Everyone can have a bad day, week, or even a year. Spilled coffee, wrecked car, and a pink slip are the things that make up a terrible week. Bit by a wolf, losing your wealth, having your family lands and hearth stolen plus your fiancé raped makes for a rotten life. Rorik isn’t about to let these things get him down. Oh, no, he has plans, which are in Charlene Teglia’s new book, Wolf in Shining Armor.

Rorik loves the Fell Woods, especially at night—probably because they reflect him: dark, mysterious and complex. It seems fitting that he is called the Fell Wolf, which often makes rival knights think he can transform into a wolf. All the better for him since it means fewer challengers in the tournaments. He’s saving all his strength and cunning for Alan Devere who stole his birthright and future bride, Elissa, a childhood friend. A grim conquering hero returns to buy back his own lands.

Ailiss, a nearby neighbor to Rorik's estate, finds herself engaged to the dangerous Alan Devere. Her luxurious ebony locks and ivory skin drew the unwanted suitor, as well as her family’s wealth and lands. She agrees to the marriage to safeguard her family’s secret. Certain death will ensue at Devere’s hands if he discovers their family mystery. Her duty is to marry, but Devere is not her life mate. Ailiss yearns for her mate; it is time—maybe, past time.

Instead of a welcoming fiancé and a wealthy holding, Rorik finds his land stripped, his people starving, and his fiancé, Elissa, devastated and pregnant. His best friend, Simon, comforts the abused woman. Enraged beyond reason, Rorik decides to wreck vengeance on his enemy by violating Devere’s fiancé. He does not expect to have his own heart seized by the tantalizing Ailiss. What Rorik meant as the ultimate insult ends with him stealing away the intriguing Ailiss. Unfortunately, Devere doesn’t intend to let her go without a fight, a major one. The bewitching Ailiss isn’t what she appears and will do whatever it takes to stay out of Devere’s hands. Rorik’s is equally firm in his resolve to keep Ailiss—even if it means freeing his true nature and the secret of Fell Woods.

The characters in Wolf in Shining Armor are truly unique. Teglia hints at the mystery of Fell Woods, but teases the reader with tiny snippets, without revealing the entire story. Rorik is a complicated hero who displays a myriad of emotions, as well as being a top-notch knight with an incredible body. Ailiss tantalizes more by her actions than by her words. Back-story would have plumped out the story a bit, its listing stated it was a sensual quickie and it was—quick and sensual, very.

Wolf in Shining Armor is exactly what a book should be, a pleasure to read. It is not the same old boy meets girl story, far from it. A must buy for the Syneca cover art alone—buy it and see what I mean. When you feel like something totally different, reach for Charlene Teglia’s Wolf in Shining Armor, it will satisfy your craving.

Reviewed by Morgan Wyatt
© September 2006