Mairi Maclean is kidnapped on her wedding day by the enemy of her dead husband. Taken north to the water-surrounded Kisimul Castle, she is held captive in the name of retribution. But The Wolf of Kisimul Castle soon learns Mairi is not a docile pawn in this game of war between neighboring Scots. Nor will she be frightened into walking down the aisle to wed the fierce Highland chief.
Alec MacNeil is set on revenge. When he finds his enemy dead, he takes his wife to replace the one that was murdered. An eye for an eye. A bride for a bride. But Mairi is more tiger than kitten and refuses to bend to his will. Set stubbornly against one another, the passion that flares between them threatens to tear Alec’s strategy to shreds.
Source: Netgalley
Format: ebook
Genre: Highlander Romance
Setting: Scotland, the year of 1523
Series: Highland Isles #3
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Publisher: Entangled Publishing LLC; Scandalous
Release Date: August, 14th 2017
My Review...
This is the first book I've read by Heather McCollum and it didn't disappoint. This book was different than most of the Historical Romances that I typically come across. It's rare to stumble upon a historical romance written in the 1500's, at least for me; most of the books I pick up are anywhere from the late 1700's to the late 1800's. Yes, she's taken hostage which is kinda common in historical romances but what's different is, Alec gives her pretty much 100% freedom once she's at castle Kisimul, considering the story takes place in 1523, I think that's pretty rare.
Also, you don't have to have read the previous books in this series to enjoy this one, which is a plus considering this is the third book in this series. That being said, let's get into what I liked & didn't like about this one:
Also, you don't have to have read the previous books in this series to enjoy this one, which is a plus considering this is the third book in this series. That being said, let's get into what I liked & didn't like about this one:
What I liked:
The Relationship Development- Mairi & Alec had an undeniable chemistry. In the beginning, there's a scene that I thought was pretty cute. Without giving anything away it involves their first kiss. After that, it's one of my favorite tropes, a enemies-to-lovers relationship. Now, let's delve a little deeper into the enemies-to-lovers trope in this story... In the beginning there was quite a bit of snark and a I'm not gonna take that kind of treatment from you thing going on, which I really admired about Mairi! (Can you imagine, it's 1523 and well...women weren't treated as they are nowadays.) Then as time went on and Alex & Mari grew to know each other it slowly went from snarky to humorous, they both had me laughing out loud. I loved their undeniable chemistry I mentioned above. Once they were comfortable with each other things heated up quite a bit and they were adorable together!
The Characters- Not only did I love Alec & Mairi but I just adored Alec's children Weylyn & Cinnia. Alec is such a good father and it was heartening to see his love for his children throughout the story.
The Setting- This story takes place in Scotland, the year of 1523. What I absolutely loved was the castle actually exists! There's a scene that takes place on a beach with wildflowers and the beautiful way in which it was written really brought it to life; I felt like I was there with the cool breeze hitting my cheek, the biting cold waves with that salty tang in the air plus the fragrant smell of wildflowers in the air!
All-in-All- A unique historical romance with snark, humor and swoons! Oh and a action-packed ending that will leave you on the edge of your seat!
I do like the time period this one is set in. A lot earlier than the norm. Sounds like a fun read!
ReplyDelete