I was really excited when I heard about Agnes Moor’s Wild Knight on Twitter because it’s a medieval novella featuring a heroine of color. I enjoyed the book, but it was just too short and I needed more to the story.

Agnes Moor (or Agnes Black) is one of the “exotics” at King James IV and Margaret Tudor’s court. As a black woman, Agnes obviously stands out and is treated as an outsider. When the novella opens, James has offered a kiss from Agnes as a prize in a tournament. The winner is the mysterious, enigmatic Wild Knight, a warrior who never removes his helmet or reveals his identity.

Agnes is disconcerted by her own attraction to the Wild Knight, especially when reveals himself to be Gareth MacAllister, Earl of Arran. Agnes knows Gareth because James brought her to visit his clan. James uses Agnes as “an eccentricity that drew people’s interest and helped break the ice” but in reality she’s quite the diplomat. During her visit, Gareth made no secret of his attraction to Agnes, and while she felt the same way, she was intimidated by the large, intense Scotsman.

Now that Gareth has won her favor, he intends to claim more than a kiss, though. He’s in love with Agnes, and intends to woo her.

So there was a lot I liked about this book. I mean an interracial medieval Scottish romance? PUT IT IN MY EYEBALLS. Also Agnes is AMAZE. She’s self-possessed, intelligent and her talent for diplomacy and dissembling make her a valuable member of the court. Gareth is sexy with alpha-level intensity that doesn’t veer into brooding assholeness. The book takes place more or less during the course of a single day, but the sexual and romantic tension make the development believable.

BUT… I wanted more book, and quite honestly I think the story merited more book. It’s kind of a dick move to write a review that says “I really liked this but there wasn’t enough of it,” but it’s the truth. I felt like I was given the bare bones of this really awesome story, but there was so much supporting detail that was missing that I was forced to supplement in my head. How did Agnes get to the court? We know she speaks Gaelic and English, but that those are not her native languages. What other languages does she speak? Agnes’  father is mentioned in passing, but that’s it. I want her back-story, which I think would be truly fascinating.

Also I needed more time for Gareth to woo Agnes. The tournament and subsequent feast are an excellent launching place for the two of them, but SPOILERS once Agnes admits she wants Gareth and they have sex, he proposes and she demands he court her properly. That courting happens in an epilogue where we are told everything goes peachy.

I thought that Agnes and Gareth’s courtship could have been much more fleshed out–could have supported an entire book–not to mention how Agnes would have fared as the Countess Arran. Would Gareth’s clan have accepted her? There was so much potential there for more.

So I really liked Agnes Moor’s Wild Knight but it also left me strangely unsatisfied. It’s like being given a taste of something amazing, but not the whole dish. That said, the novella is totally worth the 99 cent price tag, and  I really hope that Cole continues this as a series or writes another historical in the same vein, but longer this time.