Status
Available
Call number
Genres
Collection
Publication
Avon (2004), Mass Market Paperback, 384 pages
Description
Fiction. Romance. Historical Fiction. HTML: Gabriel Fairchild's valor during battle earns him the reputation of hero, but costs him both his sight and his hope for the future. Abandoned by the fianc�e he adored, the man who once walked like a prince among London's elite secludes himself in his family's mansion, cursing his way through dark days and darker nights. Prim nurse Samantha Wickersham arrives at Fairchild Park to find her new charge behaving more like a beast than a man. Determined to do her duty, she engages the arrogant earl in a battle of both wit and wills. Although he claims she doesn't possess an ounce of womanly softness, she can feel his heart racing at her slightest touch. As Samantha begins to let the light back into Gabriel's life and his heart, they both discover that some secrets -- and some pleasures -- are best explored in the dark ....… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member MissMac
Much fun with these characters in the regular period romance formulaic plot. Good light reading, a sexy hero and a likeable heroine with a (pretty obvious) secret.
LibraryThing member aznstarlette
A different story than most other regency historicals. Tender story between an injured war hero and his nurse. I found this book really appealing because, being a sucker for love letters, this one featured bits and pieces of correspondence between the hero and his former fiancee. These letters also
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set up a great ending! Show Less
LibraryThing member lux_aeterna
An excellent historical romance!
'Yours Until Dawn' is about an earl, Gabriel Fairchild, who is blinded in a naval battle, disgraced and abandoned by his family and fiancee, and Samantha Wickersham, a prim but spirited young woman who accepts the position of his nurse.
This combines two great
There was some repetition and a few Americanisms and I felt that after the twist, the ending ran about in circles - it was obviously the author's attempt not to rush the end after such a revelation, but it didn't quite match up to the build-up: that said, it was a practically impossible task! There were obvious influences as well - 'Beauty and the Beast' and 'Jane Eyre' - but they're both stories I love. This isn't the thing to read if you want something world-changing, just something that will stay with you for a while and that you can look back upon fondly.
I read this entire book with a smile and I recommend it to anyone who is secretly longing to read a romance novel to get all the warmth and cuteness, but wants one that has as well the depth, narrative skill and plot of 'literature'.
'Yours Until Dawn' is about an earl, Gabriel Fairchild, who is blinded in a naval battle, disgraced and abandoned by his family and fiancee, and Samantha Wickersham, a prim but spirited young woman who accepts the position of his nurse.
This combines two great
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characters and a well-written story. I was laughing at the first chapter at the banter between the two leads; banter is something that is so rarely done well and without being cliché, but here it was great. Their development had just the right amount of depth, and the writing was superb. Just when I thought it was getting soppy and I was feeling guilty for reading a fluffy paperback, there came such a twist that I actually gasped out loud and attracted some very strange looks. This is the danger of assuming that the plot will be totally formulaic! There was some repetition and a few Americanisms and I felt that after the twist, the ending ran about in circles - it was obviously the author's attempt not to rush the end after such a revelation, but it didn't quite match up to the build-up: that said, it was a practically impossible task! There were obvious influences as well - 'Beauty and the Beast' and 'Jane Eyre' - but they're both stories I love. This isn't the thing to read if you want something world-changing, just something that will stay with you for a while and that you can look back upon fondly.
I read this entire book with a smile and I recommend it to anyone who is secretly longing to read a romance novel to get all the warmth and cuteness, but wants one that has as well the depth, narrative skill and plot of 'literature'.
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LibraryThing member wyvernfriend
Gabriel Fairchild was a hero, but this cost him his sight. He lurks in his mansion living in the dark. Nurse Samantha Wickersham arrives at the house and is determined to bring him out of the dark into the light. She has to try her best to change his life, but can their relationship survive all of
It's pretty predictable but I found it enjoyable.
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the light.It's pretty predictable but I found it enjoyable.
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LibraryThing member Jenson_AKA_DL
A lovely historical romance about an earl who joined the Royal Navy only to lose his sight and all hope, and a nurse who harbors a guilty secret and is determined to do all she can to bring him back into the light.
I really enjoyed this super sweet romance about Lord Gabriel and his nurse, Samantha.
All in all an endearing story with a very lovely HEA...I would recommend to any lover of historical romance.
