Tender Is The Knight (Zebra Historical Romance) [Paperback]

Jackie Ivie (Author)

Book Description

Series: Zebra Historical Romance | Publication Date: December 1, 2005

A Lady Of Ice: Beautiful and elegant, Elise, the Duchess of Wynd, has survived among the nobility by carefully cultivating a facade of cutting wit and heartlessness. Nothing ruffles her. And no man can break through her defences...A Man Of Fire: A fierce Scottish warrior, Colin is the new Duke of MacGowan and - in polite circles - looked upon as no better than a barbarian. Nevertheless, he is a lord who brooks no defiance...and holds no rein on his pleasures...A Promise Of Passion: Colin's very presence ties Elise's sharp-edged tongue - she is all too aware that he could be the answer to her prayers - or her worst nightmare. For, Elise harbours secrets that could change the course of both their lives. But before she can reveal them, she must make the wild knight her own...

Editorial Reviews

Review

Every once in a while I will read a book that just makes my heart stop. TENDER... is that book. -- Romance Readers @ Heart - Top Pick Award

From the Publisher

Sweeping from the cultured salons of 19th-century London to the wild Scottish Highlands, Jackie Ivie's seductive new novel weaves the tale of a desperate lady and the ruthless laird whose only common ground is the territory of desire....

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Zebra (December 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0821778099
• ISBN-13: 978-0821778098
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #482,425 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I'm a native of the beautiful state of Utah, where I first discovered how much I liked reading the historical romance genre. I then relocated to the really large state of Wyoming where I found out I loved writing historical romance more than reading it. Well...now I live and work in the enormous state of Alaska with my family, my four pets, and a whole lot of snow, mountains, and wildlife.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding!, December 2, 2005

By 

Detra Fitch (USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Tender Is The Knight (Zebra Historical Romance) (Paperback)

Lady Elise, the young Dowager Duchess of Wynd, is known by all as "The Ice Goddess". She has survived living among the nobility by making all believe she has no heart or kindness. Nothing and no one can break through her calm, icy façade. No one recalls ever seeing her smile warmly, laugh gaily, or making friends. She needs no one. She depends only upon herself and her maid, Daisy. She refuses to ever marry again.

Elise also has secrets. She's extremely good at keeping them. However, she promised her late sister that she would see to the care of Rory. Elise is to let Rory know his Scottish kin. Problem is that the father, Evan, is dead too. The only thing to do is meet Evan's brother, Colin, and inform the man of his illegitimate nephew. But Elise does not know that Colin is "a big, bullheaded, boorish brute bred in the barbaric boundaries of a backwater country."

Colin, the new Duke of Gowan and Laird of MacGowan, is the very image of a fierce Scottish warrior. London's elite circle consider him a barbarian, though a rich one. Upon first sight of Elise their wills clash. Both are warriors among their own peers. Both have met their match!

***** Author Jackie Ivie succeeded in capturing my interest right at the beginning of the story and never letting me go. I understand now that Jackie Ivie enjoys pitting strong heroes and heroines against each other.

The heroine, Elise, is no fainting violet who needs to be constantly rescued. Nor does she do things so incredibly stupid that I just want to slap her. As for the hero, Colin ... well, let's just say the author wrote his character perfectly: from the haughty Laird to the confused and caring man.

An exceptional tale filled with honor, love, and witty banter that I am thrilled to highly endorse! OUTSTANDING! *****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome!!, January 10, 2006

By 

Billiejo (Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tender Is The Knight (Zebra Historical Romance) (Paperback)

Billie Jo from Romance Junkies,

Elise Wyndham, Dowager Duchess of Wynd, is beautiful, sassy, rich and has a long list of men she has dallied with. She is known as the Ice Goddess for her cold heart and a tongue sharp enough to stop the most charming man in his tracks. Since the death of her husband, she vows to never let a man control her again. When she seeks out Colin to let him in on a secret she possesses about his family, she finds him to be infuriating, arrogant and the only man who can melt the fortress around her heart. But Elise cannot open her heart to Colin because of what happened to her sister and his brother. She is too afraid that all Scotsmen are barbarians and untrustworthy. When she finds herself in a compromising predicament, she reluctantly follows Colin back to Scotland and discovers the passion between them is becoming increasingly hard to resist. Will Elise tell Colin she loves him before it is too late? Or will her secrets destroy any chance she has with him?

