Jaedin Greer is a Captain in the US Army and she is also a nurse. Currently, she is stationed in Iraq attached to a Military Police unit. On this particular day, Jaedin is on her way to wounded soldiers when her Humvee is hit. Jaedin is blinded and knocked out. When she comes to, she isn’t where she expects to be.
Aiden is the younger brother of the head of the MacAlister clan of Scotland in 1296. His brother and his wife have disappeared when the queen of the fae came in a swirl wind. Since then, Aiden has been trying to take care of not only his estate but his brother’s. What he doesn’t expect is to find a blind, naked woman on the path between the two! No knowing what else to do, Aiden picks up the woman and takes her back to his castle.
Aiden is determined to take care of this strange woman but things get interesting when a neighbor and his daughter show up. The daughter is determined to make Aiden her husband and sees Jaedin and a definite threat even though she is blind. Aiden having no desire to marry anyone is finding out that he may not have a choice.
Observing and possibly directing it all are the Ancients. Unknown to Jaedin, she is being tested to see if she deserves to take her spot within the Ancients royalty.
This book is part of a series of books involving woman, testing, the fae and Scots. It is not necessary to read the previous book in this series to enjoy this one. It can definitely stand on its own though characters from the previous book open this one.
This is a fairly short story so the characters are not extremely well developed but they do have enough characteristics as to not be flat. Aiden’s despair over his brother and sister-in-law’s disappearance is evident. The stress of trying to run two properties is expressed. Jaedin’s dedication to duty and her concern about those in her unit comes across as they come under fire. All in all, characters are defined though not fully developed.
This story jumps from present day to the past and to the Ancients. Not all of the transitions are done smoothly though they are definite breaks. Some of these breaks felt choppy.
Historically, I’m not sure how realistic the period is portrayed but as it only serves as a backdrop and not an essential part of the story, it doesn’t really matter.
This is a fun quick summer story. It’s short enough to be enjoyed during an afternoon visit to the beach yet long enough to give you a wonderful view into a world of magic.