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Rage to Love
ISLAND OF DESIRE
Beautiful, flame-haired Garnet Winters came from the chilly morality of 18th-century Boston to claim her plantation on the sun-drenched French island of St. Dominique. Nothing had prepared her for this place of nourishing beauty and decadent opulence—or for the challenge of the dissolute Frenchman who sought to steal her inheritance. And above all, nothing had prepared her for wild, adventurous Jean Belaine, who could have any woman he wanted, but wanted her. To yield to this man meant danger, both from his scheming, sensual mistress and from his arrogant power. But on this island where there were no limits to either love or hate, Garnet knew that this was passion worth its price...
Set in the lush and torrid Caribbean, where passion burned like the tropical sun, is this spellbinding novel of love's rapturous promise fulfilled.
Beautiful, flame-haired Garnet Winters came from the chilly morality of 18th-century Boston to claim her plantation on the sun-drenched French island of St. Dominique. Nothing had prepared her for this place of nourishing beauty and decadent opulence—or for the challenge of the dissolute Frenchman who sought to steal her inheritance. And above all, nothing had prepared her for wild, adventurous Jean Belaine, who could have any woman he wanted, but wanted her. To yield to this man meant danger, both from his scheming, sensual mistress and from his arrogant power. But on this island where there were no limits to either love or hate, Garnet knew that this was passion worth its price...
Set in the lush and torrid Caribbean, where passion burned like the tropical sun, is this spellbinding novel of love's rapturous promise fulfilled.
350 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1983
2 people are currently reading
80 people want to read
About the author
Maggie Osborne
31 books503 followersaka
Margaret St. George
Maggie Osborne is the author of I Do, I Do, I Do and Silver Lining, as well as more than forty contemporary and historical romance novels written as Maggie Osborne and Margaret St. George. She has won numerous awards from Romantic Times, Affaire de Coeur, BookraK, the Colorado Romance Writers, and Coeur du Bois, among others. Osborne won the RITA for long historical from the Romance Writers of America in 1998. Maggie lives in a resort town in the Colorado mountains with her husband, one mule, two horses, one cat, and one dog, all of whom are a lot of aggravation, but she loves them anyway.
Margaret St. George
Maggie Osborne is the author of I Do, I Do, I Do and Silver Lining, as well as more than forty contemporary and historical romance novels written as Maggie Osborne and Margaret St. George. She has won numerous awards from Romantic Times, Affaire de Coeur, BookraK, the Colorado Romance Writers, and Coeur du Bois, among others. Osborne won the RITA for long historical from the Romance Writers of America in 1998. Maggie lives in a resort town in the Colorado mountains with her husband, one mule, two horses, one cat, and one dog, all of whom are a lot of aggravation, but she loves them anyway.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
June 16, 2011
Time: Late 1700's
Place: Port-Au-Prince - Saint Dominque - Caribbean Islands
Island Slave Rebellion
WARNING: Extreme Violence
This book is a page turner.
The very first page reveals insight into the character of the young Boston new Englander, Garnet Winters (h).
Traveling from Boston, her destination is within sight when the ship takes on water and is rapidly about to sink. Seventy passengers remain on board. Knife fights break out among the men for seats on the 3 remaining longboats. Around her, women scream, pull their hair, pray, and weep as death becomes apparent...Garnet takes it all in. Then she does the unthinkable...
By the end of the 1st chapter (page 21), Garnet has arrived on the Caribbean Island and is no longer a virgin. The black-eyed Frenchman (H) Jean Belaine has entered the story.
Maggie Osborne is so good creating characters of depth that are realistic.
Along with Garnet, the reader gets an introductory glimpse of the slave market as slavers dock with their cargoes from Africa...
Prominent secondary characters appear once Garnet arrives at her destination, the Habitation du Casse. She has come to claim her inherited half interest from her grande pere. This has been her dream.
Paul du Casse, his wife Simone, and Tamala, are all cousins of Garnet. They live together on the plantation and each individual is central to this story.
The author uses the old creole language, which takes some getting accustomed to, and adds flavor to this time period.
As the story progresses, it touches on the rebellion in France currently taking place. A hot topic due to the fact that most plantation owners are French aristocrats. References are made to Spanish occupied Louisiana (that's where I got the time frame for the story). Heavy concentration on slavery; prejudice, practices and laws pertaining to. (There are a number of mulatto, all must bare branding, etc.)
