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‘My father has fought bulls singlehanded in the arena,’ said the boy. ‘He is brave as a lion. He has never been defeated. He is the Conqueror of the World. How could he be conquered—by a pirate fleet of heathen Moors?’

‘The East is Europe’s worst danger,’ said a dry voice in dusty answer.

‘It was. But my grandfather drove all the Moors out of Spain after they’d ruled and ravaged here for seven hundred years. And he was not half as great a man as my father.’

‘No, but his wife was,’ the tutor muttered, all but sniggered, and covered it with a hasty cough, his precise tone at once correct again. ‘My Prince, it is not the heathen who have conquered the Holy Roman Emperor, the “lnvincible Emperor.” It is the winds and the waves of the sea. Listen to the storm raging even now against this tower.’

He stooped eagerly forward, his sharp nose peaked against the light, his black-sleeved arm swooped to draw back the heavy curtain, and in a dramatic gesture pushed aside a wooden shutter.

Outside the small panes of glass a jagged landscape leaped into shape against a frantic sky. Those were not the Guadarrama range that Prince Philip knew, but the mountains of hell.

‘Look at the lightning,’ insisted the tutor, a stiff man but now curiously gloating, as many a peaceable man will do in a scene of violence in which he need take no part. ‘Hear the rain flailing down on the stones of the courtyard far below. These are the enemy who conquered the Emperor Charles V at Algiers, smashed his great ships to splinters against the rocks, blew his tents away like dandelion clocks on the sea-shore.’ Something chilled his enjoyment in his descriptive powers.

He turned from the window and saw his Prince looking at him. Philip said coldly, ‘The storms show the wrath of heaven. It is God who directs the winds and waves. “He spoke and His enemies were scattered.” Do you tell me that God fought for the Moors against the Emperor my father?’ Another flash, a long rending crash tore the sky across as he spoke.

‘This is blasphemy,’ said the boy. ‘God himself denies it.’ Dr. Siliceo hastily snapped the shutter to again and pulled the curtain over it, shutting out the enormous scene from the stuffy glittering little room. Candle flames in the draught, which even glass, wood, and tapestry could not suppress, winked against the silver figure writhing on the crucifix, flickered over the livid blood—pink and blue in a Flemish picture.

‘Certainly,’ said Dr. Siliceo severely, ‘it is blasphemy for Your Highness to deny victory to your illustrious father. That is exactly what I was explaining. You must write and tell him that you understand his defeat was caused by no human agency; it was by the command not of God but of the Devil.’ As so often, Philip felt himself rebuked without quite knowing why. ‘I will write,’ he said heavily.

Yes, he must write. Yet again.

Pen, paper, and ink. More and more paper, more and more ink, yet another pen. He was always doing it. ‘He fights and I write,’ Philip muttered. It was all he could do, while his father fought battles, risked his life in them. ‘Emperors don’t get killed in battle,’ Charles V had often scoffed to those who tried to restrain him, but he had very nearly disproved it this time. His wretched troops had been mowed down in a surprise attack in the drenching night, some had broken and fled; the whole army might well have been totally destroyed if the Emperor had not seized his sword and rushed into the front ranks, rallying them by his courage alone to drive their attackers back into Algiers.

If only Philip had been there at his side! But he would have been no use; only an added responsibility and anxiety to his father. His common sense saw it clearly though bitterly.

One day he would be a full-grown man, he would be a great soldier like his father; he would have more and bigger ships than any in the world, and his armadas would avenge this defeat suffered by the armadas of Spain.

Yet the hope of doing what his father had failed to do lay heavy as lead upon his spirit. Lethargy fell on him like sleep; he longed to sleep, to die, and never to be called upon to prove himself as great a man—no, greater even—than his father. ‘Let me alone, for I am not better than my fathers.’

‘Let me alone,’ he said aloud. That of course could not be taken literally. Dr. Siliceo retired to a corner of the room and bent his head over a book, low, lower, as his breathing grew louder. He could sleep.

To sleep, to die, to lie forever carved in marble like the beautiful young Prince Juan on his tomb at Avila, who had never had to live to be King of Spain but had died instead at sixteen. Philip would not be afraid to die. But to live; to take over the mastery of more than half the world; to make swift decisions in the heat of action; to break the power of his arrogant nobles and then seem to make friends with them, while always distrusting them; to trust no one, depend on no one, to listen to advice and take none of it—yes, Philip was afraid to live. How could he ever do it all?

