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The Northern Knights #1
Gem Of Gravane
Falling in love with her was not part of his plan...
Aric Claydon, weary and in the foulest of moods, arrives in Northumberland from Normandy to claim his Saxon bride - Lady Danielle - almost a year late. The girl is far from a ravishing beauty, nursing a small affliction and other irksome habits. Yet, compelled by a knight's oath and loyalty to his king, Aric performs his duty. The Lady Danielle is a means to an end to complete his gain and if he's lucky, bless him with an heir and nothing more. Soon enough Aric learns his new bride is not as timid as he first thought, but mysterious and with secrets of her own. Even as he gives in to the fiery passion she wields, he vows she will never hold his heart. But when danger and treachery abound he will stop at nothing to protect her...
The Lady Danielle resigns herself to the fact that she must marry the Norman warrior with hope the formidable man will be the end to her silent suffering and peace will finally come to her people. Yet all hopes of salvation are dashed when the handsome warrior arrives in the night and takes one look at her. Danielle knows a man like Aric could never love or offer her comfort, but she is determined to make the most of it and prove to him that there is room for her love in his warrior's heart.
231 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 29, 2012
62 people are currently reading
218 people want to read
About the author
Amber Dane
12 books41 followers~All things Medieval~
Historical medieval romance
Love bodice rippers
Historical medieval romance
Love bodice rippers
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
November 23, 2013
Let's all bow our heads and observe a moment of silence for the language that was unceremoniously slaughtered in this book.
Moving on.
I won't deny that Amber Dane seems to have a decent imagination and perhaps even a knack for storytelling buried under all that writing ignorance, but I simply couldn't get past some of the huge problems in this book. First and foremost is, as mentioned, the grammar. For someone who has written and published several books, Ms. Dane doesn't even have a basic grasp of sentence structure. It's appalling.
"To think he had been delighted upon first sight that this woman might have been his now made him sick."
"It was lovely, but he could not wait until the fine cloth he'd ordered for her to arrive."
"He wanted her to behave in that simply the way of it way then she had resolved to give him just that and naught more."
"Then he simple said. 'Good. Come, I need first discuss a few things with Balwain.'"
"She had to trust him to protect her and he knew for the most part that she did, but the many years of being trodden on by her own family was going to be hard to get her to surface again."
Those are just a few examples of the confused, convoluted writing. Ms. Dane doesn't understand the basics of how to use commas, how to properly write out quoted text, or the importance of compound sentences. On more than one occasion, she improperly emphasized a word, and I don't think she's ever acquainted herself with the hyphen.
"Despite Thomas's treason like crimes..."
"Aric was glad he healed quickly and the meetings returned below stairs once again. For the large pile of blessed tokens were starting to take over their chamber."
"...was pulling her into a slumber like mood."
Oh, and something that has really fucking bothered me in some of the books I've read recently; when the writing contradicts itself or merely doesn't fit together. This usually happens when one character responds incorrectly to a posed question. This just shows me that the author couldn't even be bothered to read over the last page he/she wrote. It's lazy.
Danielle: "What you just spoke, is it true?"
Aric: "Aye, Danielle. I did."
If I could give Amber Dane one piece of advice, it would be to attend a few remedial English classes because the writing in this book is embarrassing. I know I would certainly be ashamed to have it attributed to me.
My second piece of advice would be to attend a creative writing course. Because, as previously mentioned, Ms. Dane appears to have a decent imagination and a basic understanding that she needs characters, a plot, and obstacles, but her ability to tie these elements together is a bit rough around the edges. There is a lot of repeated sentiments/information, and frequent hypothetical questions posed to the reader (I seriously can't stand this, and I pray for it to stop). The characters are just...goofy. Danielle behaves like an emotionally stunted 12-year-old, her actions and motivations completely at odds with how she's represented to the reader. Aric is almost maniacally irrational. I had a hard time believing the two of them were supposedly sane adults. The villains were cartoonishly evil, with the main Big Bad even smelling awful. Of course, he's also a sexual deviant. Because he wouldn't be a proper bad guy unless he was lusting after the hero, right?
Sheesh, I just talked myself into giving this one star instead of two. And I take it all back, there may not be any hope for Amber Dane.
September 2, 2019
The idea of the story was good, the execution not so much. Apart from the writing/grammar problems that other readers have pointed out, the heroine was annoying with her crying all the time, and many times the characters behaved illogically.
