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Thrice to Thine: Once & Future Book 3
When Sarah left her home in North Carolina, she had two goals in get answers about her mother and get her man. Unfortunately, no one seems to want to cooperate.
“Thrice to thine, and thrice to mine, and thrice again to make up nine.”
After the revelations of her mother’s memoir, Sarah is determined to learn everything she can about the mysterious tribe that her mother called the Auld Folk and the three “sisters” who rule them. She wants to uncover the secret that they are guarding and why it threatened her mother’s happiness and her life. But their village was hidden for hundreds of years and may prove just as elusive for her. Working side by side with Dermot Sinclair, Sarah embarks on a search across the Highlands and Islands to find her people.
Determined to get her man, Sarah throws temptation in Dermot’s way every chance she gets. But something is always holding him back. Meanwhile, Sarah is being pursued relentlessly by Scotland’s most eligible bachelor, James Stuart, whose generous gifts and lavish attention may prove hard to resist.
All Dermot wants to do is keep the women he loves safe, but he is torn between Sarah and the needs of his ailing mother. Watching his childhood friend, James attempt to romance the woman he loves may be more than he can take.
Follow Sarah and Dermot as they trace her people through the folklore of Scotland, but can they find the answers she wants before the Stuart’s agenda becomes inevitable?
“Thrice to thine, and thrice to mine, and thrice again to make up nine.”
After the revelations of her mother’s memoir, Sarah is determined to learn everything she can about the mysterious tribe that her mother called the Auld Folk and the three “sisters” who rule them. She wants to uncover the secret that they are guarding and why it threatened her mother’s happiness and her life. But their village was hidden for hundreds of years and may prove just as elusive for her. Working side by side with Dermot Sinclair, Sarah embarks on a search across the Highlands and Islands to find her people.
Determined to get her man, Sarah throws temptation in Dermot’s way every chance she gets. But something is always holding him back. Meanwhile, Sarah is being pursued relentlessly by Scotland’s most eligible bachelor, James Stuart, whose generous gifts and lavish attention may prove hard to resist.
All Dermot wants to do is keep the women he loves safe, but he is torn between Sarah and the needs of his ailing mother. Watching his childhood friend, James attempt to romance the woman he loves may be more than he can take.
Follow Sarah and Dermot as they trace her people through the folklore of Scotland, but can they find the answers she wants before the Stuart’s agenda becomes inevitable?
523 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 27, 2018
6 people are currently reading
14 people want to read
About the author
Meredith R. Stoddard
10 books89 followersMeredith R. Stoddard is a writer and fiber artist living in Central VA. She studied literature and folklore at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill before working as a corporate trainer and instructional designer for 10 years. She now devotes her energy to fiction and creative non-fiction. When her hands are not holding a book or touching a keyboard they are likely knitting, spinning or felting. You can follow her adventures in fiction and fiber at http://www.meredithstoddard.com
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
October 3, 2018
This book finally answered some of the questions that I had been yearning for answers to since I read the first book in the series! I am so invested in these characters and what happens to them… and yet, Meredith Stoddard has again left us with uncertainty as we look ahead to what I hope will be a future Book 4 in this series.
The ending may be the main thing keeping me from a five-star review: the books in this series keep ending while what is resolved seems less important than what is left unresolved for the next book(s). I am not sure whether that indicates a flaw in the books or a flaw in this reader. (And whether the fact that I can't jump ahead to the next book until it is written and/or released bothers me more than the ending itself.)
If there is a book 4, I will want to read it right away!
The ending may be the main thing keeping me from a five-star review: the books in this series keep ending while what is resolved seems less important than what is left unresolved for the next book(s). I am not sure whether that indicates a flaw in the books or a flaw in this reader. (And whether the fact that I can't jump ahead to the next book until it is written and/or released bothers me more than the ending itself.)
If there is a book 4, I will want to read it right away!
September 27, 2018
The good news about this book is that it continues the story from the first 2 booksw in the series. The main characters of Sarah and Dermot are fleshed out and their back story is provides more information into what is happening in the series. Jame Stuart is more involved and he (or someone close to him) is pushing to get what he wants.
As the team travels through the Scottish Highlands, the reader is provided with some interesting facts and legends.
The bad news, this is the third book in the series and we still don't have a resolution to Sarah's predicament. While knowing this series leaves the reader with a hanging ending each time helps the books are so few and far between it is hard to keep an interest in reading the continuing story.
I received a free advanced copy for review.
As the team travels through the Scottish Highlands, the reader is provided with some interesting facts and legends.
The bad news, this is the third book in the series and we still don't have a resolution to Sarah's predicament. While knowing this series leaves the reader with a hanging ending each time helps the books are so few and far between it is hard to keep an interest in reading the continuing story.
I received a free advanced copy for review.
October 26, 2018
Sarah has been looking for answers to her family’s secrets for years. Yet the more she searches, the more tangled they become. She doesn’t have much to work with, only her grandmother’s stories and some folklore. Luckily, she still has Dermot to help her, although he never thought he’d see her again, being with him is still a major distraction to her work, and his coworker Kirstie is less than hospitable to “the American.”
More than anything, Sarah wants to find out what happened to her mother in the mysterious village in Scotland. Between a diary and some hazy dreams, she needs something more tangible, and her supernatural gift isn’t much help. She wants to tell Dermot about her abilities, but fears what would happen it came into the hands of James Stuart, who is growing a little too close for comfort. She can almost grasp the answers, but someone else may find them first.
Ugh, book three and I still have so many questions! Poor Sarah may never find what she’s looking for, but I have hope that Stoddard will put me out of my misery in book four! At least I hope she does, because just like Sarah, I can almost taste the answers.
