A SCOTSMAN IN LOVE

Author: Karen Ranney ISBN: 9780061252433 5/2009 HISTORICAL Publisher: AVON
Time Period: Victorian 1854

Running from their pasts Margaret Dalrousie was once willing to sacrifice all for her calling. The talented artist would let no man interfere with her gift. But now, living in a small Scottish cottage on the estate of Glengarrow, she has not painted a portrait in ages. For not even the calming haven in the remote woods can erase the memories that darken Margaret's days and nights. And now, with the return of the Earl of Linnet to his ancestral home, her hopes of peace have disappeared. From the first moment he encountered Margaret on his land, the Earl of Linnet was nothing but annoyed. The grieving nobleman has his own secrets that have lured him to the solitude of the Highlands, and his own reasons for wanting to be alone. Yet he is intrigued by his hauntingly beautiful neighbor. Could she be the spark that will draw him out of bittersweet sorrow—the woman who could transform him from a Scotsman in sadness to a Scotsman in love?

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

You know when you pick up a romance by Karen Ranney, one of the things you can count on is a character-driven story filled with great emotional depth and passionate love scenes. A SCOTSMAN IN LOVE contains all that—and so much more. Margaret and McDermott are both physically and emotionally wounded people, both trying to move forward by accepting and letting go of their pasts. And as you and I both know from real life situations, that isn't always an easy thing to do.

I have to say that, sometimes, Ranney's writing simply amazes me. Take the case of Margaret, whose brutal, traumatic past's events she will never in her lifetime be able to forget. While McDermott must cope with his own physical injuries and the loss of dear loved ones, Margaret's case goes so much deeper than that—her wounds are not so much physical as they are psychological; her dark memories and fragile emotional state are much harder burdens to overcome. The way Ranney develops Margaret's character as the story moves onward, through her relationship with McDermott and as her life begins to slowly rebound... well, if Ranney ever decides to give up writing, she'd make a really fine psychologist—and I'd be one of the first patients in her lineup!

A SCOTSMAN IN LOVE is a very powerful story, a moving and emotional journey that ends with the healing power of love. I highly recommend it.

Nancy Davis