| Title | : | Scottish Brides |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0380804514 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780380804511 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 368 |
| Publication | : | First published March 17, 2009 |
here
A land of legend and wild beauty--of clans, lairds, honor, and passion--Scotland forever stirs the soul to romance. Now, in one incomparable volume, four of Avon Romance's bestselling authors present stirring tales of hearts won and weddings to be, featuring a quartet of unforgettable heroines about to discover the rapture of love in a world as untamed as the men they will one day marry.
from back cover
Displaying the bold and breathtaking sensuality that is her hallmark, bestselling author CHRISTINA DODD enthralls us with the tale of a willful Scottish beauty--kidnapped by an arrogant yet irresistible Englishman--who fights to keep from succumbing to her brazen captor's passionate, and persuasive, proposal.
Experience the fiercely emotional power of STEPHANIE LAURENS who is at her passionate best with this story of a wealthy gentleman who finds his childhood nemesis has blossomed into a most desirable lass--and he's determined to do everything in his power to claim her as his own, before she is quite unsuitably wed.
The delightful wit and warm humor of JULIA QUINN shine brightly in this winning romantic romp, in which a lovely English miss--feigning marriage to a dashing, beguiling Scotsman--discovers she has a very real desire for her make-believe groom.
Another strikingly dramatic and deeply compelling tale by KAREN RANNEY. A legend decrees that the sexy Laird of Sinclair must marry a woman he has never met. But only sweet, passion-filled love will him to his true--and forbidden--bride.
stories are:
Under the Kilt (Fairchild Family #2.5) by Christina Dodd
Rose in Bloom by Stephanie Laurens
Gretna Greene by Julia Quinn
The Glenlyon Bride by Karen Ranney
Scottish Brides Reviews
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Summed up Rating of all 4 novellas ! - 3.5 Stars~4 Stars :D
Under the Kilt by Christina Dodd- 2 Stars :/
No content at all really. Only completed this because it was a novella.Otherwise a definite DNF !
Rose in Bloom by Stephanie Laurens -5 Stars !
This one was by far the best of the bunch ! I just did NOT want this book to end ! Loved it <3
Gretna Greene by Julia Quinn-4 Stars
As a JQ fan,I found it quite easy to pick this one as hers out of the lot.So if your a fan of her usual reads filled with sparky characters and insta-love.Then this one's definatly for you :)
The Glenlyon Bride by Karen Ranney -3.5 Stars
Not as elaborate story wise (as novella's 2 or 3 ) This one seemed to be more of pleasant,romantic and a slightly Slow read...The plot worked because it was a novella.It probably wouldn't have if it was a full length novel.So I'm glad :)
Overall,Great read ! Would recommend them :) -
Christina Dodd - Under the kilt ~ 1 "hated-every-second-of-this" star
English scholar Hadden Fairchild travels all over Scotland to record customs and stories from the locals. He ends up at Andra MacNachtan's desolate castle, and quickly falls in love with her. But she sends him away...
Two months later, his sister has enough of his pining and sends him back with the promise of a story Andra withheld from him.
If you enjoy this kind of "hero", go for it:
She didn't realize that the veneer of civilization wore thin when a man was deprived of his mate.
She'd never confronted such resourceful tactics before, and she objected with silly squeaks of dismay. "Don't! Blast you. No! Not there! Not-"
Hadden was an ordinary man with ordinary needs and an ordinary temperament. This is to say, he was kind, understanding, hardworking, good-temepered, and logical.
If, like me, you hate nothing more than a woman saying "no" even though she really means "take me, I'm yours" and a hero who acts like he deserves a prize for refraining from penetration while ignoring every "no" because he knows what the woman really needs is an orgasm, and a woman who then gets mad when he does accept her "no" (I'm not kidding, she kept saying "no" for a good four pages) and ends up being taken face-down on a rug because her "no"s really didn't mean no, stay away from this one.
One star. Absolutely not my thing.
Stephanie Laurens - Rose in Bloom ~ 5 stars
Duncan Roderick Macintyre (35), Earl of Strathyre and Rose Millicent Mackenzie-Craddock (27) are childhood nemeses who haven't seen each other in twelve years. Now Duncan is supposed to chose a bride, and his mother had the nerve to invite the thorn in his side to his house! A lot of hilarious bickering and baiting ensues, and I was thoroughly charmed! Absolutely magical Midsummer Eve's story!
5 glorious stars!
Julia Quinn - Gretna Greene ~ 5 stars
Margaret Pennypacker rushes to Gretna Green to stop her younger brother from eloping while Angus Greene is looking for his runaway sister. They meet in the rain and within seconds start bickering like an old married couple.
I absolutely ADORED this story. It was so hilarious and heartwarming! I'm not really a fan of insta-love, but these two are just so perfect for each other, I never doubted that they belonged together.
All the stars I can give!!!
Karen Ranney - The Glenlyon Bride ~ 2 stars
Janet MacPherson has served as companion to her despicable cousin ever since her parents died. When her cosin is promised to a Scotsman to stop him raiding the family's land, one magical night she is mistaken for her cousin by him, and she is willing to deceive him for just one adventure.
