The Lord of Forever by Mary Gillgannon is a well thought out story full of amazing historical details. I enjoyed the story from beginning to end. The characters were likable and their struggles realistic. Never fear there is a HEA to this romance!

3.5 Stars

📚Disclosure: I received a review copy of this book from the author/publisher via Netgalley. All thoughts, opinions, comments, and interpretations of the story are my own and bias free. I did not receive any money in exchange for this review. Thank you to the publisher for allowing me the opportunity to review. Reviews are cross-posted to social media, goodreads, and blog. 🦄

The exciting entertainment of the story was pretty awesome to read. I loved the action of the battles between the knights. These scenes certainly kept the story moving along as well as the romance of the two characters.

What a wonderful medieval romance. Loved the mains, Sir Nicholas and Cristyn. This story has it all. Romance, intrigue and political angst all combine to make for a very enjoyable reading experience.
Thank you Mary Gillgannon, Dragonblade Publishing and NetGalley for allowing me an advance copy for my honest feedback.

Another wonderful medieval romance by this author!
Nicholas and Cristyn are thrown together into a marriage, but they have to rely on one another to get through the dangerous politics that plague England and Whales in this era. Lots of sweet and sexy moments and as with all the author's novels, I enjoy the Welsh history and culture!

Loving the Enemy

He is a landless English knight; she is a Welsh princess. He captures her, thinking she is a man. This one mistake will change both their lives forever.

The English and Welsh are deadly enemies. Nicholas and Cristyn’s journey is fraught with challenges. They are pawns between kings and princes, and they have little control of their destiny. Can love beat the odds? If you like medieval romance with adventure, you might enjoy this tale.

During political turmoil, Sir Nicholas, a second son, needs to do something memorable to improve his situation. In an attack, he follows someone that broke away from the skirmish, thinking it's a male, he rides and attacks him. Turns out it was a lady, Cristyn, who was traveling to her cousin's estate up north and decided that she doesn't want to marry the man her father has chosen for her. She sees an opportunity and breaks aways from her traveling party and is followed and kidnapped. The moment they see each other, they fall in love-
It was a fast-paced story - where the characters were developed quickly and the story was running fast. I like that about this type of book.

Lord of Forever by Mary Gillgannon is a story about an ill-fated romance between an unrenowned English knight and a Welsh princess who meet as four knights have come upon a small party of Welsh as they travel through the woods. One of these is Cristyn, who is being moved from her father's house to that of her distant kin, Cadfon, who lived further north. As the knights attacked, Cristyn saw her chance and rode away, only to be chased by Nicholas Bruetel, who had no idea he was chasing a woman. It was love at first sight, although neither of them recognized it at the time. They returned to Carwent Castle, where the lord, FitzAlan made plants to ransom both Cristyn and Cadfon. If he was successful, his lord, the owner of the castle, de Remys, might see him in a better light. Cadfon was thrown in the dungeon, but Cristyn was give over into the are of Fitz Alan's wife, Lady Maude, who was spiteful and jealous and treated Cristyn as a serving maid. Shortly Cristyn was transported to the castle of Llewellyn, aspiring king of all Wales, and his wife, Joanna, daughter of King John of England, with whom she became fast friends.

This was a lovely story about two people who couldn't even speak the same language, and yet managed to fall in love. It didn't look good for them, as they were from such different worlds and different stations in life, but they persisted. Well, it was mostly Cristyn who made thing happen, but Nicholas did what he could. He was meant to be a lord; he ruled with kindness and politeness. He took good care of his people. That eventually paid off. There were battles to be fought and bodies to bury. It was a fast-paced book full of terrific characters and interesting plot twists and turns. I loved it all. Thank you Mary Gillgannon. I recommend it.

I was invited to read a free e-ARC of Lord of Forever by Dragonblade, through Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #netgalley #dragonblade #lordofforever

England 1206
Step back into the medieval times of turmoil, a fight for dominance and political scheming.

Nicholas, the second son, knows it is up to him to earn his way and hopefully be rewarded his own castle and lands. Fortunately he is a honorable and not as underhanded as some. When he meets Cristyn, who is Welsch, his life is about to change.

