Taming the Highlander by May McGoldrick
The Scottish Relic Trilogy, #2
Historical Romance
Released: August 23, 2016
Swerve

Reviewed by Sheena

Innes Munro has the ability to “read” a person’s past simply by touching them, but her gift comes with a heavy price: her freedom. Forced to stay at desolate Castle Girnigoe, Innes never expects to be drawn to the wounded warrior who haunts its dark passages and challenges her at every turn.
Conall Sinclair, the earl of Caithness, carries the scars of battles with the English and the lash marks of their dungeons, but the wounds that fester within give him even greater pain. Isolating himself from his clan and the rest of the world in a tower perched on the wild Scottish coast, Conall is reluctant to let the spirited Innes close to him, however neither can deny the growing passion that ignites with every look, every touch.

Ahh, Highlander romance, how I’ve missed you.  Taming the Highlander is book two in the Scottish Relic Trilogy.  Set in Scotland, it is the story of two people, both desperately alone and resigned to living their life in solitude. I am usually a sucker for this troupe, but this one was a hairsbreadth from falling flat for me.  Right from the start I found I had to talk myself out of disappointment that the Scottish lands were not as lushly described as they usually are in these large, sweeping historical novels, the backdrop being almost as important character as the main protagonists.   How do you fall in love with and lose yourself in a highlander romance with only a cursory nod to the landscape that shapes the novels in this marvelous genre. You don’t. But if the writing’s good, you soldier on, which is precisely the position I found myself in. It took a few chapters, but I found a groove and enjoyed the experience- on the whole.  Innes is easy to care for.  He voice, steady and reasonable.  She was formidable and rashly independent without being a bitchy-shrew, I wanted her to overcome and I enjoyed being in her head.  Conall was scarred alight.  I say I like a surly scarred hero and author May McGoldrick delivered in spades.  Conall survived brutal captivity, where he was tortured mercilessly by an English warlord.  He has scars rippling his back and his right hand was cut clean off, with an accompanying chip on his shoulder that he practically dared anyone to attempt to dislodge.

In a word, he was damaged. But not irrevocably so.  Everyone saw his potential, and it was a treat of sorts to watch him realize it on his own…though it took practically the entire book.  I also appreciated just how well matched Innes and Conall were as a pair.  They overcame their own obstacles and maintained good hearts to their core.  They also had a mutual skill and appreciation for the game of chess and their battle of wits were among my favorite parts of the story.

Taming the Highlander had a nice steady pace and apart from some long passages here and there, that I suppose were meant to add to the mystical leanings of the plot, I did not have trouble maintaining my interest- once I’d been engaged of course.  The first few chapters are precarious and may require a pep talk of sorts to push through.  I do not recommend you skip through them, you learn little nuggets of information early on that save you from confusion later on.  There is a mystical, paranormal thread, that does not over power the story, however, feels a little extraneous due to the fact that it does not quite go unnoticed.  In this area, I could have used a bit more balance.  I was down with Innes and her special gift/curse to touch one with her hands and know their true thoughts, past and intentions.  However, it became a bit eye brow waggey when the evil English marauder came to kill her and steal her stone relic- and vanished in the space of a page or two.  This faux danger was a blip on the radar and suddenly we were out of climactic (anti-climactic?) danger and back into all the feelings of a romance on the cusp of their HEA.  So for a while, it felt like, really, all that build up, for the danger to pick up his proverbial ball and go home.

Not to mention a near death that didn’t make me fret one bit.  C’mon, I need to fret!  If you are going to endanger my likable heroine and tame my wild Highland surly (bearded!) hero, then you have to up the ante when it comes to the climax, or well..it will enter meh-ville.

Aside from the aspects that did not work for me. The secondary characters (namely Con’s brother, Bryce and Innes, sister, Aileen) really shined. Their meddling ways brought many a smile to my face.   Bryce and Aileen were realistic and accessible.  And above all loved their siblings so purely that their incorrigible plots to match-make between Conall and Innes were adorable.

There is beauty when sensual attraction and genuine courtship can overshadow steamy sex.  I like my books lovey, sexy and dirty and when the loving and sensuality peak, I don’t much complain if the heat in the sheets wanes.  This was totally the case for Con and Innes.  They didn’t actually hook up until the end, but they had a nice chemistry that  stoked their flames nicely.

“Let’s make a wager,’ said Conall.
“What shall we play for? Coins? A book?  A tutor to teach you to play chess properly?”
“We play for you.”

Yes, Taming the Highlander is full of *sigh* phrases and declarations of love and hopeless but cute denial.  It stands alone, though second in the series, I don’t see a particular need to read book one, Much Ado about Highlanders, unless of course Taming the Highlander was your cup ‘o.

It was passable for me.  As far as lazy Saturday reads go, this fits the bill nicely and I have no regrets.  Especially since Conall is kind of a sexy beast.  Can you just imagine the dexterity in his one hand…oooeeemmm. Yum.

“Fighting for control, Conall gazed down at the beauty in his arms, knowing that he would certainly die if he did not take her now. More than anything else, he wanted to bury himself deep within her, bring her to heights of unimaginable pleasure, and pour his seed into her. His eyes took in her swollen lips, her heaving breasts, reddened in spots from his rough, bearded face. “I was trying to protect you from my past,” he said raggedly, using his final shred of willpower.”

Yes, this one is definitely worth a read, and I will be checking out the final book in the trilogy, Tempest in the Highlands. *Flips through bookmarks*

Grade: C

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