I know some if my friends liked this story best, but I didn't really enjoy it. I didn't like that she deceived him, and that, superstitious as he was, he just accepted that the woman he liked wasn't the one the legend he believed in so much promised would turn around his fate. Plus, the cousin was just awful. I wanted to punch her so much...
I thought the romance (aside from the lying) was nice and magical, though. It just didn't grip me as the two middle stories did.
Overall, 3 stars for the collection. -
Cuatro historias entretenidas, sencillas y en las que como todo relato corto que se precie, la trama queda demasiado colgada y en algunas de ellas habría necesitado más chicha para que me acabara de gustar.
Aún así, las que más me han gustado han sido las dos últimas. -
Review will be updated as I read the stories in the anthology.
Gretna Greene by Julia Quinn - 3.5 stars - 5th Oct, 2018
Fun caper - loads of instalove - if you like Julia Quinn's books you will like this one. Therese two were made for each other without a doubt.
There was an abrupt transition between two chapters though which was quite jarring.
Under the Kilt by Christina Dodd - DNF - 12th September, 2018
Everything about this novella was just bad. Couldn't bring myself to finish more than one and a half chapters.
Rose in Bloom by Stephanie Laurens
The Glenlyon Bride by Karen Ranney -
Under the Kilt: Hadden storms back into Andra's life after a brief but passionate affair to see the famed marriage kilt of her family and to win her back.
This was one of the weaker installments, with Andra being too lofty and shrewish, and the romance was too incomplete, since we come in on the middle of it.
Rose in Bloom: Childhood friends Duncan and Rose are reunited at Duncan's home with both of their potential spouses and discover that their adversarial relationship has turned to something deeper.
Absolutely wonderful; easily the best of the four stories. Rose and Duncan have a great rapport and click together. This is one of those stories that actually does feel complete as a short story, and not rushed or incomplete; this is maybe because they already know each other well.
Gretna Greene: Englishwoman Margaret and Scotsman Angus meet up in Gretna Greene while chasing their respective siblings. Caught in a downpour, they end up posing as a married couple and sharing a room.
This was a pretty good story, although a little uneven. Angus and Margaret are well-suited and are fun to read about.
The Glenlyon Bride: Lachlan is told he needs to wed the Glenlyon Bride in order to bring prosperity to his clan, and thinks that it is Harriet. He meets Harriet's companion Janet, and thinking Janet is Harriet, embarks on a romance with her.
Kind of a weird story, that's a little hard to keep up with. The brilliant thing about this being a short story is that the misunderstanding doesn't get drawn out interminably. -
Excelente compilación de relatos que expone a cuatro autoras que hacen magia.
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Overall 3.5 stars. My favorite one was "The Glenlyon Bride" - it had all the Scottish magic that I love so it gets 5 stars.
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leído en Enero 2014
**3.5 estrellas
Son 4 relatos cortos de estas autoras que a pesar de ser muy cortos logran emocionar, enamorar, divertir y suspirar... y lo más importante entretener!!
Bajo la Manta Escocesa por Christina Dodd: Hadden Fairchild es un inglés acaudalado que no está acostumbrado a que le rechacen, sino más bien a que le persigan por su fortuna. Es por esa razón que Hadden ha estado enfurruñado los dos últimos meses a causa de la escocesa Andra MacNachtan, la última de su clan y la primera en rechazarle. Hadden encontrará en la manta escocesa nupcial de la familia MacNachtan la excusa necesaria para volver a verla y hacerle cambiar de opinión.
ESTUVO BIEN PERO NO ME PARECIÓ LA MEJOR
Una Rosa en Flor de Stephanie Laurens: Duncan y Rose, a pesar de su diferencia de edad, compartieron una infancia en la que Rose disfrutaba bromeando e irritando a Duncan hasta la saciedad. Transcurridos doce años sin verse, cuando ambos están planteándose si aceptar a sus respectivos pretendientes para casarse, se reencontrarán en la hacienda de Duncan, Ballynashiels, para celebrar la fiesta del solsticio de verano en las Tierras Altas de Escocia. Poco a poco ambos se percatarán de que su antigua amistad puede haber dejado paso a algo más.
ESTUVO BUENA Y ENTRETENIDA
Gretna Green de Julia Quinn:Margaret Pennypacker parte de viaje desde su casa en Lancashire rumbo a Escocia para impedir que su hermano menor, quien se ha fugado de casa, se case con una mujer que lo mismo ni conoce el abecedario completo. Angus Greene parte de viaje desde Escocia rumbo a Londres para encontrar a su desobediente hermana y darle unos azotes por rebelde. Ambos se encontrarán en Gretna Green (lugar conocido por ser el punto de destino de las parejas que se fugan para casarse) una noche de tormenta que cambiaría sus vidas para siempre. ME GUSTÓ BASTANTE, ESTA AUTORA TIENE EL DON DE HACER HISTORIAS DIVERTIDAS Y ESTA ES UNA A PESAR DE LO CORTA, SE DISFRUTA
La Novia de Glenlyon de Karen Ranney: Lachlain Sinclaire no quiere tomar a una inglesa por esposa, pero las precarias condiciones de su clan y una profecía de hace años le harán plantearse aceptar a Harriet y, con ella, su generosa dote. Cuando Lachlain vaya a conocer a hurtadillas a la novia se encontrará con una joven sincera y encantadora, llena de vida capaz de hacerle sonreír con tan sólo mirarla, y una pequeña confusión le hará dar por hecho que se trata de Harriet. Y del mismo modo Janet, la doncella de la inglesa, no imaginará ni por un momento que el hombre que consigue sacar de ella su parte escocesa, su parte más amada pero que ha tenido que enterrar bajo corazas, es precisamente el hombre que se prometerá a Harriet. Y ante tales circunstancias, los corazones de Lachlain y Janet no podrán evitar enamorarse.
