Tangled Up with the Highlander by Julie Johnstone-review

Tangled Up with the Highlander (Return of the Highlanders Book 2) by Julie Johnstone

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /

Don’t own a Kindle? Download the FREE Amazon Kindle App for your mobile device or pc

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date August 30, 2024

He thought he would never love again… Then he fell for the lass he must give up to save his clan.

Desperate to keep his children and clan from starving, Laird Alasdair MacLachlan joins the ranks of mercenaries searching for the missing lass of a powerful clan. The mission seems simple—find the lass, return her to her family, and claim the hefty reward. But when fate throws bow and arrow wielding Sorcha MacGregor in his path, he’s about to discover how complicated one mule-headed, beguiling beauty can make things. For a man who has lost and loved and has no interest in doing either ever again, he’s confounded by the desire the opinionated woman awakens in him, and he’s shocked to discover his heart might not be permanently frozen after all. But his duty to his family and clan must come before all else, and that means sticking to the plan. Or is that just an excuse to avoid burying his painful past and taking a risk on a new future? One thing is certain—if he doesn’t figure it out soon, Sorcha will be lost to him forever.

Life has taught Sorcha MacGregor that only a harebrained fool would wish to wed and become a man’s chattel to control. So when she’s kidnapped by a Highlander who intends to deliver her like a trussed pig to a family she’s never known, she instantly decides he’s a selfish barbarian like all other men. Her opinion becomes harder to maintain, though, when the devilishly handsome warrior risks his life for hers. Still, she has no intention of lowering her well-placed guard and making herself vulnerable. But with each act of kindness Alasdair shows her, every moving interaction between him and his children, and the simmering way he looks at her, not to mention the toe-curling kisses, she comes to see the gentle, brokenhearted man behind the hardened exterior, and she does the one thing she swore she’d never do: falls in love. When the time comes for Alasdair to make the ultimate sacrifice for her, for love, will he prove he’s really the man of her dreams or just a fantasy that is too good to be true?

••••••••

REVIEW: Although second book in the series, and a slight continuation from book one, this book can be read without reading the first one.

With this author you can be assured of a great story. Set in beautifully written backdrops, this historical romance will have you on the edge of your seat with the drama/suspense and romance.

Widower Laird Alasdair MacLachlan is at his wits end! His clan is starving! He sees no other option than to join a band of mercenaries ordered to find a missing woman of another clan. The reward will feed his clan. Sorcha is sick and tired of her life! Her mother 💀 leaving her and her sister to a father who likes to drink and use his fists! Entering a competition will ensure both her future and her sister a dowry to marry the man she loves.

The thing I love the most about this author’s storytelling is her attention to detail. The sights and sounds of the highland can transport you there. Both Alistair and Sorcha have no intentions of marrying, his heart is hardened after losing his wife to childbirth, and she has seen what marriage can do to a woman. But as they spend more and more time together, it brings the best out in both of them, they also see a side to one another that makes them stop and think!

So will Alistair do the right thing? Will he hand over the woman who has made him see the good around him? To become a better father to his own children. Or will he take this opportunity of happiness?

Click HERE for Julie’s review of book one SECRETS OF A HIGHLANDER’S HEART

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Julie B 🦋

FollowGoodreads / Facebook / Twitter / Newsletter

Author Julie Johnstone first fell in love with romance fifteen years ago when she picked up her first romance novel in an airport gift shop on the way to Conroe, Texas for a family reunion and spent her whole weekend reading rather than water skiing, which up until then was one of her favorite things to do.

Julie is staying up way too late and typing furiously on her keyboard to finish her next book or blog with her fellow authors at Ladyscribes. Julie is married to an amazing lawyer and when she is not running her two precocious children to one activity or another she is trying to seek out some time to stay in shape and see her dearest friends.

Share

Secrets of a Highlander’s Heart by Julie Johnstone-review

Secrets of a Highlander’s Heart (Return of the Highlanders 1) by Julie Johnstone-review

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /

Don’t own a Kindle? Download the FREE Amazon Kindle App for your mobile device or pc

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date April 25, 2024

Will the truth of the past destroy the hope of their future?

