Knight of Passion

Knight of Passion is not your typical boy meets girl, boy wants girl, heaving bosoms and flirtations ensue story.

As the story opens, Jamie and Linett are young an in love/lust with each other and have been able to arrange a tryst in an empty room in the castle. Jamie doesn't know Lynette has arranged for them to be caught so that she might escape her father's promise of her virginity to Sir Guy, a snake among men. Naturally Jamie is devistated by her deception and leaves.

Five years later, we meet Jamie again, on his way to the castle to offer his protection to the newly widowed young queen. He meets an old man who's Lady is in trouble. As Jamie steps in to assist, he realizes the Lady is Linette. He hasn't forgotten her over the years, but her betrayal still stings. Lynette is on her way to see the Queen - a good friend. Of course Jamie and Linette end up spending time together, which neither of them wants. Jamie wants to find a nice, well-behaved wife while he's at court. Linette wants revenge against the person or persons who swindled her grandfather when he got to senile to realize he was being cheated; his death left Linette and her twin brother destitute and alone.

Lynette and Jamie keep ending up together and act on their passion,which has not quelled during their time apart. They agree it's temporary but exclusive. In reality Jamie wants to marry Linette but knows he must broach the subject slowly, building up to it so as not to scare her off. Linette doesn't want to be controlled by a man - she is single minded in her need for revenge.

Linette is the angriest heroine I have ever read in a historical romance. I was just as upset as Jamie that she would not give up her revenge for his love. I wanted a HEA for these two so badly, and every time it seemed they would get together, some clue would come up and Linette would go chasing it, leaving Jamie behind. I will say this about Jamie - he was not some pushover who waited around once he realized where Linette's intentions lay. Once he decided Linette was not going to give up her revenge, his courtship of Agnes was quite funny. Not to worry, for those of you who need a HEA - Ms. Mallory does deliver!

The secondary characters were quite engaging - the Queen was a bit of a ditz but you couldn't help but feel badly for her situation. Jamie's squire Martin was adorable - I hope we get to see him in a future book!

I know this review has rambled a bit - I didn't even get to the devil worshippers or the political intrigue! And, I totally guessed the wrong villian :)

As angry as Linette was, and as frustrated as I was with Linette and Jamie's lack of communication, I did enjoy this book.

3.5 rounded up

As with the first two in this trilogy, Ms. Mallory's writing is wonderful, and her story enthralling. Jaimie, the hero, is a character readers have watched grow from a child in the first book, to a teenager in the second and now as a dashing adult to love and adore. Because of this, we are so invested in his happiness that when he chooses a woman who is so bent of revenge for her family that she uses and abuses everyone in her way, including him, we are personally offended and enraged. He is like a son to us! How dare the author saddle such a wonderful man with someone so unworthy of him! It made it very hard to cheer when he finally catches her at the end.

Lady Linnet and Sir James "Jamie" Rayburn have been lovers and friends for so long at times it had been hard to not envision them together forever. But Jamie felt the choices Linnet had made in her life ruined their chances of ever being together and they parted ways not on the best of terms. But time does heal wounds and mend hearts and once they are reunited the fire of passion and love burn bright again. But has Linnet changed into the type of woman Jamie wants to marry or is she fooling him once again to gain another goal that he wants no part of.

Linnet and her twin brother were left homeless and starving after their grandfather's death and the father that had disowned them returned to take what little was left of the estate. Their grandfather had been swindled of his fortune and the adult Linnet was determined to bring these men to justice and make them account for what they had done one at a time. While chasing them across England she befriends and becomes the confident of the widowed queen Katherine, which opens new and exciting doors. While her position was to keep the queen out of harms' way trouble their friendship was the core of the relationship. While with the queen she again encounters Jamie the love of her life and the man she still longs for. Linnet had left his arms and flown into another's but that was a short-term relationship that left her widowed and wealthy the combination she needed to seek out and enact upon her revenge toward the men that stole from her grandfather. Jamie is overjoyed to again have Linnet in his life but this time he seeks marriage and wants a woman to understand that it is time to build a future and start a family.

Yet Linnet does want Jamie and does swear that she will behave in the most wife like fashion she knows how. But before the oath has left her mouth Jamie catches her in a compromising position with another man and he has said enough and looks to marry another. But can he really do that and never look back without regret when he leaves. No one believes this and Jamie is trying to convince himself of it but before too much time passes rumors begin about Linnet and witchcraft which Jamie knows are lies and whatever it takes to stop this nonsense he will make happen.

Love abounds in this book but it takes some fighting and name calling to make these two wonderful characters figure out that compromise is not a bad word. This latest addition in the series updates you on the other books, which is always a reader plus because the reader is always curious about who is doing what now. Good story and great addition to the series.

Mary Gramlich is The Reading Reviewer located at [...]

Though Margaret Mallory is a relatively new writer of historical romance, she crafts her stories with a deft hand. Her "All the King's Men" series is consistently entertaining -- with the just right amount of romance, banter, and subplots so that each book offers the escape and lighthearted romance that mark a "keeper."