WOW ME ENCANTÓ ESTA HISTORIA, ME PARECIÓ EL MEJOR RELATO DE TODOS!! -
I'm not a huge fan of novellas... I always feel that there isn't enough time for character development.
I was pleasantly surprise by this short story collection as I felt that the character building was great. Although the conflicts resolution and feelings realisation at the end of the story was a bit rushed. That why this book doesn't get more stars from me.
Ligth and easy read overall. My favorite story is of course, JQ's one <3 -
Cuatro Novias es una antología de novelas cortas de romance histórico, por ello les dejaré mis comentarios sobre cada una de ellas para que puedan hacerse una idea. Al final a mí me ha encantado completamente.
Bajo la manta escocesa, Christina Dodd -->4/5
En un principio me pareció confusa y como no sabía por dónde iba la cosa estuve a punto de saltarme esta historia (ahora sé que forma parte de una serie que tiene esta autora). Me encanta poder decir que no lo hice porque una vez pasado lo que podríamos llamar el prólogo se aclara el asunto y es donde comienza lo mero bueno. Me gustó la pareja principal, tenía buena química y eran divertidos. Me encontré queriendo saber otras cosas de ellos, pero no porque sintiera que hacían falta cosas; en realidad fue por la extensión de la novela que no puedes evitar amar a Hadden. Un final de lujo, inesperado a morir. ♥
Una Rosa en Flor, Stephanie Laurens -->4.5/5
Desde el momento que inicié la lectura supe que ya lo había leído antes. Me sentí tentada a dejarlo pero se trata de una novela de Laurens, una de mis favoritas de este género. Me gustó mucho que aunque ya hubiese leído antes a la parejita fuera capaz de disfrutarlos de nuevo. Rose y Duncan se conocían desde niños, dejaron de verse varios años y se reencontraron en una fiesta en casa de éste, donde ambos estaban "evaluando" las aptitudes matrimoniales de sus pretendientes. Este par me hizo reír y me tuvo esperando el momento en que se besaran por vez primera y saltaran chispas, y como buena romántica que soy, me derretí cuando sucedió. Una historia hermosa, con poco sexo pero muy sensual y divertida con un buen final feliz, que no excelente, eso sí.
Gretna Greene, Julia Quinn -->4/5
Otra historia que ya había leído pero que me atreví a releer y a redisfrutar. Margaret viaja a Gretna Greene para rescatar a su hermano menor de las garras del matrimonio por dos razones: 1) es demasiado joven para casarse. 2) Sus "novias" no son para nada adecuadas. En el camino pasan una serie de situaciones que le dejan sola, sin dinero y muriendo de frío. Por suerte un hermoso -y peligroso- caballero (con un nombre muy pero muy FEO) la rescata. Y en menos de lo que canta un gallo se han enamorado. Si bien me gustó la historia y tiene todo el humor al que Quinn nos ha mal acostumbrado, no puedo dejar de notar que el amor entre la pareja es demasiado fulminante... y convincente (?).
La Novia de Glenlyon, Karen Ranney -->4.9/5
¡¡Fenomenal!! No había leído nada de esta autora y me ha encantado. Sin duda buscaré algunas obras de ella en un futuro próximo. Creo que la historia de Lachlan y Ealasaid tiene todo lo necesario para enamorarte, eso sí nada de conflictos serios (la extensión de la misma tampoco lo permite). Hay una mala que es un incordio. Un adorable enamorado. Una leyenda, magia, hadas, una pareja que destila ternura, amor... Una relación llena de humor, de suspiros, de sensualidad, que sin duda te deja ansiando escuchar otras cosas de la pareja porque no puedes evitar amarlos. Eso sí, odié que le dijera "muchacha" miles de veces y eso les restó un punto, es muy común en las novelas de romance histórico de las Highlands pero aún así, no me gusta. En fin, un cierre estupendo de este libro.
This review was originally posted on Book's Minion -
What a great anathology. All the stories were wonderfully told. Mom and I can understand unlike other anathologies why this one managed to stay in print. It is just so good.
Okay first of we thought the stories would be good but mom thought Stephanie Laurens might just be a light bit of fun and that Karen Ranney might be a bit to much considering Mom and I had just finished one of her books and sometimes mom can only take so much of one author at time (not so say she dislikes the author, but that her brain easily can get tired of reading the same style of writing; but we were in for a pleasant shock.
