Shanna is the story of the development of a self-centered, spoiled little bitch into a mature, loving wife. The transformation is painful to watch, though, and there are times when it is quite easy to hate her. But, like the hero, Ruark, this reader did not give up on her, and there was indeed a happy ending. At times the story was a page-turning epic adventure; at (many!) others a fiery passionate romance. In fact, it is a romance novel in every sense, but it is not just fluff – its twists and turns leaves you thinking about it for a while after.

And also, for you hardcore romance fans, you get heavy helpings of the good stuff at regular intervals. You won’t starve to death before you reach page 200 as in some other novels. Kathleen Woodiwiss was the master (mistress?) of this genre for a reason!

A friend has been trying to talk me into reading this book for a few years now, and I’m glad she did.