Gaelen Foley / Amanda Quick

Destiny casts its hand one perfect moonlit night when Ascencion's most elusive highwayman, the Masked Rider, chooses the wrong coach to rob. For inside is Rafael, the prince of the kingdom, renowned for his hot-blooded pursuits of women and other decadent pleasures. The failed raid leaves the equally notorious Masked Rider wounded and facing a hangman's noose. Then Rafe realizes his captive criminal is Lady Daniela Chiaramonte, a defiant beauty who torments him, awakening his senses and his heart as no woman has before.
Dani can only wonder if she's been delivered to heaven or hell once she agrees to marry the most desirable man in the Mediterranean - until forces of treachery threaten to destroy their tenuous alliance and bring down the throne itself....

Comment: This is the third installment in the Ascension trilogy I’ve been reading. I didn’t like it as much as the first one, which was the best in my opinion. This 3rd story was about the crown prince and the lady that captured his heart, but I wasn’t as impressed because the way the prince behaved before and how he lives at the beginning of the story. His character wasn’t very pleasant so I didn’t warm up to him, and when he met his lady, although the storyline was interesting, in the end my thoughts about the prince sort of clouded my final opinion. I guess I couldn’t put aside my feelings about his character to enjoy the story more. It’s a pity, but to be honest I feel better when I think I accomplished to finish another trilogy.

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From the windswept, craggy coast of a remote British isle comes the thrilling tale of a daring lady and a dangerous knight...bound by the tempests of fate -- and by the dawning of...DESIRE
Upon her father's death, beautiful, headstrong Lady Clare knew that she must wed, for the protections of the Isle of Desire now fell to her. Yet when her guardian's choice of prospective husband rode through her castle gates, she felt utterly betrayed. All sinewy muscle and savage steel, Sir Gareth of Wyckmere was not the poet she'd requested but a fearsome knight whose only interest was in war.
Legions of robbers had fallen beneath the Hellhound of Wyckmere's sword, and now this bold warrior was certain that he could tame one willful wife. Yet even Gareth could not deter Lady Clare from trying to mold him into her ideal...until their clash of wills ignited a passion that set them both aflame...and a treacherous plot put their love and their lives in deadly peril.

Comment: This is another of the books by the author I had to read in my TBR list. Like I said so many times before about her books, I think she wrote better but this one wasn’t so bad. The story was engaging and had enough elements in it to make me enjoy the reading. Clare is the lady of the isle of Desire and needs to marry because she doesn’t have any means of defense against anyone who’d want to attack the isle and she had a business to secure, the source of income to her and the people in the isle. In comes Gareth, he’s known to be a serious and ferocious opponent and being a bastard son he has no way to secure lands without marrying, so he goes with his men to the island and he marries Clare. Of course, attraction is to be expected and all the usual plot lines but I wasn’t bored, I got to be pleased with the book quite enough and in the end the things happening proved to be interesting and entertaining for me.

Gaelen Foley - Princess

Darius Santiago is the King's most trusted spy. He is charming, ruthless, and he has one weakness--the stunning Princess Serafina. She is all he has ever wanted and everything he cannot have. Serafina has always worshiped Darius, knowing that deep in the reaches of her soul, where she is not royalty but a flesh-and-blood woman, she belongs to this dangerous man. Unable to suppress their desire, they are swept into a daring dance of passion until a deadly enemy threatens to destroy their new love.

Comment: This is the second book in the Ascension trilogy by the author. This new book is a continuation of the first and the main female character is the daughter of the couple from the first book.

This is the story of princess Serafina and Darius, the spy that has loved her for a long time. In fact, their love is mutual, but Darius doesn’t act on it because he doesn’t think he might be worthy of her and tries to keep her away. Or three years since she confessed her feelings for him, he has successes but now she is to marry a Russian to help her country in the war against Napoleon and things just start to change.

I liked the other book best. I admit I didn’t feel much empathy towards Serafina although she has likable traits. I don’t have anything against her, she just wasn’t a favorite heroine. So, they like each other and the book starts with some spies trying to kidnap her or kill or something and Darius saves her of course. Because of the possible new attacks she might suffer – she would be a pawn in the incoming war – Darius has the mission to keep her save in another smaller castle where they finally get to be together. Of course things aren’t this simple, but I kind of enjoyed their time together, it was all very romantic. 

