Catherine Winters smiles and curtsies at a gentleman passing her in the street, thinking him to be her landlord, Mr Adams. Instead, he is her landlord's twin brother, Viscount Rawleigh, who assumes that she's throwing out lures. So he pursues her, and eventually makes an improper proposal, which she rejects angrily. Not that he gives up; he continues to pursue her. Although she is attracted to him, she has no wish to become anyone's mistress and keeps refusing him... until the night when he's careless and she's compromised utterly...

One of the things Balogh does really well in this book is to give us an excellent picture of the nature of English society in the Regency era. First we have the claustrophobic village atmosphere, and the incredibly judgemental inhabitants; it's hard to imagine how people could have coped with that. Later, we have London society: the ton, for whom an eternity would be a short time, and who were not likely to have forgotten Catherine's indiscretion in a mere six years.

Rex was at his best in the scenes after his and Catherine's marriage; up until that point he appeared shallow and uncaring, but it was after they arrived at his estate that I started to like him. And in the end this was a lovely love story.

Can't wait to read the sequel next, to find out why Ken had to hurry off so suddenly!

What, if anything, could be better than a Regency romance by Mary Balogh? To be sure, it could only be a LONGER, more in-depth Regency romance by Mary Balogh. This was the first in a new series from Berkley as just such a lavish, extremely fulfilling treat. It is NOT a historical disguised as a Regency, but the very real thing.

From her first greeting to Viscount Rawleigh, Catherine Winters finds herself annoyingly attracted to the man, whom she had initially taken for his twin-brother and her near neighbor, Mr. Adams. The Viscount, on the other hand, makes erroneous suppositions about the lovely widow, and during the whole of this long and lovely book, sparks fly between these two strong and independent characters.

Against his better judgment, the Viscount accompanies his brother back to Bodley-on-the-water, for a change of scenery. His brother's wife is determined to make a match between her younger sister and the handsome Rex, refusing to believe he is not interested in the untried chit. He is equally determined to avoid her snares, protecting his heart from further damage, it having been broken once already.

Catherine is obviously a lady, or at least with some pretensions toward gentility, if a bit young to be a widow at the age of five-and-twenty. Content with her current existence, she has a dog for companionship, and enjoys the society (although knowing it for exactly the condescension that it is) of the occupants of the small village, from the Viscount's brother to the garrulous rector.

Of course, Rawleigh believes the toothsome widow to be eminently beddable, based on little more than a smile or two, and pursues his goal with admirable intent. She must certainly be interested in him, for how else could she so readily tell him apart from his identical brother? No one else ever could! No matter how impregnable any woman believes her fortress to be, the gates may nearly always be opened by the right key. He inadvertently compromises her; they must marry, and all the long-held secrets come tumbling out.

As usual, Mary Balogh does not disappoint the reader; this is truly (to borrow a word coined by her original publisher) a SUPER Regency!

Mary Balogh once again give us characters care about.

Catherine Winters is a woman who has started a life in the country to escape her past. However, when the principal landowner in the area has a house party, she meets Viscount Rawleigh who mistakenly thinks to take her as his mistress. Neither party counts on the intensity of their attraction to each other nor the circumstances that ultimately bring them together.

This book is a must read for anyone who wants to read about well developled characters and an engrossing plot. Mary Balogh does it again!

I personally think the book is fasanaiting and it covers so many beautiful gardens, what a brilliant book. exellent pictures, and the quality of the pictures is amazing! I'm a big fan of the "National Giographic" series, and it's certainly one of the best i've read... (sorry about the spelling errors, i can't spell..)

What an amazing number of gardens we have! Such beautiful and varied gardens across our country. This book makes me proud of yet another American accomplishment. Readers will be surprised and entertained.

This is a great book, even for those of us who are not traditional garden-lovers. It tempts you to plan your weekends and vacations to see the glorious and diverse gardens displayed with lush photography. Now that winter is upon us, this is a great book to read. When it is cold outside, the glorious photos and informative descriptions will color my evenings at home. Congratulations on a wonderful book.

