Lady Eloise Hamelin has problems. Her fiance dropped dead at her feet on their wedding day. Two months later, her father stands accused of treason and has fled their family home of Lelleford, leaving her in charge.

In the meantime, an odious earl has marched into Lelleford in hot pursuit of Eloise's father. The earl has brought with him the man she never wanted to see again - Roland St. Marten - her dead fiance's half-brother, the one she called a disagreeable toad. To make matters worse, St. Marten now has been put in charge of her castle until the king reaches a decision about her father's fate.

St. Marten thought Eloise was too headstrong for his brother, but he finds himself attracted to the forthright, self-assured young woman. Eloise can't deny the attraction she feels for St. Marten, who is turning out to be very different than the man she imagined. It's as though he's her knight in shining armor, or chain mail, anyway.

Shari Anton's book, set in the early 1300's, captures the spirit of the times in England. The vocal inflections of the characters catch the essence of the Old English language without being overdone. Anton's research into medieval herbal remedies and a woman's duties are excellent.

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Historical Romance