| Title | : | Something Wonderful (Sequels, #2) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 418 |
| Publication | : | First published January 1, 1988 |
9780671737634 .
Bestselling author Judith McNaught masterfully portrays a remarkable heroine, and an unforgettable passion, in this powerfully moving love story -- one of her most beloved novels of all time!
The tempestuous marriage of Alexandra Lawrence, an innocent country girl, and Jordan Townsende, the rich and powerful Duke of Hawthorne, is about to face its ultimate test of tender loyalty. Swept into the endlessly fascinating world of London society, free-spirited Alexandra becomes ensnared in a tangled web of jealousy and revenge, stormy pride and overwhelming passion. But behind her husband's cold, arrogant mask, there lives a tender, vital, sensual man...the man Alexandra married. Now, she will fight for his very life...and the rapturous bond they alone can share.
Something Wonderful (Sequels, #2) Reviews
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Re-read for me. I.LOVED.IT. Every single bit of it ... OMG, seriously, this books is P.E.R.F.E.C.T.I.O.N!!
That ending ... and Epilogue!
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ORIGINAL REVIEW BELOW."I’m glad," she said softly. "I wouldn’t want you to be hurt."
I don’t want to say too much about this one as you are better off just reading it blind.
I loved it.
“A lie is an affront to the soul, as well as an insult to the intelligence of the person to whom one lies.”
A lot of my friends do not read Historicals. Their loss is all I can say.
Girls, there are sexy scenes in Historicals too….“What are you looking at?" Jordan demanded finally, watching her.
"A dragon." When he looked bewildered she lifted her arm and pointed to the sky in the southeast. "Right there—that cloud—what do you see when you look at it?"
"A fat cloud."
Alexandra rolled her eyes at him. "What else do you see?"
He was quiet for a moment studying the sky. "Five more fat clouds
and three thin ones.”
There is mistrust, misunderstanding, dickhead hero, friendships, falling outs.“It is my custom to have sherry in the drawing room at eight-thirty and supper at nine. In future, please join me here promptly at eight-thirty, Alexandra."
Fire ignited in Alexandra's eyes, but she managed to keep her voice
level. "You've already told me where I may sleep, where I may go, who must accompany me, and when I must eat. Would you care to instruct me as to when I may breathe?”
Eventhough the ould biddy annoyed me in the beginning I liked her in the end.
And if you guys have not watched NORTH and SOUTH, think it might be a BBC adaptation of Elizabeth Gaskell’s novel, go and watch it. Richard ARMITAGE as John Thorntom. Le Sigh.
She was a gentle dreamer. He was a hard realist.
She was, in fact, such a dreamer that she actually believed “something wonderful” was going to happen – which wasn’t that surprising since she also believed wet dirt in the springtime smelled like perfume …
”Are you patronizing me?”
“I love you, he thought with each thrust of his body; I love you, his heart shouted with each thunderous beat; I love you, his soul cried out as Alexandra's spasms clenched him tightly. I love you. The words exploded in his being as he drove into her one last time and poured his life, his future, and all the disillusionment of his past into her tender keeping.”
“And when it was over, he held her in his arms, filled with a joy that was almost past bearing as he gazed at the white clouds floating in the powder blue sky. All of them had shapes and meaning to him now. All his life had shape and meaning to him now.”
This author is wonderful. I can “feel” her writing.“Alexandra was goodness and gentleness and trust. And love. She was flowers blooming on the hillsides and laughter floating through the halls.”
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When I read Judith McNaught I feel like I’m transferred to some other dimension. So you have this huge 500 pages long book with pitiful title and a truly awful cover and yet I very much think about when it's the right time to start reading it, because her books consummate my time completely. I sincerely cannot think about anything else. It’s drastic and extreme and I tell myself that during my weekends when I have enough time to go for a walk or for a swim because the sea is still very warm or to start playing tennis for fuck’s sake, cause just behind my building are tennis courts, I need to do something more proactive and physical I end up carrying this book to toilet, hating myself that I can't stop myself from reading it slower. It's mind numbing and I feel very stiffened and my muscles are atrophying.
And then I think how come she is not more popular, because she is brilliant. And I’m hooked. It’s the same as with Pat Conroy. I’ve been delaying reading his ‘The prince of tides’ for years. Every time I see it in the library I say next month, or next year, and I know that when I get my hands on that book, I won’t leave my flat for days because Conroy’s geniusness makes my skin ache. I have a friend who said the same thing about Conroy, who as well had been studying in Citadel just like Conroy and he’s very proud of his military ring, but even he who is ruthless when we play social games like Pictionary because the way his mind works is utterly strange because his instincts and creativity are immaculate and eyes widening, this friend of mine says that when he reads Conroy he feels violated but in a good way. He can take him in small dozes. I can take Conroy in small dozes. Just as Marilynne Robinson and William Trevor and Flannery O’Connor and Raymond Carver. Because they are all – too much. They are too good, but too sad and too realistic. I adore each one of them and I’ll read them repeatedly.
McNaught isn’t making the same effect on me, but it’s very close in a different way. She makes me fall in love with reading. Again and again. I adore her characters and these perpetual and fatigued games they play with each other. She writes about romance troubles and rakes and dukes and scoundrels and virgins and tons and castles and field fighting and society rules and naive girls and bad steel gray eyed men and all these books they could have been very flat and with flaws and books for spinsters with cats, and there you would have a problem if you looked at them like this, but truth to be said Judith McNaught writes utterly spectacular stories which make me scream with laughter and enjoy them immensely.
This is why I'll never write an insincere review because you can say that 500 pages of romance book is easy to write because you obviously just need rakes and dukes and scoundrels and virgins and tons and castles and field fighting and society rules and naive girls and bad steel gray eyed men, but to melt all of the written into something wonderful really is Something Wonderful. -
5 STARS ★★★★★
Let me just start out by saying that no book has had a more appropriate title. And I must add that every single Judith McNaught book that I’ve read could have been titled the same.
I absolutely loved this! These two characters, Jordan Townsend and Alexandra Lawrence are the perfect blending of angst and love. And the old adage that opposites attract could not be represented in a better way.
Jordan Addison Matthew Townsend was an only child, and heir to his father’s title and estate, the current Duke of Hawthorne. He was brought up sheltered, well educated, and for the most part without love. With his only view of married life being his parent’s faithless exploits, Jordan grew up with a cynical view of life and of love. Trust was nonexistent. He was devastatingly handsome and quite arrogant of his position, so women were constantly throwing themselves in his lap and in his bed. Seeking his attentions, his money and his title, women were just another commodity to him. Love didn’t exist. It was only something you did in bed.
And then something extraordinary happened. A knight in shining armor rode to his rescue, not only saving his life, but changing it forever.
Alexandra Lawrence was a spritely young girl of 17, living in a small country village. She was poor, living with her mother and grandfather, and a couple of elderly servants. And she was in love with life. She was home schooled by her grandfather, who as a wonderful, loving and honorable man, who taught her not only 3 languages, but also taught her the value of honor and virtue.
“I love life, even when bad things happen to me. I can’t stop loving it. Every season of the year comes with a promise that something wonderful is going to happen to me someday.”
Alex was raised mostly without her father… as he only visited twice a year from London, and didn’t show much interest. But she still looked forward to his visits with unbridled enthusiasm. Alexandra had this certain joie de vive that was so precious and rare. And it came from the free spirited innocence she never seemed to shed.
