The gripping saga of four exceptional women, Lady Mairenn Morgan of Wales, Spring Rain and Bright Star of the Blue Ridge Mountains, and Bedelia of Georgia, bound by tragedy, a love that transcended time, an ancient Goddess, and a Warlock who haunted them through generations.
Review by Rob Preece, Author and Publisher: After attempting to burn Mairenn Morgan at the stake for witchcraft, her cousin Sir Adrian Maddox, an evil warlock, pursues Mairenn to the new world of Colonial America. There he links with an Indian Shaman, granting the Shaman power and even immortality in exchange for his support in pursuing first Mairenn and then three more generations of women descending from Mairenn. Because Mairenn's blood holds the one threat to the wizard's ultimate victory.
When her Cherokee parents are murdered, Bedelia Connall is adopted by Michael Connall, who raises her as a white settler, but mixed-blood Bedelia burns to claim her Cherokee self as well as her white. When she finally has a chance to visit the capital of the Cherokee Nation, however, Bedelia discovers that this ancient people is under attack both from within and from their white neighbors who see the Indians as blocking their desperate need for land. Bedelia attracts the attention (and lust) of three men--white Indian Agent Julian, Indian Warrior Hector (Fire Panther) and shaman Black Eagle. All want Bedelia--desire her for her intelligence, wit, and beauty. All also see a hint of her power--with Black Eagle in particular able to reach out to that power. Bedelia fears Black Eagle, desires Fire Panther, and feels intellectually bound to Julian. Discovering and heeding her own heart will prove to be a challenge--just as it was for her grandmother, the original Spring Rain.
Author Kristina O'Donnelly (see more BooksForABuck.com reviews of novels by O'Donnelly) spins a compelling story of magic, the attempts by both Indian and whites to create a sustainable Cherokee Nation, Colonial and early US history, and four generations of women who must confront both the powers of evil and the difficulties of walking upon two violently opposing worlds.
Four Stars -- Reviewed 7/14/07
SPRING RAIN ON THE WIND is available in HTML, Adobe Acrobat PDF, Microsoft Reader LIT, Palm DOC (Aportis) and Mobipocket formats.
Excerpt:
Streaks of lightning crossed the landscape below. No trace of Robert. Shadows of the forest swirled around them, and the wind brought the acrid stench of death, the taste of musket-powder and dirt. Spring Rain asked, "Do you believe Robert will manage to pass through their ranks undetected?"
His laugh was bitter. "Why ask me? Are you not the one with all the answers?"
"As it was with you, the father, my vision remains blank when I seek answers pertaining the son."
"My boy is only eighteen," he spoke through clenched teeth, "he left his good life in London to assist me in my search for you. Indeed it would be a strange fate if, after surviving all that hardship and torture, he should end up slain by his own kind and left buried here.”
Suddenly a Northerly wind blew in, heavily scented with conifers and the smolder of fires.
Spring Rain spoke firmly, "Robert will return with help. And he will carry on your name. Bradford, beloved mate of my soul, please believe me when I say nothing is lost in the universe."
Taking one last look at the magnificent, rain-soaked dawn splashing itself upon the Cherokee lands, Spring Rain added, "Beloved, listen to me, listen and have faith. I sow the seeds of our longing for each other onto the wind .... One day, they will return to earth with the rains of spring. And then our souls will take root and blossom, giving us life once again."
He replied softly, "For this life, I only hope that our bones may rest gathered together."
Ready to buy? Click the 'Buy Now' Button. (Transaction processed by PayPal for your security)
