Knight of Passion (All the King's Men) [Mass Market Paperback]

Margaret Mallory (Author)

Book Description

Release date: June 1, 2010 | Series: All the King's Men (Book 3)

HOW CAN THIS PASSIONATE KNIGHT...
Renowned beauty Lady Linnet is torn between two desires: revenge on those who destroyed her family or marriage to her childhood sweetheart Sir James Rayburn. One fateful night, she makes a misguided choice: she sacrifices Jamie's love for a chance at vengeance.

TRUST A BEAUTY WITH A PAST?
Jamie Rayburn returns to England in search of a virtuous wife-only to find the lovely Linnet as bewitching as ever. Their reckless affair ignites anew, even hotter than before, although Jamie vows to never again trust her with his heart. Then just as Linnet begins to make amends, she's tempted by one last opportunity to settle old scores. But a final retribution could cost her Jamie's love - this time forever.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Forever; 1 edition (June 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446559865
• ISBN-13: 978-0446559867
• Product Dimensions: 4.1 x 1.2 x 6.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #157,049 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Top Pick! Mallory raises the genre to new levels." (RT Book Reviews)

"KNIGHT OF PASSION is an amazing story...filled with sexual tension and hot romance. Add [it] to your summer reading list." (RomanceReviewsToday.com)

"[A] sensual and action-packed medieval romance." (RomanceJunkies.com)

"A wonderful new voice in the tradition of Gellis and Woodiwiss." (Bertrice Small, New York Times bestselling author of The Shadow Queen)

"Mallory's debut is impressive. She breathes life into major historical characters...in a dramatic romance." (4 Stars, RT Book Reviews on Knight of Desire)

"An impressive debut...Margaret Mallory is a star in the making." (New York Times bestselling author Mary Balogh on Knight of Desire)

"Spellbinding! Few writers share Margaret Mallory's talent for bringing history to vivid, pulsing life." (New York Times bestselling author Virginia Henley on Knight of Desire)

"A lavish historical romance, evocative and emotionally rich. Knight of Desire will transport you." (USA Today bestselling author Sophie Jordan on Knight of Desire)

About the Author

Margaret Mallory surprised her friends and family by abandoning her legal career to spend her days writing stories of romance and adventure. Finally, she can satisfy her passion for justice by writing stories that punish the bad and reward the worthy--after a struggle, of course. She grew up in Northern Michigan and now lives in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with her husband, two children, fierce cat and silly dog.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Forever; 1 edition (June 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446559865
• ISBN-13: 978-0446559867
• Product Dimensions: 4.1 x 1.2 x 6.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #157,049 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Margaret Mallory is the author of the Scottish historical romance series, THE RETURN OF THE HIGHLANDERS, and the medieval series, ALL THE KING'S MEN. Her historical romances have won numerous honors, including the National Readers' Choice Award and two Maggie Awards. Margaret's second novel was a RITA© finalist, and her last four books have all received 4 ½ stars--three of them Top Picks--from RT Book Reviews.

Margaret lives with her husband in the beautiful, damp Pacific Northwest. Now that her children are off on their own adventures, she spends most of her time with her Highland warriors, but she also loves to read, watch movies, hike, and travel. You can find reviews, blurbs, historical tidbits, book group questions, photos of Scotland, and her links to Facebook & Twitter on her website, www.MargaretMallory.com. Margaret loves to hear from readers!

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars I was totally enthralled. June 5, 2010

By Julia VINE™ VOICE

Format:Mass Market Paperback

Knight of Passion by Margaret Mallory is a story full of revenge, love, hope and pain. Our main characters, Jamie and Linnet, have to face England's crude underground- witchcraft, necromancy and blood rituals, to name a few. And Linnet will not let any obstacle destroy her opportunity to seek vengeance on those who desecrated her family.

Jamie Rayburn, our knight in shining armor. He's charming, beautiful and has a colossal desire to get married and build a family with a virtuous, stable wife. Jamie has the willpower and discipline to do what it takes to achieve all his career and personal goals. Now all that's left to do is find a woman that wants the same thing, someone who won't mind waiting for him to come home from battle and listen to his victory stories. Easier said than done. He's never been able to let go of his first love, his only true weakness- Linnet. She ripped his heart out and stomped on it five years prior to the start of this story. Jamie was set on marrying her when she told him she had no plans to become betrothed. He is determined to find another, for Linnet's dangerous, vindictive plans are too much for a man full of integrity and honor. Linnet has pushed Jamie away once again with her outrageous need to find justice for her grandfather- and this time it just may be for good.

There are some captivating secondary characters that you will also find yourself delighted with. Following the relationship of Queen Katherine and Owen Tudor was incredibly fun and Linnet's twin Francois was fabulously charming. Mallory is extremely talented and I'm so glad I was introduced to her work!