First of, we will go by each author, Christina Dodd story Under the Kilt was just beautiful it had some awesome sexual tension and focused on a tradition that was believable.
As for Stephanie Laurens. Okay first off Mom and I have never read any Stephanie Laurens books; before we started reading the Black Cobra Series. We like the Cobra series but more for being a nice fluffy read and nothing else. Other people seemed disappointed by the stories and now we can understand why. Not that the Black Cobra was bad, but that Rose in Bloom has some amazing A+ writing.
Julia Quinn had a rom-com feel to it, and we think that made this story perfect. We would also like to say hear that it balanced nicely with all the other stories too. Who ever set up this anathology did a good job. Sometimes, though not to speak badly of the people who but time and effort into these books, and not to say we don’t like them, but it feels like authors and the book themselves are sometimes set up a splatter paint on a canvas. It not always a bad painting and some people did seem to have given it their all, but other sometimes seem to have just shoved out what ever extra was available and it levels somethings lacking. This anothogy though had no such problems. It felt like it was seriously put together. That is why Gretna Greene works so well.
Lastly Karen Ranney felt like a fairy tale that had a little realty cow in a wack it on the head now and again. Oh it was such an amazing read. That Mom’s , we stated early, fears did not come to pass and she downed the whole story in one go.
Over all an amazing anathology and we highly recommend reading it at least, if not buying it. -
i have a great time reading this. since the book is a compilation of short stories by 4 authors i have to say it allows me to experience different styles of writing. the main reason i read this was because there
are no other books by Julia Quinn in the campus's library resulting me to grab the only available book by her. well here's my opinion on the stories. please be noted that english literature is not any of my major.
Christina Dodd (Under the kilt)
honestly, i was frowning nearly all the time while reading this as the slang and language used were way beyond my reach. i can't grasp the meaning very well. i was brought into a different dimension of writing styles which i've never encountered previously. it's just too much for me.
Stephanie Laurens (Rose in Bloom)
this is my most favorite! i can understand her writing styles well. comfortable was all i felt during my reads. it's as if i can breathe in relieve after reading quite a heavy ones previously. i can't get enough with the sweetness of the 2 characters in it. although it took quite a time for the characters to realize they fell for each other, i like the way the story was told. the details and every little piece of information were precious.
Julia Quinn (Gretna Greene)
i'm not disappointed with her story. it's full with wittiness! love the nonstop bickering and sarcastic remarks between the 2 characters. her writings too can be easily understood for my level.
Karen Ranney (The Glenlyon Bride)
i'm not really fond of the settings of the place. i'm not a very imaginative person to begin with. with the customs and all, uhm..i don't think i like it. and with the presence of annoying second character, i can't help but only read through it. -
Some of the stories were better then others but they all had Scots so they can't be bad, right?
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I really enjoyed this anthology of four Scottish historical novellas. Other than head hopping, all the stories are well-written in third POV and without any typos. I definitely recommend this book.
In Christina Dodd’s “Under the Kilt,” Hadden Fairchild is determined to convince his former lover, Lady Andra MacNachtan, to marry him. Though he belongs to the ruthless Fairchild family, he’s gentle, polite, and respectful almost to a fault.
Andra is in charge of running and repairing the crumbling MacNachtan Clan castle. After past hurt in her childhood, she refuses to marry but longs for Hadden as he longs for her. When he demands to know about the legendary Marriage Kilt, she finds herself locked in the attic with a man who refuses to take no for an answer.
I really loved this story. It’s fast and to the point. Hadden’s back-story is breezed over, but I already knew a lot about him since I’ve read the previous books in the Well Pleasured series. Andra, a new character to the series, has a full back-story, and I understood her stubborn in regards to trusting Hadden with her heart.
5 Stars
In Stephanie Laurens’ “Rose in Bloom,” Rose Mackenzie-Craddock has spent every summer of her life at Ballynashiels, the Scottish estate of the Macintyre family, and she used to tease and torment Duncan Macintyre relentlessly. As the only two children on the estate, she was naturally drawn to him, but he always considered her nothing more than a pest. Given their eight-year age difference, that’s understandable. After twelve years apart, Duncan returns home for the summer with a potential bride in tow. Rose, likewise, has a potential husband with her. Though he finds Rose just as frustrating as ever, she’s not the same hoyden he remembers. Rose can’t help but tease the stoic, controlled man, and the game soon changes to one neither of them expected.
Rose and Duncan’s friendship, animosity, and romance sizzled on the pages. They have such great chemistry and are obviously perfect for each other, but they’re so blind they couldn’t see it. This is a great novella, and I really liked the H/h.
5 Stars
In Julia Quinn’s “Gretna Greene,” Margaret Pennypacker treks the long, dangerous journey to Gretna Green to stop her foolish younger brother from eloping. On her first night in town, three men accost her but a giant of a man saves her life.
Angus Greene is in town to find his younger sister, Anne, since she’s on her way to London for a Season, which he didn’t approve of. After he rescues Margaret and realizes she’s all alone and without money, he appoints himself as her protector. Attraction and friendship quickly blooms between them, and they argue and bicker like an old married couple. Though it’s not love at first, it’s damn close and it felt believable.