“You needn’t worry about your appearance, my dear, because true beauty springs from the heart and dwells in the eyes.”
So when these two forces met, the innocent and the cynic, it was intoxicating and yet painful to watch. What he felt for her… pity What she felt for him… infatuation and love. Did he press his advantage? Absolutely. Did she make a fool of herself? Of course.
“What are you looking at?” Jordan demanded finally, watching her.
“A dragon.”
When he looked bewildered she lived her arm and pointed to the sky in the southeast.
“Right there - that cloud - what do you see when you look at it?”
“A fat cloud.”
Alexandra rolled her eyes at him. “What else do you see?”
He was quiet for a moment studying the sky. “Five more fat clouds and three thin ones.”
So while he was teaching her the hard cruel truths in life… the ugly realities of vanity and mistrust, she was teaching him about honor, loyalty and love.
“Reformed rakes often make the best husbands.”
This was such a wonderful story. I absolutely LOVED the characters. When I finished, I just wanted to pick it up and read it all over again. It will definitely be going on my list of all time favorites! If you like historical romance, I cannot recommend this author enough. I have completely fallen in love with her books, her characters and her writing.
"Quick," Alexandra said, "tell me what color are the flowers on the hill you've been looking at."
"Yellow," he said promptly.
"White," she sighed, taking her hands away.
"If I keep saying yellow, he dryly replied, turning to face her, "sooner or later I'm bound to be right."
“…the wicked duke with the empty heart looked into those eyes of hers, and what he saw took his breath away…”
“What did he see? …”
Sometimes when I read a book... a song reminds me of it... here is the song this book reminded me of...
The Ballad of Love and Hate by the Avett Brothers. Here's a link. ;)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5c1WC... -
Ahhhhhh! Loved this one. This was definitely better than Once and Always. I liked Alex better and Jordan was definitely more romantic than Jason. As per usual, Alexandra is the typical McNaught special snowflake heroine. I'm not complaining though because I personally liked her character. Jordan...sigh...he's definitely a typical emotionally scarred McNaught hero but he isn't cruel or abusive.
Loved the humor, the chemistry between the main characters and the secondary characters. Definitely worth the re-read. -
I adored Jordan Townsend and Alexandra Lawrence. Something Wonderful was a perfect blend of angst and romance. It is truly a beautiful love story. I loved it! -
AAAGGGGGHHH. I just never learn. Re-reading these books has been like re-reading "The Catcher in the Rye": they're just not the same after adolescence. Hero mistakes ugly duckling for a boy (with the requisite "he was annoyed with himself for his strange attraction to the young male. Had he become so jaded that he was turning to boys?" moment, because, as we all know, being a "rake" leads to pedophilia.) and has to marry her. He gets knocked on the head and disappears, everyone thinks he's dead, etc. Everyone falls in love with the heroine (of course) and when our hero returns, he has to fight his lust for her. Why? Because the plot says so. He's mad because she was about to get remarried when he came back. Because she was supposed to die of grief when he went missing. Or enter a convent. Or something. At any rate, he finally accepts her love and they go on to make tons of babies. The end.
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When I finish reading a book, I usually know right away how I'm going to rate it. In this case, I didn't have a clue... Did I love it? Yes. Did I hate it? Also yes. I tossed and turned in bed last night, trying to reach a conclusion, and I woke up this morning still undecided. I'm starting to write this review in hopes of gathering my thoughts and getting a clearer insight into how much I liked (or disliked) this book. This can easily become a rambling rant with some spoilers somewhere along the way, so I apologize in advance if I step on anyone's toes.
Jordan Townsende, the Duke of Hawthorne, is a cynical, cold and heartless rake who despises all women in general, thanks to the less-than-stellar examples given by his mother while he was growing up and by the countless paramours he's had since he reached adulthood. He just doesn't trust women, period.
Alexandra Lawrence is Jordan's opposite. She's an innocent, optimistic and loving country girl who always tries to see the good in life, even in her most dire circumstances. She's too naïve for her own good, but have no fear because ruthless Jordan will crush that in no time. :(
Jordan and Alexandra should have never met in normal circumstances, but hey, this is Romancelandia. So they meet, he compromises her inadvertently, they're forced into a marriage of convenience and the stage is set for an emotional rollercoaster designed to turn me into a basket case. Big (and Small) Misunderstandings, a Long Separation, deception, suspicion, murder attempts, unexpected allies, surprise villains... I loved it! I hated it! I was a puppet in Ms. McNaught's hands.
Jordan was a hard character to love. If you followed my status updates while I was reading this book, you might have guessed that he kept me on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Over and over again, he threatened to to something hateful to Alex - and sometimes he did. But then, he would go and do something sweet and thoughtful, and I forgave him. I guess the selling point for me was, I understood his behavior. Yes, I wanted to smack some sense into him a couple of times, but he was a result of his parents' upbringing. That didn't excuse everything he did, but I just couldn't hate him. There was some good writing there, Ms. McNaught!
As for Alex, she was really the "something wonderful" mentioned in the title of this book. I loved her to bits. She was too good and too sweet to be true in the beginning, but that made her falling "in love" with Jordan so quickly believable. In her naïveté, she worshipped a Jordan that never existed, so she was bound to be sorely disappointed sooner or later. When she finally found out that her "dream man" wasn't real, I was as hurt as she was, even though I already knew what a cad he was. In the end, I think she should have made him grovel and work harder to win her love back, but I guess she just wasn't as petty as I am. :)
Besides Jordan and Alex, several secondary characters helped to keep the story interesting, but the way they popped up and disappeared all of a sudden was a bit jarring. Alex's mother, Alex's uncle, Alex's friend Mary Ellen, Jordan's grandmother, Jordan's aunt, Jordan's cousin Bertie, Jordan's prison inmate... One moment they were there, having their say; the next they were gone, sometimes never to be mentioned again. I understand that secondary characters aren't supposed to be "on stage" all the time - after all, they're not the protagonists of the story - but some of them played key roles and deserved more than to simply "vanish into thin air".
That leads to another "problem" I had with this book: Jordan's imprisonment and alleged death. The man was kidnapped, tortured, beaten and spent 15 months in a French prison, "comes back from the dead" just in time to prevent his "widow" from marrying his cousin, gets angry and all that jazz, and then resumes his life as if he'd been away only for a weekend. Huh? Okay, I guess Jordan's mind was stronger than I'd thought. In his place, I'd be having nightmares for months.
So... Based on what I've written above, you'd think I didn't like this book, right? Well, I did like it. Ms. McNaught knows how to write compelling emotional scenes and she made me care for Jordan and Alex despite (or maybe because of) their "flaws". I was emotionally committed to them, as they made me smile and cry, sigh with happiness, frown with worry, shout in anger and cheer in joy. No bland emotions there, and I was a mess! The ending was touching and wonderful. It was somewhat abrupt - Jordan could have definitely groveled some more - but even so, it left a smile on my face.
All in all, I can't say this was an enjoyable book - I mean, I don't enjoy resembling an emotional yo-yo when reading a book, LOL - but it was certainly worth reading. This was only my 3rd book by Ms. McNaught, but I believe I can already say that her books will never be "comfort reads" to me because she sure knows how to push my emotional buttons. For better or worse. -
Loved loved LOVED this!!!!
