REVIEW: "Hers to Choose" - by Patricia Knight (Virtual Book Tour Cafe)

 BLURB

"Mentally scarred from her years as prisoner to the off-world invaders, Lady Sophillia Glorianna DeLorion, doubts she can be a fit sexual partner for any man – even one whose passionate green eyes make her remember what it is to desire.

Commander of the Queen’s Royal Guard, Eric DeStroia had grown up watching the corrosive, soul-killing effects of arranged, aristocratic marriage and vowed to remain alone. But under his hardened military exterior, Eric has a kind heart. When the second Tetriarch suggests he marry a noble woman rescued from the enemy, Eric reconsiders, consoling himself with visions of sheltering a wounded dove under his mighty arm. Instead, he discovers a fierce falcon that refuses to stoop to his lure.

In the aftermath of their resounding defeat, a survivor from the enemy camp plotted a return to Verdantia to exact retribution. His first objective is the recapture of Lady Sophillia DeLorion. She had been unreachable until she went to the Oshtesh. Now, only Eric DeStroia stands in his way."

Amazon

Genre - Fantasy Romance

Publisher - Troll River Publishing

Release Date – 7/15/2013

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Patricia A. Knight is the pen name for an eternal romantic who lives in Dallas, Texas surrounded by her horses, dogs and the best man on the face of the earth – oh yeah, and the most enormous bullfrogs you will ever see. Word to the wise: don’t swim in the pool after dark.

I love to hear from my readers and can be reached at http://www.trollriverpub.com/ or http://www.patriciaaknight.com . Or send me an email at patriciaknight190 at gmail.com . Check out my latest “Hunk of the Day,” book releases, contests and other fun stuff on my face book page: https://www.facebook.com/patricia.knight.71619

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REVIEW

Women around the world are mishandled, abused, made to feel as though they are less than nothing.  This maltreatment causes many to withdraw into shells, building walls thousands of feet high in an attempt to never be hurt ever again.  For that matter, this happens to men to.  What happens, however, when someone broaches that wall with barely trying?  What happens when the protective defenses of a planet are literally fueled by two lovers tending one another?  What happens when evil tries to conquer love?
LONG STORY SHORT
I. Want. This. Book. Made. Into. A. Movie. Posthaste!!!!!!!  Lead man - Chris Hemsworth.  Lead woman - me....or someone who is actually blonde, I guess.  :P

"Hers to Choose" is quite simply one of the best books I've had the pleasure of reading in a long time.  Knight deftly weaves a tale of magikal intrigue, romance, love, hate, war, carnal pleasure, and suspense that grabs readers by their shirttails for a whirlwind of a ride, carrying them along in a wave of literary pleasure that is wholly gratifying by the end.  

Sophi is a woman who has been hurt...cruelly and for years.  Eric is a man who is known as somewhat of a beast both on the battlefield and in bed.  Sophi's brother sends Eric to bring his stubborn sister who has some war-like skills of her own back from a settlement in order to be wed to Eric...if Sophi is willing....but can she open her heart to a man after being hurt for so long?  Will war conquer the day when those who had held her captive come back to claim her?  

Amazing plot? Check.  Characters that absolutely demand your whole attention, making you care about their being?  Check.  Gut-wrenching adventure that refuses to release your mind from its captivating dance?  Check Check!  Um, well-written steamy scenes that perfectly balance the rest of the book and do not dominate the work?  Check!

In short, I give this work a 5 out of 5!!

LONG STORY

In the words of the infamous George Takei, "oh myyyyyyyyyyyyyy"!!!!!!!

Imagine a world where there are clear class divides, and those at top literally power defensive shields for the planet, among other life-sustaining, things when they come together and tend one another physically.  Oh, and by the way, this "power" is only contained within the genes of a particular few.

Imagine a world decimated by war after a brutal and malicious breed of beings who excel at genetic manipulation discover a substance on that world that is a powerful aphrodisiac worth our equivalent of billions of dollars.

Imagine a woman.  A breath-takingly beautiful woman who was stolen away from her home world to become an unwilling sexual attraction and plaything to the aforementioned brutal breed of beings.

Now, imagine that woman is home again and seeking healing and respite...far away from anything resembling those "men" creatures who hurt her so badly.  Oh, and her brother sends a hauntingly handsome man to escort her back to a major city where her union with this man is being considered. 

Oh boy!

No....oh myyyyyyyyyyyyy!

So, that's about the plot in a nutshell.  Sophi does not make it easy for Eric to bring her back to her brother - she has spent time honing her survival skills, cares deeply for those under her command, holds a devastatingly strong distrust and fear of men and anything approaching anything physical, and is determined to hold onto her freedom.  Eric, on the other hand, is a military leader who is accustomed to winning his way no matter what, both on the battlefield and in the bedroom.  Women want him...except this one.  What a challenge!!

I love this book.  I come close to absolutely adoring this book.  The story hooked me right away.  C'mon - even the cover is enticing...who can look away from that man's smoldering gaze?  Now, this is the second book in a series.  I have not read the first book (though I certainly want to now!).  This didn't really matter.  Sure, there were some things that would have come a bit more easily if I'd read the first book, but that did not prevent this from being an absolutely amazing work by itself.  Knight has skillfully written a work that has just enough detail from the previous story to explain what is going on in the present, but does not spend so much time in the past as to neglect the present. 

I came to truly care for these characters.  These are people with whom I could break bread - the broken in one form or another.  Sophi distrusts men, and for good reason.  Eric is battle-hardened.  Their voices are distinct from one another - even if "he said...she said" was not clearly lined out in a few conversations, it was very clear who was speaking.  That being said, each voice in this work was clearly distinct.  Thank you, Knight, for realizing that each character needs to have its own personality and that personality needs to be evident.  You did a fine job here.  =)

Let's see...Knight's writing style is simply a joy to read.  She is not dealing with light topics.  Abuse, particularly sexual abuse, is never a light topic.  Learning to trust again after being abused is not a light topic.  Dealing with the slaughter of innocents is not a light topic.  Yet Knight is able to weave a shiny thread of humor throughout this work that keeps readers reading rather than getting bogged down in the despair of it all.  This is not a humor that diminishes any of the negative things that have happened, but rather the humor that one must see in life to endure it. 

Want to know one of my favorite things about this book?  I am forever annoyed by sex scenes in movies or literary works where everything goes perfectly.  The two sexual partners absolutely go at each other, but somehow the woman's makeup is rarely mussed and her hair is still perfect after the night of debauchery.  The man's pointy hair is still pointy, and he's oiled to an attractive shine.  Where is the farting at unexpected moments?  Where is the squirrel's nest that women with any amount of wave in their hair must deal with upon coming up for air?  Where are the little bumps, insecurities, and mess-ups that make interaction between lovers real, human, and something to which people can relate?  Well, Knight has all of that here!  Now, I'm not saying that any of the people in this book farted, but there are "real" moments between lovers that happen - things not going quite as planned, etc.

That being said, there are several places in this book that are more steamy in nature than I want my son to read.  Ever.  :P  And they are very well written in a way that is about as far away from smut as one can get.  

What else do you want to hear about?  How the plot, writing style, characters, setting and such come together in a wonderful meld of pure literary gold?  How the action moves quickly and refuses to let readers rest?  How the book makes readers want more?  Okay, well there you have it!  

Perhaps I should share one of my favorite passages?

"Eric forced one foot in front of the other.  Fatigue crushed him.  He fought a battle of self-discipline with every footstep.  The wall became a convenient leaning post.  The floor sang a siren's song of enticement.  Sliding down to the wooden planking and never getting up seemed a magnificent idea.  Damnation, I am getting some sleep.  Everything else can wait."  

Haven't we all been that tired at one point or another?  As a toddler's mother, I'm that tired regularly.  I just love how she described it!  I love the verbal interplay between Sophi and Eric (think Beatrice and Benedict in Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing").  I loved that I had a hard time putting this work down.  Seriously, I lost some sleep.  :)

Setting is fantastic, characters are fantastic, plot is fantastic, voice is fantastic (though Knight shifts point of view around regularly, she does so in a way that is not confusing at all)...everything about this book is just fantastic.  : )

(And before you get all upset with me that as a Christian woman I'm rating a book with multiple steamy scenes as "fantastic", remember that God encourages a man and woman to couple.  Sex is not the problem. What people do with sex is the problem.)

The Bugly

Honestly, my only major pet peeve with this book (I know, shocking, right?) is that the names of places and people's titles got a bit confusing in places.  Knight would have served readers well to include a glossary of names and places. 

Oh, okay fine - the "science" in this book is a little questionable.  Sex fueling the life energy of a planet?  C'mon.  Yet as readers we are often called upon to suspend reality for the sake of a well-written plot, and this is certainly a well-written plot!

Now go get this book!  ; )

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