A Rose in Winter Author:Kathleen E. Woodiwiss Erienne Fleming despairs for her future. Her father, Avery, mayor of their small town in the north of England, is awash in gambling debts. Her brother has been maimed in a foolish duel for the family's honor. It is Avery's intent to pay his debts and secure his and his son's futures by marrying off Erienne to a wealthy suitor, to whi... more »ch end he brings home an endless stream of aged and infirm, albeit wealthy, gentlemen. But the proud and beautiful Erienne will have none of them. Finally, Avery simply decides to sell her to the highest bidder. The only man barred from the auction is Christopher Seton, the handsome Yankee captain who wounded her brother, and with whom Erienne, against her will, is falling in love.
Erienne is sold to the mysterious Lord Saxton, a sinister figure who wears a black mask to cover the hideous scars left by a fire that burned down his family mansion. At first she is terrified of him, unable to give herself to him. Her terror of her husband only sharpens her longing for Christopher, a passion she struggles fiercely to deny.
But her private dilemma is pushed aside when panic sweeps the town as the Night Rider, a demonic figure with a silver saber, begins a murderous rampage to avenge the burning of Saxton Hall. When Christopher is seriously wounded, Erienne, tenderly ministering to him, discovers an astonishing secret that will threaten the future of the Saxton line itself and will put her own life in grave danger.« less
This novel was one of Woodiwiss' best! I enjoyed all of the characters she wrote and appreciated the depth that she gave to them all, even secondary and tertiary characters. One minor issue was that the novel was a tad too long.
The story and plot of this book was new to me, and I very much enjoyed it, although halfway through the book I had figured out the mystery of it. Once the outcome was revealed, I was bored however, with 100 pages left to read. I had a hard time holding my interest from then on and found myself skimming often.
I absolutely love this book. The storyline captures you immediately and carries you away to another time and place. My favorite Kathleen Woodiwiss book is "Shanna" but this is a close second. Perfection on a page.
Pure fantasy, but well written and fairly accurate historically. The characters have strong moral fiber, and the good guys win. A nice break from the real world.
I am not a reader of romance novels but I read this book one summer when I was bored and I loved it. It is well written, flows nicely and has characters that you can fall in love with. The story line is intriguing and changes with bounds and leaps. This book is full of suprises. It is one of my all time favorite books and I read alot of books.
The author of Shanna and Ashes in the Wind brings to life the England of Bonnie Prince Charlie. Erienne Fleming despairs for her future. Her father is awash in gambling debts and plans to marry her off to a wealthy suitor. But, Erienne has other ideas.
