To Conquer a Highlander Book

3.5/5

I always enjoy Mary Wine's stories, and while that still holds true with To Conquer a Highlander, there was something different about this book in general. There wasn't much action, even though there were attacks on different clans, the kidnapping of a bride, more attacks and even executions… with the exception of the bride-napping, there were very few details given, not much excitement. Not that I want blood and gore, mind you, but the story seemed interesting but then again... not. I was left wondering what happened, and how the characters really felt about things.

The first several chapters were very good. Lots of plot, interaction and excitement, but then after that, it felt like it moved rather slowly to me, in that we spent a lot of time inside Shannon's head, hearing her thoughts on subjects ranging from her father's poor judgment in attacking the McLerens, to the way women should be'but were not'treated as equals, as well as why she was'but wished she weren't'attracted to Laird Torin McLeren, the man who had "stolen" her while she was enroute to her future husband. There were so many times when I thought to myself that this scene or that would have been much more interesting had Shannon's thoughts been actual dialog, which they easily could have been what with all the people milling about. Now, that said, I enjoyed the glimpses into everyday life we always get in Mary Wine's historicals. She does her homework, that's for sure. The detail in which kitchens and bathing room workings and uses are described, the way foods are stored and prepared, are just some of the many things I love about her novels. This was done in such a way that it wasn't boring at all, even though it was part of the time we spent in Shannon's mind, as she set about her chores and compared the McLeren's Donan Tower to her own home which was not nearly as "modern." By about the second half of the book things picked up again, mostly because Torin and Shannon were spending more time together, so there was a lot of flirting and banter and, of course, hot sex.

I wish I could have connected with Shannon and enjoyed her as a heroine, but I really didn't. She was very negative about everything, even while admitting that her life as a 'prisoner' was much better than it had been at home. She had some off sense of loyalty to her father and brothers who she didn't even like, and who didn't care for her, either.

Now, I really liked Torin McLeren, but didn't love him. I felt like he deserved better than Shannon, and wished he would have tossed her on the moat or something equally as wet and embarrassing. The way he kept after her, his feelings growing deeper for her, made me wonder if he had self esteem issues and felt he couldn't do any better. If Shannon had shown any redeeming qualities at all, I'd have felt much different about Torin's attraction to her and that would have completely changed my entire perception of him. I did love that he was completely devoted to his clan, and that being a good Laird was very important to him.

Connor Lindsey, another clan's Laird and good friend to Torin, seems like he's got lots of emotional wounds in need of healing. We know that he's made a marriage contract, but is having second thoughts now that he's heard rumors about his future bride's… indiscretions. We've learned enough about his past to know that he'll be a great, tortured soul and so I'll definitely be reading his story, the next book in the series, Highland Hellcat but I'm really hoping we see more conversations, more interactions and less internal dialog.

I don't know why, but this little snippet stood out -

Gerty, Shannon's maid is speaking to Shannon when discussing the bruise Shannon had received because she questioned her father's attack on the McLerens.

"Ye be a right pretty enough lass. When yer nae wearing a mark from yer father's hand, that is." She clucked her tongue once again. "With a little prayer it might be healed by the time ye meet yer groom. Best to hope for that. No man wants a wife who needles her sire."

My first thought was, a husband worth having would have kicked said sire's arse for laying a hand on a woman, any woman, especially his own - but such were the times, aye?

Overall, this was an enjoyable read, and the things I found lacking about it I'm chalking up to the book suffering from a case of the FITSs - First in the Series syndrome.