Cain Sinclair has a plan. In order to finally bring peace to his clan, he will wed the young female chief of their greatest enemy. Only problem: capturing her and forcing her back to Sinclair castle doesn’t exactly make her want to say yes. Ella Sutherland may be clever, passionate, and shockingly beautiful, but what she isn’t is willing.Every attempt Cain makes to woo her seems to backfire on … her seems to backfire on him. A gift? The kitten practically claws his eyes out. A competitive game of chess? Even when he wins, he loses. It seems the only time the two ever see eye to eye is when they’re heating up Cain’s bed. Still, the only thing Ella truly wants is the one thing he cannot offer her: freedom.
But when Cain discovers she’s been harboring a secret—one that could threaten both clans’ very existence—he’ll have to decide between peace for the Sinclairs or the woman who’s captured his heart.
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Awesome read. Will keep readers on the edge of their seats, as Cain and Ella come to find true love amidst turmoil and chaos. Filled with chaos, danger, love, turmoil with a HEA. Highly recommend for Medieval Historical Romance. Well written with impressive characters and details. Great beginning to a new series.
Rating: 4.5
Heat rating: Mild
Reviewer: AprilR
This new series by Heather McCollum could not have started off with more of a bang. From the get go, Ella, the sassy Sutherland chieftain, proved she’s got amazing game. Whether leading the charge on the battlefield or warring using words with her sworn enemy, the Sinclairs, she’s not one to give up and surrender easily. Certainly not without putting up a fight. She’s all about protecting her clan, no matter the cost to herself. Even in captivity, she’ll fight and claw to break free. Of course, there is one thing she’s was sure to lose in the process..her heart. Cain, the hero, slowly but surely stole it.
It’s not surprising Cain Sinclair has a Greek god like body/persona. I’ll just leave it at that, folks. You will have to read this book to find out why/how that applies here. In fact, his three younger brothers also have that same gig going on for them, as well. Just a twist here and there differently. Yeah, that was a little out there, but I rolled with it. It was rather original. The ending wrap up played out longer than I expected. Meaning it bounced around a little before it got down to the business of sealing this main couple’s HEA.
Oh, I am so looking forward to seeing them all brought to their manly knees one by one by the love of their very own special leading lady. Gideon, Joshua, and Das…You’re up next! I simply can’t wait for more sequels in this series.
Title: Highland Conquest, Series: Sons of Sinclair (Book 1), Author: Heather McCollum, Pages: 384, stand-alone but part of a series, clan chieftain heroine, clan chieftain hero, enemies to in love, romance safe for me, some violence, hiding a secret, evil villain, both strong willed/determined.
(I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I was not given any payment or compensation for this review. There is no relationship or affiliation between this reviewer and the author, publisher, or NetGalley.)
When the Laird’s wife passes away from birthing their fourth son, his grief is beyond normal. He becomes full of blood lust and feels his four sons are from God to be the four horsemen of the book in the bible Revelations. Each son grows up trained to perfection for each of their assigned duties. His father wants to conquer all that are weak and consolidate them into the Sinclair Clan. This is the eldest son’s story: Cain. He was responsible for victory in battle and the ultimate conquest of all. During a fierce battle with Clan Sutherland, it looked like they were winning. Then the tide turned just a bit and a group of arrows aimed at his father came down. Before the Laird died, he repeated each son’s duty. Cain was now the new Laird and the fifth Earl of Caithness. He eyed his enemy in charge of killing his father and gave chase. It was the Sutherland daughter Arabella Sutherland. Well, when he thought he had really caught her she pulled a fast one and kissed him. That began a hurricane of events into motion. I liked Cain’s character. He was thought of by his enemies as a fierce, no mercy conqueror. But being around Ella gave him pause to reconsider that there was more than one way to win and he always won no matter what. Ella on the other hand seemed to be built of steel. She was not just a professional horseman but the ultimate extreme professional. She was a determined no hold bar type of woman yet she could love another and she did. Now that Cain claimed her, he would wed and bed her to take over her clan. But when things seemed to be progressing with Cain, her secrets were vulnerable. And she had quite a few. There is plenty of drama, action and adventure; plenty of romance and the threat of war around every corner. An excellent book. A must read. I highly recommend it.
