Throwback Thursday-The Witching Hour by Nora Roberts

Author: Nora Roberts

First published in 2003 in the anthology Once Upon a Midnight by Jove

 

A kingdom is plagued by tragedy until a wizard-god's spell brings forth a courageous and beautiful young woman who must follow her heart in love and follow her destiny in battle?

If you are in the mood for a very quick listen, The Witching Hour is a nice little escape to another world.  While it's not the best short story that I have read by the author, it was a nice way to spend my long commute to work.  Aurora is a likeable enough heroine.  When she finds out that she is really a queen, she is more than ready to head into battle to reclaim her kingdom.  She is also gracious and caring about her loved ones and people.  

Being a short story there isn't a lot of build up for the romance.  The two have been in love since they were little and started seeing each other in their dreams.  I thought it was amusing that once they finally meet in person, they are both pretty disappointed.  Thankfully, this conflict doesn't go on for long with the couple and the do get their HEA.  The audio is only 3 discs. If you like fairy tales, you will probably enjoy this one. The story was initially published in the anthology Once Upon a Midnight along with novellas by Jill Gregory, Ruth Ryan Langan, and Marianne Willman.