"Devereaux's classic time travel has new life again"

1988 Dougless Montgomery is on vacation in England with her boyfriend, to whom she hopes to be engaged soon. What was supposed to be a romantic getaway for two turns into the trip from hell when Robert brings his obnoxious, scheming daughter, Gloria, with them, and them abandons Dougless in a Church in Ashburton, without even her purse! This being the worst in a string of bad luck lasting her whole life, Dougless breaks down, sobbing her heart out on the tomb of an English Earl from the 16th century who was to have been executed for treason.

1564 Nicholas Stafford, Earl of Thornwyck, is sitting in his prison cell, writing a letter to his mother, three days before he is to be executed for treason. Suddenly, he hears a woman sobbing as though her life is over. Try as he might to ignore it, this woman's cries overwhelm him to the point he can think of nothing else. The next thing he knows, he is standing in a Church, in front of his own tomb and face to face with Dougless.

Nicholas has come forward over 400 years in time, to solve a mystery. He had been wrongly accused of treason and needs to find out who his betrayer was. Dougless is in disbelief, thinking Nicholas is crazy when he tells her his tale. She was never one to turn her back on one in need though, so as she helps him find his way around, she comes to believe in the impossible, and finds herself falling in love with her own personal knight in shining armor.

However, as Nicholas and Dougless fall deeper in love, fate beckons once again. Nicholas is taken back to his time to face his execution, nonetheless. Dougless can't give up hope though, in spite of their seeming failure to save him from death. Now the impossible happens once again, sending Dougless back in time herself, to try and prevent the chain of events leading to the execution from occurring. Shock of shocks though, Nicholas does not remember her and in fact, he despises her! Can Dougless convince Nicholas her story is true, in time to prevent his death?

It is easy to see why Knight in Shining Armor remains a fan favorite of Ms. Devereaux's books. She takes a classic romance theme and alters it entirely, making it entirely her own. The plot flows seamlessly, capturing and carrying the reader along. She also weaves a lot of interesting trivia bits in, without detracting from the story, and gives a clearer picture of life in Elizabethan England.

The characters grow dramatically throughout as well. Dougless starts out as a weakling who will do anything to make someone happy, but by the end of the story, she has come into her own. She overcomes her feelings of inferiority to become a woman full of quiet strength and confidence. Nicholas starts off as a scoundrel, a womanizer, and a philanderer. As the story moves along, he is seen for the noble man he is- one who puts honor and family above all else, even himself and his dreams.

Whether enjoying this book for the first or the dozenth time, it is enchanting, guaranteed not to disappoint. It is a thoroughly engrossing read and one definitely not to be missed!

Kelley A. Hartsell, April 2002. All rights reserved.

Reviewed by Kelley Hartsell
Posted April 15, 2002