Middle Ages / Medieval (476-1454) – Page 15 – Flippin' Pages Book Reviews

Category: Middle Ages / Medieval (476-1454)

In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or Medieval Period lasted from the 5th to the 15th century. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and merged into the Renaissance and the Age of Discovery. The Middle Ages is the middle period of the three traditional divisions of Western history: classical antiquity, the medieval period, and the modern period. The medieval period is itself subdivided into the Early, High, and Late Middle Ages.

Tempted by the Warrior

But she’ll never wed

Brynhild had once been close to Erik – until he’d betrayed her, and she’d hoped never to see him again. Now the fiercely independent shieldmaiden needs Erik’s skills to rescue her sister. Striking a truce with the tough, isolated loner they reach a mutually beneficial deal: in return, she’ll help him in his quest to find a wife – by teaching him how to please a woman in bed…!

Purchase Links:

US ~ UK

Author Bio:

Lucy Morris has always been obsessed with myths and legends. Her books blend sweeping romance with vivid worldbuilding to whisk you away to another time and place filled with adventure. Expect passion, drama, and vibrant characters.

Lucy lives in Essex, UK, with her husband, two children, and two cats. She has a massively sweet tooth and loves Terry’s chocolate oranges and Irn-Bru. In her spare time, she likes to explore castles with her family, or drink bubbly with her friends.

Social Media Links:

Facebook ~ Website ~ Twitter ~ Instagram

Tracy’s Review:

Tempted by Her Outcast Viking by Lucy Morris

Tracy’s rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: Shieldmaiden Sisters, #2

Release Date: September 27, 2022

This installment of the Shieldmaiden Sisters picks up where the previous book ends, with Valda and Halfdan marrying in defiance of his father, Jarl Ulf, and Halfdan’s betrothed, Lady Alswn, sister to the Welsh warlord Lord Rhys Draig ddu Gwynedd, running off with her bodyguard. It is after the wedding feast when Valda’s mother Porunn and her half-sisters Brynhild and Helga begin walking home that Erik, Halfdan’s half-brother and former thrall, asks to speak to Brynhild. Her mother leaves them to go hunt and Helga wants to purchase bread and honeycakes, leaving Brynhild with no reason to deny Erik an audience.

Years ago, while Erik was still enslaved, he and Brynhild formed a friendship, but for reasons unknown to Brynhild, Erik publically rejects and humiliates her and makes her hate him. He now wants to explain why he did it and beg her forgiveness because while she might not believe it, Erik lied about his feelings to protect her and he has never forgotten her kindness to him. But before can fully explain, she realizes Helga is missing. It doesn’t take long to figure out that she was taken hostage by Rhys, who believes Ulf betrayed him and is holding his sister for ransom. Erik offers to help find Rhys’ sister and return her to Wales to secure Helga’s release, he feels partly to blame for the kidnapping and promised his brother he would watch over the ladies while he and Valda were away. Brynhild is a shieldmaiden and doesn’t want Erik’s help, but soon realizes, she needs him. And to save her sister, she will have to put away the hurt he caused her and ignore the attraction she still feels for him because he will never want a warrior for a wife, not that she wants to marry. But what she doesn’t know is Erik has always loved her and will do whatever it takes to win his shieldmaiden’s heart.

I loved this book, it was a well-written, fast-paced, non-stop adventure with an intense second-chance love story. The book is filled with wonderful characters, insecurities, denied feelings, healing, steamy love scenes, abductions, surprises, and a well-deserved HEA, complete with an epilogue that will leave you hungry for the next installment. This is the second book in the series and while it could be read as a standalone title, I would suggest reading the series in order for the best reader experience.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own.*

Highland Prize by Julie Johnstone

Tracy’s rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: Of Mist and Mountains, #3

Release Date: August 30, 2022

Isolde Fitzalan’s life has been anything but easy, her mother died when Isolde was young and she was never taught how to use the magical powers she inherited from her, then her uncle was beheaded as a traitor leaving her shamed and shunned, and if that was not enough, her father gave her and her sister Mackenna to Lord Carrick as payment for his back taxes. Lord Carrick wasted no time in dishonoring and discarding her sister before turning his attention to Isolde. When Lord Carrick is called away, she is desperate to escape and find Mackenna, but Lord Carrick’s jealous wife has other plans for her and tricks Thor MacLeod into marrying Isolde. But when Lord Carrick returns unexpectedly and demands the wedding be dissolved, Lady Carrick claims that Isolde is a traitor and has her locked in the dungeons. But when Thor goes down to interrogate her, for the first time in her life able to weld her powers and conjures a dagger and stabs him, then she casts what she thinks is a protection spell, to keep him from her and escapes.

It is months before Thor finds Isolde again and this time there will be no escape. With the help of his disgraced friend Rolland, he captures her and her friend Mari. Vowing that he will return her to Carrick and dissolve their marriage, he makes it clear that he doesn’t trust her or any witch and that he has no more desire to be married to her than she has to be married to him. But the more time they spend together, the more he realizes he was wrong about her and wonders why she is lying and who she is protecting. When her life is in peril, Thor realizes his feeling run deeper than he wants to admit and he regrets promising to return her to Carrick, but if he doesn’t Carrick will bring war to his family’s door, and that he cannot allow. But neither can he let her go to be used by Carrick. By the time he comes to terms with his feelings and finally accepts he loves her and cannot turn her over to Carrick, it may be too late.

What a great story, it is well-written, fast-paced, and very hard to put down. I loved the slow-burning romance between Thor and Isolde, they had such chemistry between them, but they had both been hurt before and had a hard time trusting in love. As a bonus, many readers will recognize Thor’s parents from their love story – When a Laird Loves A Lady. This book is filled with emotion, betrayal, lies, magic, great secondary characters (some who are begging for their own stories!), steamyish love scenes, a bit of heartbreak, familiar faces, and finally a very hard-earned HEA complete with an epilogue. This is the third book in the series, but it can easily be read as a standalone title. I enjoyed this story and happily recommend it!