The Highland Commander
Lords of the Highlands, Book #2
By Amy Jarecki
ISBN: 9781455597857
Author’s Website: http://www.amyjarecki.com
Brought to you by OBS reviewer Omar
Summary
She cannot resist the man behind the mask…
As the illegitimate daughter of a Scottish earl, Lady Magdalen Keith is not one to partake in lavish balls or other frivolities. Yet at her father’s urging, she agrees to dance with the battle-weary officers at this year’s holiday masquerade. It’s practically her civic duty! But when one such officer-whose dashing good looks cannot be disguised by a mere mask-sweeps her off her feet and into his arms, the innocent lass can’t help herself. Her lips are his for the taking. But will he betray his country for a kiss?
Navy lieutenant Aiden Murray has spent too many months at sea to be immune to the charms of this lovely beauty. Even after he returns to his ship, she lives in his dreams. But when he discovers Maddie’s true identity-and learns that her father is accused of treason-will the brawny Scot risk his life to follow his heart?
Review
The Highland Commander starts with a Hogmany celebration (New Year’s Eve) where the Earl Marischal of Scotland, William Keith, has thrown a masquerade party at the Dunnottar Castle. Here, his illegitimate daughter, Lady Magdalen “Maddie” Keith, meets Navy First Lieutenant Aiden Murray of the Royal Mary vessel, who is in port for the night. Aiden is smitten when he meets her, they do not know who the other is, but the dance all night, and Maddie receives her first kiss ever. They exchange their first name and Aiden tells her that the Royal Mary will leave the port next day, and he doesn’t know when they will be back. Both of them treasure their time together that night and hope to meet again. The meeting occurs when Maddie’s father is charged with treason against the Crown, Queen Anne of Great Britain, for supporting her stepbrother James Francis Edward, the Pretender, in attempts of overthrowing her, which Maddie’s was an actual believer. Maddie and her maid travel to London with the intentions of pleading to the Queen the release and innocence of her father, while Aiden is in London for a two week leave vacation. With his free time, Aiden has plan to use it to finally lose his virginity, which he is made fun of onboard of the Royal Mary by some of his fellow semen who suspect it. His plan changes when he meets Maddie again, this time in distress and decides to let her stay in his family apartment in Whitehall with him.
The proximity and their mutual feelings ignite a burning passion for one another, but not everyone is happy that Aiden is helping Maddie, most of all because he is also Lord Aiden a, second son of Duke Atholl, and she is just the bastard child of an Earl.
The Highland Commander is a good romance story, the relationship between the two characters had a good start and while it had its ups and downs, it was fun reading how they dance around each other, and tried to hide their feelings from those around them.
An aspect that I liked about the story, was how author Amy Jarecki used historically events to intertwine the storyline of the characters with actual facts, and make the story more believable. As a reader, I tend to research facts and things I find interesting in books I read; in this case when I did that, it was a sort of teaching experience, as I learn about the history of Ruling Queen of Britain in the eighteenth century, and her conflict of power.
The thing that I didn’t like was that more than twice I lost interesting in the story, and I would put the book away to do something different. In some moments, I felt that the plotline was not moving much and it focused a lot on spying, which later I don’t think they used the information they gathered.
What I did like was that after an incident that causes Maddie to come to a breaking point and suffer a lot, I liked how her copping and afterwards of the event was written. I liked that the author let Maddie struggle to get back into a daily routine, and it made her wary of her surroundings; instead of written her all okay and unscratched as it often happens in other books.
The Highlander Commander was good story and I think that if it had had a little more spice or adventure, and have the climax part of the story more unfolded and less hurry, it would have made it a great story.
If you are fan of Amy Jarecki or her works, then I recommend The Highlander Commander. In this story, you will meet two lovers that meet during a dance at New Year’s Eve and start a chase that will lead them to do unimaginable things for the wellbeing of the other, despite what the social system thinks of them, and the those who will used them for their evil deeds.