Though I'm extremely disappointed with the publisher for the ebook version being RIDDLED with errors; missing punctuation points, typos, etc. For the price point of the book, the amount of errors is completely unacceptable.
However, I've just happily purchased the paperback version because I absolutely adored the story. -
Written Decembeer 10, 2014
4.6 Stars - Old quality in the very best romantic HR style. - A sparkling sweet and gripping emotional fairy tale
Something Wonderful is one of
Judith McNaught's older, so beloved, grand historical romances. This one, her first #1 New York Times bestseller, is from 1988. ~ Loved and high raited by all my HR reading GR friends."Regarded as one of the most beloved writers of all time in popular fiction, Judith McNaught is the author of thirteen novels with more than 30 million copies in print"
I has —slowly with a few chapters each day— listening to this 16 hours audio (CD) edition (from 1993). Very well narrated by
Jill Ferris.
I read some parts as well and I just loved Something Wonderful from the first page to the last. Another WOW romance!
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England 1815
Alexandra Lawrence, an innocent soon to be 18 years old country girl, finds her forced, after unfortunate mistake and an inn room, to marry the older and very powerful Duke.
Jordan Addison Matthew Townsende, the 12th Duke of Hawthorne, Marquess of Landsdowne, Earl of Marlow, Baron of Richfield (a lot of names..), a great looking man, is a blase nobleman with a mistress who feels pity for this young still innocent childlike, but so cheerful, girl.“Reformed rakes often make the best husbands”
The dukes does his duty, and soon he has a young maiden wife in young Alexandra. ~ A wife without a very fine noble birth or ancestry but with an intellectual and good literary education from her beloved grandfather. A shimmering pearl that never faced the dangers of a big city or the risks involved in meetings with the London society.
“I love life, even when bad things happen to me. I can't stop loving it. Every season of the year comes with a promise that something wonderful is going to happen to me someday.”
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There are next to 15.000 GR members who's marked this as read. Almost 500 of them left a review as well. I don't think another long (arguing, thought out and maybe also splendid interesting.. *smiling* ) review will make any difference or pushing more romance readers to this book.
Short and sweet:
I feel like most readers: 'Magical reading!!'.
This writer is a stunning master writer of this HR genre. Do you plan to only read one single historical m/f romance in the coming year: Please, select one written by Judith McNaught, you can not but be happy and satisfied. — Grand and great, and so neat and well told. I loved it all. There will be more JMN romances in my "Read" shelf. Many many more hopefully.
I LIKE - OF COURSE, who doesn't? -
Why oh why have I not read more historical romance novels. Being only my second HR Something Wonderful was just that, something wonderful.
This story had me captivated right from the beginning. I quickly found myself submerged into the world of the characters and experiencing something different.
I truly loved Jordan and Alexandra’s story. I guess you could say it was love at first sight for Alexandra. It may have been because she was naïve but I would like to believe it was because her heart was pure. Jordan was a bit jaded and cold hearted. His use for women was simple. It was solely for a physical need. He knew no other way.
“I love life, even when bad things happen to me. I can't stop loving it. Every season of the year comes with a promise that something wonderful is going to happen to me someday.” ~ Alexandra
As these two worlds collide we watch Alexandra blossom and Jordan soften. As Alexandra struggles to fit into Jordan’s world and meet his demands Jordan begins to question all he has been taught in regards to feelings and emotions. Just when their lives become suitable tragedy strikes and Alexandra is left devastated and trying to cope.
Time passes and things change...people change. But what becomes apparent to both Alexandra and Jordan is the beauty each of them gives to the other. But as Jordan is dealing with something unbeknownst to Alexandra, misunderstandings happen which leads to.....well you have to read the book to find out. :) But...
Pain is shared and special moments are made. There is happiness and heartache. There is lust, desire and tenderness.
I’ll be putting this on my bookshelf for now but I will certainly pull it out again and reread some of the chapters I loved the most. There was so many things I enjoyed. The way the book is written your able to form these beautiful pictures in your head. Maybe it is where Jordan and Alexandra share a picnic or the place they go fishing and make love on the hill side, or when they go to a Ball. Or all the beautiful flowers. I also enjoyed all the side characters and what they added to the story. They brought humor and some cynicism which rounded things out.
"Now that you've said all those other things," she whispered when he finally lifted his lips from hers several minutes later, "do you think you could possibly say 'I love you'? I've been waiting to hear that since you began and—"
"I love you," he said fiercely. "I love you," he whispered softly, burying his face in her hair. I love you…” ~ Jordan
How did I stumble upon this book you might wonder? It really was only one review that had me one-clicking. Well you can’t download this to your kindle but there is something special about sitting down with an old fashion bounded book. Anyways one of my GR friends Mo posted a beautiful review which you can find here….
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... Do yourself a favor read her review too! -
This was incredible. What can I say but Judith McNaught at her finest.
Quick review.
We have sweet, smart, strong and big hearted heroine, Alexandra who rescues the hero from some bandits one night. She's a seventeen year old young women/girl who's returning from a birthday party dressed in her costume as a knight (yep armor and all). She comes upon our hero, Jordan being held at gun point about to be shot. She accidentally kills the assailant but saves Jordan. Circumstances develop that have the two in a precarious situation and because of the perception our hero needs to save our heroines reputation and so he needs/forced to marry her. He first thought Alexandra was a boy but later on realized that she is this young girl at the cusp of womanhood. He is enchanted with Alexandra and her openness, sweetness, innocences and especially most especially her sharp and intelligent mind. Jordan feels it's his duty to save her reputation and marriage is the only answer, plus he owes her his life as she saved him.
The first half of the book is the setup of their first meeting and the beginning of their marriage. Alexandra's innocence and adoration for Jordan is obvious and a little awkward to behold at times, but yet so endearing and sweet. She's got a wonderful heart that is tender and she see's the good in people and situations. Our heroine started taking care of her Mother (who is bitter from her husbands deceit which she learns after his death) and the adorable misfit crew who help around the cottage around the tender age of fourteen. You see at fourteen her wonderful grandfather died, pretty mush raised Alexandra and poured all his love and knowledge into her young life. But now at the age of eighteen (she was days away from her birthday when she rescued the hero at seventeen) she is about to marry and has hope that her marriage could be a happy one. Jordan is an aristocrat, handsome, wealthy, cold/unfeeling and a rake. We get a small glimpse of his young life in the beginning of the book. We see what his dispicable parents are like and their terrible behavior. Also you get a little background of what his family life is about and you kind understand why he becomes the man he does. But something about Alexandra touches him like no other and he begins to feel things he's never felt before.
But days into their marriage Alexandra is told there is a tragic accident and Jordan is dead. But in reality he's been kidnaped and put in prison. What keeps him alive and going is the sweet memories of Alexandra. He's determined to escape and return to his wife and make their marriage a happy one. We are then given a heart wrenching account of our heroines heartbreak and her transformation into a confident young woman, her thinking is that she would somehow have made Jordan proud if he was alive. Alexandra grew up in the country with her family, but now she will take the ton by storm and be introduced as Jordans widow. We have a time span of about a year of Alexandra grieving, her remake and growth into this beautiful, young, confident, but sweet woman. Jordans grandmother and cousin play significant roles, as well as the misfit crew, in helping and guiding Alexandra. During Alexandra introduction to the ton she begins as this naive adoring wife that raves about her wonderful dead husband. But she learns some heartbreaking things about her husbands past and given some misinformation about why he married her. Jordans cousin offers marriage as a convince and Alexandra accepts.
