Putney, Mary Jo
A KISS OF FATE
Mary Jo Putney
Ballantine Books, 2004
Hb, 340 pages
ISBN#
0-345-44916-9
Hungry for a little romance with your fantasy
read? Whew! This is more than a little--it's a lot of hot rom...
(sex) with a little fantasy. Yeah, it sizzles! New York Times
Bestselling Author Mary Jo Putney introduced her new Guardian
storyline in the short story anthology IRRESISTIBLE FORCES (edited
by Catherine Asaro) and opens it completely with this novel.
Lord Ballister, Chieftain of the Macraes of
Dunrath (descendant of the short story duo Adam Macrae and Isabel de
Cortes) knows he is a Guardian of the British Isles, a weather mage
every bit as powerful as his ancestor, but is caught unawares by a
woman who does not know she is enchanted. Gwyneth Owens does not
know she is an enchantress--that magical ability appears much later
in life than other Guardian talents like her father had. Duncan
Macrae meets Gwynne at a garden party in Richmond England in the
summer of 1745. And he is literally captivated by a young lady who
thought her life would remain alone in a library with her cat. This
man just will not leave her alone! Yes, he's handsome. But he's a
Scot! Duncan just will not take no for an answer. He even
disguises himself at a masquerade party so he can steal a kiss from
Gwynne. That fateful kiss fires more than passion--Gwynne has a
bursting vision of terrible violence as his lips meet hers. She is
enraged, knowing immediately who hides behind this facade of charm.
She demands to never see him again. But the Guardian Council of
Britain is worried about political unrest that might divide Scotland
from England. They fear Lord Ballister might use his powers in
favor of a rebellion instead of for unity as he is pledged to do.
So the Guardian Council persuades Gwynne to accept Duncan's marriage
proposal because they deem her vision--that "kiss of fate"--to be
indicative that she will have the power to "guard" the British Isles
from Duncan's short-sightedness. Thus opens a lusty side story of
Charles Edward Stuart's attempt at the throne.
A KISS OF FATE is the perfect read to get the
home fire burning, but don't look for a rich historical account of
battles. The 'Author's Note' in the back of the book states that
the author wanted to keep her story upbeat and not render the truth
of the underlying tragedy upon which the story was based. As a fan
of high action fantasy literature, this reader found the lack of
battle scenes disappointing. [But I still might read another of Ms.
Putney's Guardian stories anyway . . . they do get the blood
moving. I was intrigued with the minor character Lord Falconer and
would like to see him drawn out with the same craftsmanship in
characterization as Ms. Putney used here--except with more balance
given in the story to his magical mission, whatever it may be.]
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