My Highland Rebel

November 14, 2016
Forester revisits 14th-century Scotland in the implausible but enjoyable second Highland Trouble historical (after The Highlander’s Bride). Avid student Cormac MacLean steals scrolls from a monastery and is chased by a monk who wants them returned. Cormac’s father, warlord Red Rex, wants Cormac to kill the monk. Reluctant to do so, Cormac invents a tale claiming that the monk is the only one who knows where a treasure is located at Kinoch Abbey. Arriving at the abbey ahead of Red Rex’s men and the monk, Cormac discovers that Lady Jyne Campbell is living there with a community who survived the plague. Cormac tries to convince Jyne to leave the abbey, but she won’t leave the other residents behind. Reluctantly, Cormac leads his father’s men to the abbey, disguised as a warlord and wearing a helmet that covers his face; sans helmet, he sneaks inside and woos Jyne, promising to protect her against the “marauders.” It’s hard to believe that Jyne can’t see through Cormac’s disguise, but Forester’s attention to historical detail and the sweet, subtle romance between Jyne and Cormac keep the story moving quickly enough to maintain suspension of disbelief. Agent: Barbara Poelle, Irene Goodman Literary.

December 1, 2016
It's no fun being the son of a Highland warlord, as Cormac well knows. He's a scholar at heart and has no interest in the warmongering of his father, Red Rex. After he's caught stealing books from a nearby monastery, he quickly spins a story of how they revealed an ancient Scottish treasure. Instead of liberating him, the tale pushes him to seek this treasure at Kinoch Abbey to prove his worth to his father. Beautiful and feisty Jyne Campbell happens to be visiting the abbey when Cormac's unruly band of ruffians barge in. Jyne is also ready to prove herself to her own family, and she won't let their land be taken easily. She finds herself at odds with the Fire Lord but discovers a companion in Cormac. Too bad they're actually one and the same, as Cormac finds himself playing two partsthe hero and the villain. His madcap antics to keep the two personalities from colliding add some laughs to Forester's (If the Earl Only Knew, 2016) latest Highland Trouble tale, a sweet love story.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)