I forgot to mention on Friday last week how very proud I am of myself for getting a bonus review out to you after letting on that I might the Tuesday before. It has made me eager to write more of them this year because it made me feel so accomplished. For anyone reading this, I am happy to have caught your attention and I hope you stick around. Now, onto this weeks review.
This book takes place during my favorite historical romance time period, that being the mid 15th century to mid 17th century, as well as taking place in my favorite countries to read about, England, Scotland, and France. It’s romantic, frustrating, brutal, tragic, and promising. The plot is full of border disputes, bride stealing, political power struggles, various types of seduction, and blossoming love, all of which centers around English heiress Arabella Grey and Scottish earl Tavis Stewart and their various allies and adversaries. I enjoyed the book as a whole, but I feel like the end was a little rushed. I always want more when I read a great book, and I mean, who doesn’t, but when I was getting to the last few pages I was wondering how everything was going to get wrapped up. This always gives me readers anxiety, and I was feeling it to the extreme here. It was done well, but still, I wanted a little bit more, I wanted to get more of the characters.
I have found a mild solution to my hunger for more of this story in another one of Bertrice Smalls books, The Kadin. This novel follows the story of Janet Leslie, who was briefly introduced in The Spitfire when Tavis traveled to Glenkirk to try and convince the current lord to go and see the king. And on the plus side of having another novel with similar characters in the same time period, it is not a stand alone, it does have a sequel. I do think I need to take a break from my romance and spice binge and read something more educational, but once I have at least read one non fiction book I will not be able to resist discovering what happens to the young Leslie girl.
Nonfiction and Nonsense 