Her cousin Tamala is a mulatto and a powerful voodoo mambo...who has it in for Garnet. Hell, she has it in for everybody. She hates the whites and the Africans...
The African slaves practice vodun religion. These Africans come from war tribes and are extremely superstitious. Drums fill the sultry nights, rituals are practiced, and Osborne uses her wonderful ability to take you there while reading these pages.
Warning: Violence is extreme. Ultimately the island erupts with all the slaves uprising in rebellion. The violence is graphic as well as extreme, so you have been warned.
Osborne writes heroines with strength and character, who stretch and grow within the story. This book ends with a HEA for the leads, with a bitter sweet shadow on the horizon. This is the 2nd of her earlier work I've read that has included this style.
5+ rating
Due to the extreme violence this book is Not Recommended for WIMPS.
Place: Port-Au-Prince - Saint Dominque - Caribbean Islands
Island Slave Rebellion
WARNING: Extreme Violence
This book is a page turner.
The very first page reveals insight into the character of the young Boston new Englander, Garnet Winters (h).
Traveling from Boston, her destination is within sight when the ship takes on water and is rapidly about to sink. Seventy passengers remain on board. Knife fights break out among the men for seats on the 3 remaining longboats. Around her, women scream, pull their hair, pray, and weep as death becomes apparent...Garnet takes it all in. Then she does the unthinkable...
By the end of the 1st chapter (page 21), Garnet has arrived on the Caribbean Island and is no longer a virgin. The black-eyed Frenchman (H) Jean Belaine has entered the story.
Maggie Osborne is so good creating characters of depth that are realistic.
Along with Garnet, the reader gets an introductory glimpse of the slave market as slavers dock with their cargoes from Africa...
Prominent secondary characters appear once Garnet arrives at her destination, the Habitation du Casse. She has come to claim her inherited half interest from her grande pere. This has been her dream.
Paul du Casse, his wife Simone, and Tamala, are all cousins of Garnet. They live together on the plantation and each individual is central to this story.
The author uses the old creole language, which takes some getting accustomed to, and adds flavor to this time period.
As the story progresses, it touches on the rebellion in France currently taking place. A hot topic due to the fact that most plantation owners are French aristocrats. References are made to Spanish occupied Louisiana (that's where I got the time frame for the story). Heavy concentration on slavery; prejudice, practices and laws pertaining to. (There are a number of mulatto, all must bare branding, etc.)
Her cousin Tamala is a mulatto and a powerful voodoo mambo...who has it in for Garnet. Hell, she has it in for everybody. She hates the whites and the Africans...
The African slaves practice vodun religion. These Africans come from war tribes and are extremely superstitious. Drums fill the sultry nights, rituals are practiced, and Osborne uses her wonderful ability to take you there while reading these pages.
Warning: Violence is extreme. Ultimately the island erupts with all the slaves uprising in rebellion. The violence is graphic as well as extreme, so you have been warned.
Osborne writes heroines with strength and character, who stretch and grow within the story. This book ends with a HEA for the leads, with a bitter sweet shadow on the horizon. This is the 2nd of her earlier work I've read that has included this style.
5+ rating
Due to the extreme violence this book is Not Recommended for WIMPS.
July 6, 2024
I like this author and was looking forward to reading this recently discovered book of hers, but I soon wished I hadn't discovered it at all.
While I don't mind realism in novels and life on an 18thc sugar plantation in which slavery is par for the course would hardly be a rose bed, but there was too much violence for me, that much realism I DO NOT NEED!!! I've read one book too many where the author takes realism a bit too far, enough is enough!
I also couldn't stand this h! I usually like smart h's, who have intellect and want to use it to some worthy purpose (like running a plantation, making changes and treating slaves humanely) but this one just got on my nerves with her impossibly high standards of perfection for the H! It bothers her that he slept with other women before they met (whereas he told her he could have accepted men in her past; then again, he knew he was the first), she doesn't believe that he hasn't been with anyone since her, refuses to believe he'd keep his vows if they got married, wants an iron clad guarantee that he'll love her forever, nothing will change, he won't die too soon, his strong sex desire for her will never wane no matter what, he'll accept her for who she is (warts and all), never try to change her, never expect her to be like other women, not demand more than she can give, etc., so on, so forth, over and over ad nauseum!!!
In other words, she doesn't want a man, she wants the hokey fantasy she built up in her head years ago, (and thought came to life after a post shipwreck island seduction by the H, can you get any more ridiculous???) that no real man can ever live up to! if she can't have that, she'll have nothing!
