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Akora #5
Fountain of Secrets
Strong-willed, beautiful Persephone chooses to live alone on the island of Deimatos, in the legendary kingdom of Akora. There she bears a secret so burdensome, she risks sharing it with no one, including the English nobleman who has stumbled upon her isolated home.
Gavin Hawkforte, son of an English earl and an Akoran princess, has discovered an unsettling secret of his own: the volcano that originally formed his beloved island nation is stirring once again, threatening them all—including Persephone.
As the two of them work to save Akora, their burning attraction becomes impossible to deny. But will destiny allow the couple to satisfy their duties to their homelands—and their desire for each other? When the sins of the past collide with the dangers of the present, only love can fulfill the promise of an ancient legacy.
Gavin Hawkforte, son of an English earl and an Akoran princess, has discovered an unsettling secret of his own: the volcano that originally formed his beloved island nation is stirring once again, threatening them all—including Persephone.
As the two of them work to save Akora, their burning attraction becomes impossible to deny. But will destiny allow the couple to satisfy their duties to their homelands—and their desire for each other? When the sins of the past collide with the dangers of the present, only love can fulfill the promise of an ancient legacy.
384 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published July 29, 2003
11 people are currently reading
192 people want to read
About the author
Josie Litton
72 books379 followersJosie Litton is the author of several NY Times and USA Today bestselling romances.
Married and living in Connecticut, she is the parent of two grown children. Becoming an empty nester has left her plenty of time to write, think about writing, plan what to write next, and read. When she isn’t doing that, she’s cooking, gardening, and traveling.
Married and living in Connecticut, she is the parent of two grown children. Becoming an empty nester has left her plenty of time to write, think about writing, plan what to write next, and read. When she isn’t doing that, she’s cooking, gardening, and traveling.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
July 21, 2019
Wonderful romance! I enjoyed this book way more than the previous book. This is Persephone and Gavin's story. Persephone is a strong female who lives on her own until now. Bring on the next book!
January 12, 2018
Nice easy read. Wraps romance into 19th century historical fiction well. Could have embellished the volcano situation more to add suspense but overall a nice story.
June 14, 2015
A note for future readers: the summary here on goodreads is not correct and is different from what was on my back cover. Here is what mine says (and believe me, the story is awesome):
A woman of mystery. A man of valor. And a world on the edge of destruction...
Strong-willed, beautiful Persephone chooses to live alone on the island of Deimatos, in the legendary kingdom of Akora. There she bears a secret so burdensome, she risks sharing it with no one, including the English nobleman who has stumbled upon her isolated home...
Gavin Hawkforte, son of an English Earl and an Akoran princess, has discovered an unsettling secret of his own: the volcano that originally formed his beloved island nation is stirring once again, threatening them all--including Persephone.
As the two of them work together to save Akora, their burning attraction becomes impossible to deny. But will destiny allow the couple to satisfy their duties to their homelands--and their desire for each other? When the sins of the past collide with the dangers of the present, only love can fulfill the promise of an ancient legacy...
Sounds intriguing huh? Well, it is. However, let me tell you, to truly enjoy this book, you need to read the first trilogy in this series (Dream Island, Kingdom of Moonlight, and Castles in the Mist), which I also liked. There is so much detail that was from the other books that in order for this to truly suck you in, you need to know the back story. Now, for those of you looking for an emotion driven romance, this is not it. Rather, this story centers on two people with their own burdens of responsibility who join forces to tackle a problem and fall in love in the process. The setting takes place first on a deserted island and then on the main island of Akora, and briefly on other islands (all of which I want to visit--when the volcano isn't active anyway). Through Litton's other books, I have grown to know and love Akora, and I loved seeing more of the area. The legends of this island are so detailed and well woven from the other books that it felt real.
As for the two main characters, Persephone and Gavin, they were well matched. It seemed natural for them to be together and I appreciated that Litton did not throw stupid misunderstandings in just to complicate things. The people of Akora seemed to recognize this too, which I enjoyed. Further, while I don't always get into sex scenes, I've got to say, these were good in this book. There was a good balance of aligning the scenes with who the characters were (and legends of Akora) without gratuitous detail, and it was great to read (just to be honest, I almost never think this, I usually read for the romance not the sex). Anyways, I just loved the adventure, the culture, and the romance in this book. I'm sad that it is the last book that takes place on Akora...I will just have to reread the other books to keep returning!
