Ritual of Proof - Hardcover

Joy, Dara

3.65

1,142 ratings by Goodreads

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0380978342 ISBN 13: 9780380978342

Publisher: William Morrow, 2001

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Dara Joy makes her hardcover debut with an extraordinary new novel, one that reexamines the very nature of love and tests the boundaries of romantic fiction. Countless readers have already flocked to her unique, page-turning tales, making Joy a nationally bestselling author. Now, this spectacular writer reaches for even greater heights in Ritual of Proof.

Joy gives us a different look at ourselves, our society, and our expectations in relationships. Ritual of Proof creates a vivid new world; it's a book you will remember long after you've reached its riveting conclusion. This is a dazzling tale of sensual intrigue and power, set in a world where women have all the control...and desirable men fetch staggering bed prices. An elite upper class dictates society's mores, while the vices of its rich, influential She-Lords are politely overlooked.

Set against a sweeping canvas of political conspiracies, the Marquelle Green Tamryn decides to marry...making an alliance with an influential family and consolidating her position among her peers. So she fastens a defiant Jorlan Reynard to her house and to her bed. And so the Ritual of Proof begins...for both of them.

But there are forces conspiring against Green, especially from Claudine D'anbere, her sworn enemy -- a woman who would do anything to destroy her. Soon, Green must summon all of her considerable influence to fight, and in doing so, she does what society deems close to unthinkable -- and turns to Jorlan for help. She is both surprised and overwhelmed by his masterful abilities as both ally and husband, but when the validity of their union is called into question and a series of disasters befalls them, they realize that there is more than their place in society in danger...it's their very lives that are threatened.

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About the Author:

Blazing new trails in experimental fiction is a top priority for Dara Joy. Her first four novels broke all the rules and captured a huge audience. Her unique works have gone on to receive numerous awards.

From Publishers Weekly:

"It was a woman's world," Joy (High Intensity, etc.) states in her debut hardcover, and she's not making a metaphor. On the Forus moon revolving around the planet Arkeus, women have it all, especially women of noble birth. They govern through the House of She-Lords, own the property and are the sexual aggressors dividing men into pleasurers and name-bearers. Joy has left no gender-based stereotype unturned, except that men don't get pregnant however, thanks to the invention of a natal accelerator, gestation only takes three months. Set in a Regency-style past-future, the story pits noblewoman Marquelle Green Tamryn against aqua-eyed Jorland Reynard, the conventions of their society, and her lifelong nemesis, the evil Claudine D'anbere. Marquelle Tamryn can buy Jorland from his grandmother, command erotic magic from his perfect body and "fasten" him in a public ceremony but can she win his love? And when things get out of control, can he save her life? Arriving at the foregone conclusion is both more fun and more work than it should be. The eponymous ritual, during which a man's virginity is tested in public, ranks as libidinous high camp. But the pace is slowed by Joy's invented language, a tiresome amalgamation that sounds like a cross between Dr. Seuss and Klingon, in which Klees and Kloos prance over the landscape and sassbits eat lumpies for breakfast. Agent, Richard Curtis. (June 12) Forecast: Joy's appeal is undeniable, as evidenced by her Web site receiving 45,000 hits during its first three weeks and all her previous titles having been USA Today bestsellers. Expect more of the same, bolstered by a national print ad campaign and New England author appearances.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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