The second half of their story begins with knowledge that Jordan has escaped from prison, he's rushing to his home and family to learn that his wife and cousin are just about to marry. The scene with Jordan walking down the aisle, stoping midway, folding his arms (I don't know why but the write up of his physical stance just added to the whole scene), announcing to the priest that he objects to the two marrying as the bride is married to him. That scene was so intense and filled with emotion and angst, it gutted me. . It was incredible and so well written, vintage Judith McNaught. Loved it!!! The two embark on a cautious, angst filled journey of rediscovering each other as well as learning the mature and somewhat changed individuals they've become. It's filled with some heart wrenching scenes, so much emotion and heart. Your immersed into all the hurt that each is experiencing, as well as their deep desire for love, for each other, and for their marriage to be a happy one. Their is the mystery of who is trying to kill Jordan thrown in. The writing is excellent, beyond excellent actually. It makes you miss Judith McNaughts world of love and romance. The depth of emotion and feels is intense and will make you cry. The characters growth and development is superior as the story progresses and advances to it's beautiful conclusion. The secondary characters are endearing and a hoot. And best of all the epilogue is heart melting.
I really miss Judith McNaught's writing and so wish she would write some more HR.
Okay, maybe this review wasn't so quick. :) -
The memorable parts ~
"You lost the fish!"
"That was not a fish," Jordan retorted, looking up at her. "That was a whale with large teeth."
"Only because it got away," she retorted, laughing.
Her laughter was as infectious as her enthusiasm, and Jordan couldn't stop himself from grinning even though he tried to sound stern. "Kindly stop belittling my whale and let's open those baskets. I'm starved."
...Goaded by her insinuation that he possessed no imagination, Jordan narrowed his eyes and stared hard—and then he finally discerned a shape he recognized. Off in the sky, on the right, there was a cloud that looked remarkably like, exactly like—breasts! No sooner did he recognize the shape than Alexandra excitedly asked, "What do you see?" and Jordan's whole body shook with silent laughter.
...Despair wrapped around his heart, suffocating him, and tears stung his eyes. Gathering her limp body into his arms, Jordan laid his cheek against hers, his massive shoulders racked with sobs. "Oh, Alex," he wept, rocking her in his arms like a baby, "how will I go on living without you? Take me with you," he whispered. "I want to go with you…" And then he felt something—a whispered word against his cheek.
...He stopped and cleared his throat as if it was clogged. "If you ever need more," he began again, his voice rough with emotion, "you have only to tell me. Anything I have will always be yours."
...Biting her lip to stop her chin from quivering, Alexandra raised her eyes to his. "I think," she whispered, trying to smile, "I shall wear the ruby on Queen's Race day, so that when I tie my ribbon on your sleeve—"
With a groan, Jordan pulled her into his arms.
"Now that you've said all those other things," she whispered when he finally lifted his lips from hers several minutes later, "do you think you could possibly say 'I love you'? I've been waiting to hear that since you began and—"
"I love you," he said fiercely. "I love you," he whispered softly, burying his face in her hair. "I love you," he groaned, kissing her lips. "I love you, I love you, I love you…”
This book is the moon, the sun and the stars. Judith McNaught threw so many surprises and wonderful moments at me in a way that only she can. Alex was the most lovely and naive heroine ever. Her innocence and youthfulness had me feeling very protectful of her even when she grew up and lost most of her child-like loveliness. She's one of those heroines who I immediately fell in love with. There was never a moment where I got annoyed or irritated by her and it was really a joy to see the world from her eyes.
Jordan is the typical Judith McNaught hero. Hard and unemotional on the outside but as sweet and soft as candy floss on the inside and one hundred percent lovable. We see the soft side of Jordan a lot when he is with Alex and she is the one that shows him the beauty in the world. As cheesy as that sounds right now, it is terribly romantic in the book. As small a detail as it is, I love how significant the title of each Judith McNaught book is.
There's actually quite a bit of drama and suspense throughout this novel - a characteristic of most of Judith's books. I'm usually not a big fan of murder plots and dramatic disappearances but in this book everything worked so well together. The drama was mostly kept on the sidelines but was very crucial in building the tension, keeping me captivated and making everything so wonderfully satisfying in the end.
*Sigh of contentment*
Now to finish this review I have a quick letter for Ms McNaught.
Dearest Judith McNaught,
I am breathing for the day you release another historical romance for they are truly the most wonderful things ever. Sometimes I wonder why you had to switch to contemporary romance and crime writing when it is obvious your historical romances are the jewels of your crown (except for Paradise and Perfect, of course). Every novel is like something precious that has fallen straight from heaven. Sadly it has been more than ten years since you last released a historical romance, but I am still praying for the day you decide to release another.
Until then,
Sophie. -
Very popular novel, classic of a genre. A lot of other romance writers sing praises. That's why I returned to it. Also it's on NPR's list of top romance novels.
How it started.
Entertaining in a ridiculous kind of way.
Basically that's their first meeting:
Jordan caught his breath at the unexpected glamour of the lad’s glowing smile and froze in amazement when he felt an odd, inner tingle from the boy’s touch. A boy’s touch. Brusquely shaking off the small hand, he wondered grimly if his boredom with life’s ordinary diversions was turning him into some sort of perverted dilettante. “You haven’t yet told me your name,” he said, his tone deliberately cool as he began exploring the boy’s lower ribcage, watching his small face for any sign of pain. Alexandra opened her mouth to give her name, but gave a shriek of outraged panic instead when he suddenly slid his hands onto her breasts. Jordan jerked his hands away as if they’d been scorched. “You’re a girl!”
Well thank god the 13 year old boy you were attracted to turned out to be a woman of bangable age! phew!“He destroyed your reputation by taking you to a public inn. He’s ruined any chance of your making a decent marriage. No other man will have you now. From this day forward, wherever you go in the village, scandal will follow you. For that he must pay, and dearly. When he returned to the inn last night, he gave the doctor his direction. We shall go after him and demand justice.”
So now she is compromised because she was alone with him even though she wears pants and has a short hair.
The marriage of convenience trope was far-fetched and never really explained. Like it was but I did not get why they really had to marry.
Major “not like other girls” vibes, a lot of it:
“How extraordinary,” he mocked sarcastically. “And all this while, I’ve been harboring the delusion that all girls yearn to snare wealthy husbands.” “I am not like other girls.” “I sensed that from the moment I met you.”
***
“I’m what?” Jordan demanded, his attention abruptly diverted from her fascinating face. “In mythology, Pygmalion was—” “I’m familiar with the myth, I’m merely surprised that a female would be familiar with the classics.”
***
“I wish I were, but I fear I’m going to be very ordinary.” A slow, reluctant smile tugged at his sensual lips and he slowly shook his head. “There is nothing ‘ordinary’ about you, Alexandra,” Jordan replied. His decision to stay away from her, until she was a few years older and able to play the game of romance by his rules, was suddenly overpowered by a compelling need to feel those soft lips beneath his. Just one more time.
Anachronistic and ridiculous. Also our heroine was a childlike and very naive. And looks like a 13 year old boy. And still:She was thin, but her breasts were surprisingly full, her waist tiny, and her legs long and shapely.
So now they are married and having sex at 25% point of the book and she said she loved him after meeting him twice at 20% point. No chemistry and relationship wasn't developed at all.
