Review: Good Sequel  ***4 1/2 Stars***
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 04 13, 2014
This book is the second in the Heart and Soul two-book series.  The first novel,Heart's Ransom (Heart and Soul), was an amazing read for me.  It is in that story that we first meet Brynmor and Rose (the protagonists of this book.)  This is a typical Loch novel, in that it is extremely well written, with an excellent plot, and characters who are almost as real as any flesh and blood person.I did, however, have a couple of issues with this book, and when compared to book one, it falls short.  Moreover, I don't think I would have enjoyed this book as much as I did had I not read book one first--although I cannot swear to that.  That's probably because Talon and Gwen (the h and H of book one) play such a dominant role in this story, and the fact that the connection between Rose and Brynmor gets its start in that first novel.  Yes, this book can be read as a stand-alone, because Ms. Loch does give enough information about Rose and Brynmor's past, so that even if you haven't read book one you can easily follow the story in this one.  Nonetheless, I personally would not recommend reading this book until you've read book one.  Considering the fact that book one is a compellingly dynamic story, reading it first would be no hardship.  To support my recommendation, I should point out that after reading all eight previous reviews, I see that everyone who has read--or at least who has reviewed--this book, read book one first.Rose (whose father and stepmother are the protagonists of "Heart's Ransom") and Brynmor first meet when he rescues her from kidnappers--she was eight, he was eighteen.  At that time a bond was formed between the two.  When they next meet some ten years later, Rose has grown into a stunningly beautiful young woman, and Brynmor is instantly smitten--so obviously so that Rose's parents comment on it.  For her part, Rose was just as attracted to Brynmor.  Fast forward eight years later (which is when this story begins), Brynmor is now thirty-six, Rose twenty-six.  For me the ten year span of time was a bit much--IMO too much time was allowed to lapse, especially when you consider how strong a connection existed between Rose and Brynmor.  Furthermore, throughout the story Brynmor and Rose seemed much younger than their actual years; partially because of the dominant role played by Rose's parents in the story, but also because both protagonists, in particular Rose, behaved younger than their years.Personally, I think the story would have played better had Bryn and Rose been younger (maybe thirty and twenty years respectively.)  Not to mention the fact that I don't find it very believable that her father would allow Rose to languish on the vine of spinsterhood until her twenty-sixth year!--remember in those days women married very young, often  long before their eighteenth year, and a woman of twenty was already considered a spinster.  However, since Ms. Loch had the events of the story occurring at a particular time during history, so between that and the time she set the previous story, she was kind of stuck with the date--and thus the ages of the protagonists.  In any event, Brynmor is the son of a peasant farmer.  As a boy, his mother married the powerful Prince of Powys (in Wales his title was prince, but in England he was considered an Earl, because the English only recognized one prince in Wales, and that was THE Prince of Wales.)Bryn was adopted by his mother's husband and made heir to the Powys principality.  Rose's stepmother, Gwen, was the legal heir to the Powys dynasty, but relinquished her claim in book one, because of the horrible memories attached.  Gwen was more than happy to have her adopted brother, assume the title and principality.  Bryn suffers from a major inferiority complex because of his humble beginnings (considering he had been Earl for 18 years I thought he should have been over it by then.)  At the time the story is set, there is a lot of political upheaval in Wales, and Bryn gets caught in the middle, between Wales and England.  Bryn does not trust the principal Welsh players in the war against England, but neither is he comfortable allying with the English against his countrymen.  For the protection of his people; however, he must form and alliance with either England or Wales.Following Talon's advice, Bryn decides to ally with the English.  To strengthen the alliance between Montgomery and Powys, Bryn and Rose are betrothed to be married.  Although Bryn has always had a special place in his heart for Rose, he doesn't feel he is deserving of her (mostly because of his humble origins.)  Although I thought any inferiority complex Bryn had should have been overcome in the eighteen years since he assumed the Earldom, I did think his belief that he wasn't good enough for Rose was very realistic.  In any event, from the point of the betrothal the story quickly progresses.The romance between Rose and Bryn is sugary sweet.  The story that unfolds is chock full of excitement, with political intrigue, revenge plots, and personal vendettas.  I did think a couple of scenes in the story were a bit contrived, such as the one where Talon sits with Bryn, when Bryn was believed to be dying, and tries to talk him back from the brink of death--IMO, that scene was borderline cheesy!  Nonetheless, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it as a worthwhile read...again, if you haven't read book one as yet, I would advise you do so before reading this one.  FYI, this is not a clean romance.  Happy reading!