Adelaide, The Enchantress is a good fit for readers looking for a mix of romance and adventure, centered around a strong-willed female character pursuing her dreams despite challenges and the presence of a compelling love interest.

As when this book was first published, the Delaney sisters capture the reader's attention from the first sentence through the last. The relationship between the hero Shane and Adelaide starts at the racetrack as he notices her grooming her stallion as she prepares for her jockey duties as well as the track forger. As Adelaide must earn her share of money needed to keep her family's homestead from foreclosure, Shane must come to terms with her racing as he had a family member killed while riding as a jockey and keep her and her stallion safe from an unknown assailant who is trying to make sure that she doesn't win. Fast action and great interplay mark this novel of Kay Hooper's early works. Hopefully, the other Delaney books will also be republished for the current reader's enjoyment.

This book tells the story of Shane and Adelaide. I must say I wasn't necessarily a fan of the book, but it was an okay read.

Adelaide Delaney has a pact with her family to do her part for the money and meets Shane at the racetrack. This is part of the Delaney of Killaroo series with the female Delaney relatives from down under. Read this when originally published years ago and have the trilogy on the book shelf with many re-reads. Excited to have the ebook copy to enjoy again from this author. Be sure to read all the Delaney girl's stories and see how the North American Delaney's interact.
Ebook from Net Galley and publishers with thanks Opinions are entirely my own.

AN oldie but a goodie for a great writer. I enjoyed this story. I am a big Kay Hooper fan but somehow this book passed by me in the past. Glad to have a change to read it now.

This story ended too soon for me. Addie and Shane has amazing chemistry and the time they spent together was almost fantastical. I didn't want it to end. Sex scenes were a tad cheesy but this was written 30 years ago so I understand. Looking forward to more in this series.

ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Not a favorite of mine. The romance genre has changed immensely over the last 30 years so I was hoping this republication would have been updated greatly since it's original 1987 form. If it was I couldn't tell. It read very old and dated.

I really wish that rereleases were clearly marked. Honestly, that should be a rule! New covers do not make a new book.

Kay Hooper is a good author. Even though this is a rerelease, and an unexpected one, the book is pretty good beyond the feeling that it is dated.

She’s a sorceress, a siren, an enchantress with the voice of an angel that makes men willing to slay dragons and the most skittish wild animal yearn for her touch. At least that’s the way Shane felt the first time he saw Addie and heard her bewitching voice. Shane is a horseman from Kentucky who travels to Australia to take in the horse racing scene and finds himself taken with Adelaide Delaney instead. While Addie is charmed and captivated by Shane, the well-being of her family depends on Addie’s focus remaining on jockeying for as many horse owners and winning as many races as possible. She can’t afford a distraction like Shane, no matter how charismatic and appealing he may be.

Not long ago I had the chance to read “Rafe,” the first in the Delaney brothers series, The Shamrock Trinity, so when I saw the first book in the parallel series, The Delaneys of Kilaroo, I had to request an advance copy. Shane and Addie’s story is every bit as captivating, entertaining and endearing as Rafe and Maggie’s was, and I love the thread of family history that runs through the books. As we would expect from Ms. Hooper, the writing is masterful with picturesque scenes and an intriguing storyline, and the characters are vivid, complex, winsome and irresistible. The books are all standalone, so it won’t much matter the order in which they’re read, but you’ll want to read each of the Delaney’s stories!

Adelaide, the Enchantress is book 1 of the Delaneys of Killaroo series by Kate Hooper. This book was first published in 1987 and it reflects it. Not saying that I didn’t enjoy it, I did, but I was taken down memory lane. I was 10 years old in 1987 and was not yet reading romance novels. That came about 4 years later. I have a very distinct memory of my grandmother reading bodice rippers. I have a very distinct memory of my grandfather getting mad at her for reading one in front of me. Why? Because seeing a half-naked man embracing a half-naked woman on the cover of the book might corrupt me. I laugh now but I can see why he thought that and why he strove to keep these types of books out of my sight.

Adelaide is a jockey who is set on racing her young stallion, Resolute, at the Melbourne Cup. She needs that money to help her father. She meets an American horse breeder, Shane Marston. Shane is dragged into a mystery with Addie, as Resolute is the target of sabotage. That sabotage leads to attempts at harm against Addie and Resolute. Addie and Shane are trying to figure out who wants to harm Resolute. While they are doing this they are giving in to their mutual attraction. That made for a very sensual book with a lot of mystery and thrills.

I liked Addie. She had almost a psychic connection with horses. She could get through to any horse that she rode. She also had a pet koala, which was adorable. Actually, Sebastian was more of Resolute’s pet then Addie’s. He used Addie as a ride to get to his horse…lol. The mystery about who was trying to harm Resolute bothered her because she didn’t know who it could be. It could have been anyone at the track, even those she trusted.

Shane wasn’t expecting to be poleaxed by his attraction to Addie. He was thrown for a loop when he saw Addie. He did give off a slight stalkerish vibe that went away about mid-book. I didn’t understand why he got so upset with Addie when she wouldn’t listen to him about stop being a jockey. When he explained, though, my annoyance with him went away. If someone I loved died that way, I would have acted the same way.

