Scottish/Highlander – Flippin' Pages Book Reviews

The Highlander’s Lady of Loch and Sea by Heather McCollum

Tracy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: The Brotherhood of Solway Moss #3

Release Date: January 27, 2026

After escaping with three other men from an English prison, Cyrus Mackinnon and his fellow inmates, have been working hard to build an alliance among the clans of the Isle of Skye. To that end, he has engineered a wedding between his sister Grace and Iain Macqueen, the chief of the Macqueen clan. His sister seems happy and adding the Macqueen to the alliance, makes for a stronger Skye. But trouble starts almost immediately when Grace’s wedding is interrupted by an otter! Once the otter is shooed out, Cyrus sees a woman throw a note into the church, a note that warns Grace not to marry Iain. The wedding takes place, despite Cyrus’ unease. Later at the wedding feast, he meets an enchanting woman, and they spend an amazing night together, but he wakes up to find himself tied to the bed and the woman holding a knife to his throat. But instead of killing him, she begs his forgiveness and escapes, leaving him nude and tied to the bed. When he is found by Rory MacLeod, he is determined to find his enchantress and get some answers.

Widow Laria Macqueen is the daughter of a previous chief, but now is the champion of the clan members who have been cast out by Iain. Laria is certain that Iain murdered his mother (her aunt) and that he has an elaborate plan to take over the Mackinnon plan. He promised her aid for the outcasts if she would kill Cyrus. She planned to do it, but after sharing an amazing night with him, she just couldn’t go through with it and leaves him tied up and angry. She joins her outcasts in the woods and isn’t overly surprised when Cyrus finds her. She tries to explain and warn him of Iain’s treachery, yet it is clear that he doesn’t trust her, but she won’t stop trying to make him see the truth. He finally begins to believe her, and deeper feelings develop, but as much as she would like to give into those feelings, she cannot afford to indulge herself when her people are in danger. will they lose everything they have been fighting for, or can they find a way to save her people and keep the alliance?

This installment of the Brotherhood of Solway Moss is a well written, nicely paced story that has a lot going on and a lot of familiar faces. Cyrus and Laria have an amazing chemistry, and you can’t help but root for them. Their story is filled with emotion, secrets, murder, prejudices, steamyish love scenes, heartache, sacrifice, answers to some questions from the previous installments, a lot of new questions, a bit of magic and finally an ending that will warm your heart and leave you wanting more. I am now really looking forward to the final installment and finally learning the truth about Asher MacNicol! This is the third book in the series and while it could be read as a standalone, you will have a much better reader experience if you read the books in order.

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

Highlander’s Holly and Ivy by Margaret Izard

Tracy’s Rating: 3/3.5 of 5 stars

Series: Stones of Iona, Holiday Novella

Release Date: December 1, 2025

Iris Erskine, daughter to James Erskine, the English Lord Advocate of Scotland, loves Scotland and wants to immerse herself in the culture of her adopted country, but understandably, the Scots are not fond of the English, so with the help of her maid Laurel, Iris takes on the persona of a mute maid named Ivy. She joins her friend at a gathering of the Gaels – a group of Scots that gather to keep their culture alive, despite the laws imposed on them by the English. When she meets their leader, Alex MacDougall, she is immediately smitten, and the feeling is mutual. They grow closer, but she never finds a way to tell him who she really is and when he learns the truth, his trust and possibly his love is lost. Will she be able to convince Alex that she never intended to deceive him or has her innocent deception cost her the love of a lifetime?

Alex MacDougall is the Lord Justice Cleark to Scotland and serves as a intermediary between the Scots and the Lord Advocate of Scotland – Englishman James Erskine, whom he has come to respect, despite the fact he is English. Alex’s family has a questionable allegiance to Scotland, thanks to his father’s refusal to fight at Culloden, so he has made it his mission to help Scotland adapt to English rule, but he doesn’t want to forsake his culture. He joined the Gaels, to keep their traditions alive, never expecting to find love. Alex thought he had found love once before and lost her and a Stone of Iona that the fae tasked his family to protect to an evil fae, leaving him determined to never love again. But when he meets Ivy, he wonders if love is possible for him and if he might be able to reclaim the love stone he lost all those years ago. But when the Gaels are found out and he realizes Ivy is not who she says she is, he believes she betrayed him. But when the truth comes out will it be too late to save her and reclaim the love he thought he would never find?

I have mixed feelings about this book, I liked the connection between Alex and Ivy/Iris, but I was expecting a lot more Fae activity, especially based on the prologue, and ultimately it ended up feeling like that element was just an afterthought. I did enjoy the setting of post-Culloden Scotland and the struggle the Scots had to keep their culture alive while abiding by the laws that seemed determined to eradicate their traditions. But I felt that Iris’ deception dragged on for way too long and found it hard to believe that Alex didn’t figure it out, especially since he kissed both Iris and “Ivy”. Overall, it was an OK read that I am glad I read and I wonder if I would have enjoyed it more if I had read the previous books in this series. Having said that, I didn’t feel lost even though I hadn’t read the other books, so I feel confident that this book could be read as a standalone title. It is important to note that I would caution sensitive readers to check out the content warnings before reading this book as there are some violent and graphic on-page assaults that may be upsetting to some readers.

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

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