6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Lovin' Me Some Highlanders!, August 4, 2009
This review is from: Highland Obsession (Mass Market Paperback)
Alan MacDonald has returned to his highland home and birthright, Glenfinnan, after a twenty year absence. Born the son of the laird and an English woman, when his father died, his mother couldn't survive the harsh elements and took her son home to England. The people of Glenfinnan were a bit nervous for their laird's return. Would he return to them a snobbish Englishman complete with wig and accent? No. Their laird was a man of kindness and charm who spoke flawless Gaelic and within a few short months he earned their undisputed loyalty and the hand of the beautiful maiden, Sorcha.
Alan, already besotted with his bride of a few hours, believes that he's obtained the heart of a beautiful and innocent maiden. A woman untouched by another save himself. Knowing that his bride has dealt with the painful passing of her mother through child birth, he promises Sorcha that they'll wait to have children until she is ready. After a beautiful joining, Alan let's down his guard and in that moment Sorcha is snatched from his grasp and taken forcefully by the Earl of Camdonn - his friend of twenty years. The man that saved his arse countless times and visa verse. Alan can't believe that the man he thought of as a brother is now dragging his naked wife and tearing away from his cottage while leaving his giant of a body guard behind.
Cam has no idea what he's doing, all he knows that he can't stand by and allow Alan to touch the woman he loves. Twenty years of friendship means nothing in the rage of his jealousy. He knew this marriage was coming, Alan had told him himself and Cam had done his best to not think upon it. Sorcha could never be his wife. He's an Earl and a highlander for his bride is not an option. But that doesn't mean that he can't still possess her. He'll chain her in his dungeons if he must but he will not relinquish the one woman that had shown him so much passion prior to her return to Glenfinnan. He's sure that she loves him for she must.
Sorcha can't believe what's happening to her. With her highland nature comes fierce pride and unwavering loyalty to her marriage. Despite the fact that she barely knows Alan, she will remain loyal to him no matter what the cost. She had planned on never telling Alan of her affair with Cam. Her marriage was a time for a fresh start and she had successfully duped him on her virginal state. But with Cam hauling her naked into the night, Sorcha fears that the worst will be discovered. Once at Cam's home, Sorcha rejects him at every turn. Although she hates to see Cam hurt, it becomes very apparent to her that she never truly loved Cam. Now more than ever, Sorcha must escape to her husband.
Alan fights Cam's guards nearly to the death to retrieve his new bride. All he can think about is how innocent she is and how frightened she must be. Awaking to find himself at home with battle wounds and a blow to the head, Alan is soon visited by Sorcha's father. He informs Alan of his suspicions regarding Sorcha and Cam, leaving Alan horrified of the implications.
Sorcha, managing to escape Cam's castle, walks home to her husband. But the instant she sees him, she knows that he is now well aware of her past. Sorcha is instantly condemned by Alan for her past actions and her conniving ability to make him believe that she was a virgin. He believes her to be a liar and in no way can he trust her. But Sorcha is given some measure of hope realizing that Alan has no intentions of throwing her out. Perhaps she can win back his trust.
But no matter how Sorcha tries to please Alan, he still will not bend. He cuts her at every opportunity and while in the beginning she knows that she was deserving of his wrath, now it's her anger that's igniting. The two clash heavily in a verbal battle but achieve some measure of peace. Both feel that they may be able to save their marriage. But something must be done about Cam for he's still scheming to get Sorcha back and Alan will not have his pride be toyed with again. He challenges the Earl to swords.
When Cam is brutally wounded in the dual, like any good friend, Alan agrees to stay with his hurt and scared fallen brother. For the moment, the past is forgiven while in the wake his best friend's possible death. Sorcha too decides to help and the three hunker down at Cam's castle to see him through recovery. Yet something foreign is kindling between the three. It's not anger but desire and with each day that Cam grows stronger so does the burning need for one another. In a combustible collision that leaves them all both healed and destroyed, it's Alan that's the most wounded by their drunken encounter. Awaking to find his beloved wife, whom he still hasn't yet forgiven, entwined with Cam leaving him on the edge of the bed and in the cold, brings his life into perspective. He loves Sorcha and it's clear that she loves Cam. Alan could have lived with Sorcha's past but he can't and will never be able to withstand her love for another man. With that admission to himself, Alan steals into the morning light and heads out to the battle his men have yearning to fight. And if it's death he's meeting, so be it.
'Highland Obsession' was fabulously unexpected. It's a character driven story rife with anguish and betrayal. My heart went on a journey with these characters. In the beginning I was deeply committed to Cam's plight for Sorcha's love for his heart was dark with jealousy and bitter sadness. In turn, I felt that Sorcha was betraying Cam with her marriage and her burgeoning feelings for her new husband. But after I cheered Cam and his abduction of the woman he loves, I was instantly felled by the sheer ferocity in which Alan fought to save his wife. My heart clenched with his anguished thoughts of his innocent new bride's fear when in truth she knows Cam infinitely more than Alan could ever have imagined. And when Sorcha risks her life to escape Cam and his guards to return to her husband, even knowing that her reputation is irreparably damaged, I was struck with admiration. Such courage from this heroine.
When Alan's pride poisons his emotions, I hoped desperately that Sorcha could win his trust once again. There are many tense moments between Alan and Sorcha that left me on the edge of my seat yearning for Alan's capitulation to his love for Sorcha. And when she finally grew angry over Alan's avoidance and harsh accusations, she rises boldly before him and challenges his beliefs. I cheered for the women of those times that were condemned as whores for being passionate while the males of their time were applauded for their sexual conquests. Alan's thoughts were biased in the extreme and it took Sorcha's fierce anger to finally get him to see things from her perspective. But truly these two characters come alive for each other.
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