Highland Outlaw

Monica McCarty's Highlander novels keep me up at night reading. Wish there really were men like that! I've learned a lot about Scotland as a country to boot. Pluses all around.

Well written with strong characters and good secondary characters, with an interesting story, the same which can be said for the first book in this Trilogy, Highland Warrior. Although I thoroughly enjoyed Highland Warrior, I liked Highland Outlaw and thought it was a better read than the first book, which I found too redundant with characters inner dialog, a common error in many books. Patrick and Elizabeth were great characters, and you couldn't help but feel for them both, especially Patrick, who had a lot to overcome in his life. The skill in which the authors portrays the conflicts between clans gives one a deeper understanding of how it is endless warfare and brutality over hundreds and hundreds of years for the Scots, until someone has the integrity and strength to go beyond his ego.

Patrick MacGregor and his clan are wanted by the king and they are in constant danger of being killed or arrested. They have no permanent home and must find a way to get the land back that they believe was stolen from them. The insecure, stuttering heroine Lizzie unknowingly becomes a pawn in their plan for revenge. Little does this hero realize that she will be his queen and not his pawn. However none of the clans would support the two of them as a true couple. These two must overcome struggles, life-threatening encounters, and familial ties pulling them in opposite directions in order to be together. I enjoyed reading this book from start to finish. In the very beginning, when I realized the storyline, I thought oh no, I know exactly how this will play out from beginning to end. But I was pleasantly surprised that it was much better than I thought, and not completely predictable. The writing was good (fluid, not disjointed and doesn't ramble on with long, boring thoughts) and I liked both the hero and the heroine. The characters were well developed.

Once again, Monica McCarty delivers a great book! I really love that McCarty doesn't make the characters entirely "perfect" like in other romance novels. Not everyone can be perfectly chiseled, poised, cool, calm and collected all the time. Sometimes people stutter. Sometimes we fall down. It is these character "flaws" that allowed me to really relate to the heroine, Lizzie. I very much enjoyed this well written novel. It can be read as a standalone work, but fans of McCarty will recognize many of the characters, feuds and locations found in Highland Outlaw. This book is definitely worth the money and the time if you are in the mood for a well-written and well-researched Scottish historical romance.

I loved this story of Patrick MacGregor and Elizabeth Campbell. Great adventure and intrigue, plus an emotionally charged romance. The dilemma these two faced was not small by any means, as both are from a clan of sworn enemies. Whew!! Campbell's and MacGregor's are sworn enemies due to a situation that happened long ago - the clan supported the wrong King during a time of royal challenge. (sorry, can't remember the names of the men fighting to be king.) When the new king took the thrown, he did not forget how the MacGregors supported his rival and thus made them suffer. The MacGregor's were eventually wrongfully accused of great crimes and then forced off of their land to become outlaws hunted like wild animals. For them their biggest sins are those required to survive. However, over time the animosity between these two clans bred horrible behavior on both sides including rape, wrongful accusations, and betrayal resulting in more death. Neither clan is without their dark sins and black hearts, but among these clans are men and woman seeking justice and peace. The MacGregor's want their land back so they can return peacefully. Patrick, the Laird of clan MacGregor, poses as Patrick Murray in the attempt to woo Elizabeth Campbell into marriage as her dowry now includes the MacGregor land. This is supposed to be a peaceful solution, although it means deceiving Elizabeth. Overall, a small sacrifice for the sake of peace. His seduction of his hopefully bride wasn't faked as he very much cared for Lizzy (and what a sweet seduction it was!) However, with rogue members from both clans stirring up more problems - the situation between Patrick and Elizabeth escalates to heart-pounding action and tear jerker moments!! Wow, a really good Highlander action romance. The timeline of this story takes place much along the same timeline of the first book in this series, so it was interesting to see some of the events happen from a different view. It clearly expands on what we learned in book one, so far that reason alone I would suggest reading these books in order. However, it could very much be read as a stand-alone.