Review: Certain To Enchant the Right Audience
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 05 13, 2011
Iceland, 900AD. Lief Nabboddrson is nearing the shores which hold his betrothed when his ship is attack. Lief is devastated to learn that the mastermind behind this attack was his intended, Katla Rollodottir. In the midst of this turmoil and devastation, he is thrown overboard only to wash upon the shores of sunny California...present day California, of course. When he opens his eyes he is furious at the sight before him. It is none other than Katla, the woman who brutally betrayed him.Kat Jonsdottir is shocked to find this stunningly gorgeous Viking on the beach, but even more startled when he tries to kill her! She quickly strives to make Lief understand he has traveled to another time and that she is not the woman who betrayed him, but rather a descendant of the infamous Katla. Both are confused by what exactly has happened, but know they have no choice except to find a way for Lief to return home. Along the way they discover their lives and their future are tied very closely together...not to mention the stunning attracting that is pulling them together in more romantic ways. Now they must discover if they have the answers for Lief's escape and if these two time crossed lovers can live without each other.Under A Viking Moon is an authentic and thrilling romance that travels to the ends of the earth with two unbreakable characters. Leif's character acclimated extremely well to Kat's time in the first half of this novel. In any time travel novel, it is always fun to see the hero dropped into this new present day world and completely baffled by the world around him. Leif was no different and you could tell he felt awkward at first, but quickly fell into step. In Kat's time, or present day, I found him to be a very delicious and like-able hero. He was the guy willing to cut down any man in his way to save his beloved Kat and it was heroically romantic. He was stellar Viking any girl would swoon for! The secondary characters in this period had such an enjoyable time with the blossoming couple, and I really enjoyed the playful manner between them all.You could easily divide this Under A Viking Moon into two parts: the first half in Kat's time and the second in Leif's time. The second half of the novel is where the problems began for me. Kat and Leif had so much fun in the first half it was a delight to read. The second half though became drastically dark and a bit overwhelming after reading the first. On the one hand, I thought it stayed truthful to the time period but on the other hand I thought it somewhat killed the romance. Dee is spot on with her historical accuracy which is part of the reason why the novel was so dark by the end and understandably so. For me though, I thought Leif and Kat had much better chemistry in modern time and the shifts in time periods really were just too much of a dramatic change. The hero had a pretty drastic attitude change going from one time period to another and I felt it was not for the better. It seemed as though the hero was reluctant to make any sacrifices for our heroine and was more loyal to keeping up appearances for his clan.I did enjoy the set up behind Under A Viking Moon and for the most part the characters were great together and a joy to read about. The world building was perfect, being gritty where it should be gritty or carefree and fun where it needed to be carefree and fun. This novel is a grand adventure and will fit the bill for the right reader.So after all is said and done this is just a personal opinion. I know there are readers out there that appreciate the angst and intensity their hero and heroine have to work through in order to reach there happy ending. If you are one of those readers, I can guarantee you this is the book for you. You will enjoy the emotional roller coaster of ups and downs in this novel. Tami Dee has proven she has the talent to create intriguing characters, gritty yet authentic historical time periods and compelling plot lines. Under A Viking Moon is certain to enchant the right audience.Overall Rating: 3/5Heat Level: 3/5Lisa @ Once Upon A Chapter