We end this
round of Medieval Monday nature posts with an excerpt from Cathy MacRae’s The Highlander’s French Bride. You can
almost taste the salt air in this scene where Kinnon says his good-bye to
Brother Padraig. Enjoy!
round of Medieval Monday nature posts with an excerpt from Cathy MacRae’s The Highlander’s French Bride. You can
almost taste the salt air in this scene where Kinnon says his good-bye to
Brother Padraig. Enjoy!
Excerpt from The
Highlander’s French Bride:
Highlander’s French Bride:
Seagulls shrieked as they circled
overhead. The promise of spring was in the warm breezes and the green grasses.
Young boys hurried after their wooly charges as the sheep eagerly sought the
new fodder, tiny lambs tottering behind their dams on shaky new legs across the
rocky landscape.
overhead. The promise of spring was in the warm breezes and the green grasses.
Young boys hurried after their wooly charges as the sheep eagerly sought the
new fodder, tiny lambs tottering behind their dams on shaky new legs across the
rocky landscape.
Brother Padraig clasped Kinnon’s
shoulder. “My friend, ye are doing the right thing. Some serve in the world by
preaching the Gospel, and a few give themselves over to God in solitude and
silence with constant prayer and penance.” He smiled. “Yet others are called to
married love, mayhap bringing new life into the world. I pray ye find whom ye
seek, but there are always places to tend the poor and needy in this world. Ye
need not take vows to help God.”
shoulder. “My friend, ye are doing the right thing. Some serve in the world by
preaching the Gospel, and a few give themselves over to God in solitude and
silence with constant prayer and penance.” He smiled. “Yet others are called to
married love, mayhap bringing new life into the world. I pray ye find whom ye
seek, but there are always places to tend the poor and needy in this world. Ye
need not take vows to help God.”
Kinnon gripped the monk’s upper arm,
conveying his thanks in the strengthening grip, the earnestness of his gaze. “I
have no words powerful enough to thank ye, Brother. Ye have given me much to contemplate,
and have healed more than my poor body.”
conveying his thanks in the strengthening grip, the earnestness of his gaze. “I
have no words powerful enough to thank ye, Brother. Ye have given me much to contemplate,
and have healed more than my poor body.”
“Rest is a balm for the soul and
healing for the body,” Brother Padraig quipped. “I will take good care of wee
Angus. `Tis a good thing ye decided to leave him here. After these past months
without battling the rats for the last of the winter stores, I fear we would
have had an uprising amongst the monks had ye insisted he go with ye.” He
grinned. “Take care, my friend. If possible, I would hear word of yer travels.”
healing for the body,” Brother Padraig quipped. “I will take good care of wee
Angus. `Tis a good thing ye decided to leave him here. After these past months
without battling the rats for the last of the winter stores, I fear we would
have had an uprising amongst the monks had ye insisted he go with ye.” He
grinned. “Take care, my friend. If possible, I would hear word of yer travels.”
Kinnon stared deep into the monk’s
kind eyes, hesitant to bring himself to the moment of parting. But the gentle
thumping of the waves against the boat’s waiting hull reminded him the time to
tarry was over.
kind eyes, hesitant to bring himself to the moment of parting. But the gentle
thumping of the waves against the boat’s waiting hull reminded him the time to
tarry was over.
Ranald’s men-at-arms met him as the
boat docked on Mull, a horse saddled and waiting for him. Kinnon greeted them
warmly, wondering at the sense of freedom stealing over him. It had begun as a
flash of clarity the moment he’d resolved to search for Melisende. At first he
wasn’t sure if he simply needed to be certain she and her sister had survived
and were doing well, or if he truly longed to be with Melisende again. But the
idea that she could have married in the years they’d been apart struck his
chest with a peculiar agony that was a curious mix of anticipation and fear.
The thought of another man holding her, loving her, being the center of her
life, sent strong jolts of alarm through him.
boat docked on Mull, a horse saddled and waiting for him. Kinnon greeted them
warmly, wondering at the sense of freedom stealing over him. It had begun as a
flash of clarity the moment he’d resolved to search for Melisende. At first he
wasn’t sure if he simply needed to be certain she and her sister had survived
and were doing well, or if he truly longed to be with Melisende again. But the
idea that she could have married in the years they’d been apart struck his
chest with a peculiar agony that was a curious mix of anticipation and fear.
The thought of another man holding her, loving her, being the center of her
life, sent strong jolts of alarm through him.
It was then he realized he had to
find her—for himself, not so he could worry less, but so he could care more.
find her—for himself, not so he could worry less, but so he could care more.
Back
Cover Copy for The Highlander’s French
Bride:
Cover Copy for The Highlander’s French
Bride:
Heir to a lairdship, Kinnon Macrory
is driven to prove his worth by fighting the English on the battlefields of
France. His dreams of heroic valor are destroyed by the realities of war—the
atrocities visited by fellow soldiers on the very people he is sworn to
protect. Three years in a French prison for a crime he did not commit leave
Kinnon longing for the one thing of beauty in his war-torn life—a young woman
of great kindness and wisdom named Melisende.
is driven to prove his worth by fighting the English on the battlefields of
France. His dreams of heroic valor are destroyed by the realities of war—the
atrocities visited by fellow soldiers on the very people he is sworn to
protect. Three years in a French prison for a crime he did not commit leave
Kinnon longing for the one thing of beauty in his war-torn life—a young woman
of great kindness and wisdom named Melisende.
Melisende de la Roche struggles to
stay one step ahead of soldiers who would imprison her for helping an injured
Scotsman wrongly accused of treason. She finds refuge in her uncle’s shop—until
a chance encounter sends her fleeing into the unknown once again, haunted by
the beguiling friendship with the troubled young Scotsman she is certain she
will never see again.
stay one step ahead of soldiers who would imprison her for helping an injured
Scotsman wrongly accused of treason. She finds refuge in her uncle’s shop—until
a chance encounter sends her fleeing into the unknown once again, haunted by
the beguiling friendship with the troubled young Scotsman she is certain she
will never see again.
Determined to find the woman of his
dreams, Kinnon returns to France, only to discover a trail of clues to
Melisende’s whereabouts. Their reunion will open the doors to passion, but
half-truths and lies from the past could destroy the one thing they both are
willing to fight for—each other.
dreams, Kinnon returns to France, only to discover a trail of clues to
Melisende’s whereabouts. Their reunion will open the doors to passion, but
half-truths and lies from the past could destroy the one thing they both are
willing to fight for—each other.
Your book sounds wonderful and the excerpt was great. It's been a long time since I read a medieval set in France. Definitely need this on my TBR list.
Thanks for hosting me today, Ruth! Your blog is so beautiful!
Thanks, Mary! I had a lot of fun researching this book. And I had a fantastic editor help with the French words/dialogue. I hope you have a chance to read it 🙂