Reviews for Barely a Lady

The average rating for Barely a Lady based on 2 reviews is 3 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2010-05-28 00:00:00 Lynn Bass Have you ever watched a movie, that pulls you in so much, you wanna fast forward to see what happens, at the same time sit back in your seat and enjoy the ride? That's how I felt all through Barely a Lady. While there was some clichés used such as the "BIG MISUNDERSTANDING and the sudden amnesia that if the person is told the truth the could die! Was all done so well, I just had a hard time putting this book down, wanting to find out what happens next! Kicked out of her home pregnant, divorced by a husband she loved deeply, Olivia Grace was disgraced from everything and everyone she once held dear. Now five years later, Olivia is living out a life as a companion on the outskirts of society that shuns her. Olivia has lived her life on the run, scared of the demons that not only ruined her life, but still can destroy her easily. Along the way Olivia has grown stronger, and is willing to face down all in her path, even the demons and the husband she once loved so greatly. As the war torn Bussals, Olivia is helping the wounded, she comes face to face with the man whom ruined her marriage, but she'll have none of that and fights him off, to be saved by a Duchess whom quickly because Olivia's ally as she finds on the blood soaked battlefield her ex-husband in a French uniform! With the help of his valet, she's able to rush him off to safety only to have more troubles on her hands when he can't remember these last five years and still thinks their married and still deeply in love! Olivia must fall back on the harsh lessons she's learned in life these past years to help find the true traitor and perhaps forgive Jack and to find it in her heart to love Jack again. This book had some of the biggest emotional moments in it, not the tears but of the what ifs? Placing myself in Olivia shoes, I don't know what I would do if the man I loved turned his back on me and my child, not believing a word I said and putting me through hell for five long years. At the start of the book my answer was "Oh Hell No, I wouldn't forgive his sorry ass!" I was on Olivia's side throughout the book and understood where she was coming from, no question. But like Olivia, you see where things went wrong, how things could have been done differently, and most of all how to forgive. Forgive Jack. Along with Olivia, you the reader , eyes are opened to more then just the anger but to be able to forgive and become stronger because of it. Olivia may have been put through hell, but she grew up to stand up, to fight back, something she didn't do before, but when push came to shove, Olivia was a rock that wouldn't be moved, and told Jack where he could shove it, if he didn't believe in her or put his trust in her. I cheered for Olivia and loved her for her courage! Jack failed Olivia all around, and like something the Duchess Kate said, failed on the first hurdle. Jack was the golden boy of his family, a family whom didn't like Olivia to start with a poor vicar daughter married to their son? No Way! And a cousin bent on having all that Jack owned even Olivia herself? When Olivia and Jack married - Jack was still a boy in a man's body. Jack believed his family- the ones whom were suppose to love him. Jack needed a lot of growing up to do, and in the five years away from Olivia he hurled himself into doing dangerous work in order to forget the woman he loved, even taking a mistress- one whom was out to get him no less by his evil cousin- to forget Olivia. When his finally starts to remember, and starts to see whom truly was the blame, Jack doesn't know if he'll able to gain Olivia's love , trust or forgiveness even if he begs on his knees for the rest of his life. Jack being Jack you start to fall in love with him, and even when faced with some harsh lies about Olivia by his evil cousin (whom I was happy that he finally got his in an odd strange way, but goes his!) Jack stands by her side, and starts to prove himself to Olivia not by words but by his actions. Jack and Olivia needed some growing up to do, while harsh and sad, in their pains and trials, they found an even stronger even more powerful love, and when faced with any challenge- would be standing together through thick and thin. Barley a Lady introduces a whole cast of characters from the Duchess Kate whom had her own share of pain, and sees more then what meets the eyes and her long time friend Lady Bea, whom lost her ability to speak like you and me, but only through metaphors, but has a world of wisdom behind her simple words, and Grace whom's father died on the battlefield, born with a shorter leg, this doesn't stop her from helping all she can with the courage of a lioness, but also seems to get tongue tied around Kate's cousin - the always smooth never takes a wrong step (only with Grace it seems) Diccan Hilliard and if the Excerpt of Never A Gentleman says anything, am really looking forward to Diccan's and Grace's story! Overall: This may have been Eileen Dreyer's first HR, but she was a veteran at being able to put the reader through a roller coaster ride of emotions with Barely a lady, I can't wait for the next the series! I can't wait!

