Series: The MacGregor Lairds

Guest Review: How to Ensnare a Highlander by Michelle McLean

Posted February 6, 2018 by Tracy in Reviews | 0 Comments

Guest Review: How to Ensnare a Highlander by Michelle McLeanReviewer: Tracy
How to Ensnare a Highlander (The MacGregor Lairds #2) by Michelle McLean
Series: The MacGregor Lairds #2
Also in this series: How to Lose a Highlander
Publisher: Entangled, Entangled Scandalous
Publication Date: February 12th 2018
Format: eARC
Genres: Historical Romance
Pages: 227
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four-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

When Lady Elizabet Harding’s family is targeted by the notorious Highland Highwayman, she finds herself wounded and an unwelcome guest of the charming outlaw who’d ruined her reputation earlier that day. Elizabet only wants to get even for her family’s downfall, but the more time she spends with the scoundrel, the more complicated her feelings become.

By day, Laird John MacGregor graces the court of Charles II. By night, he exacts revenge on his enemies – one of whom is betrothed to the fiery heiress who has, quite literally, fallen into his arms. The daughter of one enemy and promised to another, Elizabet should be the last person John wants. Yet even as she exasperates him, she is all he has ever desired for himself. When her life is put in danger, he will do anything necessary to protect the women he never expected to love…even if it means they cannot be together.

Lady Elizabet’s family is set upon by a notorious highwayman and then when Elizabet is accidentally shot, he takes her with him when he leaves in order to heal her.  He has no idea he’ll fall in love with her.  Elizabet is charmed by the man called Jack but he’s after her father and the man she’s supposed to marry.  She doesn’t care about her supposed betrothed but ruining her father will ruin her mother Elizabet won’t stand for that.  Jack wants Elizabet to turn on her father, but she won’t.  Jack is stuck in revenge mode because of the smuggling that Elizabet’s father and betrothed are involved in.  Because of that smuggling his brother was killed and he’ll stop at nothing to ruin the men.  Except…when it comes to Elizabet he’s not sure that he can do it if it makes her unhappy.  He falls in love with her and she with him but she’s all but married to someone else. How can they ever be together, especially when truths come out and people go to prison?

This was such a good story.  I was really on the edge of my seat for most of the book and the end made me very happy. I loved how McLean didn’t wrap things in a pretty little bow at the end.  She made things more like they might have been in real life and I appreciated that.  I would have liked to have seen her father and betrothed pay, but I understood why that never happened.

Reading about Jack and Elizabet falling in love was a pleasure.  There were extenuating circumstances when Elizabet got shot and he didn’t want her to die so that’s why he took her with him.  His friends told him to take her home but he was so attached to her by that time he couldn’t bring himself to do it until he had no more excuses.  I loved the way that they talked and came to trust each other, despite the fact that Jack never took his mask off.

I really enjoyed my second read by this author and will look into reading more from her.  I just saw that she writes contemporary romance under the name Kira Archer so I’ll have to check those out as well.

The MacGregor Lairds Series

Rating: 4 out of 5

four-stars


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Guest Review: How to Lose a Highlander by Michelle McLean

Posted May 17, 2017 by Tracy in Reviews | 0 Comments

Guest Review: How to Lose a Highlander by Michelle McLeanReviewer: Tracy
How to Lose a Highlander by Michelle McLean
Series: The MacGregor Lairds #1
Also in this series: How to Ensnare a Highlander (The MacGregor Lairds #2)
Publisher: Scandalous
Publication Date: May 15th 2017
Add It: Goodreads
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Ripped Bodice | Google Play Books
Series Rating: four-stars

Forced into marriage by their king in order to stop years of inter-clan feuding, Sorcha Campbell and Malcolm MacGregor are each determined to drive the other away. Malcolm knows he can never trust his new shrewish wife, despite the fact that everything he observes seems to prove that she’s not only trustworthy, but utterly perfect for him. Sorcha knows she can never let her guard down around the man she believes betrayed her father, yet the longer she’s with him, the more she discovers he is nothing like she was led to believe. They’ll have to fight their way through past prejudices and their own determination to destroy their union in order to gain their perfect HEA in this Taming of the Shrew meets How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days tale.

Sorcha Campbell’s father may be a highlander but and she obviously part Scottish but she’s been brought up by her English mother in England.  She’s lived at court most of her life and she doesn’t want that to change. She’s been proposed to many times but her father has turned them all down as no one has been good enough for her.

The Campbell’s and the MacGregor’s won’t stop raiding each other’s lands and the king decides that it must come to an end.  The king decides that Sorcha will marry Malcolm MacGregor and make the two families kin.  No one is happy with the decree but they can’t go against the king.  Sorcha decides to do everything she can to make him get an annulment and strangely enough, Malcolm has the same idea.  After the marriage the pair just frustrate the hell out of each other to no avail.  Sorcha gets to know the people of the MacGregor clan and she starts to doubt that all of the horrible things her father had told her about them were true.  She starts to find a home and decides that she needs to try to make hers a real marriage with Malcolm.  Unfortunately Malcolm finds it hard to trust – especially a Campbell.

This was a great little story.  I really liked Malcolm and Sorcha and their plans to irritate each other to death in order to get an annulment.  It didn’t work with either of them but it was funny.  I admit that did get old rather quickly and was happy when the author moved on to getting the pair together.  It was done slowly but very well and I thought it was nice that Sorcha didn’t go from hating Malcolm to loving him.  It took a while and that was a good thing.

Overall I thought it was a cute story. I’m interested to see who the next Laird in the series is so I’m sure I’ll be reading the next book when it comes out. 🙂

Rating: 4 out of 5


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