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Only a Promise Survivor Club Mary Balogh 9780451469670 Books

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Only a Promise Survivor Club Mary Balogh 9780451469670 Books

I love Mary Balogh. Her books are the only romance books I buy automatically without ever reading a review or the synopsis and I am rarely (occasionally but rarely) disappointed. Anyone who is familiar with my reviews knows I am extremely stingy with five stars. Once again Balogh has taken the injuries suffered by one of the survivors and written a wonderful book not only about him finding love, but finding forgiveness and learning to forgive himself. While Ralph is physically scarred the real issue he struggles with is survivors guilt. He watched three of his closest friends literally blown apart before his eyes, can't forgive himself and is convinced no one else can forgive him either. Chloe has her own tragedies to deal with, all the results of the actions of others, but she pays the price. Chloe, desperate to avoid the fate of a maiden aunt or spinster companion for the rest of her life, proposes an emotionally sterile marriage to Ralph who is locked out of his emotions. Ralph, while respectful and gentlemanly can be reduced to insult and nastiness and always ends up apologizing. Chloe oversteps her bounds from time to time as well. They are not perfect people and they are not going to be perfect people but none of Balogh's characters are completely good or bad. Chloe and Ralph understand the other's issues and fears far better than they understand their own and they ultimately rescue each other. By rescue we are not talking about some dastardly villainous plot - there is none. Balogh is so good at creating complex and emotional characters and stories that she does not need the melodramatic and artificial device of Gothic intrigue or over the top conspiracies much less kidnappings, victimized heroines or traumatized children and puppies. Balogh's couples do not experience love at first sight though they are very physical. This is a lovely, quiet, story of the development of the emotional bonds of a marriage that neither expected over the course of time. There are some editing issues but they are few, minor and do not detract from the experience of the story.


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Only a Promise Survivor Club Mary Balogh 9780451469670 Books Reviews

I've had mixed feelings about the Survivors' Club Series of books. Although I've read most of them, they've not been my favorite of Ms. Balogh's books. I would have to say the Bedwyn Series is my favorite among her offerings. But I decided to read this recent book and found myself truly dialed into the story. Now, here's where I must admit that the Survivors' Club members have been so low on my interest barometer that I didn't even recall the character of Ralph Stockwood, much less his back story. Basically, Ralph suffered serious wounds in the Napoleonic Wars, but the most serious wounding of all was the guilt he struggled with for talking his three best friends into signing up with him. This guilt has consumed his life for several years resulting in an actual type of death to his emotions and now he walks about as a type of "living dead" person - kinda like a zombie now that I think of it. He has managed to learn how to survive from day to day mostly through the help of The Survivors' Club members who are the only people in his life for whom he can actually acknowledge any type of feelings of love. Of course he does have feelings for his family members but he was so emotionally devastated following the war, he lived for three years at the retreat provided by the Duke of Stanbrook where he struggled with taking his own life. He's damaged, pure and simple.

Ralph has come to a time in his life when he is being pressured by family and circumstances to get married. He reluctantly decides to take a wife from among the offerings on the Season's Marriage Mart but it will not be a marriage that includes love - he has nothing to give. When his grandmother calls him home from London to the ducal estate to help him realize how seriously ill his grandfather, the current duke is, Ralph meets his grandmother's companion, Chloe Muirhead - a woman whose brother he knew in school and a man who always frustrated Ralph to no end. Ralph immediately sort of dumps Chloe into the same bin as her brother in his mind and emotions. Yes, Ralph has allowed his emotions to pretty much rule his life - not much of a rational thinker. Chloe has her own back story - a sad story, the circumstances of which cut her delayed "Season" short and then when she tried once again a few years later, another circumstance resulted in her disappearing from Society and holing up with her grandma's bosom buddy, who happens to be Ralph's grandma. She's now 27, totally on the shelf and bored beyond belief with her life and tragic circumstances.

Not having read any of the blurbs about this book or any reviews, I was struck dumb when I saw how Ralph's and Chloe's relationship would take off. In fact, when Chloe asked Ralph to marry her, I thought, "Well, okay then, I can get into this story." it was somewhat of a roller coaster ride for awhile which I loved. There were a couple of reasons that I'm only giving this book four stars. The next part is ***Spoilerish*** so don't read on if you don't want to know a couple of parts that I. Did. Not. Like.

