Devastated by her betrothal to a violent boy she does not love, Jayden is forced to accept her fate as her ancient Mesopotamian tribe moves to the Summer Lands, where she falls for a mysterious youth from the Southern Lands.
I must admit right off, I love everything that Kimberley writes. She has a way of making her characters seem so real. You become so absorbed into the story, you forget you are actually reading and not living the experience. The main character is Jayden, who lives in the early Mesopotamian area before Christ. Her people were the Nomad Tribes that wandered the desert areas. It is a rich and beautiful time period of adventure, danger, hardships and survival. These people wandered through the deserts to look for food and water. They form bonds with other wandering tribes. This is where the story begins at Jayden's betrothal ceremony. Soon we find out that this marriage is not one that Jayden wants because frankly, her betrothed, Horeb, is a rich, but mean man. Then of course a very young, handsome man, Kadesh, comes along that does steal Jayden's heart. This may seem to you that this book is a typical romance, but you'd be so wrong. There is a rich story woven into this romance with plenty of strife and intrigue. Nothing is ever easy in life, and Jayden finds this out too. Though she wants Kadesh in her life, she knows it's Forbidden because he is not part of her tribe. At this time, and with this people, you really had no choice when a marriage when arranged for you. Oh, it hurt to read about Jayden and the choices she had to make and work through.
Another thing that really pleased me was the fabulous historical research that was done for this book. You can always tell when an author digs deep to make the story accurate for the time period, the people and country of the characters. Kimberley did exactly that: of writing a novel that was realistic and true. This is another reason that this novel is not just another romance, but a story of depth because of it's historical accuracies.
Schedule some good time this winter/Christmas to just sit and read this novel. You will be pulled in and not want to leave. Unfortunately there is a cliff hanger that will make you beg for more in this series. I can't wait to read more about what will happen in Jayden's life. I love Kimberley's writing style and I know I'll always read a great story that will be remembered way after I've finished it.
