Wild [Mass Market Paperback]

Wales is a wild place in 1280. Sir Roger FitzAlan is there by order of the King, commanded to build a mighty walled castle to defend England's borders. But the site the King has chosen has a strange circle of massive blue stones and when Sir Roger and his men arrive, a beautiful young woman is praying within the ancient circle. Even more arresting, the young woman flees from Roger's men astride a sleek black Arab stallion stolen from Roger's best friend nearly five years before. Roger gives chase and before long, the black Arab and Roger's mount leave his men-at-arms far behind. When the woman disappears into a thick wood, Roger follows her alone and quickly loses her. But someone else is in the deep woods, and that someone is intent on killing Roger.

Teleri of the Woods is delighted to have lost her pursuer and it isn't until the following day, when she returns to search for her lost pouch, that she discovers Roger, barely alive, and struggles to rescue him. Roger awakens in her bed, cranky, furious, and too ill to leave. Forced to remain with the beautiful young woman, he slowly becomes aware of the world about him in a way he has never known. Despite Teleri's lack of gold and possessions, she is rich in knowledge and appreciation of life. As Teleri teaches Roger about her life, he's forced to confront his lust for her and his prior beliefs about love. But their time together in the magic woods must come to an end and when it does, what will Roger do about the forbidden love that once ruled him? How will Teleri cope with life beyond her enchanted woods? And how will they solve the dark mysteries that swirl around Roger and threaten both their lives? Filled with Barnett's trademark humor, wit, and wonderfully warm writing style, readers everywhere who have anxiously awaited Wild won't be disappointed. --Loise Faye Dyer

Shunned by superstitious villagers, Teleri of the Woods learned early that the world is a frightening place. For years she has lived hidden away in a dark forest, where her only friends are the creatures of the woods. But when she finds a gravely wounded knight, her sanctuary is safe no more.

With his legendary skills in war and diplomacy, Roger FitzAlan had been sent to establish a stronghold on the Welsh borderlands. Ambushed and left to die by an unknown enemy, Roger must now battle for more than his life -- he must win the trust and love of the wild young woman who has every reason to fear him.

Roger knows he cannot live in Teleri's world, and she is afraid of his. Once he recovers, Roger is determined to find the one who tried to kill him. And Teleri must choose whether to stay secluded with a broken heart -- or to trust this powerful warrior who has threatened all she holds dear. Together they journey to a place where duty is everything, where a man's honor -- not his heart -- must guide him. There, amid the dangerous secrets of the past, they will risk everything in search of a love that is forever.