In this episode our Snarky Sisters review the book The Claiming of the Shrew by Shana Galen, which is book 5 in the Survivors series.
The best part of this book are the diverse hero and heroine. The hero is a seasoned military man, who we would now consider part of the upper middle class (landed gentry but not of the aristocracy). The heroine is a Portuguese self-proclaimed "peasant" who rises a small village in Portugal so become one of the most famous lace makers in Europe, a passionate entrepreneur with her own business. This should be the future of historical romances with characters from diverse ethnic, economic, and social backgrounds. Let's break those molds!
Here are all the reasons we think this hero is lovable and relatable:
- He is average height for the time (not even 6 feet) but would be considered short compared to typical historical romance heroes in the genre
- He has flaming red, often mussed hair that is hard to tame (and that the heroine loves)
- He has freckles
- He is an older man (45) with some with grey hair on his chest and perhaps not as slim in the waist as he once was
- But he is also confident in who he is and has nothing to prove and his self-confidence/self-assurance is definitely sexy
- To sum up - a mature hero with life experience who doesn't overreact to every little situation? Yes, please.
Some favorite scenes from the book:
- Romantic scene - Benedict's proposal in the shop he has bought for Catarina is SO sweet and perfect.
- Swoon worthy scene - hero literally running to rescue his woman. I just have no words. I love this hero - I can't say it enough!
- Funniest scene - Where was Duncan hiding that claymore? And why was he so excited to do some killing and/or maiming? I definitely want to read Duncan's story next!
Warning: This episode contains some mild adult language and some adult themes and situations as discussed in regards to plot points/content within the book.
