Now Face to Face by Karleen Koen

Book Description:
The beloved heroine from Koen's bestselling Through a Glass Darkly returns in a passionate, unforgettable, romantic tapestry. A widow at age 20, emotionally devastated and financially ruined by the death of her husband in scandalous circumstances, Barbara Devane leaves colonial Virginia for London to confront her enemies and to pursue a deeply satisfying yet dangerous clandestine love.

Having loved Through a Glass Darkly, I was eager to read this sequel, and get back into the early Georgian world of London and Barbara Devane. It is 1720, Barbara, a young widow has left London behind and the scheming court of George I with it's political intrigues and the financial disgrace and woes from the South Sea Bubble of which her dead husband has been named scapegoat. She must leave to mourn her husband, Roger, and she keeps busy learning the ways of growing tobacco, and dealing with a new set of intrigues in colonial Virginia.

The first part of the book was a bit slow going. I thought I'd really enjoy the Virginia sequences, but Barbara's life was unhappy there for the most part. She does make some good friends, one of which is her neighbor, Colonel Perry, an older man who grows to love her. He counsels her in the ways of Virginia and society and helps her get her grandmother's plantation in order. The divine Barbara is like an exotic bird in Virginia with her fine gowns and jewels and writs from the King of England! She is young and beautiful and refreshing to the colonials. She has a near romance with a crooked sea captain, Klaus, that comes to nothing, but the worst of Virginia is the loss of her dear, dear French black page, Hyacinthe, who is kidnapped. This leads to great angst and worry. Much hand wringing and searching for him, but he is not to be found. I felt terrible for Barbara and her maid, Therese, who love him dearly, he is like their child. The loss is great. I was disappointed in the way Hyacinthe's journey to return to Barbara and Therese was so haphazardly handled. We get a good idea of what happened to him, but there are a lot of unanswered questions, I would have liked to know how he made it to London from the West Indies! Because of the loss of Hyacinthe, she decides to free all her slaves and then return to London.

Meanwhile, the other half of the story takes place in London surrounding the Jacobean plot to overthrow King George I, and put James of Scotland on the throne of England. Many of Barbara's nearest and dearest are knee deep in the plot. At first, I was a bit tired of it - another Jacobite uprising! Uggh, I just finished a book about the rising in '45, but this earlier one was interesting for I barely knew anything about it. It came to nothing, but it does give you some background on why so many people at the time resisted the Hanoverian king, it makes sense that they would. One of the main plotters is a young man, Slane, who is posing as an actor, but he's really an Irish nobleman, a "gosling" under King James who has vowed to honor him and work to see him on the throne. Slane eventually becomes a love interest to Barbara, although I wasn't totally into the idea of the two of them being together, I was hoping she'd wind up with her cousin, Tony.

Even though Barbara is in Virginia for the first half of the book, she is still the talk of the town in London. Her cousin, Tony, the Duke of Tamworth is still in love with her and fights a duel over her. He kills a man and repents over it. He decides to once and for all marry and get on with his life. I was sorry to see this, for I had hopes that Barbara and Tony would one day marry, but their grandmother, the Duchess of Tamworth would have none of it, she knew Barbara would be Tony's ruin, which was the reason she sent Barbara off to Virginia in the first place. Eventually when Barbara does return to London amidst worries of a rising and invasion taking place momentarily, she immediately finds a place in the King's court and the intrigues begin again at once. Now the book gets interesting! Before she knows it, she is in league with the Jacobites, though not on purpose, they seem to be all around her, many are her friends. She cannot escape them though she tries to remain neutral. Can she stay that way when her lover is a leader in the plot and her best friend's husband is in the Tower, arrested for treason and will soon be hanged?

One of the highlights of Koen's books are her side characters who are delightful. Most of them are more colorful and interesting than her heroine, Barbara. Alice, the elderly Duchess of Tamworth still has some life in her. She is now regretful of her past mistakes in life and seems to have a preoccupation with bees and her memories. There's always a lot unsaid about Alice and her dead husband, Richard's, marriage. So many tantalizing clues about it, was Richard really a Jacobite sympathizer and Alice talked him out of it? How? I want to read a book on their marriage! I wish the author would write one. Diana, her daughter, and Barbara's mother, is still the cunning siren, mistress of many who uses sex to get everything she wants. She is ruthless in her desire for power and will not hesitate to use her body to serve her purposes. It was delicious to read about how bad she is - she's one of the best things in this book! Tony, Barbara's cousin is a good man, but I feel sorry for him. He will always love Barbara but cannot have her. As he says, he never kissed her in passion. Slane, Barbara's lover is like a secret agent for the Jacobites. He is daring and clever, a romantic at heart, I'm glad Barbara finds love eventually with him, though I didn't find theirs to be a "great love" it was more like she settled on him for he was around and young and handsome and was heroic in her eyes. I didn't like him a lot and was surprised that Barbara wound up with him and fell in love with him.

