(Mass Market Paperback)
At twenty-one, after two Seasons with no takers, Theodosia Barrington should have been grateful to snare Nigel Cosgrove. The earl-to-be was a blue-eyed Adonis, a true catch. And yet, upon her arrival at Cashel Cosgrove, Thea found herself more intrigued by the Irish castle’s legend, the tragic warrior Ros Drumcondra, than by her intended. "The Black Falcon" Drumcondra was called. His ghost was reputed to wander these halls, making women tremble with fear and desire. Hadn’t he stolen away another’s betrothed, made the woman his love slave? If only Thea herself could suffer such a fate. If only that Gypsy woman had spoken the truth, and Thea was a woman out of time, the one meant to be...The Falcon’s Bride.
Thompson's romantic time-traveler begins in 1811 with Thea Barrington, a young Londoner living with her fiance, Nigel Cosgrove, on his remote Irish estate. Thea's family has much to gain from the wealthy Nigel, so she makes the best of the arrangement despite Nigel's increasingly violent treatment. Thea has another reason to stay on at Nigel's castle-a mysterious gypsy has told Thea that she is destined to become the bride of Ros Drumcondra, also known as the Black Falcon, a half-Gypsy, half-Celt clan chieftain who lost Cashel Cosgrove to Nigel's grandfather more than a hundred years before. Wondering how she could be linked to the fate of this long-lost warrior, Thea stumbles on a portal that takes her back to 1695, the same year Drumcondra disappeared. She is promptly kidnapped and brought to Drumcondra, who, believing she is intended for the Cosgroves, holds her for ransom. Appalled at first by Drumcondra's rough treatment, Thea begins to warm to the handsome chieftain. Though eager to return to her own time, she decides to do what she can to save Drumcondra from the betrayal she believes cost him his life. Readers hoping to make sense of Thompson's time-shifting plot line might find themselves with a headache, but those looking for passion and escape will be pleased. (Sept.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.
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August 17, 2007: Dawn Thompson is proving to be an amazing author. Gothic shape shifters, water lords, vampires, straight historical and soon erotic fantasy. I think this is her only TT and wow. In Thompson's style, she takes something that is old and remarks it as her own. She skillfully moved me through time and then back, giving it that extra turn of the screw. I was never confused as some readers said. I LOVED it. Thompson is a lyrical writer that makes reading her ingenious stories all the more pleasurable. I have yet to get a bad romance from her and cannot wait for more of her book.
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February 21, 2007: This story had me breathless up to the last exciting and surprising end. The love scenes were beautifully detailed, sexy, and ultra-emotional, not one of the five senses left unexplored. Ros and Thea were two well-written and memorable lovers who fought history and evil and time to be together. Dawn Thompson - keep 'em coming!!