My Noble Knight (Zebra Historical Romance) [Mass Market Paperback]

Cynthia Breeding (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2007 | Series: Zebra Historical Romance

In the dark of night, fires flare and passions burn bright. It is Beltane, an evening of Pagan revelry and wanton sexuality. There is magic in the air...and danger. Deep in the highlands - Caught in the spell of the sensual spectacle before her, Deidre of the Languedoc is saved from near rape by the darkly handsome Gilead MacOengus, a man of virile strength and masculine perfection. He promises her safety in his family castle, but once there Deidre is quickly thrust into the midst of familial scandal and marital strife. Comes desire - Observing the Beltane festivities from afar, Gilead MacOengus quickly comes to the aid of a young lass whose story of an attack by bandits makes him skeptical, but whose beauty leaves him spellbound. Gilead senses Deidre is hiding something from him and, with a Saxon invasion imminent, knows he must respond with reason - not passion. Yet how can he resist this bewitching temptress, the one woman whose desire matches his own?

Editorial Reviews

From the Author

I love the Arthurian legends. In my debut book, "Camelot's Destiny", I wrote about the agony and ecstasy of Gwenhwyfar's being torn between two lovers. In "My Noble Knight", Deidre discovers that England and Scotland in the sixth century are hardly the stuff of legends. She is disappointed in the rough, crude ways of warriors and the one man who is chivalrous also remains determinedly elusive.

From the Back Cover

In the dark of night, fires flare and passions burn bright. It is Beltane, an evening of Pagan revelry and wanton sexuality. There is magic in the air...and danger.

Caught in the spell of the sensual spectacle before her, Deidre of the Languedoc is saved from near rape by the darkly handsome Gilead MacOengus, a man of virile strength and masculine perfection. He promises her safety in his family castle, but once there Deidre is quickly thrust into the midst of familial scandal and marital strife.

Observing the Beltane festivities from afar, Gilead MacOengus quickly comes to the aid of a young lass whose story of an attack by bandits makes him skeptical, but whose beauty leaves him spellbound. Gilead senses Deidre is hiding something from him and, with a Saxon invasion imminent, knows he must resond with reason, not passion. Yet how can he resist this bewitching temptress, the one woman whose desire matches his own?

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Zebra Books (June 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 082178031X
• ISBN-13: 978-0821780312
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 3.9 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,006,273 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I have always been interested in the Arthurian legends and anything medieval. Having taught high school English for fifteen years, I wanted to my own version of those stories!

I live on the bay in Corpus Christi, Texas, with my Bichon Frise, Nicki, and love watching the moon rise over dark water.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 4.5 Blue Ribbons from Romance Junkies!, August 12, 2007

By 

Natalie S "ns65" (Nashville) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: My Noble Knight (Zebra Historical Romance) (Mass Market Paperback)

Diedre of the Languedoc is of a regal and noble bloodline. She is the daughter of an important priestess and finds herself obligated to search for and bring home a relic stolen years before. Diedre must find this Philosopher's Stone and return it to its rightful place in a sacred grotto.

Deidre's search leads her to Scotland on Beltane. A night of carousing and sexual freedom, it is unlike anything Deidre has ever experienced before. Wide eyed and not paying attention, Diedre is captured and held by a brutish lout intent on claiming her for the night. Despite her protests to the contrary, she finds herself praying for a knight to save her. Rescue comes in the form of the laird's son, Gilead MacOengus who vows to keep her safe. When he questions her reason for being alone, she can only hope her answers will appease him because no one can discover her true agenda; especially not a man she has just met, no matter how attractive he is.

Gilead desires to participate in Beltane but has resigned himself to doing his best to keep his lust-filled father away from the wife of an influential king. It is during this time that he sees a rather waif-like and innocent young woman fighting the advances of a huge man. Coming to her aid, Gilead promises her safety in his home though he finds himself wanting her for his very own. With invasion just around the doorstep, and a randy father to curtail, Gilead fights his attraction to Deidre. He knows she is not being completely honest with him and vows to figure out what she is hiding.