I hated it that Ralph did not see to Chloe's sexual needs until a few weeks into their marriage. True, he may not have felt that was part of the agreement he made. But he did promise to treat her well and be courteous to her. He took her sexually and she enjoyed the scraps that she got - basically the weight of Ralph atop her and doing his thing. She was an innocent in sexual matters. He wasn't a rogue or a rake by any means, but he certainly had enough experience to see to her needs as he proved a few weeks into the story. This seemed beyond selfish on his part and actually out of character. He didn't even kiss her during the first few weeks - not even on the day they married. Make excuses for him all you want, but his promise to be courteous to her as his wife apparently didn't extend to the bedroom relative to her enjoyment. He had sex with her twice every night and once three times, and of course he enjoyed it or we all know he wouldn't have been able to get it going. So, that was a big problem for me.

Regarding Ralph's promise to never take Chloe back to London, all bets were off once he became the duke so I gave him a huge pass on that one. I did think the basis for his emotional death was a bit of an overkill. I know, I know, without it there would be no story. But really? His friends had minds of their own, they were big boys. When Ralph is set free emotionally, of course these truths are finally seen and we have another member of The Survivors' Club free to enjoy life more fully. This is my favorite of the series.
Balogh's fifth entry in her Survivor's Club series will please romance readers who like thoughtful complex characters who grow to love one another through the course of the narrative. The late regency period couple face some ordinary (death, jealousy, family tensions) and extraordinary (War, PTSD) challenges that lead them (instead of opposing them) along the path to HEA. Both Ralph and Chloe are adult complex people who move steadily from two individuals to one loving couple.

As a long time fan of Balogh, I am amazed at how she often uses the same plot device in several of her books (Haircuts in both THE IDEAL WIFE and ONLY A PROMISE as an example) and reworks the narrative from a fresh angle. In fact, there are many similarities between the two books. However, I might not have noted them without the haircut. THE IDEAL WIFE is light hearted and ONLY A PROMISE is heavy drama but Balogh fans will note that the couples marry immediately after meeting each other, the hero has a widowed mother and several sisters, the heroine has the same scandal in her family, and more. Balogh changes the scene and sometimes the outcome of her plot devices to make the stories very different. In doing so, she demonstrates how the same events in different people's lives have a uniqueness or perspective all their own based on the personalities of the individuals.
I love Mary Balogh. Her books are the only romance books I buy automatically without ever reading a review or the synopsis and I am rarely (occasionally but rarely) disappointed. Anyone who is familiar with my reviews knows I am extremely stingy with five stars. Once again Balogh has taken the injuries suffered by one of the survivors and written a wonderful book not only about him finding love, but finding forgiveness and learning to forgive himself. While Ralph is physically scarred the real issue he struggles with is survivors guilt. He watched three of his closest friends literally blown apart before his eyes, can't forgive himself and is convinced no one else can forgive him either. Chloe has her own tragedies to deal with, all the results of the actions of others, but she pays the price. Chloe, desperate to avoid the fate of a maiden aunt or spinster companion for the rest of her life, proposes an emotionally sterile marriage to Ralph who is locked out of his emotions. Ralph, while respectful and gentlemanly can be reduced to insult and nastiness and always ends up apologizing. Chloe oversteps her bounds from time to time as well. They are not perfect people and they are not going to be perfect people but none of Balogh's characters are completely good or bad. Chloe and Ralph understand the other's issues and fears far better than they understand their own and they ultimately rescue each other. By rescue we are not talking about some dastardly villainous plot - there is none. Balogh is so good at creating complex and emotional characters and stories that she does not need the melodramatic and artificial device of Gothic intrigue or over the top conspiracies much less kidnappings, victimized heroines or traumatized children and puppies. Balogh's couples do not experience love at first sight though they are very physical. This is a lovely, quiet, story of the development of the emotional bonds of a marriage that neither expected over the course of time. There are some editing issues but they are few, minor and do not detract from the experience of the story.