And that's what she deserves, after she catches what she thinks was a compromising situation between the H and a bi-racial woman, where she actually berates him for preferring a black to her!!! That's right, any women of color who might be reading my review, she couldn't believe the H would dare to prefer a woman whose skin was dark when she was around! I'm white and I was offended by ghat remark, even given the time period the book was set in!
I couldn't read anymore after that, and I was sick of the whole book anyway. You would think the H would give up on that poor excuse for a woman, instead of following her around like a horny dog, hoping she'll finally accept his proposal, not to mention open her legs!
Pure CRAP!
While I don't mind realism in novels and life on an 18thc sugar plantation in which slavery is par for the course would hardly be a rose bed, but there was too much violence for me, that much realism I DO NOT NEED!!! I've read one book too many where the author takes realism a bit too far, enough is enough!
I also couldn't stand this h! I usually like smart h's, who have intellect and want to use it to some worthy purpose (like running a plantation, making changes and treating slaves humanely) but this one just got on my nerves with her impossibly high standards of perfection for the H! It bothers her that he slept with other women before they met (whereas he told her he could have accepted men in her past; then again, he knew he was the first), she doesn't believe that he hasn't been with anyone since her, refuses to believe he'd keep his vows if they got married, wants an iron clad guarantee that he'll love her forever, nothing will change, he won't die too soon, his strong sex desire for her will never wane no matter what, he'll accept her for who she is (warts and all), never try to change her, never expect her to be like other women, not demand more than she can give, etc., so on, so forth, over and over ad nauseum!!!
In other words, she doesn't want a man, she wants the hokey fantasy she built up in her head years ago, (and thought came to life after a post shipwreck island seduction by the H, can you get any more ridiculous???) that no real man can ever live up to! if she can't have that, she'll have nothing!
And that's what she deserves, after she catches what she thinks was a compromising situation between the H and a bi-racial woman, where she actually berates him for preferring a black to her!!! That's right, any women of color who might be reading my review, she couldn't believe the H would dare to prefer a woman whose skin was dark when she was around! I'm white and I was offended by ghat remark, even given the time period the book was set in!
I couldn't read anymore after that, and I was sick of the whole book anyway. You would think the H would give up on that poor excuse for a woman, instead of following her around like a horny dog, hoping she'll finally accept his proposal, not to mention open her legs!
Pure CRAP!
March 21, 2025
I should’ve had this book read in just a few days at the most, but with so many interruptions and just life in general, it took a lot longer.
The book is set in St. Domingue (now Haiti), a new place for me in my reading adventures. The descriptions are vivid, the culture is rooted in superstition, voodoo, and spirituality, and the social atmosphere is laden with racism, extreme methods of discipline and torture, and unrest overall. The tension in this story was palpable and had me sitting on the edge of my seat. It was like a pressure cooker getting ready to blow.
Garnet Winters is an heiress to a plantation where the primary source of income is sugar cane. She shares the inheritance with her cousin, Simone, whose husband is Paul. As things go, Paul is in charge and just isn’t a good guy.
Garnet has done some homework and wants to be involved with the operation, but it’s a man’s world and no place for a single lady from Boston. She’s determined to take part and make some changes while she’s at it, but with her red hair and white skin, the Africans think she’s some sort of goddess and they are suspicious.
Jean Belaine is a colonel in the French military and is in command of the troops that are on the island to keep peace and quash the impending revolution. He’s devilishly handsome, debonair, and has a way with women. He’s smitten with Garnet from the moment he meets her. How they met was unusual and is in the first pages of the book.
Garnet was taken with him too, but wants something he can’t provide. She wants forever. The reason he can’t give her that was a surprise. I was making my guesses as to why he couldn’t, but I didn’t see that coming.
This not a frilly, flowery romance. It’s tense, gritty, and even creepy at times. Ms Osborne did an excellent job of creating a supernatural ambiance. The characters were well-developed and believable. I never knew who to trust, although I knew Tamala was more than a jealous ex-lover. Most of the characters spoke Creole, which was another first for me. It wasn't the romance that kept me reading. There wasn't really a whole lot of that, although there were a few steamy scenes. It was the combustible vibe. I knew something was going to happen. I just didn't know when or how bad it was going to be.
This was a crazy good book and earned an easy five stars. Osborne is brilliant and is becoming one of my favorite authors.
