Tag: Allie Mackay

Guest Review: Must Love Kilts by Allie Mackay

Posted December 30, 2010 by Book Binge Guest Blogger in Reviews | 5 Comments

Tracy’s review of Must Love Kilts by Allie Mackay

Margo Menlove loves everything Scottish-especially the legendary warrior hero Magnus MacBride. But while exploring in the Highlands she picks up a magical stone on the shore, and awakens to the sight of MacBride himself. And the reality may be much more dangerous-and passionate-than her dreams could ever be.


Margo is working at a new age shop in Pennsylvania when she comes across an old book about myths and legends from Scotland. She opens the book and gazes upon a beautiful warrior. They seem to connect, but how is that possible when he’s in a picture in a book?! Later she has what she feels is a dream, only she’s awake in the shower, about kissing the same warrior. She wakes up more than a bit confused but she can’t get the warrior out of her head.

Margo was born loving everything about Scotland. When she wins a vacation to Scotland she’s more than thrilled. But the tour is such a whirlwind she doesn’t get to see all the charming places that she’s drawn to, and she certainly doesn’t just get to stand on a windswept cliff and enjoy the silence. She decides, one night, to get away and she sneaks from her hotel out to the beach to get a little quiet time to herself. The next thing she knows she’s on a the same beach she was on before but now it’s morning and she’s watching kilted Scottish warriors fighting Vikings!

Margo is quite surprised when the warrior from her dreams stalks up to her accusing of her of being a witch but Magnus soon simmers down and realizes that she’s just as frightened to be there as he is to see her. You see, Magnus was having the same visions of Margo as she was having of him. They’ve already got a weird bond but what does it mean and where do they go from here? Magnus is determined to kill a specific Viking and a real witch who practices black magic is out to get Magnus. Life isn’t all that easy in 13th century Scotland!

Must Love Kilts is a fun book in many ways. I always like a good time travel story and this one was good in the fact that Margo really loved the 13th century, and Scotland, so she was prepared for the cultural changes. She also realized right from the start that she had time traveled and she wasn’t confused about what was going on, which was refreshing.

Magnus and Margo had clicked from moment one when they saw each other from the pages of the book and the dream so when they saw each other they weren’t looking on a stranger. My problem with that was that I think the romance suffered for it. They were incredibly attracted to each other and had no problem in the bedroom. They felt for each other but it wasn’t explained why. Yes, it was sweet that they found each other but what about the other person was the attraction besides outside beauty? The author had shown Magnus’s inner self and thoughts to the reader which were very compelling, but Margo never saw or heard that part. I didn’t see it.

Despite the lack of romance the book seemed more romantic because of the descriptions of Scotland that the author described so well. You can really tell that the author loved the land as she made me want to pack my bags and head on out. Lol

So even with the issues I had with the romance it was still a good book filled with strapping Scottish warriors, evil curses and lots of fighting of the Vikings. Not a bad way to pass an afternoon.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

You can read more from Tracy at Tracy’s Place

This book is available from Signet. You can buy it here or here in e-format.


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What I Read Last Week

Posted December 28, 2010 by Tracy in Features | 8 Comments

Wow I’m really behind!  I swear the day has totally gotten away from me. I just played Mario Kart on the Wii with my youngest for about an hour and I swear the thumb on my right hand won’t stop twitching! lol

First of all I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas – if you celebrate it. If not, I hope you enjoyed having the day off! lol  It was fun around here.  The kids were very good so they got good stuff from Santa.  We went to my parents house about 1/2 hour away and met up with family there. We ate enough for a small country and then played games that were loud and raucous.  A good time was had by all.

My oldest daughter had a rough week after her fall but managed to muddle through (thank you all so much for your well wishes).  Her back is much better – hardly even a twinge any longer but she was down and out for a few days – then the poor thing got the flu and was throwing up profusely.  I swear, when it rains it pours – not a good week for her.  But it ended well with all the gifts!  And her 13th birthday is this Thursday so there’ll be more gifts!  (Yes, it’s hell on the pocketbook!)

So what did I read this past week?

I started with How to Marry A Duke by Vicky Dreiling.  I read this one for The Book Binge so I’ll let you know when my review posts.  The story was about a Duke who was finally ready to take a bride in order to get an heir but he had specific things he needed in a bride.  How did he know who to choose?  And if he courted a woman to find out if she fit the bill then the scandal sheets would think he’s going to marry her.  So he enlists the help of a matchmaker who basically starts an episode of The Bachelor.  It ended up being a good book.  4.25 out of 5 (releases 1/3/11)

Next up was Two is Twice as Nice by Emily Cale – another book for The Book Binge.  This one didn’t really work for me.  The woman meets a great guy.  She’s hesitant to start anything because she’s been scarred inside and out by an auto accident and her fiance dumping her.  He gets past her defenses though and it seems pretty good.  Then the man introduces her to his twin brother who she had had sex with already, unknowingly.  Her acceptance of the whole sitch just turned me off. 2 out of 5

Next was Kindling Fire with Snow by Kate McMurray.  This was the story of two men who were in love with each other when they were in high school and meet up again.  Due to a snow storm they stay together in one of the men’s apartments and the time they spend together help them see they belong together.  It was a really great book and one I’d recommend.  4 out of 5

Precious and Fragile Things by Megan Hart was next.  This was an intense book about a woman who is carjacked and when she has the opportunity to escape she doesn’t take it and allows herself to be kidnapped.  It was a really great book with Hart’s typical wonderful writing.  You can read my review here.  4.5 out of 5

Next was My Fair Succubi by Jill Myles.  This is book 3 in the Succubus Diaries and it’s a good one!  All the same players are in it, Jackie, Noah, uber-hottie Zane (love him!), Remy and a few other newer players as well.  Jackie is trying to save her friend Remy from being possessed while trying to help the angels and keep her love life from falling apart.  It’s crazy but it’s good!  I read this one for The Book Binge as well so I’ll keep you posted on the review. 4.25 out of 5 

I won Tooth and Nail by Mary Calmes from Stumbling Over Chaos (and I didn’t even have to provide sexual favors for Randy to win!).  This is book 2 in Calmes’s Warder series.  I didn’t read book 1, His Hearth, but didn’t feel like I was missing anything but not having read it.  Malic is a warder (demon hunter/fighter) but is taking unnecessary risks. His sentinel, the man in charge of him and he thinks that Malic wouldn’t take such risks if he found his Hearth, the one man or woman who holds his heart and he won’t hurt. You see when he has sex with someone they age. Yes, they eventually return to normal and feel like they’ve had a horrible flu but his hearth won’t be like that.  Malic, who’s 30, meets Dylan, who’s 19 and though Malic is very attracted to him he won’t do anything about it because Dylan is too young.  But Dylan isn’t about to give up on the man he immediately thought of as “his” when he first saw him.  A really great book that I just was a joy to read.  4 out of 5

Last up was Must Love Kilts by Allie Mackay.  Yet another book I read for The Book Binge – can you tell I’m trying to catch myself up again? lol  This was about a woman who loved Scotland and then got to time-travel to there only she lands in the 13th century. It was a good book but the romance wasn’t all that great, imho.  The cover of this one – I love. Big strapping kilted Scottish hottie?  Lemme at him! 3.5 out of 5 (releases 1/4/11)

My Book Binge reviews that posted last week:
crickets chirping lol

Happy Reading!!


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