Series: All the King's Men, #1-2
Traits & Tropes: widowed heroine; arranged marriage; soldiers; reformed rake
Publication Date: 03.30.21
Genre/Setting: Historical; Medieval
Heat Level: 3.5/5
Rating: 4/5
Knight of Desire:
Successful in battle, William FitzAlan has been rewarded for his service to the king with a strategically located fortress and lands on the Welsh border. Along with the land comes the lady of the keep, the beautiful and newly widowed, Lady Catherine Rayburn.
Catherine risked everything to reveal her late husband’s treachery to the king only to be rewarded with the loss of her lands and forced to either marry Lord FitzAlan or be imprisoned in the Tower. Catherine agrees to submit to her new husband but keeps her heart apart. William doesn’t wish to settle for half measures and works to woo his wife. The passion between them heats as danger encroaches on their budding relationship and they’ll have to learn to be open and trust each other if they hope to preserve their lands and lives.
This was a more traditional Medieval/Middle Ages romance along the lines of those that first got me into historical romance. There was plenty of steam, which I not only enjoyed but which was also key to the development of the story and the relationship between the MCs. William was rather clueless, but he tried so hard and his sweet tendencies and tenderness with Catherine were charming enough to make up for the times he was blindly jealous and territorial. His continued mistrust of her did get old, but he made up for it in the end and Catherine’s resilience and resourcefulness were admirable. I was also quite charmed by the family dynamic that developed between Catherine, William, Jamie, and Stephen. There was a lot of action to keep me interested in this one, though I must say my sentiments fell more in line with the ultimately unsuccessful Welsh rebels. I would’ve liked a bit more communication between the MCs, but I enjoyed the story overall. I appreciated the strong morals of both Catherine and William and their ability to apologize when needed. This was an enjoyable read and I’ll be moving on to Stephen’s story now.
Knight of Pleasure:
Lady Isobel Hume had hoped her widowed status would finally bring her the freedom she had so long desired. But that was not to be and now, once again faced with few options, she agrees to do her duty when the king decrees she marry a French nobleman to secure a political alliance. When she arrives in Normandy, she finds herself taken not with her arrogant betrothed, but with Sir Stephen Carleton, and is tempted to forsake her duty.
Stephen has always had his pick of women, but when he meets Isobel, all others lose their appeal. When Isobel finds herself in danger amidst a plot to kill the king, Stephen takes the opportunity to prove his devotion and sincerity.
First off, I loved the old school Medieval feel and setting of this book and enjoyed the author’s smooth writing style. The pace was fast and with enough action to keep me interested. I even wound up being charmed by Stephen as he cleaned up his rakish ways and his true honor and sweet nature shone through. The connection between him and Isobel was well drawn, and I loved his determination to have a future with her despite the obstacles in their way. My issue here was Isobel. She’s meant to be such a strong woman, skilled with a sword and such, but her actions didn’t show that very much. I kept waiting for her to grow a backbone and finally start fighting for what she wanted, rather than her endless complaining of her woes and the general suffering of women. Even when her maid cum spy presented her with information that could help her, Isobel was still reluctant to do anything. The final nail was when she assumed the worst of Stephen and his intentions without actually having a real conversation with him or allowing him to explain his feelings and actions without her jumping to conclusions. Thankfully, the supporting characters were there to be sensible and help set things to rights. Overall, I wound up being charmed by Stephen and rooting for him and I liked these two as a couple, I just wanted more spine and less air-headedness from the heroine. The plot itself was a bit predictable but I still enjoyed it and the setting, and I’ll continue on to Jamie’s story soon.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3914001582
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