(A sweet and clean holiday novella. Experience a medieval Christmas in authentic detail in this first book of the Holiday Knights Series.)
Sir Adam de Ware is on a mission as a spy for King Edward III. He is sent to Cavendish Castle to investigate some odd behavior from the earl. If he succeeds to get answers for the king, he will be rewarded when the mission is completed. Wanting to get close to the earl's daughter, the cold-hearted Lady Eva to find out more, Adam decides to seduce her. But the only way to seduce a woman like this is to appeal to what she most desires, and that is sumptuous food! Adam uses his unique skill of being able to cook delectable holiday dishes to lure the woman closer.
Lady Eva Cavendish will do anything to protect her father's secret, even forging missives to the king in her father's name. But when Sir Adam shows up at her doorstep on Christmas Eve with a roasted goose and all the fixings to offer, she finds that she can't turn him away. Since the death of her mother, the kitchen servants haven't been able to serve an edible dish and she longs for properly prepared food for the Christmastide season.
When the Lord of Misrule proclaims that Sir Adam will be cooking in the castle's kitchen during the twelve days of Christmas, Lady Eva cannot go against the custom of the twisted holiday tradition. And when Sir Adam starts to seduce her with everything from Partridge with Pears, to French Hens, to Collie Bird Pie, she finds his talents alluring and starts to fall for him.
Amidst the deceit, how long will the romance keep cooking? And will someone get burned in the end?
Elizabeth Rose is the author of medieval, paranormal, fantasy and contemporary novels. While based on romance, her novels have complex plots, action and suspense. She loves writing bad boy tortured heroes and empowered feisty heroines.
Her books have won rave reviews, and been seen on The History Channel as well as Wild Chicago. Elizabeth's books have won and been finalists in many contests. Here is a partial list:
Highland Spirit - Highland Chronicles WINNER of the Raven Award. Bedeviled - Portals of Destiny, WINNER Creme de la Cover Contest Beguiled - Portals of Destiny, WINNER - Creme de la Cover Contest
RONE Award finalists include: Doubting Thomas - Bad Boys of Sweetwater Highland Steel - Highland Chronicles Tristan - Pirate Lords Igniting Andrew - Bad Boys of Sweetwater Highland Secrets - Secrets of the Heart Seductive Secrets - Secrets of the Heart Forgotten Secrets - all Secrets of the Heart Summer's Reign - Seasons of Fortitude
Kindle Book Review Awards finalist and semi-finalist: Highland Secrets Forgotten Secrets
International Digital Award finalist: Highland Spring - Seasons of Fortitude
Golden Palm Finalist: Mary, Mary - Once Upon a Rhyme
Raven Awards Best Cover finalist: May Queen - Holiday Knights
Raven Awards Runner-Up: Lady and the Wolf - Tangled Tales
Books and Benches Reviewer's Choice: Restless Sea Lord - Legendary Bastards of the Crown
Sapphire Award Finalist: Kyros' Secret - Greek Myth Fantasy Series
Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice: Thief of Olympus - Greek Myth Fantasy Series
Seen on the History Channel: The Oracle of Delphi - Greek Myth Fantasy Series
And More!
Elizabeth is known for her many series which include:
Below the Salt Series Highland Outcasts Portals of Destiny Legacy of the Blade Daughters of the Dagger Elemental Magick Series Bad Boys of Sweetwater: Tarnished Saints Series Greek Myth Fantasy Series MadMan MacKeefe Series Legendary Bastards of the Crown Seasons of Fortitude Secrets of the Heart Second in Command Pirate Lords Highland Chronicles Barons of the Cinque Ports Tangled Tales Once Upon a Rhyme Holiday Knights Dark Encounters Cowboys of the Old West Working Man Series, and more!
Someday Elizabeth hopes to visit the castles of Scotland and England personally. However, she has been to the jungles of Peru and Machu Picchu which inspired her novels, Curse of the Condor and Bistro Bachelor.
Visit her website to view her latest books and to read excerpts of her work. .
LOL! The best way to a woman's heart is through a roasted rosemary goose!!! Q: Carefully balancing the platter on one arm, Bryce reached out and picked up the lid with the other. The aroma of the garlic and rosemary roasted goose filled the air. Mingling together with that was the tantalizing scent of the quince, apple, and sage stuffing. “My lady, I have bought and cooked the prized goose from the butcher’s shop at the edge of town. I slowly turned and seared and the fine meat on a spit over an outdoor fire for hours to give it a woodsy flavor. Then I gently stroked it with a golden liquid of exotic herbs infused with its own rich juices until the skin turned crispy. Afterwards, I gently laid it in a covered pot, coating it with a drizzling of sweet cider and red, robust wine, so it would stay succulent, juicy, and tender and not dry out.� ... “Just look at those plump quinces and golden apples that make up the stuffing.� He reached out and moved Bryce’s hand so the platter was closer to Eva. Then he held his fingers together and used them as a fan as he wafted at the air around the goose. “Can you smell the leeks and sage?� He made a big show of sniffing the air and releasing it with a sigh of satisfaction. “It smells so rich and nutty. And the velvety sauce made with the drippings has been topped off with just a sprinkle of cinnamon and mace. Did you want to sample it?� “Aye,� she said so eagerly that he half-expected to see saliva dribbling down her chin in anticipation. With one shaking hand, she greedily reached out for the goose. “Allow me, my lady.� (c)
As hilarious as that is, even the weirder phrases couldn't spoil the book: Q: his blue orbs seemed to hold many secrets behind them. (c) Q:
Mistletoe and Chain Mail Holiday Knight Series Book 1 Christmas By Elizabeth Rose
Sir Adam de Ware is a spy for king Edward III and he is sent on a mission to Cavendish Castle because there seems to be some odd behavior from the Earl of Cavenshish. The king has promised him that if he succeeds and gets the needed information that he will make Sir Adam a Baron in his own right. Adam has heard some rumors about the Earl's daughter and one of them is that she likes to eat so he decides to seduce her with food. He cooks up a delicious goose and shows up at the castle gates with his Squire and the goose.
Lady Eva Cavendish will do anything and everything possible to protect her father's secret and that includes forging missives to the king in her father's name with using her father's seal, but when Sir Adam shows up at her father's castle on Christmas eve with a roasted goose, she finds that she can't turn him away and hopes that good food might help her father as the food has been horrible. Since her Mothers death the kitchen servants have not been able to serve an edible dish and she longs for some good food this Christmastide season.
The Lord of Misrule proclaims that Sir Adam will cook in the kitchens castle during the twelve days of Christmas and Lady Eva cannot go against custom so she agrees. Then when Sir Adam starts to seduce her with every delight available, she finds his talents alluring and starts falling for him.
Will the decision to bring him into the castle be a good one or will it all blow up on her?
Elizabeth Rose writes an adorable, witty Christmas story that will not only make you hungry it will also fill your heart with joy. I fell in love with Eva and Adam. The chemistry between them was incredible and it was so enjoyable to just sit back and read this lovely Christmas story.
There’s a secret at Cavendish Castle, and King Edward has sent Sir Adam de Ware to find out what it is. Lady Eva Cavendish is the Earl’s daughter. She is said to be a cold-hearted woman. In truth, she is guarding the secret Adam needs to learn. Adam knows that Lady Eva loves good food. Adam is handsome, charming, and brave, and he can cook. He plans to use his culinary skills to get close enough to Eva to learn why her father will not go to see the king. His plan might work. If it doesn’t, his goose is cooked!
Mistletoe and Chain Mail is a happy Christmas story with charming characters, a look at Medieval holiday traditions and dishes, and a bit of mystery. Adam and Eva were wonderful together, a little sparring and a lot of fun. Grandmother is protective of the family and scares Bryce (Adam’s squire), who in turn frustrates Adam. Putting the whole thing together, and Elizabeth Rose does it very well; we have good fun, good food, and good company. This is a wonderful beginning to the Holiday Knights series. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a Christmas treat.
Experience a medieval Christmas in authentic detail in this first book of the Holiday Knights Series.
Sir Adam de Ware is on a mission as a spy for King Edward III. He is sent to Cavendish Castle to investigate some odd behavior from the earl. If he succeeds to get answers for the king, he will be rewarded when the mission is completed.
Lady Eva Cavendish will do anything to protect her father's secret, even forging missives to the king in her father's name. But when Sir Adam shows up at her doorstep on Christmas Eve with a roasted goose and all the fixings to offer, she finds that she can't turn him away.
This is a delightfully humorous holiday novella by Elizabeth Rose.
The angst and attraction between our hero and heroine make it an interesting and well written read.
This not to be missed novella by fans of this author is a quick read.
I gave this book 4.25 of 5.0 stars for storyline and characterization. It is a sweet/clean read with no sexual interaction. It is like a fairy tale in that sense and could be shared with your teen or even pre-teen.
I truly enjoyed Adam and Eva’s story because the sites and smells of the holiday were evident in the many dishes that Adam prepared for Eva. I love how in-depth the research was and the traditional dishes that were served in the medieval period. I completely sympathized with Eva in protecting her father from getting his title and lands stripped from him and I cannot say were I in her place that I wouldn’t have done the same thing. I would love to have some of the recipes for the dishes that were prepared in this book. I was very impressed with the fact that Adam, despite him being a knight, not only cooked as well as he did but also liked doing so. I just had to read the whole book in one sitting because I was always intrigued by what was going to happen next. Would they discover Eva’s Secret? Which should be tried for treason? I won’t spoil the ending by telling you what happened because you can read it for yourself and I highly recommend this holiday Romance.
Another well-researched and exciting historical romance.
I enjoyed this story tremendously. It was well written and accurate for the times-including some pleasant and unpleasant ceremonies held during the twelve days of Christmas.
I really didn't like that the Earl of Cavendish would have lost his title, lands and money just because he could no longer fight for the king. Unfortunately this was a fact of life for that time period.
The only problem I had with this book was that Adam de Ware could cook and cook extremely well. This is not a skill that a knight would boast of nor lower himself to perform. It was too engrained that this was a task for servants and a knight would never lower himself to perform. Even with the explanation given.
Otherwise I highly recommend this story to anyone who enjoys accurate historical romances, feisty heroines and ingenious heroes.
To fall in love with the hero is just the best! Mistletoe and Chain Mail by Elizabeth Rose is book 1 in the Holiday Knights series. Elizabeth’s stories are just too delightful not to read and I always look forward to her new releases. Her characters are wonderful, her descriptions are very vivid, easy to read and always original. This medieval book is a must read. This story has deception, kindness, schemes, a spy, an accident, treason, an amazing cook, protection, controlling, lots of celebrations and love. I highly recommend you read this Yuletide story or any of Elizabeth’s books, you won’t be disappointed!
***This book was gifted to me and I am voluntarily reviewing.
A Christmassy Tale. I loved reading about all the long ago Christmas traditions (that I have recently read about in Alison Weir’s book A Tudor Christmas) bound up in a novel. All the descriptions of scrumptious festive fare made me drool and look forward to the coming holiday. The romance between Sir Adam and Lady Eva was delightful and I could appreciate the terrible position that the Cavendish family found themselves in. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from the author. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Such a wonderful and delightful Christmas story, I thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish. I fell in love with Sir Adam right from the start, what a character he is...and he knows how to cook!!! Lady Eva starts off as seeming to be quite angry and miserable but you soon learn why she's acting that way and it doesn't take long before you know she's perfect for Adam. I loved reading all about the various dishes that Adam cooks, all popular from that era. My mouth was actually salivating at times! lol All in all, this book was perfect and I highly recommend it!!
Eva and her grandmother are trying to keep it a secret from the King that her father had an accident, which left him with a broken leg and a stroke. They are concerned that the king will strip him of his title and land. Sir Adam is a knight, sent by the King himself, to find out why the Earl has been avoiding him. Sir Adam, arranges a way for him to stay in the castle, as a cook, so he can discover what Eva is hiding. As Adam and Eva prepare for the Christmas festivities, they develop feelings for each other. This is a sweet Christmas novella and I really enjoyed reading
Sir Adam cooked a special goose to get into the Cavendish castle. The food they had been eating wasn’t very good. She Adam stayed a while cooking and pleasing Lady Eva. The Earl Cavendish was hurt from an accident and not able to take care of business. Sir Adam was a spy for the king and was to find what was going on. Sir Adam and Lady Eva fell in love. The king came to visit and allowed Sir Adam to become a Baron. Baron Adam and Lady Eva was able to keep the castle and her family.
