I do enjoy reading them and buy lots (mostly eBooks these days).
When I start a new one it is really difficult for me to put it down. That is why sometimes, on a snowy day I just re-read the old ones. I get less glued to the pages and still have a good time even knowing what will happen. You mostly know what will happen anyway. Right? and since most are variations of the same, I expect my brain has troubles making the required connections for long-term memory.
I have "Seven minutes in heaven" by Eloisa James just out of the press ready on my Kindle, but I want to savor it another day. I thought to take the time to start writing some reviews, mostly to have a record for myself about what I read. I will show and comment on the covers too!
 |
I liked the covers and the modern nod titles. Very suggestive, beautiful models, nice colors, showing both the hero and heroine. And lost of plaid, even the "MacLawry plaid" is shown. |
Let's get back to our Scandalous Highlanders.
This is the story of the MacLawry family. The head of the family is Ran MacLawry a Scottish marquis in Regency England. He is the most powerful lord in the Highland. Feared and hated by most of the other Scottish Lords.
But this is romance! so we see him first, and then his brothers and sister fall in love. And we see the struggle between loyalty to the clan and family and the new loyalty to the one they start to love. This is especially true for Ran, who book after book has to confront this hard choice for him and then is younger siblings.
The characters have enough complexity and the heroines in each book are very different from each other. The characters are all handsome/beautiful, smart, noble and rich (I am not complaining). The stories are compelling and fast-paced. And not least, there is a lot of explicit sex written with just the amount of detail I find nice to read. Tasteful for the genre.
I just finished reading "some like it Scot" the story of The "Bear" MacLawry and "Cat" McColl. She is a bit over the top at the beginning, but also very unique among heroines of romance novels. I would definitely recommend the series (see notes at the end)
And these are the covers to enjoy: exactly what ye expect in a hot historical romance cover and naught else:
Scandalous Highlanders is a series of four novels and a Christmas mini-novella: In order
- The Devil Wears Kilts: Ranulf (Ran) MacLawry, Marquis of Glengask and Lady Charlotte Hanover
- One Hot Scot: A Scandalous Highlanders Holiday Story: Duncan Lenox and Julia Prentiss
- Rogue with a Brogue Lord Arran MacLawry and Lady Mary Campbell
- Mad, Bad, and Dangerous in Plaid: Lord Lachlan MacTier and Lady Rowena "Winnie" MacLawry
- Some Like It Scot: Lord Munro "Bear" MacLawry and Lady Catriona "Cat" MacColl
Note: I tend to notice mistakes (and make them too!), especially the second time I read a book. two things kept me adding notes:
1. All that handshaking: I had the feeling that wasn't something done then. I found that in times of Jane Austen only true friends greeted each other handshaking. New acquaintances would curtsey or bowed.
2. The nobility titles keep changing through books and pages. Some examples:
The Devil Wears Kilts: Ran's mother was the daughter of a Baron, but his uncle (his mother's brother), who must have inherited their father's title is a Viscount
Rogue with a Brogue: Mary's father is an earl but his wife is a marchioness in a sentence.
Some Like It Scot: The heroine father and his wife are first mentioned as viscount and viscountess and then suddenly his daughters are ladies and the uncle who has inherited the title is an Earl.
There is a great discussion of English titles for romance novel writers by the late Jo Beverly here: ENGLISH TITLES IN THE 18TH AND 19TH CENTURIES
I thank ye fer reading (and looking at the covers)
Miranda