I really enjoyed this super sweet romance about Lord Gabriel and his nurse, Samantha.
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They both had prickly personalities with enough softness in them to make them endearing. I was totally surprised by part of the story which was most likely obvious to many, but I was oblivious, and it was a wonderful moment for me as so little in reading romance surprises me after reading so many of them.All in all an endearing story with a very lovely HEA...I would recommend to any lover of historical romance.
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LibraryThing member mom2lnb
Yours Until Dawn kind of reminded me of the story of Helen Keller and Annie Sullivan. Gabriel, the blind hero, is stubbornly independent, bumbling his way around the house, because he can't stand to be coddled, yet at the same time he can get worked up into childish piques of temper that have him
Yours Until Dawn was a likable and entertaining story, but during the first half or so of the book, I found my mind wandering a bit. I think part of the reason for this is that the character development seemed to be somewhat lacking. The author hints at past heartbreak for both Gabriel and Samantha but never takes it much further than that. I just kept finding myself eager to know more about them, but not discovering much. Then there were the snippets of correspondence that act as epigraphs for each chapter. I have to admit that initially I was completely baffled as to their purpose. As the story progressed, Ms. Medeiros revealed enough information for me to realize that they were excerpts from love letters that Gabriel had written to Cecily, the woman he had loved and who had abandoned him after learning of his blindness. Even still, I was a little confused about their meaning, but decided that they were there to demonstrate the confident, charming man that Gabriel had been before his battle injuries had robbed him of his sight. As it turns out, I wasn't entirely correct, because a little over halfway into the novel, the author threw me a major curve ball that I didn't see coming until I was right on top of it, at which point, everything came together to make perfect sense. Then the ambiguous character development which I had initially viewed as a weakness wasn't quite as big of an issue anymore. Even though I still wanted somewhat deeper characterizations, I 'm not sure how the author could have accomplished that and still told the same story.
Although it didn't quite reach the heights of perfections for me, Yours Until Dawn was still an enjoyable read. I think it was generally a little lighter and more cheerful than I was expecting given the subject matter. Gabriel was tortured by his affliction, but perhaps not to the extreme of some other romance heroes I've read. Samantha is a little tortured by her past actions too, but again not in an extreme way. I think this just left me with the feeling that there wasn't as much depth of emotion as there should have been. I also wasn't entirely sensing the love connection. At first, it just seemed like they were only falling in love because Gabriel felt challenged by Samantha and she felt empathy for his situation. However, once it got to the plot twist, the story took a very touching turn. After that, I was very much on board with this couple finding their HEA. I do wish that Samantha hadn't kept running from Gabriel quite so much and had just stood her ground and told him the truth. In the end though, she finally found her courage, so alls well that ends well, I suppose. Yours Until Dawn was perhaps a bit too neat and tidy of a story for my taste with everything coming together a little too perfectly, but in spite of that, it was still an entertaining read that had some decent emotion without being too angsty and was lighthearted without being silly. In some ways it reminded me of the one Julia Quinn book I read a while back, so fans of hers may enjoy Teresa Medeiros's style as well. Yours Until Dawn was my first book by Ms. Medeiros, but it has definitely left me open to trying others by her in the future.
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deliberately destroying things in frustration. Samantha is an admirable heroine who is equally stubborn and determined to prove to Gabriel that his life isn't over just because he's lost his sight, and that with some work, he can lead a fulfilling and relatively normal existence. The banter between Gabriel and Samantha could be quite amusing, especially when he is trying everything in his power to make her resign her position as his nurse, but she persevered with long-suffering dignity, doing everything he asked of her even though he was making a complete pest of himself. I thought that it was very sweet how Samantha was able to bring little joys back into Gabriel's life. The game of blind man's bluff with the servants was hilarious, and the little puppy she brought home for him was just too cute. It was funny how Gabriel's griped and grumbled about the dog, but then was a total pushover for the little beast. While not exactly a seeing eye dog, Sam certainly earned his keep. Best of all, I liked how Samantha stood up to Gabriel's family when they tried to treat him like an invalid. It's no wonder he didn't want them around.Yours Until Dawn was a likable and entertaining story, but during the first half or so of the book, I found my mind wandering a bit. I think part of the reason for this is that the character development seemed to be somewhat lacking. The author hints at past heartbreak for both Gabriel and Samantha but never takes it much further than that. I just kept finding myself eager to know more about them, but not discovering much. Then there were the snippets of correspondence that act as epigraphs for each chapter. I have to admit that initially I was completely baffled as to their purpose. As the story progressed, Ms. Medeiros revealed enough information for me to realize that they were excerpts from love letters that Gabriel had written to Cecily, the woman he had loved and who had abandoned him after learning of his blindness. Even still, I was a little confused about their meaning, but decided that they were there to demonstrate the confident, charming man that Gabriel had been before his battle injuries had robbed him of his sight. As it turns out, I wasn't entirely correct, because a little over halfway into the novel, the author threw me a major curve ball that I didn't see coming until I was right on top of it, at which point, everything came together to make perfect sense. Then the ambiguous character development which I had initially viewed as a weakness wasn't quite as big of an issue anymore. Even though I still wanted somewhat deeper characterizations, I 'm not sure how the author could have accomplished that and still told the same story.
