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Innocent Deception
Manufacturer: Tami Dee
ISBN: 978-1-61252-085.8
Length:
Novel
Category:
Scottish Historical
Rating:
Warm
Photography/Artwork:
Jenifer Ranieri
Release Date:
October 1, 2011
Price: $5.99
$5.99 EPUB
$5.99 HTML
$5.99 PDF
$5.99 MOBI
$5.99 LIT
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Royal Ethan Anderson… a first born son cheated out of an inheritance by his father in favor of his illegitimate half-brother.
Ceana Sinclair, a girl who has no choice but to masquerade as someone else.
An unexpected death… A forced marriage…
Can a foundation of trust and love be built upon a lie?
Or will this case of innocent deception destroy any chance of happiness Royal and Ceana might have had?
EXCERPT
Ethan stood over Ceana, heaving air into his lungs as his blade dripped with blood and gore. She stared up at him, her blue eyes huge, her battered face pale.
With a flick of his knife the ropes were cut and Sorsha slumped to the ground. The noise of battle quieted, a quick glance over his shoulder confirmed it was truly over.
Diarmad pushed past him and dropped to his knees, scooping Sorsha up with a gentleness Ethan had never seen his battle hardened cousin use.
Ethan's brows rose in shock, then sudden understanding.
All that anger and apparent hate Diarmad had displayed toward Sorsha had hidden an affection for the lass. Well, he could have her, and it would serve him right if she regained her memories and returned to her shrewish ways.
With Sorsha securely within his arms, Diarmad cupped Ceana's cheek and anger blindsided Ethan, stealing the breath from his lungs.
His voice softer than Ethan had ever heard it Diarmad asked Ceana. "How are ye, lass?"
His wife's eyes held Ethan's, as if she had not heard Diarmad's question. "Sionn?" she whispered. "Is he safe?"
More confused about his feelings for his wife than he could ever have imagined, he stood above her, mute. At Ethan's prolonged silence, Diarmad answered for him as he held out a hand. "He's well, lass, Taog has him. Can ye stand?" he asked kindly and Ethan wanted to hit him.
Ceana was his wife, if anyone should be asking about her health and offer her a hand to stand it should be him! He shouldered his way in front of his cousin. "Take Sorsha t-to the castle," he said between gritted teeth.
Diarmad gave him a barely disguised look of reproach then stood with his bundle and headed to his mount.
Ceana had not taken her eyes off him, their blue depths holding a mixture of pain, guilt and resignation.
He forced his eyes from hers, taking in the campsite instead. He was torn between wanting to gather her to him as gently as his cousin had Sorsha, and wanting to walk away and not look back.
He had believed Ceana to be unassuming, and honest.
He had also believed her to be Sorsha.
When in truth, she was none of those things.
Oh, aye, he understood Diarmad's explanation for the masquerade, and he could see the logic behind it, to a point. But that did not erase the deception in his mind, regardless that it was an innocent deception. Trust had been lost, trust of his cousin, his men, and his wife. Ethan swallowed past the bitterness in his throat. She had breached his mistrusting heart, and she had done so easily.
He would not be drawn in by her again.
Ever.
She reached for him, her slim arm trembled. "Royal," she whispered.
He cut her words short, slashing a halting hand through the air and hating himself when she flinched. "Nay," he bit out, meeting her eyes fully. "Ye h-have lost the right t-to call me Royal."
"Just when you think the situation has been straightened out there's another twist...Makes the book enjoyable to read as it not following the usual path of romantic authors."
GrammyDeb -- Reader -- Posted at Barnes & Noble
Rating = 5 Stars
"I wasn’t sure what to expect of a story set in 1030-1050 AD Scotland. I don’t remember the last time I read a book set in this particular time period. If you aren’t sure about it either, this is definitely the book to read. From the very beginning, I was intrigued by the characters and the plot. We meet such different individuals that trying to predict how they all come together is nearly impossible. I loved the many twists and turns that this story takes as we journey together with the characters."
Eye on Romance
Rating = 10 out of 10
"I fell in love with this story. The hero is not your typical perfect albeit troubled man. He stutters, he had been tortured and yet he endured. He survived and grew to be a man held in awe despite being the weakling son that had to escape his own home before his father and brother killed him for being a detriment to their clan. Ceana is a many times over abused woman. Much like another character in the book she has always dusted herself off from the abuse but inside ached from the pain of betrayal and the physical hurts inflicted upon her by those who she should have been able to trust. Together they find a way to survive and to trust in the love that blossoms between them."
Lady Rhyleigh -- Posted at ARe Cafe
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