Towards the end, I gave up reading because I realized I don't care what happens to the characters anymore, and also I could predict how events would be unfolding.
Towards the end, I gave up reading because I realized I don't care what happens to the characters anymore, and also I could predict how events would be unfolding.
August 3, 2012
Amber Dane breathes new life into the medieval romance novel. Her characters stay true to who they are, even as they grow. The scenery is descript, but doesn't bog down the chapters. And one particular villain involved is quite "peculiar". <-- If you read this, you will understand my reference. :o)
Aric is the brutish, strong, authoritive knight in this first installment of the series. And he couldn't have been better. Danielle is silent, yet strong, stubborn, yet giving and loving. The way Danielle blooms under the callused hand of a dark, rough, battle seasoned warrior is beautiful to read. And the way Aric remains all of those things, but still is able to grow into such an amazing hero is fantastic.
Though I'm not expert, the dialogue and old world English were done so well. In fact, I didn't once have to 'think' about what a certain word or phrase meant. Ms. Dane magically cast her words so that even an old world begginer - such as myself - could understand without one stumble.
There were a couple of small editing issues: incorrect words, doubled up word areas, but they were very few and far between. Bravo on doing such a great job on editing your self published work. It's hard to find a self pub with such great editing.
Overall, I truly love this book and cannot wait for Rourke's story to follow. However, I have to ask myself - "How will Amber Dane make me fall in love with her next hero and heroine, as much as I love Aric and Danielle?" I don't know if she can, but I think she should release book 2 so I can find out. :o)
Aric is the brutish, strong, authoritive knight in this first installment of the series. And he couldn't have been better. Danielle is silent, yet strong, stubborn, yet giving and loving. The way Danielle blooms under the callused hand of a dark, rough, battle seasoned warrior is beautiful to read. And the way Aric remains all of those things, but still is able to grow into such an amazing hero is fantastic.
Though I'm not expert, the dialogue and old world English were done so well. In fact, I didn't once have to 'think' about what a certain word or phrase meant. Ms. Dane magically cast her words so that even an old world begginer - such as myself - could understand without one stumble.
There were a couple of small editing issues: incorrect words, doubled up word areas, but they were very few and far between. Bravo on doing such a great job on editing your self published work. It's hard to find a self pub with such great editing.
Overall, I truly love this book and cannot wait for Rourke's story to follow. However, I have to ask myself - "How will Amber Dane make me fall in love with her next hero and heroine, as much as I love Aric and Danielle?" I don't know if she can, but I think she should release book 2 so I can find out. :o)
August 3, 2012
Amber Dane's Gem of Gravane is perfect. Aric is the quintessential Knight; he is tough, protective, chivalrous and has a hidden softness about him. Danielle is the ultimate heroine; strong, stubborn, spunky and sexy with her voluptuous curves. Once I started reading Gem, I couldn't put it down. It is well-written, thorough and intriguing. Dane has created a classic - as engaging and enthralling as Jude Deveraux and Johanna Lindsey.
Dane adds humor in her dialogue and story-telling that makes this medieval romance as fun a read as it is mysterious and thrilling. I fell in love with Aric and Danielle and found myself part of their unique story. I cannot wait for the next book in Amber Dane's The Northern Knights Series.
Dane adds humor in her dialogue and story-telling that makes this medieval romance as fun a read as it is mysterious and thrilling. I fell in love with Aric and Danielle and found myself part of their unique story. I cannot wait for the next book in Amber Dane's The Northern Knights Series.
September 30, 2012
Really enjoyed the book and the characters. I'll definetely pick up the next!
October 24, 2012
This is almost a good immitation of Julie Garwoods Medieval series (THE SECRET, THE BRIDE, THE WEDDING by Julie Garwoods rings a bell anyone?). A warrior who thinks love is a weakness and fights it hard and a heroine who is timid at first and then blooms under the hero's protection.
I say almost because of some editorial problems - not much but there are enough to stop the flow of the story for me more than once. There is also the same and predicted turns on the plots that rings the same as Ms. Garwood's books.
But one big glaring INSULT to readers that is worth mentioning: a character supposedly broke the skull at the back of his head from a fall and after the healer in the story tended to him, he is up and about the next three days and riding his horse ready for battle.
I am not educated to work in a medical office but even me knows that is a very impossible feat even to a very fit warrior. Now if he is a supernatural character, yes but to a normal person...NO!
I loved the heroine at first but when she became purer than Mother Theresa (by begging for the life of a character who is already proven twice as a murderer) she became too much of a saint and a caricature for me to truly believe.