Then there's stupid murder plot and they are not together for a bit. Then he returns.
And here is when this book stopped being ridiculously funny.
This is what our Romeo says to her first time they reunite:
“Alexandra,” he said in an awful voice, “if you’re wondering how far you can push me, you’ve just reached your limit. In my present ‘unreasonable mood,’ nothing would give me greater satisfaction than to close this door and spend the next ten minutes making certain you can’t sit down for a week. Do you take my meaning?”
***
Anger raged through Jordan like wildfire as he contemplated the reason Alexandra had treated him with such wary hostility today: She was sorry he wasn’t dead. The artless, adoring child he had married was angry now because he was alive! The bewitching young girl he had wed had turned into a cold, calculating, beautiful . . . bitch.
***
She would either bend to his will, or he would break her to it, but either way she would learn to behave herself like a good and dutiful wife, he decided with cold resolve.
***
“Think carefully before you make the mistake of defying my orders. You’ll regret it, I promise you.”
***
He had never been tempted to strike a woman in his life, yet now he could think of nothing more satisfying than the impending prospect of walking into Alexandra’s bedchamber, jerking her over his lap, and paddling her until she could bear no more. It was, he decided, an eminently suitable punishment for what had been an eminently childish act of public defiance! And after that, he decided, he would toss her onto the bed and put her to the use God intended her for!
The fuck is wrong with you, McNaught? Your heroes need anger management courses, not marriages. I’ve read older romance novels and never seen such an angry piece of shits in the main roles. Jeez!
Then they make up and have a lot of passionate sex that I skipped. Then at the eleventh hour he decided she plotted to kill him because why the hell not and he is a dimwit. So we have this:
She cried out in surprised pain as Jordan wrapped his hand in her hair and viciously yanked her head back. His face only inches from hers, he bit out, “Of course you knew it was him, you murderous little bitch!” and with a cruel jerk of his wrist, he flung her sprawling onto the floor, her hip landing painfully on the gun in her hand.
But then he decided that he was wrong and:The diamond was cut in the shape of a tear.
He was sorry! Ahhh!
Also this piece of poop was 450 pages long and boring as hell.
________________________________
- “How extraordinary,” he mocked sarcastically. “And all this while, I’ve been harboring the delusion that all girls yearn to snare wealthy husbands.”
- “I am not like other girls.”
- “I sensed that from the moment I met you.”
This author just doesn’t work for me at all. Neither her prose, nor her characterisations. I’m always searching for a great author in the romance genre and now I can safely cross out Judith McNaught’s name from my list “ to investigate “. -
Reread November 23,2020: 4 stars
I really liked this book, but I think Jordan needed to do more groveling. Alexandra forgave him instantly and the ending was very rushed.
Original review (February 4, 2017) 4.5 stars
I loved it!!! I liked all the angst and passion that this book had. Jordan was your typical Duke that did whatever he wanted, specially with women, but in this case he really is a product of his upbringing. I hated his father! How could he do that to his son? Still when Jordan gives his heart he does entirely. I loved that he was always faithful to Alexandra.
Alexandra starts out as a naive, sweet teenager of 17. She is untouched by the ton, which makes her so appealing to Jordan. She is so different to the women he's used to. I really liked that as the story progressed Alex matured and became a strong yet still sweet woman. She was perfect for Jordan and their banter was amazing!
I really liked the secondary characters like Melanie, Tony, the Dowager and Roddy.
Overall this was a great HR read! I deducted half a star cause I felt the ending was a little rushed, but the epilogue was really sweet. I simply love Judith McNaught's books :) -
Review of book read years ago.
I loved this novel. Alexandra was, like all of Judith McNaught's heroines, a true original. Elizabeth from Almost Heaven will always be my fav McNaught heroine but Alexandra was wonderful. She's a funny, energetic and cute little tomboy when she first meets the H. Jordan the H, is too jaded by the overblown women on the ton and the slutty actresses and opera singers with whom he consorts, and is far too cynical about women. I Guess that cynicism goes with being a much desired wealthy duke.
Alexandra's capacity to love is so great that she gives all of herself selflessly to Jordan and in her naive mind she doesn't see that his feelings are not the same. Unfortunately she discovers how he really feels about their marriage after he supposedly dies. All of the slutty ton women and his opera singer whore of a mistress take great pleasure in humiliating her. It is only with help from his sourpuss but surprisingly kind grandmother that she manages to survive and embrace the need for a makeover. And boy what a makeover ! LOL.
She becomes so hot and sexy that everyone in the ton sees her as a new fashion icon and her beauty causes men to rhapsodize. Alexandra is a true example that some girls just bloom later than others. Of course there's DRAMA because the dowager duchess convinces Alexandra to marry the new duke and Jordan arrives just in time to stop the wedding.
What follows is an intense story of unfounded jealousy, poor communication and great love at the end of it all. Jordan's evil witch aunt and her spineless asshole of a younger son both get what they deserve. -
3.5 Stars
Overall Opinion: This was a fun read! I really liked the h! I enjoyed their banter and how the h got the grumpy H out of his shell. My biggest issues were the length and the abrupt ending. I also didn’t feel like the H groveled nearly enough for the few times he messed up. I like this authors writing style and her characters, so I might try another one of hers soon!
Brief Summary of the Storyline: This is Alexandra and Jordan’s story. Alexandra is trying to keep her mismatched family afloat when she unknowingly steps in and saves Jordan’s life. Jordan is a duke that is bored with his life and this young, country girl is a breath of fresh air. Because of some events that compromised Alexandra’s future, Jordan must marry this young girl. There are some funny moments, some suspenseful scenes, and some sexy times...and they get a HEA ending.
Point Of View (POV): This alternated between focusing mainly on Alexandra and Jordan in 3rd person narrative.
Overall Pace of Story: Pretty good. This is long! I think it could been edited down, but I never skimmed and I thought it flowed well for the most part (except the abrupt ending).
Instalove: Yes for the h, and the H takes a while to develop stronger feelings.
H (Hero) rating: 3.5 stars. Jordan. He made some major mistakes and needed to grovel more (IMO), but I liked him.
h (heroine) rating: 4.5 stars. Alexandra. I really liked her! She was smart, sassy, and funny!
Sadness level: Low, no tissues needed
Push/Pull: Yes
Heat level: Good. They have some good tension, chemistry, and scenes -- but not so much it takes away from the story.
Descriptive sex: Yes
OW (Other Woman)/OM (Other Man) drama: Yes
Sex scene with OW or OM: No
Cheating: Yes technically, but not really
Separation: Yes
Possible Triggers: Yes
Closure: This had pretty good closure with what I would call a HEA ending. I did, however, want more! I invested reading a lot of pages (550) for what felt like an abrupt ending! A little more time experiencing their HEA would’ve been much appreciated.
Safety: This one should be either Safe or Safe with exception for most safety gang readers depending on personal preferences. -
Fantastic book!. I even loved it more with my re-read!. The characters are to die for. And it's been way to long that l loved,admired the heroine for her way of thinking. How she's innocent,and potent at the same time. As for the writing, let's just say McNaught is remarkable with her words. Truly captivating.....
Thank you for the wonderful buddy read my dear Supreet.. I had blast. Muah! -
Isn't it funny how you feel for a romance novel when you first start reading romance and then three years later, when you read it again?
