Storm Winds: The Wind Dancer, Book 2

This is the second in the Wind Dancer trilogy (Wind Dancer, Storm Winds, Reap the Wind). Wind Dancer took place in the 16th century and told us the story of the founding of the Andreas and Vasaro families. It was wonderful and I gave it 5 stars. This sequel is also masterfully done. Johansen weaves a complex tale with many threads and many interesting characters. She does it so well, you will be captivated. I don't think there is another romance author who does love scenes as well as she does. And one thing I really respect is that from novel to novel, her heroes and heroines are different with unique personalities and attributes. She is so good!Storm Winds is set 200 years after Wind Dancer, in the late 18th century in France. It begins a few years before the dawn of the French Revolution as Jean Marc Andreas, heir to the Andreas shipping and banking business based in Marseilles, meets Juliette de Clement, a courageous but lonely young 14 year old woman whose mother is a courtesan at the court of Marie Antoinette. Juliette takes care of Jean Marc (who is 10 years her senior) when he is injured and their time together at the inn is not forgotten by either of them. When Jean Marc has the chance to send his ward, Catherine Vasaro, to an abbey for an aristocrat's education, he asks the Queen to send Juliette with her. Juliette thinks it is so she can watch over the sensitive and fragile Catherine, but Jean Marc has other plans in mind. At the abbey, the girls come to be great friends and Juliette pursues her love of painting. Years later, as France's Reign of Terror begins, the revolutionaries attack the abbey, massacring and raping nuns and students. The two young women escape with their lives as one of the revolutionary leaders, Francois Etchelet, comes to their rescue and delivers them to Jean Marc's Paris home. Juliette, wanted for murder, asks for Jean Marc's protection in exchange for which she will use her connections with the Queen, who is now imprisoned in the Temple, to recover his family's once-prized possession, the golden statue of Pegasus--the Wind Dancer--last owned by the royal family and now missing. As Jean Marc and Juliette search for the Wind Dancer, they face treachery, danger and a city in the grip of the Revolution.You will love this well told tale of a tumultuous time in the history of France. You will love Jean Marc, Francois, Juliette and Catherine. Amazing details, careful attention to detail and history. Highly recommended.

I enjoyed not only the story line but also reading of the French revolution and Marie Antoinette. Suspense, drama and love all combined in a great and amazing story.

I read this book as part of a trilogy recommended by a friend who had loved the set. I was less enthused going into Storm Winds because The Wind Dancer had left me sad and wanting. But Storm Winds was just about perfect, and well worth the time it took to read the almost 550-page novel. Not only did I get schooled on the basics of the French Revolution in a way I would remember, I got two love stories in one, and a heroine such as I'd never come across before. I LOVED how bold and strong Juliette was, how she always spoke her mind and did exactly what she thought best regardless of danger or heartache. And the chess "game" that she and Jean Marc played throughout gave way to the perfect physical and emotional payoff. I also loved how Juliette's best friend, Catherine, overcame tragedy through the healing blooms at Vasaro, her inherited property, and developed her own inner stregth, which lead her to find love as well.This was a beautifully told, exquisitely paced story with many interesting characters, both good and bad. Iris Johansen has a deft touch when it comes to writing dialogue that moves the story along both quickly and believably.You do not need to read the first book of the trilogy to enjoy Storm Winds. It's a terrific stand-alone novel that I highly recommend to any lover of historical romance.

Julliet's mother was Queen Marie Antoinette's close attendant so she was raised among the madness that was the French Court. Once she saved Jean Marc's life he took it upon himself to give her protection to finish growing up away from the corruption at court. He had her join his cousin at the Abby. But he was far from home when the revolution blew up. Juliette had to find a way to protect herself and Catherine (and was almost to late for Catherine). And get them to a place of safety. She had to kill to get away and befriend two people sickened by the slaughter that was happening. That took her back in the middle of the termmoil of the major players in Frances revolution, in the middle of the guillotine going night and day.This is the story of how hard it was to survive and stay sane in the mist of a revolution and how hard it is for the men and women who love to save and protect each other.

I love Iris Johansen. When she started writing romantic-suspense, I dove right in and quickly read everything she wrote. I warily ventured into her romance section when I ran out of new romantic-suspense titles. Storm Wind's cover had recently been updated so the new cover enticed me more than the typical man and woman embraced on the cover that so many romance novels are fond of. And I am glad I did. Yes, it has many romantic elements, but I would classify it more of a Historical Family Saga. The timeframe was set during the late seventeen hundreds, during the French Revolution, and I still remember details about that time because of this novel. And, I will confess, I loved this book so much, I read it three times. There are five main characters, and Iris manages to make each one of them believable. The "Wind Dancer" is a stand alone before this and there is another novel set two hundred years later. I haven't read either of them, because I was afraid they couldn't possibly compete. But someday I will.

I enjoyed this book. I found it difficult to keep the male characters straight. I enjoyed the French history even if some could not be verified.

I read this series many years ago, when it first came out, and loved it. And now, with my new husband having double knee replacements, I needed to read something that I knew would keep me enthralled. It still does! I’m about to start the last one, and I can’t wait!!

With all the recent attention to 'Les Miserable' and the French revolution is was great timing to read this book. Whilst not a history book it did give an explanation of the terror people lived under. The author's usually sensitivity and intrigue inspired me to read more. I couldn't put it down....

Loved it. Wind Dancer series is amazing.

この作品は「ウィンド・ダンサー」トリロジーの２作目。荒れ狂うフランス革命を舞台に、壮絶で過酷な運命に翻弄された２人の女性がそこから這い上がり強くたくましい女性へと成長していく物語です。彼女の作品はいつも歴史上の人物や出来事をうまく作品に生かしてますが、今回もマリー・アントワネットやフェルゼン伯、ロベスピエール、ダントンなどたくさんの人物を配して物語を壮大なものに仕上げています。殺人やレイプ、ギロチンなどが数多くでてくるハードな物語ですが、それを凌駕してあまりある２つのロマンスはため息がでるほど美しいです。対照的な２人のヒーローが、それぞれの恋人に捧げるやさしさ・台詞はときに涙がでそうなほど素敵です。アイリス・ジョハンセンの作品にでてくるヒーローは現代物も含めて、さりげないやさしさでくるんで女性の成長を助けるタイプが多いと思うのですが、今回もまさしくそうでした。もちろん、たくましく謎めいていてセクシー。官能的なシーンもたくさんあるので期待して下さい。またこのシリーズは本の装丁も素敵なので、きっと気に入ると思いますよ。