Never Kiss a Highlander

Starred review from June 12, 2017
Sinclair broadens her racy, spicy sixth 14th-century McTiernay romance (after Seducing the Highlander) by introducing a new and eminently swoonable hero, Hamish MacBrieve. Hamish’s pacifistic younger brother, Robert, fell in love with Selah, the woman Hamish wanted to marry. Warrior Hamish left his castle, its lairdship, and Selah to Robert and rode off to join the McTiernays. After 12 years battling beside his adoptive brothers, Hamish’s duty to Robert, who’s being threatened by the scheming Ulrick, brings Hamish back to Foinaven where fate, in the form of Selah’s sister Mairead, awaits him. Their torrid mating dance, which dominates most of this lush historical romance, is complicated by previous disastrous forays into courtship that have left them both wary. Hamish is torn between desire and distrust, and Mairead oscillates between being infuriated by his reserved attitude and being so captivated by his manly physique that she fears “drooling all over” the both of them. In steamy scenes, Hamish sears her senses (and the reader’s) with “intimate aggression.” This lengthy excursion into the Highlands contains enough plaid tossing, claymore brandishing, castle-bound conniving, and erotic adventuring to keep Sinclair’s audience dreaming of kilts for weeks.

June 15, 2017
When renowned Highland warrior Hamish MacBrieve gets word that his clan is in danger, he travels home to help them protect themselves, with no intention of staying, but a beautiful woman, a scheming brother, and unexpected surges of loyalty tempt him to stay.Having left his family and the MacBrieve clan 12 years ago--when his brother, Robert, married Selah, the woman he thought he loved, and became laird--Hamish has resisted many requests to come home. A celebrated warrior and member of the powerful McTiernay clan's elite guard, Hamish has no desire to return, and he's not interested in being his brother's second-in-command. However, he knows the clan is in danger from the current military commander, Ulrick, who wants to usurp Robert. A powerful bully, Ulrick has benefited from Robert's inability to stand up to him, but now that the situation is critical--and Ulrick has left on an errand that gives him the opportunity to raise an army against Clan MacBrieve--Robert has sent for his warrior brother. Hamish relents but makes it clear that it's a one-time deal and he won't step in again. Coming home offers him the opportunity to reconnect with friends he'd left behind and work with them to strengthen the clan while witnessing its many weaknesses, and he concludes that Robert is an ineffective leader. Selah's sister, Mairead, is a pretty firecracker who has been instrumental behind the scenes, and Hamish feels like he may have finally met his match. He's still not ready to commit to the clan, but after Ulrick returns and threatens Mairead, and Hamish discovers his brother's grand plan, he may reconsider. Smartly drawn characters and an intricate plot are often undermined by incessant shifts in the characters' point of view. A sexy, fun, and generally successful Highlander historical romance.

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