Lady Apryll is the master of Serennog Keep, which is sadly dilapidated and at the brink of ruin. Lady Apryll's half-brother, Payton, hatches a plot to raid the neighboring keep of Black Thorn in order to save their dying people...and to avenge a deed that brought Serennog to it's knees two decades before. Lady Apryll reluctantly agrees to distract Lord Devlynn while her brother and his band steal his riches. Lord Devlynn has a dark reputation, but she is willing to go through with this raid for the sake of those who trust in her. However, she didn't count on the son of the man who ruined her family to be so enticing.
Through many twists and turns and alliances forged and shattered, the tale of Lady Apryll and Lord Devlynn plays out. What is this dark secret? Who is betraying whom? Will these two strong-willed people be able to see past their own arrogance and give in to their carnal desires?
This report prepared by T Slay
Signet, Feb 2002, 6.99, 329 pp.
ISBN: 0451203623
In 1283 England, her half brother Payton has Lady Apryll obtain the means of gaining needed goods for the cold winter. When Apryll arrives for a holiday feast at the castle of Lord Devlynn, everyone cannot help notice how beautiful she looks. Devlynn, a single father since his wife died in a failed childbirth, cannot resist Apryll's lure. The next morning, Devlynn learns that his
enchantress has vanished abducting his son Yale with her.
Frantic, Devlynn gives chase and quickly finds the abandoned Apryll. Payton lied to the extent of his scheme and no longer needs her, but has taken Yale as a pawn in a bigger plot. Devlynn wants to kill Apryll, but instead makes her his prisoner. As they work together to free Yale, they fall in love, but he rejects her protestation of innocence.
WILD AND WICKED is an exciting medieval romance filled with drama and several delightful twists and turns. The cast is fully developed so that the audience understands the essence of the key players especially the lead couple. The hero struggles with his feelings of love and distrust while the heroine tries to atone for her inadvertent role in Yale's kidnapping. Lisa Jackson writes a jewel of a novel that makes the thirteenth century seem so darkly real.
Harriet Klausner
This report prepared by Harriet Klausner