I really enjoyed this story. The H/h are smart, witty, and fully developed. Their reasons and motivations drive the story. There’s a HEA, but I would’ve liked an epilogue or more information about where they’ll live, what their families will think, and how their newfound love will affect their responsibilities. Even without that, I adore the characters and the story.
4.5 Stars
In Karen Ranney’s “The Glenlyon Bride,” Janet MacPherson has lived the last seven years of her life as a maid and companion to her cruel, vindictive cousin, Harriet. After Harriet is betrothed to a Scottish laird, Janet meets a dashing Scotsman in the woods outside the family manor. She longs for her homeland of Scotland, and even more so, she wants happiness, adventure, and a way to ease her terrible loneliness. Lachlan is a reiver—a raider and thief—and they’re instantly taken with each other.
Lachlan Sinclair, laird of the Sinclairs, believes Janet to be Harriet, his future bride. Though he doesn’t want to marry, he needs Harriet’s dowry to secure his improvised lands and ancestral home of Glenlyon. When he’s with Janet, thinking she’s Harriet, the marriage doesn’t seem so bad anymore. But when he discovers the truth, he fears his hopes and plans to save his people are dashed forever.
I love this story. Janet and Lachlan are wonderful and strong. They both have fears, responsibilities, and dreams for a prosperous future. I wish Harriet would’ve been punished for her cruelty, but Janet’s freedom from her was justice enough since Harriet will no longer have someone to hurt. Anyway, I think this story is my favorite of the four.
5 Stars
Book Overall – 5 Stars -
Anyone who knows me knows that I love period novels and have been reading them for over forty years. And I never get tired. So I couldn't pass up the chance to read these short stories written by authors who are already well regarded in the genre.
Although I liked the book in general, I didn't love it as I imagined it would, since I am a fan of period novels set in Scotland. Unfortunately, not all tales fell to my liking.
I will leave here the synopses of each story and what I felt when reading:
1 - Although the plot is good, I thought the story was weak and I couldn't connect with the characters.
2 -I already knew your writing through the trilogy that was released here previously. I love stories about friends who fall in love. I found the tale cute and liked it, despite the author rambling a lot during some passages.
3 - Unfortunately I didn't enjoy this story. It was the least I liked. I found the dialogues silly, the text weak. I didn't think it was fun, as I think it was the author's intention and I didn't feel very connected to the characters. Although I like Julia's books, I didn't like this story.
4 - This story was a pleasant surprise, since I don't remember reading anything by the author before and I really liked her writing. I loved the couple and the way she sets us up in Scotland and developed her story. I hope to have a chance to read other novels by her. -
Overall rating: 2.5 Stars
The first and last stories were decent 3 Star reads. Nothing much nothing to say about them.
The second story by Stephanie Laurens is decidedly 1 Star. At first, I just felt it to be meh, not anything particularly special or bad, until I realized they are COUSINS. 🤠 I hate it here, why was this important to include; they could've just made them family friends why did the author make it incestuous.
The redeeming story and only reason I read it was Julia Quinn's. An adorably sweet 3.75 Star read - JQ always manages to make me chuckle and swoon and overall remind me why I love to read. -
Entertaining anthology by big time historical romance authors, most of whom don't normally write about Scotland. The Dodd story is very sexy, the others are just "regular sexy." The Quinn story has a lot of humor. But I liked them all. It's a good read.
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3,5/5 La mayoría de las historias me han gustado bastante y es muy fácil de leer y entretenido, perfecto para leer entre lecturas más densas, ya que te puedes leer un relato y dejar el libro hasta que te apetezca otra vez leer algo de este género.
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oficialmente ainda mais obcecada por histórias que se passam na escócia e por personagens escoceses. o último conto com certeza é o meu favorito, estou completamente apaixonada pela escrita da autora. pensei que gostaria mais do da julia, mas me surpreendi bastante
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Excellent collection of four novellas from Christina Dodd, Stephanie Laurens, Julia Quinn and Karen Ramsey about four strong brides- willing and unwilling- who find love in unexpected places.
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Excellent read. Love the books and the authors. What a combination of talented authors!
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Primeiro conto: 1/5
Segundo conto: 2/5
Terceiro conto: 4/5
Quarto conto: 5/5 -
4 stars - Rose in Bloom (Duncan & Rose)
I really enjoyed this short story. Even though we only see glimpses of their shared childhood we get a sense of how well the h/h really know each other. I liked that the hero is the strong, brooding, silent type (but he’ll sing at the request of his mother..haha) and the heroine is mature, capable, and independent (but melts when near Duncan) – their weaknesses (if you can even call them that) are very sweet.
**Spoiler alert** One thing I didn’t like is how rudely Duncan dismisses Jeremy as Rose’ suitor (when Duncan demonstrably declared that Rose was his countess-to-be) and Rose just lets him. It was disrespectful and Jeremy didn’t deserve it.
