Good highlander novel. ( )

The Chieftain
By Margaret Mallory
Return of the Highlanders Book #4

This is the final book of the short series.
Connor became chief of the MacDonalds of Sleat when he came home after fighting in France for five years to find that his father and older brother had been killed in the Battle of Flodden and his evil uncle was running the clan into the ground by only looking out for himself. The clan voted in Connor as chieftain and ousted his uncle.

His uncle is now gathering large numbers of pirates and terrorizing the Isle of Sky and all the surrounding Isles. Not only is he at war with his uncle but a rival clan is threatening to take his land. Connor must find a strong clan to marry into so he can get help defending his lands.

Ilysa is a healer and a seer. Connor has always trusted her to take care of the castle and take on the duties that his future wife will take over once he is married. Nobody ever gives Ilysa a second glance because she dresses in frumpy clothing that are shapeless and drab. She covers her hair like a nun and keeps herself in the background. She is in love with Connor because she is too lowborn to marry him. Although her mother was a noblewoman, her father is unknown.

I absolutely adored Ilysa. I laughed a lot at her tactics. I really wanted her to somehow be some powerful chieftain’s daughter and I somehow guessed who her father really was. That was probably a bit of a spoiler but I think anyone could put two and two together.

I am sad that this is the end of this series but it really had nowhere else to go. I would recommend this series to anyone who likes Highlander romances.

www.paranormalromanceslut.com
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This is a new author for me, and starting with book four was a disadvantage to be sure. However, by the time I was done reading this story, I realized that the author actually did an outstanding job making sure the story stood on its own. She made sure that I wasn’t lost and even though the past characters kept popping in and out of this story, I felt she made sure her focus stayed on Connor and Ilysa.

As always, with each new author, comes new voice and it took me about half way through to get the hang of Ms. Mallory’s voice. Once I did, I relaxed and enjoyed the ride.

There are a few things to recommend this story and here are just a few from my observations.

I found the story solidly written, fast paced and the plot, albeit predictable, compelling and believable.

Ms. Mallory gave us a great Alpha hero who I found likable and heroic, while his heroine was sweet and innocent. Just a perfect counterpart to him.

What I also found much to my liking were the secondary characters that quickly grew on me [read, need to buy the other three books, like… now!].

I have no doubt that the fans of Margaret Mallory will love the end to this series, and the ones that never read her work, such as myself, will be making sure to visit their nearest book store to pick up the earlier books in this series. If you are in a mood for a light and entertaining story with men in kilts, this one will definitely fill the bill!

Melanie for b2b

*Book provided by the publisher through NetGalley. ( )

4 ½ Stars - Review to come ( )

A good historical romance with lots of fast paced exciting action. I was gripped by the angst in the relationship and while I felt the heroine was demeaned I also understood dilemma. Ilysa loves Connor and chooses to follow him to his new lands knowing as Chieftain he must marry for duty.
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