Product Description

Never before published-from the New York Times bestselling author of Infamous

The daughter of Jory de Warenne and lady-in-waiting to Queen Isabelle, the spirited Brianna de Beauchamp is betrothed to the distinguished Lincoln Robert de Warenne, but yearns for a deeper passion. When she meets the dark and dangerous Wolf Mortimer-a man who possesses the Celtic gift of second sight-she finds it impossible not to surrender to his fierce desire. And when Wolf's father-the queen's lover, Roger Mortimer-is imprisoned in the Tower of London, she finds herself swept on an adventure that not only puts her heart in peril, but jeopardizes the life of the man who could be her destiny...

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #264940 in Books
• Published on: 2007-05-01
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 416 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Rife with political intrigue, this medieval historical romance never lacks for suspense, but overblown language, a too-easy wrapup and excessive melodrama undermine the reader's enjoyment. "I shouldn't... but I shall!" is noblewoman Brianna de Beauchamp's credo, and she applies it often throughout. Should she involve herself in the brewing battle between England's marcher barons and the degenerate King Edward II? And, perhaps more importantly, should she provoke the handsome and dangerous Wolf Mortimer? She shouldn't but she does, making herself an essential channel of communication between the barons and their ally, Queen Isabelle, as well as the object of Wolf's fantasies. Veteran author Henley (Infamous) weaves a colorful tapestry full of notorious real-life noblemen and royals, proving that fact can be more fascinating than fiction. However, Henley would do better to heed the "less is more" doctrine; too often characters restate facts, and Henley compulsively inserts distracting exclamatories for added drama ("I foolishly forgave you once, but never again. I wouldn't lower myself to spit on you!"). Despite its flaws, this dynamic, heavily embellished history lesson manages to do what few can—illuminate and entertain. (May)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
In 1322 Hugh Despencer, King Edward II's lover, has turned the ruler against the Marchers. As Edward prepares the royal castles in Wales for war, the Marcher lords rebel against the Crown. Lady Brianna de Beauchamp, daughter of a powerful Marcher, is a strong-willed, resourceful healer. She's known since childhood that she would marry her charming cousin, but then "Wolf" Mortimer and his wolf come on the scene. Possessed of fantastic psychic powers, Wolf soon takes over Brianna's dreams. Few writers incorporate such rich historical detail into their romances as Henley, and Wolf and Brianna's story will appeal to fans of the sensual romances of Bertrice Small and Susan Johnson. Shelley Mosley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Customer Reviews

I just wasn't that into it....
So, let me say first of course that I am a fan of Ms. Henley's; hopelessly devoted to every single book. I started reading her about 13 years ago as a high school senior and have continued on to now. But lately....her books....just....havent had the same....punch. This book which was a spin off of Infamous I believe, and the main character just isnt as interesting or entertaining as her mother Jory. I just..didnt cae about what happened to her, at all....seriously. The same of true of the sequel to "A woman of passion". In that book ( a woman of passion), VH totally stepped away from the formulaic boy meets girl story and gives her heroine 2 previous husbands before she marries the love of her life. I tend to stay away from books that see the heroine passed from man to man like a beer bottle at a super bowl party. (See Beatrice Smalls) It was a risk, but the character, Elisabeth Hardwick-Cavendish...was so incredible that the book became a delight to read. Her grandaughters story was just....blah!. just like in this book, she didnt have the fire nor the passion that her mother had. Although a fantastic author, she hasnt quite mastered the "genelogical genre" that authors like Johanna Lindsey with her Mallory series, Jude Devereax with her Montgomerys or even Julia Quinn with her Brigertons has. Each character in the family had their own life, and spark, so that you wanted to read about their exploits and adventures. None of Virginia Henleys characters decendents capture the vivacity and vibrance of their forebearors. Does this mean I wont buy her next book....of course not. I LOVE HER. and....who you love...you forgive for thier indiscretions. This book, for me was a major indiscretion.

Bad costume historical romance.
Whoever wrote the back blurb for this novel should have written the book because they sucker me into reading this book. This was my first novel by this author and I can't foresee my buying any further works by Ms. Henley. The writing reminds me of the old 80s style of telling instead of showing. It also reads like a costume historical where the language and thoughts sound like modern American women. The author also seemed to forget exactly whose story this is supposed to be about. (Brianna-not Queen Isabelle) Then again, that may be easy to do since Brianna and Wolf were about as interesting as watching grass grow. What's romantic about a peeping Tom hero-who manipulates his way into a woman's dream as a way too woo her? Again, it reminds me of the historicals from the 80s when rape was an accepted criminal activity to win a woman's heart. True there is a lot of history incorporated in the book, but it reads like a high schooler writing an essay. Recommend you skip this one.

Pretty good book
This was a pretty good book and it was enjoyable to read, but as another reader mentioned, the ideas and personalities of the characters were highly inaccurate for the time that it is supposed to be set it. One of the inaccuracies that I found particularly ridiculous was a part in the book where the son of an earl or lord or something (I read the book a while ago so I don't quite remember) got a maid pregnant, and his parents persuade him to "take responsibility for the poor girl" (not an actual quote but close). I didn't think of this as an accurate idea at all for medieval Europe. This book might have been better set in Victorian England, and the ideas are even a little to modern for that time, but it might have been a bit more believable.

As I said though, this book was an enjoyable read as long as you can try to ignore the more ridiculous parts of it.