My Reactions:
First Time: sigh. He grovelled. Oh how he grovelled! So beautiful.
Three years Later: What on earth did I ever see in a sort of but not bipolar 'hero' who cannot make up his mind and thinks it is alright to sleep around and pull your wife's hair? -
GOOD. LORD. THIS BOOK IS SOMETHING WONDERFUL 😭😭😭
I genuinely believe that this book and Almost Heaven are a genre all their own. It feels insulting to give these books 5 stars when truly what they’ve meant to me requires them to have so much more. Should I go back and give every other 5 star read a 4.75 star rating? Maybe. Possibly. Because this book was so incredibly special to me, I want to give it the ultimate supreme rating and 5 doesn’t seem like enough. This book is ranked among some absolute select few that I can say I absolutely ADORED!
I pride myself on not being weepy in romance books, BUT HERE I AM YET AGAIN CRYING OVER THE ENDING OF A JUDITH MCNAUGHT BOOK. I’ve been reading romance books for years and I’ve only cried a few times over happy endings and now it’s happened twice in one week?!?? The last few pages of this book is such beautiful perfection that I was brought to tears yet again.
Judith McNaught, you sly bastard, how you freaking SLAY ME WITH THESE MEN AND THEIR WORDS.
There is so much to love about this book and I’ll ramble a few of those things here while I still try to dry my eyes.
Alexandra is 17 when this book starts and it’s a monster feat and credit to Judith McNaught that she’s a believable 17 year old, not only with her painful and aching naivety and innocence, but that I absolutely adored her from the beginning. You know when you read these young heroines and they’re all so freaking annoying you want to rip your hair out? Somehow authors sometimes equate youth with stupidity so the best way to convey how naive their characters are is by making them make horrible decisions and throw temper tantrums.
Alex is young but she’s not stupid or childish. She’s not vapid and vain and I wasn’t annoyed with her for a moment. Instead, I loved Alex. She is a heroine I wanted to champion and befriend. Gah, the vulnerability and strength of this girl! What an incredible character. She’s one of my favorite heroines of all time. I was laughing out loud at so many things she said and omgggg when she comes riding into Jordan’s life I was dyyyyinnnnggggg!! And then immediately that situation escalated and I was horrified, but still. The image of her losing control of her horse while she’s in full knight’s armor? Priceless. When she and Jordan are together in the beginning my heart was absolutely breaking for this girl who put her entire heart into loving this man. I was hugging my book because I couldn’t hug her. This book gives me all the feels of remembering young love. *sigh*
I almost don’t even want to mention Jordan. Because while he’s an incredible hero who has me absolutely SWOONING and the way he falls to his knees for this girl is DELICIOUS, to me, Alex is the star of this story.
Ugh. I loved it so much. -
I finished the book in one day. Stayed up till 4 am and did not skip a word. Judith McNaught’s books are addictive!!! Beware of a thrilling plot and fascinating characters.
In this book the total opposites of cynic and bright eye lover meet and from their first meeting Jordan the duke of Hawthorne begins to melt, albeit slowly but nevertheless. I have absolutely adored them both.
I loved their personal growth and the growth of their relationship together. This is exactly what I want to see in romance. It was like watching ice and fire finding path together which created fireworks of passion, sensuality and magnetic pull. Their super charged scene at the ball is true testament to it. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time reading this book.
It has not been easy for Alexandra to tame the duke which I always have hard time believing but Judith McNaught has done it superbly.
Ok another thing I will mention, is the plot. I’ll not say anything to give it up because the less you know the better. There are shocks, twists and turns on every page. Even the mystery part was a true surprise to me at the end. Loved it.
The only warning I’ll give to future readers is to make sure you have straight 12 hours or however long it takes to read this book because you will be miserable if you will have to put it down.
Also my only criticism is I wish we saw little bit more of their life at the end but on the other hand there are many beautiful scenes in this book that hint on their absolute fit for one another.
Perfect summer read. -
"Listen to me," Jordan begged urgently, somehow convinced that she would stay alive if she understood how much she meant to him. "Listen to what my life was like before you hurtled into it wearing that suit of armor— Life was empty. Colorless. And then you happened to me, and suddenly I felt feelings I never believed existed, and I saw things I'd never seen before. You don't believe that, do you, darling? But it's true, and I can prove it." His deep voice ragged with unshed tears, Jordan recited his proof: "The flowers in the meadow are blue," he told her brokenly. "The ones by the stream are white. And on the arch, by the arbor, the roses are red."
Lifting her hand to his face, he rubbed his cheek against it. "And that's not all I noticed. I noticed that the clearing by the pavilion—the one where my plaque is—looks like the very same one where we had our duel a year ago. Oh, and darling, there's something else I have to tell you: I love you, Alexandra."
Tears choked his voice and made it a tormented whisper. "I love you, and if you die I'll never be able to tell you that."
These sentence make me cry out louder.... -
I love life, even when bad things happen to me. I can't stop loving it. Every season of the year comes with a promise that something wonderful is going to happen to me someday.
Absolutely love it! -
This book is SOMETHING WONDERFUL
-
![ᑭᑌᑎƳᗩ [Punya Reviews...]](https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/users/1572968006i/3840999._UX200_CR0,33,200,200_.jpg)
My review contains spoilers and they're mostly my thoughts as I went with the book. This one's got 3 parts.
After my 2nd reading of the book...
I remember being annoyed by a few things when I first read this book, hence the 4 stars rating. But this reading is proving to be quite different and no matter what, I'm liking it so far.
Jordan is a duke and living a duke's lifestyle. But, his teenage life show us a life full of debauchery by his parents (numerous affairs and stuffs) which turned him into a cynical, jaded man. The opening chapter gives us a glimpse of this and I applauded him for not sleeping with that woman. So, even as a 18 yrs old, he wasn't that jaded but now, a 27 yrs old Jordan is different. He doesn't care about women, avoids married ladies but all the other types of 'less virtous' women are welcome in his bed! He'd been a soldier too. I read his musings telling me about his 'unrestrained wenching', when he finds himself saddled with a 'child-bride'. I'm glad so far I didn't have to read any information on his unrestrained wenching *shudders*.
Alexandra is an ever optimistic girl. She believes 'something wonderful' will happen to her soon, even after all the troubles in her young life. She had a selfish scoundrel of a father who married again in London and lived with that family while left his legitimate one in the little village of Morsham in near poverty, visited them yearly when he felt like. His death revealed this betrayal and I felt for Alexandra as she thinks back about that part of her life. The neckless scene was meaningful and sad. Her mother isn't any better than her father. That woman refused to take any responsibitily ever in her vain, self-centered life. It's her grandfather who taught her everything, and she's been taking care of the household after his death at 14 ... this I kinda couldn't believe. She's 17 now, still too young IMO. Then again, like all the other JM heroines, Alexandra is a veritable example of beauty but she doesn't think so! Also, like all the other JM heroines, she's the best in anything she does, whatever it is.
Then, in a twist of fate, Jordan and Alexandra meet in a fateful night and she ends up saving his life. Jordan, at first, took er as a young man and then a girl of 12/13 since Alexandra is ... ermm, less developed in certain areas and spends time with her in an inn as she was injured. This leads to all sorts of gossips. Alexandra's enraged and a bit more than insane mother, who was (according to her) also a 'victim' of a self-serving rake, takes the matter in hand and wrenches out a marriage proposal from Jordan. And, they marry.
