LORD OF THE ISLES

Author: Amanda Scott ISBN: 0446614610 5/2005 HISTORICAL Publisher: WARNER FOREVER
Time Period: Scotland 1370

Lady Cristina Macleod, eldest daughter of a HIghland chieftain, is in a dire situation. Her superstitious father insists that she marry before her sisters, and he has forced her into a scheme: to trick Hector "the Ferocious" Maclean into taking her for his wife. Yet Cristina wonders about the true reason she obeys. Is it because of duty to her father? Or her secret attraction to Hector? In matters of war, he is as fearsome as the battle-axe that hardly ever leaves his side. But to women, his face is temptation itself and his charm weaves a powerful spell. Now facing the wrath of her new husband, Cristina refuses to bow to it, fueling his anger, stoking his passion. When an old enemy resurfaces and a new threat emerges, Hector realizes he could very will lose his "wrong bride"...and vows to fight for her with all his warrior heart.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

LORD OF THE ISLES has all of the elements that I like in a book—a good old-fashioned brooding man, a sweet, gentle, independent heroine and a lot of great secondary characters that give the book a life of its own.

Cristina Macleod is the quiet take-charge woman in her father's household of nine daughters. She has taken care of her entire family since her mother's death nine years before, and does a wonderful job of it. I felt so sorry for Cristina for having to put up with that awful father of hers, that I was actually happy when Murdoch decided to trick Hector into marrying Cristina. Cristina did what she had to do for the sake of her sister, which is something that you will see her do more and more often throughout the book. She is constantly looking out for those around her. She is a very likable heroine, if not a little weak where standing up for herself is concerned.

Hector took a little longer for me to "get". At first I thought he was just a big jerk, but, throughout LORD OF THE ISLES, I found him doing things that changed my mind about him. I loved how he made Cristina feel safe all the time, and how unsettled he was by her tears. I found that to be so incredibly sweet. It was also easy to understand his confusion when he thought that he was in love with one sister, only to discover that he loves the other! Hector turns out to be a great alpha male that can make a girl's heart race when he sets his sights on her.

The idea of a villain in this book is a little contrived and was no surprise whatsoever to this reader. That is the only complaint that I had with the entire book. I was waiting for a different ending where that was concerned, but other than that, can find no fault whatsoever with LORD OF THE ISLES. It is fast paced and a smooth read, and put a smile on my face more than once while I was reading.

Kristal Gorman