When Cain Sinclair’s father is killed in battle by Arabella “Ella” Sutherland, Cain decides that the only way to end the decades old feud is to marry Ella and merge the clans. Too bad Ella is not on board with that plan.
Cain is the eldest of the four Sinclair brothers who were raised by their father as the “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse” – a clever tactic on their father’s part to instill fear in their enemies and a strategy the brothers fully embrace. Cain captures Ella and gives her a choice, marry him or die – she chooses death – well that is not what Cain expected and decides that doesn’t work for him – instead he set out to change her mind and woo her – which is quite entertaining!
Ella not only a warrior, she is also lovely, smart and devoted to her people. But Ella was raised by a monster and wants nothing more than to protect her people – she is sure Cain is a monster too and will not subject her people to that kind of ruler again – but slowly she sees that Cain is not really the “horseman” that rumor and reputation have made him out to be and she finds herself falling for him – but Ella has made promises and has secrets that could make any hope of HEA an impossibility.
This was a well written and entertaining story. It is filled with action, secrets, some laugh out loud moments, a great cast of secondary characters, steamyish love scenes and finally a hard-won HEA. I did feel like the first half of the book dragged a bit, but it did pick up in the second half and I appreciated the glossary of Scots-Gaelic/Old English words at the beginning of the book for reference. I enjoyed this book and would be happy to recommend it. It is the first in a new series this book and am really looking forward to each of the brother’s stories.
*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an uncorrected eARC that was provided to me by NetGalley and the publisher.*
“Will you catch me?”
“Always and forever…”
Having watched his father fall in battle to the Sutherland Clan, Cain Sinclair has an idea on how to bring peace between the feuding clans…marry the chief, Ella Sutherland. But Ella isn’t one to be conquered easily, and demands her freedom or her death over being married to a Sinclair. But as time passes, Ella finds that the Sinclair brothers are not totally the harbingers of death and destruction as everyone has long believed…especially their leader Cain. Cain and Ella discover that enemies may make for the best lovers, but will their impending union be forever shattered when Cain discovers the truth behind the secret Ella has pledged to keep with her life…
Heather McCollum has become my one click must read for highland romance and adventure! With her start of the Sons of Sinclair series, we are introduced to the brothers Sinclair, whose father raised them as being none other than The Four Horseman of the Apocalypse. Cain Sinclair is a fierce warrior and compassionate lover, and I’ve totally added him to my book boyfriend list! Loved and highly recommend!
**I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book that I received via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own. **
A beautifully written historical romance as only Heather McCollum can write them! You’re always guaranteed to get plenty of action and heated passion. I love the touches of humor in the stories as well:)
Cain is the eldest of 4 brothers and legend has it that they are the four horsemen from the book of Revelations but of course it’s just their father’s plan to put the fear in their enemies. With his bow and his crown, Cain is the Conqueror and he has always been taught “Sinclairs above all else”.
Ella is the Clan Sutherland chief and after leading her warriors to kill Cain’s father in revenge for her own father’s death, she finds herself captured by Cain! His plan is to marry her so that he can be in control of both their clans but she is not a willing captive!!! She seems able to escape wherever he puts her and his attempts at wooing her are hilarious at times:) Choices have to be made by both of them and secrets must be revealed that can change everything.
A thoroughly enjoyable read and if this first book of the Sons of Sinclair is anything to go by, we are in for a treat with the rest of the series! I received an ARC of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.
