The Desert FlowerAt seventeen, fiery Juliet Cameron fell passionately in love and married the perfect companion for the adventurous life she wanted to lead. Lord Ross Carlisle is handsome, dashing, and as eager to explore the world as she is. But social constraints and fear of an all consuming love that threatens to engulf her independent spirit send Juliet fleeing to the distant land where she … where she was raised as a diplomat’s child.
Now, a dozen years later, a gentleman’s promise sends Lord Ross on a dangerous rescue mission to Central Asia—and to a shocking reunion with his long estranged wife. Warily they join forces to cross the merciless desert to Bokhara, where Juliet’s army officer brother has been imprisoned. The fierce attraction that drew them together so many years before has never died. But if they succumb to passion, can either of them survive if they cannot heal their broken marriage?
The Silk Trilogy:
#1 Silk and Shadows
#2 Silk and Secrets
#3 Veils of Silk
* Winner of Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice award for best historical sequel * Nominated for RWA’s Golden Choice Award for best romance of the year.
Praise for Silk and Secrets:
“[Silk and Secrets] fulfills every dream of your heart, every yearning of your soul, as a pair of memorable lovers find their way back to each other’s arms . . . This remarkable novel of high adventure and unquenchable love is a stunning reading experience, one you will remember and cherish forever.”
–Melinda Helfer, Romantic Times, 4+ review
“…Sheer brilliance. [Silk and Secrets’] historical vibrancy and vitality bring to mind Dorothy Dunnett with a dash of Indiana Jones… Ms. Putney’s descriptions convey both the romanticism and the harshness of the dunes and their nomads. Traveling with a desert caravan, Ross and Juliet talk and fight and laugh, sometimes as the only way out of a tight spot, and I loved every word of it. I also loved Ross, a Lawrence of Arabia (oh heavens, Peter O’Toole) sans homosexuality crossed with Francis Crawford sans self-destructiveness – a true gentleman, and super, super hot. And Juliet was such a vital, complex woman – proud but not blinkered, hot-tempered but not TSTL, and humorous to boot – that damned if I didn’t wish she were a) my friend, b) running for president….”
–Jean Wan, Desert Island Keeper
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
A New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USAToday bestselling author, Mary Jo Putney was born in Upstate New York with a reading addiction, a condition for which there is no known cure. Her entire romance writing career is an accidental byproduct of buying a computer for other purposes.
Her novels are known for psychological depth and intensity and include historical and contemporary romance, fantasy, and young adult fantasy. Winner of numerous writing awards, including two RITAs and two Romantic Times Career Achievement awards, she has six times had books listed among the Library Journal’s top five romances of the year, and three times had books among the top ten romances of Booklist, the magazine of the American Library Association.
Her favorite reading is great stories, but in a pinch she’ll settle for the backs of cereal boxes. She’s delighted that e-publishing can now make available books that have been out of print.
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Fast-paced, Victorian-era, reunion romance with an exotic, Middle Eastern setting
When he was only 21, and she was only 17, handsome, dashing Lord Ross Carlisle fell madly and mutually in love with beautiful, headstrong Juliet Cameron, and they rushed into marriage. Juliet is the daughter of a British diplomat, and due to traveling widely with her parents, especially in Persia, she was a fascinating combination of sophistication and naiveté. Ross assumed all was well with the two of them, until six months into their marriage, with no warning, Juliet abandoned him and ran away. Devastated and frantic for her safety, Ross chased after Juliet, but did not find her, and at the start of the story, they have been separated for 12 years.
In the present day, Juliet’s mother begs Ross to find Juliet’s brother, Ian, who is missing in Persia and presumed dead. She hopes Ross can either rescue Ian, if he is captured, or bring home his body, if he is dead. Ross is qualified to do this for her because he is fluent in the language and customs of Persia and very brave, and he agrees to take on this dangerous mission. Along the way in Persia, he accidentally encounters Juliet, who apparently has been living in the desert in Northern Persia all these years. She insists on accompanying Ross to save her brother and, in the midst of terrible danger, long buried feelings arise between the estranged spouses.
This romance novel is a sequel to Silk and Shadows, which is set in England. Though all three of the books in this trilogy can be read as standalone novels, with no cliffhangers, your reading experience will be greatly enhanced by reading each book in this trilogy, and reading them sequentially. In Silk and Shadows, we are first introduced to Ross. And in this book we are first introduced to Ian, who is the hero of the final book in the trilogy, Veils of Silk, which is set in India.
Since the great majority of MJP’s novels are set in the Regency period, it is a fun change to read a romance by her set decades later, in the mid-1800’s, and far away from the typical romance setting of either England or the USA. This novel is extremely well researched, and the exotic setting comes vividly to life.
Fans of action-adventure romance novels, will be sitting on the edge of their seat while reading this exciting novel, which offers a thrilling series of hair-raising adventures, which are heroically handled by the intrepid protagonists. There is plenty of passion between these attractive, charismatic protagonists as well, though the sex scenes are never crude or semi-pornographic, which far too often is the case in the historical romance genre.
I first read this novel when it was originally released in 1992 in mass market paperback form. I reread it multiple times in that format and then, a few years ago, I had the opportunity to re-purchase it in Kindle format as well. I had been hoping for some time that this book would eventually come out in audiobook format, too, and my wish finally came true. Just this past week I had the opportunity to experience it as an Audible audiobook. It is narrated by the talented, British, audiobook narrator and voiceover artist, Siobhan Waring. She does a wonderful job acting out all the different parts with distinct voices for male and female characters of all ages. It is a delightful way to experience this classic, historical romance.
I rate this story as follows:
Heroine: 5 stars
Hero: 5 stars
Subcharacters: 5 stars
Romance Plot: 5 stars
Action-Adventure Plot: 5 stars
Redemption Plot: 5 stars
Setting: 5 stars
Writing: 5 stars
Audiobook Narration: 5 stars
Overall: 5 stars
Putney is my favourite author. Her characters are complex and relatable.