#ThrowbackThursday ~ Taming the Highlander (Scottish Relic Trilogy #2) by May McGoldrick #HistoricalFiction #Fantasy

Taming the Highlander is the second book in a trilogy I enjoyed listening to a few years ago.

My Thoughts

Fifty years previously four small pieces of a stone relic, the Wheel of Lugh, were brought to Scotland. Each fragment held a special gift but together, the four pieces would hold a terrible power if they were to fall into the wrong hands. The bearers of the tablets had sworn an oath, to travel to the farthest reaches of Scotland to keep the pieces of the relic separate.

Innes Munro inherited her gift, or curse as she often thought of it, after her mother’s death when Innes was seven years old. The piece of stone has been in her keeping ever since, giving her the ability to read people’s thoughts and feel their emotions and pain just by touch. Tending towards solitude, a white streak through her dark hair, dressing in black and wearing gloves at all times, Innes cuts an unusual figure. 

But for now Innes and her father were guests at Girnigoe Castle, home of the Sinclairs. Ailein Munro, Innes’ younger sister, was to wed the laird, Bryce Sinclair.

Conall Sinclair, Earl of Caithness, ransomed from languishing in an English dungeon after the battle of Solway Moss, by his brother, Bryce, still bears the mental and physical scars of his incarceration. His experience has left him reclusive, isolated from his clan, preferring the company of his rescued wolf cub, Thunder.

Innes and Conall are central to this story, two completely different and flawed characters when compared to Alexander and Kenna from the first book. They are both burdened, she with her gift, he because he feels survivor guilt after heavy losses during the battle, as well as knowing Bryce emptied the family’s coffers to pay for his release.

There are snippets from the Chronicles of Lugh at the beginning of some of the chapters, giving an insight into the history of the relic. The power of the fragments cannot be passed on until the person who holds it is dead. The English villain, Sir Ralph Evers, possess two of the tablets and will stop at nothing to acquire the remaining two.

I’m enjoying the well defined main characters in this series (love Thunder) and the way their relationship plays out. And if, like me, you like your romance with an edge, the historical/mystical element would more than likely appeal.

Innes Munro has the ability to “read” a person’s past simply by touching them, but her gift comes with a heavy price: her freedom. Forced to stay at desolate Castle Girnigoe, Innes never expects to be drawn to the wounded warrior who haunts its dark passages and challenges her at every turn. 

Conall Sinclair, the earl of Caithness, carries the scars of battles with the English and the lash marks of their dungeons, but the wounds that fester within give him even greater pain. Isolating himself from his clan and the rest of the world in a tower perched on the wild Scottish coast, Conall is reluctant to let the spirited Innes close to him, however neither can deny the growing passion that ignites with every look, every touch. 

But can Conall ever love a woman who can read his darkest secrets and feel the pain he hides…and can love really tame all fears? As dangerous forces close in, Conall and Innes must take the ultimate leap of faith and forge a bond of trust that will save them both…or lose each other forever.