2 Books, 2 Reviews, Lots of Scots :)

A
riveting tale of family, love, and betrayal.

Left
jilted at the altar by his bride, Rory MacLeod, the Duke of Skye and
chief of the MacLeod clan finds himself becoming the subject of
unsavory gossip.

Marriage
to a respectable young lady of impeccable breeding is the only way
Rory can hope to silence the gossips.

Licking
his wounds, he returns to London for the upcoming session of
Parliament and Season. He brings with him his sister Lily. It will be
her first season and one which Rory intends to find a bride of his
own. He doesn’t have to look far.

Victoria,
the Duke of Hargrove’s daughter, catches more than his eye the
moment he meets her. She is everything his duchess needs to be. She
is smart, beautiful and devoted to Rory. Not even his darkest secret
can sway her.

The
bliss of married life is ripped apart by betrayal of the worst kind.
His sister is kidnapped and forced into a marriage with only one
purpose. Money. Even worse is who is behind it all.

With
his own reputation and that of his family and clan at stake, Rory
must carefully negotiate his sister’s return without the world
finding out about his secret. Not only could it bring shame to
everyone he holds dear, it would mean his ruination and worse.

This book was a little more difficult for me compared with Donnan’s Rose. Again, I wanted more of the story, which is good.  Salisbury’s style of writing kept me interested and wanting to turn the pages, but I couldn’t understand Rory.

Without giving away too much, and without having any personal knowledge of this type of romantic complication, I couldn’t relate to Rory and his feelings as well as Donnan.  I completely understood his feelings of duty and responsibility, they were written very well.  I just didn’t understand the way his feelings worked and changed so quickly. 

The story itself was good, full of intrigue and time period specific dilemmas.  I’m trying my best not to give away too much.  The plot was winding and twisty, making for interesting reading, with new problems and old secrets changing each character’s life.3r

I would definitely read book one before diving into book two. I’m thinking about rereading this book after some time just to see how I feel.  This book is staying with me, as I find myself considering this story randomly throughout the day.

As
the fourth MacLeod son, Donnan MacLeod does not have to take on the
responsibilities his older siblings do. He is free to keep his
business private. As a privateer he sails the channel looking for
smugglers. Very elite smugglers.

It’s
not until he returns to Skye for his mother’s birthday when Donnan
begins to lose control of his life. And it’s all because of a woman,
the one woman he’s loved since childhood. The woman he desires above
all others – that is should he ever think of taking a wife.

Rosalind,
strong willed and opinionated far more than most, she is determined
to find out what it is Donnan is hiding. Never before had they kept
things from each other, but Rosalind is convinced he’s keeping
something huge from her.

Everything
changes in the blink of an eye.

Stowing
away in the back of Donnan’s coach, Rosalind changes their lives
forever. The adventure begins…

I really loved this story for many reasons, least of which is my obsession with Scotland.  I don’t believe I have ever read a Scottish historical fiction set in this particular time period.  Usually the books I read are much earlier, so it was interesting to see the way Scottish lairds became Dukes and the clans adjusted to life after Culloden.  The amount of English influence was particularly shocking if you are a fan of novels like Outlander.  Just a great reminder of the impact of the English edict to eradicate the highland clan way of life.

I was a fan of Donnan and Rose.  Obviously, I like strong women in books, and Rose was not going to take any *ahem* stuff from Donnan.  Donnan is hard to relate to in the beginning because he doesn’t open up.  The reader assumes he is a good guy who had an alternate agenda for acting so aloof and pushing everyone away. 

My only real criticism of the book was the pace.  I wanted the story to build and sit a little more.  Honestly, this is a compliment, because I ultimately wanted more.  I wanted more of Donnan and Rose’s story.  I wanted to see some flashbacks of their childhood together, more flirtatious scenes, and more of the Macleod castle. 

If you like historical romance, get this book.  It’s an easy read and so much fun!