This was my second Julie Garwood book, my first being Honor's Splendour-which I definitely reccommend! This book wasn't as good as HS. For one, the hero and the heroine don't even meet till page 125. I like my romances to start off at the beginning even though this is a long book, it doesn't make up for it! Also, Brodick doesn't change at all, he always remains the domineering egotistical one who always gets what he wants. He does want gillian to be happy though, even though if she does get her own way , the reader knows that he would be miserable. I also wish that Gillian and Brodick had more time to talk and had more witty banter with eachother, but Gillian is off making friends with Bridgid and Brodick is busy doing something or other. I thought it was sweet that Brodick liked Gillian because she was a strong woman and that she could stand up to him and so forth, *SPOILER* but I felt like he was taking advantage of her by marrying her when she didn't even know it, what is up with that! What happened to that little boy Alec anyway? I guess Gillian didn't care about him at all once he returned to his parents, maybe he was just a way for Brodick and Gillian to meet. I also don't understand how when they only knew eachother for such a short time, they were already going to get married. There are also good points to the book though, Gillian and Brodick do have some witty banter and they do have good sexual tension. Brodick does do some stupid things though later on, which are annoying, he even admits to using her later on, but he says that is only because he wanted to protect her. The book is fluffy is a way, but there is a story line about a jewled chest that gillian needs to find to save her uncle. I guess this book didn't appeal to me that much because the hero was not tender and gentle and romantic with the heroine and that is what I like.

If you like romance novels, especially those set in the Highlands this is a very good book. It might do for a Diana Gabaldon/Outlander fix, but in no way would I consider these two books or authors as equals. While it is a fun and funny tale to read, I would not consider it well researched or historically acturate. Anyone feel free to correct me if I'm wrong but:

1. I believe women in the middle ages always kept their hair well braided and covered, it being quite scandalous for any man but your husband to see your hair loose. Yet throughout the novel Gillian's hair was always flowing free.

2. There was constant mention of the Scots speaking English instead of gaelic to accomodate Gillian, who spoke English. If I'm not mistaken, the "English" nobility of that period were still Normans, and thus spoke French.

That being said, it was still a good read. It's a bit confusing at the start, the way the author bounces around in the past/future in setting up her story and characters -- especially the part between Gillian and Alec hanging literally by a thread -- I couldn't figure out what was going on, but it made sense the second time I read the book.

I loved Brodick (sigh) and Gillian, both strong and stubborn and undeniably attracted to each other. With the exception of Jamie Fraser in Outlander I think Brodick is right up there as my all time favorite hard-headed stubborn hero in a kilt. The banter was fun, especially between Gillian and Brodick's guards. Downside -- not enough between Ramsey and Bridgid and sorely missing was an epilogue. After all the hoopla about how the Buchanans lived like Spartans I very much wanted to read about their return to Scotland and how Brodick's clan accepted Gillian.

Lastly, and not to critisize the author but a HUGE THUMBS DOWN on her publisher, Pocket Books. Every Garwood book I have read has had at least one serious typo. Several of these books have been reprints, so you would think the publishers would catch them and correct them but apparently not. In this book, I found Gillian printed as Gilliam and Brodick printed as Broderick. If I recall that was in the same chapter. A bit distracting to the story to misspell the main character names. Another expample was Murder List, where the H&H and going for their first kiss and she grabs his jacket lable instead of lapel. LOL.

I have to say that I have read all of Ms. Garwood's books and by far this one is my favorite. I have read it over several times and still love it each and every time!

This was my first Garwood book. It actually had me looking for more. Unfortunately most of her books are very similar. I do like her books because the hero and heroine are usually together through most of the book with lots of feelings and dialogue in between. This book is no exception. There were a few things that I found annoying about this book. Gillian was such a strong character at the beginning of the book and then as the story progressed she became weaker and weaker. Brodick seemed to love her for her strong will but somehow he stomped it out of her anyway. Ramsey and Bridgid seemed a bit rushed. I think Ramsey definitely could have carried his own novel. The book was also a little repetitive at times. Every single character had to be told the story how Gillian saved Michael. Michael became a little bit repetitive also and a bit annoying. Lastly, when Gillian finally finds her sister it is very anti-climactic and a little hard to believe. Even with these flaws it was still a very nice read.

The first 70 pages of this book were riveting - I simply couldn't put it down. After this, as the story began to unfold and lead into other characters, I felt it lost much of it's original intensity which was a shame because those first 70 pages were compelling. Without going into a detailed explanation of the story, which so many reviewers have done before me, I'll keep my comments brief and to the point. Although I enjoyed Gillian, I found her independence was so over the top that somewhere along the line the sense of her as an emotinally based woman was lost. She was independent to a fault. The relationship with Alex in the beginning of the book was exceptional and literally came alive on the pages, and I would have liked to have seen it explored further along in the story. It was a shame it simply disappeared once Alex was home, it was far too good. I would like to see a sequel with Alex as a grown man - he was a charmer.

As for Broderick, I didn't think he wasn't written as well as Ramsey or Iian, and had difficulty feeling him in my mind's eye. Ramsey was so good in fact, he could have his own book.

I'm a Garwood fan, yet some of the best books I've read recently are
"Risk Everything" and by Sophia Johnson, and "Lily and the Sword" by Sara Bennett.