Sunday Romance: The Bride

Today we begin our regularly scheduled programing. Book Reviews. As we all know Sunday, for most of us, is a day of lounging around, maybe doing a few chores around the house but mostly lazing. The day of long bubble baths and chocolates and romance novels. And since this is my first review on this blog, I thought it appropriate to review one of the very first romance novels I've ever read, Julie Garwood's The Bride.



When I was 12, my family had just moved into a new house. While helping my mom unpack one of the numerous boxes of books, I came across this paperback. Bright pink with a raised lace pattern on the cover with just a two word title; The Bride. I was intrigued and put it aside to read when we finished unpacking the rest of the box. That night when I went to bed, I picked up the book to read.  I did not stop until I finished the entire thing. I loved it. Loved the characters of Alec and Jamie and love the setting and plot. I then had to find all the books by that author that mom had and went through them in a week. All throughout high school, this was my favorite romance novel; the one I constantly went back to when I needed a pick-up. But does it still hold up? Lets take a look at The Bride.

Characters: The story is centered around Alec Kincaid, a Highland chieftain, and Jamie, the step-daughter of an English Baron. These are two very different people, from two very different environments. The book even makes sure that we know that they speak two different languages, English and Gaelic. Alec can speak English and can therefore communicate with his new bride, Jamie pretends not to understand Gaelic. Alec is a warrior and strong leader of his people. Jamie is the youngest of three daughters and trained in medicine. One of my favorite parts of the story is in chapter 10 when Jamie is awakened by the sounds of people preparing for the funeral of another character, one who isn't dead yet. Jamie's reaction is perfect. She tells her husband and his friends off for not trying to help, then promptly takes over the doctoring. Jamie convinces her husband to let her deal with the issue by reminding him that she did not interfere when they were set upon by bandits because Alec is the professional soldier, and she was not going to let him interfere with her treating her patient because she was the professional medic. Both characters are strong in their own right. Both fit the gender roles of the time in which the story was set, but they are still unique individuals.

 One of the hardest things to make palatable in historical romances, is the equitable treatment of the genders. The Middle Ages were not the best time for gender equality. A large number of authors attempt to make the characters have more modern sensibilities, which can pull a reader out of the story. On the other hand, the fantasy of the romance wouldn't really work if the author was 100% historically accurate. Garwood does extremely well here with Jamie and Alec. They are obviously strong and complex characters but they fully exist within the confines of the historical setting. Jamie isn't a great warrior, or politician. Alec constantly refers to her as "his wife" without using her name. Yet still the modern reader sympathizes with the characters.

In addition to our leads, there are a number of wonderful supporting characters. Marcus and Gavin, the second and third in command of the Kincaid force, provide a foil to Alec, giving him confidants and someone to discuss the progression of his relationship with. Father Murdock acts as guiding force to both Alec and Jamie. He also acts as outside viewpoint that balances the two very different personalities. The other important characters of Annie, Mary and Edith. Annie who acts oddly child-like, and is described in ways which make the reader think there is something slow in her development. Edith becomes one of Jamie's greatest female friends after a rocky start, allowing Jamie to discuss female issues. Mary is Jamie's elder step-sister. Through their interactions the reader gets a glimpse of the environment in which Jamie grew up. Also Mary provides another female confidant for Jamie, giving her an English female view as well as the Scottish female perspective supplied by Edith.

Plot: Like most of Julie Garwood's historical romances, The Bride combines slice-of-life developing relationship with an over-arcing mystery. In this case the mystery centers around Alec's first wife and her apparent suicide; which the reader knows was actually murder due to inserts of internal monologue by the murderer. The murder plot is slightly shoe-horned in here. It isn't really focused on until the last couple of chapters, even then there are other things going on that are more interesting. And really, most people understand who the murder is the first time Jamie is introduced to the character, so the big reveal doesn't seem so exciting. The tension climax right before works well, and you feel the characters' sense of peril, but the actual revelation of who the murderer was and their motivation seems kind of like a "Duh" moment. This is probably due to Garwood's choice to give the reader those internal monologues. The audience knows whats going on, you are just waiting for the characters to catch up. It is an interesting choice of writing style and is well put together and functions with the flow of the narrative. It just means that there are limits on surprising the audience.

 The true focus of the plot is the differing perspectives of the two lead characters on the way their relationship should function. I particularly like the way Garwood alternates between Alec's and Jamie's points of view so that the audience can gain a greater understanding of the differing ways the two characters view the same event. Throughout the book, Jamie's skills as a medic and her accepting personality cause a series of misunderstandings and possible clan feuds. It is these clashes of culture that really drive the story. Jamie's ignorance of clan dynamics and tensions drives home the sometime absurdity of various feuds and situations. For the most part this is a very interesting dynamic and functions well as the driving force of the narrative. However, there is one place where it really feels forced. At the end of the book, Jamie and Alec are confronted by the English man that Jamie was originally betrothed to. Her step-father had taken money for her, and now the Englishman wants her, or the money back. And shockingly, because of all her kind acts for the various clans, now every clan lord wants to help her. "You've united the Highland clans." What! It is well foreshadowed with the earlier interactions, but the incident itself seems like an add on.


Romance: Now one of the most important aspects of a romance novel is the sex. Like all Julie Garwood historical romances, the main characters are married before there is any sex. but there aer multiple scenes after. Well written and thought out, the sex scenes themselves are enjoyable, as well as serving the developing emotional relationship of Jamie and Alec. Final rating 3 chillies out of 4.

Final Rating: Overall The Bride held up well. The characters are engaging, and funny. The story is well paced and entertaining. The history is accurate but still engages the reader in the fantasy. And the romance is definitely enjoyable. This book earns a Sober Read rating.
You can find a paperback copy of The Bride in most bookshops, available as an ebook for you Nook and Kindle and IPad. So go ahead, fill up you bubble bath, make that cup of tea, and relax and enjoy The Bride