Although it didn't quite reach the heights of perfections for me, Yours Until Dawn was still an enjoyable read. I think it was generally a little lighter and more cheerful than I was expecting given the subject matter. Gabriel was tortured by his affliction, but perhaps not to the extreme of some other romance heroes I've read. Samantha is a little tortured by her past actions too, but again not in an extreme way. I think this just left me with the feeling that there wasn't as much depth of emotion as there should have been. I also wasn't entirely sensing the love connection. At first, it just seemed like they were only falling in love because Gabriel felt challenged by Samantha and she felt empathy for his situation. However, once it got to the plot twist, the story took a very touching turn. After that, I was very much on board with this couple finding their HEA. I do wish that Samantha hadn't kept running from Gabriel quite so much and had just stood her ground and told him the truth. In the end though, she finally found her courage, so alls well that ends well, I suppose. Yours Until Dawn was perhaps a bit too neat and tidy of a story for my taste with everything coming together a little too perfectly, but in spite of that, it was still an entertaining read that had some decent emotion without being too angsty and was lighthearted without being silly. In some ways it reminded me of the one Julia Quinn book I read a while back, so fans of hers may enjoy Teresa Medeiros's style as well. Yours Until Dawn was my first book by Ms. Medeiros, but it has definitely left me open to trying others by her in the future.
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LibraryThing member Fairydragonstar
Funny and loaded with chemistry
LibraryThing member macaron91
Excellent. Teresa Medeiros is such a great writer. She doesn't try to arouse our pity for the hero. As strange as it sounds, I laughed most of the time.
LibraryThing member aoibhealfae
I read a bunch of Teresa Medeiros while I was in highschool and it was until recently that someone made me remember the plot in Yours Until Dawn that I choose to reread it again out of boredom.
The book started by introducing Samantha Wickersham, a nurse arriving at Fairchild Park to attend to a
Unlike any other historical romance, the book doesn't restrict itself according to the genre. It carried itself in a simple light-hearted way around the subject matter. Half of the book is about Sam's struggle with Gabriel's beastly ways that was mostly comedic and rather enjoyable. However, it was leading to the end of the book that things got more than a bit heated as they became trusted companions and lovers before one of them choose to leave the other for a good reason.
It's an enjoyable and a tame story about love, forgiveness and trust. About how two character, one who learn from the mistake done and tries to fix it and another who learn to trust and open to more possibilities and to others.
The book started by introducing Samantha Wickersham, a nurse arriving at Fairchild Park to attend to a
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recent war hero who became blinded and heartbroken after his fiance left him. Gabriel Fairchild is a stubborn and very proud young lord who had his sight and love robbed from him. He blamed himself deeply as he did against everyone around him. The presence of a nurse hired by his absent family who never know how to handle him had somehow hurt his feelings so he went all out like a tantrum boy and brood alone in his estate.Unlike any other historical romance, the book doesn't restrict itself according to the genre. It carried itself in a simple light-hearted way around the subject matter. Half of the book is about Sam's struggle with Gabriel's beastly ways that was mostly comedic and rather enjoyable. However, it was leading to the end of the book that things got more than a bit heated as they became trusted companions and lovers before one of them choose to leave the other for a good reason.
