The Perfect Kiss (Merridew Series)
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle .
Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
More About the Author
Product Description
To rescue her friend... Grace Merridew's childhood has made it hard for her to trust men and in three years on the marriage market, her senses have never been stirred. So she makes plans for a life of adventure instead - to see the moon rise over the pyramids of Egypt and dance amid the marble ruins of Greece. But first she has to help a friend. ...she must enter the lair of the Wolfe. Grace's timid friend is being forced to marry Dominic Wolfe, who stands to inherit a huge estate if he weds. The Wolfes have a terrible reputation, and if there's one thing Grace cannot stand, it's a bully. Her friend begs for help to escape this marriage, so Grace acts as the plain and mousy chaperone on their visit to the groom to be. But when they arrive, nothing is as they expect, and Grace is scandalized to find herself being pursued by a big bad Wolfe with dishonourable intentions.
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
34 of 35 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
This is the last book in the series of the "virtuous" sisters.
This last installment is based on little Grace who we met in all of the books, she is the youngest of the sisters and I think she was only 8/9 when we first met her. In this book she is now almost 21 and she has gone on a trip to help her friend who is being forced into a marriage with a Lord D'Acre (Dominic Wolfe). At first meeting he kisses her and makes her toes curl. He actively pursues her all whilst being engaged to her friend (he is actually a very good character who in a way is also being forced to marry the friend). Anyway this follows Grace who feels like she will never fall in love and be with a man so he tries to avoid what is happening with Dominic but she falls in love with him, but cannot have him because he is marrying her friend.
This book is fantastic and a really good way to end the series of all of the sisters. We meet all of them again at the end of the book and their husbands etc also. The characters of Grace and Dominic are very well written and I liked them both from the start. The secondary characters of their friends are also very good and makes the reader care about what happens to them also.
I will most definately be keeping all of these books on my bookcase and rereading them again in the future.
This last installment is based on little Grace who we met in all of the books, she is the youngest of the sisters and I think she was only 8/9 when we first met her. In this book she is now almost 21 and she has gone on a trip to help her friend who is being forced into a marriage with a Lord D'Acre (Dominic Wolfe). At first meeting he kisses her and makes her toes curl. He actively pursues her all whilst being engaged to her friend (he is actually a very good character who in a way is also being forced to marry the friend). Anyway this follows Grace who feels like she will never fall in love and be with a man so he tries to avoid what is happening with Dominic but she falls in love with him, but cannot have him because he is marrying her friend.
This book is fantastic and a really good way to end the series of all of the sisters. We meet all of them again at the end of the book and their husbands etc also. The characters of Grace and Dominic are very well written and I liked them both from the start. The secondary characters of their friends are also very good and makes the reader care about what happens to them also.
I will most definately be keeping all of these books on my bookcase and rereading them again in the future.
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
The story has already been outlined well enough already so all I will say is that I loved all the books leading up to this one, especially The Perfect Rake and The Perfect Stranger, but The Perfect Kiss just topped the lot! Dominic was such a man! Grace has always been a character. Anne Gracie writes with such humour that I laugh out loud and then she will make me weep! Read them all, you cannot go wrong!
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
17 reviews
19 of 21 people found the following review helpful
3 1/2 stars: starts off well and then...
17 Jan 2007
Format:Mass Market Paperback
A fan of Anne Gracie's, I had been looking forward to this final chapter in her Merridew sisters series. And how I wish that I could report that "The Perfect Kiss" concludes the series on a high note! The uncomfortable truth of the matter is that while "The Perfect Kiss" starts off really strong, it, unfortunately, disintegrates, in my opinion anyway, into a bit of a mess.
