Customer Reviews

The Lily and the Sword (Medieval)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Lady Wilfreda, English noblewoman, grandaughter of Norse King Harold Haardrada is being hunted by the Normans - namely by Radulf known as "the King's Sword". Radulf's fierce and frightening reputation has preceded him into Northumbria and Lady Wilfreda has fled. It is Radulf's mission to find her and bring her before King William who will either marry her off to one of his nobles or kill her. Radulf has no sympathy for a treacherous woman - he's had one in his life already and has no intention of repeating his past mistake of trusting a woman.

The Lady Wilfreda, called Lily by those who love her, has been used by men. Her father was murdered and she was forced to wed his murderer - renegade Norman Vorgen. She endured a dreadful life with him full of abuse. Then when Vorgen was killed, her kinsman, Hew took up arms in her name. All Lily wants is peace and prosperity for her people - she's no rebel. But she knows that neither William nor his Sword will believe she is innocent. When Radulf encounters her she lies and tells him her name is Lily and that she is the daughter of a loyal vassal. Radulf is not sure he believes her, but takes her to his camp. He'll find out what's true eventually, but in the meantime, he is attracted to her in a way he has never felt before. And if he is not mistaken, she feels a similar pull toward him. And so begins a very passionate relationship founded on lies, fear and suspicion, but with the potential to be the real thing. For both want each other despite their doubts and wariness. Even finding out the truth about Lily does not dim his need to have her and so to save her from his king, her marries her. But there are still lots of obstacles to overcome and trust to be won on both sides.

I liked both Radulf's and Lily's characters and their romance was full of passion and longing. The story moved along well and had lots of action to augment the romance. But I do have a pet peeve: the cover is one of those gross Fabio-esque deals with the hero sporting long flowing hair. But to quote the book "His hair was very dark and cut short over his skull, shorter even than the Norman fashion". A little more accuracy and class in the cover would be welcome - sleeveless chain mail with nothing under it but heaving chest and bulging biceps - UGH!.

Lily and the Sword is a good read, albeit it is predictable.

Lily is a conquerored woman who in seeking shelter from the destruction of war. She inevitably falls right into the hands of her enemy, The King's Sword, Radulf.

Radulf is attracted to Lily, even though he knows that she is hiding something. He tries to resist her lure, but fails miserably.

When Lily's secret is revealed the the two commence battle. They don't trust each other and are weary of the other's motives. They eventually conqueror this distrust by way of a forced marriage and love saves the day.

This story has been replayed numerous times you don't even need to read the ending to figure it out.

Bennett does succeed in infusing a significant amount of emotion in to her characters in the beginning of the novel. It is just enough to make you continue to read on. Before the inevitable occured, I was in love with Radulf and his torment over his feelings for Lily. I also understood why Lily was doing what she was doing. Yet, Saxon maid and Norman conqueror has been played before. So about half way through the novel as things between Lily and Radulf began to detoriate, I was tempted to put it down. Yet, I stayed the course and it did turn out to be a pleasant read. Nothing spectacular but it will do to pass the time.

Setting - Northumbria - North of England 1070 ---
Lady Lily is running for her life from Radulf, the `King's Sword' - the scourge, the hideous ogre with a bloody sword, who has been sent by the king to slay all who fought him. She is the Saxon widow of Vorgen, the Norman traitor who betrayed King William. Vorgen, despised husband, who killed her father, then wedded her over his dead body. Lily arrived exhausted at Grinswade Church, where she sought the priest and to bid a final farewell at the graves of her parents- but luck was not with her.

Radulf arrives at the church and discovers Lily. When he asked who she was, she lies and gives him the name of Lily, the pet name her father used for her, and also tells him that she is the daughter of the Earl of Morcar, who remains a loyal vassal to King William the Conqueror. Radulf finds himself fiercely attracted to this cool silver blonde beauty and accepts her story at face value. He has been betrayed by a woman before and is wary, but he has also never had this overwhelming attraction before. He vows to protect her and return her to her father. Lily herself is drawn to this man, her enemy, who would slay her should he discover that she is the `she-wolf' he hunts. Not only do they both fall in love (of course, they don't admit this to each other) they have an exquisitely hot and sensual time of it before he discovers that he has been deceived once again, by a woman.

THE LILY AND THE SWORD follows the mold of an exciting medieval romance with a lusty, gorgeous alpha-male and divine female. Radulf is the mighty warrior but with the respect and love of his men and vassals - the tales of his brutality are just that - tales! Lily is a by-product of being the abused wife of an old, impotent and hateful man. Out of necessity and self-preservation she has hardened her heart to not trust her feelings or any man, before enduring any more betrayals and pain. Their love story is that which will bring a tear to your eye at the inevitable conclusion. This is a stellar start for a debut novel from this new author who bears watching. I found this fast paced novel to be an outstanding and truly enjoyable read for lovers of medieval historic romance.

This is the first book by Sara Bennett I've read and I hope it won't be the last. I found her book an enjoyable way to pass an afternoon. She brings to life the characters with such care that you can hear them and feel their emotions.

The year is 1070 and England is still a country in uproar. The Normans have come and taken over but there are still those who oppose them, fighting. Lily is trapped between the two sides. She is a widow who is running for her very life. She is hunted by The King's Sword, Radulf. Lily flees to the safety of a old Saxon Church only to be discovered by Radulf. Radulf doesn't know the beatiful woman he has found is the one he was looking for. He is strongly attracted to her and desires to make her his.

Soon Lily's lie is uncovered and she must face not only the King but Radulf. She would sooner hurt herself than Radulf. But the rath of Radulf is not all she must face, there is a enemy who wishes to harm her and her love. Together Radul and Lily must fight to keep the peace, bring together a nation, and the love they share strong.

