Guardians

Series · 3 books · 2004-2007

By M.J. Putney, Mary Jo Putney

Books in series

A Kiss of Fate

2004

Laird of an ancient Scottish clan, Duncan Macrae also possesses the secret powers of the Guardians—humans with mystical abilities to control nature's forces and see into the hearts of others. Duncan has sworn to use his abilities for the greater good, but duty is eclipsed when he meets the dazzling, independent English widow Gwyneth Owens. Though Gwynne's father was a Guardian, she believes that she has inherited only her mother's beauty, not her father's power. Then one kiss from the dangerously alluring Duncan ignites a passion that shakes her to the soul—and reveals a looming catastrophe that threatens both their nations. Only by becoming Duncan's wife, and ultimately betraying the man she loves, can she avert disaster. As fate casts them onto opposing sides, Gwynne and Duncan must push their powers and passions beyond the most forbidden limits if they are to save their love—and secure the future.

Stolen Magic

2005

With richly imagined characters and compelling stories, New York Times bestselling author M. J. Putney has won dazzling praise from reviewers and readers across the country. Her spellbinding new romantic fantasy will sweep you from Wales’s mysterious forests to the glittering menace of Georgian London–and into a shattering rendezvous with fate. Heir to an ancient title, Simon Malmain, the Earl of Falconer, is well known among the Guardians, humans with magical powers derived from nature. Well known, but not always well loved . . . for those who enforce the law are rarely embraced by those whom they protect–and this is equally true whether the law is magical or mundane. A routine mission to confront a rogue Guardian who has misused his powers turns disastrous when Simon’s quarry, Lord Drayton, captures his pursuer in a transformation spell that can only be released by Drayton–or death. Aid arrives in the form of Meg, a fey young woman who first traps Simon, then frees him. As they flee together, Simon recognizes that Meg is also a victim of Drayton’s evil enchantments, and he restores her nature and innate magic. Though her memory is still clouded, she is freed at last from a shadowy world of fear and lost identity. She agrees to help Simon bring down Drayton. The need for each other’s magic binds them together–and releases the more ancient magic of passion. But desire cannot be satisfied until the rogue mage is stopped. For Drayton has a diabolical plan that will profoundly alter the course of Britain’s future. Even the combined power of Simon and Meg may not be enough to stave off catastrophe. Only a desperate act of love may win back the future–or destroy all they hold dear. From the Hardcover edition.

A Distant Magic

2007

Mary Jo Putney’s passionate, vivid characters and captivating stories have earned enthusiastic acclaim from reviewers and readers everywhere. Now the New York Times bestselling author weaves a new tale in the Guardian series–a dazzling romantic fantasy that takes readers not only from the elegant streets of London to a dangerously tempting Mediterranean island but across time. Jean Macrae’s family is one of the most prominent clans of Guardians, humans whose magical powers come from nature, but Jean considers her skills modest at best. She has never been able to summon the intense, earth-altering ability that has marked the most talented Guardians, and she is content without the adventure that such skill brings . . . until the day she is confronted by a handsome stranger whose magic imprisons her on his pirate ship. Captain Nikolai Gregorio is convinced that Jean’s father abandoned him, as a child, to slavers. Now he seeks vengeance against the Macraes, no matter the cost. But Jean soon finds his untrained magical gifts far more dangerous than his thirst for revenge, especially when they intensify her own powers to an unthinkable–and enticing–degree. And when Jean and Nikolai’s irresistible connection summons a woman from the future, they are charged with a formidable protect those who will oppose slavery’s evil and forever change the future of two nations. This quest will sweep Jean and Nikolai into the most fantastic of realms and try their powers beyond even what the Guardians themselves would dare. And when ultimate disaster threatens, they will stake everything on a shattering test of love that could secure the fate of generations . . . or destroy them and all they cherish.

Authors

M.J. Putney

Author · 6 books

This is a pseudonym for Mary Jo Putney.

Mary Jo Putney

Author · 56 books

She writes young adult fiction as M.J. Putney. Mary Jo Putney was born on 1946 in Upstate New York with a reading addiction, a condition for which there is no known cure. After earning degrees in English Literature and Industrial Design at Syracuse University, she did various forms of design work in California and England before inertia took over in Baltimore, Maryland, where she has lived very comfortably ever since. While becoming a novelist was her ultimate fantasy, it never occurred to her that writing was an achievable goal until she acquired a computer for other purposes. When the realization hit that a computer was the ultimate writing tool, she charged merrily into her first book with an ignorance that illustrates the adage that fools rush in where angels fear to tread. Fortune sometimes favors the foolish and her first book sold quickly, thereby changing her life forever, in most ways for the better. (“But why didn't anyone tell me that writing would change the way one reads?”) Like a lemming over a cliff, she gave up her freelance graphic design business to become a full-time writer as soon as possible. Since 1987, Ms. Putney has published twenty-nine books and counting. Her stories are noted for psychological depth and unusual subject matter such as alcoholism, death and dying, and domestic abuse. She has made all of the national bestseller lists including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USAToday, and Publishers Weekly. Five of her books have been named among the year’s top five romances by The Library Journal. The Spiral Path and Stolen Magic were chosen as one of Top Ten romances of their years by Booklist, published by the American Library Association. A nine-time finalist for the Romance Writers of America RITA, she has won RITAs for Dancing on the Wind and The Rake and the Reformer and is on the RWA Honor Roll for bestselling authors. She has been awarded two Romantic Times Career Achievement Awards, four NJRW Golden Leaf awards, plus the NJRW career achievement award for historical romance. Though most of her books have been historical, she has also published three contemporary romances. The Marriage Spell will be out in June 2006 in hardcover, and Stolen Magic (written as M. J. Putney) will be released in July 2006. Ms. Putney says that not least among the blessings of a full-time writing career is that one almost never has to wear pantyhose.