Clarissa, on the other hand, deserved to get dumped. I liked that the author made her all pretty and perfect – but we see just how ugly a person she is on the inside. In the beginning, because we know that Duncan and Rose end up together, I thought that perhaps Jeremy might end up with Clarissa (because I have this need to see everyone paired up and happy.) However, when we slowly see Clarissa’s ugly side, I changed my mind because Jeremy deserved better.
5 stars – Gretna Green (Angus & Margaret)
Oh how sweet and funny is this story – such a classic Quinn! The h/h are really very compatible..they are practically the same person. They are both responsible and loving and have been given the responsibility of being the caregivers of their families. It was great to see Angus have so much respect for Margaret (and women – though his story about his cousin made me teary.)
I LOVE LOVE LOVE the banter between the two of them. Very funny and entertaining! I got this book because of Quinn and her story was definitely my favorite!
3.5 stars - The Glenlyon Bride (Lachlan & Janet)
I hate to be critical of the author but I didn’t particularly like Karen Ranney’s writing style. I think it’s a matter of preference rather than judgment of Ranney’s writing talents..or it may just be that I have been spoiled by my recent immersion of Julia Quinn and Lisa Kleypas’ lovely writing. Whatever the case, I did enjoy the story and the characters. They were a sweet and very likeable couple. I just wish we read more of the interaction rather than a description of what was happening (if that makes any sense)…I’m such a sucker of dialogue (especially the witty banter type – which I believe the characters could pull off from the impression of their personalities.)
If I could make one request, I wish I knew what happened to Jeremy… he was so “nice.” Perhaps there’s a story waiting for his character - to show that nice guys do get the girl, even if [in this case] the girl he gets is not Janet.
3 stars - Under the Kilt (Hadden & Andra)
I didn’t like that the story started in the middle of the couple’s “courtship.” We missed the details of when they met, their courting, and their first seduction – because these details were told in flashback style. I would have wanted to read about it because I like the h/h. In this respect, I wish the story was longer so that we could know them better and be more invested. That’s really the reason why I gave it 3 stars – because I didn’t get a full bodied story which I admit is hard to do with a short story.
I do want to say that I enjoyed Christina Dodd’s writing and I liked that she introduced us to the other characters from her Fairchild Family series – which I will now check out! I’m looking forward to seeing Hadden in those books. -
Quatro histórias cujo tema gira em torno da Escócia, no entanto, elas não estão relacionadas e, inclusive, ocorrem em épocas bem distintas uma da outra.
Vamos a cada uma delas:
O Kilt Matrimonial, de Christina Dodd
Hadden Fairchild, estudioso inglês, esteve no castelo de Andra MacNachtan por quatro dias, a pedido de Lady Valéry, para catalogar e registrar as tradições escocesas. Enquanto lá esteve, ele acabou se envolvendo romanticamente com a dona do castelo.
Andra vinha se sentindo sozinha há muito tempo, desde que seu tio fora exilado, seu pai e irmão fugiram e sua mãe morreu de tristeza. Agora, ela administrava um castelo em ruínas, com empregados idosos para cuidar.
Com a visita de Hadden, ela se deixou viver em luxúria pelo curto período de tempo, achando que nunca mais o veria.
No entanto, poucos dias depois da partida dele, quando ela estava em meio a um novo grande problema no castelo (um dos canos havia estourado e alagado o calabouço/adega, e ela não tinha recursos para consertar), ela se surpreende com o retorno de Hadden e sua exigência em ver o Kilt Matrimonial, tradição da família dela que ela propositalmente não havia mostrado a ele.
Sem ter como fugir, Andra e Hadden são levados a uma das torres, onde vários baús guardavam relíquias da família. Mas, após entrarem no recinto, viram-se presos com a porta trancada pelo lado de fora.
Segundo a tradição, o 1° MacNachtan se apaixonou por uma moça MacDougall e pôs-se a cortejá-la. Mas ela era muito arisca. Ele decidiu raptá-la, e pôs o próprio kilt na cabeça dela para que ela parasse de lutar e não o atingisse. Esse ato acabou tornando-se uma tradição na família.
Preso na torre com uma mulher obstinada - mas que ele estava 100% apaixonado -, poderia Hadden usar do kilt para convencê-la de que eram perfeitos um para o outro?
O Desabrochar de Rose, de Stephanie Laurens
No solstício de verão, as famílias Macintyre e MacKenzie eram amigas há tempos e costumavam passar o período juntos.
Os filhos, Duncan e Rose, se conheciam há anos, e ela adorava implicar com ele.
Mas com os anos, eles se separaram, com Duncan passando muito tempo em Londres para salvar a fortuna da família. Ele e Rose ficaram 12 anos sem se ver.
Ele estava de volta, rico, e na ocasião de encontrar uma esposa para si. Pensando nisso, a mãe dele convidara Clarissa e os pais dela, além dos amigos usuais, para que os jovens pudessem se conhecer melhor.
Na mesma ocasião, visitando os velhos amigos, Rose e seu pai, foram, e também Sr. Jeremy Penecuik, que estava interessado nela.
Duncan toma um susto ao reencontrar Rose, tão linda, tendo desabrochado desde a última vez que se viram. O jeito dela, de implicar com ele, continuava o mesmo... Mas, eles eram apenas amigos, certo?
