In a spellbinding new Highlands story from New York Times bestselling author Lynsay Sands, the laird of the Buchanans finds the one woman who is his equal in passion and courage Aulay Buchanan has retreated to his clan’s hunting lodge for a few days of relaxation. But the raven-haired beauty he pulls from the ocean puts an end to any chance of rest. Though he christens her Jetta, she knows … to any chance of rest. Though he christens her Jetta, she knows nothing of her real identity, save that someone is trying to kill her. As she recovers, it will not be easy for Aulay to protect her and keep her honor intact when she mistakenly believes they are man and wife…
Jetta sees beyond Aulay’s scars to the brave, loyal warrior she’s proud to call her own. But as the attempts on her life grow more brazen, Jetta realizes that not all is as she believes. And if Aulay is not her husband, can she trust the desire flaring in his eyes, or his promise to defend her with his life?
more
“I have a wonderful shelter, which is my family. I have a wonderful relationship with my brother and sister; this makes me feel that I know always where I belong.” –Jose Carreras
Source: paperback:
I was already familiar with the Buchanan brothers, their sister and their friends. I love this series. I read them years ago and I hope to re-read them so I can write a review.
Personal note: I was shopping in a brick and mortar store when I found Lynsay Sands’ latest book ‘The Highlander’s Promise’ on discount. I was already familiar with the author and the series… and since I had not read it… I grabbed it. Back at home, I discovered the discount wasn’t all that great. When I signed in to Amazon, I saw they had it at a cheaper price… dang, I hate that. Lesson learned… check Amazon prices first… or just shop Amazon in the first place.
Rating: MA: mature audience due to violence, fight violence and sexual content.
The books in the Highland Brides series are as follows according to their publication dates: Some in the lineup straddles more than one series. Each can be read as a standalone but characters from each book will often visit with each other. They can be read out of order but it would be best to read them as the characters are introduced. I jumped about as I read them and that was what made me want to read about the characters that visited the book I was reading.
Book 1: An English Bride in Scotland: [Annabel Withram & Ross McKay] pub 6-25-13
Book 2: To Marry a Scottish Laird: [‘Cam’ Campbell Sinclair & ‘Jo’ Joan Charter] pub 6-24-14
The Highlander Takes a Bride: [Saidh Buchanan & Laird Greer MacDonnell] pub 7-28-15
Falling for the Highlander: [Lady Murine Carmichael & Dugall Buchanan]: pub 1-31-17
Book 3&5: Surrender to the Highlander: [Edith Drummond & Niels Buchanan] pub 1-30-18
Book 6: The Highlander’s Promise: [Aulay Buchanan & ‘Jetta’] pub 6-26-18
The Wrong Highlander: [Lady Evina Maclean & Conran Buchanan] expected pub 1-29-19
Aulay was laird to the Buchanan keep and had gone to the family hunting lodge near the beach to get away from his responsibilities for a few days. It was the anniversary of the battle that killed his twin brother and left him horribly scarred and he simply needed to get away from people for a few days. Once he and Alick, his youngest brother, were on the water they found a broken ship mast floating in the waves. It must have been lost during a horrible storm the previous day. When they drew closer, Aulay noticed a woman was tied securely to the mast. When he cut her lose, she opened her eyes and called him her angel before passing out again.
The next time she opened her eyes, she was in a bedchamber with a man sleeping in a chair… near her bed. She studied his scared face and determined it made him look rugged. She didn’t recognize him nor could she remember her own name; however, she did know that a man would not be in a woman’s bedchamber unless he was her father, brother or husband. As she studied him, he was too young to be her father, and she didn’t think he was her brother, so she assumed he must be her husband. When he awoke, he was fearful to correct her assumptions. If she tried to concentrate in order to remembering… she would grab her head in severe pain from the headache or she would pass out completely. Because she didn’t remember her name, Aulay decided to call her Jetta, since he had fished her out of the ocean.
The story revolved around Jetta coming to terms with her life as the wife of the Laird and her place in his society. Only one problem… someone was trying to kill her. Aulay and his brothers, along with his people, were determined to protect Jetta and Aulay. If they lived through it, as they too were in danger.
This was a delightful story of family, connections, loyalty, and betrayal. It was fascinating as I tried to figure out the evil person behind the assassination attempts. Who was after her and why did they want her dead? I can’t even discuss certain things as it will give it away. The author did a most excellent job in bringing previous characters forward from the other books. These brothers were amazing as were their wives. I remembered them from their own stories and if someone had not already read of them, they certainly would want to after encountering them in this book. There were subtle hints as to their back story and it piqued my interest all over again. This was a fun read, a romance as Jetta began to fall in love with Aulay. It was a mystery and a story of loyalty and bravery. There is nothing like a Scottish Highlander in protection mode. Just saying.
I did not understand why they all stand around and talk instead of rescuing the girl.
Never a disappointment when it comes to this author.
I love Lynsay Sands!!! What more is there to say???
Another great book by Ms. Sands. Love the Buchannan family. Great to finally read the story of the eldest.
I love anything written by Lynsay Sa
I love all of Lynsay Sands novels I have read them all over and over!!
Lynsay Sands’ Highlanders series has been one of my favorites over the last year or so. I love the big rambunctious and loyal Buchanan family, and have enjoyed seeing each brother (and sister) meet their matrimonial end so to speak. But when I saw the blurb for this book and realized it was about Aulay, I got grabby hands. I feel like this may have been my most anticipated installment of the series.
Aulay Buchanan is the eldest of the Buchanan brood, and arguably the most vulnerable. Losing his twin brother in battle and being horribly scarred in the process has taken quite the toll on our laird. People cringe when they see his face, and he was jilted in a most cruel way by his former betrothed, a vile woman named Adaira. So I have had a soft spot in my heart for Aulay throughout the series. He leads his clan, but because of his insecurity, he’s not loud and boisterous with his authority (unlike his unruly brothers and sister).
Jetta comes to us as an enigma, fished out of the sea by Aulay and Alick, without a memory of who she is or how she came to be there. But her first response to Aulay was so sweet and heartwarming, that I instantly liked her. Having no memory means Jetta had no pretense and we got to see her natural personality shine through. She took the Buchanans and memory loss in stride, leaning on Aulay when she was unsure of something. I found her to be endearing and resilient given her injuries.
The relationship between Aulay and Jetta was so sweet it gave me a toothache (in the best way). I have wanted the best for Aulay all along, and it seems he found someone who was not only not bothered by his scar, but thought it gave him a rakish air. But interspersed in the sweetness was some great chemistry between our couple, and they steamed up my kindle screen quite a few times. I loved how Aulay treated Jetta, both before and after her memories were back. He was not accustomed to flowery words and feelings, but it was fun watching him try to express them.
As in the other Buchanan tales, the story had a secondary storyline of suspense. Someone is trying to do away with our heroine, and its up to the family to try to keep her safe. I would say that the suspense plot in this story was not quite as strong as some of the earlier tales, but it was a good diversion all the same and helped advance the plot along in between our bouts of romance.
If you enjoy historical romance, particularly Scottish historicals, I urge you to give this series a try. I would start at the beginning so you get the entire back story on all the other characters.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book that I received from the publisher, Avon.
This was so fun! A seriously entertaining read with an excellent cast of characters. The Highlander’s Promise was one of those stories that had me smiling the entire time.