It's an enjoyable and a tame story about love, forgiveness and trust. About how two character, one who learn from the mistake done and tries to fix it and another who learn to trust and open to more possibilities and to others.
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LibraryThing member aoibhealfae
I read a bunch of Teresa Medeiros while I was in highschool and it was until recently that someone made me remember the plot in Yours Until Dawn that I choose to reread it again out of boredom.
The book started by introducing Samantha Wickersham, a nurse arriving at Fairchild Park to attend to a
Unlike any other historical romance, the book doesn't restrict itself according to the genre. It carried itself in a simple light-hearted way around the subject matter. Half of the book is about Sam's struggle with Gabriel's beastly ways that was mostly comedic and rather enjoyable. However, it was leading to the end of the book that things got more than a bit heated as they became trusted companions and lovers before one of them choose to leave the other for a good reason.
It's an enjoyable and a tame story about love, forgiveness and trust. About how two character, one who learn from the mistake done and tries to fix it and another who learn to trust and open to more possibilities and to others.
The book started by introducing Samantha Wickersham, a nurse arriving at Fairchild Park to attend to a
Show More
recent war hero who became blinded and heartbroken after his fiance left him. Gabriel Fairchild is a stubborn and very proud young lord who had his sight and love robbed from him. He blamed himself deeply as he did against everyone around him. The presence of a nurse hired by his absent family who never know how to handle him had somehow hurt his feelings so he went all out like a tantrum boy and brood alone in his estate.Unlike any other historical romance, the book doesn't restrict itself according to the genre. It carried itself in a simple light-hearted way around the subject matter. Half of the book is about Sam's struggle with Gabriel's beastly ways that was mostly comedic and rather enjoyable. However, it was leading to the end of the book that things got more than a bit heated as they became trusted companions and lovers before one of them choose to leave the other for a good reason.
It's an enjoyable and a tame story about love, forgiveness and trust. About how two character, one who learn from the mistake done and tries to fix it and another who learn to trust and open to more possibilities and to others.
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LibraryThing member grapeapril75
I loved this book!! The story was engaging and heartbreaking at the same time!! Nice amount of steam to keep ya warm! Definitelt a favorite!
LibraryThing member dukedukegoose
3.5/5 stars
I have an interesting history with Theresa Medeiros. Okay. That's a total lie. I have a history of 2.5-3.5 starred books with Theresa Medeiros, even when they come incredibly highly recommended. This is just another such example.
To set the stage, the Earl of Sheffield (Gabriel) used to
Enter Samantha Wickersham, nurse extraordinaire. Gabriel's butler and housekeeper have been trying, with very little luck, to hire a nurse to help him acclimate to his new existence of being blind. To say that things haven't gone swimmingly is an understatement. Three nurses have tried and failed, either giving up or being run off by a very temperamental disabled Earl. He refuses to make allowances for his newfound circumstances, and chooses instead to be an utter beast about it.
In case I'm not making it clear, this novel is, in essentials, a Beauty & the Beast retelling with a twist. There's no magic curse, merely a war wound. And there's no crazy father, just some big secrets. But all the other elements are present.
I can't say what it is precisely that never pushes Medeiros' writing from "like" to "love" for me, but I think a lot of it tries and fails in her love scenes. They're a little too floral and sweet for my tastes. Not that I need things to be erotic (because erotica often is too floral and bizarre for my tastes). But I would much rather call a clit a clit and a dick a dick and be done with it. None of these swords of passions, or nubbins of ecstasy. But that tends to be a YMMV situation.
And if the rest of the novel was inspiring enough, I don't think the sex scenes would bother me too much, but by the end of this novel I, quite honestly, was a little perturbed by the relationship. I think I might be alone in this. But the entire relationship was built on a fraud, and once that fraud was discovered, the subsequent defraudings were all sort of forgiven under the blanket of, "I thought lying to you and having you fall in love with me under false pretenses was a good idea???? I DIDN'T MEAN FOR IT TO HAPPEN????"
At the end of the day, that's just not one of those tropes I like to shrug off. I would rather the Big Misunderstanding to happen 3/5's of the way through so the back 40% of the book can be spent taking care of business instead of the back 5% being devoted to clearing up a misunderstanding that isn't even revealed until the back 10%. If the Big Misunderstanding had been anything other than what it was (to be vague enough not to ruin the book for anyone) I think I could've forgiven the timing. But as it was, it's a lovely book. I certainly wouldn't tell anyone not to read it. It just didn't quite live up to my expectations.
