A Passionate Magic
By Flora Speer
3.5/5
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About this ebook
King Henry I of England has decided to end an old feud by marrying Lord Dain of Penruan to the daughter of Penruan’s enemy, Gavin of Wroxley. Thinking his bride-by-proxy will be a mere child, Dain is startled to meet the lovely Emma. He’s rude to her and refuses to sleep with her. Emma decides to make Dain care for her and sets out to make life easier for the folk of Penruan, who are forced by Dain’s religious fanatic mother to live without kindness or help for their ailments.
In the local village of Trevanan, the healer Agatha proves to be an unexpected ally as she recognizes Emma’s ability to work magic. In a cave hidden below the cliff where Penruan is built, a stranger who calls himself Hermit offers friendship. On the high cliffs a ghostly woman in white watches Emma. Meanwhile, Dain’s mother, Lady Richenda does all she can to keep the two apart.
Emma begins to find small gifts on her pillow almost every morning and believes they are peace offerings from Dain. Gradually, Dain softens toward his unwanted bride, until they make love.
But Lady Richenda has other plans and causes as much trouble as she can, blaming Emma for anything that goes wrong at Penruan. Finally, Dain has had enough. So has Agatha, who is disgusted by Richenda. Agatha reveals the truth about the woman in white, whose name is Vivienne. Emma, also wanting truth, tells Dain about her magical ability.
After Dain decides to send his mother to a convent to live, Agatha, Emma, and Vivienne lay a spell on Lady Richenda, binding her to kindness toward all people for the rest of her life. Dain watches this magical working and understands that all magic is not evil.
When Emma’s parents arrive with an army, in response to an urgent letter from Richenda, it’s clear she’s been working her own kind of evil. Explanations follow and though Dain remains skeptical, at last the feud is over, so he and Emma can live together in peace.
Flora Speer
Flora Speer is the author of twenty-two book-length romances and two novellas, all traditionally published. The stories range from historical romances to time-travel, to futuristic. Born in southern New Jersey, she now lives in Connecticut. Her favorite activities include gardening (especially flowers and herbs used in medieval gardens,) amateur astronomy, and following the U.S. space program, which has occasionally been a source of ideas for her futuristic romances.
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Reviews for A Passionate Magic
5 ratings1 review
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Its been quite a while since I have read a book by Flora Speer, but I have been itching to read a somewhat older style romance, and this fits right into that desire. A Passionate Magic is a story that is set in the Medieval era, back to the 1100's, It also has a magical/paranormal aspect to the story as well, one I felt is balanced pretty well into the story.We begin with Emma over hearing her father and step mother talking about the most latest King's decree for the two feuding families. When she hears that it is her sister to be bartered off as a bride, she volunteers herself. She knows that her sister is no way ready for this assigned marriage. So she goes herself, but she finds herself in a position that she never expected. Dain has made it clear that he doesn't trust her in any way, and that she will have to prove herself, and that his mother will have full reign. Now his mother (a cruel woman) tries to get Emma to leave, but Emma is made of much sterner stuff. She has magical abilities, but she also has a great capacity to heal. We see a slow process of Dain starting to trust Emma, and even though their relationship has some rocky bumps, but there was such a sense of realism and vitality.I felt that Dain was a very strong character, he had his vulnerabilities but his strengths really outweighed the negatives. I found him very appealing, even though at times I wanted to knock his head with something, he did have his reasons. Although the second half of the book, I thought he was a bit ridiculous in his stubbornness against Emma, but I felt the author did it well enough that it seemed to add a bit more flair to the story. Emma was just a heroine I liked from the beginning. I found her brave and strong willed and not one to easily back down from a fight, but at times she would occasionally back down from one out of respect. I felt that she had a lot of strength in her, and didn't let her magical abilities over power her senses, she had quite a bit of self control. I couldn't help but admire her tenacity and stubbornness to keep up with Dain.I found Passionate Magic to be a favorite of one of the older type romances. When I was reading this (and boy it didn't take very long ) it reminded me of the days when I first started reading romance, and ten years ago, these were the types of books that were most popular. Now don't get me wrong, I have truly loved the newer romances, but there has always been something about the older authors and their style of writing that gets to me every time. A Magical tale of passion, adventure, intrigue and a sweet love story. A fast paced and thrilling story that will capture its readers.