But in Knight of Passion, Mallory adds certain historical details and suspense that give the novel a little something extra and turn it into one of my favorites. Mallory includes Owen Tudor as a character in the novel and weaves in his romance with King Henry V's widow, Katherine de Valois. The start of the Tudor dynasty can be traced to Katherine de Valois, Owen Tudor and their children.

But as interesting as the subplots may be, Knight of Passion is first and foremost a fun, satisfying romance novel. As I read the book, I knew it was one of those rare romances that I'd want to reread every so often. Knight of Passion is a book to share and to keep!

ISBN-10: 0446559865 - Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: Forever (June 1, 2010), 416 pages.
Review copy provided by the publisher.

[[ASIN:0446559865 Knight of Passion (All the King's Men)]]

I really enjoyed this book. I had a difficult time getting into it but after a couple chapters I was not disappointed at all. I found the book was well written and after getting into the story found it very interesting and really liked the historical and paranormal mix. I liked the romance between Linnet and Jamie and how they began and how they met again later. I thought that the detail of the characters and the way their feelings were brought to life with the great descriptions was very good and I got a real good feel for this story and really was able to get lost in it and that is one thing I look for in a good book. I have never read anything by Margaret Mallory before and would have to say I am looking forward to reading more. This is the third book in the series *All the King's Men* but I don't think it mattered at all that I hadn't read the first two yet but after reading this one I feel the need to read the others just because this one was so good. I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to get lost in a great historical romance.

Well first off, this was an entertaining book. I didn't get sick of reading it, yet it wasn't one of those books that I couldn't put down. I liked the story enough, and the characters were well developed but there was a bit of a disconnect for me.

I think my biggest hurdle in this one was Linnet. I know she was looking for revenge, but she came off as being deceptive, and a bit of a brat. I just wasn't that thrilled with her as a main character. I liked Jamie quite a bit more. He was a scorned lover who was still in love, and that made me feel sympathy for him. I also liked him because he knew Linnet's game, and could (to an extent) beat her at it. He also was a great "Knight in Shinning Armor" so to speak.

The story was pretty good. The undertones of magic, sorcery, and such made it more appealing to me, as I tend to be drawn to stories with mystical or spiritual undertones. The love between Linnet and Jamie was a good catalyst for the story. I wanted Jamie to get what he wanted, but my disdain for Linnet made it seem bittersweet. I kept wishing she were a better person...

But despite Linnet I still think this was a decent read. I was able to escape into the story with little effort. The historical side of the story may not have been absolutely accurate, but I think it was accurate enough to make it believable.

This book really took me by surprise by being such a fun read. I tend not read as many medieval as I do other historical romances set in other eras because I keep picturing mud whenever I read medievals. You know, like muddy houses, pigs and chickens walking in mud, serfs with muddy and dirty clothes, drafty castles with a nasty moat and a muddy yard... this is probably thanks to all the medieval movies I've seen but needless to say, mud is not romantic and I prefer the glittering balls of Regency London. When I started, I did read this book with mud tinted glasses but soon I stopped thinking about all that and really got into the story.

Knight of Passion is the third book in Margaret Mallory's All the King's Men trilogy. I haven't read the first two books but there is no need to because this is a standalone book. It tells the story of Jamie Rayburn (the son of the heroine in Knight of Desire) and Lady Linnet, a lovely but headstrong French girl. I love Jamie and he is the kind of hero I enjoy reading about. He's strong, loyal, honorable, has a sense of humor and a bit of a beta hero in my opinion but he's no pushover. Then there's Linnet, whose main goal in life is to extract revenge against those who have driven her grandfather to ruin. She's your quintessential romance heroine in that she's beautiful, independent, intelligent, ahead of her time in thinking and stubborn to a fault. I liked her but I also wanted to shake her a few times and tell her to get over the whole revenge thing. My favorite parts of the book were the ones with Jamie and Linnet together. They had crazy chemistry and they needed each other and were better together than apart. I believed in their love and rooted for them.

There's also a great cast of secondary characters some of which are based on real historical figures and readers who have followed the series will enjoy reading updates of the leads in the previous books. I was surprised to find there's a lot of humor in this book and it's actually the first medieval romance that had me chuckling out loud. This is the first book I've read from the author and I thought it was well-written and highly enjoyable. I'm looking forward to more from her. If you're looking for a fun medieval with of great leads, royal intrigue, revenge and a medieval that'll make you forget about mud, Knight of Passion is it!

4.25 out of 5 stars

Decided to turn my attention to Margaret Mallory’s first romance series, All the King’s Men, while we wait for the third book in the Douglas Legacy. I confess, Medieval England doesn’t thrill me the same way Scotland does, but as always I love Mallory’s writing and the chemistry of her characters. This story was almost entirely focused on court intrigue and political gamesmanship which is not my favorite and is why I went with four stars instead of five. Ready to get back to Scotland!

good

It was ok.