**I received a copy of Highland Conquest from Entangled Publishing and Net Galley in exchange for a voluntary and honest review. My opinion was not solicited in any way**
Highland Conquest by Heather McCollum is the first book of her Sons of Sinclair series. While I usually don’t read Historical Romance (I read A LOT of them when I was young) the blurb for this intrigued me. I wasn’t disappointed and thankfully the language dictionary was in the front thank you for putting there. The one person I loved Aunt Merida ex-wife of her father , healer and sage advisor who kept the brothers in line as well as their sister Hannah.
Cain Sinclair has always known that he’ll lead the Clan Sinclair when his father passes away but what he didn’t expect that it would be at the hands of Ella Sutherland his neighbor and she’s very strong and opinionated. Plus very good at Archery so he takes her hostage and announces they are due to be wed in 3 weeks. Now Ella is not okay with that and shows Cain how well she can climb, escape down the tower walls, finds a secret passage etc. But they have other problems such as a MacKay’s are out for blood and Ella so Cain who’s fallen in love will do everything to save her from them and convince her to join their two clans together.
Ella Sutherland was raised knowing that her father was disappointed and angry or that he would be abusive. Thankfully her loyal advisor, teacher and friend Kenneth she learns very quickly how to be a defender of the Sutherland Clan and eventually chief but she also has a secret that no one knows and would die to keep it quiet. First she luckily escape a betrothal to Hew MacKay (wow the pay off Dowry is amazing), and now she’s supposed to wed Cain even though he’s tried to soften her up with a kitten (Aww). But she’s a very strong opponent so a hunger strike, several escape attempts will lead to both Cain and Ella discovering they’re actually quite a strong couple and will take on his brothers, rescue family and realize that love can conquer all.
WOW! What a Fantastic beginning of the series Sons of Sinclair. Highland Conquest weaves a story from beginning to end with threads of intrigue, mystery, and clan rivalry as a web of danger, secrets and deceit are spun that will hold you spellbound from the moment you begin the journey with Ella and Cain until the very end! Heather McCollum has written a heart stopping story that is filled with tension-building twist and turns, sensual passion, filled with characters with such depth and individuality that they come off the pages, is beautifully written, with a suspenseful plott that will keep you entralled, and with heartfelt and witty dialogue. With setting descriptions and the action sequences are wonderfully vivid which pulls the reader into their tale the which brings this read together perfectly.
Love, war, treachery, romance. This was such a fun, fast paced read! I really enjoyed the main characters. Ella’s indomitable spirit was a fantastic pairing to Cain’s mighty leadership. And the passion that flares up between them is scorching. I really hope Cain’s brothers get their stories as their lives need more than being the harbingers of death and destruction.
I received a free copy from Netgalley. This is my unbiased review.
What a great story, this one will be a re-read.
Very entertaining, quick read. Easy to recommend.
HIGHLAND CONQUEST, written by Heather McCollum, is about one brother warring for peace. Cain Sinclair and his brothers watch as their bloodthirsty father is taken down by a rain of arrows. Cain has to decide whether or not to take the path his father has groomed him for or find his own destiny. Arabella Sutherland, chief of her clan, is captured by Cain, and the battle is over. However, the war has just begun.
McCollum has well developed characters. Ella is a strong, intelligent, compassionate woman. Cain may have met his match.
EPIC READ!!! Heather McCollum has outdone herself with this Great Scottish Historical Romance!! Fast-paced and action filled with drama, battle, fiery passion and love!! A story that will have you wanting more!!! Absolute Best!!!
You can never go wrong with a Heather McCollum Highlander Fierceness book! She writes with such amazing clarity that you feel as though you are in the castles or on the battlefield! Her Highland warrior is always tough on the exterior, but soft enough for the lassie!
Cain Sinclair , the Chief of Clan Sinclair decides he is going to marry Ella Sutherland, the Chief of Clan Sutherland, their biggest rival. However, she doesn’t particularly like that idea and plans to put all her skills into making sure that it doesn’t happen!
This is one book that will keep you turning the pages because it has humor, romance, intrigue, battles, and murder! It also has some unwed brothers who definitely have some strong personalities and need women to guide them, possibly future books?
