Monday, July 4, 2011

A Stolen Heart (Montford Heirs, Book One): Candace Camp

“Lord Thorpe’s new business partner is not at all what he’d expected. Beautiful and outspoken, Alexandra Ward is also the perfect image of a woman long thought dead.


“Straight from America, Alexandra finds London a strange new world, one fraught with danger. Her appearance on Thorpe’s arm sends shock rippling through society, arouses, hushed whispers in the night. Is she a schemer in search of a dead woman’s fortune, or an innocent caught up in circumstances she doesn’t understand?


“Someone knows the truth, someone who doesn’t want Alexandra to learn too much. Only Lord Thorpe can help her--if he can overcome his own suspicions. But even if he does, at what price?”


My initial thoughts are that this sounds a bit like the Disney version of Russia’s “missing” Princess Anastasia. I’m optimistic that it will take a turn from the usual “missing heiress” plot line. Some brief reviews I’ve read for this book are good, so I’m looking forward to reading it.


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I put this book down for a couple of weeks while I focused on Harry Potter and several others (this book was initially begun right after Donovan’s Bed, so that tells you how long it’s been since I started it). However, now that I’m reading it again, I’m enjoying it. I will go back to my earlier statement about how similar this plot line is to Disney’s Anastasia. I don’t want to give too much away, but the actions and characters are so similar that the only diversions I can find are the lack of a Dimitri trying to pass Alexandra (Anastasia) off as an impostor who is, in fact, the real thing, and a little white bat named Bartok. I honestly haven’t decided if this is a bad thing or not. I still want to read the book and find out what happens, so I’m not bored. I like the premise of the book and I still find it interesting though it’s so similar to a popular movie from my childhood.


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I got distracted yesterday and didn’t get to finish my train of thought. Anyway, I like the story so far, no matter how similar it is to Anastasia. I’ve read a little bit more since yesterday and I think I can see where the plot is going. It’s not entirely predictable though, because I want to see how they get there (if that makes sense to anyone other than myself, I’ll be impressed). I’m off to read more!


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Sorry this review took me a while to complete; I was out of state completing my move and didn’t have my laptop on me because it would have been too much to worry about.


Anyway, I really ended up liking this book more than I thought I would. I’ve overplayed the Anastasia angle and won’t go into it again. I did think that the latter half of the book contained MANY plot twists that could have been plucked out and made into its own fantastic novel. I haven’t decided if the loaded plot is amazing or slightly overdone.


I really enjoyed this book and Camp is a wonderful author. I liked the characters and the drama. This book easily could have been overdone, but I think it was handled very, very well. I can’t wait to get the next in the series!

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