Customer Reviews

Highland Dream (Wink & a Kiss)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Hysterical romp through time! I loved this story! I was laughing the entire time and wished it hadn't ended! I loved the characters of Jix and Jamie, they were funny and real. Definately one of my favorites this year!

~Jix Ferguson was determined to get her best friend Sam out of an impending wedding even if she had to kidnap her and take her to Scotland! After tricking her into the flight, Sam and Jix aren't getting along and end up stranded in Scotland in the rain after their rental car breaks down miles from the castle they were to stay for the weekend! If that isn't the worst part, Jix is convinced Sam's 'future love' is residing in Scotland they just met him standing in the doorway!

Jamie MacGregor opens the door to his uncle's castle estate that is well over 300 years old to find two bedraggled women standing in the doorway, and the redhead has fallen down on her face! When their eyes meet, sparks fly immediately. Jamie is not prepared for how he feels.
Another problem arises when Jamie shows the girls his ansestral sword and they begin to argue heatedly over it when they find themselves hurled back in time, about 300 years to seventeenth century Scotland where the MacGregor clan are outlawed by the King!

Now all Jix will have to do is marry the Clan's son Griffon and Jamie must save the clan, but all in all, it's not too hard, especially when she sings verses of 'I Will Survive' and they find themselves running for their lives! Oh yeah, and they need to find the sword and Sam before they can go home! Can they 'survive'? Will Jix be able to keep her hands off the gorgeous Scot long enough to convince Sam he was meant for her? Will Sam forgive her for kidnapping and throwing her back in time to a waring Scotland? Will Jamie fall for Jix or will he find his heart meant for Sam as in Jix's dream?

I was on the floor with this one! I loved it! Something to brighten anyone's day! A real laugh and well worth the money! And by the way, Jamie is hot ;)

Tracy Talley~@

HIGHLAND DREAM is one of Dorchester/Lovespell's WINK AND A KISS line of books. These are lighthearted, humorous comedies and are not expected to be the same type of story as a traditional time travel or historical. Thanks to fans saying they laughed out loud reading it and enjoyed the lighthearted romp in Scotland's past. If you're in the mood for humor, tongue-in-cheek comedy and laugh out loud fun, then WINK AND A KISS, and HIGHLAND DREAM, is for you. And by the way, HIGHLAND DREAM received 4 STARS in Romantic Times Magazine and that's what I rated it here.

This book was a quick read, at times I was tempted to groan aloud at the main character Jix. Other times I was entertained, all in all though this book was silly, as far as time travel and romance novels go this one was definately cliche. Woman meets man, woman falls in love with man, woman finds reason to deny love, woman overcomes reason and admits her love. Throw in a trip through time and a best friend and it seems to be a good story but I found it to be not what it could be. The story has no realism and it mainly focuses around the relationship between Jix and Jamie. If your looking for just "love" and no plot really than this is a good book, personally I like to see what people do in the past and how they manage to acclimate to their surroundings and this story just makes it too easy and the people who live in this time have no problem accepting them. There is always a beautiful dress just waiting for Jix and no one thinks anything of her rendition of the song "I will survive" as she dances to it like a stripper. This book was fluff and had no substance, with a premise like this you can do so much more and I am afraid the author didn't do her homework well enough. I couldn't connect with the characters or believe that people like them could even exist. A fast read with some entertaining spots but for the most part an underdeveloped story that could have been better.

Jix is in love with Jamie, but thinks that he should be with her best friend, so she keeps turning him on & off. Jix has prophetic dreams and those make her do reckless things, such as kidnapping her best friend the night before her wedding.

I bought this book because it was a part of a series, and I love time travel books. It was funny, and had an interesting plot. The problem that I had with it and with all 3 books in the series was that the main characters have too many doubts that they keep to themselves and cause un-needed problems. Of course there should be problems in any story, but I think it carries on too long in this book. The overall plot is great, and it gets better towards the end after they finally tell each other the truth. I will say the same about the other 2 books in the series. The 2nd book is the best of the trilogy, since the characters start telling the truth earlier. After the couples unite, the story gets better because then they can face their problems together.

I choose to read romance because I like happy endings, but I also like stories with a good plot. I will keep this book along with the rest of the series (Highland Dream, Highland Fling and Highland Magic). I keep any book that I may read again. If you don't mind the conflict that their lying causes, this is a good book.

I couldn't put it down. Tess Mallory does it again. A great adventure romance. I really felt transported along with Jix. The characters were lively and fresh, and began to feel like friends by the end. I hope there's a sequel in the works!

I'm glad I didn't take the other reviewer's word for it and read Highland Dream myself. What a wonderful read! I couldn't wait for the next chapter to learn what would happen next! If you are looking for a wild ride full of laughs, love, and adventure pick up this book. Highland Dream is a fun romantic comedy, and the characters are all well rounded and loveable. Sure there's a little fluff, but isn't that why we read in the first place? If all you want is straight, boring, realism then turn on the evening news and forget this great adventure; but if you want to be swept away through time in a side-splitting farce then do yourself a favor and read Highland Dream.

When I first read the back of this book I thought "wow this sounds like a great book." I even thought that in the beginning because it starts off with a lot of humor and I thought the heroine and hero were going to be great adversaries for a while and then finally admit thier love for each other. That didn't happen. I liked the Hero, Jamie, but I found Jix, who is the supposedly impish heroine, a bore most of the time. I actually found the secondary characters of Griffin and Sam were more interesting. It was a good book but it didn't live up to its potential.

Highland Dream was my first time travel romance, and I loved it! The non-stop action kept me turning pages and wondering, "How will they ever get out of THIS?" Besides the action, Highland Dream also has all the important elements of a good romance, including one of the sexiest men I've ever encountered in romantic fiction (actually two of the sexiest, but one's a virgin!) and a sympathetic, well-rounded heroine. Jix Ferguson is cocky, willful, and a habitual liar, and her antics land her and her friends in one disaster after another, but she loves her friends, always means well, and suffers more than anyone else when her plans go awry. Her mouthiness makes for good laughs, another of the book's strengths. Mallory's humor has an edge, avoiding the strained cutsiness that mars some writers' efforts at humor. This book has it all--action, fiery sexual tension, and lots of laughs.

I did notice Highland Dream is a Wink & a Kiss novel and that's pretty much the reason I picked it up and while it does have its funny moments, they didn't come frequently enough to keep the heroine from getting on my last nerve. All of the male characters in the book were wonderful, even Red Hugh! I adore Griffin and would probably read a book about him if Ms Mallory decided to write one. Jamie has the patience of a saint. I would have slapped Jix six times over, or maybe given her a spanking. I seem to recall Jamie thinking she deserved one at some point and I wish he'd gone and done it. It would have given me some major satisfaction.

The first half of the book was quite entertaining, but I found myself slogging through the book in the latter half due to my loathing of Jix. That's not what I really look for in a fun read. I think there would have been enough external conflict to keep things interesting without throwing in Jix's massive insecurities, lies and downright stupidity.

I'm giving the review three stars despite the heroine's flaws because the hero is a great guy and the writing is quite good so I don't find myself unwilling to give Ms Mallory another go.

short and sweet-Jix's antics and dialog are ditzy and annoying to the point of headache forming. What started as cute quickly turned funky.
Jix is spunky-but not without sacrificing a good deal of common sense! For example-she "kidnaps" her best friend by getting her on a plane under false pretenses, so she'll miss her wedding, doesn't truly explain why-then is surprised when her friend is so mad at her?!?

I'll try another of this author's book, but I'd say skip this one.

2 stars