Our poor heroine. Women had such little control in the past its hard not to get really angry on our heroine's behalf. ( )

... chance meetings in even chancier places!

What a great read! Maggie Sinclair breaks all the rules! A highland hellion raised by her brother, schooled not in traditional womanly arts but sword fighting, cussing and beer drinking. Disguised as a lad, Maggie fought at Culloden iand s imprisoned by the English in Fort Augustus. Fortunately her masquerade holds. She and we dread to think of her fate if her gender had been discovered! Maggie avoids detection by clinging to the shadows of her cell. That is all jeopardized when she's joined by another Scot, the injured Colin MacLean. Colin is painfully aware that he isnnow his clan's chieftain, his brothers having been slain during the battle before his very eyes. His sorrow over their deaths rather than his runs deep. Nursed through a fever by his cell companion, Colin manages to escape the dreaded fortress and takes the lad with him. Only on the journey does he discover she's a lass. And what a lass! Feisty, spirited, unconventional. Colin is a successful smuggler, playing a game at first to tweak the English captain Abbot. Later it became a fully committed endeavour to help his clan and his country. Despite this, he doubts his abilities as a clan leader and is reluctant to return, but with Abbot having taken the keep and his people under English rule he must return. And here's where the pairing between Maggie and Colin becomes so perfect. This combination of determination and innocence that is Maggie is just the thing Colin needs to spur him on to take his place as Laird. Maggie's strength supports Colin in making his decisions. I love that Colin lets Maggie do what she is good at. He worries but he doesn't tie her down. Theirs is an unconventional relationship. But then are both far from the norm. They are very different from their peers. Each has doubts that the other helps conquer and as Colin knows down to his bones and Maggie has promised, Maggie is 'a fine warrior, and there wasn't anyone he wanted at his back more than Maggie Sinclair--Maggie MacLean.' They have each other's backs. Their unlikely enforced marriage gives Colin the companion of his heart and Maggie the same. A love story from beginning to end.

A NetGalley ARC ( )

I have yet to be disappointed with Sharon Cullen’s writing. She’s new on the author scene and writes delightfully stirring stories. I highly recommend her work to those who enjoy a good cry, a good chase, a passionate romance, all in a historical setting. I’ve read several of her books and all elicit emotional reactions to the plight of her characters. I didn’t read the first of this series, as yet, but found it didn’t take away from the story and events which follow book one.

I was drawn to the cover of the book. You can see it is a Scottish historical by the kilt on the brawny man gracing the cover. The woman’s hair, which depicts Maggie Sinclair, is short. That is a clue that all isn’t usual. Women during this period had long, luscious hair and were known for their beauty, in part, by their locks.

As with all Ms. Cullen’s books, once you start reading, they are impossible to put down. The story has a rather unpleasant beginning, a heart racer for sure. Our hero, Colin MacLean, is in Duke of Cumberland’s dungeon, being stretched tight and he’s not sure he’ll live the beating, even though he’s slated for execution the following morning! His lung sickness didn’t help him, either. OMG! Emotionally, I was hooked! How can the author be killing off this hunk of a man in the first chapter? I HAD to have him live. This was not right. Where is justice? Someone out there, save this man!!

Abbott was a mean, disgusting man. He had a personal vendetta against Colin, and enjoyed watching him in pain. He was perfectly hateful and I was so ready for him to receive his comeuppance.

“Abbot had a mean streak in him that nearly paled in comparison to the Bloody Butcher, otherwise known as the Duke of Cumberland.”

As Colin contemplated death, his humor remained intact.

“At this point he didn’t care if he lived or died, though he really wanted to live just to irritate Abbott.”

“Whether by the hangman’s noose or a raging fever, he had no doubt he would be dead by morning. Somehow that thought wasn’t as depressing as it should have been.”

Now this is what makes the story even juicier. Colin had a cell mate, a young boy who’d been in the same cell with him for two weeks. He’d hardly said a word. The lad wasn’t a lad. He was a she! She was scared to make her gender known. What would her cell mate do to her? And what about the guards?

Yes, our hero does escape. Whew! He felt sorry for the lad in the cell, so he took the boy with him.
Maggie was no wilting woman. With no parents, she was brought up by her brother who became her mother and father at 15. She had been well-trained by her brother (he didn’t know how to bring up a girl, so he gave her the ability to defend herself)—she was a skilled swordsman who fought as well as any man. Why was she in the dungeon, you say? Ah, my fellow reader, the book must be read to enjoy her predicament, including Colin’s.

Frankly, this type of book I gobble up! Action, suspense, a woman sure to capture the hero’s heart... There’s a rocky road ahead for both. Will our hero even recover or have enough strength and presence of mind with a raging fever to locate safety? Can they outrun the dogs?

I thrilled in the chase, I delighted in the precarious situation our ‘lad’ was in. There’s plenty to learn about both Colin and Maggie, questions which are eventually answered

Hero and heroine’s predicaments were similar, dissimilar. While Colin had been running from his place in life, Maggie was searching for hers—somewhere she would be accepted for who she was.
Lastly, I leave you with another quote, this one from Colin.

“It just went to show that a man could never lead with the manly parts. It never turned out well.”

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**ARC generously provided via NetGalley for the exchange of an honest review***

Immediately i started reading this book, i prayed and prayed it would be what i suspected, a girl mistaken for a boy and it was!!! Boy was i glad. I really enjoyed it. Sharon Cullen certainly knows her writing.

It was very fast paced and the story spanned a couple of weeks, a month at most. It didn't feel all insta - lovey even though they barely knew each other but i'll bite because it was so well written that when the MC's vocalized their feelings i felt it was real.

Maggie was such a kickass heroine and i was happy she stayed that way to the end. I would have been disappointed if she had become such a lady like Eleanor Or Innes. Colin was great, i did not connect with him much as i did with Maggie.

The one person i hated in this book was Ethan, Maggie's brother. He was such a jerk, i could not understand it. He was so uncaring and he kept imposing his wishes on Maggie, even though she had ran away once to fight in a battle, got imprisoned. He totally disregarded that he was the reason for all that and STILL he wanted her to do exact what he wanted. It was the reason she ran away! i mean, seriously.I did not get him at all.

I cant wait to read about Campbell, i have been teased and teased. He seems so diabolically awesome and i want him. ( )