I definitely would recommend this book to my friends.
I received an advanced free copy from NetGalley and these are my willingly given thoughts and opinions.
I love me a good Highland read and this was fantastic. Heather dazzles with both her writing and her character development. Sign me up for more!
Cain was YES. I loved his brute-ness and I loved reading his interactions with Ella. Once she interested the book I was absolutely hooked. She was fierce and strong and this totally gave me Vikings vibes. Like YES GIRL.
This book had the fact plot with the highland secrets And the brewing palpable tension between the main characters. I devoured this book. Once I dove IN I could not stop reading this book. The author does a fantastic job of leading you into each chapter. Plus, this girl can WRITE guys. I loved getting fully immersed into this book and can’t wait for more.
A thrilling book 1 of a new series! Highland Conquest is the story of Cain Sinclair. He is the oldest of four brothers. Four magnificent brothers that, according to their father, are the four horsemen of the Apocalypse. He raised each one to represent the horseman not just in battle but in everyday life. Yes raised them to be conquest, war, judgement and death. A heavy burden to lay on boys. Now men they aim to please their father and actually start to believe it. One of the battles, Cain meets his match. A fiery warrior who takes down a fierce leader. Now Cain must convince her to become his so he can continue to conquer her clan. Only his battle isn’t on the battlefield, it with her heart.
The brothers are heavy duty Alphas. Every single one. I love their banter, their advice on how to woo a woman but most importantly how much they love and respect each other. I could write so much more but would just spoil the journey. This is a thrilling read. I lost quite a bit of sleep having to finish it. It even took me longer to gather my thoughts to write the review. This book was just awesome!! I can’t wait for book two. Although my favorite is Bas who is the youngest. SO I have to wait for book 4!! ugh!
Highland Conquest is the first book in the brand-new Sons of Sinclair series. This is was a wonderful book to start the series with! I was hooked and couldn’t put the book down from the first page. The book started with a battle between the Sinclairs and the Sutherlands clans. The Sinclair brothers were strong fighters and they used their reputation as the four horsemen of the apocalypse to their advantage. Ella Sutherland was intelligent, strategic, and independent. She became the Chief of the Sutherland Clan when her father died the year before. She was trying to save her clan and protect their homes. Cain Sinclair was the oldest son and had been raised knowing his duty to the clan was to conquer and unite Scotland. The book comes alive and you feel like you have gone back in time while reading it. This is going to be a wonderful series and now we must wait for the next book to see Joshua’s adventures.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Full review appeared at Reader’s Edyn on 05/06/20
Arabella, Chief of the Sutherlands, is now a prisoner of her enemy, the Sinclairs. She prefers death but instead finds herself forced to marry the new Chief, Cain Sinclair, to form an alliance. Cain intends on taking over the Sutherlands and creating a stronger army and so a stronger Scotland. But Ella has secrets she must protect and she cannot allow Cain to take over her clan. Since he is the enemy, he cannot be trusted. But the more time she spends with Cain, the more her mind wars internally. The brute displays a façade of a battle-hardened destroyer to the outside, but inside she finds comfort and tenderness for her alone. Her heart longs for the glimpses of the true man that she is slowly coming to understand. Her body, a trembling mass of desire when he is near. For all their differences, there is even more that seems to be the same. She has been raised to believe one way and crushing through that belief when it has been ingrained for so long is nigh impossible to do. Before too long she and Cain are working together to find solutions to issues as they arise. And when Ella is suddenly handed back her power to make a choice, will her time with Cain have been enough to persuade her to choose love?
