"How could anyone do that to a young girl? His heart broke for the loss of innocence. Not her virginity - he didn't give a shite about that - but at what must have been a cruel awakening to the ugly side of men..."
I am back into my Scottish romances once more and having read The Rogue on holiday in Tarbet (and soon finding myself in a real life version of a Highland Guard novel with a gorgeous Viking of my own!) I have just finished reading The Ghost which is Monica McCarty's final book in the Highland Guard series and one of my favourites. I have enjoyed them all, but there are five which really stand out for me and have captured my full attention - The Hawk, The Viper, The Recruit, The Arrow and now The Ghost.
In this final installment we catch up with Dragon, Sir Alexander Seton who turned his back on the Guard and the Bruce because he didn't like their tactics. He is a chivalrous knight and he only wants to fight a war that abides by his knightly code of honour. He thinks he has a better chance at ending the war if he can persuade the English to negotiate, but once fighting on the English side he questions his own judgment. He hates his betrayal of his friends and broods about it; even more so when he discovers that the English fight just as dirty as the Scots. He loses his young idealistic notions of what war should be in the face of what it actually is - a grey area, where there are no heroes, only soldiers doing what has to be done and doing their best to survive and return to their loved ones in the process. It is a rude awakening for a young man, forced to grow up and let go of his boyish dreams of soldiering.
To make matters worse he is drawn to Lady Joan, daughter of the infamous Bella McDuff, who has a reputation for being friendly with the English soldiers. Little does he know that she is in fact a member of the Highland Guard - the very team he recently turned his back on - and one of their most successful spies. When he is charged by the English to find the Scots spy in their midst, he begins to suspect that his lady love might not be telling him everything and he is right! Lady Joan has her own dark secrets to keep - secrets she fears will get in the way of this new blossoming romance she never expected.
As the story moves forward, both Joan and Alex have their own demons of the past to face and conquer - but will the fact that they are on opposing sides alter their love for one another? And will Alex ever forgive himself for leaving the brotherhood of the Guard behind and betraying his friends? A reckoning has to be paid and he knows he will meet his former friends again, probably on the battlefield - and which side will he choose then?
This novel explores what honour truly means. It separates the idealistic view of the chivalric code and what it is to be a soldier in the heat of battle. It highlights why there must be a moral code to warfare, but also how blurred that line becomes on the battlefield. Mistakes can cost dearly and loss of control can lead to loss of lives.
The Ghost brings us right into the heart of Bannockburn and beyond, where McCarty effortlessly weaves together history and legend, fact and fiction in her own inimitable style. In this book we are witnessing the Bruce's greatest victory, but in McCarty's vivid fictional world where he is surrounded by his faithful members of the Highland Guard, right there on the famous battle-site.
It's a wonderful conclusion to a fantastic series and the author has done true justice to Bannockburn's battle history, Bruce's legendary scrap with de Bohun and the diplomatic aftermath of the Declaration of Arbroath. It doesn't mention the Bruce's dying wish to send his heart on Crusade, which was carried out and is why his heart and body are buried at separate locations in Scotland, but it's still amazing and a very satisfying conclusion, not just to the novel, but to the series as a whole.
If you love Scottish history and Celtic romance as I do, then you will probably enjoy all the Highland Guard books. I have been tucked up in bed early every night this week, with The Ghost and a box of Loch Lomond shortbread that I bought in Luss, bringing a very sweet, enjoyable end to a busy day! Enjoy.
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