Red, Red Rose

by Marjorie Farrell

A nominee for the Romantic Times's Lifetime Achievement Award pairs an officer's daughter with a brave Regency soldier who rescues her from the predations of Spanish bandits but cannot escape his own past to return her affections. Original.

Genres: Historical Romance, Romance, Historical, Historical Fiction

320 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published February 1, 1999

Reviews

[Aneca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first got this book because I heard it was set in Portugal and one can't actually resist a book set in our own country now can we?


I am glad to say I did not find any errors in what concerns the usage of the setting, Farrell mostly sticks to mentioning the sites of the most famous battles and it was probably the best course of action. Regarding the story itself I did like it very much.


It had original, strong, characters in both the hero and the heroine. The hero is Valentine Aston, as a young boy he discovered he was the bastard so of an Earl and even if his half brother later rescued him from a life of hard work and abuse he can never forgive his father for what, he believes, he has done his mother. He also doesn't feel worthy of being the gentleman his brother wants him to be and ends up running away to the army at an early age.


The heroine is Elspeth Gordon, a major's daughter who has been following the drum with her mother. Now they are in Portugal and they meet when her coach is under attack and Val rescues her. They have to spend some nights on the road and, while Val as a gentleman feels like he should offer for her, he also believes he is unworthy to do so because he is a bastard.


Fortunately Elspeth’s family is as sensible as original and they just make him a part of the group of friends they frequently invite to dinner. This allows Elspeth and Val to get to know each other better and they soon fall for each other. However, it will take extraordinary circumstances to bring them together and for Val to accept his birthright.


Also central to the plot is a mystery, about who maybe selling intelligence to the French and why, and I thought that added even more interest to the romance.


Grade: 4/5

[Cc · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐'s I put 4 bc it was too good to round down. However, it's a slog getting through about half of it. For me it was more history book (accurate, some authorial leeway was used as to the French reasons for lasting the winter in Portugal, but it was very plausible and needed for the story line) than a romance. I didn't feel any real connection between our MC's. Writing style was more tell than show, but well done for all that. I know I seem like I'm damning with faint praise and I guess I am, but it's still head and shoulders above quite a few new "historical" romances. I finally found this available on my digital library subscription, so I didn't pay for it. If your interested in it, I'd rec trying to get it that way or borrowing it.

[Brontesruleromance · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

CW: Sexual abuse of young boys by an older one at a boarding school. When Val reported it after fighting the predator, the headmaster simply said "Yes, that happens from time to time. Boys living together. Young men being what they are." Never made a move to expel or even discipline the guilty party! 👿

When 8-year-old Valentine's mother passes away, he goes from being loved and valued to living a harsh existence with his aunt and brutal uncle. Then one day in his fifteenth year, he gets a surprise visitor.

There was a lot of focus on war in this book - battles, espionage, life in the camp, and as a scout. I skimmed most of it. There were also secrets, misunderstandings, and a mystery.

I thought the sweetest part was the love between Valentine and his half-brother, Charlie.

[Priscilla Waller · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this wonderful book years ago The characters and their story have stayed with me. I’m so glad to have it available on Kindle (My copy is so old that the pages are deep yellow)
The story is a Regency, set in Spain during the Penninsula Campaign and in England after the war.
The plot is a “tear jerker” but good entertainment.