Cristyn, is strong and has a mind of her own and does not want to forced to marry someone chosen for her. But meeting Nicholas, he takes her as a hostage. But she cannot deny the attraction.

A turbulent journey to bring these two together, that will keep your interest until the end!

Nicholas is tired. Tired of the fighting with his brother and the endless chore of proving his worth at the tournaments. But when he receives a very generous and intriguing offer from deRemys, he decides his fortune is in fighting the Welsh.
Cristyn’s life is either at a crossroads or stuck in limbo. He betrothed has been murdered and she doesn’t see a way to have her own home and family under her control-not shared with a mother in law.
Nicholas and Cristyn’s paths merge during a fight. Nicholas believes he is chasing the enemy, but to his surprise, it is his future. As the two learn about each other and their languages, they find that love always wins.
This was a nice book three to the Lords of the Borders trilogy.

A great story of an English knight, Nicholas Breutel, and his hostage, Cristyn Ferch Hywell. This is about the Welch and English's battle to control Wales. Nicholas is a second son and he has no hope of inheriting anything. Maybe he can make his own way. He ends up in Wales and has captured a fairly important lady as a hostage. With the time they spent together, they were getting to know each other and slowly falling in love. She wanted her own family and household. The politics of these two countries were complicated and twisted, even among themselves.
It was quick-paced, interesting to read both sides of some of their political struggles and watch the different fighting styles. Even the way they dress is different. It is exciting and keeps our attention.
I received this ARC from Net Galley and voluntarily reviewed this wonderful Arc.

Nicholas, a knight who aspires to be something more, finds his life altered when he stumbles upon Cristyn who is not only out of his league, but also, his enemy.

This was very sweet. I would say it's more of a 3.75 for me, but I rounded it up. I loved the main characters, but I found that there wasn't enough scenes with them together for me to really believe they were in love. Infatuated, definitely, but there were many things that got in the way, including a language barrier. It was very fairytale like, which I definitely enjoyed, but if you're looking for something steamy, this is not it.

Overall, I found that it was well written and flowed well. The main characters were fleshed out and both of them were strong and likeable. I enjoyed this sweet tale of love at first sight.

CW: mention of rape, on page violence

Sir Nicholas Breutel is an ambitious man. As a second son it's up to him to find a way to improve his status. He is prepared to take every opportunity. The Welsh border will give him that chance.

Cristyn ferch Hywel lost her original betrothed and is now at the mercy of the strained politics in Wales. With her countrymen always fighting between themselves nowhere seems safe.

When kings or princes are plotting power struggles, the ordinary men and women are just pawns to be used as they please.

This is a medieval romance with lovely characters that take really unexpected risks at the most dangerous places.

This is part of a series but each book can easily be read alone.

I loved it.

High adventure and drama in a turbulent age, this book drew my interest from the opening pages. Nicholas Breutel is as ambitious as the next man, but unlike many others, he is honorable and treats women with respect. In an era when women were traded for property, alliances, and power, feisty Cristyn resents being used by her father and later her father's allies to fulfill their own ambitions. However, her accidental meeting with Nicholas brings two people together who have an instant attraction. Having taken Cristyn as a hostage, Nicholas is surprised to find himself becoming protective of her and fears for her safety. Amidst betrayal and double-crossing, not to mention political maneuvering, this novel is fast-paced and exciting and I found myself wondering whether Nicholas and Cristyn would ever get their chance to be together. Although part of a series, this novel is a standalone and comes to a successful conclusion. I received a copy of this romance as a gift through Dragonblade Publishing and NetGalley and this is my honest and voluntary review.

This was an entertaining historical romance. It was fast-paced, held my interest and I didn't want to put it down. I enjoyed this book and would read more books by this author.

❤️❤️❤️❤️
💋💋

Although this was written in first person, a style different to my usual, I found I quite enjoyed the story.
It was filled with historical facts and features both English and Welsh.
I loved the Welsh, it’s not a common genre to find, normally it’s Scottish or on the odd occasions French.

The characters were interesting and had excellent chemistry and personalities that gelled from the moment they met.

I will say that at times it felt rushed and slightly disjointed as though a bit was missing, their relationship seemed jumpy.
But it was easy to pick up and on the whole the book was enjoyable and entertaining.

I received an Arc copy of this book and chose to post this review.