Review: A Must Read!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 09 9, 2013
On a moonless night, he rides into the winter forest on his beast as black as midnight....Dashing stranger, Henry Dunham, comes to Salem on a mysterious errand, but is thrown from his horse in the dead of night and rescued by the local Puritan midwife, Lydia Colson.Haunted by her past, Lydia is running from her own dark secrets, avoiding intrusive questions by pretending her dead husband is simply...away. But when she and Henry are caught in a compromising situation, one punishable by Puritan law, he saves her from scandal by claiming to be her errant spouse...and claiming her bed.Forced to fake a marriage, Lydia and Henry find their passion overwhelming and their vows a little too real. As their lies become truths, a witch hunt closes in on Lydia, threatening not only their burgeoning love, but her life.Review:Though I don't read a lot of historicals this book caught my attention because it is about Salem.  I thought the writer did an excellent job in her research and making you feel like you were in that period of time.  From the language, to the descriptions of everyday life and the blending of fact made the story come alive.Lydia is a midwife trying to start a new life in Salem.  She has been living on her own for a year telling everyone her husband is away.  Lydia is a strong person to keep her secret, live on her own and in a place where neighbors are turning on neighbors.  How scary it must have been to never know if one little thing said or done wrong is going to put you on trial and that is what happens to Lydia.Lydia happens upon Henry while out helping a neighbor, she rescues Henry and takes him back to her house.  Their attraction is instantaneous, this leads to being found in compromising position and forces Henry and Lydia to pretend that Henry is the husband who has been away.I love the intimate scenes between Lydia and Henry, they are sexy and romantic.  The hand-fast scene was one of my favorites.Henry is so great, he fights to save Lydia both with his family and the government.  In the end he literally fights his brother to save her.This was a great story and according to Goodreads says it is book #1, so I cannot wait to see what the next book holds.4stars