Lawson’s review of One Knight Only by Julia Latham
Historical romance released November 27, 2007 by Avon
The action follows about three months after Thrill of the Knight. Anne is working with the League of the Blade, again in disguise. This time she’s impersonating a woman who overheard a plot to overthrow King Henry. On a journey through England Anne runs into Sir Phillip Clifford.
Phillip, after being rejected from joining the League, has been traveling earning a fair living fighting in tournaments. He’s shocked to see Anne in disguise and joins her group to help protect her. Things get complicated since months before they’d nearly become lovers, though Anne had run when Phillip’s honesty guaranteed she’d be a momentary companion.
Anne still desires Phillip, but she’s got bigger plans than a man in her life, for she wants to become the first woman in the League. As things become more dangerous, Anne and Phillip risk more than they can probably wager to be together.
Anne has a lot on her mind. There have been a number of things changed in her life since we last saw her. Becoming someone else, especially another noblewoman Anne starts to loose herself. With Phillip around, she keeps her own identity, with some sexy results. Though there are Bladesmen around, Anne and Phillip manage to get some time alone, especially since he has a habit of dropping off roofs to enter her room.
Though Elizabeth from Thrill doesn’t make an appearance, John does, as well as the villain, Viscount Bannaster. Not as evil as he was before, Bannaster has an integral role. It’s hard to believe after his actions toward Elizabeth Bannaster is a good guy, but apparently he’s the hero of the next story, so it will be a wait and see game.
One thing I had a problem with was the dialogue. Reading things in 15th century English would be hard, but the pacing and syntax (whoa, big word) used didn’t fit with the rest of the tone of the story. I had to remind myself and stop to repicture the characters in my head several times so that I kept in line with the history and not the dialogue.
Also, on a historical note, if the king had found out that a servant had been impersonating a noble, especially to other nobles, there would have been stiff repercussions. Even if an organization such as the League existed and was doing it to save the king’s life. It’s that pesky class structure thing again (hmm. . .that’s popping up quite a bit) and the English at the time wanted to keep class lines in place. Especially since there were still many plots among nobles to overthrow the king.
As annoying as those could be, I generally liked Anne and Phillip, though in the end she does something pretty stupid, I sympathized with her struggle to find her own independence and Phillip’s struggle to find out exactly what his destiny is. And considering I struggled through (and put down) two books over the last week and this one held my interest enough to finish and the characters were still likable in the end, the things I didn’t like I think have to slide.
Grade: B-
Blurb:
She knew she would have to risk her life . . .
Daring and adventurous, Anne Kendall would give anything to join the secret band of warrior knights known as the League of the Blade, and she eagerly agrees to a perilous masquerade. But then Sir Philip Clifford, a reckless, brutally handsome knight, joins their party, bringing back memories of stolen kisses, passionate longings, and one night when she would have done anything to be his.
But not her heart . . .
Anne would prefer to concentrate on the dangerous mission at hand . . . but the glorious, savage passion that begins to develop between her and this unruly warrior may prove him to be the knight of her dreams . . . and her fantasies.
Read an excerpt.
