FOR YOUR ARMS ONLY

Author: Caroline Linden ISBN: 9780061706479 12/2009 HISTORICAL Publisher: AVON
Time Period: 1820s England

He'd never been shot by a woman . . . He was once a distinguished army officer, a man of honor and heroism. But that was before Alexander Hayes was wrongly accused of treason. Forced to abandon everything he held dear, Alec became a spy for England in an attempt to clear his name. His latest commission sounds simple: locate a retired soldier gone missing. But it also sends him back home, to a family who'd thought him dead for five years—and a woman who'd like to shoot him. Everything Cressida Turner's ever heard about Alec tells her that he's a traitor of the worst kind, and yet this enigmatic, infuriating, and utterly captivating man may be the only person she can trust—and the only one who can find her missing father. With nowhere else to turn, she reluctantly joins forces with Alec, unprepared for both the dangerous secrets that threaten them and the relentless passion that drives them into each other's arms.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

FOR YOUR ARMS ONLY is a story that takes the reader back in time so completely that it is easy to see Waterloo, treachery, and the social structure of the time as the tale unfolds. I learned a great deal, and loved the details this author used to bring her characters to life.

Cressida is determined to discover the truth about her father and his part in a tangled web of deceit. She reads a journal, deciphering the code and learning that, as she’s been told, there is truly chaos after a battle. Wrong accusations, penalties paid unjustly, and the horror of war come clearly off the pages as she goes deeper into the mysteries which swirl around her. I was impressed by her courage; where others might destroy such a damning journal she pushed onward, even though she knew in her heart that what she found might not be pretty.

Alec is a sympathetic character from the first pages. His emotional initial meeting with his mother, who believed both of her sons dead, made me grateful for the full box of Kleenex on the bedside table! Her loss, as well as her delight at finding Alec alive, is so poignantly portrayed it leaves a distinct impression on the reader’s mind. Strong as well as tender, Alec is the kind of war hero anyone would gladly welcome home!

The best scene, I think, comes near the very end of this story. It shows both characters to their best advantage, and neatly ties the whole package together. I thought it a great touch to place a youngster, with his wondrous view of the world, at the close of the story. It leaves a soft impression on the reader, and wipes away some of the battle images.

All in all, this is a well-written, engaging story filled with wonderful historical details!

Kay James