I have never read a Linda Mooney novel I didn’t absolutely love, and Lord of Thunder, the debut novel in her Thunder Trilogy series, is her best yet. Annie Mayall knows all about loneliness. She’s been on her own in the wilds of Montana for over three years, ever since waking up one morning in her small one-room cabin to find her husband of less than a year gone. He didn’t leave her a note, didn’t even say goodbye, but Annie knew Foster had taken off for the silver mines to make his fortune. In the three years since, she hasn’t received so much as a postcard from him. For all she knows, Foster Mayall is dead. Originally from Ohio, where thunderstorms meant the likelihood of tornados, Annie is scared spitless by the violent Montana thunder boomers. Until one night when a golden man unlike any other she’s ever seen literally falls from the sky in the midst of a fierce thunderstorm. Annie takes the beautiful, badly injured man in and nurses him back to health, changing both their lives forever.          

While this novel delights romantics with a affable hero and heroine and intrigues sci-fi fans with a unique new approach to inter-dimensional travel, it is so much more than a mere sci-fi romance. As I began reading this wonderful story, it wasn’t long before my modern world vanished into times gone by. I found myself totally drawn into early1940s Montana. There, I saw what it was like to live without telephone service in remote areas of America, when many rural roads were still unpaved and those living “out in the sticks” milked their own cows, grew and canned their own food and still used outhouses. Historically, this book depicts the last vestiges of the America pioneer spirit as it was before World War II ultimately dragged us into the modern era.

I devoured this book, alternately smiling and shedding tears along the way. Both Annie and Rion are strong, yet vulnerable characters.  Their relationship is poignant and emotionally charged, their slowly developing sexual interaction as satisfying as a finely aged wine. I guarantee that readers will want to read this book over and over again.  Great job, Ms. Mooney. I loved it and can’t wait to read Passion of Thunder, the next installment in this superb series!

I will never look at a thunderstorm quite the same again.  Lord of Thunder isn’t just a play on words; it describes the main character of this fascinating new novel by Linda Mooney.

A story of strength, determination, and love told with characters as rich as the Montana setting. Raw, intense and satisfying, are words that both describe the story and the romance. Reading Linda’s work is an escape like no other. This is the second book I’ve enjoyed by Linda, but it won’t be the last. Reading romance, always a guilty pleasure has now become a real joy!

Linda Mooney brings into existence the rough Montana life of the mid-20th century. With undeniable skill and veracity, she weaves the historical background of WWII into the fabric of her story. The details of today's pioneering life on undeveloped land with no modern conveniences in a time when radio was commonplace elsewhere and telephones were not an oddity make for an unusual setting for this science-fiction tale that begins like a historical novel.

I will not reveal who is the stranger Annie Mayall rescues for fear of spoiling the readers' pleasure, but I must say their mutual discovery is well presented, and both the hero and heroine of the story are appealing characters. As are Annie's old neighbors.

Linda Mooney's descriptions of the Montana landscape, of its changes of seasons and its harsh weather, as well as its quiet, strong inhabitants, give the place a character of its own. The cabin where Annie lives become as warm and inviting for the reader as it is for the heroine herself, and we share Annie's pride in the work she does on the homestead. We admire her, and can easily take her for a role model.

(This book is) a fine read and a good story, intense suspense and joyful reunions. Lord of Thunder took me away into a world of imagination for my great reading pleasure.

Annie Mayall is excited to move to Montana with the man she thinks is the love of her life.  What happens though is he takes off to the “silver mines” shortly after moving her west and then disappears for years.  After long years alone Annie is adapting and has finally settled into a routine, that is, until one stormy night.  On that fateful stormy night a severely wounded stranger comes to her land, and while he may be the sexiest man she has ever seen, he also has wings.  But Annie is happy to have someone to talk with and to share her meager existence with.  Soon it is evident that the stranger is not only mystical and fascinating but he is teaching her what it means to really love, and be loved.  But, will the happiness last?