Krishna
Fulke Wyland is sentenced to die. He said to all who would listen that he did not commit the crime for which he is sentenced to death but no one seems to believe him. So he has given up explaining and is preparing himself for his death. He loved the wrong woman.
In a more modern day, Kennedy is trying to help Marc who has deep insomnia and claims to have gone to an old world in a medieval novel he is reading. Kennedy also is awake for a different reason - cancer and then falls asleep. She wakes up in a meadow in the middle of carnage where a lot of soldiers and horses are dead or dying and a strange knight who she thinks is following her addresses as Lady Lark - the princess in the same book!
Fluke Wynland comes and asks if she traveled in the freight wagon. She has no answer. He asks where his maid is, and she cannot answer. She is the King Edward’s new mistress and has the enmity of the old one who was now out of favour.
She struggles with the sense of modesty in Old England times and also is unfamiliar with how to wear her vein and tiara. Confusion all around.
Now Wynland, who she believes is evil, takes her to Lady Jaspar’s place where she sees many things - Jaspar is in love with Wynland but he does not seem to care for her. Through Jaspar’s maid who was leant to her, she learns also several things : Wynland was to be made an earl but was thwarted by his stepmother who recalled her son (elder brother to Wynland) back from the monastery to become the Duke. Jaspar was promised to Wynland but when he went to a battle and was reported dead, Jaspar married a rich old noble only to see Wynland come back. Most surprising, she learns that she, Lady Lark, is now to wed Wynland!
Meanwhile the kids have been kidnapped by Sir Arthur - It is the character that her friend Mark seemed to have become before she landed here. Wynland is furious and vows to get them back. Kennedy (aka Lady Lark) knows that Sir Arthur only wants to protect the boys from being murdered by Fluke (as per the book) but is powerless to intervene.
Kennedy returns to her time after an unsettling experience. Wynland seems to be nice for a change!
Illogical as it may be, it keeps your interest. For instance, when she goes back to the historical times (as in the history book) the whole of Jasper’s castle is in an upheaval. It appears that Lady Start had disappeared for two days, even though there were guards everywhere. When she inexplicably appears, they are all completely befuddled and Jasper deduces that she must be a witch. In spite of thinking her mad because she keeps talking of ‘her dream’, Wylland seems to be infatuated with her.
In the meanwhile, we learn that the real Lady Lark was imprisoned in the dungeon. She is questioned by her captor, showing Kennedy from the top of the tower and she is asked ‘Who is she? She claims to be Lady Lark’. Lady Lark has never seen her before but uses this opportunity to overpower the guard with a loose stone and escape.
When Fulke faces Arthur Crowley (whom she knows as Mac, her colleague in the laboratory), she stops him from killing Arthur. He is wounded, though and is weak. Meanwhile finding the real Lady Lark with Arthur, Fulke is furious with Kennedy and knows her to be an imposter. He suspects her of being behind the attack and also a spy. Kennedy tells him that her name is Ned Plains.
There are nice twists, Marion, Fulke’s sister is known to be mad and has been thrice wed and thrice returned. When she pleads for Arthur’s life (whom she seems to love) Fulke discovers that she is not mad at all but only pretending to be so in order to get out of loveless matches. She says that Ned is ‘a good woman’ and what he is doing is wrong. ‘When you are old and alone, you will regret this’ she tells him. But how can he trust someone who has serially loved him?
Also what’s nice is that every time she goes to the past and changes things a little, the book given by Marc also seems to change the story and she herself comes in as an imposter.
When she finally cracks the case, finding out who kidnapped the real Lady Lark, who ‘killed’ Lady Lark and the two nephews he had sworn to protect etc, she does it with the help of a medallion - which a dying soldier had told her about - and a research on the internet in her final trip back.
Great reading. Yes, you can pick several holes in this time travel tale including the time travel itself but having read multiple genres, I realize that the genre does not matter in fiction. There are only books which are well written and those that are not. This, in my opinion, falls in the former category.
There is romance, a big mystery, time travel, clever twists, misunderstanding (as needed for most romances) and final clarification and acceptance.
The final time that she comes back also is beautifully told. She almost died again, caught in the nets of the true murderer who seemed to anticipate her every move and then finally she escapes.
The fire that killed the two boys and Lady Lark - assumed to be the act of the murderer, turns out to be of a completely different source and again Kennedy anticipates and prevents it.
A brilliant ending, good narration. Satisfying
Well done.
8/10
-- Krishna