I have an interesting history with Theresa Medeiros. Okay. That's a total lie. I have a history of 2.5-3.5 starred books with Theresa Medeiros, even when they come incredibly highly recommended. This is just another such example.
To set the stage, the Earl of Sheffield (Gabriel) used to
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be Super Handsome but he joined the Navy to prove his worth to the woman he loved and was subsequently disfigured and blinded in the Battle of Trafalgar. After being brought home, something of a hero, he is spurned by his lady love when she visits him at the hospital during his recovery, or so he thinks. Enter Samantha Wickersham, nurse extraordinaire. Gabriel's butler and housekeeper have been trying, with very little luck, to hire a nurse to help him acclimate to his new existence of being blind. To say that things haven't gone swimmingly is an understatement. Three nurses have tried and failed, either giving up or being run off by a very temperamental disabled Earl. He refuses to make allowances for his newfound circumstances, and chooses instead to be an utter beast about it.
In case I'm not making it clear, this novel is, in essentials, a Beauty & the Beast retelling with a twist. There's no magic curse, merely a war wound. And there's no crazy father, just some big secrets. But all the other elements are present.
I can't say what it is precisely that never pushes Medeiros' writing from "like" to "love" for me, but I think a lot of it tries and fails in her love scenes. They're a little too floral and sweet for my tastes. Not that I need things to be erotic (because erotica often is too floral and bizarre for my tastes). But I would much rather call a clit a clit and a dick a dick and be done with it. None of these swords of passions, or nubbins of ecstasy. But that tends to be a YMMV situation.
And if the rest of the novel was inspiring enough, I don't think the sex scenes would bother me too much, but by the end of this novel I, quite honestly, was a little perturbed by the relationship. I think I might be alone in this. But the entire relationship was built on a fraud, and once that fraud was discovered, the subsequent defraudings were all sort of forgiven under the blanket of, "I thought lying to you and having you fall in love with me under false pretenses was a good idea???? I DIDN'T MEAN FOR IT TO HAPPEN????"
At the end of the day, that's just not one of those tropes I like to shrug off. I would rather the Big Misunderstanding to happen 3/5's of the way through so the back 40% of the book can be spent taking care of business instead of the back 5% being devoted to clearing up a misunderstanding that isn't even revealed until the back 10%. If the Big Misunderstanding had been anything other than what it was (to be vague enough not to ruin the book for anyone) I think I could've forgiven the timing. But as it was, it's a lovely book. I certainly wouldn't tell anyone not to read it. It just didn't quite live up to my expectations.
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LibraryThing member Dawn772
Really good historical romance that maintained my interest throughout especially the exciting ending. Gabriel is wounded in battle losing his sight. Samantha hires on as his nurse. Stories about people dealing with their handicap are so heart-warming.
LibraryThing member cmlloyd67
"The Dreaded Plot Twist"
Yours Until Dawn suffers from an age old problem in genre related fiction, although not usually in the romance genre, thrillers and mystery novels on the other hand ... the dreaded plot twist. Where the author expends almost all of the their energy to create a great
Don't do this writers! Seriously, the plot twist is not worth it. You can write a perfectly wonderful book without a plot twist. Trust me, it can be done. Plot twists are actually quite hard to pull off. Few people do it well. Actually I'm having troubles thinking of any books that have recently...maybe Henry James Turn of the Screw? Or Dauphne Du Maurie's Rebecca - but those were mystery novels. It's easier to do in the mystery genre.
The best plot twists - can be predicted by a reader, but are so good the reader is thrilled that they figured it out and can't wait for it to happen. Most if not all plot twists are done using an unreliable narrator. We're in the point of view of someone who is either clueless or in denial or doesn't have all the information. The plot twists when we change points of view. Example of this approach is the movie The Sixth Sense. Or when information is revealed to the protagonist - such as the scene in Empire Strikes Back where Darth Vader reveals he's Luke's father. And a good plot twist works regardless of whether or not you've figured it out ahead of time.