Então, por que com o passar dos dias, em que ele deveria estar cortejando Clarissa, ele só conseguia ver e pensar em Rose?
A dúvida virou certeza quando eles, ao tirarem uma tarde para cavalgar, acabaram envolvidos numa missão de resgate de duas crianças da aldeia, e em meio a essa aventura, o coração pulsante levou-os a demonstrar, de forma física, o quanto sentiam um pelo outro.
Mas será que ele conseguiria convencê-la de que o que fizeram não foi um ato inconsequente?
O Casamento está no ar, de Julia Quinn
Encontro improvável: Margaret Pennypacker vai a Gretna Green atrás do irmão, Edward, que deixou um bilhete avisando que havia fugido para casar. Na lista mental de Margaret havia 3 candidatas, e aos olhos dela, nenhuma servia para seu irmão.
Em sua tentativa de alcançar o irmão, tudo que poderia dar errado, deu, até que ela se viu encurralada, debaixo de chuva, sendo arrastada por três homens, gritando por socorro a plenos pulmões.
Angus Greene estava de muito mau humor, com seu cavalo, Orpheus, tentando encontrar sua irmã que havia fugido na carruagem dele. Até que ele ouve uma moça pedindo por socorro, e imediatamente vai ajudá-la.
Quando mais jovem, Angus ficou sabendo tarde demais que uma prima que ele adorava havia sido violentada por um soldado inglês. Envergonhada, ela se matara dois dias depois. Por isso, ele jurou que sempre ajudaria uma moça em perigo.
Porém, ele tinha que admitir, Margaret o levava ao limite; brigavam por causa de tudo. Por outro lado, a atração parecia ser tão perigosa quanto.
Quando cada um deles descobre o paradeiro de seus irmãos e o motivo de suas fugas, esta parte de suas vidas - como irmãos mais velhos - parecia resolvida, mas será que eles eram compatíveis para um relacionamento eterno?
A Noiva de Glenlyon, de Karen Ranney
O clã dos Sinclair passava por um período tenebroso. O velho sábio, Coinneach MacAuley, havia previsto o fim do clã, por esterilidade.
Por outro lado, havia uma lenda sobre uma certa Noiva de Grenlyon, prevista pela parteira, a Velha Mab.
Lachlan Sinclair não queria dar ouvido a nenhuma das duas previsões, mas até ele não podia mais deixar de perceber a decadência do clã. O último tonel de whiskey havia sido bebido festejando o casamento do primo de Lachlan, e a única pessoa no clã que sabia preparar a bebida tão famosa havia morrido. Logo, ele teve que admitir que algo precisava ser feito com urgência.
Os Sinclair costumavam ir até a fronteira e roubar o gado dos ingleses. Numa dessas idas dele, acaba se deparando com uma bela moça no riacho. Fica encantado por ela, conversam ao longe, mas com medo de assustá-la, ele não se aproxima.
Os ingleses Campbells, cansados de serem roubados pelos escoceses, decidem propor um acordo. Harriet, a filha dele, seria dada em casamento para forjar a aliança.
Quando Lachlan vai à Inglaterra investigar sua pretensa noiva, as características que ele obtém batem com a moça do riacho, e assim, ele fica bem animado em fechar o acordo entre eles.
Aí, se dá toda a confusão.
Janet trabalhava como dama de companhia de Harriet. Na verdade, estava mais para escrava.
Filha de pai escocês e mãe inglesa, Janet, preferia o seu lado escocês, mais animado. Mas desde que perdera os pais, aos 15 anos, a ela foi dada a escolha de ou ser dama de companhia de Harriet, a mimada intragável, ou morrer de fome.
Ao conseguir fugir por alguns instantes dos desmandos de Harriet e passear livremente no riacho, Janet não imaginava que acabaria cativada pela voz de um escocês.
A conversa de algumas noites, ao longe, faz com que criem um elo pelo segredo proibido, e ela pede ao desconhecido que a levasse para conhecer Grenlyon, mesmo que de longe.
Ele o faz. O clã a recebe com festa e dança, e sem saber, Janet havia acabado de ser dada em casamento a Lachlan.
Apenas no outro dia, Lachlan descobre que havia se apaixonado e se casado com a noiva errada.
A profecia não havia sido cumprida e o clã pagaria pela erro dele.
Será mesmo?
Média 3,5 estrelas -
An anthology full of hot Scottish dudes...how was I supposed to resist?
Under the Kilt by Christina Dodd
3.5 Stars
One slippery Scottish lass with abandonement issues and the wily Englishman determined to catch her, let the fun begin!
I know this one is part of a series, and if the series is as cute, romantic and a touch naughty like this short story was then I think I need to look for the first book! It was a good start to the anthology.
Rose in Bloom by Stephanie Laurens
3 Stars
Rose was always a thorn in Duncan's side when they were children, but now they are all grown and now Duncan wants to turn the tables and play a few adult games with his delectable thorn...
Och I love a broody Scottish hero and Stephanie Lauren delievered and it was fun watching Duncan and Rose realize their attraction for one another. Although not my favourite story it was a good quick read with a satistying *waggles eyebrows* ending.