Was this book as good as it's predecessor? Not in the least. It lacked energy, and the plot was not very compelling until around the last 200 pages of the book. It ended in a strange way with the Duchess thinking to herself, rambling on with her memories and thoughts, kind of odd quoting poetry and scripture. Sort of up in the air, but we are led to believe in the epilogue that all will be well. I was a bit disappointed we don't get to see Barbara's reaction when Hyacinthe returns, a lot is left to the imagination and we don't get details of Barbara reuniting with Slane in Paris, we just hear about it. That's why I didn't feel all warm and fuzzy about their relationship, the author sort of keeps the reader at arms length with it, did she just get tired of writing the book and wanted to finish it off and get it over with?

All in all, it was a pretty good book, but fell flat in parts and I kept wishing through all 700 pages of it that it would pick up. Once Barbara returned to London it got a lot better and the pace quickened, there was more of her mother and Aunt Shrew and the Duchess, but it didn't have the flair and poignancy of Through a Glass Darkly, perhaps others will feel differently. Oh well.

3.5/5

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Dark Angels by Karleen Koen

Book Description:
Alice Verney is a young woman intent on achieving her dreams. Having left Restoration England in the midst of a messy scandal, she has been living in Louis XIV's Baroque, mannered France for two years. Now she is returning home to England and anxious to re-establish herself quickly. First, she will regain her former position as a maid of honor to Charles II's queen. Then she will marry the most celebrated duke of the Restoration, putting herself in a position to attain power she's only dreamed of. As a duchess, Alice will be able to make or break her friends and enemies at will.

But all is not as it seems in the rowdy, merry court of Charles II. Since the Restoration, old political alliances have frayed, and there are whispers that the king is moving to divorce his barren queen, who some wouldn't mind seeing dead. But Alice, loyal only to a select few, is devoted to the queen, and so sets out to discover who might be making sinister plans, and if her own father is one of them. When a member of the royal family dies unexpectedly, and poison is suspected, the stakes are raised. Alice steps up her efforts to find out who is and isn't true to the queen, learns of shocking betrayals throughout court, and meets a man that she may be falling in love with—and who will spoil all of her plans. With the suspected arrival of a known poison-maker, the atmosphere in the court electrifies, and suddenly the safety of the king himself seems uncertain. Secret plots are at play, and war is on the horizon—but will it be with the Dutch or the French? And has King Charles himself betrayed his country for greed?

The long-awaited prequel to Koen's beloved Through a Glass Darkly, Dark Angels is a feast of a novel that sparkles with all the passion, extravagance, danger, and scandal of seventeenth-century England. Unforgettable in its dramatic force, here is a novel of love and politics, of romance and betrayal, of power and succession—and of a resourceful young woman who risks everything for pride and status in an era in which women were afforded little of either.

I was disappointed with this book. I simply loved Through a Glass Darkly and this prequel was such a let down. The book itself wasn't bad, well written, dramatic, a great birds eye view of the courts of Charles II and Louis XIV, but I was bored by some of it. After upteen levees, soirees, balls and masquerades, it starts to all run together. I expected to love this book, since it's Alice Verney's story who is the feisty, oh so interesting and scene stealing elderly duchess from Through a Glass Darkly. I was hoping to read about what Alice was like as a young woman at court and how she meets her future husband Richard Saylor. You know the old saying, be careful for what you wish for? We do find out in this book what young Alice was like - and I didn't like her! We do read about how she meets Richard, but nothing really kicks in between them until the last third of the book, since Richard is in love with someone else through most of it. Plus, Alice is hell bent on marrying the elderly Duke of Balmoral so she can rule the roost at court. She was meddling and unforgiving, a pushy know-it-all. She was much too pragmatic for my liking. Eventually, as she discovered that she loved the young and handsome Richard Saylor, she began to soften and I liked her more, but before that - bah!

