Of Midnight Born [Kindle Edition]

1350 After most of her family die of the plague, Serena and her brother decide that in order to survive, they will kidnap Hugh Le Gayne and hold him prisoner until he agrees to marry Serena and finance Thomas in his joining the military. The plan worked and after Thomas left, Serena married Le Gayne, a man full of hatred for her. 1809 Ten yr old, Alex Woding and his cousin, Rhys are going to spend the night at the ruins of the Le Gayne castle, even though the ruins are reputed to be haunted. But then, Alex doesn't believe in ghosts. Among the ruins of the castle, is a garden with an unusual cherry tree. Each bloom has dozens of petals, the tree appears to be very old and is blooming out of season. There is also a staircase still standing that Alex takes note of. During the night, Alex is awakened by a voice calling his name. He opens his eyes to see a rain of falling stars. He calls to Rhys and climbs the staircase to view the meteor shower. While he's at the top of the stairs, he sees the ghost and is so stunned, that he falls to the rocks below. 1832 Maiden Castle has been built on the site of the Le Gayne Castle and the owner who has had a few too many encounters with the ghost who is still in residence, and he has rented the castle to Alex Woding. Ever since the night that he saw the meteor shower, Alex has been interested in falling stars and plans to study the night sky from the top of the castle. He hires an all male staff, even though the legend says that the ghost, Serena, hates all men. Soon after Alex takes up residence, Serena starts watching him, following him everywhere, including his bath. She also starts to harass the staff with tricks, night noises, etc. The staff is soon replaced with women, except for the gardener and his grandson who care for the garden with the cherry tree. Alex is gradually becoming able to see Serena from the corner of his eye and as time passes, she becomes more and more visible to him. They fall in love and though Alex refuses to acknowledge his love for her, Serena becomes "real" a few times and they begin an affair. But, each time she uses her "powers", Serena weakens her life force. Who much time does she have left? What is the link between Serena and the cherry tree? Why, after all this time, is the tree dying? Will Alex be able to hold her here or will Serena finally be gone? What is the black shadow that is stalking Serena? This is one of the very best books that I've ever read. The characters are so well written that I can almost "see" them before my eyes, and the castle is so real that I found myself walking the halls and climbing the stairs. Laughter, tears, anger, hatred love and just some of the hottest sex scenes ever written. What more could you ask for?

Of all the books by Ms. Cach I have read, `Of Midnight Born' is my favorite so far. Although all of her books usually contain a hint of the paranormal, such as faeries and special healing powers, this one goes all out and introduces a hundreds year old ghost as the heroine. Talk about a hopeless romance! But Ms. Cach overcomes the difficulties inherent in a supernatural affair, and love blossoms as beautifully as the blooms on the ancient and magical cherry tree in the castle courtyard.

Perhaps, however, the real reason I enjoyed this story so much is the affinity I felt for the heroine. Ms. Cach's characters are not usually the perfect, tiny-waisted things we read about in many romance novels. They are based more in reality, and are people I find myself identifying with. Instead of moving through their lives with natural grace and inherent poise, they (like the rest of us) have flaws, and are acutely aware of them. Part of this story involves the heroine's efforts to overcome her spiritual flaws and accept her physical shortcomings without shame.

Which brings us to the hero of the story - an intellectual, powerful man with insatiable curiosity that compels him to communicate with a troublesome ghost rather than flee or attempt to banish her from the castle. He sees beauty in a woman who can't see it in herself, and brings out the gentler side of the mischievous spirit.

Added to the mix are a meddling family and the anxiety caused by the waning power of the tree that keeps the heroines spirit alive, as well as the humorous scenes I have come to expect and enjoy when reading Ms. Cach's novels. I strongly recommend this to anyone who enjoys experiencing the gamut of emotions throughout a novel. It's a great read.

I have only read a handful of romances involving ghosts and have mostly found them lacking in any sort of believablity. Lisa Cach has written a story you can actually buy into. The characters exhibit emotions and actions based in reality I thought, now the ending...well this is fiction. Serena evolves nicely as a character and I felt you get to know her. I liked the way Ms. Cach developed Alex. I didn't feel she gets the reader as involved in his character, but I also think some romance authors give the male characters too many female thoughts, feelings, and actions. I thought Alex handled this whole thing "like a man" might, he's pretty arrogant, doesn't understand women, and prefers to hang around men. I do recommend this book, felt it was well written, and I think anyone can enjoy the story line and humor.