Looking for a historical romance? Look no further!
Scotsman of My Dreams
MacIain #2
By: Karen Ranney
Releasing August 25, 2015
Avon
Blurb:
In USA Today and New York Times bestselling author Karen Ranney’s second novel in her breathtaking series, an unconventional woman and a former scoundrel embark on a daring mission of desire.
Once the ton’s most notorious rake, Dalton MacIain has returned from his expedition to America during the Civil War-wounded and a changed man. Instead of attending soirees, he now spends his time as a recluse. But Dalton’s peace is disturbed when Minerva Todd barges into his London townhouse, insisting he help search for her missing brother Neville. Though Dalton would love to spend more time with the bewitching beauty, he has no interest in finding Neville-for he blames him for his injury.
Minerva has never met a more infuriating man than the Earl of Rathsmere yet she is intrigued by the torrid rumors she has heard about him…and the fierce attraction pulling her toward him.
Dalton does not count on Minerva’s persistence-or the desire she awakens in him, compelling him to discover her brother’s fate. But when danger surrounds them, Dalton fears he will lose the tantalizing, thoroughly unpredictable woman he has come to love.
Excerpt:
“Are you afraid?” he asked.
“Of course not. I just don’t want to kiss you.”
“Not at all?”
“Not one little bit. Not an iota.”
“No curiosity about what it might be like to kiss the man Queen Victoria said was most certainly the worst rake in all of London?”
“No.”
“You’re fibbing, Minerva.”
“I’m not.”
He lowered his head, brushed his lips over her heated cheek. To his surprise, she didn’t move away. Slowly, he traced a path to her lips, breathing against them before placing his mouth on hers.
A kiss should be an appetizer. A kiss was a prelude, strings being tuned in an orchestra pit, dawn on an important day.
A kiss was not a feast. A kiss was not an explosion of the senses. But this one was.
He could smell her, that hint of earthiness mixed with her new perfume. Her skin was warm against his fingertips, her cheek heating as he inclined his head slightly to deepen the kiss.
Her mouth opened slightly on a gasp.
He wanted to banish her sorrow, the pain Neville had caused her. He wanted to change the tenor of her thoughts, give her something to replace her dread.
He could give Minerva passion. That’s the gift he could give her.
Review:
How have I never read anything by Karen Ranney before? I have no idea. It’s an oversight I plan on fixing…soon.
I adored both Minerva (such an awesome name!) and Dalton. I suspect I wouldn’t have been too crazy about the “before” Dalton–a man who is so bored with his life of debauchery he runs off to join a war, a war he actually tosses a coin to decide for which side he’s going to fight?? Who does that? (well, obviously someone, since it’s based on a real event, but honestly)–but the Dalton we meet in this book is wonderful.
Or at least he works his way over to wonderful, slowly but surely.
And Minerva? I’ll let Dalton speak for her here:
She was too opinionated, too stubborn, too much an individual. She pushed against the mold of society, bent its restraints, and was in the process of making herself a source of endless gossip.
His need to protect her startled him. She was, on the face of it, not the type of woman who engendered protective impulses. But that was the problem, wasn’t it? People didn’t see the true Minerva. They didn’t realize her loneliness or that she was easily wounded despite her crusty exterior. They didn’t know her capacity for affection or her sense of loyalty and duty.
She wasn’t plain; she was beautiful in a way that was completely Minerva’s.
All that, and she’s an amateur archaeologist. She’s definitely up there as one of my favorite heroines, and together she and Dalton are absolutely among my favorite couples.
They definitely don’t start out that way–this is a classic enemies-to-lovers story.
“You can be the most arrogant, autocratic, rude creature it has ever been my experience to meet.”
“While you, on the other hand, are impulsive, rash, and given to outlandish behavior with no thought to the consequences.”
“You drove me to it.”
Minerva Todd was making him insane.
And that conversation was after they fell in love. 😉
Two thumbs way, way up on this one! A slow build to romance, a hint of mystery and danger, and two fascinating main characters who it’s so easy to fall for make this one a definite must-read. It’s second in the series but works just fine as a standalone–Glynis, Dalton’s cousin and the heroine of book one ( In Your Wildest Scottish Dreams ) plays a very small but important role, but you don’t need to know more of her story than is given here for this book to work.
Anxiously awaiting book three, An American in Scotland !
Rating: 4 1/2 stars / A
I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.
Buy Links: Amazon | B & N | iTunes | Kobo
Author Info:
Karen Ranney began writing when she was five. Her first published work was The Maple Leaf, read over the school intercom when she was in the first grade. In addition to wanting to be a violinist (her parents had a special violin crafted for her when she was seven), she wanted to be a lawyer, a teacher, and, most of all, a writer. Though the violin was discarded early, she still admits to a fascination with the law, and she volunteers as a teacher whenever needed. Writing, however, has remained the overwhelming love of her life.
Author Links: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads
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