Gretna Greene by Julia Quinn
4.5 Stars
Margaret is looking for her imbecile of a brother who has decided to run off to Gretna to marry a very unsuitable bride, instead she finds Angus, a vexing, gallant and very attractive Scotsman. Angus is looking for his moronic sister who has decided to runaway to London he never meant to come to the rescue of a beraggled, beautiful and argumantative Englishwoman...
I got this anthology when I saw that Julia Quinn had a short story in it, I love her books they are always funny, sweet and a little quirky. This one was no exception, I loved it! My only complaint...why wasn't it longer? Before I knew it I had finished it.
The Glenlyon Bride by Karen Ranney
3 Stars
A classic tale involving a case of mistaken identity, a prophecy and...whiskey!?
I liked this, but I think I was still flying high after having read the Julia Quinn story so it didn't really capture my attention. But it was okay, the hero and heroine were likable and it had a air of mystery and almost magic with their clandestine moonlit meetings and a prophect weighing heavily on the hero's mind. A solid addition to the anthology, but not my favourite. -
This anthology was ok, not great, but it did have moments. It is a series of four short stories/novellas, each taking place over a short time period (some 24 hours!). If you are looking for realism, this isn't it, but it is fun and a quick read.
Christina Dodd's story was awful. It had nothing to do with love and everything to do with sex to the point that it didn't feel consensual to me. She resisted the whole time, there was no story, and then suddenly she agreed to marry our hero...I finished and though "what the HELL did I just read?" 1 star...lowest possible.
Luckily, Stephanie Laurens had a better story. I have never liked her writing in the past, but I did enjoy this story pretty well, especially more towards the end, when you finally see the chemistry between the two characters. They are childhood "enemies" that meet in adulthood, but their dialogue back and forth was so sharp, I almost lost interest. When they finally soften towards each other and work together, that is when the magic happens. The ending was a little odd, but overall, still decent. 3 stars.
Julia Quinn's story was in her typical witty style, but I still did not like it. I felt like there were chapters missing (maybe I had a problem with the kindle version). Anyway, I laughed a few times at the story, but I did not buy the chemistry between the characters as I usually do. I think it was because they bickered, became friends, and then lovers in 1.5 days time. It was too fast and I just didn't love it. 3 stars.
Karen Ranney was a new author for me and one I plan on reading again in the future. This story centered around a "legend" and how it comes to be fulfilled is predictable, but sweet. Her writing still is different and has a mythical flow to it, but since the main characters are often meeting secretly at night, it worked well for me. To be honest, I liked this story best. I felt like the characters were well matched and the story was told in a beautiful way. For some, there would be a belief that the story wrapped up too neatly, but seeing as how I really like happy endings, that was fine with me. 4 stars. -
This was pretty meh, tbh.
Christina Dodd's entry was the worst of the bunch. Honestly it seemed like something that should have been a free vignette for her fans that read whatever series the story is from. I say series because there is no back story or explanation of who the H/h are, how they know each other, what the heck the marriage quilt is, why we're supposed to know/care about all the side characters that show up at the last minute ... it was not a stand alone story, is what I'm saying. The story starts when the H/h have already met, had sex, and broken up. Like, what is even happening? All the "getting to know you" romance happens off the page. Or, I'm guessing, on some other pages in another book I've not read. So, not a good entry, or start to this anthology.
Stephanie Laurens' entry was one of the stronger stories. It was a quick, condensed traditional romance, and the characters were well-developed, even the side characters -- the H's potential countess and the h's potential duke, although I think Laurens kind of cheaped out at the end by making both of them suddenly unlikable when she could've been either a little more believable (they're decent people but not right for the H/h) or a little sweeter (surprise: they end up falling for each other!). Not terribly memorable, but sweet and felt like it had depth for the shortness of the story.
Julia Quinn is always fun. Her characters were sweet and funny, and even though they fell for each other a little to quickly to be realistic, it was an adorable, enjoyable story.
This is the first thing I've read by Karen Ranney, and I get the feeling she'd show better in a longer format. She gets credit from me for trying to dig deeper into her characters' back stories and motivations, but the Cinderella schtick was a little heavy handed (Harriet was apparently pure evil, which didn't feel particularly believable), and there was no resolution at the end -- shouldn't there be at least a conversation with the man whose daughter he promised to marry in order to secure border peace? Just "well she knows how to make scotch, so we'll be fine!" Meh. -
I've had this anthology for years, not even sure where I got it. I usually don't do romance anthologies, though I'm a huge fan of non-romance short stories. I was going to put it in my swap/sell pile, but as three of the authors in this collection are authors I really, really like, I think I'll give it a read first.
Ok finished. Took my time with this one, lots of breaks, but finally got it done. Call me silly, but I liked it, all four of the stories were nice. Will get a review done up soon :) -
This is a collection of 4 short romance stories set in and around Scotland during the Regency. I couldn't finish the first story (the Christina Dodd, "Under the Kilt"), because of the really nasty rape-but-she-wants-it scene halfway through.
The other three stories were fun, and light, and I enjoyed them. -
I wanted to give it a 3.5
