Customer Reviews

Lord of the Mist

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

 

 

LORD OF THE MIST is one of those rare romance novels that mixes wild adventure, danger, mystery and heart-stopping suspense. The author, Ann Lawrence, has written the kind of novel we'll probably keep and want to read again. We can definitely recommend it to our friends.

Lord Durand de Marle's wife has recently died in childbirth, when he meets his new daughter's voluptuous, yet kindly wet nurse, Christina, who is married to the abusive and philandering Simon le Gros. These intertwining relationships cause tempers to flare, accusations to be made and justice to be sought.

That's about all one can write without starting to give away the plot which is well hidden, thickened and spiraled. LORD OF THE MIST is is an excellent "can't-put-it-down" book.

In 1205 England, Lord Durand de Marle buries his adulterous wife Marion without shedding a tear. Durand struggles to even say a prayer for his spouse, but finally manages one while also asking for his own forgiveness for leaving her alone so often while he fought in battles. He plans to ignore his new baby daughter because he doubts he is the sire. He feels that his fifteen-year-old and twelve-year-old sons are from his seed.

Durand does find his child's nurse Christina quite attractive. She reciprocates as she sees a kindness inside of him. However, she is married to the odious Simon le Gros, an avaricious individual who wants his wife to insure that Durand's infant stays ill so he has need of them. Realizing an opportunity based on the obvious longing between his spouse and his lord, Simon seizes the moment by accusing Christina of treachery towards King John. Only Durand who loves Christina stands in the way of her certain death.

Though Simon the villain does not have one redeeming quality, readers will delight at hissing at this gross individual serving as the counterpoint to the lead duo. The story line moves rather quickly, bringing alive the reign of King John especially through the vivid secondary cast. Fans of medieval romance will find the juxtaposition of Simon vs. Durand and Christina quite a spectacle that shows why award winning Ann Lawrence's previous sub-genre entry, LORD OF THE KEEP, is so popular.

Harriet Klausner

Ann Lawrence does not romanticize medieval times. It was a world ruled by powerful men who could be influenced by the women behind them. It was a world of harsh, illogical punishments and death was always one small misstep or illness away. Durand de Marle is our dark, haunted lord, left to mourn an unfaithful wife and raise the child that was not his. He is drawn to Christina, wife of a merchant and the newborn's wet nurse. Her life has not been an easy one after losing two daughters of her own. Her husband, Simon, typical of the times, does not respect her in any way but only uses her to advance himself. Christina makes soaps, potpourri and herbal concoctions for the inhabitants of the keep, and the author portrays the gathering of herbs and the fragrance of the items so effectively that you can smell the pungency yourself!

The storyline contains intrigue, thievery, battle, contests, conquests and sacrifice for our hero and heroine. Although there are amusing parts about love potions and hair tonics, the mood is very gloomy and disturbing. I had trouble following the royal plots but mostly due to my own disinterest in King John. Although I can recommend this book, it does not have a typical "happy ever after" despite the fact that our hero and heroine find the love they desire and deserve. This book is not for the faint hearted or anyone wishing light reading.

This tale is loosely linked with Ann's Lord of the Keep. The hero from that story is friends with the hero from this tale.

Lord of the Mist starts out with the hero, Durand, burying his unfaithful wife and trying to come to grips with the baby girl she left behind. He knows the child is not his but is willing to raise her as his own. In the chapel he finds a woman who he needs for his soul as much as the child needs her for nurishment. The woman, Cristina, is the child's wet nurse. Cristina is the wife of Simon le Gros, a horrid man who uses Cristina to furthur his own causes.

Cristina is a healer who not only tries to help those who are sick and needy but she also tries to bring light and love back into Durand's life. Durand has a very hard time learing to trust again but soon realizes that Cristina is the only one who can make him live again.

This is a very sweet story. I have enjoyed many other books by this author since this book. I am looking forward to more from her.

Set in England, the year 1205. Durand de Marle returned home from the king to find his wife, Marion, dead. She had died while giving birth to Felice. But unlike his two sons, Durand had reason to believe Felice was not of his blood!

Cristina le Gros was hired as the wet nurse. Her babe had died recently and Felice loved her dearly. Cristina was the wife of a merchant, Simon le Gros. While she was true to her marriage vows, Simon was an adulterous many times over! Cristina was also talented at using herbs to make soothing potions, soaps, cremes, and the like for those of the castle. An attraction between Durand and Cristina was immediate upon meeting, but neither ever gave into their wants. Until ...

Thieves attacked a traveling party, killing the Bishop Domnic. Found in one of the guard's possessions was a valuable book, a copy of Aelfric's Nominum Herbarum, belonging to Durand. King John was visiting Durand and traced the theft back to Simon. Once justice was served, Cristina was charged as an accessory! All knew the charges false. Someone was out to kill Cristina and had the ear of the royal family! Durand had to find the villain, without angering the king!

