Velvet and Steel
Grade : D

The conquering dark Norman warrior marrying the fair Saxon maiden by order of the King is not a new story, and despite a plot that could have come alive, this book sinks under leaden characters and much predictability.

The story opens with William the Conqueror plotting to marry one of his knights to the heiress of Creganwald. With trusted advisor, Robert Debayeaux, next to the king, the two decide on the most unlikely choice for the task: a brooding warrior who still mourns the death of his beloved wife. The darker, the better, it seems, to counteract the overwhelmingly sunny Lady Lynette, and her "awesome beauty."

Known as the Sword of William, Royce is appalled at the mandate of the king he has faithfully served, but realizes he has no choice other than to meet and marry the fair lady. Their first meeting is, predictably, filled with animosity. Lynette will not lower her head to the conquering Norman, and he is amused by the spirited Saxon wench. They spar again and again - when they are not kissing passionately, that is. Lynette, who is loved by everyone and much praised for her intellectual abilities, also gains the trust of Royce's small daughter, Cerise, who suffers because her father will not set eyes on her (she reminds Royce of his dead wife, Sybella). Cerise is in the story mainly as a device to bring Royce and Lynette closer.

Instead of marrying right away, the King instructs the couple to travel to London, where the two decide upon a half-hearted plan to free themselves from this "unwanted" marriage. Royce will seek out a suitable man for Lynette while she searches for a lady to marry him in her stead. Predictably, they find fault with everyone they meet and after declaring to each other that they really don't want out of their predicament, they make love. Not surprisingly, Lynette feels a "cold breath pass over her" and fears that something will happen to prevent their wedding. She should have thought of that before jumping into bed with him. As expected, Oriel - the woman who has been in charge of Royce's daughter, who has hated Lynette from the first moment, who has always wanted to worm her way into Royce's bed - makes an alliance with a pair of even more cartoonish villains who have learned a great secret which could remove William from the throne.

However, Royce and Lynette manage to marry, Cerise blossoms, and all dastardly villains get their due as William continues to reign triumphant, but not even the final confrontation or the revelation of the secret makes much of a dent in this overwritten example of the tell-don't-show school of writing.

Royce is a knight who has proven himself through his skills in war, but off the battlefield, he can't seem to make up his mind. The heartwrenching grief he feels at the death of his wife all but vanishes overnight once he realizes he wants Lynette. The guilt he feels, because Sybella died in childbirth, causes him to tell his new bride, on their wedding night no less, that she needs to go on birth control because he is not going to lose another wife in the same way. This, after one hundred and thirty pages of making love with Lynette every chance he gets.

Lynette suffers most from the aforementioned tell-don't-show syndrome. We're told she is smart and well learned, we're told she is much loved by every single one of her villagers, but we're never shown this, and we never know why. She spends the first half of the book alternately taunting and kissing Royce and the second half, dodging Beltane's slimy hands and shouting "liar!" whenever he says she's made advances to him.

Even so, the hero and heroine are the best part of this book, and the reason it did not earn an F. Scheming Oriel is the typical villainess who keeps getting away with it, over and over. Her co-horts in crime are too busy with their evil plots and plans of grandeur to seem like real threats, and prove surprisingly naïve for all their experience in battle. The writing itself feels forced, and the only character that sounds her age is little Cerise. More than once I thought I had lost my place in the book, but no, it was just another scene being repeated. This is a very forgettable book, and one I cannot recommend.

Reviewed by Claudia Terrones
Grade : D

Sensuality: Warm

Review Date : September 30, 1999

Publication Date: 1999

Review Tags: Norman Conquest

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Claudia Terrones

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