"Absolutly Phenomenal!"
First off, I just finished this book and knowing the
sequel
will be out in June (2005), has me chomping at the bit to
read it... I also have to say that this book is worth every
penny if you choose to buy it in paper format. Before the wars started, two fathers hoping to end the
tension between the clans betrothed Lachlan Douglas and
Kimberly Kincade. However, when a traitor to the Douglas'
throws everyone into war, the marriage contract is
forgotten, as clan Douglas becomes the enemy to all the
other clans. Many years later, Kimberly is a fighter pilot on the
warship Shadowkeep. Because she has doubts about the
sanity of her commanding officer, Rama and his reasons for
attacking a Douglas stronghold on Mars she is part of a
secret resistance group trying to end the war. But it
isn't until she finds the first line Douglas on the
Shadowkeep close to dieing from his injuries that Kimberly
decides, for the sake of ending the war to rescue
Lachlan. Lachlan cannot believe that Kimberly is willing to aide
him
from escaping one of the men responsible for causing the
war and warning his father about the up coming attacks on
their other strongholds. However, when Rama tracks them
down and catches them, Kimberly again tries to aide his
escape. Even though it means his own death, Lachlan steps
in front of a laser blast meant for her. Grab your seat belts people and get strapped in, because
R. Garland Gray has written an extraordinary futuristic
novel
in space! There is nothing simple about this plot line and
while it's riddled with scenarios that will keep your nose
glued to the book; her writing style is straightforward and
easy to follow. One of my favorite things about this book is how the
Celtic
heritage has evolved. For me, I love Scottish historicals
and I love futuristics novels, so there couldn't be a more
perfect combination than this book! The keeps built on
other planets are modeled after castles from Scotland
on "Ancient Earth"; and while the hero doesn't run around
in a kilt, he does wear armbands etched with his families'
motto. And lets not forget the Scottish brogue...it was
just
enough to remind you that our characters actually have a
heritage (so it wasn't mentioned then dropped for the
duration of the story), and not overwhelming by making you
sound out your sentences because of words that are hard to
pronounce. While some of the more scientific occurrences that
happen
in DARKSCAPE seem like they should be far-fetched, I found
them all the more interesting because, for example I've
just been reading about how we (earthlings) are discussing
terra-forming Mars...so the technology IS here and under
discussion. I really felt like Ms Gray did some research
for our future living off of Earth. Don't worry though,
the science isn't overwhelming so don't get mislead,
DARKSCAPE is an excellent romance, with some very
passionate love scenes. R. Garland Gray has done an excellent job, I think, with
her
character development. Someone betrayed Lachlan's family,
and honestly, I was surprised by who it was. Likewise, the
enemy is so well written, he is someone you can easily
hate, and I found myself unable to stop reading (but not
the only reason) because I needed to make sure he got his
comeuppance! If you like futuristic romances written by CJ Barry,
Catherine Spangler or Linnea Sinclair, I highly recommend
DARKSCAPE: THE REBEL LORD.
Reviewed by Cynthia Eckert
Posted November 10, 2006
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