Customer Reviews

One Knight Only

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Former maid Anne Kendall will do anything to join the covert group of warriors known as the League of the Blade. Her success at a previous masquerade for a friend led to her current assignment impersonating Lady Rosamund Wolsingham in a mission to protect the noblewoman from a band of traitors to the Crown.

Her training was perfect, her impersonation is flawless - until she unexpectedly encounters none other than Sir Philip Clifford while journeying with her knights. Her previous encounters with Sir Philip left her shaken, yet resolved to pursue a life of duty, forgoing love and its entanglements.

When he recognizes her easily, the knights invite him to join their mission, taking the place of the warrior who suffered injury at the start of their trip. His presence may help protect Anne's life, but it endangers her very heart...

I have never before read any book by author Julia Latham, so when I requested One Knight Only to review, I was unfamiliar with her work and did not realize that this was the second book in a series. Truly, I never had the first hint it was a series until I read numerous references to how Sir Philip and Anne met previously, on another mission. The book was well-crafted enough that these references never made me feel out of the loop, merely curious as to the story that came before.

Having now completed One Knight Only, I can say without reservation that I enjoyed it enough that I will definitely be picking up a copy of the previous story, Thrill of the Knight.

But back to our current story... LOL Our hero and heroine are quite remarkable, living lives devoted to helping others, with little thought of recompense to themselves. They sacrifice themselves for the good of others and for the kingdom, all for the most altruistic of motives.

Yet that doesn't mean Sir Philip and Anne don't have dreams of their own. When One Knight Only begins, their individual dreams are bound to keep this couple apart for good. But as the story moves along, we see that this pair finds it harder to imagine a future without each other, and their previous dreams no longer matter if those plans mean they must part.

As with any good story, neither Anne nor Philip are perfect. However, they deal with their mistakes and overcome them together, until their story culminates in a romance sure to last the rest of their lives.

But this story isn't just about a romance - Julia Latham delivers a great story of suspense alongside the love. With twists and turns that snake throughout the story, the author keeps her readers guessing as to the villains' identities until the very end.

With a fascinating suspense and some very sexy love scenes, One Knight Only will absolutely thrill lovers of historical romance.

Series Order:
Thrill of the Knight
One Knight Only
Secrets of the Knight

Anne Kendall desires above all else to be a part of the secretive society of knights known as the League of the Blade. Impersonating Lady Rosamond Wolsingham, a titled and wealthy widow, Anne enjoys riding around freely but doesn't forget for a second the gravity of her mission. Lady Rosamond has information that powerful men want - men authoritative enough to not hesitate to harm a woman. Passing through a tournament on her way to her destination, Anne is dismayed yet secretly thrilled to see the one man she shouldn't feel that way about - Sir Philip Clifford, the one man who could blow her cover. That knowledge comes from a past night of intimacy - a night that Anne hasn't forgotten but can't afford to remember.

Sir Philip Clifford has a plan after this tournament. On a natural high and feeling very good about himself after winning the sword fighting tournament, he can feel his lifelong dream coming to fruition. Philip wants more than anything to be King Henry's champion, make an advantageous marriage, and live at court. Knowing that the only way he can garner the attention of his king is through what he does best, Philip strives to be the best and keep himself in the public eye. Celebrating at a local inn after his success of the day's skirmish, Philip meets the eye of Anne Kendall, a woman he has been unable to forget.

"Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive". Those very words, even though written by Sir Walter Scott, are the essence of ONE KNIGHT ONLY. Anne Kendall is practiced in the art of deception and while that is usually a very vile thing, in this case it is a definite means to an end. Anne is heroic and loyal. She is also a woman with a woman's desires. Philip Clifford has three goals in life that he wants to accomplish. Much to his distress, they don't include falling in love with an untitled maidservant. He can't help himself where Anne is concerned, however, and soon finds himself enmeshed in her mission. Their love? It is secretive, heady, and finally the kind that lasts forever.

