Are soulmates stronger than time?

Synopsis

Two souls bound together but lost in time. Until now.

AD 80 

Duro of the Iceni tribe escaped life as an enslaved gladiator and is now finally home in Britannia with one thing on his mind: vengeance. For 20 years he has sought the Roman legionary who destroyed his family. What he didn’t expect was Gisel: a fierce Germanic woman with long white-blonde hair, forced into slavery by the Romans. Hypnotised by her spirit and her beauty, Duro frees Gisel and slowly tries to win her trust as they work together to complete his quest.

Present Day

Mackenna Jackson returns to Bath with a broken heart, thanks to rockstar Blue Daniels. Luckily she can still count on Blue’s former bandmate Jonah Miller as a listening ear. But Jonah has secretly been fighting stronger feelings, drawn to Mac’s quiet confidence and gorgeous white-blonde hair. As they explore the area, memories they can’t quite explain flood them both.

Is the spark between Mac and Jonah in fact a sign of something much deeper – a love enduring through millennia – or can it all be an illusion?

My review

The time is AD 80, where Duro of the Iceni tribe finally can taste freedom again, after not only having fighting as a gladiator, but also escape the fire that killed many. Now that he is back in Britannia, he only has one mission: avenge the Roman legionary that destroyed his family many years ago. But his thirst for vengeance doesn’t take away his righteous sense. Not only does he not have the intention to take away the position of chief man of his brother, but rather wants to share is, but he also helps out a recently enslaved woman, Gisel. And the more he gets to know her, the more he hopes that she will start to feel the same as he does about her…

In present times, Mackenna sees her relationship with rockstar Blue Daniels ending after catching him in flagrant with two other women. While the paparazzi are not letting her go, ready to find any kind of gossip, she can count on the help and support of Blue’s former bandmate, Jonah, who is nothing like her ex. Slowly, Mac starts to wonder if she was perhaps too blinded by Blue, and didn’t see who would do anything for her. But while Jonah is being truly a good friend, how can she ever explain him the visions she is suddenly having, about her and Jonah but in a complete different era? And what does it mean?

Having read several books of this author, I always know that I will be captivated by the stories and will be in for a treat, even if not always the outcome is that predictable.

As I already knew, we would be having two stories for the price of one. And as I already knew, after reaching the finish, I could not possibly say which one of the two was my favourite. They are both so different from each other, and I am not only taking about them taking place in different eras, but also just generally speaking, Duro and Gisel are going through things completely different than Mac and Jonah are going through.

Of course, with the stories taking place in different eras, I also had to switch between mindset. What is normal now, wasn’t in AD 80, and obviously the other way around. So while some actions taking place in AD 80 would not be accepted now, then it was normal.

What I liked about Duro and Gisel, and not just their entwined story, but for their characters, is that they are just normal people. Well, meaning that they are not part of the ‘rich and famous’, but are a gladiator and a slave. Yes yes, I know that isn’t normal, but they are not people that have been born or gained richness and power, but they just seek for their freedom and vengeance.

Duro wasn’t a complete stranger, but it was just great to get to know this great amazing warrior better. Of course when I think about gladiators, I think about the films with the same name. But obviously being a gladiator is truly  of life and death.

Seeing him now as a free man, even not perhaps in the most  legal ways, was just great. Because I think that everyone should be a free person. And with his background, it was very understandable that he was seeking for vengeance. I cannot even try to imagine what it is like to be not only being captured, but seeing how one man and his ‘crew’ ruin your whole family…

With everything that Duro has been through, you would think that he would be a bitter, angry man. But while yes, he has these feelings, they are only directed towards one man. And when Duro isn’t fighting for vengeance, he is truly a great guy. He is caring, protective, and a man that knows what is right and what is wrong.

The way he suddenly wants to protect Gisel, a complete stranger, warmed my heart. It would have been so easy for him to just walk away when seeing this slave, but he just doesn’t.

Gisel is of course also a force of nature, not someone to mess with. She is being enslaved by a man who wants to use her as he pleases. Yet she is the kind of woman that is not afraid for fight for her freedom, she has a smart and clear mind of her own. And while she is grateful for Duro’s help, she is still wary of him. And I liked that, because she isn’t swooning over her rescuer.

What I liked about this pair, is their complicity. They don’t know each other, yet there is not only this pull between them, but they will have each other’s back no matter what. Gisel understands Duro’s wish for revenge, and as she knows how it feels, she will support him on his quest.

And seeing slowly seeing that complicity grow into more and deeper, was just great.

Of course this is a book with two stories, and I was also very eager to read Mac’s story too.

There are many prejudices towards rockstars, as they live in a world of sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll. And I was a bit disappointed to see how Blue, Mac’s boyfriend, confirmed all the clichés. But of course, with every cliché there is someone to dismiss the clichés.

And Jonah couldn’t be more perfect for the task!

He is not only truly a nice guy, but he truly cares about Mac, he listens to her, wants to help her anywhere and anyhow he can. He is being 100% Jonah, without expecting anything in return. He does everything out of the kindness in his heart, and is putting his own feelings for Mac away, because he knows that Mac isn’t in the right mindset yet for letting love back in her heart.

And Mac deserves someone like Jonah, especially after Blue… I couldn’t understand how such a genuine and real woman like Mac could have endured being with someone like Blue.

Going through a heartbreak is already difficult enough, but then being also prosecuted by the paparazzi… If you are a famous person yourself, it can be already difficult, but for normal people it must be a real nightmare!

There are reasons that make Mac and Jonah spend time together, and while they are slowly building a friendship, it’s obvious that them together is just right. And seeing an attraction grow, but also being afraid to come out too strong or too fast or not being sure that it’s reciprocated, just added extra lovely layers to this story.

Of course there has to be link between both couples. And while I perhaps am not such a believer of lovers, soulmates, finding each other over and over again, it was just fitting for this story and this author.

And yes, with Doru and Gisel going through highs and lows, I was a bit afraid of them being star – crossed lovers, only having a second chance again with them being Mac and Jonah. But even if I was a bit afraid, I found it impossible to stop reading.

Christina Courtenay wrote once again a captivating story, about hurt people, in different ways. But it is also a story about how people can find someone in perhaps unexpected ways. And it is mainly a story about how strong love can be, and that soulmates will always find a way back to each other…