How far will he go for vengeance?

Brus Stone remembers nothing of his life before he was rescued at the age of five summers and brought to live as part of the Northern Watch. Having been told his mother abandoned him, he’s about as willing to give his trust to a woman as he is to hand his sword to his enemy during battle. So when he’s tasked with accompanying a group of highlanders through the treacherous lands he helps patrol and he encounters a bonny lass who proves to be as brave as any warrior he’s ever met, he’s surprised by his pull to the lass and more than wary because of it. He steels himself against lowering his guard, but her open nature bemuses him, and her caring heart entices him. Each time he touches her he finds himself further drawn to the warmth she exudes and the possibility that believing in her will not result in betrayal. But a shocking revelation about his past obliterates everything he holds true and leaves him with a choice—give unwavering faith to the daughter of the enemy he didn’t know he had or raise his guard once more and secure the ultimate revenge.

How much will she lose for love?

Grace MacDonald is starting to wonder whether she’ll ever meet a man who sees her as an equal and not simply a potential wife to do as he bids. To complicate matters, her father wishes her to wed her childhood friend and fortify an important alliance between their clans. Though she wants to please her beloved father, her friend does not stir her heart or her desire, so she’s reluctant to accept his offer of marriage. When the party she’s travelling with is attacked and a Scottish warrior rescues her, she’s immediately drawn to the powerfully compelling man. Not only does he display a gentle caring side, but he also listens to what she says and seems to value her opinions. His every look, touch, and kiss ignite her in the way she’s been waiting for all her life. But Brus will not completely let her in. He has erected a barrier between them, and the harder she tries to breach it, the more withdrawn he becomes. She’s determined to prove to him that he can count on her, so they can grasp the glorious love she’s sure awaits them. Yet when a devastating secret comes to light, she must decide whether her loyalty remains with the father she’s always trusted or whether it belongs with the man she’s certain is her destiny.

••••••

REVIEW:With Julie Johnstone, you can always rely that a good story waits for you. And this one did not disappoint.

Brus has a huge grudge where women are concerned! Well, I suppose you can’t really blame him.(His mother abandoned him as a baby.) So trust with women doesn’t come easily. And when he’s given the job of guarding a group of highlanders as they pass through this patrol area…..

Grace isn’t a meek and mild young lady! She knows her own mind! But that doesn’t mean a thing in this era! And to top it off, her father wants her to marry her friend! What Grace wants is an equal, she’s wanting passion and fire, and she doesn’t see her friend in that way!

There is an attraction between Brus and Grace, but he’s not going to fall, he’s adamant that it’s a job, and once she’s out of his sight, he won’t think about her again…..Grace is soooooo frustrated with Brus! She knows they would be good together, he just won’t let her in!

And the secret that is brewing between them? (I guessed it practically straight away 😉) it’s going to test both of them!

Can Brus really overcome his hate? Will Grace be the one to help him? Or will it all end on heartbreak?

Good plot, great main characters, and really great secondary characters. Which I’m hoping will get books 😉 the descriptions of the lands had me clearly seeing them, the castle in all its majestic glory. This could have been a series/film. And I would have watched it.

Think Poldark or Outlander (without the time travel)

Another really good historical read. 👍🏻

Copy  supplied for review

Reviewed by Julie B🦋

Follow: Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter / Newsletter

Author Julie Johnstone first fell in love with romance fifteen years ago when she picked up her first romance novel in an airport gift shop on the way to Conroe, Texas for a family reunion and spent her whole weekend reading rather than water skiing, which up until then was one of her favorite things to do.

Julie is staying up way too late and typing furiously on her keyboard to finish her next book or blog with her fellow authors at Ladyscribes. Julie is married to an amazing lawyer and when she is not running her two precocious children to one activity or another she is trying to seek out some time to stay in shape and see her dearest friends.

Share