I read The Lover yesterday and Gabriel's Woman today, and I agree with those who say that they're best read in order. I enjoyed - though was a little conflicted about - The Lover, but I really loved Gabriel's Woman. They are both very emotional and somewhat difficult reads, because there is such horror that is faced. Both Gabriel and Michael are tortured souls, haunted by the unbelievable things they have survived.The ages of the main characters were very unusual for romance and something that I appreciated: Gabriel is 40 and Victoria is 34. Victoria was a wonderful heroine; strong, yet vulnerable. I thought that the portrayal of Anne and her inner conflicts was better done than Victoria, however her transformation is very fluid, and subtle in a way that makes it seem all the more real. I did not get the same sense of heartbreaking loneliness as I did with Anne, and in this I was a little disappointed. Victoria had a compelling history and background, the perfect makings to starkly show how constrained and repressed and alone she has always felt, but it didn't come across as strongly as it could have.Gabriel was an absolutely wonderful hero and his tragic and heartbreaking story were most definitely felt. I liked Michael a lot in his book, but I think Schone did an even better job here in her creation and writing of the hero. Gabriel is complex and has a very disturbing history, but throughout the story he remains accessible and understandable. The fact that he cannot bear to be touched and hasn't been in 15 years made it so that his relationship with Victoria had to progress a lot more than the Michael-Anne one before they slept together. This made it seem more authentic and as his walls begin to break down and he starts to let her in, you really get wrapped up in their romance and want so badly for these two broken people to together finally find happiness.One of my complaints with The Lover was that while it's supposedly an erotica, I really did not feel very strong or sizzling chemistry. It was almost too dry and detailed. It wasn't horrible and the fact that Michael and Anne's relationship is so well-written makes it so that you still feel the passion between them, but it hadn't been what I was expecting. Here, I didn't have as much of an issue on that subject and thought that the chemistry was better. However, it still didn't give me any "Where's a fan when you need one" moments that one sometimes get with regular and more "mainstream" HRs, which again surprised me.There were twists and turns, but not as many as with The Lover. We're given more obvious breadcrumbs as we go and having already learned things from the first book, it's easier to piece things together. There are still some great surprises though, and I thought they were supremely well-done and definitely caught me off guard. While the bad guys in both books are absolutely psycho and sick, this one and the things that are done made a little more sense. Don't get me wrong: it's still crazy and far-fetched, but I found it easier to accept.The relationship between Michael and Gabriel is shown a little in the first book, and from that we already know the unbelievably strong bond that these two men have with one another. We're given even more insight into their relationship here and I just plainly loved it. I thought their (brotherly) love for one another was beautifully portrayed and didn't feel any confusion regarding the depth or nature of their relationship. Schone touches on some very sensitive issues and I thought it only showed them both to advantage and made them seem that much stronger and more amazing for what they had survived, and been able to maintain despite it all. I think I read in another review that this is almost as much a Gabriel-Victoria story as a Gabriel-Michael story and I have to agree. Not in the romantic sense - their love is purely fraternal and friendly in nature - but it's an integral part of the story and of Gabriel's ability to finally be at peace and let himself be happy.Random Notes:* I liked the little snippets we got of the staff who worked in the House of Gabriel and seeing their fondness and love for him. It was sweet and cute how they reacted to his developing relationship to Victoria.* Ending was better (more complete, not abrupt) than the other book's, though again I wanted an epilogue - with one or two kids would have been great. I would love to see Gabriel and Victoria as parents.* Some dangling threads in the subplot or character histories. Not essential, but would have liked those to be tied off (ex: Victoria's family).(Written July 12, 2011)
Gabriel's Woman is an amazing, gripping page turner. It follows on from The Lover, the stories are about two male whores, both beautiful, one dark, one fair....fallen angels. I think I enjoyed Gabriel's story more but it would be impossible to read and understand without having first read Michael's/Michel's tale.The background to this fascinating read is dark, dangerous, sinister and poignant. Gabriel was a street urchin in the gutters of Paris, at the age of 13 he meets Michel/Michael stealing a loaf of bread to survive and the two lost boys forge a bond that will never be broken. They are rescued from the streets and trained to whore by a madam, Michel dark and beautiful for the ladies, Gabriel, fair and angelic for the men. Gabriel suffers a terrible physical abuse in his twenties from which he never recovers, he becomes the angel who will not touch or be touched, his whole life becomes centred on finding the 'first man' and 'the second man' the perpetrators of the unspeakable acts against him.Gabriel has opened a high class house for prostitution, the day Victoria Childers inveigles her way into his house to sell her virginity sets off a chain of events that are horrifying and unstoppable. For the first time in many years Gabriel is tempted into physical contact, the consequences of which spiral their lives out of control.This is the story of a lovely, loyal woman who herself has been unloved and uncared for, looking to ease the frustration she feels but always wanting someone of her own to love and a tortured, beautiful man who believes himself incapable of any kind of love, especially physical. Victoria begins to teach Gabriel to hope again but 'the second man' has an evil agenda, as well as being determined to destroy the slowly emerging affection between these two lonely souls.Robin Schone has a quite remarkable descriptive talent, I've said it before but her ability to capture the dark, sinister atmosphere of the Victorian underworld is quite remarkable, even her description of murky foggy London, transports the reader to smell, taste and feel, "The London Air was damp and chill. Yellow fog embraced the city". "Childish voices permeated the yellow gloom that blanketed London".I love the writing style of this author, against my own better judgement I have come to look forward to her books although erotic Historical is not my choice of genre, the fact that I want to read all Ms. Schone has written is a good indicator of the power of her writing, the originality of the story of these two fallen angels and the women who save them is wonderful story telling. Her protagonists are never perfect, there are nearly always both physical and mental flaws but we end up loving them anyway and can empathise with them. Despite the Americanism's which normally spoil a story for me when written specifically about England, I can award no less than 5 stars as this was such a gripping, original plot and love story.
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May 30, 2013 Review UpdateI adore this book and decided yesterday to treat myself and read it again. Well, I had an embarrassing moment while reading that I shared on FB. I figured why not share it on my review, too. Maybe it will spark some interest for those who have not yet read the book. Plus, I thought you'd get a kick out of my faux pas. Let's just say I learned WHY it's important NEVER to read erotica in the family room. Boy, did I learn my lesson! My FB comment: Holy cow!! There's NOTHING more embarrassing than being so absorbed in reading an explicitly erotic sex scene (re-reading Gabriel's Woman by Robin Schone. I love this book and author) that you're oblivious to your 14 year old son silently reading over your shoulder. You should have seen the look of horror on our faces! For different reasons, of course! 4 1/2 Enticing StarsAs much as I enjoyed the first book The Lover, I felt the second book, Gabriel's Woman was a better book. The plot, characterization, and ambiance of the story felt more fleshed out and intriguing.Honestly, I don't think I've read a more tortured soul than Gabriel. The more I learned about his past and his trials, the more my heart ached for him. Victoria is such an endearing character. She's everything I love in a heroine. Strong and determined while remaining feminine and a little vulnerable. She was the perfect heroine for our tortured hero. I did not see the plot twist coming or the reason for Gabriel's bitterness toward Michael. I love when a book's plot is cleverly written and, therefore, takes me by surprise. Gabriel's Woman was emotional, dark, erotic, gritty, sensual, shocking, appalling, thrilling, and utterly captivating. I very much enjoyed this book. Note: It's very important to read the first book in the series The Lover before starting this one. You will be very confused if you don't.