Julia Latham is now a must read for me. Her ability to weave espionage into a medieval plot is wonderfully realistic and captivating, especially since this time period in European history was a time of turmoil where nobles and kings alike lived constantly looking over their shoulders. In ONE KNIGHT ONLY I met new characters and am dying for more stories about this wonderful society of Bladesmen. ONE KNIGHT ONLY released from Avon December 2007. I loved it.

Fans of Julia Latham will be delighted to once again meet Anne Kendall, Lady Elizabeth's loyal maidservant from THRILL OF THE KNIGHT as well as newcomer Sir Philip Clifford, the knave to whom she succumbed for a secretive night of passion. Or was it in fact a knight of passion?

Anne Kendall desires above all else to be a part of the secretive society of knights known as the League of the Blade. Impersonating Lady Rosamond Wolsingham, a titled and wealthy widow, Anne enjoys riding around freely but doesn't forget for a second the gravity of her mission. Lady Rosamond has information that powerful men want - men authoritative enough to not hesitate to harm a woman. Passing through a tournament on her way to her destination, Anne is dismayed yet secretly thrilled to see the one man she shouldn't feel that way about - Sir Philip Clifford, the one man who could blow her cover. That knowledge comes from a past night of intimacy - a night that Anne hasn't forgotten but can't afford to remember.

Sir Philip Clifford has a plan after this tournament. On a natural high and feeling very good about himself after winning the sword fighting tournament, he can feel his lifelong dream coming to fruition. Philip wants more than anything to be King Henry's champion, make an advantageous marriage, and live at court. Knowing that the only way he can garner the attention of his king is through what he does best, Philip strives to be the best and keep himself in the public eye. Celebrating at a local inn after his success of the day's skirmish, Philip meets the eye of Anne Kendall, a woman he has been unable to forget.

"Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive". Those very words, even though written by Sir Walter Scott, are the essence of ONE KNIGHT ONLY. Anne Kendall is practiced in the art of deception and while that is usually a very vile thing, in this case it is a definite means to an end. Anne is heroic and loyal. She is also a woman with a woman's desires. Philip Clifford has three goals in life that he wants to accomplish. Much to his distress, they don't include falling in love with an untitled maidservant. He can't help himself where Anne is concerned, however, and soon finds himself enmeshed in her mission. Their love? It is secretive, heady, and finally the kind that lasts forever.

Julia Latham is now a must read for me. Her ability to weave espionage into a medieval plot is wonderfully realistic and captivating, especially since this time period in European history was a time of turmoil where nobles and kings alike lived constantly looking over their shoulders. In ONE KNIGHT ONLY I met new characters and am dying for more stories about this wonderful society of Bladesmen. ONE KNIGHT ONLY released from Avon December 2007. I loved it.

Anne Kendall may only be a ladies maid but she has the heart and soul of an adventurer. She is hoping to use these traits to help her win a position with the League of the Blade. She is currently working undercover with them, to try and help a noble woman secretly travel to see King Henry so that she can let her know about a plot to kill him. She knows that she doesn't have a dowry or anything else to make her attractive to a husband, but she also knows that her former mistress will take her back into her household without an issue. No matter Anne has only loved one man. She fell in love with Sir Philip Clifford and thought he felt the same way. That was until the night she was ready to give herself to him and he honestly let her know that for him it could only be a dalliance.

Now shockingly, she has run into Sir Phillip. Since she is masquerading as another, he sneaks into her room and confronts her. She can't lie to him so he finds out the truth. He insists on helping to keep her safe. She has always pulled on his mind and "other parts" but will he recognize what that pulling is for love before it is too late?

While her part is daring, Anne decides that this is her one time to not only live out her fantasies but her desires also. She gives into the passion that has always brewed between her and Sir Phillip, knowing that he hasn't changed his thoughts on a relationship between them. But, will it just cement her feelings for him, or will she also learn to understand him better?

