Sunday, April 26, 2015

BOOK REVIEW- THE CREOLE PRINCESS

THE CREOLE PRINCESS- On the colonial Gulf Coast, the beautiful young Lyse Lanier is torn between loyalty to her family and a handsome Spanish stranger with a secret mission.
AMAZON LINK
I really liked this story a lot.   I loved Lyse and Rafa; both apart and together.  The way they meet was spunky and interesting too. Lyse had quite the unusual family tree; with a mixture of peoples (French, Indan, Afrcan, aristocrats, slaves and free). She didn't really feel that the different clashes of nations affected her all that much, until she began to see and experience things first hand.  She craved knowledge and enjoyed her grandfather's library.  She was also smarter than most people realized.  Most just looked at her as poor, trash, not being able to think all that well because she was also just a girl.  They under-estimated her as well as her best friend Daisy ( who was of a higher social standing.)  It was a mistake for anyone who under-estimated either one of them; they were both quite clever.  In the book, they also pulled off some interesting adventures over time.   Rafa saw Lyse quite clearly when it came to her intelligence and caring.  And Lyse saw deeper into the part of Rafa, aside from the well dressed, charming fool he presented himself to be.   Some of the most charming moments came when the two of them were together.  The mystery of Rafa and what he was doing unseen, was well written.
I also enjoyed so many of the secondary characters that were in this book; Simon (brother to Lyse), and all of Lyse's younger brothers and sisters.  Especially her younger brother, Luc-Antoine, and slaves, Scarlet and Cain just to name a few.  I thought that there was a pretty accurate although upsetting portrayal of slave ownership.  Also of the snobbery and arrogance of people towards those who they considered beneath them in social ranking.
There is also Christian prayer but it didn't consume the story.  I believe it added to it.
I also liked the historical infomation that the author added at the back of the book.  Also showed some of the unsung heroes of the American struggle for independence. Also mentioned that there was a prequel to this story called, " The Pelican Brief".   And a story that follows the Lainer family
 called, " The Duchess of Navy Cove."  A excerpt of that story is included.
I liked the choice of cover for this book as well.
I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 

No comments:

Post a Comment