Sweet Release

ABOUT THE BOOK:
For five pounds in cash, the convict was hers. Though Cassie hated the slave trade, her Virginia plantation demanded the labor, and she knew this fevered man would surely die if she left him. But as his wounds healed and his muscled chest bronzed in the sun, Cassie realized Cole Braden was far more dangerous than his papers had indicated—for he could steal her breath with a glance and lay siege to her senses with a touch.

Abducted, beaten, and given a new name, Alec went from master of an English shipbuilding empire to fourteen years of indentured servitude in the American colonies. There, he was known as Cole Braden, a convicted ravisher and defiler of women. And while he longed to ravish the auburn-haired beauty who show more owned him, he knew his one hope of earning her love—and his freedom—was to prove his true identity. Only then could he turn the tables and attain his ... Sweet Release.

REVIEW: Ms. Clare captures my attention – completely – ever…single…time. Not a huge fan of historical romances, but this book managed to hook me in and refused to let go.

I loved the story Ms. Clare set up here and felt as though how it came to be was completely original. The writing was superb and the action enough to make you sit on the edge of your seat in fear. I loved the basis behind the plot and found that the sensuality scenes in the book didn’t distraction, only enhanced, the overall story.

These two characters really gathered my attention and the secondary characters only made the entire experience that much better. I won’t spoil the second book review in this one, but Ms. Clare had deemed that one her favorite. This would be the only time I would have to disagree with her – I found this piece so enthralling that I have set it as one of my favorites.

Steamy, funny, fantastic read for five stars. Run, don’t walk, to get this now! show less

Okay, so this was a strange book to read. It's a romance, set in colonial Virginia. On a plantation. The heroine owns slaves and some bondspeople who seem to be the equivalent of the petits blancs in St. Domingue. The heroine is against the institution of slavery and treats all of her workers extremely well and works alongside them. They all love her. She doesn't free them because she fears what would happen to them once off her estate. They'd be subject to capture, flogging, even death. So, basically her plantation is one big happy family. Within the story, it works. But, thinking about the historical context, it seems really far-fetched. Regardless of how good-hearted the heroine was, I just cannot believe that every one of her slaves show more was content to remain in her possession as an object. I just don't buy it.

Having said that, Pamela Clare tells a really good story. Most of the characters are well-developed and she hints at a lot of backstory. There's material here for easily another hundred pages if she had chosen to pursue some of the secondary story lines. So, the stars reflect my enjoyment of the story once I was able to block out my understanding of history, but it took a while to do it. It wasn't easy. I wouldn't want to read another romance set on a slave plantation, unless it involves the slaves. But, that probably wouldn't be a romance novel. show less

Read for Fun/Listened for Review (Kindle/Tantor)
Overall Rating: 4.25
Story Rating: 4.00
Character Rating: 4.50

Audio Rating: 4.50 (not part of my overall rating)

First Thought when Finished: Sweet Release by Pamela Clare was such a slow-burning romance with an emotionally wrenching backdrop of a story. I loved how Pamela did not shy away from tackling slavery, society differences, and romance between two different stations (though not really). It was just a wonderful read/listen from beginning to end. Alec and Cassie were a fantastic match and their slow-burning romance was perfect for the time!

Audio Thoughts:

Narrated By Kaleo Griffith / Length: 14 hrs and 46 mins

I admit that this is only my second Kaleo G narration (I listened to one of show more the MacKinnon's Rangers books on audio). I love his voice! I am going to now have to tackle the iTeam series. He has such a rich voice and his women's voices are strong not wimpy. Overall, I adored the narration. He may have made me love Alec more!

Part of my Read It, Rate It, File It, Reviews! show less

This was a mixed bag. On one hand, the premise was something different, and I was invested enough to remain curious as to how things would play out. But on the other, the characters were quick to believe the worst or toss in the towel at any provocation *throughout the entire book*, which I really don’t care for, the characters are all pretty simplistic, and the actual plot is quite a stretch. Good and bad, but overall I don’t regret reading it and will continue with the series.

I wasn't overly bowled over by the story, a bit too angsty for my liking and drawn out a bit too long for us to find out if the truth will ever come out about Alec. English nobleman is kidnapped and sent to the colonies as a convict (it's 1730). Turns out his brother planned the whole thing so he could inherit. While in Virginia, Alec must try to convince everyone who he really is while also falling in love with the mistress of the plantation who has bought his indenture. I liked it overall, but Geoffrey, the villain, was over the top with his awfulness, as the same with Philip, Alec's brother. Still, not bad and the love scenes sizzled.

A modern book that reads like a 1980s romance novel complete with adventures across two continents, a ton of secondary characters, a really evil villain and an insane plot. An OK read but I'd rather read a book from the 1980s instead of one written like it was.

It has been a while since I read a good historical romance novel. This one was pretty darn good. I felt like portions of the story were drawn out and felt never ending which is why this rated 3 instead of 4 stars. The story was great and I love seeing how things were supposed to be in the past. While some of it was quite believable others not so much. But hey, it is fiction right? The characters were well developed and the story had its many trials and tribulations. I liked it :)