I read this book because I am a huge Bertrice Small fan, and I was hoping that it would keep up with the rest of the Skye O'Malley series. It was an entertaining book, I read it all one night, but it was by far at the bottom of the list of the seven books in the series. My problem was the unnecessary vulgarity. I see nothing romantic in the hero calling the heroine "bitch" during their interludes, and I find the excessive use of the "F"-word gratuitous. I don't really believe that word was used much then. I think that fans of the Skye O'Malley series will like the book, but to a new reader of Bertrice, I would not recommend this book. My advice is to start at the beginning of the series and work your way up to this book.