A River Enchanted

Adaira Tamerlaine is the Heiress of the East and future laird of the Tamerlaine clan, daughter of the current laird, Alastair, and Lorna, the former Bard of the East. She is described as tall, regal, and having moon-white blonde hair. She summons Jack home to help her find the missing girls, as she feels responsible for the protection of all of the Tamerlaines in her clan, which demonstrates her empathetic nature. Her empathy is also illustrated by her desire to make peace and begin trade with the Breccans.

Adaira is Jack’s romantic interest and foil. She is both a reflection of him and the reason he was born. Jack and Adaira were childhood rivals, competing for a spot in the East Guard, pranking each other, and fighting at every opportunity. Adaira told Jack when he left that she “despised [his] existence” and that he “sullied the Tamerlaine name” (48), demonstrating the depth of her contempt for him. These feelings change as Adaira gets to know Jack as an adult, when she starts to wonder “what it would take to provoke a stoic man such as Jack Tamerlaine to laugh with her” (158).

The revelation of Adaira’s dual identity (a Breccan baby raised as the Tamerlaine heir) complicates her understanding of herself. She spent 22 years of her life thinking she was the next Tamerlaine laird, only to find out that she was the daughter and potential heir to the Breccan laird. When she leaves for the west at the end of the book, her future is uncertain. She does not know if she will ever return to the east, if she will ever see Jack again, or if she will be successful in her goal to unify Cadence and bring harmony back to the spirits and the isle. All this uncertainty swirls in her head as she wrestles with her decision to head west. Though she wants to be with Jack, she forces him to stay behind, unwilling to let him give up the music that means so much to him. Though this decision hurts Jack, it illustrates Adaira’s selfless love for him; she knows that giving up music would break his heart, so though it hurts her to give up Jack, she does it for his own good, leaving their future uncertain for the second book.

Torin Tamerlaine is Adaira’s cousin and Captain of the East Guard. He is married to Sidra and father to Maisie from his first marriage to Donella, who also served in the East Guard until she died in childbirth. Torin is described as athletically built with flaxen blond hair and a scar on his hand from the ritual that allows him to magically sense intruders across the clan line. He is resistant to the idea of forming a positive relationship with the Breccan clan, as he struggles throughout the narrative with guilt about the Breccans that he has killed for crossing the clan line. He dreams of ghosts of the men that he’s killed, physical manifestations of his guilt.

This guilt complicates his marriage with Sidra, as does the abduction of their daughter, Maisie. Sidra harbors guilt about failing to protect Maisie, and so does Torin. In their grief, they push each other away, Torin constantly searching for their daughter while Sidra becomes more and more withdrawn from her faith and the parts of her life that used to bring her joy. When Torin is injured during the Breccan raid, their relationship shifts. Despite his voicelessness, he is able to apologize and bring Sidra home to him, affirming his love for her once his voice returns.

After the reveal of Adaira’s identity as Cora Breccan, Torin becomes the new laird. He is resistant to this power at first but acquiesces after the other clan members turn against Adaira due to her perceived treason. His reluctance to take power demonstrates his integrity; regardless of the lives he’s taken, he is determined to change for the better.

Sidra is the second wife of Torin Tamerlaine, stepmother to Maisie, and a healer of the Tamerlaine clan. She is described as having dark, curly hair and a resemblance to Lady Whin of the Wildflowers, one of the earth spirits. She is deeply motivated by her faith in the spirits and her connection to nature and the earth. As a healer, she grows a garden full of herbs and plants that help with her various tinctures, salves, and poultices; however, after Maisie’s abduction, she tears much of her garden up in a moment of intense despair and loss of faith.

Sidra struggles in her marriage to Torin, who she believes only married her to keep his house and raise his child. She does not expect affection or love from him, though in her journey to heal him from the enchanted wounds he suffers during the Breccan raid at the Elliot farm, she realizes the depth of her love for him. She pulls the fire spurge with her bare hands, burning and blistering her skin, to heal Torin and restore his voice. This demonstrates her self-sacrificing nature. She also has ample compassion. She keeps her patients’ secrets, something that Jack notes is hard to do on Cadence, and she encourages Adaira to attempt to make peace with the west. She rediscovers her faith in the spirits after an emotional return home. Her grandmother, Senga, used to tell her to “put it in the soil” (352), referring to her pain and grief. She returns to bury her anguish in the earth, further demonstrating her connection to the land of Cadence and the earth spirits and elements, which allows her to let go of her guilt and reconnect with Torin and her faith.