Rating: 
Summary: A prickly heroine & a truly noble hero
Review: Vengeance & hatred begin this novel, but love and honor triumph at its end. I picked this book up not realizing it was the last in a trilogy; one certainly does not have to read the others to thoroughly enjoy this one. Excllent job there. Ivo is a super hero: strong, compelling, honorable, fair, understanding, a knight in every sense. He is the very best thing about this book. Briar is a strong and determined heroine, but there's so much pain & hatred in her that she is often cruel. Although her cutting remarks toward Ivo are a defensive mechanism--and he understands that, marvelous man--it is sometimes difficult to like her because of them. Yes, thay're that cruel, because she knows they hurt him. Although she eventually is healed adn becomes a nicer person, there are moments the reader will think she doesn't deserve him. She is headstrong & never thinks ahead of the moment. Briar's visit to the villain is a case in point; you'd think she's distrustful enough to be wary. A weak plot point, in my opinion. The mystery surrounding Briar's step-mother's death is well-handled for the most part, except that there's no final explanation of the motive. The secondary romance is sweet & warm, very nice. The villain is evil, completely without redeeming qualities, and a consumate actor. His demise is almost too easy. But Ivo in particular raises this book to a high level. The novel moves along at a brisk pace, and the chemistry between the couple is all it should be.
| 
