AUTUMN IN SCOTLAND

Author: Karen Ranney ISBN: 0060757450 12/2006 HISTORICAL Publisher: AVON
Time Period: Victorian - 1833, 1838 England/Scotland

Abandoned by a rogue Betrothed to an earl she had never met, Charlotte Haversham arrived at Balfurin, hoping to find love at the legendary Scottish castle. Instead she found decaying towers and no husband among the ruins. So Charlotte worked a miracle, transforming the rotting fortress into a prestigious girls' school. And now, five years later, her life is filled with purpose—until... Seduced by a stranger A man storms Charlotte's castle—and he is not the reprehensible Earl of Marne, the one who stole her dowry and dignity, but rather the absent lord's handsome, worldly cousin Dixon MacKinnon. Mesmerized by the fiery Charlotte, Dixon is reluctant to correct her mistake. And though she's determined not to play the fool again, Charlotte finds herself strangely thrilled by the scoundrel's amorous attentions. But a dangerous intrigue has drawn Dixon to Balfurin. And if his ruse is prematurely revealed, a passionate blossoming love affair could crumble into ruin.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

In the hands of a less accomplished author, the scenario in AUTUMN IN SCOTLAND would have been a bit unbelievable and hard to swallow. After all, it's not often that a wife can't recognize her spouse, even after a long separation of five years when he absconded with all her money and left her at odds with her family. Nor would a wife, now independent and self-supporting, seem so easily convinced that her reappearing husband is really who he says he is, transformed in personality, demeanor and in his sensitivity to others. But put into the hands of Karen Ranney, who takes this Sommersby-like tale and runs away with it, the scenario becomes totally plausible and an easy Top Pick awardee.

This isn't Ranney as I usually like to read her. AUTUMN IN SCOTLAND isn't as dark and erotic, its characters not as brooding and emotionally driven as those in her other books. But I like this lighter side of Ranney, a side that seems equally at home writing two parallel love stories between four somewhat flawed and wounded characters as it is when writing more intense and darker emotional storylines.

Charlotte has taken her life into her own hands, transforming herself from a woman dependent upon a husband and her family for survival, into someone who is self sufficient and nurturing, a person who has every intention of succeeding in what she attempts. While she accepts Dixon's mistaken identity to be that of her husband's, she does have doubts, a little niggling in the back of her mind that tells her something is just not right. This is the difference, the doubt, the believability factor, if you will, that Ranney instills in Charlotte that creates the much needed credibility factor in order to make this story float. And it works.

Dixon, the imposter, is running away from the guilt in his past, not realizing that the very place he has come to escape it will be the very place he'll be forced to confront it. Dixon knows what he is doing is wrong, he knows he should tell Charlotte the truth, but much like facing the demons he struggles with, he simply can't bring himself to do it, at least not until he knows what truly happened to George. Or so he tells himself, as he struggles to do the right thing against the love he develops for another man's wife—his cousin's wife.

The secondary love story between Dixon's Asian manservant, Matthew, struggling between his ethnic identity and his Baptist upbringing, and Charlotte's physically imperfect maid, Maisie, is especially sweet and endearing. It's the offset to Charlotte and Dixon's more intense romantic relationship and adds balance to the overall storyline. Add in a subplot about a missing treasure and the mystery of what has happened to George, and AUTUMN IN SCOTLAND becomes one faced-paced story of love and mystery, tinged with a bit of intrigue.

Once again, Karen Ranney delivers what her fans love most about her: solid writing, sensuality, believable plots, and intense three-dimensional characters that we come to love—or dislike—that Ranney creates from the inside out. No author sees into the hearts and minds of her characters quite like Ranney does, and those she creates in AUTUMN IN SCOTLAND are no exception. I highly recommend it.

Nancy Davis