Series: The Montgomerys and Armstrongs, #2
Traits & Tropes: Highlanders; tortured heroine; protective hero
Publication Date: 03.19.13
Genre/Setting: Medieval; Scottish Highlands
Heat Level: 2
Rating: 4/5
Narration Rating: 4/5
Kidnapped on the journey to meet her betrothed, Genevieve McInnis has spent the past year as a prisoner at the MacHugh keep, held by a cruel man determined to possess her so thoroughly that no other man will ever want her. When the keep is taken by the Montgomery clan, Genevieve finds herself a bit revived by the laird’s brother, Bowen. But even with her growing confidence, her future is unclear. She wants her family to continue to believe her dead to avoid bringing them shame and decides her place must be at an abbey. But Bowen is patient and gentle in a way she never expected, and he soon has her longing for a different future.
When Bowen captures an enemy keep in his brother’s name he is wholly surprised by his level of interest in the wounded, enigmatic Genevieve. Her beauty and strength captivate him, but he knows he must be incredibly patient with her after all she’s endured. As he falls rapidly in love with Genevieve, Bowen realizes that her happiness won’t be complete without freedom to make her own choices, even if it comes at the expense of his own contentment.
I love all things Highlander, but this book wasn’t quite as good as its predecessor. Some of the dialogues grew repetitive, especially in descriptions of the characters’ thoughts and circumstances. This also featured a pet peeve of mine: the third act separation of the hero and heroine, and the reason for them coming back together (as of course we knew they would) annoyed me. I wish they’d been willing to act on their misery without each other rather than needing an outside catalyst to return them to each other. I loved Bowen as a hero and his treatment of Genevieve was just the sweetest. It was nice to see a heroine with issues the hero helps her work through as we typically only get the reverse with a tortured hero. I do wish we’d gotten more enumeration from Genevieve on her feelings for Bowen. I especially enjoyed the side characters and the bit of bonding we saw between Bowen and Teague Montgomery and Brodie Armstrong. I was also really shipping Brodie and Taliesan so I’m hoping that will be revisited eventually and that we’ll learn more of the fate of the spiteful MacHughs if we ever get the long-awaited continuation of this series. This was a strong story with a sweet relationship between the hero and heroine but more of that development could’ve been shown on the page rather than the reader learning of it later.
https://www.bookbub.com/reviews/677061815
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2290097097
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