Review # 2 was written on 2011-07-28 00:00:00 Gunther Rindler Where to start? Where to start! First, in a nut shell the best things about this book are the cover art and Lady Bea. That's it for me. Everything after that had such great potential, but I think this was a case of too many plot devices, themes, whatever going on, too many balls to juggle and not an experienced juggler. I was so disappointed with this one, I wanted to love it so much, but just couldn't. Right off the bat I was immediately taken out of the story with the first sentence of the second or third paragraph. I don't have the book in front of me, and I'm not getting up to check, but the line goes something like "The smell of cordite, overridden horses and . . . blah blah blah hung in the air." CORDITE? Okay, admittedly I wasn't absolutely sure until I confirmed with my hubby, but we watch lots of History Channel stuff, mostly about wars, (he's in control of the remote, I'm usually reading) and yes, I did remember correctly that cordite wasn't invented until the 1880's. This story takes place in 1815. I remember this little factoid because it was created to replace gunpowder. I say created as in it's made up of nitroglycerin, which wasn't even invented until 1847 (I looked it up). All this to say, if you're writing historical, please take longer than two paragraphs to mess up the facts. After this, I couldn't get excited. I found this author likes to use inane words, she's really getting use of her thesaurus, and it was just sort of random and weird to me. I'd give more examples, but again, not getting up to check. Also, Lady Bea, who I loved, spoke only in phrases and idioms, some I'm fairly sure had no business being mentioned during 1815. I'm not going to say for certain, but after cordite I didn't want to be babysitting my iphone to double check anything I had doubts about. Another thing, the hero Jack treats Olivia, Livvie (can't stand that nickname, BTW) like total crap. Probably one of the most arrogant asses I've every read about. Case in point, they were supposedly happily married, and a few people hint around she's unfaithful, with her cousin of all things, and he finds her upset and mussed in her cousin's arms, assumes the worst, calls the cousin out, kills him, banishes her, divorces her (he knows she's pregnant with his child as well) and never has a second thought about her. While he's away in the 5 years, he sleeps with a spy. Now, this is not something I like to read, but at this point I'm not totally disgusted, yet. He assumed the worst, they were divorced, whoever he wants to sleep with in the meantime, whatever. Makes me like him a lot less, but whatever. Here's where the ick factor comes in, the part I totally lost all hope of every liking the hero and wanted to slap some sense into the heroine: He's taking a much needed bath, she's helping him wash in the most euphemistically way, he's kissing her, then pauses in the middle of kissing her to say he doesn't know how he thought he could be happy with Mimi!!!!! Mimi is mysterious spy mistress. Now Olivia knew of her before this, but I guess she assumed it was done, I couldn't have overlooked it so easily, but I guess she could. But he's making out with her and brings the other woman's name!!! Of course she gets mad, but before they can even fight about it properly, the house is going up in flames. But really it's not, because it's decent enough for them to spend the night in, and they cuddle all night. She's not ever really discussed between them again. How dismally stupid. Then there was the whole mystery of where had Jack been for the last 5 years, only it was never really discussed either. He was a spy. That's about it. He doesn't explain himself really well, and Olivia never asks. There's a silly line about how she had faith in him, so he didn't really need to explain. Faith in a man who kicked you and his unborn child to the curb and never looked back? Nice. Then there was Jack's creepy cousin Gervaise, who is down right evil in the things he's done to her, but aside from Mimi the mysterious mistress spy killing him in the end, no one else gives him his just desserts. Not even Jack when he learns that Gervaise made it so Olivia had to sleep with him for her survival, or when he found out Gervaise tried twice to kill his son, the son he wasn't there to protect. I also thought how Lady Kate made such fast friends with Olivia at a ball where Olivia was a governess and hanging with the servants to be completely unrealistic. A duchess wouldn't think 'Hey, let's hang with the old biddies and governesses for some juicy gossip,' no matter how scandalous she is. Lady Bea's condition is wacky, strange and again, completely unrealistic, but I did love it. How can you not love someone who talks in riddles and idioms only because her brain can't handle regular words? It's almost like Jeopardy or Password, or some kooky regency game, and I loved playing along. But it was odd for her to shouting out random things. Lady Kate also adopts misfits as staff it seems, but nothing is really said about that. Earl Drake has a group of men, spies, he calls Drake's Rakes, but again, nothing is really said about it, even though it's the name of the series. Jack and Olivia live on the same estate in the epilogue, but don't get remarried for awhile, but it's not said how she's getting along in a society that hated her. Jack never really seems like his own person, Olivia forgets all her troubles once she sees Jack, the author started out with an interesting premise but had too much other stuff going on to do it justice, I just couldn't get into this. I'll probably read one of this author, just to see if it was a fluke, but I'm gonna guess probably not.