"Totally delightful medieval romance"
In 1212, teenager Jared de Navarre is expected keep his
preadolescent betrothed Isabeau de Lyon safe, but she
sneaks away to watch the Children's Crusade. Somehow
Isabeau becomes part of the marchers and vanishes. Feeling
guilty for failing at his mission, Jared vows to find
Isabeau and bring her home. However, she is sold into
slavery in the Middle East and he fails to rescue her. Years go by and though Jared still sort of seeks out
Isabeau, he believes she is dead. He has hardened his
heart and become the notorious mercenary The Black Lion,
willing to do anything for cash. An assassin guild member,
the Shadow Hunter, knows of his reputation and hires Jared
to steal a jewel from a rival. Neither the Black Lion nor
the Shadow Hunter realize that the identity of the other is
their betrothed. Both have done ugly things to mentally
survive, but a wall of shame makes a permanent relationship
between them seems more impossible than the first meeting
between them after all those years. HEART OF A LION is a strong medieval romance that
mostly occurs in the Middle East, which enables the plot to
feel quite invigorating in spite of the desert heat. The
action-packed story line hooks sub-genre fans because both
lead characters obtain empathy from the audience due to
their respective plights. Hillary Fields provides an
intense historical romance that will surely garner her many
new readers. Harriet Klausner
Reviewed by PNR Group Member
Posted November 16, 2001
|
