Desert Isle Keeper

Beguiling Her Enemy Warrior is the third and final installment in Lucy Morris’ Shieldmaiden Sisters series following three Viking sisters as they find love while fighting against the same enemy. This is the youngest sister Helga’s story, which takes place at the same time as the events of book two, Tempted By Her Outcast Viking. In this book, Helga is captured by Lord Rhys, who demands the return of his own sister.

Lord Rhys’ sister was betrothed to marry Helga’s brother-in-law in order to broker peace with Ulf, Rhys’ rival, but instead ran away with her guard. Rhys does not know this, however, and believes that kidnapping Helga means her family will influence Ulf to release his sister. Rhys is surprised to find that Helga puts up a rather good fight when he and his men try to kidnap her. She is eventually overpowered and they begin their journey back to Rhys’ kingdom.

When Helga was a child, she and her sisters played a rune game in which she rolled a dragon – and because a dragon is Rhys’ symbol, she Helga believes Rhys is her destiny, and because of this, she chooses to stay with him once they reach his keep. There, Helga begins to insert herself into the lives of his people, endearing herself to them. All the while, Rhys starts to slowly thaw towards Helga and allows her into his heart more and more as they wait for Ulf’s army to arrive.

I had been looking forward to Helga and Rhys’ tale since I read Brynhild and Erik’s (Tempted by Her Outcast Viking) and I am so glad I wasn’t disappointed. I absolutely love the Beauty and the Beast trope, and this title does it justice. Often such stories dissolve almost immediately into instalust or the hero is grumpy for all of one chapter before completely coming out of it, but that isn’t the case here, which made it such a delight to watch Rhys grow and change as a person as Helga draws him out. It makes the change seem so much more realistic. Helga herself undergoes changes as she becomes closer to Rhys; she grows up quite a bit and becomes a more self-assured woman.

Lucy Morris effortlessly blends action sequences with the romance happening between her heroes and heroines and there’s no exception to that in this book. Even as Rhys and Helga enjoy a short respite from the threat of Ulf and his warriors, the knowledge he is coming is still enough to keep the tension in the air in anticipation of the coming battle. The battle scenes themselves are also well written, making it easy to picture exactly what’s happening.

With a sweet and steady romance, a grumpy hero that slowly opens his heart, and plenty of action, Beguiling Her Enemy Warrior has a little something for everyone. I continue to love everything Lucy Morris writes.