Cain Sinclair has just taken over as Chief of his clan; a role he has been groomed for since birth. When the clever, tempting, intriguing Chief of the Sutherlands succeeds in killing his father, he really has no choice but to retaliate. Wars are won and lost, but Cain has yet to lose. And suddenly he refuses to lose Ella, taking her hostage and forcing her into marriage with him. The plan makes sense, but Cain also longs for Ella to come to him of her own volition and sets out to woo the woman who has captured his heart. Much has occurred since their first meeting so many years ago, but he never forgot her. Now that his father’s brutal reign has come to an end, Cain is free to rule as he desires. Firm, yet fair. He only hopes he can convince Ella to rule at his side. The beauty has survived a horrific childhood at the hands of her father and now having attained her own level of freedom, capitulating in deference to Cain will be a hard-fought battle. But just as Ella has to make her own mind up and rectify what she has been brought up to believe versus what she has discovered to be the truth while inside the inner sanctum of the Sinclairs, so does Cain have much to learn and implement if he is to ever have the slightest chance of possessing Ella’s heart. Her love, freely given, is his greatest desire.
Am I ever a sucker for Scottish HR! Not to say that I am guaranteed to love every one I come across, but what a beautifully told story of two fierce hearts in their journey to realizing that their strength is in one another; survivors who refuse to fail for fear of losing everything they hold dear. Both of them almost too intelligent for their own good, shrouded in secrecy and legend, neither understanding that at checkmate their end games are one and the same. Cain is a planner, never making a move in any aspect of life without carefully considering each move. He is also crazy insightful and picks up on the smallest of details to easily deduce the truth of what others might attempt to keep hidden. Ella may have not been born a male heir and incurred the wrath of her father on many occasions, but she also learned to survive. Taught and trained by her mother and trusted friend, when it came time for her to prove her worth and ability in leading her people, she flourished further into the strong, capable, confident woman that she is. As you can imagine, for a leader giving orders to protect his people, especially those he cared for, his dictates to Ella continually went unheeded. A Chief herself, taking orders wasn’t exactly a strength. There was a whole lot of push and pull with Cain ultimately allowing a lot more lead when dealing with Ella while she continued to balk at every turn. Fervently wishing for Cain to seek her counsel and simply listen to her ideas, she also has an extremely difficult time reconciling Cain the horseman with Cain the man. Given their harsh upbringings, it isn’t difficult to understand the internal struggle that almost immediately ensues. But Ella and Cain have a shared love for animals and ultimately it is that shared passion that initially begins to chink away at the armor of protection.
There is also another example of just how different two people can be raised and how it ultimately affects their ability to cope in life. Ella’s mother had ensured she would be prepared for success even though she was a female and never even considered to rule her people in her father’s eyes. He was cruel and abusive toward her. In glaring contrast was Hannah, Cain’s sister. Also born a female and labeled useless by their father, she was basically ignored as if she never existed. Never given a purpose or even a job to do, she was ill-prepared for life. So when she is faced with having to make some decisions for herself, she makes serious mistakes. With Cain’s sire obsessed with the legend he spewed, identifying his four sons as the Four Horsemen from Revelations, a female child held no place in his plans. But things are not always as they seem and while the myth of retribution suits this family well, each brother holds his own feelings regarding their roles within the lore. Additionally, each of the two families has their own closely guarded secrets. It isn’t until they begin to trust one another that they begin the path toward healing.
The final scene in this book is nothing short of spectacular. Although it was reminiscent of the Crocodile Dundee subway scene. LOL Regardless, the entire thing played out like a movie in my head. The entire book did, in fact. From the initial battle scene, all the way through until the end. I could easily see this book made into a movie. The best thing about this book is that it is far from over as the first in a series. Cain has three other brothers who are just as intriguing. They are very similar and yet couldn’t be more dissimilar from one another. I sincerely look forward to seeing how all of their stories play out. As for this book, it is a wonderful beginning to a promising new series. Enemies to lovers – extremely well written – action-packed – scorching passion – captivating from start to finish! This may have been merely my second foray into the work of Ms. McCollum, but I am determined to devour many more reads by this fabulous author! Any fan of Scottish HR is sure to be pleased by this enchanting tale!
Kindle version provided by NetGalley/St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.
