TILL THERE WAS YOU

Author: Lynn Kurland ISBN: 9780515146240 5/2009 TIME TRAVEL Publisher: JOVE
Time Period: 1200s and present day England

Zachary Smith is finished with high-maintenance women, impossible clients, and paranormal adventures. He wants an ordinary life and a happily-ever-after with a fresh-faced girl next door. But when he walks through a doorway into a different century, he knows his life isn't going to turn out quite the way he planned. Mary de Piaget is passionate about two things: training her father's horse and avoiding wedded bliss. When she finds herself facing marriage to the most perfect knight in England, though, she fears for more than her freedom, for only she can see the malice behind the perfection. And then a chance encounter with a strangely dressed traveler kindles her hope for a different future. But to change Mary's life is to change Zachary's future, with disastrous results, yet how can either of them face the alternative...

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

Lynn Kurland’s latest, TILL THERE WAS YOU, is one of those feel-good romances that expertly mixes past with present to prove that love endures all things and outlasts almost everything, including time itself. With an eye to detail and deliciously vivid imagery, this paranormal tale of matchmaking comes fully to life. The characters breathe, and the reader easily hears everything, right down to the last accent!

Zachary Smith is an architect who is fed up with any number of things: Lords who toss him down stairs, doors and women. Yes, he’s decided that swearing off women for awhile won’t be a bad thing for him. In fact, Zachary suspects a life without women will be for the best all around. Mostly, he is upset by the circumstances that dictate his life, and vows to change what he can. But vows can be broken and life, as Zachary soon learns, sometimes takes unexpected twists—especially when it comes to romance!

Mary is also fed up with her situation—in her own time and place, that is. The fact that the time is 1258 and the things she rails against are being betrothed to a man she doesn’t intend to marry and acting like women of her age are expected to act, are similar to the issues that plague Zachary. Times are different, but matters of the heart—and soul—are nearly identical. Mary also makes vows, and she, too, finds that destiny plays a more active role in her life than she thought it did.

Medieval meets modern in this enchanting romance that shows that love certainly does span time, and fate usually provides exactly what is most needed—when it is most necessary. Spellbinding and lovely, this is one story readers won’t want to miss.

Kay James