The Promise

When I saw this for review, I knew I had to get this. I'm a sucker for an arranged marriage novel.

What I loved was the hero. Rafe was sweet and even blushed. I hate jerks, thankfully he wasn't one. I don't know why girls always go for the bad boys. I was kind of wary since it was set in the medieval times and even though it was clean, I had read some clean novels that the only clean thing about them is that they don't describe the **x scenes. And the hero in them is a jerk and kind of violent, which is easier to do in a medieval setting. (I don't really like to read reviews before reading the book, so I didn't know.)
But I was pleasantly surprised and all my worries left me, he was sweet and kind and just plain awesome!(I also loved his friends)

I loved that the Lady Adele was also nice, shy, and kind. She was kind of sheltered being "hidden" so nothing would happen to her. They were perfect for each other!
I don't like saying much about the heroine, I'm more about the hero ;) So it's kind of short.

This was a clean and sweet book and I would recommend it to anyone who loves historical romances, shy, sweet and kind heroes, and lovely heroines.

What gave it four stars was grammar mistakes and that it needed more romance. But I loved that there was no insta-love so I move it up to 4.5 stars :)

*DISCLAIMER. I was provided with a free e-book copy for a fair and honest review and that did not influence me in my review. This is my own opinion. And thanks to the author for the copy!*

The Promise is a sweet romance, with bits of action and quipping wit. The characters were likeable. Each had their own voice and reason for acting the way they did. They were human, with strengths and weaknesses. I enjoyed how they spoke so properly, as befitting their station and the setting. I liked how the romance progressed between Rafe and Adele, from appraising observations to feeling something deeper stir within. It was a bit jarring to be in both of their heads at any given moment, with an omnipotent POV at times, but it did help us to see their true feelings. I just would have preferred breaks or a visible transition.
As for the actual plot, it was a tad confusing. The suspense over who was chasing Rafe and Adele, and why, lost a bit of its oomph as quite a bit of time passes in-between attacks; some of which come from other people before the main villain's attempt. The ending disappointed me in that there was no real conclusion regarding the villain. It just ended sort of abruptly. Thus, I was happy to read that a sequel is in the works.
The writing is pleasant, aside from comma overload and abuse (aka commas where period should be, and sometimes no commas were commas should be.) This results in a galore of run-on sentences. There were apostrophe and spelling errors, such as interchanging its/it's, and even your's instead of yours. These issues seem a trend of the authors. As I am currently reading another of her works, I notice the same issues of commas and apostrophe errors are present.
Despite this, The Promise is a clean romantic read. Those, who like medieval settings, befitting dialogue, women characters who are meek as well as strong, will enjoy this book.

This book was actually quite nice! I'll give it 3.75 stars

I found the prologue and the epilogue an amazing touch, it made the story seem like a fable or something. Actually, they were my favourite parts!

Now, there were a few problems with this book. First of all, I found at least ten punctuation mistakes, mainly missing out commas. There may have been more than comma mistakes, but I didn't catch them. This was not only the fault of the author, but the editor as well, so please, Miss Chant, hire a better editor next time! Note, the mistake was also partly Miss Chant's, but authors are usually so immersed in their writing that they may forget at times.

Besides this, there wasn't really any other problem. The problem lies with me. When I started this book, I expected this to be mainly romance, and I did enjoy the romance aspects. However, I found the other parts, like the battle, and the chapters focused on Finan, very boring. This was a forty-sixty mistake. Mainly me, because I don't like such stuff, but also the author for not trying to make it more interesting. If it would have been more interesting, I would have liked it more. I know because I've read boring books that are written so well that they manage to interest me. Sixty percent my fault, forty percent the author's.

Otherwise, I enjoyed the book I just wish there had been more romance. My fault, again! Mostly...

This was a fantastic read! I don't usually read historical fiction, but I thoroughly enjoyed The Promise. Dee Dee did a fantastic job of creating an intriguing story, reminiscent of King Arthur's era.
The author has a well crafted writing style and her passion for historical times and writing clearly shows in every chapter. She has taken a Lords and Ladies tale to a new level that really sets her apart from other historical fiction authors.
This story begins with a unique prologue that immediately grabs your attention.
The dialogue and way of speech is excellent and very fitting for the time portrayed in the story. It did not complicate the writing and the plot flowed along nicely. The reader was able to become a part of the story which is something I really enjoyed.
The Promise was full of action and constant surprises. It's romance was wonderful and not forced. I like that the romance really blossomed as the story progressed.
Rafe and Adele make a great couple despite their arranged marriage. The fact that Rafe chooses to hide his identity to Adele really made things interesting.
This story is more than just budding romance, it also tells of honor and the impact war has on the land and ones soul. Most importantly the impact of ones loyalty to a promise.
This was a great first book in what is sure to be a really great series. I can't wait to read the second book as well as other books from the author.
To anyone, young or old, who loves a good heart pounding tale of war and love, I highly recommend this book!

