Rules of Surrender

T-E-R-R-I-B-L-E. Not the writing but the characters OH GOD the characters.

Charlotte is the improbably prim/proper/perfect governess-cum-heiress with a secret past (OF SCANDAL) who falls for the improbably-named Wynter, the young Englishman who moved to a desert country and returned with young children in tow. They and he need to be Civilized posthaste for some vague English ceremony involving Queen Victoria: hence, Lady Miss Governess Charlotte.

... and then it gets icky.

Wynter decides early on that Charlotte (for whom he holds no romantic feelings) will be his wife, and to hell with what she wants because women are a possession, like one's dog or horse, only rather lower down. I am not making this up. He sets about seducing the show more unwilling young governess by removing his shirt and talking about his scars and making her touch his "man nipples". I am not making this up.

And! After Wynter discovers her Tiny Scandal From Long Ago, he entraps her in the same way -- and in front of the vicar, too! Charlotte may be forced to marry him, but she refuses to bed him. On their wedding night, she locks the door. He blows upon the lock with a quick blast from his pistol as she screams, cuts off her dress as she protests, and seriously just rapes her I mean, wrestles naked with her and leaves her screaming again (orgasm this time).

"You're marrying a woman who won't have the right to demand anything from you, because you saved her. Never mind that your ruined her in the first place ..."

I am not making this up.
I sincerely hope Ms Dodd has a better imagination. I hope this isn't anyone's real story. I am too cynical to expect it, but I can hope. show less

Rules of Surrender
4 Stars

Synopsis:
Impoverished and cast out from her family, Lady Charlotte Dalrumple is forced to work as a governess. Ostensibly hired to teach Lady Ruskin’s Eastern born grandchildren in the ways of English society, Charlotte soon realizes that her real assignment is to turn their barbarian father into a true English gentleman. The only problem is that the outspoken and sensual Wynter Ruskin has every intention of turning the tables and seducing the prim and proper Charlotte.

Review:
Light and entertaining with some laugh out loud moments but the plot is insufficiently developed and the ending feels rushed. The embezzling subplot, for example, has potential but fizzles out, and its conclusion is predictable and show more contributes little to the story.

Dodd is a skilled writer with a talent for characterization. Winter and Charlotte have a vibrant chemistry, and even though there are one or two questionable scenes that may put readers off, for me, they were consistent with the Eastern influence on Wynter’s character. Moreover, Charlotte’s emotional conflict with regard to Wynter and her attraction to him seem to negate the idea that he truly forces himself on her. While, Wynter is obnoxious, chauvinistic and overbearing, Charlotte succeeds in putting him in his place and ultimately teaches him the true value of women and love.

The secondary characters are another strong point. From the children, who are sweet and engaging, to Charlotte’s ridiculous bully of an uncle and the bitchy Lady Howard, each plays a part in building the foundations of the story and contribute to the overall atmosphere. On a side note, the story takes place in Victorian times and there are hints at the superior colonial attitudes of the British Empire, which readers may find offensive but should be taken in context. One cannot ignore history and culture even when writing historical romances.

In sum, a fun and enjoyable read and I will be continuing with the series. show less

In desperate straits, Viscountess Dalrumple turns to the newly-founded Distinguished Academy for Governesses to find a woman - unflappable and with impeccable manners and propriety to educate her grandchildren - and her son Wynter - in the manners needed in polite society. They've been living with the Bedouin tribes of El Bahar for the past several years, and desperately need polishing before a royal visit from Queen Victoria and royal ambassadors.

The premise isn't bad, and I liked most of the characters. I even liked the children - which is a difficult thing to pull off in my mind. They were fresh and believable, intelligent and stubborn, but ready to love and eager to please - within reason. But I simply couldn't grow to like Wynter. show more For the first half of the book he tended to be only irritating, so that I still hoped for his eventual redemption. But in the second half, the character revealed himself as insensitive, insufferably arrogant and self-absorbed. I just wanted to throw things at him. He lives with the ridiculous assumption, gleaned from his 'desert father' that men are the center of 'their' women's universes and that men do not love.

