Knight of Desire by Margaret Mallory (Book Review)

Title: Knight of Desire (#1 All the King's Men)
Author: Margaret Mallory
Publisher: Forever

First sentence: The creak of the stable door woke him. (uncorrected proof edition)

My summary: As a young girl of 16, Catherine was to be married to a man she did not trust. But being the only heir to a castle, she had to follow the wishes of her father and her King. On the eve of her marriage, she heads out for one last ride of freedom. This ride is almost thwarted by a knight she awakens in the stable. The knight finally agrees to accompany her on her ride to keep her safe. They part with a kiss, Catherine vowing to remember the night when she needs a happy memory. The knight, unable to forget the girl, dreamed of her often.

Five years later we meet up with Catherine as she waits to hear if her husband, Lord Rayburn - the traitor, has been captured or killed. After withstanding many years of his brutal lovemaking and abuse, she had begun to send messages to her childhood friend, Prince Harry, of her husband's traitorous ways. His death means her survival. She is relieved when she finds out it is finally over, but her relief is short-lived. A traitor's family must also be punished to send a message to others - but the King has given her a choice. Marry William FitzAllen, who has been given the castle and the lands - or be sent to the Tower. William had proven his loyalty to the King many times and it was he that led the men who captured Lord Rayburn.

One look at Catherine and William realizes it is the young girl he met in the stables on the eve of her wedding. As it had been a dark night, and he had worn his hair longer and sported a beard, Lady Catherine does not recognize him. She agrees to marry, only to keep herself alive for her young son Jaime. They are married that very day.

William is a very gentle and caring knight. He gives Catherine many days to feel comfortable with him before she has to share his bed. Eventually she submits, but she is still tense and unreachable in bed. William doesn't understand as they appear to be growing closer during the day. He is even growing close to Jaime. Unfortunately, Lady Catherine has had her heart so bruised, she cannot see past her relationship with the late Rayburn. Will William be able to ever win her heart?

Catherine does come to love him, but fears her husband still does not trust her on things that matter the most. William does have doubts about Catherine's loyalty - all stemming back to her deceiving her first husband and eventually leading to his downfall. Their love and trust is tested when she is kidnapped by the Tudors and forced to travel all over Wales to avoid rescue. Will their relationship be able to stand this trial and separation?

My thoughts: What a good book! Sometimes historical fiction loses me when it tries to capture the "language" of the time period. I find those books hard to follow and they generally lose my interest. This book was hard for me to put down! The story of their love is very romantic - and of course William possesses many of the qualities we look for today - patience, gentleness, loyalty - though he does have his faults too! His bumbling when it came time to show Catherine how he felt, and his awkward way with words at times got him into hot water quite a bit! But I imagine many husbands have those some problems these days! For a book set in the 1400s, they had a very modern relationship. It was nice to read a romance that portrayed a strong, courageous woman, who didn't need the man to save her! If you are a fan of this genre - you must add this book to your TBRs!


About the author: MARGARET MALLORY recently surprised her friends and family by abandoning her legal career-and her steady job-to write tales of romance and adventure. At long last, she can satisfy her passion for justice by punishing the bad and rewarding the worthy-in the pages of her novels, of course. She lives in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with her husband and their two college-age children. KNIGHT OF DESIRE is her first book so she would dearly love to hear from readers.

I am currently have a giveaway for Knight of Desire.

Knight of Desire
Publisher/Publication Date: Forever, Grand Central Publishing, July 2009
ISBN: 978-0-446-55339-1
356 pages

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Readaholic- June 29 giveaway.
This Book for Free- June 29 giveaway
Must Read Faster - June 29 review and giveaway.
Yankee Romance Reviewers - June 29 to July 10 review and giveaway
This, That and the Other Thing - June 30 review and giveaway.
Book Soulmates - July 1 review and giveaway.
The Epic Rat - July 1
Foreign Circus Library - July 2
Happily Forever After - July 2 giveaway
Love Impossible - July 3
Morbid Romantic - July 4 review and giveaway
Chick with Books - July 4 review and giveaway
Books and Needlepoint- July 5 review; July 10 giveaway ends.
Bookin' with Bingo- July 5
A Journey of Books - July 6 review and giveaway.
Seductive Musings - July 7 review and giveaway.
Alpha Heroes - July 8 review and giveaway.
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Marta's Meanderings- July 9 review and giveaway.
Review from Here - July 10 review.
Starting Fresh - July 10 review and giveaway
Maria's Space- review and giveaway.
Darby's Closet - review.