The Highlander's Bride is the first book in the Highland Trouble series by Amanda Forester. It is currently scheduled for release on September 1 2015. After years of fighting in France, Sir Gavin Patrick longs for his Scottish home and for an easier life off the battlefield. However, laden with a massive treasure to transport and Lady Marie Colette, a sharp-tongued French heiress, Gavin realizes that the real battle is only beginning. Colette expects a painless trip as Gavin transports her to her Highland fiancé, but their relationship takes an unexpected turn and more complication arrive at every turn.
The Highlander's Bride is a story of characters that are complicated and more than they seem. Colette has been trained to conceal her emotions and to be the perfect lady. She wants nothing more than to serve her people and to taste freedom. She is not thrilled with journeying to a foreign land to marry an older stranger, but knowing her family and people will be safer with her playing her part as a pawn makes her determined to go through with it. However, she does not want to leave her inheritance from her mother behind. Gavin is a practical man, and the amount of luggage Colette brings with her leaves the crew in danger of thieves and the English soldiers that are causing most of the trouble in the region. Adding an injured baby and a group of orphans to the mix, as well as danger at every turn, make the long journey from France to Scotland even more challenging. The attraction between the stoic Colette and the pragmatic but chivalrous Gavin is constant and they struggle against it, and themselves, while trying to be the best people they can. There is plenty of prayer and mention of doing the right thing, but it is true to character so it does not stand out as an awkward addition to the story like it often does in some stories. I fully expected some of the twists and turns, but they were so well done that I did not care. I fell in love with Colette and the orphans, and thought that Gavin was pretty much the perfect guy, almost too perfect.
The Highlander's Bride is a wonderful example of historical romance with great characters. I enjoyed the people and their story. I might not be a big fan of religion in my romance, but the prayer and piety of the characters was so much a part of them that it did not jar me out of the story like it often can. It was well done all around.
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