[H2bourne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very well-written story with complexity and depth of characters. The relationships between all the characters are well-developed. This is not strictly a romance in that it involves warfare, struggles between social classes, unconventional lifestyles, espionage and intrigue. The prologue examines an all-boys school where a few of the older students, all aristocratic sons, molest some of the younger boys. This is where the main character, Valentine Aston, the illegitimate son of Charles Faringdon, the Earl of Faringdon, comes to the rescue of a younger boy who has been abused by Lord Stanton. While it is a disturbing topic the author deals with it in a forthright manner rather than using graphic or inappropriate language. Val gives Stanton a severe beating and is sent down from school because of it. Rather than turning to his father, he enlists with the army and is sent off at the age of 16. Val keeps in touch with his younger half-brother through letters over the years and sees him only on a few occasions. The total acceptance by Charlie of his older half-brother causes them to forge a close bond. Later, they are reunited in Portugal as Charlie is now also in the military. They spend time together and draw even closer. At one point before a battle Charlie gives Val his ring, the crest of Faringdon, for safekeeping. Charles makes Val promise to return the ring to their father personally if anything should happen to him. Unfortunately Val must keep that promise. In the meantime Val's friendship with Elspeth Gordon, daughter of Major Ian Gordon, continues developing. After Charlie's death, it becomes more, and he offers marriage due to the circumstances. While they both love each other it is not declared openly and their marriage begins with a sense of companionship and close friendship. As the story unfolds, we see the tough decisions that Val must make between friendship, especially as it pertains to the Marquess of Wimborne, James Lambert, who treated Val as an equal during their school days, and duty to country when a traitor is discovered. There are interesting and humorous secondary characters that add to the plot like Mags Chase and Will Tallman as well as Juan Sanchez and Jack Belden. This cannot be classified as a clean romance as it does contain scenes of intimacy but, again, the author does not graphically describe anything in a titillating fashion so neither is it erotica. She handles things in a realistic manner and doesn't dwell too long on the few scenes described. Overall, this is a well-told, complex story with real heft to the characters and plot. It is not a fluffy romance with stereotypical characters where everything is wrapped up neatly by novel's end. Having said that, this is a very satisfying read where things do work out in the end but not as you may expect. This is a solid 4-1/2 stars.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been on a historical romance kick recently and this book was a nice and pleasant read.

Overall I really enjoyed this book and how the narrative is mainly from the hero's perspective. The characters were nicely developed and there was sufficient variety of personalities and attraction between the main characters to keep me entertained.

The only reason why I did not give this book 5 stars was because there were certain points where something happened and was already described in sufficient detail, but the same happening was described several more times in conversations between the characters. I found this a bit repetitive and skimmed through those instances.

I would however, highly recommend this book because it was total feel good and inspiring read.

[Elaine Hamner-Yard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bravo, Great story

A delightful adventure on the dusty plains of Spain during the Napoleonic battles. Complete with spying, intrigues, Class division, a love story between a lieutenant and a Majors daughter whose family are camp followers. Their lives are different from the laundresses and others. But they are intertwined. The carriage attack and escape is worthy of an American western but the
Confrontation with the spy in parliament is breath taking. The ending is a surprise but follows the history of the times, yet so modern. A great story worthy of a re-read. The author has done her homework!!

[Kimberly Hart · Rating 3 out of 5]

Somewhat interesting historical fluff book. Had a great story line but then the ending was just anti-climatic. Bastard son of an earl is found by his younger half brother- they serve in the English Army together- younger brother is killed in service and the Earl then claims the older brother as his son. Love, war etc.

[Susannah Carleton · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/2 stars. A delightful story of an earl's bastard son's Army career as an exploring officer and the unconventional daughter of a higher-ranking soldier who fall in love, but must overcome a number of obstacles before they achieve their happily ever after.

[Debby · Rating 2 out of 5]

Valentine Aston never knew he was the bastard son of the Earl of Faringdon until hes mother died when he was 8 and he's sent to live with his aunt and blacksmith uncle. At 15 his love changed again, when his younger half brother showed up at the smith and convinced him to return home with him. Charlie loved him unconditionally, and Val was sent to school with him. A year later, Val was expelled for beating up another student who was molesting a younger boy. Instead of returning to the Earl, he joins the army. Twelve years later hie's in Portugal fighting under Wellington. There he meets Elspeth Gordon, the granddaughter of an Earl, but one who's followed the drum with her parents all of her life.

There's a mutual attraction, which Val refuses to acknowledge because of his parentage. He's also trying to uncover a spy for Napoleon. Eventually he compromises and marries Elspeth after Charlie is killed and reconciles with his father. A hard book to read - subplot of a catamite, a homosexual friend run throughout. Not a light read, but probably historically accurate.