Catherine Coulter
Pendragon (2001)
Author: Catherine Coulter
Genre: Romance (Historical)
Plot Summary:
Meggie Sherbrooke, the eighteen year-old scion of the famous Sherbrooke family, is attending her first London season at the home of her aunt and uncle. At her very first ball, she runs into a distance family relation, Jeremy Staton-Greville, and presumes herself in love with him. However, Jeremy is already engaged to the beautiful Charlotte, and soon after he marries her, breaking Meggie's heart. After Meggie returns to her family's home in Scotland, where her father is the vicar, she meets the new Lord Lancaster, Thomas Malcombe, who is in town wrapping up his father's estate. Thomas is immediately smitten and tries to attract Meggie's attention, but without much success, as she is still heartbroken over Jeremy's marriage. His luck soon changes, after Meggie's brother falls ill with scarlet fever, and he provides the medicine which restores him to health. After this, their relationship grows closer, and after a disastrous visit from Jeremy, Meggie agrees to marry Thomas. The marriage is almost thwarted when it is revealed that Thomas has a younger, half-brother, with a penchant for seducing young women and getting them in the family way, leaving his brother to clean up his messes, but after an initial misunderstanding, the hurdle is removed. Meggie and Thomas marry, but not long after Thomas overhears a conversation between Meggie and her father in which she relates that she still has feelings for Jeremy. Thomas is heartbroken, and thus, their wedding night procedes disastrously. Nevertheless, the couple recovers and heads on to Thomas's Irish estate, Pendragon. They are welcomed to town by the recent murder of a popular tavernkeeper's wife, the resentment of Thomas's mother and aunt, their lacivious neighbor, Lord Kipper, and soon after, the arrival of Thomas's half-brother William. Meggie and Thomas's mother Madeleine, clash over the administration of the household, and not soon after, Meggie begins to be repeatedly attacked in her home by a mysterious figure. Someone wants her dead. Matters are further complicated as it soon comes to light that William has gotten Jenny, a local girl, pregnant, and Thomas orders him to marry her, to the chagrin of most of the family. Under stress, Thomas admits that he overheard Meggie's conversation with her father, and Meggie, who no longer is in love with Jerermy, but not sure if she loves Thomas yet, tries to disabuse him of his notions. Thomas remains unconvinced, but hopeful that Meggie will grow to love him. Not soon after their reconciliation, Jenny, William's bethrothed, disappears, and Meggie is again attacked. Somebody wants Pendragon to wifeless, and the whole household has their theories of who it is. When Meggie's father and mother, along with cousin Jeremy, come for a visit, things escalate, and Meggie is kidnapped as well. SPOILER: Meggie awakens to find that she is in the clutches of Lord Kipper, who is really William's father. He is determined to eliminate any obstacles, such as Meggie, Jenny, and eventually Thomas, who stand in the way of his son William, inheriting Pendragon and becoming Lord Lancaster in his place. Jenny and Meggie work together to defeat Lord Kipper, and his accomplice (the popular tavern keeper whose wife was recently murdered), and when Thomas finally tracks them down, with Meggie's family and beloved cousin Jeremy in tow, Meggie proclaims that she loves him. The end of the tale is the entire family, including Jenny, and Thomas's newly recalcitrant mother, participating in a cat race together.
Geographical Setting: Ireland, London, England, and rural Scotland.
Time Period: 1824, just after the Historical Regency.
Series: The first in the next generation "Bride" series, which recount the details of the next generation of the Sherbrooke family. Before was the original "Bride" series, featuring the aunts and uncles of Pendragon in their own tales.
Appeal Characteristics:
Frequent readers of Catherine Coulter, particularly of her Brideseries will enjoy her familiar plots, with their many twists and turns, and comical misunderstandings. Readers who have previously enjoyed the Sherbrooke family, or who like reoccuring characters, will like reading about Meggie and Thomas, whose likes and dislikes, and backstories are well-formed. There is also a shallowly drawn, yet colorful cast of secondary characters, who provide much of the humor and wit in this quirky tale. Those who enjoy the Regency period will definitely find themselves in familiar territory-although it does not take place in the Regency period proper, the date of 1824 occurs right after, and most of the fashion and mores of the time are well-preserved. Although we don't find out much of the setting detail, we do get a nice picture of rural Ireland and Scotland, as well as a bit of metropolitan London. Coulter's tone throughout the book is light and witty, although at times it can be suspenseful; if you are looking for purely a light-hearted romance, this may be a little too dark. Most importantly for the romance genre, Coulter provides us with a spicy and romantic plot-line; her descriptions are somewhat explicit, but they never go over the top.
Read-alikes: If you liked Catherine Coulter's Pendragon, you will likely enjoy a story about the previous Sherbrooke generation, The Heiress Bride. This incarnation stars Meggie's aunt Sinjun as the plucky heroine, who marries Colin, and impoverished Scottish lord. Sinjun and Colin are a very similar couple to Meggie and Thomas, and their home, in the fields of Scotland, will recall the bleak Irish countryside of the Pendragon estate. The plot is also similar, with the same misunderstandings,plot twists, and light suspense found in Pendragon. If the high-spirited, unconventional heroine is the type of character you crave, you may want to try Whitney, My Love, Judith McNaught's classic story about Whitney, the beautiful, but impoverished daughter of a nobleman who trades her into marriage with their neighbor, the dashing Duke of Claymore. The Regency setting of this piece will recall Pendragon's time period, and those who thought Meggie was daring will find themselves thrilled by Whitney, especially the tempetuous romance between Whitney and the Duke of Claymore. The plot line about Whitney fancying herself in love with her childhood crush, Paul, will also recall the storyline of Meggie's love for her distant relation, Jeremy. If suspense in rural Brittania is what you are after, Julie Garwood's The Bride will be an excellent choice. It follows Jamie, a young English girl forced to marry a Scottish nobleman against her will. Jamie refuses to ever kowtow to her new husband, but eventually the two begin to respect each other as someone begins their attempts on Jamie's life; the same someone who may have killed her husband's first wife! This is definitely reminiscent of the drama in Pendragon, as a new, and wary-of-each-other couple, learn to like, then love one another, particularly in the midst of chaos. If romantic tension is what you crave, especially in the guise of another series, check out The Viscount Who Loved Me,by Julia Quinn. Viscount starts out with the attractive, if somewhat volatile, Kate Sheffield considering a marriage for her lovely and kind sister, Edwina. But when eligible bachelor with a reputation Viscount Anthony, decides to marry Edwina, he didn't intend on meeting, and being attracted to Kate. Viscount Anthony is soon forced to choose between having a lovely bride, or love in his life. The romantic tension between Viscount Anthony and Kate is high, and the level of sensuality is similar to that of Meggie and Thomas. Plus, readers have the added bonus of knowing that The Viscount Who Loved Me is part of Quinn's "The Bridgerton Series". If you liked the Sherbrooke stories, you may also like the Bridgertons. Finally, if you liked how Meggie and Thomas's love unfolded slowly, as well as the highland setting, you may like The Pretender by Jaclyn Reding. When Lady Elizabeth's father sends her to be married to a noblem
an twice her age, she is frantic. However, a chance circumstance runs her carriage off the road, and into a poor, but handsome Scottish farmer. Lady Elizabeth decides to marry him instead of her intended, in a chance to win her freedom. However, the "poor" farmer really ends up being a Scottish lord, who decides to conceal his identity to punish a bride he thinks is using him. The light plot line, and humorous dialogue will appeal to Coulter's readers, and the Scottish setting, the regency time frame, and the gentle but intense love story will, too.
Red Flags: sex
|top|
|
