This HaBO request comes from Catherine, who is looking for a possibly out of print historical romance:
I am really hoping you guys can help me out, because I remember very little about the book I am looking for since I read it about 10 years ago.
It’s an out of print “bodice ripper” historical romance probably from the 70s/80s (maybe early 90s at the latest). The time period was around the Anglo-Saxon/Norman era.
The major event in the novel that has stuck with me is the heroine nearly dying in child birth. As a result, her husband who previously had passionate, detailed sex with her no longer welcomed her in his bed. Her husband’s motives were because he loved her so much that he never wanted to hurt her or risk putting her through that danger again. The heroine obviously experiences a great deal of insecurity, anger, and longing for her husband with an overall strain on their relationship. The ladies of the court introduce the heroine to the concept of performing oral sex, which she proceeds to do for her husband in an attempt to address those needs.
I believe earlier in the book there was an initial love interest who went away or was sent away as part of the political intrigue happenings and was then imprisoned, or somehow part of a bigger power struggle plot which kept him away leading to the heroine marrying her husband.
I cannot remember the name of the author, the title of the book, or even names of the characters. I am going mad and will buy this book the instant I know the name and author again.
Ah, the old “I’m protecting you by ignoring you” trope. Let’s help reunite Catherine with her book! And if it’s out of print, we’ve got our work cut out for us.
This rings Roberta Gellis and Cathrine Coulter bells, but I could be totally off base.
I think maybe *Spitfire* by Bertrice Small? http://www.amazon.com/Spitfire-Bertrice-Small/dp/0345375653
I read this many years ago, in the era when I still had to sneak-read it on days I was home sick from school because my mother deemed BS *far* too salacious for teenage me (in retrospect, she was right). But here’s what I remember: she gets kidnapped by some enemy of her fiance, she’s pretty young and struggles giving birth the first time, hero avoids sexing her anymore, she goes to court. I think I kind of remember her flirting with other guys at court? But that’s where my memories end.
I don’t know it but I think I’m intrigued
@slimlove
Gracious, that sounds like the best kind of bodice-ripping crack ever. The excerpt uses the word “manroot” which is always a good (bad?) sign.
As to the original, I swear I’ve read this book, but I can’t remember anything else.
@Tindi – I’d say that’s actually one of her tamer books (unless the 2nd half, which I don’t recall at all, got way weirder; being a Bertrice Small novel, it’s possible the heroine ended in a harem for a time). I haven’t read any of her books in years, but I was fascinated by them in high school. Partly the lure of the forbidden, partly the fact that all of her stuff was just balls-to-the-wall, over-the-top, old school bodice ripper insanity.
I may be mixing this up with another book, but it sounds like it could be “Charming the Prince” by Theresa Medeiros http://www.amazon.com/Charming-Prince-Teresa-Medeiros/dp/0553575023
The only difference is he is not sleeping with the new wife because past ones died in childbirth, and he is just *so* virile.