At Love's Command (Brothers in Arms, Book 3) | Samantha Kane

At Love's Command (Brothers in Arms, Book 3) | Samantha Kane | Worth waiting for

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At Love's Command ...

	At Love's Command (Brothers in Arms, Book 3) Samantha Kane Ellora's Cave Publishing, Inc., 2008 - 384 pages average customer review:based on 4 reviews view larger image
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A Brothers in Arms novel. A child when they were betrothed, Sophia Middleton has been waiting twelve years for Ian Witherspoon to return and marry her. Preyed upon by her vicious father and older brother, Sophie longs for Ian to rescue her. Ian Witherspoon and Derek Knightly became best friends during the Peninsular War, and returned as lovers. Two more years pass before the desire for a wife and children prompts Ian to recall his little fiancée. Ian is determined to make a marriage work between the three of them. Derek opposes the marriage despite Ian's determination, but how long will he be able to resist love's command? Sophie's vulnerability hides a core of strength and the combination enthralls and seduces both men. An apt pupil, Sophie learns trust and passion from Ian, and Derek tutors her in the ecstasy of surrender. Love will conquer their fears as they fight those who would tear them apart.

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A true GEM of a story

The Brothers in Arms series centers around a group of men who fought together in the Peninsular War. In pairs, they protected each other and saved each other many times over. They love each other but, for some of them, they never considered how much they needed to also physically love each other and could only fulfill that unspoken need by sharing one woman. Once they find a woman they can both love, it also frees them to explore their love for each other.

As much as I loved the previous books in this series, they almost pale in comparison to At Love's Command (despite a couple of minor issues I had with two secondary characters).

At Love's Command is the story of two of the men, Ian and Derek, who have already discovered how much they need each other in every way (flashbacks to their war years add to the richness of this story). But Ian dreams of a "new start with someone not associated with the war and all that happened there... Finally they could put the past behind them and live fully in the present, planning for a future. Ian wanted a family. He wanted children. And he wanted to give those things to Derek, too." Unfortunately, Derek neither needs nor wants any part of it. He is convinced that a wife will destroy his life with Ian.

"A child when they were betrothed, Sophia Middleton has been waiting twelve years for Ian Witherspoon to return and marry her. Preyed upon by her vicious father and older brother, Sophie longs for Ian to rescue her."

In this series, Samantha Kane shows us another reality within the Regency era ton... woman had no rights and were at the mercy and whim of the men in their lives. They either accepted their lot in life or held out hope that yet another man would change their circumstances. From the vantage point of our modern times, it is hard to comprehend that women had so little personal power. And as romance readers, we are accustomed to seeing women of the ton treated as pampered, protected pets or, at worst, neglected and ignored by indifferent parents/guardians.

In At Love's Command, it is truly horrifying to learn what Sophia has endured at the hands of her father and brother, made more so by the fact that she really had no choice but to survive it or take her own life... until Ian sends for her. It was heart wrenching to watch her fear of Ian's rejection and her willing debasement of herself as she grasped at the only hope she would ever have in her life. From her POV, the fact that Ian already had Derek in his life meant that he would make few demands on her sexually and she would feel some measure of freedom and control for the first time.

Kane's writing has matured exponentially with this rich, exquisite, multi-dimensional story. Each of the men reminisces about their history together which makes their bond all the more believable and allows us to see their current situation from both viewpoints. And watching Sophie bloom and discover her true personality and sexuality is a delightful journey. Kane weaves Ian's dreams of a loving triad, Sophie's dreams of freedom, and Derek's cynicism together and gradually a pattern of mutual respect and caring starts to appear. As with the previous books, Kane's mastery of erotic scenes allows us to perceive each erotic act as unique to this set of participants.

