Type of bind: Mass Market Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN num: 9780671027407
ISBN number: 0671027409
Label: Pocket
Manufacturer: Pocket
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 480
Printing Date: May 01, 2000
Publishing house: Pocket
Sale Popularity Level: 1047916
Studio: Pocket
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Editor's Notes and Comments:
Product Description:
Set against the dazzling landscape of the Renaissance, The Stargazer captures the ageless desires of the human heart in an 'exquisitely dramatic' (Publishing houses Weekly, starred review) love story laced with danger, adventure, and sensuous pleasure....
Bianca Salva is the brilliant and beautiful daughter of a renowned physician. Ian Foscari is a handsome aristocrat notorious for his romantic conquests. Worlds apart in the circles of society, they have been brought together by an extraordinary intrigue: each has been mysteriously summoned to the home of a murdered courtesan. And each has reason to suspect the other of the deadly crime.
For each, proving their innocence will depend on the other -- and Ian concocts a seamless ruse to ensure that Bianca can't leave his sight. Together, they step carefully around secrets of murder and betrayal. But out of their masquerade grows a heated battle of wits. A tenuous trust. And an undeniable passion....
Amazon.com Review:
Michele Jaffe's very first novel, The Stargazer, may have very little to do with astronomy, but its mixture of murder mystery, historical romance, and steamy passion certainly has universal appeal. Our heroine, Bianca Salva, a doctor of the poor and unfortunate, very first meets her love interest, Ian Foscari, as she holds a bloody knife over the body of a lovely, if dead, courtesan. Equally suspect and suspicious, they agree to a sham betrothal--Ian knows Bianca is guilty, and gives her one week to offer some explanation. If she fails, he can denounce her, she will be executed, and he will be no worse off. Bianca feels certain she can track down the real killer within the week, and finds Ian's home a convenient place to dissect the body and base her investigation.
Here's where the steamy part comes in to play. Ian, who had been deeply burned by his ex-flame Morgana da Gigio, can't help but feel attracted to his fake fiancée's beauty, but he refuses to acknowledge the pull she exerts on his heart. Bianca is eager to try out the knowledge she has gleaned from her prostitute friends, and Morgana, the beautiful ex, is using her sexual powers to manipulate everyone within reach of her perfume.
As Bianca closes in on the killer, Ian struggles with the battle between his head and his heart. Though their compatibility in bed is undeniable, the two's fragile bond is strained by the increasing dangers--explosions, more murders, seductions, executions, seven giants, and a dwarf flush out the mystery.
While a few historical inaccuracies surface, the overall flow and quick pace, not to mention Jaffe's charming characters and a few choice, steamy sections that should make you blush, make for a fine debut from a fresh new voice . --Nancy R.E. O'Brien
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Rated by buyers 
-
...so little fulfillment!
This book had an interesting sounding plot, so I gave it a try. What a mistake. It was incredibly poorly written and had a plethora of characters introduced with no backstory and little character development. Neither of the main characters were likeable. I do not recommend it.
Rated by buyers -
I do not think that the author could have made the "hero" more unlikable if she'd tried. He continuously finds excuses for mistrusting the heroine and refuses to listen to any reasonable explanation that she makes. The excuse for this is that he dislikes and mistrusts all women to the point that he has dismissed all of his women servants. The basis for this animosity toward women is extremely flimsy. Basically, it is because his former lover said mean things to him when she broke up with him, and as far as he knows, that is the extent of her perfidy. Right up to the end he continues to mistrust the heroine, to the point that he shows no concern over the thought of her execution. His family knows that she is not guilty based on their acquaintance with her, but the man who supposedly loves her shows no such certainty. Yet, we are expected to believe his declaration of love a few pages later.
The plot was filled with holes as well. For one, we are expected to believe that a rich and nobly born woman, betrothed to a powerful family would be sentenced to death over the murder of a courtesan on the flimsiest of evidence, and that there is nothing anyone could do to prevent it. I suffered my way to the end of the book, and almost did not finish it because it was so unbelievable. Even for a very first novel, I would have expected better.
Rated by buyers -
This is one of the worst written novels out there. The characters are unbelievably 1 dimensional, the plot is so cliche, and the story is implausible to say the least. I bought it for $2 on clearance and now I know why it was in the clearance bin. Its not even worth the $2 I paid for it. Its an utter waste of time and trees.
Rated by buyers -
I have to agree with the negative reviews of this novel. I love historical fiction and used to live in Venice, so was really excited to receive this as a gift. Sadly, I was disappointed from page 1. The characters were weak, there were too many secondary characters, the plot was predictable, clumsy and slow-paced, and Ian and Bianca's "I love you, I hate you" got old really quickly. I would not recommend this to anyone unless they wanted a cure for insomina.
Rated by buyers -
Well I have to agree with the negative reviews of this book. Being a faithful fan to historical romance novels and giving an author a chance, I reserved judgement till the end. This author did everyting possible to make not only the characters unreal but also very unbelieving. I am one of those readers that cant put a book down once stared and even though the beginning gave me a headache which lasted the few hours it took me to finish it, I was so disappointed. The actual time period wasnt revealed till the very end and I think Ian and the Bianca where really ignorant, everything kept repeating itself and the flow of the book was so unreal. I was disappointed till the end, but once I read that this was Jaffer's very first novel, I let up on my disappointment. Lucky for me this is the only book by her in the library.
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