Early review: The Highlander by Kerrigan Byrne

The Highlander: Liam MacKenzie and Philomena

(Victorian Rebels #3)

Expected publication: August 2nd 2016

Summary:

From Goodreads.com

Can the fiercest master of battle conquer a woman’s heart?

They call him the Demon Highlander. The fearsome Lieutenant Colonel Liam MacKenzie is known for his superhuman strength, towering presence, and fiery passion in the heat of battle. As Laird to the MacKenzie clan, the undefeated Marquess has vanquished his foes with all rage and wrath of his barbaric Highland ancestors. But when an English governess arrives to care for his children, the master of war finds himself up against his greatest opponent... in the game of love.

Defying all expectations, Miss Philomena is no plain-faced spinster but a ravishing beauty with voluptuous curves and haughty full lips that rattle the Laird to his core. Unintimidated by her master’s raw masculinity and savage ways, the headstrong lass manages to tame not only his wild children but the beast in his soul. With each passing day, Liam grows fonder of Miss Mena—and more suspicious. What secret is she hiding behind those emerald eyes? What darkness brought her to his keep? And how can he conquer this magnificent woman’s heart... without surrendering his own?

Review:

Rating 3.5

I have mixed feelings about this book, on one hand I loved the writing: it was beautiful, descriptive and everything I would expect from a Kerrigan Byrne novel. Hell the prologue itself gave me some serious chills. The characters were engaging and flawed. I liked all of them. Mena really came into her own throughout the book. She found her backbone that had all but been beaten out of her by her husband. She survived and started thriving. Liam has his own internal struggles, a quick temper and a tendency towards violence but underneath it all he is a protector. He struggles with controlling his anger and his violence but he would never do what his father did to him. I liked Mena's relationship with Liam's kids, they had some good interactions. There were also some really great quotes that really resonated. K. Byrnes quality of writing is never in question.

My problem with this book was the pacing. Until about 15 or 20% of the book we were chugging along quite merrily and then we kind of seemed to hit a lag from then until about 65% or so. It's not that nothing happened but it didn't seem to move the plot along to anywhere and I wasn't feeling the "romance" between Liam and Mena. She was mostly just afraid of him or he was yelling at her and there wasn't enough sexual tension to really overcome that. and then all of the sudden in the last 30% or so of the book everything started happening. The were a couple of sub plotlines that were a bit anti-climatic but the romance picked up. Im still not sure by the end of the book I truly bought into it but we were in a better place than I thought we would be. Maybe it's Byrnes experience at writing novellas that she was able to pull off so much in the last part of the book, but I just wished it had been spaced out better.

*ARC was provided through NetGalley for an honest review. No other compensation was provided.

Review: The Highwayman by Kerrigan Byrne

The Highwayman: Dorian Blackwell, the Blackheart of Ben More and Farah Leigh Mackenzie

(Victorian Rebels #1)

Summary:

From Goodreads.com

They’re rebels, scoundrels, and blackguards—dark, dashing men on the wrong side of the law. But for the women who love them, a hint of danger only makes the heart beat faster…

STEALING BEAUTY

Dorian Blackwell, the Blackheart of Ben More, is a ruthless villain. Scarred and hard-hearted, Dorian is one of London’s wealthiest, most influential men who will stop at nothing to wreak vengeance on those who’ve wronged him…and will fight to the death to seize what he wants. The lovely, still innocent widow Farah Leigh Mackenzie is no exception—and soon Dorian whisks the beautiful lass away to his sanctuary in the wild Highlands…

COURTING DESIRE

But Farah is no one’s puppet. She possesses a powerful secret—one that threatens her very life. When being held captive by Dorian proves to be the only way to keep Farah safe from those who would see her dead, Dorian makes Farah a scandalous proposition: marry him for protection in exchange for using her secret to help him exact revenge on his enemies. But what the Blackheart of Ben More never could have imagined is that Farah has terms of her own, igniting a tempestuous desire that consumes them both. Could it be that the woman he captured is the only one who can touch the black heart he’d long thought dead?

Review:

The Highwayman by Kerrigan Byrne is at turns, sweet, cute and heartbreaking. You run the full gamut of emotions in this book and it was fantastically done.  I’ve been a fan of Kerrigan Byrne for a number of years, it all started with her historical paranormal novellas that I stumbled upon and I’ve been snapping up anything she’s had to write ever since.  So needless to say I was pretty excited to read this book. As with all of her other writing she creates a world and characters so clear you would think you were right there with them.  This particular book starts when Farah is a small child and she pledges herself to her best friend and protector. Almost right after their “handfasting” they are attacked by a priest where they are living as orphans and her best friend is arrested for killing the priest. He later dies in prison but she never forgot her “husband”.

It is years later and Dorian enters her life. He kidnaps her and convinces her to marry him as a part of a convoluted plan.  Turns out, Dorian knew and was friends with her husband in prison which forges a bond of sorts between them. Dorian is super damaged, I’d say one of the more damaged characters I have read to date. He can’t stand to be touched after everything has been done to him, which makes for an awkward arrangement with Farah.  But over some time, he begins to let her in more and more and a trust builds. I think Dorian as a character will break your heart a little bit. Farah as a character may help to restore some of your faith in humanity because she is loyal to the core and has a backbone of steel. She does not take shit from Dorian or anyone else and has a way of shutting people up with just a look. These two shouldn't work, but for some reason they do and they’ll worm their way into your heart.

Review: The Hunter by Kerrigan Byrne

The Hunter: Christopher Argent and Millie LeCour

(Victorian Rebels #2)

Summary:

From Goodreads.com

They're rebels, scoundrels, and blackguards—dark, dashing men on the wrong side of the law. But for the proper Victorian-era ladies who love them, a hint of danger only makes their hearts beat faster...

A scandalous proposal.

As one of London't most elite hunters, Christopher Argent never misses his mark and always gets his man. But when his latest target turns out to be a woman—the popular, and stunningly beautiful, actress Millie LeCour—it turns his whole world upside-down. Overwhelmed by the heat that simmers between them, Christopher can't complete his mission. On the contrary, he'll do anything to save Millie's life—even if it means risking his own...

A dangerous passion...

When she learns what Christopher was hired to do, Millie is torn between the fear in her heart and the fire in her soul. Putting herself in this dangerous man's arms may be her only path to safety—but giving in to her desire may be the deadliest mistake she's ever made. With both of their lives in jeopardy, Millie and Christopher must learn to trust the real feelings they're hiding—to find the true love they're looking for…

Review:

So I am not a huge historical fan but when I saw Kerrigan Byrne had some full length novels out I had to give them a whirl and I am so glad I did. I've read most of K Byrnes historical paranormal novellas and enjoyed them all and while I miss the paranormal aspect (because she does it so well) in these books I still really enjoyed them. I actually finished this a few days ago, it was good. I liked the 1st book a bit better but i did still really enjoy this installment. I found both characters quite enjoyable and even liked that their 1st time together was not instant explosions and multiple orgasms. I like that K. Byrne writes flawed characters, they make mistakes they aren't always good people and in this series, some are straight up criminals. But criminals with hearts of gold, mostly. The plot is always engaging and exciting and moves along at a quick pace. I have been a fan of K. Byrnes work for many years and she is an excellent writer and story-teller. I am excited to see how this series develops.

**Review copy was provided through NetGalley for an honest review, no other compensation was provided.