Cain Sinclair has been raised all his life to conquer and strategize, driven by a mostly-mad father. When his father’s death in battle sees Cain become chief of the Sinclairs, he is able to do things his own way and decides to bring peace to his clan and avoid bloodshed by marrying Ella Sutherland, the chief of his clan’s greatest enemy. He captures her in battle and forces the lovely warrior woman back to his castle, but she’s less than willing to accede to his demands, even in the name of peace.
Ella spurns Cain’s attempts at wooing her and continues to try her luck, albeit unsuccessfully, at escaping his well-fortified castle. The only thing that does seem to click between them is their physical attraction, but all Ella truly wants is to be free.
When Cain learns that Ella has been keeping a secret for years, one that could spell disaster for both their clans, he must decide how to uphold his role and maintain the respect of his clan, while still achieving the peace he quietly longs for, even if it means sacrificing a future with the woman he’s come to love.
I had very high hopes for this book and this new series, but I’ve got some very mixed feelings about this. I really liked seeing Cain work to embrace who he really is and come into his own without his father forcing him into the role of first horseman that he never actually wanted to fulfill. Most of my issue was with Ella. She was incredibly judgmental of Cain, even after she started to get to know him and most of her decisions were just illogical. I found myself scoffing at her more often than not and couldn’t bring myself to root for her. Then she went almost immediately from hating Cain and mistrusting him to being eager to jump into bed with him. I just didn’t really feel the attraction or connection between them.
I do enjoy action in my romance, but some of the battle scenes/scenarios started to feel a bit repetitive and overused as plot devices. At times I felt like I was rereading a scene I’d already read earlier in the book. The writing style took some getting used to and I struggled to get into this. Most of it was a slog and didn’t quite work for me or hold my attention until the very end. It wasn’t bad, not by any means, just not quite what I was expecting. I seem to be in the minority here though, so I would still recommend this one and will likely continue the series.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Highland Conquest by Heather McCollum
Sons of Sinclair #1
The Sinclair brothers, four of them, have been raised to believe they are the four horsemen of the apocalypse found in Revelation. They appear at battle fields dressed as messengers from god and are dressed appropriately. Each has a job that allows them lethal abilities while instilling fear while fighting foes. These brothers are, n order of birth:
* Cain brings conquest on a white horse
* Joshua brings war on a bay horsemen
* Gideon brings justice on a black horse
* Bás brings death on a pale horse
Each brother will have a book of his own and perhaps their sister Hannah will, too. This, the first book in the series, is the story of Cain and how his plan to bring peace rather than war begins. It is also a story with a HEA…eventually.
Beginning on a battlefield we meet the brothers, they lose their father and Cain chases down Arabella “Ella” Sinclair, captures her and declares they will marry to cement an alliance through marriage. Needless to say, she is not thrilled with the idea. For three weeks they face off in his castle, get to know one another, play chess, escapes are attempted, kidnappings are dealt with, have a bonfire social event and eventually secrets are revealed. The two seem meant for one another but prickly Ella and hollow Cain have to realize some truths before they can see what their future together can be.
What I liked:
* Ella – strong, a survivor, puts family and clan first.
* Cain – raised to conquer, has a plan, has much to learn, falls for Ella.
* The other three brothers – eager to see how their books will unfold
* The concept for the series, the writing and pacing
* Merida – a strong woman who survived much
* Hannah – a young woman kept hidden who needs to find herself
* Ethan – a good man there for Ella and her family
* James – young but potentially a good leader – perhaps he will get a book of his own, too
* Being eager to find out what Joshua’s story will be in book two.
What I did not like:
* The fathers of both Ella and the brothers
* The baddies – there was more than one to hate in this book
* Not a dislike but a note that to read this book you have to leave reality behind and open your mind to a not so historically correct historical romance.
Did I enjoy this book? Yes
Do I want to read more in this series? Yes
Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled-Amara for the ARC ~ This is my honest review.
3-4 Stars