Fated Hour by Samantha McHargue
Time Travel Romance
December 2011
Self Published

Reviewed by Tori

Favorite Quote: “I came two hundred years for the feel of your heart against my lips, telling me you love me…”

Fated Hour is the sequel to Ms. McHargue’s Timeless. At the end of Timeless, Alexandra (Lexi) Kane was transported back in time by a jealous rival. Her lover, Lance Reed, defies space and time to find her and bring her back. What seems to be only a short 4 month time span to those in the present, Lance and Lexi are gone for almost 4 years. What occurred in those 4 years changes Lexi’s and Lance’s life and only with the help of the Genesis team, a pair of gifted twins, and a trip to the past will help these two lovers find themselves and their love again.

While Timeless thrilled me, Fated Hour blew me away. Fated Hour is an beautiful emotionally gripping story that takes you to the very edge. A time traveling version of Romeo and Juliet; only here it’s not family but time that drives them apart. Intrigue, mystery, and a bittersweet romance will have you racing to see how this ends. I found myself having to put it down and walk away several times in order to deal with the emotional avalanche that tumbled over me.

Ms McHargue’s world is both vivid and enthralling in storyline and characters. From Lexi’s and Lance’s turbulent relationship in the past to the thrilling adventure of Genesis’s current mission you are taken on a journey in to a rich paranormal world fueled by imagination and fantasy. Character driven, this book tells the story of what happened in the past in conjunction with what is happening in the present. The transition between the two story lines is smooth and flawlessly executed. They travel together in sync until they blend together seamlessly at the end.

Lexi Kane has been back in the present with Lance for a few months. She is tired and finds herself at a loss; caught in her misery between the past and the present. When the owner of Genesis informs them of a new mission, Lexi feels she is not ready but obligated to go along. It’s only after she is committed is it that Lance and Alan (Genesis’s owner) tell her what the mission entails. They will be financing and teaming with a pair of brilliant twins who are are going to explore and raise the Fleur de lies. The Fleur de lies was a navel war ship that sank hundreds of years ago. Captained by Admiral Gabriel Sauvageau, a frenchman who served under Napoleon Bonaparte, the Fleur de Lies sunk during a vicious storm and is rumored to be a treasure trove of information and wealth. Lexi is livid that Lance and the owner Alan kept this mission a secret from her; especially Lance. He knows what happened during the 4 years they were trapped in the past and her traumatic history with Gabriel.

The emotions of our protagonists in this book overwhelm you as watch their story unfold. Pain, loneliness, loss, and betrayal all surround you and batter at your heart. Lexi’s pain robs you of your breath as she is called to bare witness to what was an unbearably heartbreaking time in her life while Lance’s pain and concern for Lexi further intensifies your already fragile emotional state. At first, I couldn’t believe Lexi would fall in love with another. She and Lance are two halves of a whole. When they came together in Timeless you couldn’t argue with the feeling that this was how it was meant to be. At times I felt her selfish for her treatment of Lance in here. She blames him for her predicament. Yet, who can blame her for feeling that way. She was trapped, once again, in the past and had no way of knowing if she would be rescued. But as you submerge deeper into their story of what happened in the past and her times with Gabriel, you find yourself no longer asking how could she love him..but how could she not.

Lance is unbelievable here. Gone is his ineptness and somewhat cold nature concerning Lexi in Timeless. He knows what she has endured and depths of her despair. While he is angry at first that she has fallen love with someone else he understands and accepts which only makes the situation more poignant as he tries to help her deal with her emotions-putting his own pain aside. He knows that he may lose her in the end, but as long as she is taken care of, then none of that matters.

Gabriel, the other half of our love triangle is a delicious delight. I fell in love with him myself. Handsome, debonair, and deeply in love with Lexi. He knows of her history with Lance and while he despairs he will lose her, he offers her nothing less but his whole a heart and soul while she is with him.

The past historical storyline is interesting as Ms. McHargue takes liberties with the Napoleonic Wars and uses it as a base to show us Lexi’s and Gabriel’s story. Very romantic and tense as their friendship and love unfolds under the shadow of war, treason, and death. I enjoyed that Lexi and Gabriel aren’t immediately tossed into a romantic affair. Ms. McHargue does well in reminding us that this all occurs over a 4 year time frame and builds it slowly in accordance to that.

Our present day storyline is also well done as we are introduced to two new characters. Krislyn and Christian Blair. Brilliant archaeologists, they are also able to commune with the dead. Christan accepts this but Krislyn closed that door years ago. But Krislyn has dreamed of the Fleur de lies and Gabriel since she was a small child and now will stop at nothing to find out what and why the Fleur de lies sunk. I enjoyed the qualities Ms. McHague installed in the Blair twins, especially Krislyn. She and Lexi butt heads from day one but Lexi is unable to cower Krislyn as she does the others. Krislyn has no idea of Lexi’s tragic past and frankly doesn’t care. She too has a need that drives her and it’s her gift that in the end helps Lexi and Lance begin to heal.

The ending is bittersweet as we see exactly the last few moments of Lexi’s, Lance’s and Gabriel’s lives in the past. Questions are answered and our protagonists are given a wonderful gift the enables them to cross that final hurdle that kept them from reconnecting in the present. Part of me sighed in happiness and cried in grief as Lexi finally realized what sacrifices Lance and Gabriel had made in ensure her happiness.

All in all a beautiful paranormal romance that will enchant all readers who love an emotionally turbulent time travel story that pushes all the right buttons. I do not recommend reading Fated Hour without reading Timeless first. It is a continuation with no back story to bring you up to speed.

Rating: B+

Note: This book is currently not on Goodreads.

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