Spirited Away by Cindy Miles

A surly 13th century knight, murdered in his own keep
A tenacious 21st century forensic archaeologist, determined to solve the ancient crime
Neither expected to lose their hearts
To each other...

I have to say... I went into this book not expecting much. Cindy Miles is a fairly new author. This books is one year old, and it's her first. What a pleasant surprise. It was adorable.

The book opens with the murder of Tristan de Barre in 1292. Fast forward to 2007, and Dr. Andrea Monroe, a forensic archaeologist, fascinated by the legend of Dragonhawk, is hired to excavate some old bones on the land of Dreadmoor Castle, home of none other than Lord Dreadmoor, Tristan de Barre.

I'll begin by saying that you have to completely suspend your sense of belief. Once you do, this story is at once charming and captivating, from the sassy Andrea to the stoic, long-suffering, yet humorous Jameson (the butler/steward), to the bold, sexy, and sensitive Tristan. I loved how he was so chagrined at being unable to assist Andi when she needed a hand (literally). You see, ghosts can't make physical contact, even though they can be seen. He feels like an utter fool, and Miles is unafraid to let the reader view him as such either.

No worries, he completely redeems himself, with lines like this:
... "I've waited more than seven centuries for you, Andrea Kinley Monroe." ... He stared, mesmerized by her almost-touch. "Christ, Andrea", he whispered. "I would give anything to taste you."

Yum.

Miles writes with a delightful sense of humor, too. Andi, discussing Tristan with another woman... "He's not like other men."
"Nay, you can't say too many modern-day chaps can measure up to that one," Kate said. "Or the whole lot of Dragonhawk's knights, for that matter. So what worries you?"
Andi pushed the hair from her eyes. "You mean other than the fact that he's dead?"

Watching these two fall in love with the audience of Tristan's knights around was sometimes giggle-worthy, and sometimes heartwrenchingly beautiful.

A superb secondary cast of characters including an array of knights, a droll butler/steward, a cute-as-a-button boy (who isn't gag-me cute, or annoying either!), and a very sweet love story round out this fun book.

I definitely enjoyed it. I can't remember where I heard about this book, but it's been lying around the house for a while. Now I'm sorry I waited so long. Miles has two additional books: Into Thin Air and Highland Knight. I'll definitely be reading those.

You can buy Spirited Away here or here.