In Yours Until Dawn this is unfortunately not the case - while I did figure out the plot twist ahead of time partly because I was aware there was one - from reading reviews on Good Reads and Amazon, I didn't think it made sense and tried to come up with another possibility, but no that was the only scenario that halfway worked. So when it was revealed, I wasn't surprised, nor was I was happy about it. Sort of hoped I was wrong and it was something else. (That is not the reaction you want when doing a plot twist, you don't want the reader to be disappointed and wish it was something else.) Medeiros in her attempt to ensure the reader didn't figure out the plot twist - inserts a lot of red herrings or character related tid-bits to mislead you but they also make you think - okay, this can't be work because well it makes no logical sense and if we ignore logic and it is the twist, then dang, the heroine is a complete nit-wit and not all that likable or sympathetic. Also, in order for the plot twist to come out, and for the hero to find out about it - the writer had to change the hero's circumstances in a rather cliche and somewhat abrupt manner. In short the story became about THE PLOT TWIST.
Shame. Because the writer could have made the plot twist work - either by letting the reader in on it or by placing the entire story in just one point of view. But no, she wanted her cake and eat it too and as a result it ruined a perfectly good story.
Yours Until Dawn suffers from an age old problem in genre related fiction, although not usually in the romance genre, thrillers and mystery novels on the other hand ... the dreaded plot twist. Where the author expends almost all of the their energy to create a great
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jaw-dropping plot twist, and it must be jaw-dropping, it must take the reader completely by surprise. And it will not be revealed until the last 50 or so pages of the novel. And they succeed - it is a plot twist...that no reader could possibly predict, mainly because it doesn't make a lot of sense and the writer had to jump through hoops to make it work, in some cases not all destroy characters, and often jump outside the realm of logic. So the reader as result is left sputtering in rage and disbelief. Don't do this writers! Seriously, the plot twist is not worth it. You can write a perfectly wonderful book without a plot twist. Trust me, it can be done. Plot twists are actually quite hard to pull off. Few people do it well. Actually I'm having troubles thinking of any books that have recently...maybe Henry James Turn of the Screw? Or Dauphne Du Maurie's Rebecca - but those were mystery novels. It's easier to do in the mystery genre.
The best plot twists - can be predicted by a reader, but are so good the reader is thrilled that they figured it out and can't wait for it to happen. Most if not all plot twists are done using an unreliable narrator. We're in the point of view of someone who is either clueless or in denial or doesn't have all the information. The plot twists when we change points of view. Example of this approach is the movie The Sixth Sense. Or when information is revealed to the protagonist - such as the scene in Empire Strikes Back where Darth Vader reveals he's Luke's father. And a good plot twist works regardless of whether or not you've figured it out ahead of time.
In Yours Until Dawn this is unfortunately not the case - while I did figure out the plot twist ahead of time partly because I was aware there was one - from reading reviews on Good Reads and Amazon, I didn't think it made sense and tried to come up with another possibility, but no that was the only scenario that halfway worked. So when it was revealed, I wasn't surprised, nor was I was happy about it. Sort of hoped I was wrong and it was something else. (That is not the reaction you want when doing a plot twist, you don't want the reader to be disappointed and wish it was something else.) Medeiros in her attempt to ensure the reader didn't figure out the plot twist - inserts a lot of red herrings or character related tid-bits to mislead you but they also make you think - okay, this can't be work because well it makes no logical sense and if we ignore logic and it is the twist, then dang, the heroine is a complete nit-wit and not all that likable or sympathetic. Also, in order for the plot twist to come out, and for the hero to find out about it - the writer had to change the hero's circumstances in a rather cliche and somewhat abrupt manner. In short the story became about THE PLOT TWIST.
Shame. Because the writer could have made the plot twist work - either by letting the reader in on it or by placing the entire story in just one point of view. But no, she wanted her cake and eat it too and as a result it ruined a perfectly good story.
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LibraryThing member lydia1879
So, this book wasn't too bad. I'm honestly not going to pretend that I read this book for any other reason other than to put me to sleep during a stressful time at uni. Desperate times call for desperate measures. But, let's see.
Gratuitously attractive, tortured male meets gratuitously attractive
... That's a bit harsh. This book was actually alright. The writing could've been a lot worse, the characterisation was a little bit limp but there was a nice little twist at the end. I cringed at some lines, but some lines were interesting.
