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Title: Diana by the Moon [3 1/2 Diskette, HTML] by Tracy Cooper-Posey ISBN: 1-58200-569-9 Publisher: Hard Shell Word Factory Pub. Date: 01 August, 2000 Format: Diskette List Price(USD): $6.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.5 (2 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Very highly recommended
Comment: Fans of Tracy Cooper-Posey's diverse and unique work will be delighted to read her newest release, DIANA OF THE MOON. With the consummate skill readers have come to expect, Cooper-Posey presents a memorable tale of a woman's evolution.
Diana, daughter of the Roman Marcellus Aurelius, is named for the goddess of the moon and of the hunt. Alaric, a prince and cousin to Merlin, serves as an officer in his cousin Arthur the Pendragon's forces. If they survive, and if they can overcome their mutual enmities, they must find a way to link their destinies both for personal survival and for the survival of Britain.
The rise of Arthur brought forth the realization that the citizens of Britain who still viewed themselves as Roman citizens, as Diana's family does, must learn to look at old ways with new eyes or perish. Under Roman law a woman must marry or enter a convent when she passes marriageable age. Indeed, twenty-one year old Diana had preferred to lurk in the shadows and escape her parent's notice. But when a Saxon invasion deprives the family villa of all older members of the family, the governing of the land and its people falls to the previously ignored middle daughter. Over the course of a year, Diana creates a new place for herself in life as the leader and guardian of her household. Using her father's journals as guides, she ensures her people's survival in the face of starvation and invasion.
Arthur Pendragon brings a new hope for the future, according to Alaric. But when the soldier arrives, insistent upon setting one of a string of many beacons across Britain, Diana only acquiesces when Alaric threatens to use Roman law against her. Alaric warns of a Saxon invasion and works to unite the people of Britain under Arthur's protection. But the Roman inhabitants of Britain, abandoned for the last fifty years, still place their allegiance with Rome, scorning Britain's ... upstart.
Diana is outraged by the placement of the beacon upon her property. But she hasn't much choice when reminded that Roman women do not own property. Further, Diana soon will learn it isn't the British soldiers she need fear, but the plots of the other Roman citizens who view her position as weak, and her property ripe for the taking.
Diana's namesake, the old Roman goddess was both the hunter and the moon goddess. It will take all the skills both elements bring to overcome her adversaries, the threat of starvation, and a Saxon invasion. Not only must she protect those whom she shelters, but she must learn to trust herself and Alaric if she wishes to live a dream of equality rather than subservience. Rather than focusing on the past, as most Roman citizens do, Diana must learn to build a new future, and stay alive long enough to succeed.
Tracy Cooper-Posey has a remarkable narrative voice that lends itself perfectly to whatever genre she chooses. In her romantic tale EYES OF A STRANGER, her voice was smooth, silky with an underlying sensuality that bordered on decadence. Her Sherlock Holmes tale is almost appropriately British in tone; that is, very proper, logically articulate, and methodical.
With this marvelous tale she perfectly captures the strength of her incredible heroine in prose which is distinctive, sharp, crisp and yet powerfully feminine. This reviewer can hardly wait to see what genre this talent author tackles next; indeed, it seems nothing is beyond her pen's capacity.
Rating: 4
Summary: Lee Padgett, Reviewer for Compuserve and The Book Nook
Comment: It is 50 years after the last Roman legions have left Britain. Saxons are invading the land. After a raid that leaves much of her family dead, Diana is the only one left to run her family's estate. Although it is not permitted, under the last vestiges of Roman law, for a woman to own property, Diana has no choice - her older brother has already abandoned the family in order to follow a new leader - Arthur Pendragon. If she does not take over, her people will die.
Alaric and his company of men are on a mission for the Pendragon - set up a series of signal fires atop the tallest hills between Arthur's headquarters in Caer Leon and Eboracum. When they come across an apparently abandoned Roman villa, Alaric thinks he has found the last vital link. Then he discovers the villa isn't abandoned; a handful of skeletal people remain, their survival dependant upon one small young woman of proud Roman descent, as fierce and stubborn as a feral kitten.
Diana has no intention of allowing these Celts -- the hated Arthur Pendragon's men, to boot! -- to take over her estate. She can barely manage to house and feed the few people that remain; Alaric and his knights will fatally deplete their meager resources. Her abuse at the hands of the Saxons has left her with a desperate need to control, and a virulent fear of men. She and Alaric finally strike an uneasy bargain. Diana and her "guests" gain the unwanted attention of the bishop of Eboracum, who has cast his greedy eye on Diana's land. He decrees she must marry his Roman nephew or risk losing her family's property altogether. Diana is forced to strike yet another bargain with her Celtic adversary -- marriage.
Privately, Alaric and Diana each convince themselves they are only marrying for mutual material advantage. Alaric guards his own dark secrets, and has good reason to guard his heart. Yet he finds himself fascinated by this fierce woman who seems at once drawn to and terrified of him. And Diana learns, through his gentle tutelage, what passion means. Alaric, Diana and their people begin to work together to rebuild the estate -- until Arthur recalls Alaric to Caer Leon.
DIANA BY THE MOON easily ranks as one of the best historical romances I have read this year. Tracy Cooper-Posey deftly blends historical detail with heart-touching romance, a beautifully rendered plot and compelling characters that will haunt you for days after you read the last page.
Highly recommended for lovers of historical romance.
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