The Bride (Lairds' Fiancees Book 1)

Oh my gosh! This was good! Fantabulous!! I'm not sure if this book was supposed to be a comedy but it was one of the funniest books I've read in a long time. It was thoroughly enjoyable. I was laughing for most of this book. This book had everything that I enjoy in a romance novel ✔ Possessive alpha male ✔ Bad Ass Heroine ✔ Solid storyline with low angst ✔ Funny as hell I loved Alec. He was a Scottish Laird who has married Jamie who is an English girl out of duty to his King. He really did not care to have a wife and he has a strong dislike of the English in general. He was a cold and brutal man. In the first part of the book he single handedly killed and incapacitated a group of men who had weapons with just his bare hands. Initially he had no respect for Jamie or her opinion. To him, women were inferior and her wants or needs were not important. Her duty was to serve and obey him. I have no idea how, but this author made me fall in love with this man! You start to realize that there is an underlying softness in him that Jamie seems to bring out of him. He turns out to be a very caring and loving man. And I loved his possessiveness. He made it clear he would kill any man that looked at Jamie in an inappropriate way. Jamie was also and amazing character. She was a very strong heroine. She was very opinionated and head strong. This of course created a lot of arguments with Alec who wanted his wife submissive. She was not afraid to stand up to her husband, a man that most men were even afraid to look in the eye. “The lass has only been here a short time, Alec. Surely she doesn’t mean to challenge you.” Alec nodded. Jamie shook her head. “I do so mean to challenge him... though I don’t wish to sound insolent. I would simply like him to explain why I can’t tell him what to do. He tells me often enough.” I loved the banter between these two! Jamie also had a lot of skills that women were not supposed to have. She was a skilled healer. She was able to ride her horse bareback. She was able to defend herself with her knife skills and bow and arrow. It was fun to see how surprised Alec was to find out these things about her. This book was also filled with a lot of heat and passion. The sexual chemistry was amazing between these two. They were both insatiable. Just the right amount of sex scenes in this book. This book was so much fun! I'm very interested to read the rest of this series! 5 stars!

What a respite from all the other books I've been reading! While in addition to the romance, it is a hale and hearty adventure, but is blessedly free from angst, and enjoyable from beginning to end. This is a safe story. Just relax and let yourself sink into it and enjoy. The banter throughout is brilliant. The H has a wondrous sense of humor. The h is delightful. There are no word issues nor problematic grammar. It is refreshing to read a book written by an intelligent person. This book is precisely why I don't give out 5 stars. What would you do when the likes of this one comes along. THIS is a true 5 star book!

So long ago I used to buy books, real books, written by Ms. Garwood. I adored them. They were always full of humor, and not the kind of humor you have to make fit, but the type that comes naturally from events in life. And the characters were more than 3D...more like 4D. Only a few times in my long reading career have I ever wished to be a fly on the wall while watching the events occur in front of me. Well, this book adds to that wish. It was so well-written, so seamless, and so rich of descriptions, I'm going to be chuckling over random thoughts from different chapters for the next few days. Lots of TV series or other books have used the trope of the experienced yet naive heroine, but this one was flawless. Nothing felt contrived. The characters' growths also flowed smoothly from grudging acceptance to warm affections. I do wish, though, that all her characters had the same depth. I felt as if Justin, Philip, Andrew, and perhaps a couple of others were caricatures of people. They all did their jobs, but with a writer as talented as this one, it wouldn't have been too difficult to give them all a bit more depth. Still, I'm delighted to once again recapture the humor and passion of Ms. Garwood's stories.

This is one of my favorite books by Julie Garwood. I can't really say why. Maybe because when I read medieval romance novel I see all the differences between how it was and how it is now. This novel is pretty straightforward: raggedly handsome brooding hero and an unwilling bride! Nowadays cops would have been called pronto! But here it's all about: she will settle in! But I liked reading their intimate moments which very well written and kind of sexy for medieval Scotland: ..The sounds she gave him made him forget his good intentions. The sleek thrusts of his tongue made her bolder. He placed wet, hot kisses along her neck, drawing shivers from her. She caressed his shoulders, his back, his buttocks, drawing tremors from him... ...She was awkward at first, but her enthusiasm made her innocence all the more arousing. And when she finally took him into her mouth, Alec closed his eyes and let her fire consume him. It was agony. It was heaven. Only when he knew he was about to spill his seed did he finally take control of her. He knew he wasn’t being very gentle. Yet his need to fill her completely, to try to give her fulfillment before he found his own made him all the rougher... Anyway, this book does not boast any particular humor, or very smart MCs because lets face it the education in those times was sorely lacking in all aspects and women were happy to know how to write their own name if that. But there is something that I just like about this book. It might be the secondary characters - they offer some nice moments, or maybe the clan feuds that are quite amusing - hey here is my humor peeking! But I liked the villain and the first time a read this book I really did not see that coming - and her crazy monologue was fantastically maniac and crazy: ...He doesn’t understand that she wasn’t meant to die yet. I’m much more cunning than he is, but I wish I could boast to someone of my prowess. I dare not, of course, and must therefore let them all believe they intervened in time. Oh, I knew she would be saved. The fire wouldn’t have gone undetected. I knew. It is his torment I want to see now, not his anguish. I’ll not finish the kill until tomorrow . . . perhaps even the day after if I can control my greed. I can still hear his scream. He was calling her name. I think he has begun to love her. This lesson will be all the sweeter if he does.... I want to touch her when she’s dying... So I kind of recommend it.

This is a beautiful full length novel of one such marriage, except the way the H/h come together has many obstacles to their HEA. I loved this story. Before Julie Garwood started writing suspense contemporary novels I knew her from her beautiful historical romance novels. This one is one of my top favorite by the author and highly recommended. It is a safe read. Heat factor is steamy. This is a must read for anyone that loves historical romance novels. ********CAUTION SPOILERS----) PLEASE STOP HERE IF YOU DON"T LIKE READING SPOILERS___)THANK YOU.********* First, hero comes with baggage from loss of his wife, that was also a marriage arrangement. Her 'suicide' left black cloud on the clan and the hero has not spoken of it. However, little did he know that his 2nd wife would not only open up the flood gates but trigger the return of a killer that nobody suspected was among the clan until attempts start to be made on the heroine. The ending reveals all and it is shocking! So as you can imagine heroine has to heal the clan from the loss of hero's first wife and overcome the hatred many have because she is 'English'. It's a tall order for her but if anyone could do it she could. Her own childhood neglect makes her see things and do things from the perspective of someone that understands love can do a lot more than punishment. She is a very strong heroine that is both spiritual and forgiving. You also have a side story of her sister's own marriage of convenience. Let's just say her sister needs a lot of help with her confidence and marriage! But that is not the only thing standing between them because the clans surrounding the hero are also divided and there is political obstacles standing in the way of unity among the clans. But is that going to stop the heroine? No! Her skills, talents, love, and pure soul are tools she uses well to heal both spiritually and physically. The best part of the story is the love that forms between the hero and heroine. The hero never even realized how much he needed the heroine until she came into his life. From the second he meets her until the beautiful ending their love blazes strong and continues to grow. By the end the hero was so devoted to the heroine that her happiness is his happiness. This is a must read. Safe read. Hero was heroine's first. Epic tale and must read!!!

Julie Garwood has a way of putting together sweet, funny and poignant historical romances. THE BRIDE is often chosen as one of her best. It has made top 100 lists of all time romances as well. THE STORY: Jamie Jamison is the youngest daughter of an English Baron who has been ordered to give two of his daughters in marriage to two Scottish highlanders. Jamie and her sisters don't want to marry but when Laird Alec Kincaid comes and claims Jamie as his bride, Jamie is determined to make her marriage works. While Alec intends to take his ordered bride and place her in the insignificant category, Jamie soon bewitches and bedevils Alec who can soon think of nothing else but claiming her. OPINION: I liked this book quite a bit although I generally prefer books with more angst and conflict. (In fact, I prefer Garwood's own SAVING GRACE). I definitely appreciate this book, however. Jamie is spunky and quirky and incredibly stubborn and determined and yet likeable. She is incredibly easy to love and so there is no doubt that Alec is a goner once he meets her. Alec is a strong, sometimes pigheaded hero and yet he always treats Jamie in a honorable fashion even when he is determined not to love her. I consider this more of the softer, gentler humorous historical romances in line with Julia Quinn. I have no complaints about the book and it made me laugh at how helpless Alec is in the face of the sweet determined Jamie. WORTH MENTIONING: This book is a historical but is more of the flavor and variety historical rather than a in depth historically accurate type. I don't mind that because I read more for the characters than the history lesson, but some might be unhappy. FINAL DECISION: Anyone who likes men in kilts should give this book a try! CONNECTED BOOKS: THE BRIDE has a connected sequel THE WEDDING where Jamie and Alec make a significant appearance. STAR RATING: I give this book a 4.5 stars because it made me laugh and smile.

Lively banter with sparks of passion to keep the reader engaged . A rewarding ending to a tale well spun.

This books takes place during the time of William the Conqueror and in the Scottish Highlands. Characters Jamie- I mostly liked her. I found her character a bit inconsistent when it came to her husband. I try to chalk it up to being forced to marry someone you've known for 5 minutes. Her childhood was hard, but it shaped her into a competent woman. She is a bit on the perfect side. Okay, absolutely perfect. But she has personality and spunk, doing what's right even if unconventional. Alec- Alec was your typical alpha hero. He's not unkind to his new and unwanted English wife, though he does initially view her as property. If you like alpha heroes, you'll like him. He's also basically perfect. Plot Alec has been ordered by his King to marry an Englishwoman and the English King has decreed it will be one of Jamie's family as her father didn't pay his taxes. Alec chooses Jamie, they're wed, and he takes her back to the Highlands. Hi-jinks along the way, including consummating their marriage. They get back to the Highlands, and Jamie learns she's married not just a Scottish warrior but a warlord with hundreds of men under his banner. Her first order of business is healing a gravely injured man which helps earn her the respect of the clan. Even though she's English. The underlying plot is twofold. First, someone is trying to kill her as they did his first wife (though in his first wife's case, they made it look like suicide). Second, there is a desire to unite the clans. Both are accomplished through the heroine's unconventional actions. Overall, the plot is mostly fluffy and something to do between steamy scenes. The book was pretty good. An easy read, something new to me, but not something I'm going to be thinking about in a week.