Now, Jordan's life is in a disarray. He wasn't thinking of getting married just about now. He has a mistress and was in no hurry to produce heirs. He took his marriage as 'adopting a child' (all his talks of thinking/treating Alexandra as a child I found very irritating!) But, he can't help but like Alexandra's honest and artless demeanor. After a lifetime of vain, vapid and selfish women, she's a breath of fresh air to him, though he refuses to give her an upper hand in his life. He even thought about setting her up in one of his estates and going his merry way. Then after a few kisses, he decides to wait for her to grow older so that she matches him in bed. Then, after spending more time in the journey that's supposed to take them in that estate, Jordan decides he just can't wait to have her! It was funny, the situation. I liked that kissing scene before marriage. Then afterwards, the discussion of 'how to make babies' was kinda weird, a bit exasperating yet strangely funny to me. A curious Alexandra, who can quote all sorts of philoshophical quotations yet knows nothing about making babies, wants to know about it (she's just TOO naive, like other JM heroies) and Jordan promises her he'll show her. Then, where I've left off, he does.
BTW: Alexandra has already decided that Jordan's her 'something wonderful' and confessed she loves him. Even I thought that was too naive. But, I like her, so I'd like to see where it all leads to. Jordan the cynical rake, of course, decided it's just her infatuation and desire for him. I hope he swallows his own words since all he can say to her is 'thank you'! Ugh!
*******************
Dared I hope and expect something better from a JM hero? *sigh*
I guess I've figured out what was bugging me. Even when I was swooning over Jason, Clayton and the others in my first reading, Jordan pissed me off. That's right, even then he was annoying me. So much for hoping he might be a better hero in this reading! I'll come back to my point shortly.
So, as I was reading, the story took a dramatic turn and while they were off to Devon in his estate, Jordan was kidnapped. The next day, one very concerned Alexandra finds out that he's missing. Soon she's taken in by the Dowager Duchess from the deck of that ship to their London townhouse. As days go by without positive news, Alexandra lives in a frantic edge of horror for Jordan and then comes the bad news, which tells them Jordan was kidnapped and the ship that has taken him has drowned. The events that follow, I really loved though all of them were in mourning. I really enjoyed reading the way Alexandra, Tony (Jordan's cousin, who becomes the duke later) and the Dowager's relationship developed. I loved Alexandra's courage, the way she communicated with seemingly cold, reserved dowager. And then, she put Jordan on a pedestral of bravery, honesty and courage, convincing herself of course Jordan loved her too! There were descriptions of her devotion to Jordan made me wanna scream and tell her girl, how wrong you are! Poor Alexandra! She had no idea what kinda man Jordan actually was, she didn't know about his paramours, not even about the governess he slept with in the very house (by then they were at Hawthorne) she was living in. The old groom and stable master (not sure) did everything to keep that illusion alive, exaggerating Jordan's very questionable 'virtues' to her. I felt so sad, can't quite explain it.
Reading Jordan's lifestyle was a chore for me, something I couldn't quite swallow. It was awful, disgusting and everytime I thought of Alexandra, I felt so angry! Jordan always cosorted with beautiful, loose women. And it's written in the book, that nature bestowed Alexandra with 'beauty' as a yr passed by in between. It felt like some sort of demeaning comparison to me, though I dunno why I felt like that. I believe Alexandra was already quite a fine heroine, with a lot of strength and inner beauty, since she wasn't a conventional beauty. Then, I loved the way she stepped into the London society, as the dowager convinced her that this is what Jason would've wanted for her. She had no idea about his lifestyle there, not even a clue that she'll have to face his whores because nobody told her. Have to mention this, I was furious, when in this picture scene at Hawthorne, a portrait of Jordan's Alexandra loved so much, was later revealed by Tony's musings, was painted by one of his whores while he was having a 'torrid affair' with her. To poor Alexandra, the look in his eyes and the intimate smile reminded her of their times together ... Only if she knew!
So, she steps into London but despite everything, all the pain she went through to make herself a part of the Ton, she fails miserably. And, then comes the events of 'making the heroine look like a fool'! (ref: my review of "Once and Always") She enrages one of the popular guys with some of her guileless loyalty to the dowager and in return her reputation gets a blow. She admires two beautiful women, not knowing they were Jordan's whores. She speaks of ballet and Jordan, not knowing Jordan's last whore was one of the ballerinas. She speaks of Jordan to everyone as if he's a saint, which was just too much for the Ton! GOD! I felt embarrased and sad and so so angry for her because all these made her the joker of the Ton, they were all laughing at her expense. Then Tony, being the gentleman is (I really really like him because he was actually angry at Jordan on her behalf), informs her about all of Jordan's worthless character (including Jordan's cheating on her just on the 2nd day of their marriage *gag*, about he making fun of her with his mistress *gag gag* and his ultimate plans for her). Tony informs her Jordan felt pity for her, not love and Alexandra knew finally that the lovemaking she thought sacred actually was nothing but a child's play for him. She's horribly disillusioned as all these came to her like a slap on her face. And, I wished she kept that rage alive when Jordan came back home. Now, she thought she's free of the burden of loyalty and as she gained back her popularity, Alexandra started moving on and living her life. Then Tony proposes her and even though she wasn't in love with him, she knew he'll make her happy, so she agrees. And then happens the disaster, on their wedding day no less!
Yah, I'll forever call it 'the disaster' because the moment Jordan returns, things, inevitably started to go downhill, thanks to him. And, I lost a lot of my interest in the story. Before his return, I was enjoying it immensely and then when he did return, I thought he was better off dead. That hypocritical, domineering, cheating SOB!! Would you believe, upon his return, that pathetic a$$ thought people didn't mourn him enough and he was mad angry! Really Jordan? I don't remember you doing anything significant in your life (other than f*cking around) for which you should be mourned and remembered! Then he accuses Alexandra of trying to stay as the Duchess by any means (read: even by marrying Tony), calling her a 'a scheming opportunist', giving no one any time/chance to explain what really happened when he was gone. He just came to his own pathetic conclusions and started acting all betrayed with his infernal Dukal manner! He expected Alexandra would pine and waste away for him, mourning forever. My god! And when he didn't find it happened, he started a campaign on how to tame her/teach her the lessons she deserves (seriously????!). He actually dared to make a list of things she did that makes him look bad *I was agape, felt speechless*. Alexandra in return, gave him a list of his paramours. Oh, I was hoping for an intense scene where she gives him hell. But, sadly, no. In that whole, VERY frustrating scene, he treats her like a child (though bodily, he was thinking about ways to get her to bed) he was amusing himself with; no shame, no remorse that she found out about him ... She lost control and it wasn't at all what I expected of her. I thought she had enough fire to give him pain. But, he tames her with a few kisses and caresses, calling her 'princess' once and she immediately thought about forgiving him?! WTF???? I wish Alexandra would stand upto his dukal a$$ and shout out loud that, you don't deserve me at all you worthless pile of s*it, how dare you accuse me of things when you're worse than a worm yourself!