Eva has a secret at least she thinks no one knows!? Adam has been sent by the king to seek out the truth of why his missives have not been answered by the Earl! Eva is known for her bitter snippy attitude to keep people away that might learn of her fathers condition! Eva grandmother loves her son but she is a bitter old crone! Eva was worried about the wrong thing she had done so much to protect her dad and clan but would not accept an opportunity for true love? The four stars are for the hero who is honourable, handsome and a wonderful cook!!
What is not to like about a knight that can cook and make delectable dishes? Sir Adam is sent to Cavendish Castle to find out what is happening with the Earl and his behavior noticed by the king. Determined to get the truth, he takes the route of trying to get close to Lady Eva, the Earl's daughter. So what is the quickest way to her heart? Using his skills as a good cook and making scrumptious holiday dishes that she could not resist! But Eva has a family secret she is determined not to reveal it. Fortunately Adam with his skills in cooking and seduction, might break her barriers but you never know! Loved the research that went into this story with all the different dishes and they really sounded good! Elizabeth Rose, always writes a tale, I could not put down until the end!
What a wonderful Christmas novella read. I read this in one day and enjoyed every minute of it. I loved all the little references to the song �12 days of Christmas� and many of the customs of medieval times. It is obvious that Ms Rose put a lot of research into the customs. The characters were well written, full of feeling and understanding. It was a clean read and a great beginning to Ms Roses “Holiday Knights � series.
Adam is sent on a mission by the king to find out what is happening at one of his earls properties. He meets the daughter, Eva and through sumptuous dishes mimicking the twelve days of Christmas and kisses he tries to find out why her father keeps putting off a visit from the king. Once he finds out the truth and declaring his love for Eva will he be able to save her home without deceiving the king?
The story starts with Adam, a handsome Knight that can cook, Eve a Lady that loves to eat and a very delicious smelling goose and you need to read the book to find out what happens next. I really enjoyed the book, especially reading about Medieval Holiday traditions and the Medieval Holiday dishes. I like the characters a lot. I highly recommend this book.
I received a ARC for my honest opinion. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Adam- A knight that can cook sent by the king to spy on the Earl. Eva- daughter of the Earl I enjoyed listening to this captivating audiobook that is fantastically written/told with Charismatic characters and witty dialogue. I liked the use of the 12 days of Christmas song/theme in medieval times . Their story has a wonderful HEA. Kevin E Green did a great job of telling the story using different "voices" for each character and maintaining that voice per character throughout the story.
This was a sweet read with love coming quickly. Adam was a bit hard to take at the beginning because of how pushy he was. As his acts of kindness grew to love, I liked him much better. Eva was a good woman, trying to keep things together, but she had her moments of vulnerability. There were a few tears at the end for me.
The twelve days of Christmas along with all of the pagan foolishness makes a light delightful merry tale of it's own; however, add Adam & Eva's strange relationship to it made me smile. The mixing of holiday foolishness mixed with huge amounts of tasty spiced food and love possibly on the sidelines is exciting & joyful. Recommend
another wonderful book from Elizabeth Rose. Wonderful Christmas story with complex interesting characters. Interesting bits about the food of the period. Sir Adam could cook, which may have been odd for a knight. You will love Lady Eva as you continue to read. loved it!
Mistletoe and Chainmail: Holiday Knights series book 1
Adam was a kings spy. Eva had something of her father's, the earl, to hide. This was a very good book. I enjoyed everything about it. Do you think Adam told the king the Earls secret?
Sorry Rose. But I can't stand Adam. I read 5o% and couldn't read anymore. He was way too pushy. And no way would a man get away with that BS in my house. I do t care what year it was.
I have enjoyed this as well as your other books. I have to get off deep reading and read something light. It was a interesting story. I love history and even at almost 81 I still learn something new.
A fast paced sweet story of woman who would do anything to protect her father. A King’s spy who falls in love and almost gives up everything he’s worked for, for love.
I enjoyed the story and the characters. A special bonus was learning some of the medieval Christmas celebration customs. (One really seemed barbaric) I received an arc of this book.
I would have to say that I found this story very unpredictable and kept me interested from the beginning until the end It was very much like a fairy tale
Story had potential! Well researched too. Characterizations were so weak and choppy. Dialogue cringeworthy. This was my first and last read by this author.
I found this story to be very quirky compared with some others by this Author, however it was a lovely way to spend some time and revisit a couple of the characters from that era.