Title: Mark of the Fox
Author: A. Dee Carey
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Published in by Wings ePress
IBSN: 1–59088–345–4
(2) Fox in the Mist
The son of King Leigh and Queen Kit, Prince Ryan does not want to have any part of royalty. All he wants is to become the best falconer the known world will ever know. But he doesn’t want just any falcon; he wants to train an eagle. Not to mention he has been carrying around a medallion that hangs from a chain around his neck. A woman’s face is carved on it and he truly believes that she is the woman he is destined to be with. With lots of patience he captures the eagle but at the cost of his face. What he does not realize is that the druids who are the real powers in the world have a different destiny for him. He now has his eagle at the cost of his flawless face and the horror of his parents. He thinks that it is just a scratch but is soon proved wrong when his face has to be stitched up and his friend Olyn the wizard desperately tries to summon King Arthur’s wizard Merlin to help him remove the jagged scars.
Since he could remember, Prince Ryan has been told that in King Arthur’s court no one rules under in him, flawed in any manner. Ryan does not care to rule; all he cares about is becoming the best falconer and finding the woman who has haunted his every waking and sleeping moment. He captures the eagle but at the cost of his flawless features and he does not care. But the eagle has broken her wing when he captures her. With the knight Baylor he is able to repair the damage and train the eagle to hunt. Olyn the wizard is planning to take him to Camelot to see if Merlin or any of the other wizards will help remove the scar on his face. This is Ryan’s chance to learn more experienced falconers. There he meets the king’s newest falconer who takes an automatic dislike to him. Prince Ryan wonders who he really is and why has Aquila his eagle become mistrustful of the falconer. He needs help for his eagle and the only one who can help him is the witch Ninaway. His chance comes when his uncle Aaron becomes knighted and is sent to rule the land of Cymru where the witch is said to reside. Prince Ryan knows that the Druids have plans for him but he is fighting it and does not want to become what they want of him. That is until the woman he loves life hangs in the balance and he is left with no choice but to acquiesce to their edicts.
Claret was born a fox, but a fox with a big secret, rescued by the witch Ninaway from the swirling waters of the river that took her family, the witch was enchanted with her. One day after hunting for her meal, she rolls around in fox moor and her form changes. As a fox she is carefree with not worries but to hunt for her next meal and stay alive. What happens as she changes form for the first time is an accident. Aquila the eagle has been out hunting for days spies the tiny little fox and mistakes it for her next meal. She begins her decent only to try to retreat when the fox was no more and in its place was a human female. Unable to stop her rush Aquila collides with Claret and causes huge gashes on her back with her talons. That was how Ninaway finds her. Claret is bleeding and feverish unable to care for herself or is too weak to go to the fox moor and affect the change.
She meets young prince Ryan and for some inexplicable reason, is drawn to the young man, only to find out that he was the owner of the monster who’d attacked her. The young prince saves her from Ninaway and takes her with him on his quest to become the best falconer in the known lands only to have Ninaway come after them for her own personal reasons until Merlin and Olyn asks the witch to find her for them.
A.D. Carey’s interpretation of the days of Camelot is interesting and full of adventure. Prince Ryan’s quest is to be the world’s finest falconer and find the woman that haunts his every waking and sleeping moment is intense to the point of disobeying the edicts that were put out by the Druids since the time of his birth. He does not care one wit about ruling a land like his father. That is until he is given no choice when Claret’s life hangs in the balance. He finds out that she is exactly like his mother and together they help rid the countryside of rodents. Until Claret is captured by Ninaway’s brother and becomes very ill. He then promises the Druids that he will follow their edicts if they would save her life. Then it is Ryan’s turn to fall ill and his life hangs in the balance and Claret has no choice but to give her promise too. But does she? Ninaway the witch has changed from a possessive woman who has no real love for anyone or anything to a woman with a tremendous heart. Will the wizards succeed in getting Prince Ryan to agree to the Druids’ plans for him and Claret?
Mark of the Fox has you wanting to feel sorry for Prince Ryan and Claret who don’t want their freedom taken away from them. Olyn soon finds out why he cannot contact Merlin. Merlin is so enamored by Ninaway that he does not see that she is oppressing him. Ninaway herself is a selfish witch that cannot really love anyone but the animals she heals and takes in as pets. But that is about to change since finding Claret and the adventures of the heart begins. I like this story only because it has to do with medieval times, King Arthur, and Camelot! This book is already out and I recommend that you read it. You will find yourself feeling sorry of the young people, angry at Merlin’s foolishness over Ninaway and Ninaway’s coldness. To happiness that they have all found real love. Hurry and get your copy and be transported to the time of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Enjoy it! I know I did!
Happy Reading,
Lynne Gallego
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