Darius is a known character, he was rescued at 16 by Serafina’s father and gave him his loyalty so we understand why he would be reluctant to be with his savior’s daughter and because of the work he does he doesn’t think he might be a good suitor for her. His character had many heroic attitudes. Serafina wasn’t as spoiled as that and in a way she trying to come after Darius proves she knows what she wants and that is happiness but I didn’t like her as much. Together they were ok, but apart, there were times I confess, I’d like to see Darius with someone else.

The overall book was Ok; It had many good moments and historical contexts that were interesting to place. I just didn’t like one thing. Serafina’s father is the hero of book #1 and in that he was portrayed in a certain way, his character was fun and enjoyable to meet. In this book it’s almost like he’s a different person, I wondered how someone to dashing and somewhat reckless in the first book could appear too subdued and even a little bit uptight in this one and it annoyed, I think there was no need. Fine it was his daughter and he had a lot to deal with, his kingdom being in the imminence of attack, but still…

Comparing it with the first one, it lacked some punch and likability but it was a good enough effort.

So many people say the third is great, so I can’t wait to read it and see for myself.

Gaelen Foley - The Pirate Prince

On a calm moonlit night, as the scent of jasmine and pine embraces the island of Ascension, the pirate prince Lazar di Fiore returns with lethal grace to avenge what was stolen from him: his kingdom, his birthright, his soul...
When Allegra Monteverdi, the daughter of Lazar's sworn enemy, throws herself on his mercy, Lazar agrees to spare the lives of her family--but only if Allegra sails away with him as his captive.
Alone at sea with this dark, intriguing man, moving between seduction and fear, Allegra realizes it will take more than her growing love for this pirate prince to bring peace to her beloved home. For Lazar must face the demons of his shattered past--if he is to forge the destiny that is theirs to claim...

Comment: I’ve decided to read this book this month because this trilogy, The Ascension, it the last books by the author I have to read. In my attempt to go through several books in my pile and get them “done”, this trilogy is one of the next to follow.

This book is the story of a fictional small kingdom near Italy called Ascension. The royal family has been murdered and people say only one member survived, the royal prince. However, no one has seen him and now another lord rules but not fairly.

Lazar di Fiore is the heir to the throne but he only wants revenge. After year at sea being a pirate, he is now ready to start his revenge but things don’t go as he planned, for the young girl he wants to kill so her father can see how it hurt to see his beloved family die, he feels attracted to her and decides to change tactics.

Allegra is a vivacious young woman and she mourns the royal family death still despite being too young when it happened. She tries to help the people the best she can and is willing to marry someone she doesn’t love because she thinks this way she will have the means to do more. But ghost are returning…

Having previously read the author’s Knight Miscellany series and being quite divided about how to like it – I liked the first four books a lot and the last three were merely ok – and also the Spice trilogy and finding it overall just good enough to entertain, I was actually eager to see if the first book in the first series the author has written was good or bad.

I have to say it was a bit different from her later works. In a way I feel she was still trying to create the perfect environment to set up her story but she dedicated quite a long time to the characters’ moods and thoughts and in her later works these things didn’t seem as important to the story as they were in this book. In fact, I have to say I’ve read the other books a long time ago, 4 or 5 years or something so many details are already forgotten. But maybe her style evolved into something else the more she wrote…I don’t know, but this Pirate Prince felt more completed, like she didn’t filter what wasn’t important there...I don’t know, maybe it’s just my impression.

Anyway, the romance was good. The two main characters had some things in common and their love was gradual, interesting, and sometimes sweet to watch. I don’t think it was the most romantic thing ever, but I was gad by the way things were done between them, even the clichés along the way weren’t that bad because they didn’t feel rushed or inserted just to fill space. I liked how Lazar had a lot of issues from his past to solve and how the stopped being selfish and took things head on to become someone better. Who doesn’t like a hero who changes for better?

The plot took on a path I wasn’t expecting, but it wasn’t that unusual. I just thought that, being a trilogy and Lazar having a brother and a sister the stories would be about them..I was wrong and I can’t say I’m that excited with the next story but I also want to know what happens, so…but overall, the story was good and there were times I was quite eager to see what would happen, so although I’ve read better, it wasn’t a lost effort.

I’m reading the second book in the trilogy next month; let’s hope it’s better than what I expect.