The Highland Guardian

Oh my, but this is a wonderful book! Coming back from France, with a missive from Prince James on his person, Captain Reid MacKenzie’s ship is hit by Her Majesty’s Navy’s cannonballs. Reid’s ship is sunk, and as his best friend Nicholas Kennet lay dying, he entrusts Reid with the welfare of his daughter Audrey. At barely twenty three, Reid hardly sees himself as a guardian of a wee lass: his life is busy as it is with his estates, and the Jacobite cause he champions. However, a nineteen year-old very fetching ward is a problem he doesn’t need. THE HIGHLAND GUARDIAN is book 3 in Amy Jarecki’s marvellous Lord of the Highland series, and this book is the best of them all! Against the backdrop of Scotland’s precarious position in Britain, Ms. Jarecki weaves an amazingly believable romance, fraught with peril and treachery. THE HIGHLAND GUARDIAN unfolds at breakneck speed, while fierce battles on land are fought, and danger lurks at sea, all made astonishingly authentic with the addition of fabulous historical details and crystal-clear descriptions from the author. THE HIGHLAND GUARDIAN is an extraordinarily exciting book, filled with spectacular action and unexpected twists that barely give the reader time to breathe. The writing is flawless, elegant yet unpretentious; the dialogues superb, and the characters magnificently fleshed-out, even the chief villain makes your skin crawl in a chillingly realistic manner. Reid is a splendid hero: confident, utterly charming, and yet not indestructible – and this is one of the several highlights of the book; boy, does Reid go through a lot! And Audrey is one of the best heroines ever written: very clever and talented in many ways, still clumsy at one thing, she discovers strengths she never knew she possesses, and this Sassenach lassie braves danger as well as a braw Highlander: dear readers, this is how unforgettable characters should be written! THE HIGHLAND GUARDIAN is a perfect blend of action, history, and romance; I highly recommend this excellent book which is one of this year’s best! I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book

A story really appeals to me when a hero, once given his word, will follow through even when it is inconvenient and neigh impossible to make it happen. Such is the case with Reid MacKenzie, Earl of Seaforth, when he vows to a dying associate working for the cause, to protect his daughter, much as a guardian would. The girl, Miss Audrey Kennet, isn’t a wee lass as Reid thinks, but a woman full-grown with the most beguiling blue eyes. Yes, the reader knows Reid will sink in the mire of lust, love, or both long before he knows it, and then it’s too late! His plans change according to the circumstances. He can’t place her in boarding school, not even finishing school, because she’s completed her schooling. She’s of marriageable age, so all he needs to do it put Nicholas Kennet’s business in order and find a lad to marry her to. As in any good story, and Amy Jarecki always tells whoppers, simply going from A to B is fraught with challenges. Here, Miss Audrey herself and other outside forces have Reid reworking his plans over and over. Reid gets drawn into the net of caring (he’d rather not!)–he needs to get on with his own life. The cause needs him. His clan needs their chieftain with an added obligation which perils his freedom. His father made a pack with his uncle (again that honor thing) which has him already betrothed to his father’s uncle’s daughter. What is more important than unifying the clan and working for the cause? The Earl of Seaforth will be pulled in every direction, his heart being tattered in the process. Audrey Kennet has more than beguiling blue eyes. She’s a woman of honor herself and demands to pay back the times Reid has protected her. She loses a little more of her heart to him every day. Frankly, they are a match made in heaven. As with the rest of this series, this is an exciting read, suspenseful, full of danger plus experiencing what a man in love will do as he grapples with the anguish of satisfying his heart and doing the honorable thing.

4.5 stars The Highland Guardian is a well-written, perfectly paced Scottish Highlander Romance. Reid, the Scottish Earl of Seaforth, did not want to take on the responsibility of another man’s daughter. But, how could he refuse his dying friend’s request? What Reid never expected, however, was that Nicholas’s daughter, Audrey, was not a wee bairn, to be taken care of, but a full grown woman, and a beautiful one, at that. Reid found that he had to constantly remind himself, that Audrey was his ward, and under his protection, not a woman with whom he could take liberties with. There was also that other complication, which Reid often tries to put out of his mind; the fact that he is betrothed. When Reid was just a young lad, his father promised a clan chieftain, that Reid would marry his daughter. This marriage would ensure a strong binding alliance between the two clans. It didn’t matter that Reid had no interest in marrying this woman. He was an Earl, after all, and expected to marry to benefit the clan. Breaking off a betrothal would be considered a betrayal. And, the last thing Reid wanted was to foster mistrust or a war between the clans. But, how could Reid marry someone he’s grown up with, knowing that his heart belonged to another woman? There was evil lurking around Audrey’s home. It was just waiting for the right opportunity to pounce. Now, that Nicholas Kennet was out of the way, it was time for revenge. And, Nicholas Kennet’s daughter, Audrey, would be paying the price. The only barrier to a successful end, was Reid, the Scottish Earl of Seaforth. So, the nosey Earl would have to go. The Highland Guardian is a captivating historical fiction romance; crafted with emotion, witty dialog, and well-developed characters. Thank you, Forever-Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley, for my advanced review copy. I loved it.