Lynn Spencer's Reviews > Tempted by Her Viking Enemy

The prompt Tales of Old made me think of medieval right off the bat. I hit my TBR piles eagerly – and ended up DNF-ing a few medievals, so after that experience, I just wanted an author whose books normally work for me. Terri Brisbin’s books usually hit the spot, and while not my favorite by her, Tempted by Her Viking Enemy actually did come close. Even though it’s the last book in the Sons of Sigurd series, it works quite well as a standalone. I had issues with some of the revelations in the suspense plot, but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t entertained at times.

Set in ninth century Scotland, this story focuses mostly on the goings on in the household of Thorfinn, a Norseman whose late first wife was one of the local Scottish women. The author sets the stage quickly, and it’s apparent that all is not well in Thorfinn’s household. For reasons that remain unclear, he has remarried Kolga, a Viking widow who apparently has a fair amount of land and power in her own right. The marriage is clearly a cause for tension between Thorfinn and his adult daughter, Katla.

As the story opens, a man mysteriously shows up and issues a challenge. Following a fierce fight, the injured prisoner is placed in the dungeon but Thorfinn mystifies his men by insisting the captive be kept alive to face justice before the king. It is revealed that Thorfinn owes this man his life, but he keeps the details to himself.

Thorfinn sends his widowed daughter Katla to tend to the prisoner, and there she learns that Brandt is himself the son of a Viking leader, Sigurd. Brandt and his brothers were cast off as outlaws after their father was declared a traitor and the brothers have been working to unravel the plot that led to false charges against their father and a massacre at the wedding of one of the brothers.

The setting in this book is almost claustrophobic since most of it takes place in the dungeon where Brandt is kept. However, that works fairly well given the storyline, because both of the leads spend a great deal of the story working through issues internally. The setting provides the space needed to advance the emotional side of the story, and there’s just enough external action to keep the suspense plot moving.

This is a partial review. You can find the complete text at All About Romance: https://allaboutromance.com/tbr-chall...