The writing, as always, is simple, yet vivid. You really get a proper feeling for Scotland, between the stone buildings, rolling hills, and perfect Gaelic, it’s a picturesque view of an imperfect situation that has been decades in the making. I also enjoyed learning more about Sarah and Dermot, really diving into their backgrounds to get to the root of what draws them together. Overall, I suggest any fan of mysteries and fantasies should pick up this amazing series.
More than anything, Sarah wants to find out what happened to her mother in the mysterious village in Scotland. Between a diary and some hazy dreams, she needs something more tangible, and her supernatural gift isn’t much help. She wants to tell Dermot about her abilities, but fears what would happen it came into the hands of James Stuart, who is growing a little too close for comfort. She can almost grasp the answers, but someone else may find them first.
Ugh, book three and I still have so many questions! Poor Sarah may never find what she’s looking for, but I have hope that Stoddard will put me out of my misery in book four! At least I hope she does, because just like Sarah, I can almost taste the answers.
The writing, as always, is simple, yet vivid. You really get a proper feeling for Scotland, between the stone buildings, rolling hills, and perfect Gaelic, it’s a picturesque view of an imperfect situation that has been decades in the making. I also enjoyed learning more about Sarah and Dermot, really diving into their backgrounds to get to the root of what draws them together. Overall, I suggest any fan of mysteries and fantasies should pick up this amazing series.
December 14, 2020
It must be frustrating for an author when a reader blows through three books in as many days, like I did. I mean, you can't write them that fast, right? I wish Meredith Stoddard could, then I wouldn't have to wait for book 4! Sarah finally goes to Scotland in this book, and the folklore aspect of the book becomes more real. Her relationships with Dermot and with James are frustrating because she obviously needs to end up with Dermot!
March 11, 2019
Once and Future Thrice to Thine is once again everything that I like: music, Celtic folklore, mystery, just enough romance, mayyyybeeee magic 😊 And once again, I’m left wishing I’d started this series after they’d all been written. Oh Lord, please give me patience and give it to me right now! Thank you, Ms. Stoddard. What a great tale!
November 15, 2018
So well writte, the characters are great, the plot is so exciting. I love the mysteries and the supernatural aspects of this book series. Looking forward to a next book that I hope will give more answers.
December 15, 2018
Cliffhanger alert.
Meredith, what have you done to me?? I'm totally hooked and will have to wait for you to write the next book! For those who haven't read, this is a worthy sequel. A Good Read.
Meredith, what have you done to me?? I'm totally hooked and will have to wait for you to write the next book! For those who haven't read, this is a worthy sequel. A Good Read.
June 3, 2019
Fabulous
Another instalment in Sarah MacAlpin’s ongoing story. It’s great to get to know the characters even more deeply. The story is gripping and I can’t wait for the next book to see what happens to everyone.
Another instalment in Sarah MacAlpin’s ongoing story. It’s great to get to know the characters even more deeply. The story is gripping and I can’t wait for the next book to see what happens to everyone.
April 11, 2021
Exciting, geographically intriguing
Love this series. It is realistic, yet laced with magic. Characters are so relatable. The story is cohesive. Hard to put down. Highly recommend it
Love this series. It is realistic, yet laced with magic. Characters are so relatable. The story is cohesive. Hard to put down. Highly recommend it
November 12, 2022
Meredith Stoddard continues her excellent writing skills in this third book of the Once & Future series. I zipped through this one. Stoddard builds the tension between the characters and forces you to just keep reading.
November 25, 2018
Great Continuation
Excellent storytelling. Can't wait to see if there is a book 4. If you are a fan of Outlander, you'll enjoy this trilogy.
Excellent storytelling. Can't wait to see if there is a book 4. If you are a fan of Outlander, you'll enjoy this trilogy.
August 9, 2025
I like the series and want to finish it but it's also very long
April 12, 2023
(Rating 3.5) —- So I’ve been loving this series so far and always liked Sarah as a character but in this one she just annoyed me!!!!! So much so that I actually think what Amy said to her when they argued is actually quite true - why are all these people obsessed with her? Why does she make friends so easily? She actually gives nothing back yet her new friends are willingly devoted to her, like Jujhar, who she instantly connects with as she finds him such a calming force. At one point she starts sobbing to him and he just hugs her and calms her down! Like enough already!! He doesn’t know your history so why in the world would he be so understanding and patient to someone he has just met?!?!? Maybe I’m a horrible person but if this happened to me, someone I didn’t really know sobbing in my arms, I would be nice and as comforting as I could be but in my mind I would be thinking this person is obsessed with drama and make a note to steer clear from them! This is not someone she has known for a long time that you can unburden yourself to, this is literally someone she met a few weeks (maybe months?) ago and yet he is utterly devoted to her with no expectation of romance. I just don’t understand the charming aspect of her - she is drama, drama, drama and I’m sorry but for someone you don’t really know that is not an attractive quality - for friend or romantic interest! And it’s like this for at least half the book! At 40% nothing really has happened and Sarah really hasn’t changed at all, still causing unnecessary drama and being enabled by everyone around her.
So now my rant about Sarah is over and I have to admit that I did love Sarah in Scotland, although I do love anything set in Scotland. I was disappointed with the ending though as I had wrongly assumed this was a trilogy and was very excited to get to the end of the series to find out what happens. Instead, the ending leaves so much unfinished, meaning I’m going to have to read the next book … fingers crossed Sarah has grown out of her love for unnecessary drama!
So now my rant about Sarah is over and I have to admit that I did love Sarah in Scotland, although I do love anything set in Scotland. I was disappointed with the ending though as I had wrongly assumed this was a trilogy and was very excited to get to the end of the series to find out what happens. Instead, the ending leaves so much unfinished, meaning I’m going to have to read the next book … fingers crossed Sarah has grown out of her love for unnecessary drama!
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews