LAST DAY FOR SHAMELESSLY INTERNATIONAL
And WEEK THREE OF BLACK SUN'S DAUGHTER 4 BOOK GIVEAWAY from POCKET/SIMON & SCHUSTER
IMMORTAL HOPE
The Curse of the Templars
Tor Romance
January 3, 2012
Mass Market Paperback 368 pages
Kindle Format: 641 KB Sold by MacMillian
CENTURIES AGO,
Templar knights defied the archangels and unearthed the copper scroll, revealing the gates to hell. Cursed for their forbidden act, they forever roam the earth protecting mankind from evil. But darkness stalks them, and battles they fight bring them ever-closer to eternal damnation. One promise remains to give them salvation – the return of the seraphs.
Embittered by his purpose, Merrick du Loire must honor an ancient pact and bring peace to his cousin’s soul. When he stumbles upon history professor Anne MacPherson, he discovers she possesses a sacred artifact that marks her as a seraph. Duty demands he set aside his personal quest and locate the knight she’s fated to heal. As he struggles with conflicting oaths, Anne arouses buried hope and sparks forbidden desire that challenges everything he’s sworn to uphold.
Anne has six weeks to complete her thesis on the Knights Templar. When Merrick takes her to the Templar stronghold, he presents her with all she needs—and awakens a soul-deep ache, he alone can soothe. Yet loving Merrick comes with a price. If she admits she's destined for him, her gift of foresight predicts his death.
ClaireAshgrove.com
Roused myself to finish the book and write this up. Thanks to everyone for your get well wishes.
The Templar knights or the Order of the Templar Knights is an historical entity but shrouded in mystery. They are the cloth of legend and Gnostic Christianity. At first they were beloved then the church and royalty turned in them and many were executed. Lately, in genre fiction, they have been all over the place appearing in books with angels and demons. I first thought this was a thinly veiled religious text. There is a lot of belief-based plot.
The Templar knights or the Order of the Templar Knights is an historical entity but shrouded in mystery. They are the cloth of legend and Gnostic Christianity. At first they were beloved then the church and royalty turned in them and many were executed. Lately, in genre fiction, they have been all over the place appearing in books with angels and demons. I first thought this was a thinly veiled religious text. There is a lot of belief-based plot.
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| Flag of the Knights Templar Image via Wikipedia |
A while ago I read something about things in romances that keep people apart. One was a force or circumstance that was externally imposed by a third party; like a giant hedge of thorns or being imprisoned in a tower. Another was a force or forces internal, like assumption, miscommunication, or poor communication skills, obstinancy, selfishness. In this story all of the internal forces come into play.
It is actually more Anne than Merrick keeping them apart. I felt she was selfish and unlikeable. Granted she was unwillingly brought to the big Templar house and all by the big, tired and rude Merrick duLoire. But, once Anne realizes the place is the answer to research into the Templars affecting her career she tries to learn all she can. I don't get why she is writing a thesis when she already has a Masters and Doctorate. Getting a promotion depends on this thesis. And she refuses to sacrifice her career to save men and the world.
The man is a big obstinate, old-fashioned immortal. Just your garden variety, pro-football player sized guy from the 12th century who is cursed because of something he dug up. She is a psychic history professor living in the home of a murdered reliquary keeper, but she is also a Seraph who is meant for just one Knight Templar to assoil his soul.
I didn't get that and I didn't understand the misheard communication that is the second block to the couple's happiness. Seems to me she could have asked someone about a hundred pages earlier. Or that the archangel who just figured she would already know everything necessary would maybe have checked. Duh.
The romance was intense although the sex was vanilla. But then again, she knows he is tortured by what he feels is dishonor in having her. But she lets him be all bummed out about it. She was a bit immature there.
As a series, it has promise. It looks like Anne's twin sister, Sophie (a former model) is the subject. It seems like there is a future for the story line and it could be pretty popular. While I enjoyed reading it, the religious stuff and the unlikeable Anne rubbed me the wrong way. That, however would not discommend it, even to me, since I finished it. I will annoint it with a shaky "recommend."
