Review - Tempted by A Warrior by Amanda Scott

Ms. Scott weaves her Medieval magic once again in this engaging romance.
Tempted by a Warrior by Amanda Scott

• Mass Market Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Forever (July 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446561320
• ISBN-13: 978-0446561327

Genre: Historical (Medieval) Romance
Rating: 4.25 of 5.0

Product Description

Lady Fiona, wed in haste, has never known marital peace. When last she'd seen her cruel husband Will, he'd struck her - and she has no memory of what she did next - only that she woke later alone in her bedchamber. Will has gone missing, and Fiona fears that in her rage and terror she might somehow have killed him. When her husband's cousin Sir Richard comes to search for Will, Fiona is touched by his warm nature. A knight and warrior, Richard is drawn to Fiona's brave manner, quickly seeing in her an equal measure of inner courage. Confessing that she fears having killed Will, Fiona accepts Richard's offer to help her. Pursuing together the mystery of Will's disappearance, they fall in love. Meanwhile the English are reinforcing their garrison in the Scottish Borderlands, putting Fiona, Richard, and Scotland in peril....

Review:  This is another solid read from best selling author, Amanda Scott.

Lady Fiona was a flirt in Seduced by a Rogue, the second book in this series, which was her sister Mairi’s story. Fiona thought running off with a devilishly handsome and charming Scotsman was an adventure. Too bad that she learned the hard way that the handsome man was more of a devil than charming. Fiona is only 17 and very pregnant as the story begins. She still has a rebellious nature that acts before thinking through the consequences. This gets her into trouble and plays an important role in this story. I had some sympathy for the character but at other times want to see her spanked for her rudeness.

Sir Richard is a lovely Medieval warrior: brave, patient, kind, trustworthy, well disciplined and honorable. Chasing or hitting women is not part of his nature although Fiona is cautious of all men as a result of her experience with Will and his brutish father, Old Jardine. He gets to practice a lot of patience around Lady Fiona and even more around his spoiled 15 year old sister, Nan.

The plot starts out well with the mystery of Will’s disappearance and the conflict created by Sir Richard’s appearance as an “heir” to the dying Laird. Old Jardine wants Richard to find Will or his murderer, casting suspicion on Fiona. Meanwhile, Fiona and some of the household suspect Richard’s motives as he is in line to inherit if Will and the babe are gone. These two are at odds as they try to learn to fully trust each other and as they try to resist their growing passions.

I enjoyed Richard showing up in time to burst into Fiona's chambers as she is in labor. His awe and delight in the birth warms Fiona. There is some quiet in the midsection of the story while they continue to puzzle out what happened to Will.  Then there is lots of excitement with a kidnapping, a battle against the English and a rescue that keep you glued to the action.

Here is a phrase I liked by one of the kidnappers to Fiona: “I’m thinking you’ve been told more than any woman should be, and ye talk more than any should, too. So cease your prating.” (p. 333.) Now do you think Lady Fiona would respond meekly to that?

The story moves along well as Ms. Scott is a solid story teller weaving interesting characters and an active plot for good reading. This book stands alone but I recommend all three books in this entertaining trilogy.

Thank you to Hachette and Anna for the opportunity to review this book and offer it for Giveaway.