This is the
first book in Lamb’s Clan Mackenzie series. Set in 1760, initially in London
and then in Scotland, it’s the story of Lady Suisan Harper who has come from her home in Scotland to
steal from one Myles Cunningham the patterns for her clan’s tartans he hides in
his basement.
Early on, it is made clear Myles is
innocent of any thievery and it’s her uncle, Robert, who is the culprit. The
possession of the tartan patterns is a crime under English law and Robert wants
to frame Myles and see him hung. Suisan, dyes her red hair black to work undercover
in Myles London home as a maid. Then she willingly becomes his mistress, so I
guess it was a good thing he was not the culprit she initially believed him to
be. But only we, the readers, know that, so she’s sleeping with the enemy.
The idea of an undercover maid, while
not new, was intriguing, but I kept wondering why Myles didn’t notice his
“maid” had the speech and manners of a lady, which she must have had. Her
attitude was anything but subservient. And then there was Myles… sleeping with
the help with no thought of making bastards or how to take care of the woman
whose innocence he had knowingly taken. How heroic is that? When Suisan’s own
maid tells her “it was time you became a woman”, I nearly gagged. No lady’s maid
would express such a thought in the 18th century, knowing the
consequences for her mistress. But, ah well…
Lamb does a good job with the
historical detail and has obviously done her homework on weaving and cloth dyes
of the period. Kudos to her for that.
The heroine’s character seemed to
waiver between a strong, determined woman who refused to become Myles’ “whore”
(her word) and then gladly saunters off to his bed, uncaring for the
consequences. My, what a change, all in the space of a few days! And, once in
Scotland, everything (and I do mean everything) made her think of Myles who she’d
up and left in London.
But from then on it was an exciting
story. For those who love Lamb’s stories, this first is a must.
Buy on Amazon
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| New Cover |
The Clan Mackenzie series:
Threads of Destiny
Highland Rogue
Betrayed
Beguiled
True Heart
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