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Book Review of A Fragile Trust

A Fragile Trust
A Fragile Trust
Author: Helen Kirkman
Genre: Romance
Book Type: Paperback
reviewed on + 44 more book reviews


From Amazon.com: By 872, the Viking raids have devastated the English countryside. Everyone is frightened as only Wessex remains as the last kingdom barely resisting the Viking assault, but have little hope of holding out much longer. The Viking won the last battle overwhelmingly.

Near the Mercian border, Lady Gemma finds a bloodied male lying in the forest. She knows he must be a warrior most likely a Viking as he has muscles while her side is skin and bone from starvation. Still she nurtures the injured man in spite of his warning her to leave him because he brings danger to her. Ash, an Englishman raised by Vikings, has sworn his fealty to the King, but has been betrayed by an Englishman not a Dane; his men murdered by treason. He plans to avenge their death, but first he must prove he lives up to the honor of Beowulf that Gemma expects of him while keeping her safe from a sly traitor as they begin fall in love with one another.

A FRAGILE TRUST is typical of the Dark Ages romances, but yet contains a fresh plot due to the courageous lead couple. Gemma risks all to nurse Ash back to health while he vows to keep her safe in a world where betrayal and violence are the norm. The story line brings out the late ninth century through tidbits like the Beowulf reference (could they really know of this Danish poem in England at that time?) and especially the impact on the people by the Viking raids. Helen Kirkman provides a terrific tale starring two honorable heroes struggling against treason and duplicity.