Friday, April 13, 2012

Scarlet

ScarletTitle: Scarlet
Author: A.C. Gaughen
Rating: 4/5
SummaryMany readers know the tale of Robin Hood, but they will be swept away by this new version full of action, secrets, and romance. 
Posing as one of Robin Hood’s thieves to avoid the wrath of the evil Thief Taker Lord Gisbourne, Scarlet has kept her identity secret from all of Nottinghamshire. Only the Hood and his band know the truth: the agile thief posing as a whip of a boy is actually a fearless young woman with a secret past. Helping the people of Nottingham outwit the corrupt Sheriff of Nottingham could cost Scarlet her life as Gisbourne closes in.
It’s only her fierce loyalty to Robin—whose quick smiles and sharp temper have the rare power to unsettle her—that keeps Scarlet going and makes this fight worth dying for.

My Thoughts: I raced through.
I loved this book. I couldn't put it down. And it's A.C. Gaughen's debut! The thing that struck me the most about this book was the pacing. Gaughen had me racing through to see what happened. And the writing was good too.
I just wanted to read one book.
This may be a reaction to the currently ubiquitous trilogy. But I hated the obvious set up for the sequel (or likely trilogy). Seriously, people, publishers, writers, can't ANYTHING be stand-alone any more? To be fair, this story does mostly wrap up, but I was hoping for a more conclusive conclusion. 

All is Fair in Love
The romance story here was great. The tension builds and builds and builds. I think the romance plot required some suspension of disbelief with respect to some of the misunderstandings that occurred, but I usually most willingly suspended mine. And, of course, the Robin Hood story was well done. There are prison breaks, and the mean old Sheriff of Nottingham, and a wedding, and taxes, and thieving from the rich to feed the poor. Good (and bad) times were had.
In sum, this is an innovative retelling of a beloved story that I think will appeal to a wide array of readers. 

1 comment:

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