He was small, he was not very clever, and two great Kings would hem him in on either side, his father’s lifelong rivals, older than his father and much bigger, two crafty wicked giants, but his father had outwitted and defeated them, outrun them in the race for the Empire. They were Henry VIII of England, huge as a bull, with a bull’s brutal inimical stare, in the full flush of his career of murderous matrimony; and the sly ‘Foxnose,’ François I of France, also well over six feet, whom his father had conquered and captured in battle and held as his prisoner for two years in Madrid. The French would never forgive it, watched always for the chance to attack Spain with every ally they could muster, even the heathen Moors.

Yes, the Very Christian King of France had actually joined forces with the fanatic enemies of Christ, with the Sultan, Soliman the Magnificent, and his slave-born sea-captain Barbarossa the Red-beard, and helped them to build up this pirate fleet at Algiers with the Moors who had been driven out of Spain. From that ancient port on the North African shore they raided the seaports of Spain, destroyed Spanish shipping and trade, and drove the wretched coast-dwellers further and further inland to the safety of the mountains.

‘Three things from which no man is safe,’ said the old Moorish proverb. ‘Time, the sea and the Sultan.’ And now the sea and the Sultan had defeated his father, and no man was safe. No man was safe until he was dead.

The boy laid down his pen on the blank sheet of paper and stared at the tortured figure on the crucifix. Yes, even He was safe in spite of His sufferings, since there had been nothing more to do but suffer unto death.

He rose and walked to the window, making no sound even when he drew back the curtain and the shutter. No lightning now pierced the dreadful night; nothing could be seen. Yet he saw something, the pale glimmer of a face framed in a nun’s coif, and it was looking at him.

It could not be; the tower rose sheer from the rock, no one could be there, floating in space fifty feet above the ground. He was seeing a vision, a nun’s face. Relief surged over him in an engulfing wave; God had sent him the answer to all his fears and doubts of himself in the world; He meant him to renounce the world and become a monk.

The nun’s lips were moving, speaking to him; he could hear no word through the thick glass, nor could he do so, if the window were open, against the roar of the tempest. Yet he knew what she was saying to him, dead contrary to his thought. ‘Go back,’ she said, ‘back to all you have to do.’

‘I have not the strength.’

‘You will have all the strength you can bear.’

Originally published in 1946, Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain brings Margaret Irwin’s Elizabeth I Trilogy to a brilliant close. Being first published in 1946, this books holds a different feel than the books published today, yet it also holds a timelessness to it that makes the reader fall in love with the writing style. Having read the first two books, I have to say that the third is my favorite. Although while the book is supposed to be centered on Elizabeth, I felt that it showed more of Philip than it did Elizabeth.

This was a grand read with a brilliant tone that I highly recommend.



I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Originally published in 1953 this was the last book in Margaret Irwin’s "Young Bess" series. Because it was written in an earlier era the book is not a racy bodice ripper - something that I appreciate. It’s not that I’m a prude - but I do get a tad tired of the "sex sells" philosophy- especially in relation to good historical fiction writing.


This book revolves around Philip of Spain’s relationship with Elizabeth. The staunch Catholic, philanderer (depending on your point of view I guess) and husband of Elizabeth’s half sister Queen Mary, lusted for Elizabeth. This aspect of Elizabeth’s life provides a fresh point of view which I quite liked. I think Ms. Irwin did an excellent job of portraying the historical context and the book is rife with court life details. It’s a book that I enjoyed reading and thinking about all of the "what ifs" made for some interesting "grist for the mill".


I don’t believe that I have read the first two books in this series - but would like to. It’s a good stand alone book but reading it in series might be worthwhile. Sourcebooks does such a great job of bringing back some of "the best of the best". This is another highly recommended read for all historical history fans - especially those of us who love Elizabeth I .


