Set somewhere in the
Highlands in 1291, this is the story of Rhoslyn, a widowed countess, ordered by
King Edward to marry Sir Talbot St. Claire (for her lands) and by her
grandfather to marry Jacobus Auenel, Lord Melrose (to protect said lands). One
was English and one was a Scot. Rhoslyn doesn’t wish to marry either of them.
Rhoslyn’s grandfather
collects her from the convent where she was staying mourning her dead husband to
be delivered to Lord Melrose, but for some undisclosed reason the abbess colludes
with Sir Talbot, enabling him to capture Rhoslyn on the road.
This is a well-written story
and while I loved the history and the historical figures (King Edward tries to
dominate Scotland and the Scots resist), there were a lot of characters, some
better described than others. (I could have benefited from a score sheet.)
There is much sparring
between Rhoslyn and Talbot and the dialog quite good. The chase scene at the
beginning was very exciting. I especially liked the part where the heroine stabbed
the arrogant Sir Talbot, who by the way never seemed to do anything wrong, lose
any battle or be defeated in any contest. But he was a great lover, so I guess
we can excuse his being good at everything.
I would have liked to see
more detailed descriptions of the characters. Some were just names and I had no
idea what they looked like. And two things seemed a bit abrupt: Rhoslyn’s sudden
love for Talbot; and the ending (I had to re-read the last page to be sure it
was over since it ended with many questions).
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