Christmas Knight [Mass Market Paperback]

I happen to be an avid reader of romance novels and this one broke from the mold of romance novels and caught my undivided attention. It mixes the reality of everyday life and the fantasy of an actual knight falling in love with you. That is perhaps my favorite thing about the book, the fact that, however unrealistic, the book is still in modern times and could still happen to me! The story is called Christmas Knight by Christina Skye and the title is just what it says. A man is enabled to travel several centuries into the future to find the woman of his dreams and help her save her inn. The majority of the scenes take place in modern-day Scotland at a small inn bought by Hope from the inheritence she received when the last of her family passed on. The inn happens to be the house of a knight of royalty several centuries in the past. Somehow the inn connects Hope and Macleod bringing them together with a little help from three meddling witched with some good intentions. In the end, they must face several more external hurdles before they save each others lives, both on the inside and outside. The book starts just a little slow and a little confusing with the scenes changing between the centuries. Both Hope, and the knight (in shining armor), MacLeod were misunderstood in their own centuries and needed a place to start over. They were both very deep people within their own time frames. Macleod was thought to be a ruthless savage appointed by the king to be a knight because of his killing ability. Hope was thought to be rather strange because she never settled down. She lost her family early on in life and could never feel comfortable in one place with one person before Macleod. Over time, you see the characters understanding each other and the others problems. Hope must show Macleod the new world he must live in and yeild to not always being the one in command and Hope must take responsibility over him and let herself get involved on a deeper level, no matter the risk he brings. You notice them becoming so involved with each other that you almost feel like you are intruding on something beautiful between them. Except you don't. Christina Skye somehow makes you feel not like the outsider, but as a welcomed third party involved in the whole relationship. The language in the novel is tipical of romance novels: very poetic and lyrical. The scenes are beautifully described, "A chipped flagstone path ran past the first early roses, an explosion of pink, peach, and fuschia. Below the thatched roof, sunbeams lit hundreds of fragile leaded-glass panels...All had been full of broody atmosphere tinged with magic." The only problem I see in both the plot and in the book is very minor. I picked up the novel knowing that fantasy would be the major theme but there was so much magic involved in bringing Macleod to this century, you get easily confused. Aside from this, the plot moves fairly rapidly and the relationship progresses with every page. Any lover of romance novels will welcome this fresh change of theme and scenery and the ever-present "perfect ending" will make everyone feel good.

Hope O'Hara, felt connected to Glenbrae House the moment she spotted it and with an inheritance received from her beloved uncle, the very last relative she had. The connection with something, anything, would be welcome to take away the pain of loneliness. This 13th century manor would take an enormous amount of money to make it into the prosperous B&B she had envisioned - more than even she had anticipated without paying guests to help get her established. As the tax man starts breathing down her neck, what Hope needed, was a Knight in Shining Armour, and Ronan MacLeod was just what the doctor ordered. Oh, did I say doctor? What I meant was the three Wishwell sisters who seemed to have a hand in conjuring up this 13th century warrior.

Ronan MacLeod, a fierce warrior, had been granted Glenbrae House, by King Edward for his deeds and he wanted nothing more than to forget, the horrors and nightmares of the battles he had fought, and the murders he had committed for this hated English King. Finally, dead inside, he would have a home - long in coming but not for very long in keeping as he was thrust into the 21st century to save a damsel in distress.

From the moment he caught Hope in his arms, as she fell from the roof of Glenbrae House, feelings he had never experienced before rose to the surface. He had enjoyed women, purely as a means to satisfy an itch - but never before was his heart caught up in his chest where he actually felt something for a woman. But here, this strong woman, dressed strangely, and with shorn hair aroused all his feelings of lust and protectiveness. But how could Hope believe this man was from the 13th century, even if he did come dressed in realistic Armour and riding a great war horse? How could she possibly trust him with her heart - he had to be an actor or something to explain his appearance.

Ronan, on the other hand, could believe - Glenbrae House was his home, the same but different. He could see he was in the future but his honor would keep him from his feelings for Hope knowing that at any moment he could be thrust back into his own time. He had been brought here because Hope was in danger and needed protection - but who would protect him from losing his heart?

I am a Christina Skye `Draycott Abbey' fan, and anyone who has read any of the Draycott Abbey books know how spell binding they can be. While the Christmas Knight does not take place at Draycott Abbey, characters from the Abbey do come to Glenbrae including Adrien and his cat Gideon. Yet, you will find Glenbrae House has a charm of it's own as the talented Ms. Skye introduces you to even more enjoyable characters including three delightful witchy type sisters. It is a great book to be reading at this time of the year as you can enjoy the magic here as well as into the Christmas season. I can definitely recommend this book.

This is one of those rare books that you'll race to finish and be sorry when you're done. There were so many positive aspects to this story: the well-drawn and sympathetic characters, the amusing secondary characters (particularly the witches - I'd love to see more of their meddling!), the appealing setting and the excellent writing. This was my first book by Christina Skye and I plan to read her others right away! I bought this book on the basis of other reader recommendations and they didn't steer me wrong! Enjoy!

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