I think At Love's Command could probably be read as a standalone, but I recommend you read them all just for the enjoyment. Most of the characters from the previous books appear but I don't think it would be difficult to catch the gist of their stories in relation to Ian, Derek, and Sophie's story. In fact, Kate, her friend Kitty, and her niece Very (all of whom we meet in book 1, The Courage to Love) play important roles in At Love's Command, but just enough of their back story is mentioned that their presence would make sense to those who haven't read the previous books. FYI: the Majors Richards and Randall who appear in Derek's and Ian's Peninsular War reminiscences are the Tony and Jason from The Courage to Love.

Samantha Kane is a shining example of the gems offered by ePubs at their very best. As it stands now, NY would never touch her bisexual storylines, yet I assert that At Love's Command deserves to be front and center on the mass market new releases display at every major bookstore.

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Worth waiting for

This book was worth waiting for. The writer did not disapoint. I do recommend this book to anyone. I love the whole storyline, it was hot, the sex was hot and not cheaply described. She did a great closing, hope this does not mean that she won't move to the next couple, would love to know more about the niece and her beaus. This story went a bit more in deph about the previous two books story, giving an end of the circle style. We get to understand a little bit more about what happened to all of them and how they came to be. I would recommend buying her two previous books and then reading this one, although you don't have to, but you will certainly enjoy them all.

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good book

I have read the first two books in this set. I enjoyed this one more than the first two.

A decent novel despite its flaws

At Love's Command was a much longer and richer novel in the Brothers in Arms series. The main characters were far more developed than in the first two books. However, the novel only rates *three stars* because someone--perhaps the author or the publisher--seems not to understand that a regency novel has to have certain elements in order to transport a reader to that time and place. Language is a very important element and the novel failed in this. It was jarring to read of characters who sounded more at home in a contemporary novel than a historical.

I actually loved the two male leads--Ian and Derek--who shared both love and a horrific past during the Penninsular War. The use of flashbacks is extremely effective and helped to create a sense of deep and lasting love between the two. Again, the author excelled in creating male characters who behaved like males, rather than making one more effeminate. I also loved how they understood the dynamics of power sharing in their relationship. Derek was especially appealing because he wasn't perfect. He was that `diamond in the rough'--the soul of a poet wrapped up in a less-than-civilized exterior. His gradual acceptance of a woman into their lives felt more natural than Ian's more utopian view.

The heroine, Sophia Middleton, represented a much different view from what many Regency readers are used to. Sad to say, this depiction was a lot closer to the truth. Even amongst the upper ten-thousand, women had little personal power, which is one reason the patronesses of Almack's are so fascinating because of their ability to rule society--even over the Prince Regent. Normally, such timid and weak heroines hold no interest, but Sophia's story really grabbed at my heartstrings. Her father was abusive and her brother a far worse cad. She was a survivor and in a way, created her own destiny through making a choice to live in the pale with not one--but TWO--husbands. Because of her life under such brutality, even the smallest of kindnesses met with fear of censure and of her being sent back. Still, there was a core of iron in Sophie, to the point of a willingness to take her own life and not go back to the horror of her father and brother. She also learned how to stand up to the often taciturn Derek.

Characters from past novels find their way into Ian, Derek and Sophie's lives--Jason, Tony and Kate; Kitty, Veronica, Freddy, Wolf and Michael--and all intertwine to help heal their wounds.

The erotic scenes are extremely hot and perfect for readers who like reading about sexy men getting down and dirty. It is nice to see two alpha males who can be both dominant and submissive without taking away from their masculinity. Ms. Kane has learned how to really make these scenes less prurient and give them more emotional impact, though again the jarring modern slang leaves little to be desired. It is possible to write scenes in this vein and still remain true to the Regency language. For instance, Linda Berdoll succeeded quite well in her tribute to Pride and Prejudice, Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife.

My other problem is that once more everything wrapped up nicely at the end. The family, once mortified that their prodigal son wants to have his male lover and a wife--suddenly sees the light and welcomes him back into the fold. The villains get their comeuppance and we saw one villain--the other happens offstage, not to mention that there will obviously be other books to follow in the series because of all the friends who have appeared in past stories.

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