The plot for "The Perfect Kiss" is an oft used and very traditional one: thanks to her father's machinations, timid and impoverished Melly Pettifer finds herself suddenly engaged to the rich and forbidding Dominic Wolfe; horrified at the prospect of marrying someone whom she doesn't love and who is insistent that theirs will be a marriage in name only, she turns to her beautiful and well dowered good friend, Grace Merridew to help her get out of this marriage. And while Grace isn't too sure as to how they are going to accomplish this, she finds herself agreeing to help and accompanying Melly and her father to Wolfstone Castle, disguised as a lady's companion. The last thing Grace expected was that she would find herself so dangerously attracted to Dominic Wolf -- or that for her feelings would be so powerfully reciprocated! Has Grace Merridew finally fallen in love? And could the girl who secretly believes that she is not worthy of love actually be loved for her own sake?
"The Perfect Kiss" starts off really well: Anne Grace does a good job of 1) showing us how Grace was traumatized into believing that no one would ever love her by her grandfather (and why she would cling to this belief all these years later even when it has been established that her grandfather was evil and mad); 2) the instant attraction that springs between Grace and Dominic; and 3) of developing the characters of Grace, Dominic and Melly. And she really does do a brilliant job of portraying Dominic -- showing us his past and his emotional scars and how these have made him the stern, almost cold gentleman he is currently until Grace's love changes him for the better. The trouble I had with the book lay after the characters and storyline had been established, and a triangle of sorts was set up -- Dominic, Grace and Melly seemed to wallow in the fact that they were unable to get Melly's father to change his mind about Dominic and Melly getting married -- everyone strikes attitudes but no one does anything concrete. And Dominic's notion to both runaway and to punish Melly struck me as both foolish and boorish. Of course things do get straightened out and everyone lives happily ever after, but I was a tad disappointed that the same author that wrote "The Perfect Rake" & "The Perfect Waltz" failed to completely deliver here. That said, "The Perfect Kiss" is not a badly written or realised book; it's just that it falls a little short when compared to the aforementioned novels. There were a lot of wonderful points about this novel -- like good character development; sizzling chemistry between the hero and heroine; the subplot dealing with how Dominic overcomes his prejudices about Wolfstone Castle and the people there and grows to appreciate his heritage and his responsibility to his people; and the manner in which the author develops the relationship between Dominic and Grace, allowing us to see that it is a lot more than just a physical attraction. It is just unfortunate, in my opinion, that the storyline was allowed to stagnate for a good chunk of the book. All in all a 3 1/2 star read.
The plot for "The Perfect Kiss" is an oft used and very traditional one: thanks to her father's machinations, timid and impoverished Melly Pettifer finds herself suddenly engaged to the rich and forbidding Dominic Wolfe; horrified at the prospect of marrying someone whom she doesn't love and who is insistent that theirs will be a marriage in name only, she turns to her beautiful and well dowered good friend, Grace Merridew to help her get out of this marriage. And while Grace isn't too sure as to how they are going to accomplish this, she finds herself agreeing to help and accompanying Melly and her father to Wolfstone Castle, disguised as a lady's companion. The last thing Grace expected was that she would find herself so dangerously attracted to Dominic Wolf -- or that for her feelings would be so powerfully reciprocated! Has Grace Merridew finally fallen in love? And could the girl who secretly believes that she is not worthy of love actually be loved for her own sake?
"The Perfect Kiss" starts off really well: Anne Grace does a good job of 1) showing us how Grace was traumatized into believing that no one would ever love her by her grandfather (and why she would cling to this belief all these years later even when it has been established that her grandfather was evil and mad); 2) the instant attraction that springs between Grace and Dominic; and 3) of developing the characters of Grace, Dominic and Melly. And she really does do a brilliant job of portraying Dominic -- showing us his past and his emotional scars and how these have made him the stern, almost cold gentleman he is currently until Grace's love changes him for the better. The trouble I had with the book lay after the characters and storyline had been established, and a triangle of sorts was set up -- Dominic, Grace and Melly seemed to wallow in the fact that they were unable to get Melly's father to change his mind about Dominic and Melly getting married -- everyone strikes attitudes but no one does anything concrete. And Dominic's notion to both runaway and to punish Melly struck me as both foolish and boorish. Of course things do get straightened out and everyone lives happily ever after, but I was a tad disappointed that the same author that wrote "The Perfect Rake" & "The Perfect Waltz" failed to completely deliver here. That said, "The Perfect Kiss" is not a badly written or realised book; it's just that it falls a little short when compared to the aforementioned novels. There were a lot of wonderful points about this novel -- like good character development; sizzling chemistry between the hero and heroine; the subplot dealing with how Dominic overcomes his prejudices about Wolfstone Castle and the people there and grows to appreciate his heritage and his responsibility to his people; and the manner in which the author develops the relationship between Dominic and Grace, allowing us to see that it is a lot more than just a physical attraction. It is just unfortunate, in my opinion, that the storyline was allowed to stagnate for a good chunk of the book. All in all a 3 1/2 star read.
