Little slow, but it's a pretty good!

books:


	• Goddess of the Rose (Goddess Summoning, Book 4) P. C. Cast Berkley, 2006 - 352 pages average customer review:based on 21 reviews view larger image
	for more information click here

highly recommended

Very imaginative.

A really good 'magic kingdom with dark twists' story of which the romance is almost an inconsequence.

The heroine is a complete nut-case. She Has Issues. She should have started talking to her psychiatrist friend long before she began having strange dreams. I suggest that she should have sought help when she first started cutting her hands and feeding her blood to her roses. That is not normal behaviour. Even for a rose enthusiast.

This is the first romance I've read with an undercurrent of man-hate in it. Also there are far far too many women in this story. Mothers, grandmothers, goddesses, handmaidens, actresses to name but a few. Already I feel sorry for the hero. Living in this Land of Women. Some of whom are quite vindictive.

But my main gripe is that by page 91 there has been absolutely minimal interaction between the hero and heroine. In fact. I don't even know the hero's name yet.

Let's look at Mikki's little job. She's an 'executive assistant' in a large hospital. Ok. Another name for a gofer. And what, I suppose, is the dream of an immature gofer. Why. To Be The Boss and have gofers of their own. Which is exactly what happens in Mikki's fantasy. But a 35 yo? Come on. She should have more options than that about what to do with her life. Plus. She can't handle a guy who has different reading tastes from her but is more than happy to accept love from someone who is essentially a slave with a MD.

Getting to the crux. This is a novel about carnal love between a woman and a beast. The hero has cloven hooves and horns. And then the author wimps out by having the pagan goddess Hecate take away his ability to consumate that love unless the heroine begs for it. I mean. The poor guy doesn't control his own fertility. If that happened to a female character do you think it would be acceptable? In a pig's eye it would. That's what I call man-hate. Also the hero is really simplistically portrayed and doesn't really act out of free-will.

tbh. I never liked roses that much anyway. I could hate them after reading this story. Poor Mikki is a slave to the stupid plants. And, as becomes obvious as the novel progresses, she's also somewhat dumb. She must have seen the movie Jason and the Argonauts. Hecate is not a benign goddess. Plus. Those dogs which accompany her should have given Mikki a big clue as to the true nature of the Realm of the Roses, which actually turns out to be a realm of nightmares rather than nicey-wicey dreams. It is not acceptable for a thinking human being to give up her life for the sake of flowering vegetation. Mikki returns to the Realm of the Roses. But I would never have done so. The place is drenched in blood. Ugh. I couldn't really connect with Mikki. She's too earthy and, to repeat, is basically a man-hater.

What I liked about the novel is how Mikki's strange little behaviours are amplified in her fantasy world, but her other worries (job dissatisfaction, lack of a love-life) are completely solved. I thought the author handled Mikki's re-entry to the real world in a very clever, seamless manner. Mikki never spared a single thought for the pain her friends might have felt about her attack and consequent departure back to Roseland. Another characteristic of the mentally disturbed. The more I think about the plot of this novel the more it creeps me out.

But. A few years ago I might have loved this story.

for more information click here

Little slow, but it's a pretty good!

I thought the book started slow and flat inthe begining, but it starts to pick when the heroine is sent to the Relm of the Roses. It is there she begins to understand her roots.. She also finds herself facinating and attracted to a beast with the heart and soul of a man. I won't go into every aspect of this novel but I did enjoy the concept of the story, I have always been a big fan of Beauty and the Beast...and I likd the premise of the story, for those who wished the beast never turned into the prince....

for more information click here

One of the Best EVER

Being a woman that loved the Beast in Beauty and the Beast, not only the childrens story but the old TV show, I was one who was dissapointed when the beast turned into a prince. This is one of the BEST books I have ever read. P C Cast will have a reader for life if all the rest are like this one. Being the first book of hers that I have read I hope the rest are as good. Not only does the book have a love story it challenges you to look up greek mythology just to see where she is coming from. I was totally enchanted from the beginning to the last page. I could feel the Guardians claws on my own back and could smell the roses too. The imagination that Ms Cast has is awesome. I couldnt put it down. I definitly reccomend this to anyone that is looking for the "different" romance that stirs your heart as well as your imagination.

for more information click here

Amazingly Great Read

To start off, I immediately liked this book because Beauty and the Beast is one of my classic favorites and this book was the author's personal take on the beloved tale. I have to tell you it astounded me how different it was and yet managed to enchant me within minutes. The mysteries implore you to read on and find the answers even as you lose yourself to the great plot.
Mikki is the heroine who ends up accidentally breaking the Beast's curse and freeing him from his imprisonment. In exchange for his freedom, the Beast whisks Mikki off to the Realm of the Rose where he is Guardian. A land he is both awed and feared in but non-the-less calls home. Mikki slowly starts to see the inner working of both the people and the Realm and develops feelings for both. But can a human love a beast? She will have to find out while dodging enemies, unraveling mysteries and giving in to her darkest desires. A task daunting at times but ultimately worth the price it comes with.
The first thing I noticed was the author's great descriptions. The story came to life off the pages and I felt like I was able to explore along with the heroine. And then there are the great characters. The heroine is quite loveable and sees the best in everyone. Makes a person cheer for her in her quest to right the wrongs done purposely or inadvertently. The hero is the haunted beast as you may have guessed. But P.C. Cast really puts a new take on him. For me he became more real, facing the dilemmas and hardships never mentioned in any other story but all too real in life. Quite an interesting pair and really worth the read.
If there was anything I didn't like about this book, it was the ending. And that's because this is one of those books that you read and hate to see end. Eventually it will, but if you are like me, you will be so wrapped up in the story that the end will happen too fast and leave you wanting. Fortunately, this author has more great stories and the journey can continue in those pages for the avid reader.

for more information click here

reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

When modern-day Mikki ends up in the strange Realm of the Rose, Hecate has been waiting for her. So too has her gorgeous guardian beast, who soon has Mikki swooning. But to save the realm, Mikki will have to sacrifice her life-giving blood.

hot