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Two months earlier, Eloise Hamelin of Lelleford was nearly married. However, her betrothed dropped dead on the stairs of the chapel. Now her father is fleeing their home, as he's been declared a rebel - treason. The king places her home into the hands of a man she loathes – the half-brother of her betrothed, the newly knighted Roland S. Marten.
Eloise’s father, Sir John Hamelin, a knight of the realm, merely tells Eloise, a young woman of only ten and seven, that she has a duty to fulfill - do nothing and to feign ignorance. She’s also told to try and feed the earl of Kenworth well. The earl is the man coming to arrest Sir John. Perhaps if Eloise feeds the earl and his men well, and ply them with drink, her father can get away until he can prove his innocence.
Terrified, Eloise quickly learns that the earl and Roland St. Marten are two very different men. The earl is a dangerous man, who will go to any extreme to get what he wants. Meantime, Roland proves to be a loyal, fair and honest man. Though Eloise despises Roland, she knows they will safe with him in charge.
ONCE A BRIDE is a story of two people, with every reason to truly despise the other, yet they fight an undeniable attraction. They are aware of each other, fascinated in a way that belies common sense to either of them. Roland knows to get involved with Eloise would be a breach of duty, yet his feelings and desires get entangled so quickly, little choice is left to him. It is just when they decide they can no longer fight what it is between them that a messenger reveals her father’s been captured.
Roland allows Eloise to pack a bag for her father for the things he will need while imprisoned, and for when he’s presented to the king. A determined Eloise convinces the messenger to take her with him to London. Forced to choose between duty to the holding or to Eloise, Roland quickly chases after them, and the ever-convincing Eloise, once caught, insists they continue on to London so that she can see with her own eyes that her father is safe.
Though the charge of treason may be what has brought Eloise and Roland together, it is their powerful attraction that keeps them together, fighting the same cause, and seeking out the happiness that they both deserve.
With excitement, passion, loyalty and honor laid out as courses to a fine meal, Shari Anton has written a wonderful story. The author has done a fine job with her characters, making them seem very real in this book written in the early 1300s. One thing I loved was Eloise’s determination – nothing or no one could break that. Roland’s honor is his strong suit, as well as his devotion to Eloise, especially when the reason they hated each other was due to a sexual tension that neither wanted to admit. Danger follows their every move, all while their emotions begin to reveal their powerful hold.
Reviewed by Robin Taylor
for The Road to Romance
August 27, 2004
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