Author: Michelle Willingham

Guest Review: The Highlander and the Governess by Michelle Willingham

Posted September 10, 2019 by Tracy in Reviews | 1 Comment

Guest Review: The Highlander and the Governess by Michelle WillinghamReviewer: Tracy
The Highlander and the Governess by Michelle Willingham
Series: Untamed Highlanders #1
Publisher: Harlequin Historical
Publication Date: September 17, 2019
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
Point-of-View: Third
Genres: Historical Romance
Pages: 288
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three-stars
Series Rating: three-stars

A ruined lady turned governess

Can she tame the Highlander?

Part of Untamed Highlanders. When Frances Goodson is summoned to Scotland to give etiquette lessons, she’s not expecting to tutor a handsome laird! The scandal of her past means going home is not an option, so she must help wild, scarred Lachlan MacKinloch win a wealthy London heiress. She’s determined to fulfill her task and not get distracted by the passion she sees in the powerful laird’s eyes…

Frances Goodson arrives in Scotland and is impressed by the grandeur of the castle where she’s been hired to be a governess.  She’s been told nothing about her charges, but she can’t wait to get started.

When she finally is admitted to the home, she finds out that the Laird’s mother had hired a governess behind her son’s back because she thought he needed help with his manners and etiquette.  He’s to hopefully get engaged to a London lady soon, and the mother wants nothing to get in the way of that happening.

The Laird, Lachlan McKinloch, wants nothing to do with the governess or her etiquette lessons.  He orders her out of the house at once.  She talks him into letting her stay one day but then he insists she must leave.  One day turns to two and then soon she’s there for a month.

Frances is running from a scandal and poverty.  She was from a good family but they turned their backs on her when scandal hit.  Frances will do anything to stay away from London, even stay in Scotland and work for no wages.

Frances is able to get the Laird to work on etiquette like the proper fork to use, dancing, and the biggie: the need to always have a chaperone. Of course they don’t always, and next thing you know the two are falling in love.  Unfortunately the London hopeful has 20,000 pounds as a dowry so Lachlan can’t marry Frances as he needs the money the marriage will bring to save his people, who are starving.  His father wasn’t good with money before he died and made the arrangements with his best friend for their kids to marry.

I really liked this book up until the point where Frances and Lachlan return to London, then it just turned into a disaster.  I knew that Lachlan didn’t want to marry the other girl, but he knew that he was going to, no matter what.  That didn’t stop him from sleeping with Frances right after he asked the other woman to marry him! My God, Lachlan, have some honor!  Frances wasn’t much better but letting him when her brain was saying “no, this isn’t right.” Smart brain.  It all works out in the end but not before some serious issues that I really didn’t think made up for Lachlan’s behavior.

Overall it was a decent story, but not one I loved. You’ll probably have to read it for yourself and see what you think about Lachlan’s actions as well as some of the secondary characters.  If you do, please let me know your thoughts, I’d love to hear them.

Rating: 3 out of 5

three-stars


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Guest Review: Forbidden Night with the Prince by Michelle Willingham

Posted July 5, 2018 by Tracy in Reviews | 0 Comments

Guest Review: Forbidden Night with the Prince by Michelle WillinghamReviewer: Tracy
Forbidden Night with the Prince (Warriors of the Night #3) by Michelle Willingham
Series: Warriors of the Night #3
Also in this series: Forbidden Night with the Warrior
Publisher: Harlequin Historical
Publication Date: August 1, 2018
Format: eARC
Point-of-View: Third
Genres: Historical Romance
Pages: 288
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three-half-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

A lifetime of being good…

One night of sin!

A Warriors of the Night story: virtuous Joan de Laurent is fated never to marry. Three betrothals, each ending in the groom’s death, have convinced her she’s cursed! But only her hand in marriage can help darkly brooding Irish prince Ronan win back his fortress. To break the curse, Joan must risk all to spend one forbidden night with the royal warrior…

Joan de Laurent believes she’s cursed.  She has had two betrothals and both of her intendeds died before the wedding!  She heads off to Ireland to meet her third betrothed and guess what?  He’s dead too!  Of course he was older, but still!

Ronan Ó Callaghan is an Irish prince who heads to the MacEgan holding to gather reinforcements.  His step-brother staged a coup and took over his father’s throne, taking his father hostage.  Ronan cannot let this stand and asks the MacEgan’s for warriors.  They say they’ll provide them but the de Laurent brothers can also provide warriors.  Unfortunately they’ll only do so if Ronan marries their sister.  Ronan isn’t interested in marrying but when he meets Joan he is quite taken with her.

Joan doesn’t want to get betrothed again.  She doesn’t want to take the chance of killing another man.  When she starts to have feelings for Ronan, she especially doesn’t want him to die.  She gets desperate and goes to an old medicine woman to ask how to break the curse.  The woman tells her to have Ronan drink a potion and then Joan is to lay with him and once they have the curse will be broken.  Joan is skeptical but she’s also desperate, so she goes for it.  They spend a wonderful night together and Ronan even agrees to marry Joan, but Joan won’t marry him as he refuses to have kids.  (He believes he killed his brother and nephew.)  The two need to come to an agreement so that Ronan can get the warriors he needs and save his father like he couldn’t save his other family members.

This was a good story.  I felt so bad for Joan!  With her believing that she’s cursed and everyone acting like she’s the devil, I’d want to leave as well.  Ronan was good for her as he brought her out of her self-induced shell.  She wasn’t a meek and mild person but felt she needed to act like one in order to break the curse.  I loved how Ronan dealt with Joan and she with him., they were really perfect for each other.

I felt that the part of the story that dealt with Ronan and his step-brother was also well done.  It seemed very realistic – something that I could imagine happening (even though I’m not really up on my Irish medieval history).