He rests secure in the mistaken assumption that everyone must love him because of the sole and stellar accomplishment of having been born with a penis. And even after having deliberately manipulated her into an untenable and powerless position to gratify his own irritating assumptions about her needs and desires, he insists that she must absolutely adore and want him - all spitting hissing clawing tirades to the contrary. Hate to break it to you, Wynter, but not all women are ecstatic to worship you simply due to your manly accoutrements.

While I admired Charlotte's outburst (and cheered for her and some of its effects), it didn't even seem to dent his imperturbable immature narcissism. After wanting to scream at him for so long, his minor act of repentance/change wasn't nearly enough to redeem him in my eyes. Essentially, he deliberately breaks her spirit - something unforgivable in my eyes, and can't figure out why she's not pleased as punch. And he has the gall to mope that someone's broken his toy.

Simply put, he was far FAR too 'alpha' for me. I find that type intensely irritating. But the writing was well-done and the characters well and believably drawn, so I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this to those who don't mind this sort of character/plot-line. But definitely, DEFINITELY not for me. show less

All societies have their rules. Those rules may not always agree, but to function as an accepted member of a society, it behooves a person to hew to the expectations and requirements that society has codified. Of course there are people who get away with flouting the rules but they are almost always a person who knows the rules before intentionally violating them. These rule breakers are generally either questioning the rules or just don't care about them. When someone who is a rule follower meets a rule breaker, sparks are sure to fly, as is the case in Christina Dodd's Rules of Surrender, an early Victorian set historical romance.

Lady Charlotte Dalrumple works for the newly established Distinguished Academy of Governesses. She is no show more nonsense and her nickname is Miss Priss. She is hired by the Viscountess Adorna Ruskin to civilize her grandchildren, recently come to England from El Bahar, a Middle Eastern country that evokes Bedouins and camels rather than the English niceties they must conform to now. But the children are not the only ones Charlotte must try to civilize, there's also Lord Wynter Ruskin, the Viscountess' long lost son who ran away from home at the age of fifteen after his father's death. Wynter hates the hypocrisy of English society and is only willing to conform to a point for love of his mother. Horrifyingly, Charlotte finds herself attracted to this rugged, heathenish man. And that's not all of her worries since this finishing governess post is in the same village that she grew up in and from which she ran after refusing a marriage her uncle had engineered for her. As Charlotte coaches the children on how to be proper English children, she falls for them and for their father and he for her despite their opposing ideas about civilization.

Charlotte is a completely forgettable heroine. Her love for the children is sweet but as for the rest, she's an uptight snob and her relationship with the domineering Wynter never did seem to move beyond teacher chastizing pupil even though we are told it does. Wynter is an annoying and horrible, smug, chauvinist. The flowery language he uses that is supposed to be as if a translation of a foreign language is grating and his casual misogyny is awful. He purposely baits Charlotte and has to be pretending that he doesn't understand English society because he didn't leave the country until he was fully fifteen years old. He might have forgotten the nuances in the intervening decades but he wouldn't be as ignorant to the big picture as he is written. In addition to the main plot line, there are also smaller plot lines and happenings that don't integrate all that well or are too easily resolved: embezzlement, a scandal that forces marriage, Viscountess Adorna's own relationship, another runaway, and the revelations of the past. I spent much (all) of the book wanting Wynter to disappear permanently, not a good situation for a romance. Add in what is essentially a wedding night rape and I just can't recommend this one. One barbarian hero outside of society's rules and one stickler heroine equals one truly disappointing romance. show less

Rules of Surrender by Christina Dodd is a 2009 Harper Collins publication. (Originally published in 2000 by Avon Books)

Lady Charlotte has a reputation as England’s most proper governess. When she is hired to teach Lord Wynter Ruskin’s children proper English etiquette, after having been raised abroad. Yet, upon arrival, Charlotte discovers it is Wynter that requires more training than his children.
Wynter has no desire reign in his barbarian ways. He would rather spend his time trying to seduce Lady Charlotte. As he worms his way into her life, Charlotte does experience desire, but Wynter has made it clear that love has nothing to do with it, and Charlotte will must be content with that...