MY NOBLE KNIGHT is set in Scotland during the historical period of time in which pagan ceremonies and Beltane celebrations were still allowed. A sweeping saga, this book kept me rooted to my seat and further immersed in the story with each turn of the page. I immediately fell in love with Gilead. His physical attributes aside - which were outstanding by the way - Gilead was an honorable man and fought his attraction as chivalry demanded. His falling in love with Deidre was noble and very satisfying. I particularly enjoyed how each struggled against the attraction until they couldn?t fight any longer.

Cynthia Breeding has a great tale in MY NOBLE KNIGHT. I found it entertaining, well written, and completely captivating. Toasting this fine author, I raise my chalice high in hopes to see more of her work in the future!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Short and Sweet, July 24, 2007

By 

~ Tish~ "Blonde Book Worm" (Dayton, Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My Noble Knight (Zebra Historical Romance) (Mass Market Paperback)

Considering the extended and wonderful reviews posted before mine I will make this rather short.

Before purchasing this book I had never read from Cynthia Breeding, but I must say after reading I am an instant fan!

This book was a wonderfully fun read. Once I had reached the first few chapters I could not put it down.

I would recommend this book to any historical romance lover! The characters were beautifully created and finding love in the wrong time is wonderful.

Full of steamy love, and lots of enticing love triangles. I give this novel a 5 star rating and cannot wait to read another by Cynthia Breeding!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Vastly Entertaining - Love the Heroine!, June 22, 2007

By 

M. Rondeau (West Springfield, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: My Noble Knight (Zebra Historical Romance) (Mass Market Paperback)

When Deidre of the Languedoc, daughter of a high priestess and direct descendent from the bloodline of Mary Magdalene sets out in search of the "Philosopher's Stone", she began an adventure that would be a turning point in her life. Carrying an old book with tales of a place called Camelot where fair ladies found themselves saved by chivalrous knights of old, she becomes enchanted with the thought that perhaps, she just may discover a noble knight for herself.

Deidre has the gift of `sight' but unfortunately, no control over when, or if, it happens to show up. She only knows that she feels she's on the right path towards finding the `stone'. When her escort is captured she escapes, only to find herself alone on Beltane eve. Caught unawares and about to be raped, she is saved by the most handsome man she's ever seen - Gilead MacOengus who in her mind is a dream come true, her very own `noble knight'.

*** What a totally adventuresome and delightful read Ms. Breeding has come up with after her very original CAMELOT'S DESTINY! Keeping to much the same theme combining ancient myth with creativity and originality, she gives the reader a most entertaining and totally engrossing read.

Deidre was a delight, from the very first moment she encountered Gilead, her romantic nature envisioned him as Sir Lancelot and Sir Galahad all rolled into one. Sadly, she would soon find out that the world held not only noble knights but evil villains as well. Wow, does the author come up with a real slimy villain in which the author makes him so detestable that she had me on the edge of my seat thinking how in the world Deidre could be saved. Our hero Gilead was also well defined and complex, who had his hands full in trying to protect Deidre as well as his ailing mother. He was indeed the noblest of knights with an overabundance of honor - which thankfully his passion for Deidre would overcome!

One thing I found was as the author built the sensual tension between our two younger lovers; she gives the readers an even more passionate and hotly sensual read with the secondary love affair between Gilead's father Angus and his lover Formorian - both married for duty but destined to love each other for eternity. While, not a proponent of extra-marital affairs, the author wrote this as a complex thread woven throughout, which truly surprised me with a terrific twist at the end of the story! - Sorry, my lips are sealed and you are just going to have to read this very sensually entertaining book to discover the secret of the stone, and the uniqueness of the noblest of knights. Ms. Breeding is a marvelous new talent who should be put on your auto-buy list.

Marilyn Rondeau, RIO - Reviewers International Organization