In the end I enjoyed the book and found it entertaining – a nice way to spend a quiet evening.

Rating: 3.75 out of 5

Warriors of the Night

three-half-stars


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Guest Review: Forbidden Night with the Warrior by Michelle Willingham

Posted June 28, 2017 by Tracy in Reviews | 0 Comments

Guest Review: Forbidden Night with the Warrior by Michelle WillinghamReviewer: Tracy
Forbidden Night with the Warrior by Michelle Willingham
Series: Warriors of the Night #1
Also in this series: Forbidden Night with the Prince (Warriors of the Night #3)
Publisher: Harlequin
Publication Date: June 20th 2017
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four-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

One wicked night for an heir!

Rosamund de Courcy has always loved Warrick de Laurent, but was forced to marry another. Now her husband's dying command is that she must provide him with an heir. To do so, she will have to spend one sinful night...with Warrick!

The powerful warrior was wounded by Rosamund's abandonment years ago, and Warrick refuses to let her touch his heart again. But this illicit night is impossible to resist, and soon he is determined--he will not only possess her, but reclaim her for his own!

Three years ago Rosamund met and fell in love with Warrick.  She wanted nothing more than to be with Warrick but her father had other ideas about her future – not one where she wed a third son with no property.  Under threat of death to Warrick, Rosamund marries.  Now it’s three years later and her husband, Alan, is dying.  He summons Warrick to him and tells him that he wants him to lie with his wife to produce an heir.  Alan doesn’t want his evil brother to inherit and he knows he can’t produce an heir.  Rosamund is adamant that this not happen but Alan gets his way.

Being with Warrick again brings back all of the old feelings she once had for him.  She knows she never stopped loving him but she is still married to her husband.  When he dies Rosamund fears for her life fro Alan’s brother, Owen, and fleas her home.  Unfortunately Owen is determined to have Alan’s estates as well as Rosamund.

I never am one to read books that involve infidelity but this was a different take on everything.  I still didn’t care for it but I could deal with it better because of the circumstances.  Alan truly gave Rosamund no choice in the matter and that pissed me off.  He even forced it on her by coming to her in the dark –   he wanted her to believe that it was he that she was having sex with.  Of course she knew immediately it was Warrick.  That whole scene had me cringing because Warrick – who I had really liked  up until that point was involved.  It was a bit weird to say the least.

The story revolves around not only the issues with Alan and his wishes for Rosamund before he dies, but the issues with his brother Owen as well.   Then there was Rosamund and Warrick working out their issues from the past as well as the problems they faced currently.  There was a lot going on but as usual Willingham wrote it in such a way that it flowed easily.  She took all the different parts of the story and brought it into one cohesive and very good book.  I really enjoyed all of the parts of the story and definitely recommend this one.

Rating: 4 out of 5

four-stars


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Guest Review: Her Warrior King by Michelle Willingham

Posted March 16, 2016 by Tracy in Reviews | 0 Comments

Guest Review: Her Warrior King by Michelle WillinghamReviewer: Tracy
Her Warrior King by Michelle Willingham
Series: MacEgan Brothers #2
Publisher: Harlequin
Publication Date: January 1st 2008
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four-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

He has wed her, but will not bed her!

Blackmail forced Patrick MacEgan into marriage— although he could not be forced to bed his Norman bride. But Isabel de Godred was as fair as she was determined to be a proper wife….

She wished to help her proud warrior king with the burden of his responsibilities. As queen, she could aid an alliance between their people. As wife, she longed to comfort him, for when alone, they could put aside war and be but man and woman….

Patrick MacEgan is a king in Ireland. His fortress and people are attacked by Norman forces and many of his people, including his older brother, had been killed. Lord Edwin de Godred, who conquered his tribe, wants to be in good favor with King Henry and since Henry wants to unite the two countries de Godred wants to put Norman men into the Irish fortress, forcing the people to live together. He also wants Patrick to marry his daughter Isabel as the alliance will look good to King Henry. Patrick really doesn’t have a choice if he wants to save his people but he’s certainly not happy about the marriage or having the Norman soldiers in his fortress.

Patrick shows up to marry Isabel but he doesn’t plan on consummating the marriage and there’s no chance he will ever have kids with her as he wouldn’t take the chance that his sons would have Norman blood. The problem starts when he actually starts to like Isabel. Though she’s pretty much exiled on an island near his fortress she finds ways to challenge him constantly. Patrick tries to stay away from her but he finds himself drawn to her.

Isabel wants nothing more than for her marriage to work. She didn’t want to to marry Patrick but now that it’s done she wants to make the best of it. She constantly defies Patrick but wants to help him and what she ends up doing actually works to bring the two sides, the Irish and the Norman, together. The question remains, however, will Patrick ever see her as anyone more than a burden and can she make him fall in love with her as she loves him.

Though I read this book out of order (I unknowingly read them in publishing order instead) I loved seeing how the brothers worked together to save their tribe and fortress. Patrick was one stubborn man but I understood the reasons he kept himself apart from Isabel. Once he finally let her into his heart I knew that he wouldn’t be able to resist her.

Isabel was a piece of work – in a good way. She was determined not to be ignored and to make the Normans and the Irish to work together. Her ideas were shot down by Patrick but when she went ahead and put them into play herself they turned out working. I loved her ingenuity. Yes, some of it was done selfishly so that she could be with Patrick but it ended being a benefit to everyone. She was a kind woman but strong, independent woman but still very kind and generous. I loved her character and was so happy when Patrick finally pulled his head out and saw what a treasure she was.

I haven’t read many Irish historical romances before but I have to say that I’ve really enjoyed the MacEgan series so far (I’ve read books 2-5) and I’m looking forward to reading more in the series.

Rating: 4 out of 5

four-stars


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