The Black Earl

By Candace Camp

Book Overview

Determined to rescue her brother from their hated uncle Godfrey, Lady Elizabeth of Beaufort appeals to the Black Earl, Goddrey's enemy, who must choose between his desire for Elizabeth and his hatred... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0061082686
• ISBN13: 9780061082689
• Release Date: April 1995
• Publisher: HarperTorch
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 0.39 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 4.2" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

An Earl to die for

This book was the very first historical romance I read, and I absolutely fell in love with it. Having just read it again recently, I must say that I have mixed feelings about it. Whereas before I would have given it 5 stars in a heartbeat, I am now taking off half a star. The story starts out well. We see Elizabeth and her brother Stephen under their uncle's wing who treats them cruelly. One day Elizabeth hears his uncle talk about Richard, known as The Black Earl. She learns that Richard has sworn revenge against her uncle, who was responsible for the murder of his parents and their previous sufferings. She decides to take the ultimate risk by going to him and throwing herself at his mercy to try and save herself and Stephen. You will admire her courage for doing so, as we are told how Richard is supposed to be merciless and possesses a black soul. Fast forward and we see them get married. Richard takes Elizabeth back to his home, and here we suddenly see a complete turnaround in her character. She is rude to Gwendolyne, thinking the woman beneath her, as she was Richard's late father's mistress and the mother of his illegitimate brother, James, whom Elizabeth also dislikes. Then she's not the most sympathetic of her servants. And all this time, Richard has shown nothing but kindness to her. Now I don't exactly hate Elizabeth, but the author could have painted her in a better light, seeing as how there was nothing to hate about Richard's character, so this is ensure to make most readers dislike Elizabeth for this reason. I agree with the other review that the main attraction to this book is Richard himself. He is to die for. And yes, you will fall in love with him even more when you read the scene of him with his daughter - it is oh so tender! Just priceless! This is so far the only Candace Camp book I have read, but if the heroes in her other books are all like Richard, then I look forward to reading her other novels.