Wednesday, September 13, 2017

Bookish Thoughts: Sadie’s Highlander by Maeve Greyson

"Above all else, I charge ye with the task of keepin' yer mother safe." ~ Opening of Sadie's Highlander


Sadie’s Highlander by Maeve Greyson
Loveswept, 2017
Romance (Paranormal); 253 pgs
Source: From the publisher via NetGalley for an honest review.

Maeve Greyson’s Sadie’s Highlander is the first in a new series featuring the four MacDara brothers who are tasked with guarding the sacred Heartstone. In order to keep it safe, they were sent by the goddesses to 21st Century North Carolina. Fast forward 15 years, and the MacDara family own and run the Highland Life and Legends theme park and are deeply involved in the local community. The eldest brother, Alec MacDara, is very reluctant to open the theme park to a movie production company, especially one with a bad reputation. The Heartstone has other ideas though, and it probably has something to do with the adopted sister of the production company’s owner. Sadie Williams is acting as her sister’s assistant and taking a lot of abuse. She puts up with it only because she needs her sister’s connections. Sadie desperately wants to be a screenwriter.

Sadie isn’t the most assertive woman. She is used to blending into the background as her sister stands in the spotlight. She clearly doesn’t like conflict and doesn’t have much confidence in herself. Alec, however, is drawn to her even before he meets her just from the several interactions he has had with her via e-mail. No time is wasted in getting Sadie and Alec together. There is some reluctance on her part because she doesn’t quite trust that a hunk like him would be interested in an overweight assistant like her. But, boy, they can’t keep their hands off each other!

I am not a huge fan of insta-love, admittedly, and things definitely moved a bit too fast for my taste in Sadie’s Highlander. Still, I raced through this romance quite quickly and enjoyed getting to know Sadie and Alec. Alec is definitely a take charge kind of guy, and he brings out the best in Sadie. She feels comfortable and safe around him—enough to be herself.

One of the things I especially liked about this novel was that Sadie’s insecurity was not swept under the rug. It was a real issue in this novel as Alec—with the help of his family (or rather, his family with his help)—knows pretty words alone won’t convince her she is better than she thinks she is. I mean, sure, everything falls into place very neatly and in a way that is a bit beyond belief—but then, this is a Highlander romance novel. There’s already time travel and magic.

Sadie's Highlander was a fun and light read. It was a good escape from the summer heat, although it certainly brought it's own kind of heat with it.


You can learn more about Maeve Greyson and her books on the author's website She can also be found on Facebook and Twitter.


 © 2017, Wendy Runyon of Musings of a Bookish Kitty. All Rights Reserved. If you're reading this on a site other than Musings of a Bookish Kitty or Wendy's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

10 comments:

  1. I don't mind insta-love sometimes if it has a good outcome in the end. It sounds like this one does, Alec and Sadie sound great!

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    1. Jenea - I can look past it too if the book has a lot of other things going for it. I did enjoy this one.

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  2. I have no problem with insta-love. I don't expect my fiction to be realistic and think that is why a lot of things and tropes don't tend to annoy me in books. Light and fun are the way I like my books, so I'll have to check this one out.

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    1. Sam - It's one of the tropes that takes me longer to buy into, unfortunately, but I can get past it somewhat if I like the characters enough and I'm involved in the story. This one was a lot of fun to read. I hope you like it if you do read it!

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  3. This actually sounds like a lot of fun. I am not usually a fan of insta-love either. Insta-lust I can handle. The theme park sounds really interesting. Great review!

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    1. Carole - Thank you! It is fun! And I'm looking forward to following the series. I have read and enjoyed other books by Maeve Greyson as well.

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  4. I like that she isn't assertive and that it's not glossed over. So often in historical romances the so called "Wallflower" ends up a social success without any issues. I haven't read many Scottish romances but this one sounds really appealing. I don't care for insta-love but if it's more insta-connection than insta-I'd happily take a bullet for you than I'm okay.

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    1. Katherine - I liked that about Sadie's character as well. It's not something you always see dealt with in romance. I think in her case it was more insta-connection whereas in his it was insta-I'd happily take a bullet for you. Love those expressions by the way! :-)

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  5. Sometimes I like highlander romance, but I'm not a fan of insta-love. It does sound like a good one though.

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    1. Naida - Yes, sometimes these types of book hit just the right spot. I think the reason I'm not a big fan of insta-love is that my favorite part of the romance novel is the falling in love part. If it happens to fast, it kind of takes that part away from me. If that makes sense. I did enjoy this one though.

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