One Knight Only is an intriguing look at politics and love in the late 1400's. I was drawn into this story quickly and it kept me sneaking pages whenever I was able to, until it was done. Ms. Latham does a fantastic job in portraying the emotions and thoughts of her characters. I was going to say this story will put her on my list of favorite authors, but I found that she has an "alter ego" that is already there. It does take Sir Phillip a while to figure out what he is feeling but when he gets there it makes the story all the more intriguing. I loved watching the two characters try and save each other. One Knight Only is a wonderful story and one that you should pick up if you enjoy historical romances from this time period.

Tanya
reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

This was a cute little romance that I enjoyed the character that was all its own. There was nothing new about the plotline, a female wants to prove she's just as capable as one else (especially me) while her knight in shining armor tries his best to protect her from everything from highwaymen to assassins to spiders crawling in her shoes. It was just like any other romance about a knight falling in love with a maiden, and yet, Lathom added her own little touch of style to it to make it unique.

The story starts out with Anne Kendall masquerading as a woman of high society to save said women from being assassinated for information she knows. An organization called the League of the Blade considers Anne's protection as one of their many duties for the betterment of the kingdom. Meanwhile, Sir Philip Clifford is acting like a pouting brat because he was not asked to join the League, which has been his lifelong goal. He first meets Anne at her mistress's house and they begin to become...acquainted with each other even though Philip does not bed Anne, much to her humiliation. He tries to forget her as just a passing interest, and she tries to forget her feelings for him because she realizes she was just a skirt to him. Or so they think.

When Philip runs into her again masquerading as the widowed Lady Rosamond Wolsingham, they realize they that, basically, they still want in each other's pant. After creeping into the window of her inn room, Philip doesn't really give her a choice in whether he travels with her in her journey to the king. Adventure ensues.

While I didn't find this novel particularly fascinating, it was still enjoyable.

I must admit I purchased this book because the picture on the cover actually looked filled with emotion rather than just two models having their picture on a cover. While you can not judge a book by it's cover, it certainlly was the reason I bought it. Perhaps the author should place this extremly beautiful young lady on more of her book covers. The story was well written.

In short, One Knight Only was an excellent book. I loved the characters, the conflict, and whole premise. It was well-put-together and left me ready to read the next book. There were just a few small things, however, that weren't so excellent in my eyes.

It wasn't quite as fabulous as the previous Bladesmen book, Thrill of the Knight. I felt like the plot dragged on a bit, just traveling and then more traveling and even more traveling. By the time I was three-quarters of the way into it, I was waiting for something to happen. It did, of course, and I was left satisfied. Anne and Philip never got boring for me, however, and I remained thoroughly happy with their characterization the whole way through.

I was also disappointed that we didn't meet Diana and Tom (hero and heroine of the third book in the Bladesmen series, Secrets of the Knight. I love meeting the characters in one and then reading their Happy Ever After in the next. You do already know who Tom is and you've seen him briefly if you've read Julia's first book, but I would have liked it to build better, much like Anne and Philip being such important characters in Thrill of the Knight. This is not so much a complaint as a personal preference.

All in all, this was an excellent book. I enjoyed it thoroughly and I intend to read the third in this series next.

This was a sweet and simple love story where two people enjoy each other's company and fall in love. Slowly over time they both change their plans for the future so that they can be together. In the end it matters more to be happy than accomplished.

I AM IN THE PROCESS OF READING IT NOW. I CAN HARDLY PUT IT DOWN. I LOVE THIS WRITER. SHE REALLY BRINGS THE CHARACTERS TO LIFE. SHE IS AWESOME.

If you run out of something to read, then its better than nothing, and not as bad as many others - maybe a B minus due to its lack of depth.

A few really good books with strong alpha males:

A Kingdom of Dreams - by Judith McKnight

The Prize - by Julie Garwood

Once A Warrior - by Karyn Monk

Highlander Untamed - Highlander Unmasked - by Monica McCarty's

Lily and The Sword - by Sara Bennett

Blackheart - by Tamara Leigh

Vikings:

Dream of Me - Believe in Me - Come back to Me - Josie Littons

Sandra Hill's Vikings books

His Forbidden Touch - by Shelly Thacker

The Crystal Cave Trilogy - by Mary Stewart (King Arthur - 10 star writing)