Her Wicked Sin
Sins of Salem
Sarah Ballance
Genre: Historical
Romance
Publisher:
Entangled Publishing
Book
Description:
Salem, MA 1692
On a moonless night, he rides into the
winter forest on his beast as black as midnight...
Dashing stranger, Henry Dunham, comes to
Salem on a mysterious errand, but is thrown from his horse in the dead of night
and rescued by the local Puritan midwife, Lydia Colson.
Haunted by her past, Lydia is running from
her own dark secrets, avoiding intrusive questions by pretending her dead
husband is simply... away. But when she and Henry are caught in a compromising
situation, one punishable by Puritan law, he saves her from scandal by claiming
to be her errant spouse... and claiming her bed.
Forced to fake a marriage, Lydia and Henry
find their passion overwhelming and their vows a little too real. As their lies
become truths, a witch hunt closes in on Lydia, threatening not only their
burgeoning love, but her life.
Excerpt:
Murder.
Lydia Colson’s nightmare lived and breathed on these
moonless nights. When the world was at its darkest, remnants of her
haunted past seemed to lurk in every shadow, denying her again and
again
the chance to start anew. No matter how justified the actions
of her past, the peace she had hoped to find in Salem Village
escaped her. It was her burden to bear.
The cruelly twisted body in her path was not.
Though stationary, the sight had crept upon her with
silent ease, an aberration on a cold, lonely stretch of road with
nothing but the woods to keep company. Lydia purposefully avoided
night travels here, but babies did not keep time, and Goody
Louder’s child had chosen to make entry in the witching hour. As a
physician and midwife, it was Lydia’s purpose to see to the birth, and
what a child he was. Healthy and rowdy, the stout babe named John
had a roar not to be ignored. The first instance of life never failed
to bring joy, to make Lydia forget. But now an unsavory reminder
of her past misdeed rested in the dirt, nearly buried in forest litter.
And he was not alone. A stallion, the same pitch as the night,
danced and pawed the earth. Its capsized rider jerked, his long frame
shuddering when the hooves clipped his torso. Might he be alive?
“Easy,” Lydia said, fighting for her own control as she
edged closer. She placed her hand on the animal’s rump, her
fingers tingling alongside the quivering flesh. The contact revealed
tightly bunched muscles alongside a tension made visible in the
rolling whites of the beast’s eyes. “Easy, boy.”
At the more intimate distance, she could see the man’s
leg caught in the stirrup and bent unnaturally to his position on
the ground. He’d fallen from his mount. Had he been dragged? What bit
of the path visible in the night showed little sign of disturbance, though
the wind might easily have stirred the leaves to hide
remnants of a struggle.
A smell of sweat mingled with a distant trace of
smoke, hinting danger. The horse snorted and hopped, the strain on
the stirrup eliciting a groan from the prone man. Would he lash
out from his pain?
Lydia bundled her nerves against the perceived threat
and scoffed at her insecurities. This stranger was in no position
to cause her harm, but should he try, the mistake would be his.
She had killed before, and she would gather within herself
to do it again.
My Review: 4 stars
This is a pretty good book. It happens during one of the most
infamous times in Salem. I had thought that that would allow me to be further
invested in the story since I'm really not big on hisorical romance. Sarah's
writing is really well done, her research thorough. This book does give insight
in what must have been a terrifying time to live in for a single woman. The
romance was also well written. I'm glad that Lydia found Henry that night in
the forest. Loved the hand-fasting part. Beautiful. I also loved the ending and
would have happily read about Robert getting whipped for his treatment of
Lydia.
I received a copy of this book in return for an honest review.
Giveaway:
$50.00 gift card Can be winner's choice of amazon or bn or
another ep vendor
About the Author:
Sarah and her husband of what he calls “many
long, long years” live on the mid-Atlantic coast with their six young children,
all of whom are perfectly adorable when they’re asleep.
She never dreamed of becoming an author,
but as a homeschooling mom, she often jokes she writes fiction because if she
wants anyone to listen to her, she has to make them up. (As it turns out, her
characters aren’t much better than the kids).
When not buried under piles of laundry,
she may be found adrift in the Atlantic (preferably on a boat) or seeking that
ever-elusive perfect writing spot where not even the kids can find her.
She loves creating
unforgettable stories while putting her characters through an unkind amount of
torture—a hobby that has nothing to do with living with six children. (Really.)
Though she adores nail-biting mystery and edge-of-your-seat thrillers, Sarah
writes in many genres including contemporary and ghostly paranormal romance.
Her ever-growing
roster of releases may be found on Amazon
, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, For the
Muse Publishing, and ENTANGLED
PUBLISHING.
Website: http://www.sarahballance.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SarahBallance
Enjoyed your review of this book. I also thought it was a well written story and totally agree with you about Robert!
ReplyDeleteThanks Karen! It's always nice to hear that my reviews are enjoyable. :)
DeleteThanks so much for reading and reviewing Her Wicked Sin. I'm delighted you enjoyed it! :)
ReplyDeleteYou are very welcome Sarah!
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