Series:
Ladies of the Keep (Book 1)
A marriage arranged for freedom…
Saxon beauty Lady Jillian and her mother lost everything
when her father fell at Hastings beneath a Norman blade. Forced into a life of
servitude, she accepts her life until her mother dies. Without the worry of
protecting her mother, she looks for a way to change her circumstances and no
longer live as a slave to the lady of the keep. When renowned warrior Garrick
of Merewood's brother is imprisoned at the keep, Jillian hatches a bold plan to
offer marriage in exchange for helping to free his brother. Marriage to him
will set her free while his strength and prowess will help her reclaim her
birthright—Loughmoe Keep. She never expects to fall in love.
A dowry not of gold, but honor…
Garrick needs no help freeing his brother, and he refuses
the bold beauty's plan. But treachery abounds, and to save his brother's life,
he must swallow his pride and seek Jillian's assistance. After they wed he
learns that Loughmoe Keep is no longer hers. Rumors of her duplicity threaten
to tear them apart, while sinister forces are at work threatening to destroy
them. Jillian and Garrick's mother are captured, and a ransom is demanded.
Garrick of Merewood's people need the coin to survive
another winter; he cannot pay the ransom. He must devise a plan to rout the
baron responsible for the kidnapping and ransom. He needs to rescue them to
free his mother and the woman he fell in love with, before the greedy baron
steals Loughmoe and Merewood Keep.
Good beginning to the new series. The story drew me in
from the start and kept me hooked to the end. Jillian and her mother lost their
home when her father was killed at Hastings. They took refuge with a neighbor
who treated them as servants instead of the ladies they were. After her
mother's death, Jillian looks for a way to escape the servitude and abuse she
experiences. That chance comes when the baron captures the younger brother of a
local warrior. Gillian offers to help Garrick rescue his brother in exchange
for marriage and possibly reclaiming her heritage.
Garrick inherited his family's keep but doesn't have the
funds to care for it and his people. He believes he doesn't need help to rescue
his brother, but circumstances prove him wrong. Garrick accepts Jillian's
bargain. It isn't until after they are married that he discovers her family's
keep has been given to another.
I liked Jillian and her strength of will. She doesn't
give in to despair and works to improve her circumstances. She is clever,
determined, and has a loving heart.
I had a harder time liking Garrick. He carries a lot of
guilt over the death of his father and the condition of their property. He has
tunnel vision when it comes to restoring his property and is so focused on it that
he has become something of an arse. His honor compels him to carry through with
his marriage to Jillian, but he doesn't react well to discovering she doesn't
actually possess the Loughmoe property.
I enjoyed the development of the relationship between Jillian
and Garrick. The sparks between them are there from the beginning, though
Garrick does his best to ignore them. He is torn when his attraction to her
runs up against his distrust. I liked how Jillian used her skills in running
the household to get past his walls and try to win his care. I became
frustrated with his plans and wanted to shake him for his short-sightedness. It
is only when he nearly loses her that he realizes his mistake. Garrick must
regain her trust before he can have the future he wants with her.
There was a lot of action in this story. It took place a
few years after Hastings, and there is still a lot of unrest in the country. The
maneuvering over the balance of power in the neighborhood was intriguing and
kept a feeling of uncertainty throughout the book. There is treachery afoot, and
when Jillian and Garrick's mother are kidnapped, he must find a way to rescue
them. This was a complicated endeavor, politically and physically, and it kept
me on the edge of my seat until it was over. The resolution was well done and
made sense.
I liked seeing the familiar O'Malley name and the glimpse
of the ancestors of the Duke's Guard. I look forward to seeing more of them in
the following books.
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