Once Upon a Rose: The Once Upon Series

by Jill Gregory, Ruth Ryan Langan, Nora Roberts, et al.

Book Overview

#1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts presents four stories about the magic of blossoming love... In Nora Roberts' "Winter Rose," a young queen heals a wounded soldier on a remote island cursed with eternal winter -- and warms her heart with the joys of true love. In Jill Gregory's "The Rose and the Sword," an exiled princess's last hope for recovering her lost kingdom lies with the embittered prince she is pledged to marry -- a man as...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0515131660
• ISBN13: 9780515131666
• Release Date: October 2001
• Publisher: Berkley Books
• Length: 416 Pages
• Weight: 0.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 4.3" x 6.8"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Great

I loved this book. It was in superb condition, it came quickly, and was exactly what I wanted! Thank you!

Magic and love- A must read!!!

I have read all the Once Upon A series. All the stoies are wonderful fairytales filled with love, magic, suspense, heartache, yearning and happy ending. What else could a girl want? It has left me wanting to read more!!! So Nora Roberts and friends, care to do another ....Please?!?!?!?!?!

Truly Enchanting!

I love a great fairy tale! I absolutely love Nora Roberts and her "Once Upon a Rose " is no exception. Herself along with Jill Gregory, Ruth Ryan Langan, and Marianne Willman give us enchanting tales of magic! Filled with handsome princes and of course wicked queens. I truly enjoyed all the stories in this anthology as all of the stories are well written with intriguing characters. I absolutely recommend this anthology, it is enjoyable, fun and truly enchanting!

A Wonderful Anthology!

... I thought it was great. "Once Upon a Rose" contains four lovely tales of mythical lands and happily ever afters.The first tale, "Winter Rose" by Nora Roberts, is fantastic. Prince Kylar of Myrdon has been injured in battle, and wanders into a land cursed with eternal winter. He is saved and nursed back to health by Deirdre, Queen of the Isle of Winter. Deirdre is a healer and a hard-working queen, but the curse that has frozen her land has also frozen her heart, so she cannot love. Kylar is fascinated by this dedicated and selfless queen, and vows to find a way to break the spell and win her heart. This tale will delight readers!"The Rose and the Sword" by Jill Gregory introduces Brittany, the long lost princess of Palladrin, who has been protected from the evil wizard Darius, who murdered her family many years ago, by a spell that will end on her 20th birthday. Now, only a few days before that fateful day, Brittany's only chance is to seek out and marry her betrothed, Prince Lucius of Marric. Lucius has a special jewelled sword, which raised with the hidden Rose Sceptre, can defeat Darius. Lucius and Brittany must journey to find the Rose Sceptre together, or all will be lost. When Brittany finds Lucius, he is in a sorry state of self-pity, and seems incapable of heroism. But after only a short time in Brittany's company, love blooms in Lucius' heart and changes everything!Ruth Ryan Langan's "The Roses of Glenross" is the weakest story in this anthology, although it is still an enjoyable read. It is set in a war-torn Scotland, and begins with the courageous Jamie Morgan rescuing Alexa MacCallum from the barbarians who have just murdered her family. Jamie and Alexa end up recuperating at the same abbey, but they both have huge emotional scars that will be hard to overcome. Alexa speaks to no one at the abbey except for Lady Anne, the beautiful ghost who haunts the garden. Alexa spends her days working tirelessly restoring the rose garden to its former splendour, and Jamie finds himself fascinated by her. Jamie is determined to get Alexa to befriend him, and these two soon find that the power of love heals all wounds."The Fairest Rose" by Marianne Willman is fabulous. It is by far the longest of these four tales and is tied with "Winter Rose" as my favourite. The evil sorceress Lady Bryn has captured the heart of newly appointed King Gilmore of Airan with a spell. As a result, Gilmore forgets his true love, Deirdre, and years later has no idea that he has an 18 year old daughter, Rosaleen. Rosaleen, called Mouse by all who know her, has been protected since birth by a spell cast by the village wisewoman, Elva, that all who would do her harm shall forget her. Mouse works as a weaver in the castle, and has no idea of her royal heritage. Tor, a great warrior, travels to Airan castle in hopes of winning the hand of the King's other daughter, Princess Camaris. To do this, Tor must bring the egg of the legendary phoenix to the

Well written and enchanting

Okay, I admit it. I'm a sucker for a good fairy tale. We all grew up hearing the stories of the prince who comes and rescues the beautiful princess from the evil queen. Now that I'm older, I'm not afraid to admit that I'm still attracted to those kind of stories. And that's why I absolutely loved Nora Roberts' "Once Upon A Rose". She, along with authors Jill Gregory, Ruth Ryan Langan and Marianne Willman weave four enchanting tales of wicked queens, handsome princes and magical creatures. The first story, "Winter Rose" is written by Nora Roberts. It's the tale of Prince Kylar of Myrdon who wonders into a mythical land cursed with eternal winter. The prince has been injured in battle and is on the brink of death when he is rescued by Deidre, Queen of the Isle of Winter, who because of the curse cannot love. Kylar falls in love with Deidre and vows to find a way to break the curse.The second story, "The Rose and the Sword" by Jill Gregory revolves around Brittany, the long lost princess of Palladrin, thought to have been murdered along with her family by Darius, the evil wizard. Hidden by a kind wizard and by Queen Elysia, Brittany has grown up knowing nothing of her family and that she is the rightful heir to Palladrin. Two days before her 20th birthday, Queen Elysia tells Brittany, really Britta, that a spell was cast when she was a child to protect her from Darius. The spell though, only lasts until her 20th birthday and that after then Darius will be able to see her and will try to kill her. To prevent this, Brittany must seek out and marry her betrothed Prince Lucius of Marric, who holds the Jeweled Sword. She also has to find the Rose Scepter. Together, the Jeweled Sword and the Rose Scepter can defeat Darius and reunite the kingdom of Palladrin. The third story, "The Rose of Glenross" is by Ruth Ryan Langan It's set in war-torn Ballycrue, Scotland. Duncan McKay, a warrior has just saved Alexa MacCallum from the same fate as her family when he is wounded. When he wakes, he's in the care of kind nuns of the Abbey of Glenross. Also there Alexa, the young woman he saved. She speaks to no-one and tends to the rose gardens day in and day out. The only "person" she ever speaks to is Lady Anne, the ghost who haunts the Abbey waiting for her true love to return to her. Can Duncan heal Alexa's wounds as well as his own. And will Lady Anne's love ever return? I'm not telling. :)The fourth and final story in the book is my favorite. "The Fairest Rose" by Marianne Willman begins with the fair Deidre, nine months pregnant awaiting the arrival of her love, Prince Gilmore of Airan, recently victorious in battle and appointed new King of Airan. Deidre knows that when he returns her and Gilmore will marry and will become a family. On his return though, Deidre discovers that a spell's been cast on him to forget her by his new wife, Queen Bryn. Deidre has been cursed by Bryn as well and gives birth to a girl, Rosaleen, before she dies. To protect the child from