The book is set in St. Domingue (now Haiti), a new place for me in my reading adventures. The descriptions are vivid, the culture is rooted in superstition, voodoo, and spirituality, and the social atmosphere is laden with racism, extreme methods of discipline and torture, and unrest overall. The tension in this story was palpable and had me sitting on the edge of my seat. It was like a pressure cooker getting ready to blow.
Garnet Winters is an heiress to a plantation where the primary source of income is sugar cane. She shares the inheritance with her cousin, Simone, whose husband is Paul. As things go, Paul is in charge and just isn’t a good guy.
Garnet has done some homework and wants to be involved with the operation, but it’s a man’s world and no place for a single lady from Boston. She’s determined to take part and make some changes while she’s at it, but with her red hair and white skin, the Africans think she’s some sort of goddess and they are suspicious.
Jean Belaine is a colonel in the French military and is in command of the troops that are on the island to keep peace and quash the impending revolution. He’s devilishly handsome, debonair, and has a way with women. He’s smitten with Garnet from the moment he meets her. How they met was unusual and is in the first pages of the book.
Garnet was taken with him too, but wants something he can’t provide. She wants forever. The reason he can’t give her that was a surprise. I was making my guesses as to why he couldn’t, but I didn’t see that coming.
This not a frilly, flowery romance. It’s tense, gritty, and even creepy at times. Ms Osborne did an excellent job of creating a supernatural ambiance. The characters were well-developed and believable. I never knew who to trust, although I knew Tamala was more than a jealous ex-lover. Most of the characters spoke Creole, which was another first for me. It wasn't the romance that kept me reading. There wasn't really a whole lot of that, although there were a few steamy scenes. It was the combustible vibe. I knew something was going to happen. I just didn't know when or how bad it was going to be.
This was a crazy good book and earned an easy five stars. Osborne is brilliant and is becoming one of my favorite authors.
January 20, 2025
Okay …. As a concept, I loved this book. The unconventional setting, the conflict, the voodoo aspect. The storytelling itself was great, and this plot had a ton of promise, even though it was incredibly violent towards the end.
But as far as the “romance” goes, that part of this story fell incredibly flat. From the MCs going at it literally seconds after meeting, without knowing each others names, and with the FMC barely conscious (consent whaaaaat?), to the lack of development with their relationship, that part was a real dud. I also disliked the fact that our FMC somehow had the delusion to think that in the 1790s, she was going to single-handedly travel across the sea, run a sugar plantation, AND dismantle decades of systemic slavery, all within like a month of her arrival in Port-au-Prince. The absurdity of it, especially in that time period, is just beyond belief. But of course, our FMC thinks she is So DiFfErEnT fRoM oThEr GiRlS. Insert eye roll here.
Lastly, while I enjoyed the realism of the slaves speaking in a pidgin English/Creole, I honestly thought it was ridiculous that our FMC, who had travelled from BOSTON, immediately also knew the same variant, and used it to communicate with the slaves. Immediately. Even though she’d not spoken like that or been exposed to it previously.
Oh, and, the “villain” character of cousin Tamala? While I realize that she was supposed to be evil/bad/cause conflict, she was honestly SO unlikable that it was hard to even appreciate her role in the story. Both she and Garnet were so extreme that it was painful.
With more character development, I think this could have really been something special. But as it was, it was a sugar (cane) coated disaster
But as far as the “romance” goes, that part of this story fell incredibly flat. From the MCs going at it literally seconds after meeting, without knowing each others names, and with the FMC barely conscious (consent whaaaaat?), to the lack of development with their relationship, that part was a real dud. I also disliked the fact that our FMC somehow had the delusion to think that in the 1790s, she was going to single-handedly travel across the sea, run a sugar plantation, AND dismantle decades of systemic slavery, all within like a month of her arrival in Port-au-Prince. The absurdity of it, especially in that time period, is just beyond belief. But of course, our FMC thinks she is So DiFfErEnT fRoM oThEr GiRlS. Insert eye roll here.
Lastly, while I enjoyed the realism of the slaves speaking in a pidgin English/Creole, I honestly thought it was ridiculous that our FMC, who had travelled from BOSTON, immediately also knew the same variant, and used it to communicate with the slaves. Immediately. Even though she’d not spoken like that or been exposed to it previously.
Oh, and, the “villain” character of cousin Tamala? While I realize that she was supposed to be evil/bad/cause conflict, she was honestly SO unlikable that it was hard to even appreciate her role in the story. Both she and Garnet were so extreme that it was painful.
With more character development, I think this could have really been something special. But as it was, it was a sugar (cane) coated disaster
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews