As a avid romance reader, I deplore when a writer forgives the heroine's nasty and mean behavior towards her husband or lover with a well-worded excuse. And we are supposed to applaude their "feisty" and "proud" behavior. Jennifer was just unforgiving and a hypocrit. And I have not found a more displeasurable heroine than the one JM created in this book.


I am Speechless   January 1, 2005
 9 out of 9 found this review helpful

WOW!!! This is romance novel at its best!! I have so much I want to say I don't even know where to start. First, I'm not a fan of medieval period romances at all, and I only decided to read this because I loved Whitney, My Love and the ending where Whitney was doing that ritual thing that all Duchesses of Westmoreland do really intrigued me, esp. when she was crying and laughing while she was reading the adventures of the first Duchess of Westmoreland. If you've read Whitney, My Love, you'll know what I mean. Also, I wanted to learn more about the ancestor of Clayton, the very FIRST Duke of Westmoreland and what kind of person he was. He does not disappoint....

The beginning was awesome, as you read about Jennifer escapades while she was a "hostage" of Royce, the "Black Wolf," Jennifer's clan's mortal enemy. Royce and her had so many confrontation and the tension between them was almost tangible, even when they fell for each other. Their meeting and all the adventures that followed were very entertaining and funny, and kept me riveted to the book. However, after their first misunderstanding though, it got a bit confusing with the king and the clansman and the subtle power struggles that a few pages cannot really fully explain, and I was getting increasingly bored and ready to just finish the book and get it over with. The period right before their marriage and immediately after was so predictable and I was getting rather disappointed when, BAM! the climax came.

And OH MI GOSH, WHAT A CLIMAX!! It hit me hard because I did not expect such power of emotion to pour from this book, but it did, and I will never ever forget the jousting/tournament part no matter how many romance novels I read. The whole part I loved, but one of the sweetest, most touching scenes I've ever read in my life were, first, the one where Royce rode up on his horse, frighteningly in all black, and saluted Jennifer. I could almost feel at that moment what she was feeling, so touched and loved and amazed and confused at what to do. And then, in a scene that made me speechless with emotion, was when Jennifer ran out onto the field as Royce was sacrificing himself for her, and she in return bestowed upon him a gift that was tremendously touching. I thought their marriage was irreparable after what he did (no, it's not rape), so that scene was all the more shocking and heartbreakingly sweet. Think about it: Royce, the most feared man in all of England and Scotland, who has fought hundreds of battles and killed thousands of men, a legendary warrior and a fierce opponent, subjected himself to ridicule and defeat and sacrificed his body and pride and honor for the woman he loved, in front of the whole world. He could lose honor in front of everyone else, but he did not, could not lose his honor in front of the woman he loved. This is the ultimate gesture of love, and what can be more romantic than that? Jennifer, thank God, realized this and in return gave him an equally touching gift. I couldn't even cry, couldn't even remember who I was or where I was at, so involved I was with the characters, feeling how they feel, carried away by the sea of emotions that engulfed the scene...

This book should be made into a movie, and it would be a blockbuster and blow everyone away with its majesty and grandeur and I can almost see it played in my mind the scene on the tournament field, the dramatic ending of the feud and the beginning of their true married life. There are so many wonderful memories in this book that will stay with me for a long long time...I especially liked that scene where Jennifer was making fun of Royce about where he left his men right after they got married, it was SO CUTE and they behaved just like an old married couple, only they didn't realize it at the time. The love between them is vividly described and you can feel their love and loyalty as if it were your own. Royce is a very likable hero, being that he was a relatively tender JM leading man in spite of his ferocious career, and Jennifer is an admirable heroine, full of passion and loyalty and courage. They are the perfect couple, the perfect beginning to the Westmoreland line, and I highly encourage you to read this book as well as Whitney, My Love, which tells the tale of the ninth Duke of Westmoreland. This book is amazingly touching, despite many technical descriptions that I have to admit I skipped over, and once you get to the ending you'll realize the grandeur and wholesomeness of his book. It is definitely not corny and no matter how much I write, words cannot describe the depth of feeling evoked by some of the scenes, you will only find that out when you read for yourself...a kingdom of dreams.