Kresley Cole, MacCarrick Brothers Trilogy, perfect reads, Pocket Books, reviews | 0 comments |

May 9, 2008

If You Desire - Kresley Cole

3:54 PM |

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HOW MUCH TEMPTATION CAN A HIGHLANDER RESIST?

He tried to run . . .
In his youth, Hugh MacCarrick foolishly fell in love with a beautiful English lass who delighted in teasing him with her flirtatious ways. Yet he knew he could never marry her because he was a second son with no prospects, shadowed by an accursed family legacy. To avoid temptation, Hugh left home and trained as an assassin.

She tried to forget him . . .
Jane Weyland was devastated when the Highlander she believed would marry her abandoned her instead. Years later, when Hugh MacCarrick is summoned to protect her from her father’s enemies, her heartache has turned to fury—but her desire for him has not waned.

Will passion overwhelm them?
In hiding, Jane torments Hugh with seductive play. He struggles to resist her because of deadly secrets that could endanger her further. But Hugh is no longer a gentle young man—and toying with the fever-pitched desires of a hardened warrior will either get Jane burned . . . or enflame a love that never died.

The first book in the MacCarrick trilogy rocked my world and blew me away and this one didn't allow me to come back.

Hugh MacCarrick has had an obsession for the lovely Jane Weyland for over a decade now. An obsession he can't give into because of the curse he and his brothers live under: they will only bring harm to the women they bind to them. But then an old friend turned enemy threatens her life knowing it would deeply hurt both Hugh and Jane's father. Because of this threat Jane's father orders Hugh to marry his daughter and take her away in hiding until they catch the enemy. Hugh has to find a way to protect Jane without giving in to his feelings.
Jane secretly claimed Hugh as being hers from the first time she laid eyes on him, when she was thirteen and he was eighteen. Now 14 years later she has her chance when circumstances force them into a marriage so Hugh can protect her. But who will protect her heart from Hugh or Hugh from her?

Of the three MacCarrick brothers Hugh is the middle one, the steady and quiet one. The one who thinks before he does and the one who does nothing irrational or impulsively. This comes in handy in his profession: an assassin for the Crown. He is a solitary, rugged man, brooding, intimidating and utterly masculine.
He has but one weakness: his feelings for the lovely, English Jane Weyland.

Jane is charming, outspoken and independent. Lately I've been reading books with amazing heroines and Jane is no exception. Fearless, witty and ready to taunt and tease Hugh to the point of desperation.

Contrary to the hostility between Court and Annalía in book 1, between Hugh and Jane there has always been friendship to go along with the very strong attraction to each other. An attraction Hugh has never acted upon because of his profession, the curse and the fact that he thinks he's not worthy of her. Hugh really tries to resist but he succumbs to Jane's seductive lure and his own powerful feelings.

Jane in love with Hugh but won't let him intimidate her. She doesn't give him a moment's breath and really stood her ground in all circumstances. The battles of will between them ultimately lead to undeniable passion because when the MacCarrick brothers fall for a woman, they fall hard and deep!

Again I really have nothing but praise for this book. The main couple is strong and they are easy to admire and love. They have great personalities; they know their own minor points and are not afraid of showing their vulnerability. The love scenes are utterly intense and very erotic. The plot is compelling and complementing. The secondary characters are brought into the story at precisely the right moments and offer nice contribution to the whole story. The bad guy is evil at his worst and saddening at his best. The focus of the book is mainly on the relationship between Hugh and Jane and how they eventually come to accept each other and their feelings but the plot surrounding the threat on Jane's life is nicely set up and rounded off in a perfect way.

The third and final book in the trilogy is Ethan story, the eldest brother. In book 1 and 2 you get little glimpses of him that really stirred my imagination and I can't wait to read his whole story. There is so much more to him than meets the eye. He is going to be the cherry on the pie of this trilogy for me!

Kresley Cole has again delivered an amazing tale. One that kept me mesmerized and glued to the book every minute I could.
This is turning out to be a trilogy that is a true must if you like either Kresley Cole or Highlanders and one that makes me want a MacCarrick brother of my own to sweep me of my feet!

