As much as I love historical romance, medievals are pretty low on my personal food chain. I have been known to go years without reading a story set during that time period. But in the last several years I’ve turned to medievals when I’m looking for something different. It’s been my good fortune to discover Kris Kennedy, a former RWA Golden Heart winner, and an author with three published medievals under her belt. Having read all three, I have to say my absolute favorite is her Golden Heart winner, and the second book to have been published, The Irish Warrior.
The Irish Warrior is a classic road romance that finds our hero, Finian O’Melaghlin, and heroine, Senna de Valery, under the thumb of the villainous Lord Rardove (who is, naturally, English). Senna has knowledge that Rardove wishes to possess and Finian is taken hostage after his band of warriors are slaughtered by Rardove’s. Senna needs to escape, and being a smart girl, knows that she’s going to need the help of the fierce-looking Irish warrior. Once they escape, they find themselves on the run and working together.
Kennedy writes historical romances that hearken back to a time when the sub genre was full of meaty angst, books that readers could really sink their teeth into. Finian is determined to protect Senna, not only because he’s attracted to her, but also because he owes her a debt. A warrior does not soon forget the person that saves his life. It is this debt, along with his desire for Senna that leads up to one of the most memorable exchanges during the final moments of the book. Senna walks into the arms of the enemy in a bid to protect Finian. When he finds out that she has left, he immediately wants to go after her, only to find himself arguing with his king:
“So we’re losing you for a woman,” he said bitterly, when it was clear Finian had already given his answer. “Who did I raise you to be?”
“Ye didn’t raise me to abandon women, sir.”
Darkness turned The O’Fail’s shaking head into a purpling transition of shadows, but there was no mistaking the warning in his next words: “I could stop you. Call up the guard, cut you down where you stand.”
Finian turned and kicked open the door.
“She said she did not need you,” the king called after.
“Aye, well, I need her.” He leapt down the small set of stairs and started across the bailey.
Loyalty was everything during medieval times. People lived and died for it, a man’s word, his oath, were sacred. That Finian stands up to his king, the man he has pledged his life to, shows just how deeply he cares for Senna. How, while she may have saved his life, in the course of the novel, she also captivates his heart. It’s a passion, a love, that blossoms during a time of tremendous unrest and strain, and it leads to a saga that sweeps the reader up, taking us along for one heck of a ride.
Wendy Crutcher, Fighting For Truth, Justice and the Right to Read What You Want