During her "Scandalous Life" (1800's), Jane Digby was often written about in the press and provided foder for the tea room gossips for over 50 years. The stories seldom had more than a grain of truth but her ability to live her own life outside of the conventional standards of her day needed no embellishments. I have read other books and accounts of her life but Mary S Lovell has now set the standard that the other biographers will be judged. Her attention to details and access to the volumes of diaries and letters brought this biography its validity. She presents Jane's life without moralizing and judging her actions. Noone could make up a story with the twists and turns found in Jane's biography. After the episode with Isabel Burton(who tried to capitalize on Jane's story and her brief acquaintance with her when she thought Jane has died), must have left Jane Digby very cynical of biographers but I believe that she would have been very happy with Mary Lovell's. What greater compliment can an author garner from their subject? I will add my lament about the "out of print" status of this biography here in the states. I was thrilled to find a copy displayed casually in the biography section of a village bookstore in Ashburton,Devon, England while I was visiting the area with friends. The cover was bent and battered but it was their last copy. They told me it would take a few days until their next order arrived. The title was changed to "A Scandalous Life", The Biography of Jane Digby published by Fourth Estate,London. I bought the battered copy and thoroughly enjoyed it. I have also added Mary S.Lovell to my list of favorite biographers!.

I have read this book and the only thing Scandalous about is is that the publisher has not reprinted it! The herstory of the Middle East has many intriguing women who have done remarkable things. These women like Jane Digby, loved the desert no less than many of the "heroes" we all can still read about today. Yet their travels are scarcely cited. Jane Digby's romantic trysts may have stunned her peers, but today her story is fascinating. Visiting Damascus, travelling to Palmyra, each had such a different impact knowing I was seeing what she saw over a hundred years ago. In a region where the dominance of males, Islam and the harsh desert life is well documented, it is a shame more interested readers cannot learn why a western woman would chose it as her home in the 19th century. The author stays away from judgements about Jane Digby, and presents her as honestly as she was-a rebel of the heart.

I adore biography - especially those of the great characters of the second half of the 18th and first half of the 19th centuries. I knew of Jane Digby el Mezrab from Irving Wallace's Nymphos and Other Maniacs which I read many years ago and also via several biographies of Sir Richard Burton. This is a well written, carefully and extensively researched book which benefited enormously from the author's good luck in uncovering much new, previously unseen and unpublished family material in Dorset and New Zealand. This, the author says in her acknowledgements, is more satisfying than the publication of the book itself. I agree, for this sort of discovery is palpably thrilling and the author's excitement shines through her narrative.

This biography reads like fiction and Jane Digby, firstly Lady Ellenborough, was one of those larger than life people who followed their own path, irrespective of the mores of their own time. Following Jane's life is a tour through the drawing rooms of Regency England, several European and Balkan courts to the deserts of Syria and Arabia. It is the story of a woman (thrice divorced) who eventually found happiness and fulfilment with a man of great nobility from an entirely different race, culture and religion. Jane's interest in the minutiae of life in Damascus in the mid 19th century makes fascinating reading and her wit and fondness for her adopted "tribe" in the desert is moving.

Highly recommended!

This is a wonderful, well-worn book in my personal library that I read many times growing up. Not only is this book full of moral truths, but it is also a fun glimpse into the magical world of life in the Swiss Alps. I just recently re-read it as an adult and still love it!

The first time I read this book was about 24 years ago. I've been looking for this book to share with my children. This is such a delightful tale about the growing pains and heartaches that one town endured. This is a book you'll never want to put down. It's a timeless story for everyone.

I first read this book when I was in 3rd grade. It has always been my all time favorite book. I have now been an teacher for 14 years and it is has remained the only book I will always read to my class. It deals well with issues of pride, friendship, sacrifice, truth and growing up and draws the readers in from the very first chapter. My students always elect this as their favorite read aloud of the year - and I read a lot of classics to them! Try to read the original text. I always prefer these to the abridged versions. There is also a well done movie available! READ THIS BOOK and you will be greatly moved and impacted!

Saint Louis de Monfort, in his masterwork dedicated to marian devotion, explains who is Mary, why the Mother of God must be glorified and why honouring Mary is also a form that the faithful has to honour Jesus.

This is an ideal book to improve the growth of spiritual life and, considering the truths that presents, should be known by all the catholics, very especially those ones blinded by post-conciliar confusion or, even, by protestant teachings about Mary.

Finally, the way Saint Louis de Monfort writes is a pleasant surprise: simple, clear, concise, direct and modern... without being modernist. Excellent!

This is a new reprint of the much acclaimed Father Frederick Faber translation which has been out-of-print for several years. True Devotion To Mary by St. Louis Marie Grignion De Montfort (1673-1716) is considered to be the greatest single book on the Blessed Virgin Mary ever written. Seemingly divinely inspired, it is the classic statement on the spiritual way to Jesus Christ through Our Lady. Beloved by countless souls, this books sums up the entire Christian life, showing a way of holiness that is short, easy, secure and perfect - a way of life chosen by Our Lord Himself, as explained here in this book by the "Apostle of Mary." In this beautiful and sublimely inspiring book, St. Louis De Montfort explains the wonderful spiritual effects which True Devotion to Mary brings about in a person's life, leaving the reader with no doubt that this devotion provides the key both to sanctity and to salvation. No Catholic should reach age 20 without having read this book. 215pp. PB. Imprimatur.

No other book on Marian devotion comes close to this one. St. Louis could have been canonized on account of this book alone! (okay, maybe not technically, but the book really is that good). I highly recommend this book for anyone who questions devotion to Mary, especially those who wonder if it 'goes too far.' This book does a perfect job of explaining what is appropriate, what is not, and why. If you only read one book about our Blessed Mother, this one should be it. A+! Thank you St. Louis for sharing with us such divine inspiration!

Based on the previous reviews, this was the first book I chose to read as we begin to consider to homeschooling our two young children.

Beginning with the introduction, this informative book is written in an easy-to-read format, with chapters leading the reader through "Does Homeschooling Really Work," legal information and ideas to think about for your own homeschool. How much structure do you want? Will you need outside assistance? How much does it cost? The book covers the huge differences between primary education, middle school, and high school education. It discusses recordkeeping, learning resources, and finding your niche in the homeschooling community. It provides information on "rough" spots and learning/physical disabilities.

Although the book is definitely slanted for the person wanting to find out more information, the author takes no stand on such personal choice issues such as: different theories of learning (unschooling), the private school umbrella, and many other matters. Instead, the author provides a detailed list of pros and cons for these choices, leaving this decision to the reader. Throughout the book are interview excerpts from homeschooling families around the country, providing their viewpoint on many different areas.

This book gave me courage to continue to find out more about homeschooling. It answered questions that I hadn't even begun to think of. The easy to follow format means I could easily go back to reread something. It also includes an index and terrific appendices such as homeschooling resources, organizations and selected learning resources. I highly recommend this book.

We will be starting homeschooling in June of 2001. I have read no less than 7 books on this topic and this one stands out amongst the others. It is so informative, it answered all of my questions and then some. It gives very specific information on the different "styles" of homeschooling, loads of resources, and best of all you get to read about real homeschooling families, how they do things and why. The author does write with obvious favor to her own schooling method of choice, but not nearly as overtly as others I've read. If you are considering homeshcooling, then read this book before any others.

I'm a new homeschooling mom, and I found this book to be a great hands on resource book about how to start homeschooling your children. It has detailed learning ideas for primary, middle and teen years. If you are looking for answers to alot of tough questions like when, why, and how to homeschool your child, then "The Homeschooling Handbook"by Mary Griffith, will be a valuable tool for you. Whether you homeschool your child or not, read this book for it's many helpful fresh ideas for working with children.

The book I just read is the best! When I read a Pooh book it was awesome! Really, first I though it would be a babyish book,but it's not. My favourite chracter is Pooh. He is always thinking of hunny, and funny po ems and songs. I also like the words that A.A.MILNE invented I though those words came from another planet. I hope to read all of A.A.milne's books soon. If you don't read it you don't know what you are missing. I have only read The House At Pooh Corner and, I am now reading Winnie-The-Pooh.

