RADIANT

Author: Taylor Jones ISBN: 084395616X 10/2005 HISTORICAL Publisher: DORCHESTER/Leisure
Time Period: Regency - 1817 Yorkshire, England

Everyone in the ton is talking about the adventurous exploits of two notorious men—Mr. Felix Blackstone and Captain Brendan Kincaid. One, an anonymous writer; the other, a decorated captain, newly returned from India. Everyone, that is, except for Miss Henriette Purcell. She had enough problems of her own—namely, avoiding marriage to the distasteful Reverend Cecil Thwacker. Besides, she'd already met the arrogant captain—and so what if he made her heart race? She was much more interested in the identity of this mysterious writer... Brendan Kincaid was disgusted. Mere days after he arrived home in England, he was informed that to inherit a title and lands, he must marry one of three women chosen and approved for him by his cousin. And to make matters worse, he seemed to have fallen for a whimsical wallflower who detested his very bones! But he had a funny feeling Miss Purcell was hiding some secrets of her own...He simply needed to convince her that he was interested in her—and that their love wasn't just a game.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

There are no words to describe how very much I love this book. Okay, well maybe there are a few. RADIANT is pure dynamite from beginning to end!

We open the book with Miss Henriette Purcell running away from home and her awful father, who she has appropriately nicknamed The Monster, and his pick for her future groom, the slimy vicar, Cecil Thwacker. Thwacker is a wacko, to say the least, and there were a few times when I actually cringed to think that he might actually get his grimy hands on our Henriette. Henriette is a beautifully written character. No one could read this book and not think she is just what a historical heroine should be. She is sassy, bold, adventurous and a romantic through and through—although she does try pretty hard to be of tougher stuff! She is beautiful, yet Ms. Jones manages to make her beautiful without it being one of her more defining features.

Mr. Brendan Kincaid is one of the most wonderfully dashing male characters that I have read about for some time. He is handsome to the point of being beautiful, strong, and courageous, and throws himself into his relationship with an attentiveness that would have any girl swooning—myself included. Brendan is a very well rounded character, not perfect, but darn close. He is the stuff dreams are made of. There are allusions in the book to a knight astride a white horse, and I can think of no character to fill those shoes as well as Brendan.

Taylor Jones is an author to be reckoned with—she is right up there with Julie Garwood and Johanna Lindsey, in my opinion. Radiant is one of the best books that I have read in ages, and it made me want to open it back up and read it all over again as soon as I had finished. It is rare to find such utter talent in an author. I felt every emotion of our hero and heroine, every tear and every laugh—and there were plenty of those. Ms. Jones manages to give us just the perfect amount of laughter and tears to keep you hanging on, right to the very end.

Kristal Gorman