Jo Beverley is usually one of my favorites, a gold standard in the genre. I associate her with intelligence, sharp wit, historical accuracy...not to mention dreamy, sexy heroes and exciting, spicy plots.

But The Shattered Rose? It's not that she's abandoned historical accuracy, just that the wealth of detail that usually colors her novels so richly is absent here....in fact, the writing is unusually bland.

And while there's no sense in trying to imitate medieval speech, why - oh why! - is this book chock full of contemporary idiomatic speech that conveys attitudes and sentiments that would have been unfamiliar or impossible during the middle ages?

And the plot - and the characters - the last thing that I would have expected was a romance about an intelligent, strong-willed, independent woman who turns into a miserable, nasty shrew because she can't have children. I have had enough of romance novels about women who think their lives are ruined because they are barren. Especially when the author goes out of her way to create a hero who is understanding, sympathetic, and willing to look for alternate solutions!

I really appreciate the sincere love between the Jehanne and Galeran, and although it's clear that they have a lot of issues to work out, the novel has no forward momentum. It doesn't have that heart-stopping tension, it doesn't propel you forward with the looming fear that somehow, Jehanne and Galeran might be driven apart. No. From the beginning, it's pretty clear that Jehanne and Galeran will both do whatever is in their power to stay together and it's just a matter of how. ( )