The last place ex-Special forces soldier, Kyle Musgrave, expected to find himself was in a joust at a renaissance fair. There's a prize for winning, however--her name is Cameron and she's just as horrified by her medieval circumstances as Kyle. She needs his help badly to escape her would-be suitors. For Kyle, that means donning uncomfortable armor, galloping to victory on a stubborn steed and claiming a reward he never expected. If she'll have him.
THIS BOOK IS CURRENTLY AVAILABLE IN AUDIO ON THE READ ME ROMANCE PODCAST. Listen for FREE here:
iTunes - http://geni.us/A888vRA
Google Play - http://geni.us/7lB4UBK
Website - www.readmeromance.com
Visit Tessa Bailey's website for more information.
Review:
You can listen to this audiobook for free via the Read Me Romance Podcast or purchase the ebook from Amazon which I believe comes with an extended epilogue not available via the podcast.
When Cameron agreed to spend time at the renaissance fair to get to know her stepfather she didn't realise she was agreeing to be the prize offered up for the winner of the jousting contest. That wasn't what she had in mind at all but she can't figure out a way to back out without upsetting her mother. Kyle is dragged along to the fair by his friends and isn't at all sure why he agreed to be there but when he meets Cameron and realises she's in need of rescuing he finds himself signing up to take part in the jousting contest.
The first meeting between Cameron and Kyle was great, and the start of a quite sweet romance. It's obvious that they're both attracted to each other but with this being a novella everything happens in the course of an afternoon so we're not looking at the next great love story here but they made a cute couple and I was totally on board with that.
My main issue with this story was the whole jousting contest though. If I'm reading fantasy you can throw anything at me and if your world makes sense I'll happily go along with it but when I'm reading a contemporary romance it has to feel believable. Could I get on board with Cameron and Kyle's instant attraction? Yes, easily. It's not like they were spouting words of love straight after meeting, they were attracted to each other and agreed to go on a date, something people do all the time.
What I had and issue with was the fact that Kyle, who has never been to a renaissance fair before, walked in, signed up for a jousting contest and was just instantly allowed to take part. They didn't even ask if he'd ridden a horse before, let alone whether he had experience jousting (which he didn't!). Are you seriously telling me that anyone can walk into one of these fairs and they'll let you jump on one of their horses with a big pointy stick and tell you to get on with it? Have you any idea how dangerous jousting can be? A quick internet search will tell you about broken bones, punctured lungs, even death! Can you imagine the cost of the insurance for these events if they just let anyone walk in and take part completely untrained?
I know I'm making a big deal out of something that won't bother most people but I just hate it when a contemporary story doesn't feel realistic. If he'd been an amateur jouster who was already taking part in the contest before they met then I could have sat back and enjoyed the ride but that ruined the whole experience for me because I kept waiting for him to lose an eyeball to a wooden splinter! It just felt like sloppy writing in my opinion but your mileage may vary.
Source: I listened to this audiobook for free via the Read Me Romance podcast.
Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.
Kindle:
No comments:
Post a Comment