Quotes:
Jane to Hugh after their engagement:
"You've made it clear that you don't want this marriage," she said. "So before you go forward with this madness, consider– how much can you resist...day after day?"
He swallowed. "Prepare yourself, darling." (…) Over her shoulder, she said,
"Because I'm about to make your life a living hell.”

Hugh to Jane when he can't resist her teasing and tempting anymore:
"You think that I'll react the same way to your teasing as I did years ago?"(...)."In the past I was young and honorable. Now I'm old enough to know what I need and dishonorable enough" –he softly tugged on her nipple with his teeth making her gasp and arch into his mouth– "to take it."

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Labels: great reads, Historical Romance, Kresley Cole, MacCarrick Brothers Trilogy, Pocket Books, reviews | 0 comments |

July 20, 2007

If You Dare - Kresley Cole

5:52 PM |

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Can a Highlander steal his enemy's bride and make her love him?

Can he extract revenge?
High in the Pyrenees, a band of mercenaries led by Courtland MacCarrick wages war for General Reynaldo Pascal. When Court turns on the brutal general, Pascal orders him killed. Court narrowly escapes and exacts revenge by kidnapping Pascal’s exquisite Castilian fiancée.

Can she deny her passions?
Noble heiress Annalía Tristán Llorente despises her towering, barbaric captor almost as much as she does Pascal. Her inexplicable attraction to the Highlander only fuels her fury. Yet nothing will stop her from returning to Pascal—for if she doesn’t wed him, she signs her brother’s death warrant, as well as her own.

Can there be love between them?
From the moment Court discovers that Anna’s prim façade masks a fiery, brave lass, his heart’s ensnared and he dares to defy the curse that has shadowed his life—to walk with death or walk alone. But Pascal vows that he’ll hunt the two, never stopping until he’s destroyed them both. If they survive, can this hardened soldier of fortune convince the only woman he's ever loved that she's meant to be his?

The answer to all of the above questions is a full-hearted YES.
The first in the MacCarrick Trilogy rocked my world...hard!

Court(land) MacCarrick is the youngest brother, a true Higlander: strong, brutal and savage. A mercenary employed by general Reynaldo Pascal, a horrible general who is leading a rebellion to take over Andorra and then Spain in his quest for ultimate power
Annalía Llorente is an amazing heroin: feisty, courageous, smart, defiant and a fighter despite her fragile and delicate appearance. Pascal intends to wed Annalía, who is a descendant of the Spanish Crown in order to achieve his goal.
Court rebels against Pascal which eventually leads to him being beating, knived and thrown in a river to die. He survives and is found by Annalía and there’s were the story truly begins!

They start of really not liking each other for obivious reasons. Annalía thinks Court a brute animal, with no manners and loathes him for being a mercenary. Court thinks Annalía an arrogant stuck-up with her defiant behaviour.
But they are thoroughly fascinated by each other at the same time. They clash from the start but underneath you feel the strong attraction that smolders between them. A passion and attraction that is too strong to be denied by either of them. And when they finally act on it, sparks fly of the pages in some erotic scenes that leave you all hot and bothered.

I adored this book. An intense and passionate page-turner. Fast-paced, easy to read. A book that takes you from the Andorran mountains, via Toulouse to London and back to the Andorran mountains and along the way you’re submerged in a wonderful love-story enjoying every page and every word.
A perfect combination of history, romance and an exciting and original plot. Masterfully written, making you wish you were there, being saved by a mercenary Highlander who is just as much Alpha as he is honorable.

I’m yearning to read the stories of Hugh and Ethan, Court’s two older brothers and I can predict it won’t be long because this book left me wanting another taste of the MacCarricks and the women who will break their curse.

If you love Highlanders and you don’t have this book...Shame on you and go get it!

Quote:
“Because you’re the type of woman who needs to be kissed. Hourly, softly. Fiercely.” He skimmed his hands down over her hip and murmured near her ear, “Thoroughly."

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