Bianca: The Silk Merchant's Daughters

I have been a fan of Bertrice Small's books for over 20 years and this story is a poor rehash of several of her earlier works. The romance is predictable, the drama is boring. It's almost as though the author herself has run out of original ideas and hurriedly pulled this story together. Better to spend time re-reading the richness of the Skye O'Malley series (earlier versions) then waste your time with this lackluster series...

I have mixed feelings about this book. I read most of B Small books and seems like year after year we get the same kind of story. In this book, Bianca, the eldest daughter of the silk merchant in Florence is given in marriage to an evil and deprived man to settle her father debt. When Bertrice Small says "deprived", she means sexually deprived and she describes in minute detail just how much. After being married for a short time, Bianca begs her mother to help her escape and she obliges, spiriting Bianca to the countryside and hiding her from evil husband. While there she meets a Turkish Prince Amir and they fall in love. Once again, her sexual escapedes are loving detailed and nothing is left to the imagination. I won't reveal the whole story but heroines ending up in harems is one storyline that Small uses over and over again and frankly, its gotten old long time ago. I started reading her novels by accident but thought her attention to historical facts and imaginative writing was flawless. Alas, those days are long gone. Yes, there are some historical details in this book but the so called romance is laughable. I don't see any chemistry between Amir and Bianca, and they spend most of their time rolling around in bed.
As far as the explicit sex scenes-in all honesty, I might as well pick up a porno magazine and read that because there is hardly any difference. I am very dissapointed in quality of her latest work which appears to concentrate on one of the two things-Scottish lords or heroines ending up in harems. Either way, its x-rated and that sort of thing is not something I want to see in a historical romance novel

GOD in italian is Dio. Dios is Spanish. Also a few gender errors.
Story ok, but nothing beats Skye Omalley.

First of a new series was not as appealing as previous books. I like Ms. Small's writing so will continue with the series.

I always enjoy Bertrice's novels and look forward to the next one so, to me, none of them are bad. This one was mediocre. Not her best, but still a good read.

When I want to escape my daily life (that is happy but less adventurous) I like to read Mrs Small's books. This one however is a series of sorrows and problems and less interesting backgrounds then her other novels.
A young girl in 15th century Florence lives a cloistered life before she is handed over to a cruel husband. Later on she meets an Ottoman prince. Life in a harem is not that different from her life in Italy (to my surprise). But at least there she is happy.

I have read all of Bertrice Small's books. This one just as intriguing as the first one that I read. I absolutely love her. Her books really take you there and keep you wanting to turn the pages to see what happens next! The Skye O'Malley series was mesmerizing.

The first of at least four books about the four daughters of the Silk Merchant's daughters. I really enjoyed it. Especially with the professional narration. Looking forward to the next three. I still miss the fact that there are no more new books about Skye O'Malley and her family, but I am content re-reading them. Enjoy reading this, and all the books of Bertrice Small.

I usually really enjoy Bertrice Small books - The Skye O'Malley books are my favorite. I had hopes for another good saga but this fell a little short. It reminds me of the movies you generally see at the end of summer - All the really good blockbusters have come and gone and these are the last bits and pieces released by the studios to get as much revenue in before everyone goes back to school. It did not suck but it just was not as engrossing as the authors other novels. I will probably not even buy the next book in the series. I read this book in one weekend and it was just interesting enough to keep me coming back to it but I usually hate to put down a book until I have read it all the way thru, this was very easy to put down.

I am a great fan of Bertlrice Small, but i think this book was lacking something it was not as exciting as her past books.