***** Full of betrayal, suspense, and mystery! It is obvious the author took much time in doing research for this novel! It is extremely well written and crafted in such a way that readers will not want to put it down until the story is finished! Excellent! *****

From the back cover:

Lord of Mist...

"Forgive the sins of my wife," he prayed. "Forgive the winter cold of my heart." For as he knelt in the darkened chapel by his wife's lifeless body, he knew the baby she had birthed could not be his.

Lady of Flowers...

The scent of spring--blossoms, wet leaves, damp earth--preceded the alluring woman into the chapel. As she honored his dead wife with garlands, she seemed to bring him fresh hope, just as she nourished the little girl his wife had left behind.

Garden of Dreams...

Even though she was not his, could it be wrong to reach out for life, for love? As he watched her nurse the child in the walled courtyard where his wife had met her lovers, he could not deny his longing for her lush kiss, could not ignore her urging to turn away from yesterday's sorrows and embrace tomorrow's sweetness.

And my review:

I admit, LORD OF THE MIST is well written, and I can see why so many people like it. It has lots of intrigue plots, as well as plenty of history.

But maybe that was the problem. I felt like the romance was always being shoved to the back burner while other plotlines (intrigue, historical power struggles between the two vying monarchs, etc) took over. I kept waiting for the author to get back to the romance. She would, for a scant few pages, but then another unromance plotline would quickly take over, and the budding relationship would once again be pushed aside. Out of nearly 400 pages, I felt that less than 100 of them were devoted to the relationship. And that just isn't enough for this avid romance reader.

So if you want a historical novel where romance is just an added "spice" to the book, you might like LORD OF THE MIST. But if you want the romance to be the main focal point, you'll be dissapointed.

This was my favorite medieval romance yet. It had a solid plotline and the romance was believable and plentiful. Cristina and Durand's love affair was heart wrenching at times. Unlike some other heroines in books of this genre, Cristina was smart, resourceful and sexually experienced. There is one exchange between Durand and Cristina which almost brought me to tears, I felt so hurt for her. But she had pride and guts and that's what I liked about her. Durand is a good and honorable hero, but his character could have been developed just a bit better. There is a gap between why he can't trust again and why he was away from his first wife so much. Also, he was cold and distant from his sons until the end of the book. However, Cristina's story steals this book and you will be rooting for her the whole time you read it.

England 1205-Lord of Ravenswood, Durand de Marle returns home from war to find his wife has died of a childbed fever but has given birth to their third child, a baby girl. Durand knows he did not father the child, but as fate has it he does not know who did. When he meets his child's wet nurse, a woman named Cristina, he is instantly drawn to her but she is married to the keeps merchant, Simon. Cristina's daughter died within a couple of days of her birth and she feels fortunate to have been given the responsibility of nurse to the Lord's daughter Felice. Cristina's husband is a greedy, unfaithful man who constantly nags Cristina about her duty to him as a husband to help him become successful and give him a son. Cristina is actually happy to be called to the keep to care for the baby because it keeps her away from Simon who is cruel. When she meets Lord Durand she is stunned by her attraction to him but knows she will keep her vows to Simon. Durand constantly tries to think how to lure Cristina to his bed, but knows part of her allure is her loyalty to her husband. He is constantly plagued by his doubts of the men surrounding him because of his own wife's disloyalty. What follows is the pair fighting their desire for one another, political unrest affecting all and a theft that calls into account Cristina's character and takes the life of her husband....As Durand and Cristina give into their desire, their lives are on the line.

Although their is a lot going on in this book, I just found it often times tedious and boring. Although their is an attempt to make Cristina look good by her loyalty to Simon to me her loyalty was misplaced and it made her seem weak. Durand spent so much time wondering who Felice's father was it just became old....It wasn't bad just unmemorable.

Ms. Lawrence has done it again! She is a master at keeping us in suspense and keeping us reading! The characters in this book really "come to life". You can't help but have feelings about each, even the secondary characters.
Ms. Lawrence has an outstanding knowledge of Medieval times and life and by her many descriptions is able to take us back to those times.
The plot, though intricate and very intriguing, will keep you turning pages as fast as you possibly can. There is no way you can put it down or lose interest.
This is the second in the Lord series, but there is only minor connections so you can read them in order or read only one. However, you will most likely want to read all three.
Be prepared to read this book in one sitting. It's one you won't be able to put down for more than a few minutes.

This is the best of Ann Lawrence's "Lord of" books. From the first time she sees him, she feels connected to him.

She is the wife of a merchant, she has lost her baby and is wet nurse to the baby everyone thinks is his. His wife died in childbirth. He alone knows it could not be his child.

From the first time he sees her, he is smitten. When her husband is convicted of theft, and murder, her husband manages to involve her.

Is a man willing to give up everything for the woman he loves?

This is a wonderful read. Great setting, with memorable characters.