"A prince in disguise and a prize worth fighting for."

Amir Jalil Hamad, Prince of Duraza, has governed the Qasim province for four years. For the past three days he has been aware of a menace that continues to grow. Yet his special ability to see the future has failed him; or so he thinks. All he sees are images of Rose Maguire who knew him four years ago as a horse trainer and fellow college student. When his brother, Kadar, comes to visit, he shows him is something that was thought to be only a legend, a Teardrop of the Gods.

In America, Rose is having her own problems. Unbeknownst to her, Prince Tarif Hamad is her old friend Jalil's exiled traitor uncle. The artifact Prince Tarif brings her to examine connects with her psychic ability to see, hear and feel events and images from the past. Though she has no desire to work for this prince, Tarif holds her parents archeological livelihood in his hands, so she must interpret the writing on the artifact. When she is done, she knows the knowledge it imparts is dangerous, but feels she has no alternative but to tell Prince Tarif... until Jalil shows up in her lab.

The danger that Prince Tarif brings draws Rose and Jalil together and opens doors to repressed and new psychic powers for both of them. The adventure they embark upon in search of the lost mine hiding the Tears of the Gods bring to light things Rose never knew about herself.

This is an excellent addition to Ms. Clarks "Sons of Earth and Wind" series. Though definitely a contemporary, at times this story reads like a historical because of the settings. I enjoyed that. The fact that both hero and heroine have psychic powers that they both accept and use made for some interesting moments. I loved the secondary characters, especially some of the bad guys. Although I was a bit disappointed in the way the adventure ended, I liked the final ending of the book. Though it is not necessary to read these stories in order to enjoy them, you will certainly want to read them all with hopes this is not the last story in this series.

Sexuality: A few sexual encounters, moderately descriptive.

Reviewed by Flora Bell
Posted January 1, 2004