—Kristen (Peddler of Smut)
@KatLynneI'm sorry to disappoint you but I really tried to like Gabriel's Woman. Despite its failure it's not the end of the world though. Come to think of it, we have quite a few HR authors in common that we both love, i.e. Jennifer Ashley, Elizabeth Hoyt and Courtney Milan.I was so thrilled to give Ms. Schone a try but sadly Gabriel's Woman couldn’t live up to my high expectations. It didn’t work out for me at all. DNF. I totally dislike the author's writing style. It feels choppy, stiff, stilted, and incredibly cold and clinical. I felt like I was stuck in a fridge. The story doesn't flow smoothly. Ms. Schone uses a lot of single words too. It’s very distracting. An example:With food. Shelter. A position.Her choice.Life.Death (inner monologue…again and again)After a short conversation with Gabriel, Victoria "knew" that he's afraid of being touched. I couldn't relate at all. She said it out of the blue, after all, and it felt far-fetched and didn’t ring true. Maybe she's a clairvoyant? What bothered me as well was the fact that Gabriel and Victoria didn’t spend a lot of time together. Their interaction was quite limited. On top of that I couldn’t feel any chemistry between these two.Further, the inner monologue is incredibly annoying—it’s so overused. Other overused terms are pain/pleasure…pleasure/pain. It was unnerving. I assume it should be a dark story. That said, it has to be livelier and more dynamic. In fact, the outcome was boring and my interest just petered out. Yeah, a fair-haired angel, a dark-haired angel…the second man…pain, pleasure, death etc., etc. Everything is very, very repetitive. I'm so sorry, folks, Robin Schone is so not for me.
—Baba ♥♥♥ Tyler, Marcus, Archer, Dean, Adrian, Dan & Hunter
Moody, Gothic, and So Very Sexy...Robin Schone once again challenges our notions of female sexuality and male power with Gabriel's Woman. Like her previous short works and novels, neither Gabriel or Victoria are the stereotypical romance couple. Gabriel, a former prostitute and now owner of an exclusive brothel that bears his name, is a man tormented by an act so tragic, that it has shaped him into the untouchable being he now is. Wealthy women will pay any price for his services, but he knows they would never pay the price for loving the man he truly is, nor would they wish to see that part of him.Victoria is a dimissed governess whose only crime was not responding to a former employer's advances--a situation that was quite the norm in Victorian England. She boldly offers her virginity up for auction inside The House of Gabriel, and commands a staggering sum in the process.Ms. Schone's use of the gothic style harkens one back to the classic gothic novels of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Nearly everything that occurs in this novel happens at night, or in the dark. Strangers from the past, mysterious motives, and the dark deeds that belie the gentility of Victorian England are woven skillfully.Gabriel could teach Jane Eyre's Mr. Rochester a thing about brooding heroes; and like Rochester, he too finds deliverance in the steadfast love of a woman who is as strong as himself. Victoria is a wonderful character, and no shrinking violet--she may not know what will come about in the end, but she dares what other women will not--to love a man with too many scars upon his soul.His best friend Michael des Anges (from Ms. Schone's previous novel, The Lover) is scarred on his face; Gabriel is scarred both body and spirit.An interesting note: There is an undercurrent of deep and fierce love between Gabriel and Michael, one that would suggest an almost homosexual bond. Like the frank eroticism, some readers may be put off by this, but I think Ms. Schone handles this matter wonderfully. In fact, I think their relationship goes beyond our notions of love between men, to see a deep and lasting committment that was forged in the most frightful of circumstances.The eroticism in Gabriel's Woman is sexuality the way it should be written--passionate and intense. Ms. Schone's scenes drew me in and kept me there. Her atmosphere drips with the sounds, scents and sometimes overwhelming emotions of sex. In the shower scene (which I think was wonderfully written), I actually felt as if I were a voyeur, sharing this frightningly intense moment between two souls, and not merely two bodies.That I believe, is what makes Robin Schone far superior to what has come before in the genre of erotic romance. Ms. Schone doesn't write textbook manuals on the act of sex, nor does she pepper her descriptions with silly metaphors ascribed to the various male and female genitalia (you readers who read steamy romances know exactly what I mean). Robin Schone writes about the emotions of two people who are making love; we see inside of them, and in some ways, become them, in their lust and in their longing.Once again, Robin Schone has delivered a romantic tour-de-force, a novel that will spark lively and much needed debate. I am recommending all of her books to any woman I see with a romance novel in her hands. I am also recommending her books to men who think they've got the exclsuive rights to anything frank and explicit.
—TheFountainPenDiva
