That I title this review about love, is I think the theme and plot of our tale. Those who have taken the effort to investigate Nancy Jardine's tale will find that they are in the midst of the turmoil attraction fosters in two souls caught up in a dangerous game and time. Our tale is set in an era where much is going on, and generally it is told from the Roman Conquerors viewpoint. Even now with the man movies we see released about the era when England was invaded by the Romans, we only see the view of the Celts who lived on the island as secondary characters. Or in the case of Boudicca, a figure that will fail.

Here for those who want to see a love story develop, and then, as classic tropes have, barriers bar the way, Jardine provides a tale that will delight and give you a bang. Though getting there, you will encounter a great deal of tsuris leading to the very edge of a cliff, not once, but multiple times, so that when our couple finally finds happiness, the trouble has been well worth it.

That the tale suffers and does not receive a full five stars is in the surrounding tale of Rome, and in the dialogue. Our premodern hero and heroine have a few too many modern words in their vocabulary that are in the arsenal of skilled authors, but would ever fit in the mouths of ancient Celtic tribespeople. They take you out of the story wondering where a tribal warrior, or maiden would learn such a concept.

Jardine also dilutes the strength of the love story where it could have been stronger with the lack of urgency by the threat of the Romans. This is not a piece of ancient military fiction, for their are many of those now about with love stories added on. This is the reverse, a love story in the times of war. Constant warfare in the case of tribal disharmony, and the threat of the Romans. A threat made real surrounding all that occurs in Jardine's work. And therefore when the Romans are mentioned I begin to wonder why are the warriors not acting more expeditiously to deal with the threat. A legion is thousands of men and as the book shows nearly unstoppable, yet to not give the entire detail of our story away, our warriors recognize the threat but do not work hard enough to prepare for it. The pace and speed that they do work at seems more to do with ensuring that the calendar of events that the author has chosen is met, and this works for the true story of love and romance.

Putting that aside, and knowing that in history, the Celts, as so many others, have been consumed by time and culture, one can look at the big picture and see that this is a preparation of things to come. That there will be a dynasty of love and romance founded here in the defiant Celtic tales that Jardine has to spin for us. Tales that will entertain many when reading this first, or the others that follow. ( )

Nara is hunting wild boar when she is captured by a warrior, Lorcan, from a rival clan. With her as his prisoner, they travel back to his home but on the journey find themselves fighting mutual attraction. But when Lorcan makes the unexpected discovery that his beautiful captive is a virgin, the only explanation he can come up with is that Nara is more important than she pretends.
Nara is a princess and as such, untouched by the warriors of her own tribe. She has had a vision that the man she chooses to mate with on the festival of Beltane, will father a son who will be a great leader. When she is abducted by the virile Lorcan, she begins to suspect that he is the man predicted by her dream. But when Nara arrives at his fort, she is too important a bargaining chip to choose her own husband. It seems she must marry in order to unite two warring clans and her father will chose her mate…and it isn’t Lorcan.
This book is a hidden gem. I say that because the innocuous brown cover gives no hint of the lush treasure within. The push and pull of attraction, the raw urgency of lust and the eventual soul-deep love between Lorcan and Nara is beautifully written. The characters have a satisfying depth and develop over the course of the book. I especially loved how Nara starts out as a fierce hunter, who would rather die than submit to an enemy, but is later shown to have emotional vulnerability in a very touching way. Lorcan also, goes from being a lusty warrior, to a man tortured by the conflicting demands of love and tribal honour.
The story never flags for a second and I heartily recommend it. Thoroughly engrossing. ( )