The Ground She Walks Upon
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3.8 • 11 Ratings
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- $6.99
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- $6.99
Publisher Description
Award-winning author Meagan McKinney weaves a captivating tale of destiny, desire, and a Celtic curse that can only be broken by the enchantment of love in this passionate novel set in nineteenth-century Ireland
“You are the guardian of this ring, my son, and upon your shoulders the burden of it falls.”
The ring bears the fateful sign of the serpent, and ancient Celtic legend decrees that every Trevallyan heir must wed the woman who possesses an identical ring.
The orphaned granddaughter of a woman blessed with the gift of second sight, Ravenna grows to womanhood amid dark rumors about Lord Niall Trevallyan. Drawn against her will to the brooding aristocrat, Ravenna vows to marry only for love, unaware that her destiny and Lord Trevallyan’s are inextricably linked.
Born on the night of the Druid feast—the most magical time of the Celtic year—Niall must pay the price for the lands his family ruled, or tragedy will befall him and his descendants. Now the woman he has sworn never to love is the one he must wed. But first he will have to win her heart.
“Remarkable!” —The Beacon (Macon)
“Wonderful!” —The Times-Picayune
“This novel is . . . distinguished by its colorful setting, gothic sensibility and the interaction between its appealing protagonists.” —Publishers Weekly
“The emotions between Trevallyan and Ravenna are riveting.” —Library Journal
“A lovely tale . . . filled with Irish folklore and scenery.” —Booklist
“Intriguing . . . skillfully told.” —Chattanooga News-Free Press Meagan McKinney is the author of numerous romantic novels, including Till Dawn Tames the Night, Lions and Lace, Fair Is the Rose, and The Ground She Walks Upon. McKinney is a winner of the Romantic Times Lifetime Achievement Award. Her historical romance, No Choice But Surrender, won the Romantic Times Award for Best Historical Romance by a New Writer and her second novel, My Wicked Enchantress, was a finalist for the Romance Writers of America’s RITA Award.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Rendering the fanciful plausible through strong characterization, McKinney ( When Angels Fall ) spins a romance set in Ireland in the middle and late 1800s. According to a Celtic legend, arrogant Lord Niall Trevallyan is destined to marry the woman whose identity is signaled by a magical cross. When the ancient amulet is interpreted, the intended bride seems to be an illegitimate baby, Ravenna. Trevallyan flaunts his scorn for the ancient plan, marrying several times but never finding the love and family he craves. When Ravenna matures, polished but headstrong, he feels stirrings of passion. Obstacles galore arise before the requisite romantic ending, including uprising by locals, pursuit of Ravenna by aristocratic rakes, accidents and a famine caused by the failure to honor the fated betrothal. Trevellyan is a fine if derivative hero, stern and powerful, sometimes even cruel, always amorous. Ravenna conventionally spars with and beds him, but McKinney adds another dimension to her portrayal by giving her literary aspirations: Ravenna writes and publishes a novel, with homage to Mary Wollstonecraft. While this novel is surely not for Wollstonecraft devotees, it is more than competently rendered, distinguished by its colorful setting, gothic sensibility and the interaction between its appealing protagonists.