Elizabeth and the Price of Spain by Margaret Irwin is the third in a series of novels by Margaret Irwin. This novel is about the relationship between Princess Elizabeth, daughter of King Henry VIII, and Prince Phillip of Spain who is the soon to be husband of King Henry’s oldest daughter Mary, who is the current Queen of England. The series was first published in 1946-1953. This newly released novel from Sourcebooks tells the story of the love /hate relationship between Princess Elizabeth and Mary. This historical novel gives us an insight into the Tudor court with the Catholic Mary and Phillip and Protestant Elizabeth. Mary hopes with the help of Phillip that she can bring back Catholicism to England. Phillip in the meantime becomes attracted to Elizabeth. I think this is actually the first account I read which explains the animosity that is to come between Phillip and Elizabeth during Elizabeth’s reign. This series is very well researched and even though it was written in the early 50’s, it still has a modern feel to it. Any historical buff will enjoy this series.

This was an enjoyable conclusion to the three part trilogy by famed author Margaret Irwin. The book can be read as a stand alone, but I am looking forward to reading the first two in the series: Young Bess: The Girl Who Would Be Queen and Elizabeth, Captive Princess: Two Sisters, One Throne.

These books were originally published in the 40s and 50s. Sourcebooks is continuing their grand tradition of reintroducing fantastic books to readers of today. The books come across a bit more reserved than many of the modern stories about the Tudors that we’re used to reading. I felt it was a refreshing change to see these characters in a different light. Obviously the historical facts can’t be altered, but the author’s own inspirations and influences reflect in her writing. It was also nice to see a lot of the sexual content toned down and not becoming the central theme or focus of the story.

I found it interesting that Margaret Irwin was able to tell us Philip’s story while still being true to Elizabeth and her glory. So many of these characters that played such important roles in Elizabeth’s life don’t usually get a chance to share in the spotlight. She was such a larger-than-life individual that others faded into the background when she was near.

I definitely recommend this book to fans of the Tudor stories and good historical fiction. It was a quick read and I know I will be re-reading it after I’m done with the first two installments.


Margaret Irwin (1889-1969) is a quintessential writer of historical fiction. Her works have captivated readers for decades and the reprint of the final book in her trilogy based on Queen Elizabeth I, Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain is a remarkable look into the lives of Henry VIII’s daughters. Readers who have never read Irwin’s work will fall in love with her descriptive prowess and smooth writing style. Long time fans will relish in the fact that Irwin’s books are still in print and available to a new audience.

Princess Elizabeth is constantly a thorn in the side of her powerful and ruthless half-sister, Mary. The dynamic Elizabeth intrigues just about everyone she meets, including Mary’s unwilling husband, Philip, Prince of Spain. Philip and Mary have similar views and ideas on most things from religion to the crown, but Elizabeth a Protestant arouses Philip with her intelligence and beauty. When Mary figures out a way to get rid of Elizabeth by accusing her of treachery, Philip holds her life in his hands. Mary loves Philip desperately and it is in his power to change her mind about Elizabeth. Mary, who is known as Bloody Mary to her subjects and Philip will decide the fate of one of the most interesting players in English history.

Margaret Irwin’s book, Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain was originally published in 1953 to great acclaim. It is the final book in her "young Bess" series, which has been re-told many times and made into a movie. Irwin’s ability to write about the Tudor women has garnered her a great following. She takes the reader inside court life to the heart of the relationship between King Henry’s VIII’s daughters.

The rivalry between Mary and Elizabeth is brought into sharp focus in this book. Mary wants nothing more than to be free of Elizabeth. She sees her as a enemy and a heretic most of the time. She realizes that Elizabeth has the potential to destroy her and on top of that Mary’s husband Philip is quite taken with Elizabeth. Irwin descriptions of court life and the tension that brewed between Mary and Elizabeth is a thing of beauty. Her writing brings out the stark reality that Elizabeth was facing. Mary was often ruthless and uncompromising, and Philip’s ardor was something Elizabeth had to keep in check at the risk of her life. I thought Irwin’s portrayal of Mary was masterful. Mary really came to life under Irwin’s pen. She became not only a historical woman who was known for her brutality but also a woman who feared what her sister could do to her. She was a very three-dimensional character.

Elizabeth’s rise to power and her later rule as Queen are never more in danger than during this time in her life. She is caught between Mary and Philip in such a way that if she made one wrong move, her life would be at an end. Irwin’s portrayal of the pressure that rested on Elizabeth was remarkable. Irwin showed the reader just how perilously close Elizabeth came to being nothing more than Mary’s half-sister. Irwin’s ability to get into the head of Elizabeth sets this book apart. She was able to show Elizabeth as young, vibrant woman, on the edge of greatness. Both Mary and Elizabeth are drawn as exceptional women who had the ability to make history, while still being vulnerable and susceptible to the cruelty of others.

