BOOK NOOK; The Recruit by Monica McCarty

Let's just appreciate the gorgeousness of the cover treatment, shall we?😜

"You want this, Mary. I know you do. Just say yes."

She stared at him helplessly, paralysed by the sin of her desire, unable to say the words that would set aside a lifetime of morality.

It wasn't right. But was it really so wrong..?

...It would only be one time. One night of passion. One night of sin.  

Was that too much to ask for?

extract from The Recruit by Monica McCarty

I have just finished reading The Recruit, the sixth book in the Highland Guard series.   As tensions mount between the Scots and the English, Bruce's men are busier than ever, preparing for the war that they know must come.  Caught up in all of this is Mary of Mar, the widow of a Scots Lord executed by the English for his 'treachery' in fighting for his true king, Robert the Bruce.  Mary is taken as a political captive and held in a castle in the north of England, but when Edward II finds a use for her, she is sent north again, to the court of her former brother-in-law King Robert, to try and discover his plans.

As a widow Mary finds that she has more freedom and independence than she ever had as a wife or a maid, and she is unwilling to give up this one silver lining in her troubled circumstances.  So when King Robert suggests she marry one of his men and remain in Scotland, she is less than enthusiastic.  She has no wish to lose the independent life she has carved out as a result of being left all alone to fend for herself.   

To maintain her widowhood, Mary hides in plain sight, draping her golden hair in dark veils and wearing dark, drab gowns, giving her the appearance of a nun.  She hides her beauty so as not to arouse male attentions, because she enjoys her freedom in England.  She lives a life of high moral values and keeps herself to herself, trying to do the right thing and negotiate a safe path between the feuding Scots and English.  

Then along comes Sir Kenneth Sutherland; tall, strong, gorgeous, brown haired and twinkly eyed, ready to challenge all her protestations that she is quite happy with her life of solitude. To make matters worse, he is also the man the Bruce would have her marry and so cock-sure of himself and her acceptance that he's infuriatingly arrogant.  

Sir Kenneth is bold and brave and sexy.  He is also reckless with a gift for getting into scraps and losing his awesome temper - he's even sexier when he's cross!   This character demonstrates the Bruce temper so accurately that I was convinced it would be revealed that he had Bruce blood running through his veins at some point in the story.  Alas, no, but his temper is a great heads up for anyone who wants to know what it means to be in the firing line of a Bruce temper tantrum!  

Sutherland's anger festers and constantly simmers just beneath the surface of his polite interactions in society.  He is always ready to do battle, with anyone, and he feels the need to press ahead to the next big challenge and prove himself, needing the rush of the next victory like an addict needs their next fix.  That's the Bruce temper, in a novel nutshell!  It is unpredictable, unforgiving and downright scary at times.  But it's also a useful tool to have on your side, and the Highland Guard need Sir Kenneth's skills much more than they distrust his ability to control his temper. 

As this book marks approximately the halfway point in the series, you can clearly see the author building the tension as war approaches.  This novel ends in 1310 - so Bannockburn is looming on the horizon, in 1314.  It's fascinating to see how she weaves her fictional Highland Guard into the actual historical timeline.  It must have taken hours of research and planning to execute and write such an ambitious series of books.   It's cleverly written with effective hooks that make it a real page turner. 

I enjoyed this novel in the series much better than book five, The Saint, which was about childhood sweethearts and is where Sutherland makes his first fiery appearance.  The Recruit is far more action-packed, with explosions and so on.  And I like Sir Kenneth's passionate, mercurial temperament - I can relate to it. He is an interesting character. Life with him would never be dull and a lass would never be bored by him.  But it does get him into trouble at times.  Some of the places I know well also appear in this novel, such as Ben Wyvis and Inverness, and again this makes me like it even more, because the sense of place is familiar ground to me.

This is quite a racy novel right from the beginning, so it's perfect to curl up with late at night, chocolate at the ready, for a cosy, romantic-night-in-for-one.  Tuck yourself in and let Sir Kenneth keep you company - he's so much fun! Enjoy! 💖💖