The main plotline of this book is about the mystery of who this poisoner, Henri Ange is that murdered Princess Henriettte, King Charles II's sister who is married to Louis XIV's not so very nice brother. Two years earlier, Alice's engagement to the heir of the Duke of Balmoral was broken because he impregnated her best friend and he had to marry her. Alice ignominiously leaves the court of Charles II to become his sister's lady in waiting in France. Now, back in England for a short visit with the Princess, Alice must face her former fiancee and former friend who wishes forgiveness, but Alice cannot forgive or forget. This is one of her fatal flaws, she cannot find it in herself to forgive people who don't go along with what she wants or who cross her. This doesn't seem too bad when she's in her 70's, but at 20, it's unappealing and she didn't win me over. Frankly, I'm surprised Richard fell for her at all.

Richard, throughout most of the book is in love with the beautiful Renee La Karouelle, who is a friend of Alice's and ultimately he asks her to marry him. She says yes and they are in love. But, Renee catches the eye of Charles II and he wants her to become his prime mistress. A tempting offer for a young Frenchwoman at court who doesn't have many prospects or wealth, aside from her great beauty. Alice and Renee return to England for good after their princess is poisoned and before long, Charles II wins out and Renee cannot say no to him and the lure of his riches and attentions. She must give up Richard, or rather, Richard gives her up, which leaves him free to notice Alice, who is still too busy getting the old Duke of Balmoral to propose to her so she may become a great duchess. The old Duke is an interesting character, he's wilier than first believed, but he too has a fatal flaw that becomes his ruin. Ms. Koen has a good hand with her side characters. They are vivid and interesting, whether they are villains or good people with their own sad stories.

Alice is not all bad. She has a great sense of duty and is kind to her queen and Dorothy who is the "mother" of the maids that attend the queen. She is a fierce supporter of her friends (as long as they do what she thinks they should do) and loyal to a fault. It takes us a long time to see this side of Alice, but she begins to thaw as she and Richard help each other with the aid of the old duke to chase down the assassin, Henri Ange. But she still must give up her pride which prevents her from forgiving those she loves most. I found it a bit tedious how she could be so stubborn, convinced she was in the right no matter what, even when it meant cutting off her childhood friend who she believed could have married better. Alice is indomitable and strong but it doesn't help her in the end when her pride almost kills her and she realizes the great mistakes she has made in friendship, marriage, duty and love. In some cases, it's too late, but in others there is hope.

Unlike the book description above, I didn't find the main storyline compelling and was really annoyed that there was not much between Alice and Richard and their courtship - since that's what I was hoping for the most! This could have been so much better. The growing fondness between the two was so subtle it was just plain dull and overpowered by the other plotline of finding the murderer, Henri Ange. How could the author have done this to Alice? Alice, whom I loved in Through the Glass Darkly! I wanted to read a juicy story about Alice and Richard and their great passion, instead it's a tepid love story about two people that find out they love each other but won't openly admit it to each other. They dance around it, but nothing ever comes of anything until the very end of the book. I think Alice deserved better than this.

If you read Through a Glass Darkly, don't get your hopes up too high about this prequel. Written nearly 20 years after the last, I think the commanding and domineering older Alice of the last book didn't translate well with a younger Alice. She was unlikable. I found some of the interesting and sad side stories memorable and the few bitchy duchesses and scheming maids were diverting. Overall, the book was not what I expected due to the hard time I had with warming up to Alice, but she still remains close to my heart since I loved her so much in Through a Glass Darkly. I know what she becomes, so I'll forgive her younger days before she falls in love with Richard Saylor. I hope there might be another book in the works devoted to their life together and not with some crazy murder mystery sideline to take away from it.

3.5/5

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Through A Glass Darkly by Karleen Koen

A magnificent tapestry of a grand and glorious era...

As opulent and passionate as the 18th century it celebrates. Through a glass Darkly will sweep you away to the splendors of a lost era. Like Gone With the Wind, it is rich with characters so vivid -- from aristocrats to scoundrels--they create their own immortality. Here is the story of a great family ruled by a dowager of extraordinary power: of a young woman seeking love in a world of English luxury and French intrigue, and of a man haunted by a secret that could turn all their dreams to ashes...