All I can say for this book is, it could have been a good immitation.
I say almost because of some editorial problems - not much but there are enough to stop the flow of the story for me more than once. There is also the same and predicted turns on the plots that rings the same as Ms. Garwood's books.
But one big glaring INSULT to readers that is worth mentioning: a character supposedly broke the skull at the back of his head from a fall and after the healer in the story tended to him, he is up and about the next three days and riding his horse ready for battle.
I am not educated to work in a medical office but even me knows that is a very impossible feat even to a very fit warrior. Now if he is a supernatural character, yes but to a normal person...NO!
I loved the heroine at first but when she became purer than Mother Theresa (by begging for the life of a character who is already proven twice as a murderer) she became too much of a saint and a caricature for me to truly believe.
All I can say for this book is, it could have been a good immitation.
July 16, 2012
This book was a pleasure to read. It's nice to have a heroine that's not a skinny drop dead gorgeous woman, or a feisty take charge person. They usually seem to be one or the other. Having an overweight, plainish, limping heroine was good. Likewise I liked that Arik never really changed his personality by the end of the book, he was the same guy he started out, more or less.
What I didn't like, was that she was always in tears. Enough already with the tears! I don't think women in those days cried over every little thing and she certainly made up for a lot of them. If she wasn't sobbing, her eyes were swimming in tears, or glistening with tears.
Overall a good read, I'm looking forward to reading something else by Amber Dane.
What I didn't like, was that she was always in tears. Enough already with the tears! I don't think women in those days cried over every little thing and she certainly made up for a lot of them. If she wasn't sobbing, her eyes were swimming in tears, or glistening with tears.
Overall a good read, I'm looking forward to reading something else by Amber Dane.
July 17, 2020
This book had so much potential! It started at good but soon fell short. One problem is no character development. Aric stayed emotion distanced. Danielle cried all the time.She lived with her abusive cousin and learned to control her emotions, yet everytime she saw her husband she cried. Enough was enough!
This was such a slow and bad book. It took an effort to finish. I kept hoping it would get better, it didn't. Don't waste your time on this book.
This was such a slow and bad book. It took an effort to finish. I kept hoping it would get better, it didn't. Don't waste your time on this book.
September 8, 2015
Loved this story of long, long ago. When women were chattel and knights and kings ruled the world. In this story, the woman forced into marriage by the king in order to reward one of his favorite soldiers with her lands, shows her many strengths - quietly and with grace. Romance blooms for several of the characters...and the book had intrigue and danger.
April 26, 2020
Great
Lady Danielle has been saving her land and people behind her greedy cousins back , while they taunt her because she is full figured and has a limp. When her Norman betrothed come to wed her she learns few things.
Lord Aric comes to wed his Saxon wife he believes she is moiusy and won't love her but to his surprise she is everything he didn't excpect.
Lady Danielle has been saving her land and people behind her greedy cousins back , while they taunt her because she is full figured and has a limp. When her Norman betrothed come to wed her she learns few things.
Lord Aric comes to wed his Saxon wife he believes she is moiusy and won't love her but to his surprise she is everything he didn't excpect.
September 14, 2012
Really liked it
September 20, 2012
5 stars for the story
4 stars because there are a a fair amount of proof-reading problems.
4 stars because there are a a fair amount of proof-reading problems.
October 8, 2012
story line was ok if she would have spend as much time on the story as she did on intimacy
April 22, 2014
I read this series out of context however it is a great series, I did enjoy the Viking one the best but this is great too. Strong characters.
October 1, 2012
Loved it
January 13, 2023
Really bad novel. There does not seem to be any consistency between what the characters say/think and what they do.
H is mostly scowling & h is forever going around with tears swimming in her eyes/flowing down her face.
Now she’s given up all hope & is going to accept what comes her way and now she’s terribly upset/angry with the H for one thing or another.
H thinks she’s had a hard life n it’s going to be better now that he’s come into it and the next second he makes it his business to say/do something that is definitely not kind in anyway.
Why was Rose even in the story, there was no purpose to her existence. She was just there and the. She’s killed off and how did that drive the story anywhere? I have no idea!🙄
Terrible writing & here are a few examples.
“Whom never failed to bring a gift or two or three with them …”
“It is said ‘tis your betrothed that runs this manor and whom makes it so plentiful.”
“Whom now stood in the doorway with a look of annoyance on her face. ”
“What he now saw in her wide honey-colored depths took his breath away.”
