I enjoyed the hell out of this book. Sometimes I didn't want to, but I did. 
 This is not a fluffy romance novel. This is not a book about hero that is rough and feared but then magically changes because love. This is not a book about a boyish girl who rebels against wearing dresses. 
 This is a book about romance between two people that could kill in a blink of eye. (Although only one of them actually does). Ranulf is the king's killer. Gwenllian was raised to be the warrior leader of her people. Gwenllian is not as good as a man with a sword, she is better. She doesn't hold her own in sword fight, she wins. Every. Damn. Time. She isn't pretty and her body is all hard muscle. She isn't even just plain. She's homely. The men around her don't even see her as a woman. There is nothing soft about her. I loved that. So much 
 Even more, she isn't just skilled with a blade, she's also a healer. A talented one. As she so eloquently puts it, if you know to strike someone down, perhaps you should also know how to heal them. 
 Ranulf was gruff and sometimes cruel. That didn't bother me as much as it I thought it would. This was 13th century England, not a parlor in Victorian England. Kindness didn't really get you far (especially among men). He was the man that did the king's dirty work. He acted like it. But at the beginning of the book, we learn that he is done being that man. He fears for his immortal soul and wants nothing to do with that life anymore. 
 Ranulf hated Gwenllian's skills with a blade for most of the book. It was completely realistic. I mean, really, what man in 13th century England would like knowing that he is the most feared swordsman for miles around yet can get his ass handed to him by a woman? 
 . 
 The romance between the H/h was just different. It wasn't love at first sight. It wasn't even warm fuzzies at first sight. Ranulf didn't get a personality transplant, he became a better person because he wanted to a better person. He wanted less fear and more respect. Their romance develops slowly, as it should between two people that really have no desire to ever actually be in love but nevertheless find themselves in love anyway. It was epic and passionate and just so sweet. 
 I loved it. This book is not for everyone, but if you're in the right mood, I wholeheartedly recommend it.