The Promise by D.D. Chant
The Lady Quill Chronicles Book 1
The battle of Calis took all of Lady Adele's family in death. Lord Brogan of Valrek desired to keep her safe. So it was that at two years old she was betrothed to his ten year old son, Rafe. She was hidden away to keep her safe and in her eighteenth year Rafe would come and take her to his home. Adele was happy in her life at the fort and with the women there while she waited for the years to pass unto Rafe came for her.

Rafe wanted to see what his betrothed was truly like. So he devised a plan to go to her as someone sent by Rafe. His father believed nothing good became of deceit but allowed him to go. During their journey home Rafe did find the girl quite delightful and constantly looked for openings to tell her the truth, only he was not a man good with words….especially when it came to women. As always, the longer he waited the harder it became to tell her.

This story is full of so many unique characters. Rafe's close friends from childhood, Finan and Leofric. Rand who was a childhood friend until his father started the battle of Calis and as a young boy he had to stand at his side...opposite his friends and Adele's companion, Eda. This book has the sneaky, the evil and the Gradock’s and a few good sword fights and dagger throwings. There are more adventures ahead but this book has good closure, I did not feel that I was left hanging.
http://justjudysjumbles.blogspot.com/2012/07/dd-chant-book-list.html

What if you had to marry someone you have never seen before? This situation wasn’t unusual when Lady Adele and Lord Rafe of Valrek lived. A time in which engagements were arranged before the kids were grown-ups. A time when honor, trust, alliances and friendship were all that matter.
This book presents us a great romantic historical story with a lot of action, romance, treason and great characters.
Lady Adele has lived secluded all her life in The Fort waiting for the moment she was old enough to marry Rafe. When the day came he decided to go on her quest. With the certainty that the only way to truly know her is to pretend to be someone else, Rafe takes on a journey that will be full of obstacles and a new surprise in every corner.
After their first encounter they set on a journey to the lands of Lord Valrek. With the companion of Lady Eda they get to know each other deeply and developed a great affection.
Along the book, secrets come to light, identities are revealed and a threat is discovered. Every page brings a new surprised so it’s never gets boring.
The Promise is one of the best romance stories but it not lacks action. In a time when honor was one of the greatest assets a man can have, the book has more than one sword’s fight, horseback riding and armies of hundreds of men.
With two central characters, as Adele and Rafe, jumping to conclusions before nothing has been said and that are perfect for each other the book has great dialogues, well written and very amusing. Characters that we see evolve, face ghost from the past and go on.
Overall a great book, fun, easy to read, enjoyable and well written.

My Rating: 4 1/2 Sparks

My Review:

Ah yes. This book was splendid indeed. The author: D.D. Chant is a remarkable writer, opening up with a Prologue of the character, Lady Quill writing a letter to the reader. I rarely see books that starts with that. Well done.
I do not really read Historical Fiction, but the author shows hard work and a lot of quality on making this an intriguing read. I spent most of my time reading this about seven times in the past few days, because the author herself made it so special.
What I really liked about this book is the author made it captivating. The descriptions were done right and correctly. The dialogues between the characters seemed fairly natural and made me--the reader, believed that I was there. The paragraphs are not quite long, but the perfect length.
What I really liked most: the author creates this world that readers can understand and communicate with in real life. The Promise has a lot of meaning, making the readers guess what this book is really about.
There was a name of a character that caught my eye: Lord Coughly. Why do I like this character? His name stands out. The word, "cough" and his name "Coughly" sounds interesting. Never have I ever read a book that has that name. It seems original...which I really liked.
The book reminded me of King Arthur stories, but not necessarily. It was quite original which stood out from the story.
I am looking forward to be reading the rest of her books. I see bright things ahead of her.


*Overall there was thirty-two chapters and a prologue/epilogues.
It was a fair easy-read. I will recommend it to Historical lovers for teenagers and adults.