Anyway, I highly recommend this gripping tale of how two people fall in love and join forces to discover their destiny and ultimately save their people from the catastrophe of a volcanic eruption (the ending to this almost made me cry). Loved it, loved it.
5 shiny, perfect stars!
A woman of mystery. A man of valor. And a world on the edge of destruction...
Strong-willed, beautiful Persephone chooses to live alone on the island of Deimatos, in the legendary kingdom of Akora. There she bears a secret so burdensome, she risks sharing it with no one, including the English nobleman who has stumbled upon her isolated home...
Gavin Hawkforte, son of an English Earl and an Akoran princess, has discovered an unsettling secret of his own: the volcano that originally formed his beloved island nation is stirring once again, threatening them all--including Persephone.
As the two of them work together to save Akora, their burning attraction becomes impossible to deny. But will destiny allow the couple to satisfy their duties to their homelands--and their desire for each other? When the sins of the past collide with the dangers of the present, only love can fulfill the promise of an ancient legacy...
Sounds intriguing huh? Well, it is. However, let me tell you, to truly enjoy this book, you need to read the first trilogy in this series (Dream Island, Kingdom of Moonlight, and Castles in the Mist), which I also liked. There is so much detail that was from the other books that in order for this to truly suck you in, you need to know the back story. Now, for those of you looking for an emotion driven romance, this is not it. Rather, this story centers on two people with their own burdens of responsibility who join forces to tackle a problem and fall in love in the process. The setting takes place first on a deserted island and then on the main island of Akora, and briefly on other islands (all of which I want to visit--when the volcano isn't active anyway). Through Litton's other books, I have grown to know and love Akora, and I loved seeing more of the area. The legends of this island are so detailed and well woven from the other books that it felt real.
As for the two main characters, Persephone and Gavin, they were well matched. It seemed natural for them to be together and I appreciated that Litton did not throw stupid misunderstandings in just to complicate things. The people of Akora seemed to recognize this too, which I enjoyed. Further, while I don't always get into sex scenes, I've got to say, these were good in this book. There was a good balance of aligning the scenes with who the characters were (and legends of Akora) without gratuitous detail, and it was great to read (just to be honest, I almost never think this, I usually read for the romance not the sex). Anyways, I just loved the adventure, the culture, and the romance in this book. I'm sad that it is the last book that takes place on Akora...I will just have to reread the other books to keep returning!
Anyway, I highly recommend this gripping tale of how two people fall in love and join forces to discover their destiny and ultimately save their people from the catastrophe of a volcanic eruption (the ending to this almost made me cry). Loved it, loved it.
5 shiny, perfect stars!
August 28, 2019
Second in the third trilogy. Persephone is the illegitimate child of Deilos - the man who imprisoned the Earl of Hawkforte and nearly killed the Vanax Atreus in an earlier book. Raised in solitude by her mother on the deserted island Deimatos on the inland sea, she now lives there alone. Gavin Hawforte, eldest son of Princess Kassandra and the Earl - Royce has been studying the volcanic activity in the kingdom, and fears a new major eruption. When he goes to Keimatos to check it out, he meets Persephone and she shows him additional evidence of volcanic activity. Together they go back to Ilius and persuade the population to evacuate. In the process, Persephone persuades Gavin that the reason he's the only member of the royal family there is because Atreus knows Gavin is to be the next Vanax and is letting the people see his leadership. She is right of course. Interesting - very little sex - well done story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 10, 2024
It isn't the book's fault that I picked it up in the fantasy section of a used book sale. It's definitely romance, the where the strong woman realizes she needs this man so, so much.
June 15, 2015
This book was yet another selection given to me by my mother-in-law. It was a quick read, but not a great one. I had a hard time getting into it, because within the first few pages there was some repetitive wording that annoyed me. If you just used a particular phrase on the last page, pick something else, especially if said phrase is unique. The self-plagiarism annoyed me and almost made me put the book down. But I picked it up again the next day and made it through to the end, despite a couple of other quibbles I had with the writing.
The book is about the reclusive Persephone, who lives alone on the island of Deimatos, has since she was a child. Until the day she encounters Gavin Hawkforte, prince of Akora, who has come to her island to "take measurements" of the very phenomenon she herself has been noticing and concerned about - namely, that the long-dormant volcano under the island kingdom has once again become active. The two confide their concerns to each other, and Persephone realizes that her fears are correct. She decides to abandon Deimatos, the only home she has ever known, and travel to the capitol to attempt to warn the rest of the land of the danger in time for them to evacuate.
