Book Review- Judith Mcnaught- A Kingdom of Dreams

A Kingdom of Dreams is a prequel or sequel (it is supposed to be first in the series but was written after Whitney, my love) to her smash hit Whitney, my love. It narrates the love story of the first Duke of Clarymore who is referred to many times during Whitney, my love.

The story is a little different from other novels of Judith Mcnaught. It is set in the fourteenth or fifteenth century unlike her other novels which are set in eighteenth and nineteenth century.
It narrates the story of a proud scottish girl, Jenny Merrick who is the daughter of her tribe's leader. Her town is going to be attacked by 'The Wolf' a dreaded english commander of troops. Jenny and her sister are captured by The Wolf's (Royce Westmoreland) troops and imprisoned. It is in the camp of the english army that Jenny falls in love with the Wolf (who later becomes the Duke of Claymore). Later, she is forced to marry him and reluctantly agrees. They evetually fall deeper in love and conquer their differences.

The story has a dark atmosphere because it is set is medieval times. The male character was a little unconventional (even though he was a Duke) because he wasn't spending his time courting ladies at high end parties. He was rotting in camps trying to conquer lands. Jenny is a little bit stronger than other heroines of Judith Mcnaught because she is stronger physically than mentally and is famous for her troublesome nature. She is sent to be a nun at the church but later comes back.

There is some humour in the story which diverts attention from the dark atmosphere. There is war going on all the time and most of Jenny's love happens in the camp so, the atmosphere tends to be a little depressing. The love is quite slow. The book begins well with Jenny complaining of the hostile atmosphere before her marriage but later slows down (and is a bit boring) as Jenny narrates her adventures before the marriage.

I felt the end was a little abrupt. Their love could have been given more time to develop after they arrive at Royce's house. While there was all the romantic development that was needed, the story could've dragged a little more. It felt a little incomplete (even with the happy ending).

The hero and heroine were equally strong in the book unlike many of her other books where the heroines try to show they're smart by showing intellect with no success.

Overall, this books was not as great as her classics but is one of the good romance novels written by Judith Mcnaught. My only complaints were the abrupt ending and depressing atmosphere. There are no balls or social gatherings- only wars. The story is set in medieval times with more of knights and wars than balls and parties.

Overall rating- 4.1/5

Pros

Hero
Heroine
Strong side characters
Title
Cover

Cons

Abrupt ending
Dark tone