A Knight's Vow (Zebra Debut)

Customer Reviews

• Enjoyably romantic taste of the medieval  May 6, 2008 (4 of 5 found this helpful)

  Guillelm de la Rochelle may be a hardened crusader, but young Alyson of Olverton brings out his tender side. She has dark fears to contend with as well as the scheming of a malevolent fellow-soldier of Guillelm's, but their love grows and when, at last, Alyson's life is at stake, Guillelm shows he is a true hero. High drama interweaved with engagingly human scenes between Guillelm and Alyson make this a read to curl up with. The twelfth-century English setting is well done, too.

• 4.5 Blue Ribbons from Romance Junkies!  Jul 19, 2008 (2 of 3 found this helpful)

  Lindsay Townsend has penned a gripping historical romance set during the Crusades. Alyson of Olverton has loved Guillelm since she was a teen. Thought dead, he is back from the grave and the Crusades and she loves him still.
  
  Years ago, Alyson of Olverton loved Guillelm de la Rochelle and dreamed of becoming his wife. When he asked her to marry him, Alyson's heart sang with joy until her father shattered her world and refused to allow the match. Because of this, Guillelm went on a crusade to the Holy Land and if rumors are true, died there. Alyson prays daily that the rumors prove false, and when Guillelm finally returns Alyson's prayers are answered. Alyson still loves her knight and can only hope his love for her is just as strong despite being away from each other for seven long years.
  
  Guillelm de la Rochelle has returned to his father's castle a changed, if not `risen', man. Scorning the stories of his demise, Guillelm is amazed at the changes in his father's home since his departure. Not only is the only woman he ever loved living in his deceased father's home and thus Guillelm's ancestral castle, but he finds out she was betrothed to his father as well. While Guillelm finds this disconcerting, the fact remains that Alyson is in danger. Now that he has found Alyson again, Guillelm will stop at nothing to keep her safe. Even marry her himself.
  
  A KNIGHT'S VOW drew me in with the pageantry of this medieval time and I was compelled to read this book. My heart melts any time a knight fights to win his lady love. Watching Guillelm do just that kept me sighing at the wholly romantic nature of his actions. Stoic at times, sinfully sexy and seductive at others, Guillelm is the ideal knight in shining armor. I think Alyson agrees with me one hundred percent!
  
  A KNIGHT'S VOW is a gripping historical tale of love, life, and chances. It is a heady and passionate read which rapidly took me to a place that is timeless. I couldn't have asked for a better story!
  
  

• Knight needs to be bolder  Apr 30, 2008 (4 of 7 found this helpful)

  In this medieval tale Alyson has dreamed about marrying Guillelm de la Rochelle since she was a little girl. Alyson's father rejected his proposal and he set off for the Holy Land. Later Alyson is betrothed to Guillelm's father, who dies before their wedding. Guillelm returns from the Crusades startled to discover Alyson was betrothed to his deceased father.
  
  He offers her marriage but is deeply troubled about Alyson's feelings for his father. Did she love him, were they intimate? These questions are nagging. Furthermore, Guillelm struggles with his own self image. He has been told by a woman that he is big and brutish and no sane woman would ever want to be with him.
  
  Alyson is thrilled that Guillelm wants to marry her but is fearful that he will discover that his father was not the upright man that he believes he was but was a tyrant and at times sadistic. She is trying to win him over but is not in the least helped by one of Guillelm's men at arms who is sabotaging her every effort to win over Guillelm.
  
  This novel has some nice moments but the mistrust the two leads have for each other goes on too long. At first, Guillelm's fears of intimacy were understandable but when Alyson showed him she was more than willing to be with him he hid behind angst. He was oblivious to his friend's machinations and could not discern his own father's actions. Alyson on the other hand was loyal and stouthearted, much too smart for Guillelm.
  

• B-O-R-I-N-G!  Dec 1, 2009 (0 of 1 found this helpful)

  Extremely disappointing book. It was so boring that it was a challenge to really finish this book. It completely failed to captivate my intrigue and fascination with the characters. Their first and only night of passion was very short lived and completely unmemorable. How it resulted in a twin pregnancy is far beyond comprehensible imagination. Moreover, the couple was constantly interrupted during very private moments whereby said hero and story's protagonist, for very lame excuses and tasks which could have been easily delegated to others; not much thought was put into these interruptions by the author other than finding reasons for having said marriage continue to go on unconsummated for a long period of time. It was very difficult to determine what was the foundation that held these two people in love, other than their childhood fascination with one another. Furthermore, the heroine suffered way too much violence at different hands and proved to be unrealistic as she hardly ever displayed any emotional distraught over the experiences, and yet her sister was the one who becomes a nun for only the mere reason that all the women in their family died at childbirth. Yet, the heroine chose not to become a nun because she outgrew her desire to become one and her love for the hero somehow allows her to forget the violence she has suffered throughout the book.
  
  The author should give readers more credit and lacked suspenseful imagination. I rate this book 3 stars because the only positive that kept me reading this book was the expanded vocabulary.
  

• A really good read  May 13, 2008 (1 of 3 found this helpful)

  A sweeping romance and adventure with an intelligent, lovable heroine and a compelling, interesting hero. I am looking forward to reading more of Lindsay Townsend,s work.