Review and Giveaway: A Highlander's Temptation by Sue Ellen Welfonder

Synopsis Darroc MacConacher spends sleepless nights dreaming of a raven-haired beauty who makes him ache with desire. Then his dream comes true: the lady with her lush curves and fair skin appears shipwrecked on his shores. Darroc is immediately drawn to her strength and beauty, and from the moment she lays eyes on this powerful, broad-shouldered warrior, Lady Arabella MacKenzie knows she'll never want another man.But theirs is a forbidden love. The MacKenzies drove the MacConachers from their lands and destroyed their honor. Now, Darroc can use this sapphire-eyed seductress to shatter his foes. Yet how can he deny the passion that burns between him and Arabella, and ruin the one woman who touches his very soul?

My Thoughts: Normally, this kind of cover would have me running for the nearest exit, but I have recently learned not to be so hasty and to give the book a chance. Just a romance is not enough to satisfy this reader; there needs to be a little more substance to the story.

When Darroc first laid eyes on the lovely, raven-haired beauty Lady Arabella, it was as if he had been struck by a thunderbolt. Looking into her sapphire eyes, he felt that his heart and soul had been stolen. Of course, as soon as Arabella got an eyeful of Darroc, the feelings were mutual.

Even though the ending of this book is oh, so predictable, that doesn't detract from the sheer fun of reading this scorching romance. When I say scorching, I mean white hot passionate soul searing feelings. Just the sight of each other sends their senses reeling , their knees trembling and their blood pumping at a fast and furious pace.

Welfonder certainly knows how to put the reader in the scene. The descriptions of the isle's lonely ruggededness and craggy beauty had me enthralled. I could feel the deep penetrating cold of the wind coming off the sea and smell the salty spume thrown off from the oars. Descriptions of the castle were also most interesting. I liked the historical feel to the story as it takes place in 1350. Fun characters that I really enjoyed in the story besides the main characters were Mad Moraig who played matchmaker and the resident ghost, Asa Longlegs. They really added to the atmosphere of the book.

Sue-Ellen Welfonder is a card-carrying Scotophile whose burning wish to make frequent (free) trips to the land of her dreams led her to a twenty year career with the airlines. Bi-lingual, she flew international all those years, working her flights as foreign language speaker. Her flying career allowed her to see the world, but it was always to Scotland that she returned.

Now a full-time writer, she’s quick to admit that she much prefers wielding a pen to pushing tea and coffee. She spent fifteen years living in Europe and used that time to explore as many castle ruins, medieval abbeys, and stone circles as possible. Anything ancient, crumbling, or lichened caught her eye. She makes annual visits to Scotland, insisting they are a necessity as each trip gives her inspiration for new books.

Proud of her own Hebridean ancestry, she belongs to two clan societies: the MacFie Clan Society and the Clan MacAlpine Society. In addition to Scotland, her greatest passions are medieval history, the paranormal, and dogs. She never watches television, loves haggis, and writes at a four-hundred-and-fifty year old desk that once stood in a Bavarian castle.
Sue-Ellen is married and currently resides with her husband and Jack Russell Terrier in Florida. Readers can learn more about her and the world of her books at: http://www.welfonder.com/.

Now for the giveaway: Thanks to the generosity of Hachette Book Group, I am giving away 5 copies of A Higlander's Temptation. You probably know the drill by now but here it is anyway.

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