Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Review: Ravished by a Highlander by Paula Quinn



You know I love my highlanders; nothing's sexier than an alpha male with a brogue and a kilt!

As Ravished by a Highlander begins, we meet Davina Montgomery - she's been disguised as a novice at a convent in England. She's been there since birth, and for the last 4 years her main companion and friend has been Captain Asher, leader of the men assigned to protect her.

Robert MacGregor is the son of a highland laird, and he and his brothers are on their way to meet his father at the coronation of the new king. As they are riding, they come upon the convent under attack. They join in the conflict, and as Asher lays dying, he begs Robert to save her and keep her safe. Against his better judgement, Rob agrees to the dying man's wishes. He doesn't know who she is or why she needs protecting, but he is a man of his word.

After many stops and surprises (some pleasant, some unpleasant), they decide to go to Robert's home on Skye, where he knows he can protect her against any intruders. Although she has kept her identity from him, he has figured it out and knows how dangerous it will be to protect her. Robert understands the weight of the responsibility he is undertaking, but he finds he cares about her, and will do anything to keep her safe and near him.


My thoughts:

I enjoyed this book. For much of the first half I was a bit frustrated - it was hinted at many, many times that she had a secret identity and if anyone found out trouble would ensue. But once the storyline kept moving, and her identity was revealed to the reader, I enjoyed it more. There was a lot of political intrigue, but I was able to keep all the parties separate and it was not hard to follow. I'll admit I was surprised at who the traitor was.

The scenes that took place once they reached Rob's castle were the ones that drew me in. The images of the castle, and the surrounding countryside were wonderful. I liked that we were able to see a more playful side of Davina, it made her a more engaging character. Rob is just delicious! His scenes with Davina were so sexy and tender; I wanted this HEA for them and I didn't see how it was going to work out!

It was scenes like this, where this hard, strong highlander was brought to his knees, that made my heart break:

Rob barely heard him and lifted his arm to swipe the swords out of his way. His wife's cry stopped him.

"Please, please, Rob. You cannot die."

"I am dead if he takes ye from me," Rob told her across the length of the blades, desperation hardening his face and softening his voice.

Oh, so, so sweet!

I also enjoyed reading about Rob's family; I liked his aunts and cousins. I was especially captivated by his brothers and brothers-in-arms; they were quite entertaining and I hope they all get their own stories.

So, after a slow start I did really enjoy the 2nd half of this book and am looking forward to the next book in this series - Seduced by a Highlander, which IS about one of Rob's brothers :)

I give Ravished by a Highlander 3 1/2 stars!



This book was provided to me by the publisher free of charge in exchange for an honest review.

5 comments:

  1. Oh no, who is she!? Oh my curiosity takes the best of me sometimes ;)

    Kilts, mmmmmmm

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  2. I've heard lots of good things about this one. I can't wait to get my copy from the library! Loved your review-I mean, who can pass up a Highlander?

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  3. Yeah, Highlanders do it for me too. :) I'm not sure if I could keep reading when the first half of the book was slow. Glad you enjoyed the second half!

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  4. Blodeuedd: It was driving me nuts - I felt like "tell me already"!

    Buckeye Girl: All in all it was sweet and I did like the main characters.

    Chris: *waves back*

    Janna: I kept reading b/c I wanted to know who she was, LOL!

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