17 of 20 people found the following review helpful
Final installment of Merridew sister series saves the best for last
3 Jan 2007
Format:Mass Market Paperback
Grace Merridew has always longed for adventure. Her greastest desire was to travel the world; sail into Venice at dawn or ride a camel in Egypt, only those things would have to wait, that is until she got her timid friend Melly Pettifer out of being forced to marry Dominic Wolfe, Lord D'Acre. Disguised as a maid-companion, Grace sets off with Melly and her father to Wolfestone. When she arrives, its nothing as she expected. The dismal grand castle, devoid of servants, is on its way towards crumbling. The local villagers believe in all sorts of strange folklore. And to top it off, Grace initially mistakes Lord D'Arce for a gypsy. Apparently, its the handsome, tanned, rake-ish gentleman's-with-the-wolf-eyes first visit to his ancestral home as well. Well that's strange! And so are the feelings that Grace has to hide anytime she's around the big bad Wolfe, who decides to make her his delectable prey. A pursuit that will definitely turn into an adventure of a lifetime.
This is a wonderful book. My favorite of the Merridew sister series, although it can be read as a stand alone. Dominic is a fantastic hero, a strong minded man out for revenge against his father. He takes no prisoner's and takes what he wants -Alpha male all the way without being cruel or uncaring. He pursues Grace with a passion creating lots of smoldering sexual tension and several very good love scenes. Strong willed Grace, on the other hand, does her best to avoid any romance, he's her friends fiance for goodness sake! But its difficult when Dominic akins his mission to that of a wolf stalking and taking its prey... -and the lady has been warned!
Add to that a cast of cooky villagers who believe in a ghostly vision of a Grey Lady riding on a white steed, a lake with magical powers, a set of sister's named (I-kid-you-not) the 'Tickels' or a Turk with a long curled mustache with the manner of a king and ....oh...did I mention the harem? You'll just have to read to find those out. ;)
Just a really good book that's different than your average run of the mill regency historical.
This is a wonderful book. My favorite of the Merridew sister series, although it can be read as a stand alone. Dominic is a fantastic hero, a strong minded man out for revenge against his father. He takes no prisoner's and takes what he wants -Alpha male all the way without being cruel or uncaring. He pursues Grace with a passion creating lots of smoldering sexual tension and several very good love scenes. Strong willed Grace, on the other hand, does her best to avoid any romance, he's her friends fiance for goodness sake! But its difficult when Dominic akins his mission to that of a wolf stalking and taking its prey... -and the lady has been warned!
Add to that a cast of cooky villagers who believe in a ghostly vision of a Grey Lady riding on a white steed, a lake with magical powers, a set of sister's named (I-kid-you-not) the 'Tickels' or a Turk with a long curled mustache with the manner of a king and ....oh...did I mention the harem? You'll just have to read to find those out. ;)
Just a really good book that's different than your average run of the mill regency historical.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Less Than Perfect Ending to the Series
18 Feb 2007
Format:Mass Market Paperback
Having read and mostly enjoyed the previous books in Anne Gracie's Merridew Sisters series, I really wanted to like this one. Unfortunately, I found too many aspects problematic and disappointing.