I really enjoyed this book as well as the other two books in the trilogy. I recommend this one to fans of Irwin and historical fiction lovers. If you are interested in King Henry the VIII and his family this a great book for you. It is filled with great historical detail and it’s easy to see why Irwin is regarded as one of the great writers of historical fiction. It is not a long book or difficult to read. It can easily be read as a stand alone or as part of the Young Bess series.



Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain follows Young Bess and Elizabeth, Captive Princess in Margaret Irwin’s historical trilogy. Overall, I enjoyed this trilogy. I enjoyed watching Elizabeth grow up. While the politics could—at times—be confusing, it was rarely—if ever—boring. At the heart of this trilogy, of course, is Elizabeth, the second daughter of Henry VIII. And Elizabeth’s heart is ambitious and patient. Does Elizabeth want the throne? YES! Does she know that she has to be careful, calm, reserved, and patient in order to see that dream come true? Yes.

Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain was probably my favorite of the trilogy. I enjoyed the story from Philip’s point of view and Elizabeth’s point of view. I was actually surprised by how much I enjoyed Philip’s side of the story. (After all, I knew that England was soon to do battle with Spain!) I would recommend this one to those that enjoy historical fiction, to those that enjoy reading about ambitious politicians.



A religious zealot and totally dedicated to his nation Spain, Philip, King Consort knows he is to marry Princess Mary I. However, she mirrors him in terms of intelligence and beliefs. Instead he is attracted to his betrothed’s dynamic sister, the Protestant Elizabeth. He loathes his desire for his future sister-in-law, as she brings out carnal feelings he knows are unholy. Neither is aware of what awaits them and their nations in three decades.

At the same time they do their careful two steps, Robert Dudley is in love with Elizabeth. Obsessed with restoring God’s laws, Mary orders the Papal legate Reginald Pole, the great-nephew of Edward IV and Richard III to lead the reversal of the heresy her father Henry VIII caused. However, the brilliant Pole who knows overturning the Anglican heretical legacy would be a tribute to his late mom killed by the former monarch. However, he lacks the energy and ambition to take charge of the royal demand.

This is a reprint of the third young Elizabeth trilogy (see Young Bess: The Girl Who Would Be Queen and Elizabeth, Captive Princess: Two Sisters, One Throne) written in 1953. The story line has a historiographical feel to it as readers will see a different style and tone than in present day written Tudor novels. Still, fans of the era will appreciate the well written insightful look at three rivals competing for power at a time of intense turmoil.



Elizabeth And The Prince Of Spain opens with the marriage of Prince Philip of Spain to Elizabeth’s sister, Mary. Mary is the daughter of Henry VIII’s first wife, Katherine of Aragon, and she has no sisterly love for the offspring of his next wife, Anne Boleyn. The marriage is one of political convenience for Spain; Mary is more than a decade older than Philip. While he is polite, he has no real interest in Mary. Mary, on the other hand, after a lifetime of no love interest, falls devotedly and jealously in love with Philip.

This love is both the greatest danger and the safety net for Elizabeth. Left to her own devices, Mary would put Elizabeth back in the Tower and take her life. Instead, to please Philip, she restrains herself, and even brings Elizabeth to court. This is a double-edged sword. While she pleases Philip, she now watches his every move intently, afraid that he will fall under Elizabeth’s spell.

Elizabeth also faces the double-edged sword. She must please Philip enough to retain him as her protector and keep him interested in her, but at the same time, she must keep him at arm’s length. An affair with Philip would end her life as it would be the one crime Mary would never forgive.

Margaret Irwin has written a trilogy about Elizabeth and this one is the third in the series. It easily stands alone, however, as there is little suspense in the story of the Tudors for most readers. Irwin’s forte is characterization; her characters act in ways that are believable to the reader while retaining enough mystery to intrigue them. This book is recommended for readers of historical fiction.

Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain is the third in Margaret Irwin’s trilogy about young Elizabeth Tudor, the daughter of King Henry VIII and Queen Anne Boleyn who would become Elizabeth I. It is 1554: Elizabeth is under house arrest at the order of her half-sister, Queen Mary I, and faces the constant threat of execution. When Mary weds Prince Philip of Spain, he becomes central to Elizabeth’s struggle for survival.

England is still reeling from religious reformation begun in the 1520s and carried on through the short reign of the Protestant King Edward VI. Mary is determined to bring England back into the Catholic Church at any cost and believes an alliance with Spain will help her do that — and, at 42 years old, she desperately hopes to conceive a son and to remove Elizabeth from the line of succession once and for all.

Philip, meanwhile, is an unhappy bridegroom fifteen years his bride’s junior. His curiosity is piqued by rumors surrounding Elizabeth. Is she truly loyal to her sister and the Catholic Church, or is she playing an elaborate game to mask her intent to rule? Is she more of a threat dead, or alive? When the two meet face to face Philip is entranced by Elizabeth’s wit and strength, and he finds he must balance his royal convictions with a growing and inconvenient desire for the younger Tudor sister.

Irwin’s story stayed true to Tudor history, which I appreciated; however, her overlong descriptions detract from a story that needs little help to be extraordinary. Her characterizations, likewise, were hit and miss. The fragile and paranoid Mary evokes simultaneous empathy and horror through her obsequious devotion to her husband and her zeal for religious reform. She fades before the reader’s eyes as Elizabeth grows ever brighter. Elizabeth is eternally regal and so expertly calculating that even the reader cannot be sure what is genuine, and what is an act.

The problem with Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain, unfortunately, is the Prince of Spain. Irwin’s Philip is whiny, brooding, spiteful and unbearable. Even when it was warranted, I was unable to muster any sympathy for him or to feel anything during the exchanges between him and Elizabeth. Moreover, Irwin devotes far more attention to Philip than she does to her titular heroine, who doesn’t appear until Chapter Seven. It often felt like I was reading about Philip and the Tudors.

Overall, this was a decent read. I didn’t read Irwin’s first two books, Young Bess: The Girl Who Would Be Queen and Elizabeth, Captive Princess, but I will likely pick this one up again once I have.



Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain is the third in Irwin’s series about Princess Elizabeth before she became Queen Elizabeth I. Overlapping the second novel, Elizabeth, Captive Princess, it offers a fresh angle on the challenges she faced during her sister Mary’s reign, focusing on her tricky relationship with Mary’s repressed and resentful husband, Prince Philip of Spain.

Before shifting to Elizabeth’s story, the first third of the novel focuses tightly on Philip, emphasizing his thralldom to his father, the aging King of Spain, who has dictated that Philip, twenty-seven, must marry the thirty-eight-year-old queen of uncouth England. "Drink English beer, and praise it," his father instructs him. "It’s bitter, but better than their wine, since Henry sold the monasteries and lost their vineyards." Philip’s mission is to win England back for Catholicism and ultimately the Spanish crown, but Elizabeth’s popularity is a hurdle. Her head, Philip thinks, "should be lopped off." Then he meets Elizabeth with her pagan eyes, "the eyes of a mermaid who could lure men to destruction under the cruel, softly curling waves of the translucent sea."

A central theme is the tension between Philip’s religious faith and his understanding that politics requires compromise. Fearing he must lose either his soul or his mission for Spain, he tries to steer a middle course between the uncompromisingly vindictive Mary and the politically adept Elizabeth. Meanwhile, he falls deeply in lust with Elizabeth, who must steer a similarly narrow course to keep her head on her shoulders.

Though it includes many fine and thrilling scenes, Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain often slows its pace to offer an in-depth look at the clashing attitudes and belief patterns of the time and the intellectual dilemmas of men like Cardinal Pole, compassionate, intelligent, valiantly devout, and aware of his powerlessness to hold back the tides of history. Readers looking primarily for a brisk story may be disappointed, but the philosophically inclined will find this a meaty and thought-provoking read.


This is the third and final book in a trilogy. I have not read the first two. This does stand alone well, though I am definitely curious about how the three books tie into the next.


There are some politics within the book ( and I am not a political guru of any kind, I stay away from things like that) but they don’t over run the entire book. Some of them do seem to be necessary for the book.


The best part of the book, in my opinion, hearing things from two sides. You get Elizabeth’s take on some thing and Philip’s point of view as well. I love multiple takes.


