Month: May 2021

The Scot Who Loved Me by Gina Conkle

On By TracyIn Georgian Era (1714-1837), Other, Scottish/Highlander, Tracy's ReviewsLeave a comment

The Scot Who Loved Me (Scottish Treasures, #1)The Scot Who Loved Me by Gina Conkle

Tracy’s rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Series: Scottish Treasures, #1

Release Date: May 25, 2021

Years ago, twice widowed Anne Neville was tasked with finding and bringing back the Jacobite’s missing gold. And finally, after years of collecting information and meticulous preparation, Anne and her merry band of accomplices are ready to set their plan in motion, they just need one more thing – the help of William MacDonald – Anne’s first and only love, who she hasn’t spoken to since the uprising 8 years ago. But to finish her mission and finally be able to return home to Scotland, Anne will do what has to be done and convince Will to help them, but first, she has to break him out of prison.

Will MacDonald never stopped loving Anne, but insecurity and misassumptions tore them apart 8 years ago and their pride has kept them apart ever since. So when she shows up at the prison, his first reaction is to refuse to help, but his heart still wants her and he realizes he may never get another chance to win her back, so he agrees to at least meet with her partners and listen to their plan. But little does Anne know that Will has his own plan to woo her back into his life.

The plan is revealed to Will and he is stunned – the gold was stolen and is currently in the possession of the last person he ever wanted to see again – Ancilla, the widowed Countess of Denton – the woman who hired him as her “personal footman” five years ago and kept him in her “employ” for a year before he finally gathered the remnants of his pride and left. He wants to refuse but knows if he does, he will lose Anne forever. Anne knows of his past with the Countess, which is why he was necessary to the plan, she does feel bad about making him return to what he considers his greatest shame and if she is honest with herself (which she usually is) she will admit that she is jealous, but she can’t let her feelings get in the way of the mission, because the Countess is a worthy foe and Anne would be a fool to let her guard down around the woman. She promises herself that once her mission is complete, she will examine her feelings and consider her options for the future – and hopefully it won’t be too late!

This was a very interesting story, the plan to reclaim the gold was well done and was reminiscent of some great cinematic heists such as The Sting, The Italian Job, and Ocean’s 8 – but overall I felt that the story was a bit slow and the relationship between Anne and Will underdeveloped and stilted, it was clear they had a past and still loved each other, but Anne’s feelings and motivations regarding Will were kept from the reader for most of the book, in the end, everything that was kept from the reader was explained, but it was too little, too late for me to feel the connection. The book has some great secondary characters, a very mild love scene, secrets, surprises, a well-executed theft, and the promise of HEA. I did enjoy the story and am looking forward to future installments.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own. *

Her Scottish Scoundrel – Sophie Barnes

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Georgian Era (1714-1837)Leave a comment

Her Scottish Scoundrel (Diamonds in the Rough, #7)Barbara’s rating: 3.5/4 of 5 stars

Series: Diamonds In The Rough #7
Publication Date: 5/25/21
Period: Georgian – 1821
Number of Pages: 359

Charlotte Russell is many things – the daughter of a Viscount; a spinster with no desire to EVER marry; very lovely; and, she’s also a bestselling author of risqué adventure stories. Oh! What an occupation for a gently reared unmarried lady. It is a good thing she keeps that part of her life very, very secret. On one of her secret trips to her publisher – which is in a rather unsavory part of town – she is held at knifepoint and robbed. Being a decisive, forthright, no-nonsense lady, she immediately sets out to hire herself a bodyguard. Where does one find big brutes one can hire to guard one’s person. Well, Charlotte’s immediate thought was of The Black Swan because it had once been the domain of Carlton Guthrie (The Forgotten Duke). Charlotte’s arrival at The Black Swan was an eventful one – she had to convince a fatuous male that he shouldn’t try taking liberties with her. Her actions impressed the tavern owner and he agreed to take on the job of bodyguard since it paid well and was only something he’d have to do on occasion.

Blayne MacNeil is a man with two secret pasts – the one everyone thinks he is hiding – and the really secret one nobody knows he’s hiding. That really secret one could get him hanged even after twenty years. After twenty years of saving and preparing, Blayne is almost to the point where he can fulfill his dream. Yes, that big, brawny, handsome man wants to grow things – his office is filled with pots of plants and he longs to be able to purchase a small plot of land with a cottage so he can grow all he likes. When a very lovely and determined lady appears in The Black Swan seeking a bodyguard, the money she is offering can’t be refused. Goodness – how much trouble could one petite lady be?

That very same evening, Charlotte’s life is totally turned upside down by an announcement made by her father. Not one to sit idly by while disaster strikes her, Charlotte quickly devises a plan to thwart her fate – and, of course, she drags Blayne right into the middle of it. Of course, since she doesn’t know his real secret, she has no idea what she is asking of him.

I very much liked Charlotte and Blayne – I liked them together and separately. Charlotte is one of the most loyal and steadfast heroines I’ve ever read and I admired her for that. Blayne is so very honorable, supportive, and protective – and will sacrifice everything to protect Charlotte.

Another thing I liked was the amount of time for the relationship to develop. It seems that in most romances the couple meets one day and three days later they are married and expecting their first child. Well, maybe it isn’t quite that fast, but it is close. This author didn’t cover every minute of every day, but she included statements like “three days later” or “two weeks later” so we’d know time had passed and the couple had spent time together, but it wasn’t necessarily chronicled.

I’m giving this book 3.5 stars – rounded up to 4 because I didn’t really care for the solution to Blayne’s past. With just a couple of small tweaks, this story could have easily been a 5-star read for me. I don’t feel Blayne got what he deserved – what should have been his by rights. Yes, they got their HEA, but … Anyway, the solution just left me dissatisfied even with the heroic efforts Charlotte put into it. Just to mention – I read an ARC of the book and I’m hoping the many inconsistencies, etc. will be fixed prior to release.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.