First of all, "The Perfect Kiss" can't seem to make up its mind whether it wants to be a Gothic, a fairy tale, a Manipulative Will story, or a road romance with touches of the exotic. It combines elements of all of the above--a rich, beautiful heroine disguised as a dowdy companion, ancient prophecies trembling on the brink of fulfillment, unreasonable legal conditions forcing two painfully incompatible people together, and a night spent in a harem--but not that successfully. The book might have gotten away with tackling two subgenres, but four?
The characterizations present another difficulty, especially within the context of the plot. In a nutshell: glamorous Grace Merridew masquerades as the aforesaid dowdy companion to help her timid best friend, Melly Pettifer, resist an arranged marriage to a mysterious, much-traveled lord only to fall in love with the prospective groom herself. While not very original, the bare bones of the plot seem serviceable enough -- except that at least one key relationship never rang true for me. Although I was told repeatedly that Grace and Melly were best friends, I felt that I was never shown WHY they were close or what drew them together, despite their different personalities. It was never clear to me why Grace would go to such trouble to help the spineless Melly, and their so-called connection is further weakened by the ease with which Grace repeatedly dallies with Melly's betrothed.
Dominic, the betrothed, does not exactly cover himself with glory either -- ready to abandon his estates and dependents out of a childish desire for revenge against his late father and treating his unwanted fiancee with an indifference bordering on contempt while he energetically pursues her "companion." And while Melly herself is a weepy, spiritless wet noodle, she may still deserve better than to be treated so thoughtlessly by Grace and so callously by Dominic. I found it hard to sympathize with any of them.
In other circumstances, I might have enjoyed Grace and Dominic's romance. Grace's intrepid spirit was one of her more appealing traits in the earlier books and Dominic partially redeems himself when he awakens to his responsibilities as lord of the manor. However, the clunky plot contrivances designed to keep them apart and the couple's rather shabby treatment of the pathetic Melly, who's decidedly not in their weight class, add up to a less than satisfactory read.
First of all, "The Perfect Kiss" can't seem to make up its mind whether it wants to be a Gothic, a fairy tale, a Manipulative Will story, or a road romance with touches of the exotic. It combines elements of all of the above--a rich, beautiful heroine disguised as a dowdy companion, ancient prophecies trembling on the brink of fulfillment, unreasonable legal conditions forcing two painfully incompatible people together, and a night spent in a harem--but not that successfully. The book might have gotten away with tackling two subgenres, but four?
The characterizations present another difficulty, especially within the context of the plot. In a nutshell: glamorous Grace Merridew masquerades as the aforesaid dowdy companion to help her timid best friend, Melly Pettifer, resist an arranged marriage to a mysterious, much-traveled lord only to fall in love with the prospective groom herself. While not very original, the bare bones of the plot seem serviceable enough -- except that at least one key relationship never rang true for me. Although I was told repeatedly that Grace and Melly were best friends, I felt that I was never shown WHY they were close or what drew them together, despite their different personalities. It was never clear to me why Grace would go to such trouble to help the spineless Melly, and their so-called connection is further weakened by the ease with which Grace repeatedly dallies with Melly's betrothed.
Dominic, the betrothed, does not exactly cover himself with glory either -- ready to abandon his estates and dependents out of a childish desire for revenge against his late father and treating his unwanted fiancee with an indifference bordering on contempt while he energetically pursues her "companion." And while Melly herself is a weepy, spiritless wet noodle, she may still deserve better than to be treated so thoughtlessly by Grace and so callously by Dominic. I found it hard to sympathize with any of them.
In other circumstances, I might have enjoyed Grace and Dominic's romance. Grace's intrepid spirit was one of her more appealing traits in the earlier books and Dominic partially redeems himself when he awakens to his responsibilities as lord of the manor. However, the clunky plot contrivances designed to keep them apart and the couple's rather shabby treatment of the pathetic Melly, who's decidedly not in their weight class, add up to a less than satisfactory read.
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
- Books > Romance > Historical
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