Of course, the people around her (including the dowager and another woman who is supposed to be her 'friend') is as usual convincing her since she's his wife, she should live with him. Doesn't matter that she's trying to get out of this farce of a marriage, that she wants to live her life in peace, doesn't matter she actually wants to stay sane by not living with a disgusting man. I hated the way that 'friend' of hers tried to manipulate her and then did something stupid which led to that 'list of things that make ...' incident. Alexandra then planned to gain some money from betting on a horse race and leave for Morsham but of course, that plan of hers ended in another debacle which lead to Jordan's big mouth telling her she has to abide by his rules *SOB*. Then, one of Alexandra's old servants explained Jordan some of the things that happened to her when she was young along with how Jordan actually is a selfish a$$ and nothing else. This leads him to plan on another ridiculous bet with her. He, of course, manipulated her to take part in it. Seriously? Well, I don't give a damn anymore! I don't think Jordan honestly plans to remorse his actions on anything so far, and I'm not sure he will in the end since Alexandra is already letting him win.
PS: I didn't give a s*it about what happened to Jordan when he was kidnapped because he deserved all that and more for his activities. That's why I mentioned none of that part in my review.
PPS: If I read the line "reformed rakes make the best husbands" in another JM book, I'm gonna throw it out! I don't care for your 'rakes' Ms. McNaught, they should be under lock and key with special surveillance equipments 24/7, psycho that they are!
*******************
*sigh* ... Hmmm ... Well, don't look at me like that! I still can't bring myself to terms with the fact that the last 2 chapters, including the epilogue were the most gripping yet sweetest in the whole book. I know I know, I still dislike Jordan for what he did to Alexandra through the whole story but hey, guess I've read some clues to why his life was like the way he lived it [ref: his parents and their influence on him]. I only hoped he redeemed himself a bit more and not made Alexandra go through the trauma of getting a bullet in her head. Yah, you heard me right. I'm amazed that she got through. Then again, the way Jordan was grovelling away taking her in his arms ... *sigh* ... And, I kinda forgave him for being an a$$ (I wasn't sure if I'd kill him or kick his arse even in the 29th chapter) and mentioning one of his mistresses in that govelling (generally, I JUST CAN'T STAND IT). It was so good, I wish I had met this changed man earlier so that I didn't have go through the trauma of hating him myself. *sniffs*
But before it all happened, they were playing the making babies which was what that bet was all about. I thought the whole thing was ridiculous. Then I was angry that Alexandra forgave him for not trusting her until the 29th chapter. I was enraged that he accused her of collaborating with Tony and contriving a plot of murdering him. Jordan's life had been under threat before and after he came back from the abduction. So, he appointed investigators to look into the matter (Alexandra knew nothing of it), which lead to those conclusions. But, there were a lot of 'what if's in that investigators words, which that lout (read: Jordan) didn't think through and jumped into conclusions himself *as if that's anything new*. I was about to wring his neck when the story finally gripped me and then those last few chapters kinda helped me get through my anger. It also helped that, as Jordan was confessing many things, thinking Alexandra would surely leave him now since he's made the stupidest mistake of his sorry life, he mentioned that he didn't cheat on her. And, I really adored the way he said 'I love you' to her. And I'm so glad that, though he was a lout for the most of the book, had a wasted life in most regard; he didn't abuse Alexandra physically in any way.
Anyway, I'm still gonna take away half a star; it was 4 stars before re-reading, now it's 3.5. :) -
I read almost all of Judith McNaught's novels but "Something Wonderful" is definitely my favorite. I've read this book for, like, 10 times and every time I read it, it always feels like it's my first time. I totally fell in love with the story and the characters.
There's this one scene when Alexandra got shot and Jordan thought she would die, the words Jordan uttered just give me pinches in my heart every time. I'm not a cry-baby but I was picturing this scene in my head, and I felt a lump in my throat. You could really feel the love Jordan had for Alexandra.
I strongly recommend this book. This is totally a must-read! :) -
Oh my goodness. Some books are great because of the plot, the suspense, the characters. We who wallow in Romancelandia and HarleyLand can love, hate or despair of any of the above. A strong 3.5.
The something wonderful in SW is definitely the heroine. Sweet and whimsical, Alexandra could fall into Mary Sue territory all too easily, but no. She’s charming and adorable without being cutesy. Was it saving the hero dressed as a knight, staring down the H’s Dowager Duchess grandmother, or almost beating the sophisticated H in a swordfight? Nope, it’s when she is on their honeymoon, and her complete ignorance of sex charms the incredibly cynical hero as well as me. What could have been a cutesy scene was charming as she as laments all the “holes and slashes” in her honeymoon negligees and laughs at what she thinks is the ludicrous (and actually accurate) information of where babies come from.
The hero the Duke, is another piece altogether. As I said the cynical and experienced Duke is as enchanted as the reader with his new bride as she doesn't fit into the narrow slots that Society has shoved women into.
A long and contrived absence unfortunately brings out his inner jackass, and the second act of drama begins. The Duke becomes much more a stock romantic character in his cruel and distrustful actions against the heroine as well as other characters. As a reader, initially I rolled my eyes, great, more arrogant actions from an arrogant character. But that was the reality. Real life dukes would not be much better. He redeems himself at the end plus he does torture himself endlessly over what he sees as the heroine's betrayal.
So I too am jumping on the
Something Wonderful band wagon. Enjoyable adventure, smoking romance, spicy heroine, alpha Duke who reforms (kind of), good writing. It would have been nice if the heroine had held him to his lesser behavior a little longer, but all in all a wonderful heroine. -
Recommended by a friend, I think these stories are funny. Meandering and lacking any real oomph, it is amusing to read about 18th century life. I’m not a feminist, so the carry on doesn’t bother me, but these stories are extremely light. I was a little bored throughout, and I have to say the heroine (is that what they are called in this genre?!) is always childlike at first, and always blooms beautifully by the end! The Duke, endlessly handsome and oh so gruff. Even his handsomeness didn’t really want me to keep reading. A light hearted read, which prompted me to utilise my underused Kindle. Also, the heroine's mother disappeared, never to make a comeback. Odd!
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Nice read . Impoverished young girl who’s dressed like a boy. Save a Rakish Duke life. Lot going on in this story. Humour , Passion and Mystery.
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This book was an epic story of two very different personalities who by circumstances find that they must marry.
MILD SPOILERS AHEAD
The hero has very little to redeem himself here as he is your basic entitled "gentleman" who does nothing but sleep around and party.
Along come a waif with big blue eyes to save his miserable life no once but 3 times throughout the book. She is just about the most loving forgiving person ever. She needed and deserved a better hero and only at the very end does she get that!
It's sad how many times he uses her feeling against her and how much pain she suffers because of him.
I was in tears for most of the end!
It was a powerfully well written book full of drama and mystery.
The reason for the five stars is because it just about the most perfect book in terms of writing and grammar.
However, the hero is in no way faithful at the beginning to the heroine. He has some moments also were you feel like he is unfaithful also.
There is some other woman drama because he was still sleeping with the other woman during this book.
If it was just for the story this would be a 2.5 star read.
So I will change my rating to 4 stars because he does grow but I still feel his emotions were very wishy washy while she was the faithful one always. -
Escapism at its best! Fans of Judith McNaught will be glad to meet a new cast of her wonderfully developed characters, her disarming humor, and of course all the melodrama. As usual, we have the cynical, wealthy, uber alpha, devastatingly handsome rake who meets the idealistic, penniless, beautiful, witty young country girl. And unfortunately, the author returns to her favorite plot device of the Big Huge Misunderstanding although in this book, there is an element of suspense added so that we get more than mere rumors that drive the lovers apart. All in all, a highly entertaining read on a rainy afternoon.
