"An Enchanting Regency"
Even in the Regency period some of the Elder race
of Britain, the Faerie folk, or Fane, still exist. But
these near immortal beings haven't had enough children, so
they must either steal a human child or sire a half-human
child before they can go home to Tir-na-nog. In a forest
in the north of Britain the Fleming family has had great
prosperity because of a pact with one of the last of the
Faerie folk, the Forest Lord. But Cyrus Fleming, Lord
Bradwell, broke his oath with the Forest Lord by hunting
deep in the woods. The Faerie Lord will only spare Lord
Bradwell's life if his daughter will consent to bear a
child for him. Lord Bradwell has no choice but to promise
his daughter to the Forest Lord, but insists that the
Faerie Lord must first win her love and marry her. The Forest Lord appears to Lady Eden Fleming as a
long-lost Fleming cousin, and wins her love, convincing her
to elope with him. But after the first night in his arms
she discovers that she has run off with a monster. The
child she subsequently bears is dead at birth, and her
aunt, Claudia, convinces Eden to accept a loveless marriage
to hide her shame. Eden's father escapes to an
inaccessible life on the continent. Five years later Eden's husband has died and she
returns to the Fleming estate in the north of England
accompanied by her Aunt Claudia. The estate and the
surrounding areas have suffered from neglect and bad
fortune. Soon after her arrival she comes across a young
boy of about five years, who has run-away from a cruel
foster family. The boy, Donal, calls Eden "mathair", and she
finds out that Donal is her son and he hadn't died, but had
been taken from her by her family. Eden looks for signs of
his faerie father, and recognizes the intense green eyes of
the Forest Lord. Besides Donal, there is a mysterious man
named Hartley Shaw, who saves Donal from a rearing horse.
Eden hires Hartley to work on the estate and he and Donal
form a close kinship to one another. Eden is also deeply
attracted to Hartley, and Claudia immediately senses danger
in the relationship. In THE FOREST LORD Ms. Krinard has created a novel
that is a wonderful mix of regency era history with her
trademark paranormal genre. The Faerie Lord is intensely
appealing in both his otherworldliness and his surprising
vulnerability. No other human woman except Lady Eden has
ever touched his heart. He thinks himself unable to love,
because the Fane do not love in the human sense. All of
the characters are memorable, especially Lady Eden and her
Aunt Claudia. This is a book to treasure, it goes on my
keeper shelf.
Reviewed by Cynthia Meidinger
Posted September 23, 2002
From the USA Bestselling author of SECRET OF THE WOLF
comes the first book in a new series of enchantment,
romance, and ancient legend....
SummaryHern is a Lord of the Fane, a race ancient before the
coming of Man. For a thousand years he has guarded his
forest realm on the Lakeland estate of Hartsmere. He longs
to return to the Blessed Land of his own people, but he
must bring with him a half-mortal heir, whose humanity
will strengthen the weakened blood of the Fane.
He chooses Lady Eden Fleming to bear his child and free
him from the bonds of earth. But when she discovers his
inhuman identity, she flees, carrying their unborn child
within her.
Many years later, Lady Eden, once a diamond of the ton, is
a debt-ridden widow with memories of one brilliant night
of love. But she discovers that the child of that
forbidden union, believed long dead, still lives.
Eden's joyful reunion with her son at Hartsmere is
complicated by the proud and insolent servant, Hartley
Shaw. He and her son share mysterious gifts that intrigue
and frighten her. Who is Hartley Shaw, why has he come to
Hartsmere—and how can she be falling in love with him?
|
