Jewels of the Sun (1999)

Yet another NR Trilogy, this time set in Ireland. ( )

This trilogy is the best romance novels Nora Roberts has given us. These are the novels that opened my eyes to the romance genre and tore me away from my previous associations of romance equals cheesy. Thank you Mrs. Roberts for changing a closed minded fools ways! My now full library is in thanks to you! ( )

I don’t believe in “guilty pleasure” reading because: hello, I don’t feel guilty about anything I read. But I bet anyone that uses the term frequently would definitely say The Irish Trilogy by Nora Roberts classifies…

Seriously you guys, I have reread these books so. many. times. Mostly when I was in high school, but still. They are constant fall-back comfort reads to this day.

Jewels of the Sun brings Jude Murray to Ireland. She is recently divorced and in need of a break from her life. She certainly finds that in the little Irish village of Ardmore. She quickly begins to settle into her cottage (borrowed from a family member) and make friends. Many of those friends stem from the Gallagher family’s pub around which our trilogy is centered (especially the oldest brother in this case…).

Besides Jude’s growing relationship with Aidan, the biggest part of the book focuses on how Jude learns to fit in her own skin and appreciate herself. I don’t think she ever had the right people around her in her ‘old life’ for that to happen. The book definitely makes it seem like Ireland is her perfect fit! I loved watching her character figure out what it feels like to have real friends and a real relationship, both of which she can depend on.

Tears of the Moon is my favorite of the three, and the one I’ve – by far – read the most often. Brenna O’Toole, tomboy extraordinaire, has loved the other Gallagher brother basically forever…but he never noticed. But really, why does the man always have to make the first move? (Answer: he doesn’t.)

Brenna shocks Shawn to no end with an intriguing proposal (not of the marriage kind), but the longer he thinks about it the better it starts to sound.

Brenna is seriously one of my favorite characters ever – funny, smart, loyal and above all: really really brave about fighting for what she wants. I don’t know how anyone could read this book and not absolutely fall in love with her.

Heart of the Sea is, in my opinion, the weakest link. Probably because the heroine, Darcy, appeals to me the least. She is the only sister of the Gallagher trio and she is pretty darn self-confident. She is also seemingly very shallow. She does have a lot of depth to her, but I think the shallow card is played a little too well.

Trevor comes from America as the owner of a large company building a theatre addition to the Gallagher’s pub – Darcy is always up for gallivanting around with a rich man so things heat up for them pretty quickly. (See? Shallow!) When they both start feeling attached, things start getting a little rocky…

Okay, so now we’ll get to the crazy-cheesy part of the whole thing that I’m not so fond of. The books all feature an old legend surrounding the town of Ardmore about two doomed lovers from the past (the guy was the prince of the faeries who didn’t know how to properly show the woman he loved her). Her ghost haunts Jude’s cottage and he constantly shows up in the graveyard where she is buried and where our trilogy’s heroes constantly turn up. It turns out that once all three of our happy couples fall in love the curse will be broken.

Now, I’m obviously by no means a paranormal/fantasy hater but in my opinion, these books don’t need this element. There is something timeless and mystical about both the characters and the setting without bringing actual magic into the mix.

Jewels of the Sun, Tears of the Moon and Heart of the Sea are fantastic contemporary romance reads in their own right, and to be honest I usually skip the scenes that the prince of faeries shows up in when I reread them. Does anyone else that has read these books agree with me?

Anyway, that being said – I obviously still think The Irish Trilogy is worth reading, weird paranormal elements and all. These characters will grow on you quickly and you’ll want to see them all through to their happy endings!

If you’re a fan of contemporary romance, you’re probably already familiar with Nora Roberts. But if you haven’t read The Irish Trilogy, I definitely think you’re missing out! ( )

http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/1800769.html

I got hold of this because for some reason I had got the impression that it belonged on my list of sf and fantasy books set in Ireland. But apart from a couple of friendly ghosts, this is basically a bog-standard romance where the American heroine realises that her destiny is to drop her independent academic career and marry the sexy Irishman so that she can be a barmaid in his pub. Of course, he has to ask her very nicely first. Not really recommended. ( )

I read all three books in this trilogy over one weekend and this review serves for all three: Jewels of the Sun, tears of the Moon, and Heart of the Sea.

Believe it or not, in all my years of reading, this was my first taste of Nora Roberts, and I come from a family of Nora Roberts junkies. This excerpt is from the preface of the first book, Jewels of the Sun, that sets up the premise of the series:

I'd like you to meet the Gallaghers of Ardmore: Aidan, Shawn, and Darcy, who run the local pub in this pretty seaside village in the county of Waterford. Not far from the village is a cottage, a place of magic where a lonely American woman comes to explore her roots and her heart.
She won't be alone in the house, for there is another lonely woman in residence. She just happens to be a ghost.
With the help of a faerie prince who loved well if not wise, Aidan Gallagher of Ardmore and Jude Frances Murray from Chicago will find their place, and take the first step toward breaking a hundred-year spell.

The series begins with disillusioned American Jude Murray escaping to an enchanting little cottage her family owns in Ireland, where she stumbles into a warm pub on a rainy night and meets Aidan Gallagher. Aidan soon proves to be a good source for information for the research Jude is conducting on Irish legends and myths, and the more time she spends listening to Aidan tell the tales, the more she begins to believe in their magic, in herself and in her dreams. Helping to push these two together are a couple of star-crossed lovers of legend who believe Jude and Aidan are the first of three couples they need to break the three-hundred year old spell that separates them. Over the course of the next two books, the magic of the faerie cottage draws Shawn and Darcy into the legend, too, as they each find true love where they least expect it and play their own roles in breaking the spell.

As far as romances go I thought these were pretty average. No surprises, no deviations from the standard outline, but they're sweet stories, and tastefully sexy, too, which I like. And though I really liked how Ms. Roberts weaves Irish legends and folk tales throughout the story, I thought the legend at the center of the trilogy that the Gallaghers find themselves unwitting participants in came off as rather childlike and hokey.

What I really enjoyed about these books was the setting. I loved escaping into the sleepy little village of Ardmore. I could see it so clearly in my mind, hear the sounds of the waves crashing on the rocks, smell the food being served in the pub and hear the laughter and music and even the Irish accents of the residents. By the time I was halfway through the second book I was downloading Irish music and dreaming of an Irish vacation. All in all, not a bad way to spend a weekend. When I get the chance I plan to read Roberts' Three Sisters trilogy, which has been highly recommended by several friends, and I have her Blood Brothers trilogy, too. ( )