I liked the female character, Samantha, she was pretty sassy. The most interesting part of this book was the fact that the male protagonist, Gabriel, is blind, so it's interesting to see him deal with that.
Gratuitously attractive, tortured male meets gratuitously attractive
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girl. Circumstances keep them apart for whatever reason, something happens, they're together.... That's a bit harsh. This book was actually alright. The writing could've been a lot worse, the characterisation was a little bit limp but there was a nice little twist at the end. I cringed at some lines, but some lines were interesting.
I liked the female character, Samantha, she was pretty sassy. The most interesting part of this book was the fact that the male protagonist, Gabriel, is blind, so it's interesting to see him deal with that.
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LibraryThing member Lauren2013
Yours Until Dawn
4.5 Stars
After losing his sight at the Battle of Trafalgar and being abandoned by the woman he adored, Gabriel Fairchild, Earl of Sheffield, has sequestered himself at his country estate to lick his wounds. Convinced that she can help him cope with his disability, prim and proper
Yes, this is another retelling of Beauty and the Beast - What can I say? I love this trope.
Mederios's version contains several original elements that contribute significantly to the story. To begin with, her portrayal of Gabriel's blindness, both in terms of the physical realities and psychological stresses, is very realistic. Second, Gabriel and Samantha's adversarial relationship, with its verbal sparring and slow-burn chemistry, is a typical representation of the theme; however, the twist revolving aroundher real identity is delightful even if it is easy to guess.
Several reviewers have highlighted certain issues that I personally did not find objectionable. First, themiraculous return of Gabriel's sight is not only believable but is also crucial for the progression of the plot following the revelation of "Samantha's" secret . Second, Gabriel's failure to recognize that Cecily and Samantha are one and the same, and the idea that he ostensibly "cheats" make sense within the narrative as it is clear that Gabriel's love for Samantha is actually an extension of his love for Cecily and perhaps he even suspected the truth on a subconscious level. After all, he basically falls in love with the same woman twice. .
Overall, this is a well-written romance with engaging characters and a surprising twist or two. I will definitely be reading more books by this author.
4.5 Stars
After losing his sight at the Battle of Trafalgar and being abandoned by the woman he adored, Gabriel Fairchild, Earl of Sheffield, has sequestered himself at his country estate to lick his wounds. Convinced that she can help him cope with his disability, prim and proper
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nurse Samantha Wickersham engages in a battle of wills with the arrogant and angry earl who will do anything to rid himself of the shrewish spinster - at least that is what he tells himself... Yes, this is another retelling of Beauty and the Beast - What can I say? I love this trope.
Mederios's version contains several original elements that contribute significantly to the story. To begin with, her portrayal of Gabriel's blindness, both in terms of the physical realities and psychological stresses, is very realistic. Second, Gabriel and Samantha's adversarial relationship, with its verbal sparring and slow-burn chemistry, is a typical representation of the theme; however, the twist revolving around
Several reviewers have highlighted certain issues that I personally did not find objectionable. First, the
Overall, this is a well-written romance with engaging characters and a surprising twist or two. I will definitely be reading more books by this author.
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LibraryThing member N.W.Moors
This was highly recommended, but I guess it wasn't just for me. Gabriel Fairchild has returned from the battle of Trafalgar scarred and blinded. He's roaring around his estate until nurse Samantha comes to take him in hand, so a Beauty and the Beast retelling, which is one of my favorite tropes.
There's a twist but I thought it too ridiculous, so maybe I can be excused for not seeing it coming. I just couldn't suspend my belief enough to buy this story. Gabriel and Samantha are fine, he the handsome but proud rake while she's the bookish female. It's a quick read, but I guess I hoped for more.
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Gabriel only goes into the Navy to prove his worth to his secretly betrothed Cecily, but she runs away once she sees him in the hospital. There's a twist but I thought it too ridiculous, so maybe I can be excused for not seeing it coming. I just couldn't suspend my belief enough to buy this story. Gabriel and Samantha are fine, he the handsome but proud rake while she's the bookish female. It's a quick read, but I guess I hoped for more.
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Subjects
Language
Original publication date
2004-08-01
Physical description
384 p.; 6.82 inches
ISBN
0060513659 / 9780060513658