Colin, Duke of MacGowan, is a handsome man who is determined to find an English wife. When he encounters the lovely Elise, he knows he has found the one woman who can make him happy. He must convince her that she belongs with him, but he finds her to be extremely stubborn, standoffish and sassy. He devises an under-handed plan to trap her into marriage. What he did not count on was the intense passion between them and the secrets that keep tearing him apart. Even though Elise tries to tell him the truth, he keeps using his barbaric tactics to keep her in line. Will Colin ignore Elise and lose her love completely? Or will he listen and gain a love more powerful than anything he could have imagined?

TENDER IS THE KNIGHT is a delicious romp that screams to be read in one sitting. Jackie Ivie does a beautiful job keeping the reader glued to their seat while she weaves a tale with vivid imagery, complex characters, gripping plot and a passion electrifying enough to scorch you. I loved Elise for her razor-sharp tongue, her naïveté and the huge heart she tries to hide from everyone. At first I wanted to slap Colin for his arrogance, but in the end he captivated my heart for becoming a man any woman would love to have. I laughed out loud at all the antics and bantering and cried when two compelling characters find their happily ever after. TENDER IS THE KNIGHT is a must read and will be going on my keeper shelf. Ms. Ivie is now at the top of my auto-buy list and I anxiously await her next enchanting tale.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fabulously Entertaining - 4-1/2*, December 5, 2005

By 

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

This review is from: Tender Is The Knight (Zebra Historical Romance) (Paperback)

Lady Elise Wyndham, Dowager Duchess of Wynd for the last five years was known as the Ice Goddess! Young as she was, the young widow was notorious for her coldness, vanity, conceit and a rapier sharp wit that had kept her on the society pages and the object of many editorial lampoons targeting her and her conquests. Her beauty was as renowned as the appellations that described her - emotionless, cold, scandalous, and heartless. After being presented to the new Duke of MacGowan, she was therefore quite speechless when he turned to one of his minions stating "This one does na' have much meat to her," and then he waved her away!

His Grace, Colin MacPherson Rory MacGowan, Sixth Duke of Gowan and Laird of MacGowan, might not have been impressed (or at least didn't show it) by the young duchess but he certainly did notice her. In the coming weeks, after crossing paths with her throughout some of the London's social gatherings, he definitely noticed her. When in the middle of the night while at a hunting party, Elise was found running in fear and covered with blood from bashing in her alleged latest lover's head, Colin did the only honorable thing he could. He covered up her crime and when the magistrate came to question her, claimed her as his wife!

Elise had no intention whosoever of ever re-marrying, and absolutely no intention of remaining Colin's wife, but went along with the ruse. It also didn't matter how attractive he was beginning to look to her, she only had to remember the secret she carried and knew she could never be his wife. After all, her only purpose in seeking him out was to reveal to him that very same secret. Unfortunately, the time never seemed quite right to tell him until it was too late. When found out, Colin drew his own conclusions - naturally, they would be the wrong ones -- before these two would have the chance to see a path to happily ever after.

--This was another lively romantic adventure from the pen of the very promising author Jackie Ivie. This was thoroughly entertaining for both the fabulous double entendre dialogs between our main two protagonists and the sensual foreplay scattered throughout which was fabulous. Though generally not a real stickler for picky things, there were a couple of faux pas in the forms of address; that a dowager duchess would be `waiting at the end of the line' to be presented to a Duke; or, that she would not be placed higher up at a dinner table. I also felt the title, TENDER IS THE KNIGHT to be misleading by expecting a medieval while the setting was in fact 1876. Aside from my nit picking, do I recommend this book? YES! - I thoroughly enjoyed it as long as you can overlook the error a good editor should have picked up on.

Marilyn, for www.historicalromancewriters.com