The sex between Shane and Addie was great. The author didn’t get very wordy with it, instead focusing on emotions. I did think that it came across as a little hokey when the experience was written as almost mystical. That whole scene with the deer was a little far out. But, I liked it. I also liked the romance part of the book. I will warn you like I said above, this book was written in 1987 and the romance part of the book reflects that. A little hokey (again that term!!) but very sweet. For those of you who don’t like Instalove (I am one of them), Shane and Addie’s romance is most definitely that. They knew each other for a week before expressing their never-ending love for each other. But, who am I to knock it. It worked in this book.

The end of the book felt a little rushed and again, a little dated. If what happened at the end of the book happened these days, that person would have been hauled off to jail. But that is why I liked this book so much. Because it was a throwback and it made me think of days that were more innocent than these days. The epilogue did make me smile too.

4 stars

My Summary of Adelaide, the Enchantress:

I enjoyed reading Adelaide, the Enchantress. It was a quick read and had everything a good romance needs. But, even more than that, I liked the plot. The main characters were relatable and that goes a long way towards me liking the book. I did think that having it be Instalove was a little hokey but it didn’t ruin the book for me. Actually, it made me like it even more.

Will I reread: Yes

Will I recommend to family and friends: Yes

Age range: Older Teen

Why: Mild language, mild sexual situations, and mild language

I would like to thank Kay Hopper, Random House Publishing Group, Loveswept and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review Adelaide, the Enchantress

3.5 stars - This was a pretty decent read.

What I liked:
I enjoyed the characters and thought the heroine was loyal, strong and courageous but also mostly cautious. The hero was everything you'd expect him to be - handsome, loyal, protective.

What didn't quite work for me:
Is Adelaide supposed to have magical powers? It seemed like maybe, but I was never sure. The author seems to be walking a tightrope between contemporary romance and fantasy, but the fantasy was never fully embraced. The end result is a story that doesn't seem sure-footed. Also, considering everything that is going on in Addie's life she seems far to trusting of Shane, someone she just met who appears to be friends with the man who has been hounding her for years. Finally, the ending didn't quite work for me. I think the author was trying to cue up interest for the next book in the series, but needed another scene or two to make it flow well.

All in all it’s not a bad read, but also not going to blow you away.

I received an ARC of this book, from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Light read, obviously written earlier in her career. Characters were interesting but not as complex and rich as later standouts.

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest book. Originally published in the 80's this book is being re-released and I am not sure why exactly. It does not stand the test of time, in my opinion.

A slight series romance, originally published in 1987 and now available as an ebook. Styles in romance have changed in the last thirty years, as have sexual relations, but this holds up reasonably well. Nothing special, but a light, quick read. Bonus for readers who like horse racing.

Old Shamus Delaney was the man who began the Delaney/Shamrock empire. His grandson wild William began a branch of the family in Australia that no one knew about even William himself. William's great-great-granddaughters are part of the missing family legacy. Sidney Manda and Adelaide are in desperate need of money to buy back a part of Killaroo Station that their father had to sell for financial reasons and they have only 2 months to make the money. Addie as she likes to be called is a blacksmith and jockey who breaks her promise to her father not to race any more on horses that she doesn't own. Resolute her grey stallion is her best chance to win the Melbourne Cup the top race in Australia. In the middle of her racing she meets a Yank named Shane Marston. Shane is curious about this horse he sees with a koala bear riding on his back and that is his first glimpse of Addie. He can't get over how small and delicate she seems to be and that she can handle such temperamental animals. He soon figures out that there is a steel under what he sees a fragile woman. Shane has a fear of Addie being hurt and maybe dying because of her racing due to a family tragedy years before. When someone starts coming after Resolute so that he can't run in the big race Addie and Shane along with her 2 sisters hatch a plan to draw out the person. Throughout the whole process Shane and Adelaide keep getting closer. Addie wears a pendant around her neck that Shane seems to have a nagging feeling about. When Addie confides in him her secret and later they talk about her family history the conversation he had with his good friend Rafe Delaney some time ago comes back to him and he realizes what had been bothering him about the pendant. Adelaide: The Enchantress is the 4th book in the Delaney/Shamrock Trinity series and the 1st book in the Delaney's of Killaroo.

I am happy that this book has been reissued, just hoping that the rest are as well.

Some times when an author reissues a book they update it to make it more modern. I am glad to see that that isn't the case with this one. I guess when it was originally written there wasn't anything mentioned that "dated" the book. It is still the same wonderfulness it was when it was originally published!

Again a good book but not my type. Story was strong but just not strong wnough to hold my interest. Finished the book but, the author just isn't my typical kind of read.

Book stood the test of time

Kay Hooper has been writing wonderful books for decades. I originally read this book about the Australian branch of the Delaney family when it was first released in 1987. I can't tell what updates may have been made however I can happily say that Addie and Shane's love story is just as meaningful and enjoyable today as it was the first time I read it.

I received an advance reader copy from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.