Review of Courted by Discipline by Bree Cariad

Courted by Discipline by Bree Cariad

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



Courted by Discipline was recommended to me by a fellow reviewer who knew that I am a fan of the Corbin’s Bend series. While both series are based on Domestic Discipline (DD) relationships, Corbin’s Bend is about adults who are involved in sexual relationships whereas In Hyacinth is more focused on the courting culture of the town of Hyacinth. Much like my reaction to my first Corbin’s Bend book, I’m a little off-balance after finishing Courted by Discipline.

In Hyacinth, once a girl reaches her eighteenth birthday she can enter the courting pool. Potential suitors request a “date” and join the girl and her parents for dinner, if her father approves his request. If a suitor is interested in getting to know the girl better, he asks for additional dinner dates and may then ask her father for permission to court her. If he gives his approval, the town’s council must approve the courting request. At this point the girl is then presented with a courting contract and has the final say as to whether or not the young man may court her. If she agrees, there are 12 stages to the courting which ultimately lead to marriage. While the concept of courting in Hyacinth sounds nearly medieval to me, I can understand how a young girl raised in such an environment would look forward to reaching courting age. Although Kathy was raised in a DD family, she was not raised in Hyacinth and was unaware of the courting custom when her family moved there. This is why I was just as appalled as she was when her father sprung it on her. I do not discredit the lifestyle as I am a firm believer of “to each his own.” Rather my issue was the way in which her father waited until the eleventh hour to inform her of it. Even though her father wasn’t from Hyacinth, his brother lived there and he was familiar with the practice before they moved there. His decision to withhold information that was pivotal to her life and future until he had no choice but to tell her bugged me to no end.

Aside from that, the actual courtship between Kathy and Alexander was quite sweet and I found the innocence of it refreshing and surprising considering that he is ten years her elder. While my personal knee-jerk reaction to the courting system is “no way, no how would I EVER go along with something like that,” I completely understand where a young woman raised in a DD household would not find it a fraction as disconcerting as I did. Ms. Cariad has a smooth writing style that made this an easy read, even when the subject matter irked me personally. That said, I will be reading book two in the series as I suspect that In Hyacinth will go the same way as Corbin’s Bend did for me – at first I wasn’t sure but as I read on I was anxious for the next book.

I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
Reviewed by Angela at Crystal's Many Reviewers!

Check out the Courted by Discipline by Bree Cariad blog post on Crystal's Many Reviewers.


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