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| ―King Edward has decreed that you will marry Lord Montrose upon his arrival at Middlemound." |
Their Lady Gloriana
By Starla Kaye
Middlemound Castle, England, June 1272
"Riders come, my lady! Two of them," a guard called down from the parapet to Gloriana where she stood in the gardens. "They bear the King‘s banner."
She raised her head toward the guard and felt chills spiraling up her spine. News. Bad news. She sensed it to her soul. "Allow…" She had to clear her throat before she could finish. "Allow them entry."
It always angers me how women were treated in the past. Lady Gloriana was a perfect example--her husband had been extremely abusive of her in every way, so much so that everybody who lived in the castle knew it and had grown to hate her husband as much as Gloriana.
She had taken over as chatelaine while her husband had traveled to war. Now Sir Gerald stood by her, promising her that he would protect her but knowing, perhaps he could not? Still he would try...
Lady Gloriana had felt it was bad news when the soldiers came. Indeed they were there to tell her that her husband had been killed in battle. I just know that she would have been rejoicing; however, before she had a chance to even comment, she was told that the King had decreed she would marry Lord Rowan Montrose, who was to take over all of Lord Middlemound's men and properties.
Apparently the King had the right to decree a marriage for Gloriana...NOT something to make her happy! Indeed!
In fact, Lady Gloriana was very much afraid. No matter that Sir Gerald had sworn allegiance to her as a father would. No matter that everybody in the castle had grown to love her... The new owner could treat her just as he wanted--maybe even worse than Lord Middlemound!
Fortunately, Lord Montrose had heard rumors about how his predecessor had treated women. Still, he wasn't totally prepared when Gloriana faced him and declared that she would never again be treated as she had been. Perhaps he started to fall in love with her that very moment...
Lord Montrose was so tired of war that he had already given up his commission and would be spending his future training other soldiers. His first knight Thomas had decided not to take the rule of a castle/lands as had been offered, preferring to stay with Rowan and help in the training. Indeed he hoped that he would never have to leave Rowan, who had not only saved his life during battle but had become much more... but now he was being forced to wed...
What surprised Gloriana most about what was happening was that she found herself not only attracted to her intended husband, but also to his first knight...
Readers should be aware that Their Lady Gloriana is an erotic romance. I found the story line authentic to the day and especially enjoyed Gloriana as she took a stand to ensure her abuse was all in the past. Expansion of the story related to having children provided additional tension to the success or failure of this mandated marriage. Fans of historical fiction should thoroughly enjoy this one...just remember, light on history, heavy on the erotic scenes...
Book Received
from Publisher
GABixlerReviews
Really good review.
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