In general this was a very good read. Great for historical readers who enjoy a political point of view. For those of us that don’t care much for politics, it does seem to maybe slow in those areas.


Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain by Margaret Irwin is the third and final book in her Elizabeth I Trilogy, and while I did read and review Young Bess, I missed the second book Elizabeth, Captive Princess, so I am unable to let the readers know how well Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain flows from the second book, however I believe it can indeed be read as a stand alone book. With that said, Irwin captures the sound, look, and tempo of the time period so well I cannot imagine readers wanting to miss one of the books. In Irwin’s stunning conclusion, the reader is drawn into Elizabeth’s continuously tumultuous life, as Prince Philip is to wed Queen Mary, who is no friend to Elizabeth and even accuses her of treason. Philip has very strong feelings for Elizabeth and to further complicate matters, there is the disparity of religion. Robert Dudley enters the scene, much to my happiness, as he is a person in history who has always intrigued me. Elizabeth works to clear her father’s name and to prepare for what history will prove to be a brilliant legacy. Irwin’s writing is impeccable, impassioned and well informed. The readers are immediately whisked back to the sixteenth century and the characters spring to life under the skillful hand of Irwin. My only complaints, which are not the fault of the author, are two-fold. I failed to read the second book, how I missed it I do not know and secondly, the trilogy has ended and I yearn for more. I highly recommend not only Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain, but also the previous two books in the Elizabeth I trilogy, Young Bess and Elizabeth, Captive Princess.


About the Book:

First published in 1946, Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain continues the “vivid, psychologically brilliant” (Times Literary Supplement) journey begun inYoung Bess and Elizabeth, Captive Princess. Philip, Prince of Spain, the unwilling bridegroom of Queen Mary, has been warned about the young Elizabeth. According to all reports, she is a heretic, a rebel, and a potential enemy—but she’s also alluring. Accused of treachery by Mary, Elizabeth finds herself teetering between Mary’s vengeance and Philip’s uneasy ardor, with her life in the balance. “Striking and unforgettable.”—Blog Critics

About the Author:

Margaret Irwin (1889-1969) was a master of historical fiction, blending meticulous research with real storytelling flair to create some of England’s best-loved and most widely acclaimed novels, including Young Bess, Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain, The Gay Galliard, and the Stranger Prince.

My Opinion:

This was such an unusual point of view for an Elizabethan novel. It is the third in Ms. Irwin’s series on the young Elizabeth. Her books told her life before she became queen. I read the first one (Young Bess, reviewed HERE) and liked it but didn’t love it. I did not have the opportunity to read the second. This one I found fascinating. I must admit to not knowing all that much about Philip of Spain and this book opened my eyes a bit to a man who was an important figure in Tudor times. Ms. Irwin’s book postulates that Elizabeth may not have survived Mary’s reign without Philip’s intervention and that is very interesting to contemplate.

The book is not long and was very very easy to read. In this tale you see the beginnings of Elizabeth’s years long dance of courtship while keeping all her suitors at bay. The book ends with her coronation.

I think it was the focus on the early relationship with Philip that made the book so interesting for me. With all the reading on Elizabeth I have done this was new territory. It is always enjoyable to explore new material.




Alice Shoemaker habitually goes to great lengths to avoid telling the truth about herself and her past. After agreeing to help out a friend, by shopping and cleaning for the unknown man staying at Cuckoo House, she soon becomes suspicious that her strange and obnoxiously rude client has something to hide…

Clayton Miller’s life is a mess. His career as one of the country’s best comedy scriptwriters has stalled and his long-term girlfriend has left him for his ex best friend and ex writing partner. Just when he thinks his life couldn’t get any worse, he commits a spectacularly public fall from grace and with the press hounding him, his agent banishes him to the middle of nowhere until the dust has settled. And there he meets Alice…

When Alice and Clayton discover the truth about each other they form an unlikely friendship – until Alice discovers Clayton has betrayed her in the worst possible way.

Two characters, both hiding for different reasons, meet and things happen. Both characters are very likable and quickly I cared about them and wanted to know what happened in their lives. We meet quite a few characters and learn their places in Alice and Clayton’s lives, some you love and others are those we love to hate! I look forward to reading more of Erica James’ books in the near future.