“Anger blazed in those large depths along with something else. ”
“Aric watched her and saw the unchecked passion, so open with her emotions laid bare in those unique depths”
“The wicked gleam in her unique depths told him she had a plan. ”
H is mostly scowling & h is forever going around with tears swimming in her eyes/flowing down her face.
Now she’s given up all hope & is going to accept what comes her way and now she’s terribly upset/angry with the H for one thing or another.
H thinks she’s had a hard life n it’s going to be better now that he’s come into it and the next second he makes it his business to say/do something that is definitely not kind in anyway.
Why was Rose even in the story, there was no purpose to her existence. She was just there and the. She’s killed off and how did that drive the story anywhere? I have no idea!🙄
Terrible writing & here are a few examples.
“Whom never failed to bring a gift or two or three with them …”
“It is said ‘tis your betrothed that runs this manor and whom makes it so plentiful.”
“Whom now stood in the doorway with a look of annoyance on her face. ”
“What he now saw in her wide honey-colored depths took his breath away.”
“Anger blazed in those large depths along with something else. ”
“Aric watched her and saw the unchecked passion, so open with her emotions laid bare in those unique depths”
“The wicked gleam in her unique depths told him she had a plan. ”
May 15, 2017
The story was rather cliched, thanks to a H who acted like a jerk, and an annoying h, who cried and sulked a lot. She was 23, independent and smart, she could have done better. Overall it was a good MOC story, where the H had to learn how to be a husband who stands up for his wife.
September 7, 2017
I was enjoying the story and then some explicit sexual descriptions became part of the story. I did not read in the description of the book this would be included. I will not finish the book due to the sexual nature of the book.
November 11, 2017
Very entertaining
This was a great story that kept me turning the page. Well written and interesting. Some personal things happened that had my heart breaking for Danielle. I loved Arick too.
This was a great story that kept me turning the page. Well written and interesting. Some personal things happened that had my heart breaking for Danielle. I loved Arick too.
June 18, 2018
Such terrible writing. How many times can someone repeat the words "upset" and "hurt" before it becomes derivative? And don't even get me started on the grammar! Overall it was a disappointing story with unlikable characters.
May 6, 2019
Great story
This takes place right after the Normans took England. It's a well good story with compelling characters and action. Unfortunately, the editing is lacking and snaps you out of the story.
This takes place right after the Normans took England. It's a well good story with compelling characters and action. Unfortunately, the editing is lacking and snaps you out of the story.
April 30, 2024
Norman is awarded the catle and a bride, he thinks nothing will change in his life, he is so wrong.
September 5, 2015
Romance:3
Steaminess:2
Action/suspense:3
Overall:3
It was a good read although I did have some problems with it. Mainly the dialogue and grammar issues.
At times I felt like certain sentences lacked proper punctuation so that really disturb my reading. Also with regards to the dialogue , it just wasn't realistic for that time period. "Yea", "I guess" and "probably" to name a few are what I'm talking about. That's just not how they spoke in that time period and that really prevented me from really getting lost in the book.
The heroine was a bit of a cry baby to be honest. It seemed like she spent 80% of the book with tears in her eyes or whatever. Or she'd be mad and sad with the hero. This were her 2 default moods.
The sex scenes were okay. Definitely good in the historical romance genre but compared to contemporary romances, the sex scenes were mediocre.
The hero was a really nice guy and I liked him. The action parts of the story was nice and interesting. Kept me guessing which is good. The romantic bits were alright.
So overall, good book but I won't be coming back for round 2.
Steaminess:2
Action/suspense:3
Overall:3
It was a good read although I did have some problems with it. Mainly the dialogue and grammar issues.
At times I felt like certain sentences lacked proper punctuation so that really disturb my reading. Also with regards to the dialogue , it just wasn't realistic for that time period. "Yea", "I guess" and "probably" to name a few are what I'm talking about. That's just not how they spoke in that time period and that really prevented me from really getting lost in the book.
The heroine was a bit of a cry baby to be honest. It seemed like she spent 80% of the book with tears in her eyes or whatever. Or she'd be mad and sad with the hero. This were her 2 default moods.
The sex scenes were okay. Definitely good in the historical romance genre but compared to contemporary romances, the sex scenes were mediocre.
The hero was a really nice guy and I liked him. The action parts of the story was nice and interesting. Kept me guessing which is good. The romantic bits were alright.
So overall, good book but I won't be coming back for round 2.
October 21, 2012
Here's the thing - the story and characters are great. Very likeable - though I take exception to the descriptions of her in other reviews as ugly and fat. She is actually described as being exceptional in appearance with some curves, but has low self esteem. The idea seems to be that she is very naturally pretty, in contrast to the more tawdry looks of some of her rivals. Certainly an idea pretty common in romance novels. I do agree with other reviewers that she spends an awful lot of time in tears. Or screaming. It gets old.
What pulls down the rating a lot are the editing issues. Throughout the book, I had the persistent sense that the author is not a native English speaker - the examples are too numerous to list, but suffice it to say, sentence structure and word choices are often very odd. The story line is good enough to pull you through the awkwardness and keep you reading, but only just barely.
What pulls down the rating a lot are the editing issues. Throughout the book, I had the persistent sense that the author is not a native English speaker - the examples are too numerous to list, but suffice it to say, sentence structure and word choices are often very odd. The story line is good enough to pull you through the awkwardness and keep you reading, but only just barely.
June 23, 2014
I really enjoyed this book!
Dark, swarthy Aric Claydon arrives at the Gravane estate to claim his prize from William; the estates of Gravane, Egway and Gent and Danielle, the lady of the Gravane manor, as his bride. Tall, strong and curvaceous, dark haired Danielle awaits her suitor in fear but also in hope that he will rid her of the humiliation and abuse she has suffered from her cousin Thomas and his sister, enabling her and her new husband to run and manage the whole estate once more.
I loved the story and the conflict between Aric and Danielle as each copes with trying to maintain their former position in a Saxon household, turned upside down by the arrival of a Norman lord. There's blood and gore and plenty of sexual tension as battles are fought to protect the lands of Gravane in the name of King William.
Real page turner...give it a go!
Dark, swarthy Aric Claydon arrives at the Gravane estate to claim his prize from William; the estates of Gravane, Egway and Gent and Danielle, the lady of the Gravane manor, as his bride. Tall, strong and curvaceous, dark haired Danielle awaits her suitor in fear but also in hope that he will rid her of the humiliation and abuse she has suffered from her cousin Thomas and his sister, enabling her and her new husband to run and manage the whole estate once more.
I loved the story and the conflict between Aric and Danielle as each copes with trying to maintain their former position in a Saxon household, turned upside down by the arrival of a Norman lord. There's blood and gore and plenty of sexual tension as battles are fought to protect the lands of Gravane in the name of King William.
Real page turner...give it a go!
September 28, 2022
Honestly I didn't mind this all that much. It really needs some editing done to it because I noticed a ton of grammatical errors, typos and a spelling mistake or two. But there was a real lack of commas and hyphens that's for sure. I started getting really annoyed with it. There was even quite a lot of repetition. Once I was able to get around that I still liked the story. It was really predictable but I still liked it. I'm torn between leaving it at 4 stars or changing it to 3. I'm not saying its amazing or great. It's good for what it is. I plan to start reading the next one tomorrow. It's after 2am now so it's hard to focus and type. Fingers crossed the next book isn't as flawed and I still like it.
January 20, 2016
I stopped reading at about 40%. this isn't the worst romance I've read, but it's still pretty low on my list. Here are my complaints:
The description of the main female varies greatly... it's she ugly, deformed, and fat? Or is she curvy and beautiful? because those are the extremes in her descriptions. I don't like that.
Does the main make lead love and cherish her? Or does he not care about her? Because his actions and moods swing to the extreme. I didn't like that either.
I was unaffected by the characters, and honestly, I didn't like any of them. Whatever "mystery" the author wad trying to surround her characters in failed.
Simply not a good read.
The description of the main female varies greatly... it's she ugly, deformed, and fat? Or is she curvy and beautiful? because those are the extremes in her descriptions. I don't like that.
Does the main make lead love and cherish her? Or does he not care about her? Because his actions and moods swing to the extreme. I didn't like that either.
I was unaffected by the characters, and honestly, I didn't like any of them. Whatever "mystery" the author wad trying to surround her characters in failed.
Simply not a good read.
August 11, 2016
I loved this book the first time I read it. This time, not so much. In the beginning the h says she never cries cause it doesn't fix anything. But my goodness every chapter she has cried at least once. And don't get me wrong I do understand why, but I also think at first the author wrote her to be tough and that she has been through a lot, it really should have toughened her up. All in all it was a good book and I did still like it. Sex ***
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews