The Duchess and the Dragon


The Duchess and the Dragon - By: Jamie Carie

The Duchess and the Dragon
Jamie Carie
B&H

As Duke of Northumberland, Drake Weston is accustomed to a life of royalty---until a tragic mistake forces him to flee England by ship. Across the sea, humble Pennsylvania Quaker Serena ministers to sick travelers---and never expects to fall in love with one of her patients! Can these two unlikely soulmates find happiness? 

I really wanted to like this book, but…I just couldn’t. I mentioned in my review of Love’s First Light that the main characters’ relationship advanced to the physical way to quickly, and the same happened here, although for whatever reason this book annoyed/offended me even more than the previous one- to tell the truth, I barely finished The Duchess and the Dragon, and I skimmed several parts of it, because I just could not read most of it.

What bothered me was how the characters talked like Christians, but then didn’t act like ones in regard to romance (and the heroine married the hero before he was a Christian- big problem there). It didn't seem like a "love" story in so much as a "lust" story. There's very little to the characters' relationship besides attraction. I also thought that the main character, Serena, set a terrible example to teenage girls. She married a man she barely knew (who carried a lot of secrets and wasn't a Christian) and left her family ( who were also the only characters I happened to like) and though, yes, there were problems, everything turned out all right in the end. I think the author wanted to present a story that said that even if you make mistakes, God will work it for good, but to me it just came across that even if you act foolishly, things will still turn out okay. And Serena's actions were never explicitly portrayed to the reader as wrong, either.

It's not that there wasn't stuff about God in this book- in fact, there was so much in the Christian element department that it was almost worse than if the author hadn’t mentioned Christ at all, because it made the characters seem like hypocrites, at least to me. (There just seems to be something terribly wrong in trying to explain Christ’s love to a man when you can’t keep your hands off of him long enough to do it, okay?) Though I found Jamie Carie’s The Guardian Duke to be very clean, these last two novels have really been a disappointment, and I’m not planning on reading any more of this particular author’s novels in the future. I guess I have a much higher standard of purity than she does.

Objectionable content: For Christian fiction, this book was terrible in regards to sensuality. I would not recommend it at all. I have a higher standard for Christian books, and this was a grave disappointment. 

Rating: 3

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

In This Moment

Image
  In This Moment Gabrielle Meyer Bethany House Publishers Maggie inherited a gift from her time-crossing parents that allows her to live three separate lives in 1861, 1941, and 2001. Each night she goes to sleep in one time period and wakes up in another. Until, that is, she turns twenty-one, when she will have to forfeit two of those lives--and everyone she knows in them--forever. In 1861, Maggie is the daughter of an influential senator at the outbreak of the Civil War, navigating a capital full of Southern spies and wounded soldiers. In 1941, she is a Navy nurse, grappling with her knowledge of the future when she's asked to join a hospital ship being sent to Pearl Harbor. And in 2001, she's a brilliant young medical student, fulfilling her dream of becoming a surgeon, yet unable to use her modern skills in her other paths. While Maggie has sworn off romance until she makes her final choice, an intriguing man tugs at her heart in each era. The mysterious Brit
Read more

The Words We Lost

Image
The Words We Lost Nicole Deese Bethany House Publishers I truly had no idea how much I would enjoy this book when I picked it up. My relationship with contemporary fiction is rocky, but I'm so glad I took a chance on this one. Upon reflection, I think what really makes or breaks a contemporary book for me is the voice and writing style- and Nicole Deese passed that test with flying colors. Speaking of my past with contemporary fiction, grief seems a common denominator in the last several that I have read, and I think this one landed the best and most true for me, without being overwhelming in its depiction. After reading this, I'm not only looking forward to the next book in this series, but exploring this author's previous works as well. (and a heads up that though there is a lovely romance in this book, I wouldn't say that it is as heavily featured/relied on as the series title might suggest). I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for my hone
Read more

Everything is Just Beginning

Image
Everything is Just Beginning Erin Bartels Revell Michael Sullivan is a talented lyricist and a decent guitarist, but since he was kicked out of his band (and his apartment), he's not sure he'll ever get a record deal. Living with his loser uncle in a beat-up trailer and working a dead-end job, Michael has little reason to hope for a better future. Until the invitation for a swanky New Year's Eve party shows up in the mailbox. It's for his uncle, with whom he shares his name, but his uncle is going out of town . . . On the effervescent night of December 31, 1989--as the Berlin Wall is coming down, the Soviet Union is inching toward democracy, and anything seems possible--Michael will cross paths with the accomplished and enigmatic young heir to a fading musical dynasty, forever altering both of their futures. Award-winning novelist Erin Bartels enchants with this story of two lonely souls who have exactly what the other one needs--if they could simply turn
Read more