Review: Tempted by the Highland Warrior

Reviewed by Jen
 

This is the best Highlander book I have read in a long time.  It has such a fantastic tortured hero.  Callum was taken prisoner when he was only 12 years old.  For seven long years, he was tortured. It not only battered his body, but it stole his voice.

One night, Lady Marguerite sees his suffering firsthand.  She is betrothed to his captor, but she takes care of Callum. She nurses his wounds and gives him the first comfort he has known in years.  The two form a connection right away, and even after Callum is sent away to be tortured by someone else, his memories of Marguerite help him hold on to his fragile threads of sanity.

When Callum's brothers come to finally rescue him, he is gone. But Marguerite makes her escape from her wretched fiance with the MacKinlochs. So when they finally do track Callum down, the two are reunited.   Their time together is brief, though, because her father comes for her quickly and has her engaged to someone else in a heartbeat.  Callum goes after Marguerite, knowing he can't live without her.

I love Callum so much. He can't speak, but we hear his thoughts.  Marguerite is his sun and moon... his savior. And she loves him too. They have so many things stacked against them, it seems impossible for them to make it work. But their stolen moments are so tender and so good.  Callum has been through hell, but he will do anything to be with Marguerite.  He is strong, but manages to be gentle with her. 

Their obstacles are very real and my heart broke for them when they seemed insurmountable.  I hated Marguerite's father and (*minor spoiler*) my only (small) complaint was his pseudo-redemption at the end. I couldn't forgive the things he did and felt like he deserved more consequences for his actions. The sexual tension between Callum and Marguerite was good and I enjoyed the payoff, but it was more about the love there than anything else.

This is book three in MacKinloch series, but I think this would work easily as a standalone.  There's not much in the way of a brogue, since our hero can't speak, but I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this one to anyone who enjoys a Highlander or a tortured hero story.   I loved it.


Rating: A


*ARC Provided by NetGalley

Click to purchase: Amazon

Tempted by the Highland Warrior

by Michelle Willingham

Release Date: June 19, 2012

Publisher: Harlequin