Of course, she and Gavin fall in love. Of course, she is so strong-willed that she can't let go of her independence and just be in love, so, of course, she almost ruins their budding relationship. Of course, everyone else makes it off the island except the two of them. And, of course, while this is technically a spoiler, they get married at the end, which should really suprise no one. The romantic storyline was a bit trite, but I enjoyed the parts about the volcano...not really something I've read about in other books, so an interesting angle. One other thing that bothered me was that the title of the novel had absolutely NOTHING to do with the book. There is a fountain at the palace of Akora. It's mentioned a total of once and has really nothing to do with the storyline. I find it annoying when a title doesn't reflect something about the book, let alone something important.
Overall, I'd give this one three out of five Whatevers. It was okay. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it. It was a nice way to pass the time. A potboiler romance, which didn't strain the brain. Recommended for those who have an interest in volcanoes, those who love romances, and those who like a predictable happy ending.
The book is about the reclusive Persephone, who lives alone on the island of Deimatos, has since she was a child. Until the day she encounters Gavin Hawkforte, prince of Akora, who has come to her island to "take measurements" of the very phenomenon she herself has been noticing and concerned about - namely, that the long-dormant volcano under the island kingdom has once again become active. The two confide their concerns to each other, and Persephone realizes that her fears are correct. She decides to abandon Deimatos, the only home she has ever known, and travel to the capitol to attempt to warn the rest of the land of the danger in time for them to evacuate.
Of course, she and Gavin fall in love. Of course, she is so strong-willed that she can't let go of her independence and just be in love, so, of course, she almost ruins their budding relationship. Of course, everyone else makes it off the island except the two of them. And, of course, while this is technically a spoiler, they get married at the end, which should really suprise no one. The romantic storyline was a bit trite, but I enjoyed the parts about the volcano...not really something I've read about in other books, so an interesting angle. One other thing that bothered me was that the title of the novel had absolutely NOTHING to do with the book. There is a fountain at the palace of Akora. It's mentioned a total of once and has really nothing to do with the storyline. I find it annoying when a title doesn't reflect something about the book, let alone something important.
Overall, I'd give this one three out of five Whatevers. It was okay. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it. It was a nice way to pass the time. A potboiler romance, which didn't strain the brain. Recommended for those who have an interest in volcanoes, those who love romances, and those who like a predictable happy ending.
November 2, 2023
First read rating: 5 stars
Re-read rating: 2.5 stars
This is a case of past me not knowing how much better historical romances could be. I actively hated this. How was it that this had the most exciting plot set up (a volcano is going to erupt) and it be so boring? Go ahead ask me what happened... nothing. I didn't feel connected to the main characters, they fell deeply in love in a week and if their time together was longer than that I'd have no clue. There's no sense of time in this book. I'm assuming weeks went by but it didn't read that way. And then there's the shifting POV in the middle of the page that threw me every time. It was not fun or fresh. I'm honestly surprised since the other 4 books before this one held up decently.
Re-read rating: 2.5 stars
This is a case of past me not knowing how much better historical romances could be. I actively hated this. How was it that this had the most exciting plot set up (a volcano is going to erupt) and it be so boring? Go ahead ask me what happened... nothing. I didn't feel connected to the main characters, they fell deeply in love in a week and if their time together was longer than that I'd have no clue. There's no sense of time in this book. I'm assuming weeks went by but it didn't read that way. And then there's the shifting POV in the middle of the page that threw me every time. It was not fun or fresh. I'm honestly surprised since the other 4 books before this one held up decently.
September 22, 2010
VERY GOOD READ, GREAT LOVE STORY, NOT REAL RACEY
Read
July 27, 2011This one was my favorite out of the whole series. The volcano stuff was really cool.
January 15, 2012
I quite enjoyed this book of the series, though I have yet to read the first three, seeing as I mixed up the first half and second half of the series...
May 27, 2016
Podéis leer mi opinión aquí --> http://buscadorasdelplacer.lovediscus...
Read
August 30, 2018First book of a series of three. A very different love story. Enjoyed reading about Gavin and Persephone. Good Book
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews