TEST
A Love For All Time is arguably one of the last good Bertrice Small books out there. A re-release of one of the early novels in the famous Skye O’Malley series (falling chronologically between All The Sweet Tomorrows and This Heart Of Mine), it falls into the “golden era” for Small fans, just before she “jumped the shark,” so to speak. As such, it showcases most of the things that make Small novels so popular among her fans, and a few that make them so unpopular among others.
Aiden St. Michael, daughter and sole heiress of the late Lord Bliss, has just come to Elizabeth I’s court to be a royal ward, as her recently departed father had begged the Queen to find his daughter a suitable husband. Having been devoted to her sick and loving father, Aiden has reached the advanced age of 23 without marrying, an almost scandalous state. Being plain by her own admission and others’, she decides to keep her vast inheritance a secret, so as to dissuade fortune hunters. Elizabeth approves of her intelligent and well-educated young ward immediately, and makes her a maid of honor in Her Majesty’s service. Despite being a country mouse, she does reasonably well at court, making friends instead of enemies, but not becoming truly close to anyone, including the Queen. But she is satisfied nonetheless, to sit unnoticed among the Queen’s prettier maids. At least until she lays eyes on the man they call The Handsomest Man At Court.
Conn O’Malley is the charming and unforgettable younger half-brother of the legendary Skye O’Malley, who once set the court afire with her beauty and her love-hate relationship with her kindred spirit, the Queen. He is unabashedly the exact sort of hero that spawned the title Duke of Slut, yet he remains somehow irresistible to both the reader and the heroine – and to more than a few others at court, including an Ambassador’s wife, and the wife and twin daughters (not all at once, thank goodness!) of a prominent Lord at court. Luckily for him, the Queen also finds him irresistible, and he remains her darling, even as she finds herself forced to punish him for his indiscretions. She sends him away from court, but to soften the blow, she decides he needs a wife, preferably a well-to-do one, to keep him from creating quite so much scandal.
The problem is that finding that the perfect mate for the endearing scoundrel may be more of a challenge than it would seem, since Conn is Irish, Catholic, a younger son, and yet, as Elizabeth notes, “he is too good for a nobody.” Perhaps no one is quite as surprised as Aiden when she speaks up and volunteers herself as the perfect bride. Born a Catholic, she was raised in the Church of England after her mother’s death. She’s half-Irish and both titled and wealthy, but socially and politically unimportant. She is well-educated and sensible as well as kind, and lives far enough away from court that Conn might be safely out of trouble for his year of exile. And as a bonus, her lands bound those given to the Conn’s brother-in-law, the husband of his famous sister Skye.
Even though Elizabeth is not pleased to lose both her favorite courtier and her favorite maid, she is a realist, and agrees that the two shall marry two days hence on St. Valentine’s Day, and retire to the country for a year. When they return after that year, happily in love, to ask Elizabeth to be the godmother of the child Aiden carries, the Queen is proud to take the credit for their happiness. But what seems like a happy ending is in truth only the beginning. Somehow, Conn ends up in the Tower on charges of treason, and Aiden is kidnapped and sold to an Algierian slaver. And what seemed like a simple love story becomes the epic tale of love and life that characterizes the better Small novels.
Fans of Ms. Small’s work will be happy to note that this books contains the richness of texture and history that is characteristic of the author’s work. She recreates in exquisite detail both the cultures of Elizabethan England and Ottoman Turkey with a fair hand, somehow managing to show each with both an insider and outsider’s view, vastly enriching the reading experience, and the reader’s understanding not only of the separate cultures, but of the way the characters perceive them. Clothing, food and surroundings are described in great and well-crafted detail, and with infallible accuracy. The historical account is flawless, and infinitely enhances the entire story. The characters are all presented in three dimensions, as the reader sees into each person’s thoughts and emotions, somehow without the annoying head-hopping that might ruin another book. And the sex is hot.
The book also contains those elements that ruin the reading experience for some readers. There is rape in the novel. There is forced seduction. And then there is a characteristic refusal on the part of the author to buy into the romance convention that a proper heroine will never be sexually attracted to anyone but the hero. Aiden, like most other Small heroines is not promiscuous, but she does willingly sleep with someone other than the hero (I won’t get into the reasons, but they are sound and sympathetic). Also, some of the sex gets kinky, particularly in the forced seduction and rape. And for those who really hate a lot of description and history, this book is not for you.
I don’t mind a lot of historical detail or wilder sex, so the only thing that really bothered me about this book was the last subplot, which, while fulfilling a purpose, seemed to drag the book out just a little past where it felt like it should have ended. By that time, I really felt like the hero and heroine had been through enough and deserved a little peace. But, it’s not all that long, and, as I mentioned, it’s there for a sound reason, plot-wise.
The last disclaimer I would like to add here is that, while it’s not entirely necessary, the reader will probably be a lot happier if they read the preceding books in the series, Skye O’Malley and All The Sweet Tomorrows (in that order, which is very important). And if they really want to be prepared, they should also read The Kadin and Love Wild And Fair. All of these books are referenced by and connected to A Love For All Time, and many things will make much more sense to the prepared reader. Also, since all four of these books make my personal DIK list, the reader will definitely know by then whether or not Ms. Small’s books are for them.
A Love For All Time is an epic and exciting novel, full of rich characters, history and culture, brilliant in detail, and also in the way it examines love and what it means to the characters. For those prepared and willing to look at something outside the mainstream of historical romance, and for those readers who are already fans of Small, but have been disappointed by the last several years’ worth of her lesser works, I heartily recommend this book, which revisits the glorious past while creating an original and enthralling adventure and love story.
Grade: B+
Book Type: Historical Romance
Sensuality: Burning
Review Date: 18/10/01
Publication Date: 2001
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Recent Comments …
Yep
This sounds delightful! I’m grabbing it, thanks
excellent book: interesting, funny dialogs, deep understanding of each character, interesting secondary characters, and also sexy.
I don’t think anyone expects you to post UK prices – it’s just a shame that such a great sale…
I’m sorry about that. We don’t have any way to post British prices as an American based site.
I have several of her books on my TBR and after reading this am moving them up the pile.