Once again Ms. Foster shows why she is a master storyteller. Her latest addition to the romance genre involves an injured warrior and time travel. I think she is the only one who can tell a story like this.
Michael “Mallet” Manchester is a fighter for SBC. He is one fight away from being a champion. Then he is severely injured in a car accident and told that he will never fight again and that walking will be a huge challenge. One leg is almost useless and he will require months of therapy just to learn how to walk. Michael is devastated and doesn’t know what to do. Then a young woman appears in his hospital room and when other people don’t notice her, Michael begins to think that he is hallucinating. Now he fears not only for his future, but also his sanity.
Kayli Raine has been sent to find a warrior, someone who will be able to rescue her colony from the threat that it is currently facing. Kayli has done her research and believes that Michael is the man she has been searching for. She just needs to convince him that she is real and that their situation is dire. Kayli also needs to remember that as a warrior she is forbidden to ever be with a man no matter how attractive she finds him.
Michael agrees to help Kayli when she promises him that she can heal his leg and make him whole again. He just doesn’t expect to end up in the year 2220 with a woman who drives him crazy and brings out every one of his protective instincts. Michael will do whatever he can to protect Kayli from her mother, her colony and her enemies as he falls head over heels for her.
This book blends science fiction and romance into a unique tale. Ms. Foster has imagined a world in which men were a precious commodity to be protected and cared for and the women are the warriors and providers. It is a thought-provoking set up to a discussion about gender roles and exactly who should be more powerful—men or women. By bringing a 21st century man into that environment, we see both perspectives. Michael shares his beliefs about gender roles and Kayli tells him why things are the way that they are. The adaptation of the roles also plays a part in why Kayli’s colony is being attacked.
The romance that develops between Michael and Kayli is powerful. They must not only learn to compromise on typical relationship disagreements, but they have had completely different lives in different time periods before meeting. They must figure out a way to make everything work. Kayli has been told that romance is forbidden to her. Michael must work around the status quo and tempt Kayli to make changes in the rules for their relationship to work.
This was an absolutely wonderful story! I loved every minute of it and was sad to see it end. I hope that Kayli and Michael appear in future books by Ms. Foster as I would love to read about their other adventures.