I love great big huge books that you can sink your teeth into. This was one of them, plus it was one of my books that I've now finished for my TBR Challenge. Over 750 pages, it's the detailed and engrossing story of Barbara, the grandaughter of Alice, the stalwart, domineering - and aging -- dowager, Duchess of Tamworth. Set in early Georgian England and Paris, the story is sprawling and majestic, set amidst aristocratic society and the royal courts. Mistressses, lovers, gossip, scandal and secrets all abound in this entertaining piece of historical fiction.

Barbara is a young and innocent fifteen year old who is engaged to marry the handsome and dashing Roger Montgeoffrey, a man much older than she, but who she has always loved since she was but a young girl. Roger is sophisticated, a man of the world, but he is a self made man, once the protege of her grandfather, the Duke of Tamworth who has been dead for five years. Her grandmother still rules with an iron hand at the family estate of Tamworth and has been Barbara's virtual mother, since her own egotistical mother, Diana is more interested in other things, like her schemes and lovers and most importantly - money.

Diana has brokered the marriage between Barbara and Roger with a trump card that makes Barbara irresistible. She brings to her marriage what Roger wants most - land. Not just any land, it is prime acreage in London in which he plans to develop and build a huge house for himself, with a square with shops and buildings, town houses, and the crown jewel - a church designed by none other than Sir Christopher Wren himself - a showpiece to last forever. This will be his legacy in which he will be remembered by all. Loads of scheming goes on before the marriage takes place - it almost doesn't - but in the end Barbara gets her way - and Roger. Little does she know what will happen once they're married. I loved the way the book unfolds and I grew to love this young and naive Barbara who only wants to marry the man she loves. I adored her grandmother, Alice as well, who is a tough old woman with still a lot of grit and spunk in her. She helps Barbara get Roger. She is a worthy dowager duchess, I really loved her. Diana, Barbara's mother is also a great character with her machinations and steely desire to get what she wants no matter who dies or lives in the process - or gets hurt by it. I loved to read about what horrible thing she'd do next. All the characters are written well, they have their own interesting personalities and backstories, even down to the servants like Therese and Annie - all were superb.

Once Barbara and Roger are married, he whisks her off to Paris and she is immediately introduced to the gossip and scandalous society of the Parisian court. Much of it is decadent and debauched and Barbara is out of her league at first, but soon she learns the way of life in Paris. She is relatively happy, yet is disconcerted that she if often neglected by her new husband, a popular man in town who spends all of his time with his old "friend" Phillippe, a french nobleman. Roger has a dark secret he keeps from Barbara which will ultimately devastate her. It was fascinating reading about Parisian society and the scheming and back stabbing involved - I loved every bit of it, all the while knowing that the proverbial shit would soon hit the fan when Roger's secret gets out. The question was: how?

The second part of the book takes place four years later, after Barbara learns the truth about her husband's lifestyle. She is back in London with a lover of her own, yet not divorced. In my mind, this was the weaker part of the book. Who was this lover of Barbara's all of a sudden? He didn't have the same depth as the other characters. I didn't feel like I knew him the same way I did with the others, except that he bore a striking resemblence to Roger. Roger still supports her in the lavish lifestyle she is accustomed to, yet they live apart. But soon Roger and many others in her life are affected by the financial imbroglio known as the South Sea Bubble that ruins many in London during this time. Much of this part of the book involves the financial ruin of many and I couldn't help but think how similar the South Sea Bubble was to the internet bubble in the late 1990's on Wall Street, and the latest financial credit debacle that occured last Fall. Barbara is now a little older, a little more mature, but still in love with Roger, and not much wiser. She finds herself in the midst of a huge scandal involving a duel and her current lover, Charles. I found it disconcerting to see what had happened to Barbara over the years. She's still incredibly young - only twenty, but much happens to her and her family. Much of it is sad. But, she always has her grandmother at Tamworth to go back to and find her strength.

Throughout her ups and down are her loyal servants and friends, as well as her brother, Harry and cousin, Tony, who I grew to really like. I'd like to think that Tony, who is the present Duke of Tamworth will one day win Barbara, since he fell in love with her almost on sight when she first came to London before her marriage to Roger. Tony blossoms through the book, I felt sorry for him and I hope something good happens to him in the sequel.

I highly recommend this book, I grew to love the characters in it and was sorry to finish it, I can't wait to read the sequel Now Face to Face and the prequel about Alice, the Duchess, Dark Angels before she marries her beloved, Richard, Duke of Tamworth during the time of Charles II.

A great read, you won't be sorry!

4.5/5

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