Book Review: Mark's Noble Quest by Katharine Campbell

Mark's Noble Quest: Rosaline's Curse Book 2 by Katharine Campbell

Having a girlfriend from the 1200s can be a challenge. Expectations were different back then. Everyday heroism involved fighting wild animals and overcoming the elements with what nature provides. This lack of classical heroism (or even of everyday skills) is Mark Reid's problem. He was an academic who lost his job and is now more or less on the run from the law (see the events of the previous story). His girlfriend, Rosaline, was in magical sleep for hundreds of years and has slowly adapted to life in the twenty-first century. She's working at a horse farm where tourists get to ride, the sort of place Mark has never even contemplated visiting. So he doesn't have the horse-riding skills that were commonplace in the thirteenth century or any sword-wielding panache. Much less has he killed any animal, wild or tame. To solve this problem, that is, to impress his lady, he gets help from Brother Joseph, a friendly magical being passing himself off as a monk in a local monastery. Joseph has a ready-made quest for Mark: just climb a volcano and recover a beautiful ring. Mark agrees even though Joseph promises there will three difficult challenges along the way.

The story has the same charming and light-hearted tone of Campbell's previous works. Mark is good-hearted and earnest even though he lacks the skill set that he thinks will win the day. He faces ghosts and gorgons with a sword and a cellphone, an odd combination that works for him and the story. Of course he is victorious at the end, though he also gets a little better perspective on his life and his relationship. He doesn't just do something, he learns something. The book goes by quickly (it's a little over fifty pages) but it is quite delightful.

Recommended.

I did receive a review copy from the author (thanks!) but my opinions are my own.