Dark Warrior

Cort de Russe is one of England’s premier knights. When Irish rebels invade the de Winter family’s Irish properties, Henry Tudor comes to ask for help from his trusted friend and subject. As the Irish are considered inferior to the English (and not allowed to legally intermarry, among other things), Henry’s request for Cort to seduce a member of the Irish resistance for information is an unwelcome shock.  This member, Dera, is the sister of Brend, the de Winter’s legacy knight and a longtime friend who seems more English than Irish. But Brend’s Irish blood makes his love for the lady of de Winter forbidden. In Ms. Le Veque’s story, star-crossed lovers must determine where their true loyalties lie. 

Kathryn Le Veque creates characters with such a tremendous amount of growth and depth the reader will not want to put the book down. The de Winter and de Russe families are large, but each member of the family has a distinct and engaging personality. The settings are not as well defined as the characters and history of the piece, leaving the surroundings less vivid in the reader’s mind. The romance develops believably and tugs at the heartstrings throughout. The author handles more than romance throughout the novel and both are well-developed and touching, but their pace and climax mirror each other so closely that they become slightly formulaic in feel. However, the characters’ strong personalities paired with masterful writing make that easily overlooked. “Dark Warrior” is a compelling read drawing on a fascinating and unique time during the Tudor period with characters the reader can’t help but cheer on and love. 

Shailyn Rogers