Intimate Enemies by Shana Abe

I can sum this book up in two words: utterly fantastic. I read a couple of reviews on a Amazon that called this book boring, and to those people I would ask, are you CRAZY????

After the death of her father and serious injury of her cousin at the hands of invading Vikings, Lauren MacRae has taken temporary control of her clan on the isle of Shot. Half the island is inhabited by her clan, and the other half is inhabited by the hated English. When Lauren saves their new lord, Arion du Morgan, from one such Viking attack and brings him back to her castle to recover from his wounds, an idea is born. What if they declare a temporary truce to increase their numbers and fight off the Vikings for good? Neither side is thrilled with the alliance, but for the sake of survival they join their forces. But neither side count on the attraction and intense love that start to blossom between Lauren and Arion as they fight to hide their feelings to keep the alliance from turning sour. Now Lauren's betrothed from a mainland has come to claim his bride, and he wants to destroy the English side of the isle and kill Arion. Lauren must now choose between her duty to her clan and her true love.

The love story between Lauren and Arion is one I won't soon forget. At times tender, tentative, intense, and sweet. Lauren was the perfect balance between capable strong woman, and a feminine woman who also needs to be cherished. Arion was sweet, strong, protective and he was always there when Lauren needed him. The whole book was a delight to read and I was sad to turn the last page. Normally around the end of a book I am ready to finish and move on the the next book on my shelf, but this one I felt the need to savor after finishing. This book has earned an easy home for life on my bookshelf and I am certain I will be reading it again and again. I HIGHLY recommend it if you enjoy a tender historical romance. I wish ALL books had that special something that I found in this book.