This classic is listed under the age group of four to eight, and as a Poohphile I am quite appalled that it is. Winnie the Pooh books have such wit, wisdom, and humor that gets better every time I read them. Their not just for children, they are for everyone. Over the years, Christopher Robin, Winnie the Pooh, Eeyore, Piglet, Tigger, Kanga, and Roo have become some of my dearest chums. I once heard someone say, or perhaps I read it, that "books are like dear friends, and who has too many friends?" I am quite inclined to agree with that statement. This book is a dear friend of mine and I hope that you shall make it yours. :)

The house at Pooh Corner is a really good book everyone should read it .I read it for a class project I thuoght it would be a baby book but it wasn't. It was really funny, and it had strange words.I didn't know that pooh liked condesed milk, or that tigger lived with kanga and roo. I wish A.A.Milne had written more books about pooh the books he wrote about pooh were really funny. I wonder what would have happened if A.A.M. had written more pooh books maybe even a pooh movie. The books were really funny and I love how A.A.M. writes. Pooh makes the best poems i've heard. My personal favorite character is Tigger his attitude is kind of like mine. I woud reccomend this book a lot because it's really funny and the way A.A.M. gives live to the characters is really cool nothing like the disney one wich is almost boring

If you have a "spirited" child, this book is a MUST! It not only affirms that you're not crazy, it helps you to understand and deal with your child! DEFINITELY worth the money!

My friends thought I was crazy when I would tell them that my sweet, quiet,focused child was "difficult"; I lay awake at night wondering how it was that she was so "intense". Why does she awaken numerous times a night? When I read the first chapter of this book, I burst into tears -- I finally saw that I was not crazy, but that she perceives and feels her world differently than I. I gained so much insight from this book, that I have read parts of it 2, even 3 times at various stages in our relationship -- a must have if you think you may have a "spirited child"!

If your child is tedious, stubborn, persistent, full of chatter and ideas, and seems years beyond her actual age, then this book is for you! It is an excellent resource for understanding how to interact and bring out the best in your spirited child. It's a guide to treating your child like an intelligent person rather than crushing their spirit as some other parenting/"strong-willed" child books subtly imply. I also recommend Dr. Gary Chapman's "The Five Love Languages of Children".

This excellent book is about two kids named Jack and Annie. One day they were walking in Frog Creek Woods and they found a magic treehouse. Then they travelled back to Ancient Japan where two ninjas capture them. Read to find out what happens next.
This is an exelent book and one of my favorites! I would recommend this book to any one that likes adventure.

I'm a 10 year boy who loves the Magic Tree House series. I especially like when Jack and Annie went to England and met William Shakespeare. This is an easy chapter book to read. It keeps your interest.

If you like ninjas then you'll want to read night of the ninjas.

If you are a fraidy cat you might like Jack and if you like to imagine,then you will like Annie. If you like mice, then you will like Peanut in the story.

The story keeps you guessing because the mouse acts like a human.

I liked Night of the Ninjas, because it's exciting and you will like it, too.

Having never read anything about Arthurian legend, I was hesitant to pick my first introduction to it. I feel that I chose wisely in Mary Stewart's trilogy. Her writing will draw you into the story, and each book assumes you have little to no knowledge from the previous books (which was great for me, it helped to hear some of it again). I just found myself wishing afterwards there could have been a little more romance! However, I guess these books were more about Merlin, not Arthur or Guinevere. Another confusing aspect is that some of the more familiar names have been changed, and some are repeated. Having no base knowlege of the legend this was slightly confusing for me. Anyway, these books are highly enjoyable and I would definitely recomend them.

The Story: "The Last Enchantment" is Book Three of Mary Stewart's Merlin Trilogy, and focuses on how Merlin meets, trains, and falls in love with Nimue, while helping Arthur solidify his kingdom and deal with the follies of Guinevere and other members of Court. Merlin and Arthur have to decide what to do about Arthur's sister, Morgan, and half-sister, Morgause, who separately plot against Arthur, and as well deciding upon the disposition of Morgause's five sons, one of whom is Mordred, illegitimate son of Arthur.

Technical: The writing of Mary Stewart is highly detailed and takes patience, but nothing is extraneous or irrelevant. Ms. Stewart's writing style reminds me of Sir Walter Scott's writing style in "Ivanhoe".

Overall: A great epic continues, but the reader must be patient and up to the challenge of a long, intricate, and detailed saga. When I first read this trilogy, the fourth book did not yet exist. Because the fourth book, "The Wicked Day", focusing on Mordred, exists, I'm more satisfied with the ending of "The Last Enchantment".

This is a great book and concludes a fabulous triology. Stewart finds just the right balance of historical fiction and fantasy, creating a Merlin and King Arthur who are not as they really were but are has they might have been if we indulge a imagination just a little. The characters are real and compelling. And though all three books are accessible to young readers, the books are just as entertaining for adults. I can't say enough about this trilogy.