IRON HEART receives a “Great, would want to read it again”
review from Lisa at Once upon a chapter.
Thank you Lisa @ Once upon a chapter: An inspiring in depth review like this makes the process of writing worth all the blood, sweat, and tears and doubts, worries, and fears.
Iron Heart by Gini Rifkin
Faran Kilbraun is on a mission to reclaim his pride and honor. He is traveling across the sea to retrieve ancient relics that are priceless to his people when he becomes shipwrecked on a deserted island. There he finds a castaway, Leanora Wrenn, who is mysterious as she is beautiful. Leanora’s past has made her reluctant to trust anyone. She was forced to hide away on this lonely island to escape punishment when she was wrongly accused of her terrible husband’s murder. Faran has now disrupted her quiet life and wants to take her away from her sanctuary. What neither of them realizes is that once they depart they will begin the adventure of a lifetime together.
Iron Heart is an exciting adventure from the first page to the last. Filled with plenty of drama and romance, this novel will easily sweep you into another time and place.
One thing I love about Iron Heart was the fact that you have two great characters with an undeniable attraction. Both individuals are on the run together fighting side by side against evil to win the day. Leanora was a great characters because she was such a fierce survivor who overcame her greatest fears to work for her own freedom and to help Faran. Leanora was at an uncertain time in her life and in this journey she progressed into a warrior. Faran was the loyal, resilient warrior that could easily be seen at the perfect hero. Always faithful and honest, he was the man you would want on your side. His treatment of Leanora was heartwarming because he viewed her as his equal in many ways. He was always pointing out her strengths yet he also saw her as a woman worthy of great admiration. It was enough to soften any reader’s heart.
Leanora & Faran have a very shy and uncertain love...Hesitant to admit their feelings to one other. It’s a very sweet and charming romance...at first. As things develop between these two characters the romance certainly becomes very passionate. Cabin romances are one of my favorite themes in romance...where the hero and heroine are constantly on the run, and Iron Heart fits that category easily. Leanora and Faran travel far and wide on their quest encountering new dangers and adventures along the way. They do so without involving a overwhelmingly large cast of characters which leads to a stronger character development.
Rifkin not only writes a charming romance, but a novel with interesting historical detail as well. Her novel references and shares some qualities with the mythical Beowulf, having unnatural creatures, chilling villains and a spectacular hero to save the day. Iron Heart also focuses on the classic ideals of honor and prestige being of the utmost importance to our hero’s everyday life. Ultimately being what he risks his life and health to reclaim. The novel also contains the excitement and drama of that time in history, including details concerning warring clans in a fight for supreme power and major religious changes. It added great interest and entertainment to the story.
