Lady of Conquest Book

You should read this if you like: historical romances, medieval settings, warrior heroes, strong heroine, secondary characters that make you wish got the girl.

There are select few books in the world in which a secondary character far outshines the main hero. Lady of Conquest was just one of those books.

Lady of Conquest begins with our valiant hero, known as Conn of the hundred battles. A fierce warrior and powerful king of the warriors of Fienna, he is everything you would come to expect from a medival hero. Conn is male specimen of beauty; tall with piercing blue eyes. He radiates power, but is a just and fair king, loved and respected among his people. But I did not like him. In fact, by part three I pretty much loathed him! As our story slowly progressed, I couldn't help but wonder at his sheer arrogance and culpability as the list of things he should and shouldn't have done was pilled higher and higher.

Then there is Nimbus. He is our court jester, short of stature, a fool in the eyes of the world, and someone who holds as much importance at court as a kitchen maid. But for me Nimbus was one of those exceptional characters who managed to far outshine the hero. His love for Gelina, and the way he saw her beauty, it was truly awe inspiring.

It had taken Nimbus's loving eyes to see the woman
beneath the childish exterior she flashed so carelessly.

And his acceptance that Gelina will never love him:

He mumbled to himself, "Ye're more of a fool than I thought. Such as her is not for the likes of ye."

For me, Nimbus is twice the man that Conn will ever be. He accepted her the way she is. He saw her for the beautiful rare creature that she is. Nimbus loved Gelina for herself and his love was selfless. He sacrificed it for the sake of her happiness, accepted her in all of her forms: as a child, a budding woman, an outcast accused of murder, a slave humiliated by the man she loves, a ruined woman and even in the end, as a woman about to become the wife of his king. And for me Nimbus has never been more powerful a character or more wonderful a person as when he stood up to Conn, guilt ridden by his actions.

Ye don't understand, do ye? I did this. I gave her to ye. I made her beautiful for ye. So that ye would cherish her and love her like she deserves to be loved. Like I could never . . ." He sputtered to a stop, unable to continue without crying.

I am giving this book a 4 stars, not because the plot line is amazing. On the contrary I found it to be at best frustrating. There were times I felt Conn needed some sense slapped into him. At other times I wondered why the author made certain characters do the things they did. In my view, many things like Conn holding Gelina as his slave, was unnecessary. It only served to further portray the weakness in his character.

But when all is said and done, this book deserved 4 stars because of three brilliant characters: Gelina, Nimbus and Rodney. After all it is not in every medieval romance that you find a beautiful and fierce woman who proves herself to be a better warrior than full grown men. And a court jester who you just wish got the girl.