Review: Ravish: The Awakening of Sleeping Beauty by Cathy Yardley

Posted November 23, 2008 by Holly in Reviews | 1 Comment

Publisher: Avon, Harper Collins


An innocent beauty, trapped in sleep . . .

Sheltered from society, Aurora Jacquard has yet to feel the sweet release of physical love. Then, on the night she is about to give in to temptation, she inexplicably falls into a deep coma.

A handsome prince, determined to discover her secrets . .

Jacob White is one of the best neurologists in the world, and he intends to awaken Aurora from her virginal slumber. But when she begins to invade his dreams every night, beckoning him into a sensuous place of lust and danger, Jacob realizes there’s more to this woman than meets the eye.

It will take more than a kiss to wake her up . .

Trapped in a world of erotic dreams, Aurora and Jacob must surrender to their deepest darkest desires . . but how far are they willing to go?

This is the second novel I’ve read by Cathy Yardley. The main issue I had with the first, Crave, was that the sex over-shadowed the story. I’m happy to report that wasn’t the case with this novel. The sex was actually worked into the base of the story, so it felt like it flowed better and wasn’t just thrown in for shock value.

Doctor Jacob White is world renowned for his work with coma patients. When he’s contacted by Mrs. Jacquard regarding her daughter, he’s thrilled and can’t wait to take on the case. If he can bring the ellusive “sleeping beauty” out of her coma, it will be the ultimate coup of his career. When he starts having erotic dreams about her, he worries he’s crossing a patient/doctor line, but can’t seem to help himself.

Rory slipped into a coma for seemingly no reason while on vacation in the Caribbean. Jacob can’t find any medical reason for why she became comatose, nor has he found any possible cures. But the more he dreams of her, the more convinced he becomes that she isn’t just a figment of his overworked imagination. Is it possible Rory herself is contacting him through his dreams? And if so, can she provide the answer to her medical mystery herself? What will the conservative doctor do if it turns out there’s more to Rory’s case than some medical mystery? What if there’s magic involved? Can the good doctor set aside his prejudices if it means saving the woman he’s come to love?

Once again I was wowed by the story in this novel. Yardley has definitely shown herself to be a master storyteller. I was immediately wrapped up in the tale. In the beginning Jacob was cocky and full of himself, sure he’ll be able to cure Rory in a matter of days and walk away to collect his fame. I really enjoyed watching him struggle with Rory’s case and come down a peg or two. His internal struggle as he tries to deal with his dreams and what they mean in terms of his relationship with his patient was really interesting and showed a lot about his character I think.

The love scenes were really hot, and as I mentioned above it was refreshing that sex was an integral part of the story and the scenes weren’t just there to be there. They really played a key part in what was happening.

There’s also a secondary story involving Jacob’s younger brother Aaron and his ex-girlfriend Mahjani. I really enjoyed the parts they played in the main story arc, but also the way their romance worked. Aaron was ashamed that Mahjani, while a lauded professor, believed in the things she taught (mainly Voodoo) and broke up with her. Though hurt, Mahjani moves on with her life, but it’s obvious they both still care for each other. When Jacob asks Aaron to get in touch with Mahjani regarding Rory’s case, he reluctantly agreed. I loved it that Mahjani stood up for herself and didn’t let Aaron walk all over her. It was definitely an added bonus and didn’t take away from the main story, but rather enhanced it.

My biggest complaint comes from the fact that I don’t really feel we got to know Jacob outside of his role as Rory’s doctor. Parts of his past and childhood were alluded to, but the focus was on Rory. I wish we could have gotten to know more about him outside of this story.

Overall a well done erotic romance. The characters and story were well drawn and I was sorry to see it end.

4.5 out of 5

This book is available from Avon Red. You can buy it here or here in e-format.


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One response to “Review: Ravish: The Awakening of Sleeping Beauty by Cathy Yardley

  1. Rowena

    On one hand, I wanna read this but on the other hand I don’t…because well, just because.

    But this one looks pretty interesting. Great review sweets!

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