Mallory has obviously done a great deal of research for this trilogy- it certainly paid off!... And if you're addicted to historical romance, you're going to want to get your hands on this book. Beautifully written, this novel can be read as a stand alone, but is apart of a trilogy. I haven't had the pleasure of reading the other two stories yet, but I most definitely will.

Check out this review and more at RexRobotReviews dot com! Read more ›

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific Historical Romance! June 8, 2010

By Michele Lemon

Format:Mass Market Paperback

I enjoyed Margaret Mallory's other two books - Knight of Pleasure and Knight of Desire - but I have to say that with Knight of Passion, she has taken it to a whole new level. I won't go in to the plot of the book, other reviewers have already done so, but this is the one, in my opinion, that is going to separate her from the pack, which she was already edging out of to begin with. As a reader, I've always been interested to watch the progression of a writer's talent from book to book, it's exciting to see. It's hard to quantify it when the first two books were so good on their own, but this one is several leaps beyond, in every way - characterization, motivation, dialogue, narrative, pace, transitions, plot, setting, the depth of the novel as a whole, the intensity of the love scenes, everything. If you're looking for a completely enjoyable historical romance with fresh characters and a steamy love relationship to sweep you away, you will not be disappointed with Knight of Passion.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Beautiful Installment to a Great Series June 2, 2010

By Cinnamon Brown

Format:Mass Market Paperback

Regret. Pain. Hope. Passion. Love.

Those are the themes of KNIGHT OF PASSION by Margaret Mallory, although not necessarily in that order. Fans of Mallory will recognize our hero, Jamie Rayburn as the little boy from Knight of Desire. In the first book of the series, Jamie was a cute and precocious boy. Now, in KNIGHT OF PASSION, Jamie has grown up and become quite the looker. He's returned to England, searching for a wife to build a home. Although his heart is drawn to Lady Linnet, his mind steers him away. He wants a nice stable wife - can Linnet play that role?

The Lady Linnet's heart is torn in two different directions. One side of her wants to reek vengeance on the people who left who her poor and homeless after the death of her grandfather. She marries and quickly becomes a widow, all in according to her plan of generating wealth in order to track her prey across England. The other side of her, the side filled with love and hope, cried at having left Jamie to fulfill her dark mission. When she befriends Queen Katherine and finds herself once more in the presence of Jamie, the spark is quickly rekindled. Will her love for him be enough to convince him that she can change or will her mistakes destine her to a life without him?

This book was a bit more intense for me than Knight of Desire. The first in the series with Lady Catherine Rayburn and William FitzAlan is still by far my favorite, but KNIGHT OF PASSION turned out to be pretty good competition. The relationship between Jamie and Linnet was one that kept you on the edge of your seat throughout most of the story. The passion was there, surely, but was the trust? Ms.... Mallory teased us and then pushed us away, leaving us with the knowledge that both parties truly loved one another but wondering if a Happily Ever After was possible for these two. Unfortunately, I won't be able to answer this question for you. You'll just have to read and find out.

One thing that makes Ms. Mallory's books so fantastic is the attention to detail she puts into them. Her writing is just as beautiful and colorful as the covers on the books and it is easy to get lost in the story through her words. Sometimes we see good stories, good plots, but the writing bogs the book down. Ms. Mallory presents us with a work that flows easily and reads quite well despite the complexity of the story and relationships therein.

By far my favorite aspect of KNIGHT OF PASSION was Lady Linnet. Her backstory was painful and really tugged on the heartstrings. It was difficult reading about her at times because we knew what she was going through and what she needed, but the world always seemed to work against her and there wasn't a thing we could do about it. There were times that I wanted to shout at Jamie and tell him all about Linnet; tell him just to love her. Fortunately, I couldn't and watching the two learn about each other and themselves made for a fantastic story.

I would highly recommend this to any fans of historical romance. The book is well researched, paced quite well, full of passion, and beautifully written. Ms. Mallory is an expert and one that romance junkies just have to experience. Read more ›

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A fun, satisfying romance -- Jamie Rayburn is lovely! June 14, 2010

By M. Lapus VINE™ VOICE

Format:Mass Market Paperback

Though Margaret Mallory is a relatively new writer of historical romance, she crafts her stories with a deft hand. Her "All the King's Men" series is consistently entertaining -- with the just right amount of romance, banter, and subplots so that each book offers the escape and lighthearted romance that mark a "keeper."

But in Knight of Passion, Mallory adds certain historical details and suspense that give the novel a little something extra and turn it into one of my favorites. Mallory includes Owen Tudor as a character in the novel and weaves in his romance with King Henry V's widow, Katherine de Valois. The start of the Tudor dynasty can be traced to Katherine de Valois, Owen Tudor and their children.

But as interesting as the subplots may be, Knight of Passion is first and foremost a fun, satisfying romance novel. As I read the book, I knew it was one of those rare romances that I'd want to reread every so often. Knight of Passion is a book to share and to keep!

ISBN-10: 0446559865 - Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: Forever (June 1, 2010), 416 pages.
Review copy provided by the publisher.