Last Champion

April 1, 2004
Dominie De Montford thought Armand Flambard was dead. Discovering that he hadn't perished in battle but is living at Breckland Abbey solves one of Dominie's problems but presents her with a new one. Dominie needs Armand's warrior skills to protect her people against the "Wolf of the Fens," whose band of renegades has been plundering nearby estates, but Armand has sworn to never again take up his sword. The enterprising Dominie doesn't let this stop her, and with a little help from the wise Abbott of Breckland, she soon has Armand committed to teaching her vassals how to fight. Now Armand must return home, where his new vow to renounce violence will be tested, and he'll be tormented by sinfully sensual thoughts of Dominie, the woman he was once to have wed. An ever-resourceful heroine clashes romantically with an idealistic hero in Hale's latest expertly written historical, which is sure to please readers with its captivating combination of engaging characters and richly detailed medieval English setting.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2004, American Library Association.)