Official Review: The Dark Lady by Dawn Chandler
-
BookWorm07
- Posts: 155
- Joined: 20 Jun 2014, 05:41
- Bookshelf Size: 30
- Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-bookworm07.html
- Latest Review: "The Voice of Thunder" by Raina Kadavil
Official Review: The Dark Lady by Dawn Chandler
[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Dark Lady" by Dawn Chandler.]
3 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
Keeping in mind that Valentines Day is nearly upon us, I wanted to read a romance novel. The Dark Lady by Dawn Chandler stood out with its unique plot and after reading a sample, I was convinced that this was the book for me. It is a historical fiction, set in the 12th century England, telling the story of Van alias Vanessa, whose mother forced her to pretend to be a boy in order to save her life.
Van has pretended to be of the other gender all her life. She even makes it to knighthood and is known by all as Van, The Dark Knight. But what will happen when she can no longer pretend? What will she do when forced to marry the nobleman Peter Lawston and have to play the part of a docile wife? Will the Dark Knight be able to leave her battle ridden life behind and accept life as Lady Vanessa?
While Van struggles to fit into her new life, Peter too has to deal with issues of his own. Hurt and betrayal in his childhood taught him a painful life lesson. Hence, he would not allow himself to have a wife other than a timid and controllable one. He is brought up to believe that a woman who voices her opinions as a danger not just to the men around to her, but also to the woman herself. This kind of thinking, when paired with Van’s determined and stubborn personality makes for some interesting dynamics in their relationship.
The book is well written with an engaging storyline and well-rounded characters. Even the side characters have decent back stories and I enjoyed reading more about characters like Van’s father, Peter’s parents, a few of the soldiers, Van’s maid’s, etc. The author writes from the point of many characters and it was nice to watch the story unfold from several perspectives. Yet, due to the multiple narrators, at times the shift in viewpoint wasn’t apparent and had me backtracking a few pages to make better sense of what had happened. I also felt like the book dragged on and was a bit slow-paced for my liking.
Dawn Chandler clearly did her research well as her writing and her characters were consistent with the period in which the novel is set. The author captures the chauvinistic ideals among men of that era perfectly. In fact, it was so real that some actions of Peter aggravated me to no end.
Despite being a romance novel, the bond between the couple wasn’t the highlight of this story. The mystery of Van’s past and the curiosity to find out what kind of woman she would become in the future were the things that kept me hooked to her story, rather than their relationship. Also, I did not enjoy the sex scenes in the book. While I have no problem with sex in novels usually, I felt it was overused in this one.
On the whole, The Dark Lady by Dawn Chandler is for mature readers looking for a breezy read and don't mind a bit of violence and sexual content. I’d rate it as 3 out of 4 stars.
******
The Dark Lady
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on Smashwords
Like BookWorm07's review? Post a comment saying so!
3 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
Keeping in mind that Valentines Day is nearly upon us, I wanted to read a romance novel. The Dark Lady by Dawn Chandler stood out with its unique plot and after reading a sample, I was convinced that this was the book for me. It is a historical fiction, set in the 12th century England, telling the story of Van alias Vanessa, whose mother forced her to pretend to be a boy in order to save her life.
Van has pretended to be of the other gender all her life. She even makes it to knighthood and is known by all as Van, The Dark Knight. But what will happen when she can no longer pretend? What will she do when forced to marry the nobleman Peter Lawston and have to play the part of a docile wife? Will the Dark Knight be able to leave her battle ridden life behind and accept life as Lady Vanessa?
While Van struggles to fit into her new life, Peter too has to deal with issues of his own. Hurt and betrayal in his childhood taught him a painful life lesson. Hence, he would not allow himself to have a wife other than a timid and controllable one. He is brought up to believe that a woman who voices her opinions as a danger not just to the men around to her, but also to the woman herself. This kind of thinking, when paired with Van’s determined and stubborn personality makes for some interesting dynamics in their relationship.
The book is well written with an engaging storyline and well-rounded characters. Even the side characters have decent back stories and I enjoyed reading more about characters like Van’s father, Peter’s parents, a few of the soldiers, Van’s maid’s, etc. The author writes from the point of many characters and it was nice to watch the story unfold from several perspectives. Yet, due to the multiple narrators, at times the shift in viewpoint wasn’t apparent and had me backtracking a few pages to make better sense of what had happened. I also felt like the book dragged on and was a bit slow-paced for my liking.
Dawn Chandler clearly did her research well as her writing and her characters were consistent with the period in which the novel is set. The author captures the chauvinistic ideals among men of that era perfectly. In fact, it was so real that some actions of Peter aggravated me to no end.
Despite being a romance novel, the bond between the couple wasn’t the highlight of this story. The mystery of Van’s past and the curiosity to find out what kind of woman she would become in the future were the things that kept me hooked to her story, rather than their relationship. Also, I did not enjoy the sex scenes in the book. While I have no problem with sex in novels usually, I felt it was overused in this one.
On the whole, The Dark Lady by Dawn Chandler is for mature readers looking for a breezy read and don't mind a bit of violence and sexual content. I’d rate it as 3 out of 4 stars.
******
The Dark Lady
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on Smashwords
Like BookWorm07's review? Post a comment saying so!
"Words are, in my not so humble opinion, our most inexhaustible source of magic" - J.K. Rowling
Latest Review: "The Voice of Thunder" by Raina Kadavil
