Thalassa of Zal had been taken captive with others of her people by the brutal Lord Rhaeven of Asuria. Seeing her beauty, he took her to be one of his bed partners. Fortunately for Thalassa it would be awhile before Rhaeven would take her--she was eight months pregnant. The only thing Thalassa was thankful for was that the sickness that plagued her people was progressing. Most likely it would kill her before Rhaeven had a chance to get his dirty hands on her.

Thalassa met a young Diraenian page named Eri who had been badly beaten. He needed to escape to get back to his lord, Prince Sinclair, who was also being held captive by Lord Rhaeven. Thalassa managed to get Eri assigned to help her while he healed. Eri immediately started making plans to escape to go back and save his lord. When Rhaeven's jealous brother attacked Thalassa one day, Eri killed him and the two were forced to run or be executed. Thalassa carried a silver whistle with her that her mother said could be used to protect her. She blew the whistle and suddenly there appeared Aki, a white dragon that, according to legend, only answered to the call of the Dragon Priestess. While the dragon destroyed the keep with its fiery breath, Thalassa and Eri escaped.

Crown Prince Tarran was heir to the elfin nation of Diraenia. He had recently lost his betrothed to a hunting accident, and he was heart-broken. But Tarran did not believe it was an accident. He believed his younger brother, Unwin, planned the attack. Unwin knew that if Tarran did not produce an heir in the next year, he would have to give the throne up to his younger brother. But while Tarran was grieving the loss of his betrothed, he started to have memories of a beautiful woman from Zal he had met eight months before. Her name was Thalassa. His heart had been lost to her, and he would have liked to make her his own. But she was betrothed to another and was returning to her village to be married. She and Tarran had spent three days together "being in love" and making love as though they would not be forced to part.

Tarran decided to go look for the woman and found her village in ruins, with only one survivor left: a little girl named Vaoni. Vaoni had known Thalassa and told Tarran that the woman must have been taken away by their attackers, the Asurians. Knowing he could not leave the girl alone, he took Vaoni with him. Tarran would find a good place to leave the girl where she would be safe. Then he would go after Thalassa.

This is a great story of love found, lost, and then rediscovered. The characters are vivid and deep--especially Tarran and Thalassa. Each of them digs deep within to find strength and magic they did not think they possessed. There is royal intrigue, acts of devotion, self-sacrifice, and lots of on-going action. I found myself drawn in from the beginning and being really frustrated when I was interrupted by a couple of phone calls. I did not want to stop reading! This is a must read for anyone who loves Fiction Fantasy and Romance.

Reviewed By: Kathy Martin
© September 2004