The Bride Finder by Susan Carroll

Last week Kate and I (Anne) were on the phone and she mentioned that she'd checked her FIRST out from the library again.  Her FIRST, the very first romance novel she'd ever read, the one that made her fall in love with romance.  We both wondered if it would still be as good now as it was then.  (I've never read it, I just wondered with her.)  So, she read it, loved it, and decided to write up a review for us.  So here's to firsts!  What was your first romance novel?  Would it still be good today?  ~Anne
 
Grade-A
Hotness Level-Blaze
Kink Level-None
Genre-historical, touch of paranormal
Series - St. Leger #1
Reviewed by Kate
When I was 19 or 20, I ran across The Bride Finder in the check out lane of our local Shopko. The title alone fascinated me. I bought it without even reading the back. It turned out to be my first romance, one of my best impulse buys, and still one of my favorites to this day.

Anatole St.Leger comes from a rather strange family. Some of his ancestors have been conjurers, clairvoyants, exorcists, sorcerers, etc. Anatole's own powers include seeing visions of the future, sensing a person's presence, and levitating objects.

One of the family's unique members is the Bride Finder, a person able to locate the one true mate for each St.Leger male. Anatole's father chose to marry someone who was not chosen by the Bride Finder. Anatole's mother ended up being terrified of her son and his powers. As a result, Anatole grew up feeling unloved and shut off from the world. Reluctantly, he sends the Bride Finder out to find his one true bride, determined to keep his powers a secret from her. It would crush him to have another person he loves be terrified of him.

When Madeline arrives at Anatole's castle, she find herself facing a husband who won't open up to her and a house full of secrets. Ever a logical person, she is determined to show Anatole the truth behind all of his family's legends and myths. Little does she know...

A magical journey of Madeline fighting her way to the heart Anatole locked away years ago, and Anatole doing his best to keep himself from falling in love. I don't think I can say enough to recommend this book except:
1. This is the book that I most regret donating when we moved, and
2. When I checked this book out from the library, even my husband got excited about rereading it (I made him wait until I had finished it though).