Okay, somehow, I ended up with both a show more paperback copy of this book, which has been languishing on my shelf behind two layers of other paperbacks for a very long time, and a digital copy, I found languishing on my kindle for who knows how long.

I must have found the synopsis intriguing to have wound up with two copies of this book. But whatever it was that drew me to the story never materialized. The story was light in many ways, with the prim Charlotte constantly correcting the rude Wynter for discussing ‘breaking wind’ in polite company, but alas, deep into the tale, ‘forced seduction’ as it was once referred to, reared its ugly head, and I found myself squirming in my seat uncomfortably.

Wynter remained unapologetically macho until the bitter end, which was meant to be humorous, I’m sure, but well, these days, as we know all too well, isn’t a good look, and it’s not even remotely funny.

Apparently, I have a couple more books from this series on my Kindle, but I’m hesitant about following through with them. I like Christina Dodd, and read a few of her historical romances years ago, but I’ve had much more luck with her romantic suspense books.

Overall, I was a bit surprised by the construct of the book. I realize that it was originally published twenty-two years ago, but for some reason, I thought it would be safe from the content prevalent in the 80s and 90s. To be fair, though, the book wasn’t nearly as brutal as those from previous eras, and at the time of its original publication it was probably well received. Unfortunately, though, it doesn’t stand the test of time.

2 stars show less

Rules of Surrender
4 Stars

Synopsis:
Impoverished and cast out from her family, Lady Charlotte Dalrumple is forced to work as a governess. Ostensibly hired to teach Lady Ruskin’s Eastern born grandchildren in the ways of English society, Charlotte soon realizes that her real assignment is to turn their barbarian father into a true English gentleman. The only problem is that the outspoken and sensual Wynter Ruskin has every intention of turning the tables and seducing the prim and proper Charlotte.

Review:
Light and entertaining with some laugh out loud moments but the plot is insufficiently developed and the ending feels rushed. The embezzling subplot, for example, has potential but fizzles out, and its conclusion is predictable and show more contributes little to the story.

Dodd is a skilled writer with a talent for characterization. Winter and Charlotte have a vibrant chemistry, and even though there are one or two questionable scenes that may put readers off, for me, they were consistent with the Eastern influence on Wynter’s character. Moreover, Charlotte’s emotional conflict with regard to Wynter and her attraction to him seem to negate the idea that he truly forces himself on her. While, Wynter is obnoxious, chauvinistic and overbearing, Charlotte succeeds in putting him in his place and ultimately teaches him the true value of women and love.

The secondary characters are another strong point. From the children, who are sweet and engaging, to Charlotte’s ridiculous bully of an uncle and the bitchy Lady Howard, each plays a part in building the foundations of the story and contribute to the overall atmosphere. On a side note, the story takes place in Victorian times and there are hints at the superior colonial attitudes of the British Empire, which readers may find offensive but should be taken in context. One cannot ignore history and culture even when writing historical romances.

In sum, a fun and enjoyable read and I will be continuing with the series. show less

There's nothing like a good governess story!

The fake client ruse that began this book made me adore the principals of the Distinguished Academy of Governesses immediately. I love to read about women who use their ingenuity to forge a livelihood amidst the confines of of the 19th century.

With Lady Charlotte Dalrymple, Dodd has created a warm, sympathetic character that you can't help but want to see succeed. The hero, Wynter, was a bit more problematic for me.

I had difficulty understanding how a man could have developed such dogmatic views about the role of women as a result of his living with the Beduoin. After all, he spent the first 15 years of his life living in England and was raised by a strong, charismatic and intelligent mother. show more How was it possible for him to buy into the beliefs of another culture so completely?

Such is the skill of Dodd and the magic of the entire cast of characters that I was able to set this issue aside and just settle in and enjoy the story.

I look forward to reading the rest of the Governess series as soon as possible. show less