Thursday, August 2, 2018

The Devil Wears Plaid: Teresa Medeiros


 “Emmaline Marlowe is about to wed the extremely powerful laird of the Hepburn clan to save her father from debtor’s prison when ruffian Jamie Sinclair bursts into the abbey on a magnificent black horse and abducts her in one strong swoop.  Though he is Hepburn’s sworn enemy, Emma’s mysterious captor is everything her bridegroom is not—handsome, virile, dangerous…and a perilous temptation for her yearning heart.

 

“Jamie expects Emma to be some milksop English miss, not a fiery, defiant beauty whose irresistible charms will tempt him at every turn.  But he cannot allow either one of them to forget he is her enemy and she is his pawn in the deadly Highland feud between the clans.  So why does he still want her so badly for himself?  Stealing his enemy’s bride was simple, but can he claim her innocence without losing his heart?”

 

I seem to be on a bit of a Teresa Medeiros kick lately (and I even have another of her books ready to start reading at lunch today).  This one is a standalone novel, though I can certainly see the potential for a second book, given one of the very vivid secondary characters.  Having just read Some Like It Wild, I can absolutely see some similarities in the characters and some echoes of plot similarities (and twists).  I could criticize this as “recycling,” but the differences are poignant enough where I will just say that the formula seems to work, so why knock a good thing?  I don’t feel cheated or disappointed and I still very much enjoyed the book.

 

I was left feeling like we got to learn a lot more about Emma’s point of view than Jamie’s.  We got to experience her falling in love with Jamie, while I saw Jamie falling in lust with Emma and didn’t quite get to see love come to fruition (even though I know he did fall in love with her).  I liked Emma’s sense of duty and sacrifice.  She was willing to give up everything to allow her family to have a better life.  She wasn’t afraid of the sacrifice and faced it with a unique bravery; she faced down Jamie and his fearsome band of Highland outlaws with a similar attitude.  I found this very admirable.  Overall, Jamie was a great male lead (despite the fact that I thought we saw much less of his point of view than we should have toward the end of the story).  His sense of duty and determination was a good mirror for Emma’s.  I really enjoyed the plot twists concerning Jamie and his multifaceted character.  There was a hardness to him that felt very true to his lifestyle and difficult upbringing in the Highland mountains, constantly being hunted by the Hepburns; yet, the gradual softness he felt toward Emma felt natural and believable.

 

The duality of some of the major secondary characters, the absolutely stunning scenery descriptions, and the overarching plot were rich and really sucked me into the story, making for a very quick read.  I practically devoured the book.  Medeiros always writes such enthralling stories; it’s so easy to lose one’s self in them and she really does create excellent “escapes” for her readers.  By far the most enthralling part of this story were the vivid descriptions of the Highlands.  When I was finished, I was half in love with the setting, myself.  It really felt like I was experiencing this magical place alongside Emma; it felt so real, in fact, that I am sure Medeiros had to have actually visited the Scottish Highlands in order to create such vivid scenery.

 

This was a great standalone novel and I recommend it as an introduction to Medeiros if you’re considering reading her works, but you don’t quite know if you want the commitment of being drawn into reading a series.  Her Scottish characters are wild and exciting, much like the land from whence they hail.  Their dialect is believable and not overly-exaggerated (which I have honestly experienced with some other authors).  Despite having some characteristics of great Greek Tragedies, Medeiros was able to maintain a lightheartedness that made the book fun.  This has always been something I admire about her style.

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