Paperback: 274 pages
Publisher: Turquoise Morning Press (November 23, 2011)
ISBN-10: 1937389553
Another one of Renee's books that held my attention, and kept me turning pages until the very end. I finished it in two days.
It starts out with a man named Leif Dæganssen, an archeologist from Norway, who is determined to trace back his Scandinavian roots as far as the Dark Ages and find proof of their existence on the Emerald Isle. After several years of living off the west coast of Ireland, he finally uncovers an ancient artifact—an intricately decorated chest with pagan carvings—buried beneath the very porch of his coastal cottage. Knowing it only confirms the presence of a glorified Norse-influenced settlement on Inis Mór, he’s determined to establish a link between himself and those who once inhabited the rugged isle.
It starts out with a man named Leif Dæganssen, an archeologist from Norway, who is determined to trace back his Scandinavian roots as far as the Dark Ages and find proof of their existence on the Emerald Isle. After several years of living off the west coast of Ireland, he finally uncovers an ancient artifact—an intricately decorated chest with pagan carvings—buried beneath the very porch of his coastal cottage. Knowing it only confirms the presence of a glorified Norse-influenced settlement on Inis Mór, he’s determined to establish a link between himself and those who once inhabited the rugged isle.
Then there is Lorraine O’Connor who has had dreams of a Norse warrior kissing her. And even though she’s never fully understood the reason for her vivid subconscious imagination, she welcomes the meaningless and wanton pleasure of being in a Viking’s protective embrace—until the day she meets that brazen Northman on an impulsive vacation trip to Ireland. Though blindsided by the relevance of her dreams and the strange familiarity of the man within them, Lorraine can’t help but feel a deep-seated intimacy toward Leif. And the more she gets to know him, the more she’s convinced they’ve shared a life together in a time long forgotten. Are the clues to their ancestral past hidden within the contents of the chest or buried deep within their hearts?
This book is the third book in the series, but being that I fell in love with Dægan Ræliksen from the first book: Ræliksen, I decided to skip book two and go straight to this one because I didn't have the heart to see Mara share the remainder of her life with another man. The second book wasn't needed to fully enjoy this one, so if you too, wish to skip it, you won't be lost in the story-line.
Even though Leif is the reincarnate of Dægan, and Lorraine the reincarnate of Mara, they both seem to have quite different personalities than that of their past. They are thoroughly modern and shaped by the societies that they live in presently, and of course, that is to be expected. I did however hope to see more of that masculine, primitive instinct in Leif that Dægan had, and I missed it so much.
It took me some patience to like Lorraine's character because of some of her actions in the book. One in particular being that she seems to have a melt down when Leif's present feelings for her aren't enough, and she feels she HAS to make him remember her from a past life together.
For me, her reactions just weren't believable. I can understand her frustration with it, but not a complete melt down. If it had been me, I could see myself shrugging it off instead of spilling out an outlandish story and then being in shock when he looks at me like I'm a nutcase and kicks me to the curb. LOL.
Leif's character is caring and treats her with adoration. Again, if it were me, I would accept what I had and cross my fingers that the rest would fall into place at a later date. Even if it never did, she still had one hell of a man to love her.
Her willingness in the bedroom threw me off a little bit too, as I would have liked to have seen a little more of the innocence that Mara had in the first book. For me, when I pick up a Viking romance novel, I want to see the man taking charge and captivating the heart and soul of the object of his affections, not her trying to desperately win him over.
There were parts of the book that seems really predictable to me, and that took away from it's awe factor.
In the first book, I couldn't predict any of it. I think that is why I held it so dear to my heart. It was poetic and intriguing. Dægan was a man of few words, but when he spoke it was as if he hung the moon.
Being a writer myself, I can understand why each scene was placed in the book when it was, and I can appreciate the efforts made by Renee to give Dægan and Mara their happily ever after. I was also quite happy when 'Patrick' got his as well. But in all honesty, I think I would have given Mara her happily ever after in book one because it was an emotionally captivating book to begin with and it deserved to go out with a bang instead of a whole heap of sadness. It was strong enough to stand on it's own.
I hope these words don't discourage the author because she has great talent. I just want to be honest so that her future books will shine.
This book was interesting, and a page turner, but a little too fluffy for me.
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