The Border Lord and the Lady

October 5, 2009
Lady Cicely Bowen, confidant of Queen Joan Beaufort at the Scottish court, is determined to marry only a man she loves. However, her plans are dashed when she meets rough Scottish border lord Ian Douglas, who is so captivated by her that he kidnaps her away to his lands, convinced that she will fall in love with him. Despite a tempestuous beginning, Cicely soon is intrigued by the uncouth but gentle Douglas. Ever-popular Small concludes her Border Chronicles (A Dangerous Love, etc.) with this sexy, albeit mostly predictable, romp along the Scottish borders. As readers have come to expect, heroine Cicely is tough, smart and wildly independent. Small manages to keep the romance fresh with fliratations, steamy scenes and political intrigue. Fans of her work will find it entertainingly familiar, which with a writer of Small's talent, is no small thing.

September 15, 2009
When her father remarries and her new stepmother wishes to have nothing from his old life in her new home, including his daughter, Lady Cicely Bowen is sent off to be raised by Henry IVs wife. Cicely soon becomes fast friends with Joan Beaufort, who is also part of the royal household, and when Joan is engaged to James I, she takes Cicely with her to Scotland. Once there, Cicely soon has her own share of suitors, including refined Andrew Gordon, the laird of Fairlee. But just as Andrew seems ready to finalize their courtship, Cicely is spirited away by rough-and-ready border lord Ian Douglas, who is determined to win Cicelys love. In the latest installment in her Border Chronicle series, Small delivers equal amounts of intriguing history and hot passion as she once again mixes a vividly detailed historical setting with plenty of richly detailed love scenes.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)