This story is definately a keeper and I will re-read this one again.

This medieval lite story is set during The Harrying of the North in 1070 and Lady Lily is caught in the middle during that tumultuous and savage time. All the men in her life have used and betrayed her and now she is the only one left to face King William's wrath. Using her wits she hides and evades capture until her hiding place is found and she is brought before the great warrior known as the King's Sword. Destined to be enemies, these two form an instantaneous attraction and pretty soon they are steaming up the medieval sheets. Radulf has known betrayal from women before so while he feels a strong passion for Lily, he knows such feelings are fleeting, so he watches her and sure enough, she proves his distrust true. She is caught in her lies and with the enemy, and Radulf marches her to King William and her possible imprisonment. Along the way they both try to harden their heart but when they reach King William, Radulf decides he will ask for her, and decide her punishment for himself..

Marriage to Radulf is hardly a punishment. While the much feared King's Sword might have a brutal and terrible reputation, the man behind the legend is just a big softie. All the poor guy wants is to love and be loved. Awww. Lily is, in my opinion, much more complex than Radulf. Despite his baggage, at least he was on the winning side. She was on the loser's side and not only had to marry her father's murder, but she has been abused and used by her deceased husband and her friend. Everyone takes up arms under her name and banner, but no one takes up for her, and she's been surviving as best she can, alone. Then Radulf sweeps into her life and her icy heart melts for him. Even though she knows she should be running and hiding, all she wants is just one more night in his arms.

I thought this book was going to be much better than it was. This is a debut novel and it shows. While it's definitely not mediocre, neither is it good. It's "not bad." Unfortunately, with the title of this book, the setting and the synopsis, I was hoping for a juicy and angsty tale to sink my teeth in and be swept away in. Instead it's rather medieval lite, the character's aren't very well fleshed out or developed, and it's all rather flimsy. I felt like I had read this book before. If you have read Judith McNaught's A Kingdom of Dreams and Madeline Hunter's Lord of a Thousand Nights, you might feel the same way I did after this book.

This is not to say you shouldn't read this book. This author has written several novels since this one and I'm sure she's improved. I even have her Rose And The Shield book waiting for me to be read one day. I might have been projecting my own wishes and wants on to this story, hoping for something else, while not paying attention to the story Sara Bennet had created. Or I could just be blowing smoke up my own behind and this story really wasn't all that great. Whatever the reason, I didn't enjoy this as much as I was hoping for, but I also want to try it again in the future to see if my opinion of it changes.

The interesting thing about Sara Bennett is she's unpredictable in her story telling. If you've read many romance novels, you've probably noticed that it usually takes a very, very lo-o-o-ng time of endless pages of subjective dialog before the characters actually "join". I think this style of writing is to keep the reader engaged and on edge, but often I find myself bored and skipping pages which is something you don't want to do while reading your book. As many reviewers before me have detailed the story of "The Lily and the Sword", I'll simply say I thoroughly enjoyed it and couldn't put it down. The book moves along well, the characters are solid as well as interesting, and their dialog believable. I'm always appreciative of people sharing their talents, and just ordered several more of her books.

Except for Lily immediately falling into Radulf's bed, which I found wildly unrealistic, I really enjoyed this novel. Radulf makes an excellent hero, showing a wide range of emotions and rightly wrestling with himself regarding his feelings for Lily. For me, Lily was not quite as likeable; I became annoyed with her repeated refusal to accept what she had learned of Radulf instead of caving in to old fears and keeping secrets. The playfulness in their early relationship soured later on, in large part because of Lily's attitudes & actions in this regard.

All in all, though, it was a delightful way to spend a few hours.

The story revolves around Lily and the Kings Sword Radulf. Lily is running away and hiding from the war that has been fought between Scotland and the new King of England who is a Norman. Radulf is sent in and is known as the Kings Sword. The fierce Roman Knight finds Lily and believes that she is someone else. He can't help but be drawn to her. Lily is also captivated by Radalf. He is not what he seems to be or what the rumors have spoken of. Against all odds these two people find the gift of love with each other.

Of course there are many twist and turns before you get to the happily ever after part but that is half the fun of reading this book so I won't give anything away.

This is my first by Bennet and I look forward to reading more from her.

In 1070 England, the King's Sword Radulf seeks the traitor Saxon Lady Wifreda whose Norman husband Vorgen turned against William and is already dead. Zigzagging across the countryside in an exhausting effort to stay free, Lily arrives at Grinswade Church seeking sanctuary, but no one remains at the House of God. Radulf arrives at the church finding Lily there. She insists she is the daughter of a vassal of the Earl of Morcar, who remained loyal to the Conqueror, using the name Lily as only her father called her.

Radulf accepts what Lily says, but remains wary as not only does he trust no one, but also disbelieves women after once being badly betrayed by one. As he uncovers Lily's identity, Radulf and his "guest" fall in love. However, once he knows who she is he feels like the fool, duped again by a female, but unable to idly allow William to destroy his Lily.

THE LILY AND THE SWORD is an exciting Conqueror romance. Though the plot strictly adheres to the era's star-crossed lovers theme, nonetheless the story provides an exhilarating spin on the era. Radulf may be a giant of a warrior, but runs the human gamut of emotions such as love, hurt, anger, possessiveness, and protectiveness towards his beloved. Lily is an intrepid heroine trying to first stay alive though she loves Radulf (Maslow's hierarchy). This duo turns Sara Bennett's debut book into a worth reading medieval romance for sub-genre fans.

Harriet Klausner