Book Review: Kilts and Kisses by Victoria Roberts

Author: Victoria Roberts
Title: Kilts and Kisses (Kilts and Kisses #1)
Genre: Historical Romance and Short Story
Pages: ebook
Published: August 2015
I Got It: My shelf (Amazon freebie)

Since the deaths of her parents, Ceana Gunn has lived in the shadow of her uncle and his family. She wants nothing more than to see her clan the way it was when her father was still laird. But her uncle has other ideas. Ceana soon discovers that the only refuge to be found is in the last place she expects—the arms of her enemy. 

Luthais MacKay wants to be left alone. His only interest is training his prized hawks. He certainly doesn’t have time to listen to the petty squabbling of his clan when his father travels to Edinburgh and leaves him in charge. But when Luthais discovers a mysterious woman on his lands, he’s determined to unravel her secrets…one layer at a time.




I've enjoyed some of the author's other works so when this popped up as a freebie I could not resist. 

This was a short novella that follows Ceana and Luthais. Ceana is an orphan living with her uncle and his family. The uncle is suspicious. The aunt is an enabler. The cousin is a snot. Luthais is being forced to find a wife since he is next in line to be the Laird of the MacKay line. 

Things happen and Ceana and Luthais fall in love but there are innocent misunderstandings that happen. They were a cute couple and I'm glad they didn't let the misunderstandings really pull them apart for long. They communicated and it was resolved. Yayy! A couple that talks through the issues. That is a rare gem. They will last I know it!

I want a HEA for the snotty cousin, because I feel like in the end she redeemed herself. Maybe she'll get with Luthais' friend. That would be cute. She needs a guy like that to keep her in line. 

The big twist/reveal bothered me. I had my guess that it would happen, but I really feel it is overplayed and an easy way out. 

This was a fun, short read. Don't expect a huge crazy story. Just a love story with some betrayal and redemption. I do want to read the next one. I'm not sure who it is about, but I'm still curious. I'll give this....mmmmmmm 4 stars. 

Book Review: X Marks the Scot by Victoria Roberts

Author: Victoria Roberts
Titles: X Marks the Scot (Bad Boys of the Highlands #2)
Genre: Historical Romance & Action
Pages: 352
First Published: Janurary 2013
Where I Got It: On my shelf (B&N)

He was a Highland rogue—
wicked with a bow and just as wicked with the ladies.

Declan MacGregor hadn’t a care in the world beyond finding a soft bed and willing woman…until he had to escort Lady Liadain Campbell to the English court. The woman needles him at every turn, but he can’t just abandon her to that vipers’ nest without protection.

She never asked for a bodyguard…

Liadain wasn’t thrilled to be left in the care of her clan’s arch-rival. It was as if the man never had a lady tell him no before! And yet as whispers of treason swirl through the court and the threat of danger grows ever sharper, her bitter enemy soon becomes the only one she can trust…

Been a LOOOONG time since I read book 1. Like four years? I think I had just started really getting into blogging then. Not sure why I pushed this series to the back-burner for so long...but I say this book on sale at B&N and I had a gift card, so eh I went ahead and got it.

Lucky for me this does a-okay as a standalone, because I scarcely remember the first book and Ciaran (Declan's eldest bro) and Rosalie and this book touches base on what you need to know to move the story forward.

Declan you rogue! He is good looking Scot who loves wenches, drinking, and shooting his bow. Liadain is a kind-hearted woman who loves helping those who are ill. They come from two clans who hate each other. However, Liadain had assisted with saving his kin against her evil brother. Now that her brother is dead is needs a bodyguard while she is a ward of the King. Through some politics and twists and turns, they are forced to marry. 

They share lust and a hint of respect, but it took a while for the love to come. It was realistic, but it still frustrated me how much of a jerk-face Declan was!! Liadain did NOT deserve his a-hole attitude and disrespect! I wanted to kick him in the face! BLEURGH.

The side drama was decent and enjoyable, but I wish there had been a bit more build-up to it. Maybe a hair more of the story being told in the baddies' POV. I didn't feel worried about how the drama would be fixed, so the side-plot was a bummer ultimately.

However, the love story was okay...a few lulls tho. 

I want to read more about James and I hope he gets a POV someday (maybe a short story??;-D). The next book is not about him....which is a bummer. :/ Sighs oh well.

Overall, this was fun and it was nice to see Declan get his POV...even tho he was a jerk-face! I liked Liadain quite a bit. I'm glad the love took a while for them. There were some lulls and the side drama was decent, but I wanted more out of it. I do enjoy this author quite a bit and I can't wait to read whats next. Out of five stars, I stamp this with 3 stars. 

Book Review: Temptation in a Kilt

Author: Victoria Roberts

Title: Temptation in a Kilt (Bad Boys of the Highlands #1)
Genre: Historical Romance, Adventure
Pages: 352

First Published: September 4th, 2012
Where I Got It: my shelf (won it)

"She's On Her Way to Safety

It's a sign of Lady Rosalia Armstrong's desperation that she's seeking refuge in a place as rugged and challenging as the Scottish Highlands. She doesn't care about hardship and discomfort, if only she can become master of her own life. Laird Ciaran MacGregor, however, is completely beyond her control...

He Redefines Dangerous...

Ciaran MacGregor knows it's perilous to get embroiled with a fiery Lowland lass, especially one as headstrong as Rosalia. Having made a rash promise to escort her all the way to Glengarry, now he's stuck with her, even though she challenges his legendary prowess at every opportunity. When temptation reaches its peak, he'll be ready to show her how he really is...on and off the battlefield."

Took me an eon to read, but I am finally done. Huzzah! There were a lot of reasons why I had a hard time finishing this. Life got in the way, finals, and the middle of the book felt like stagnant water. I hate to say the middle was boring....but it was....well....boring. However, the beginning and end were stuff-filled with action and love and it was hooten good time. ^.^

The cast of characters were fun and I liked all of them (even the evil Campbells). I really loved how Rosalia wasn't a stick of lass and was not at all perfect. As you all know I can't help myself when a story has an imperfect hero or herione. Now Ciaran was the opposite of Rosalia...he is perfect. So perfect I wanted to bang my head off the wall. Not only is he "sexy as Hell", but he's a good guy and a perfect gentlemen. Yes, he did host a mistress for a while, but the moment Rosalia appeared he bid a fond goodbye to the hussy. However, he expected nothing from Rosalia. He was annoyingly perfect. I want my Highlander lairds possessive and dominating. Oh well. I really liked his brothers and James. I hope James gets his own book!

Victoria Roberts did a wonderful job with her first novel and I'm looking forward to her others. The way described everything was great. I'm very visual and I could see everything and I FELT like I was there. I also adored how well she used the Scottish dialect in the dialogue. Made everything just better. It wasn't overly used or cheesy, she really captured 17th century Scotland. Kuddos!

In the end, the middle was a drag and Ciaran was annoyingly perfect. Everything else was fantastic and it didn't seem like Victoria Robert's debut novel. Again....kuddos. I will probably check out her future books. Hopefully she give James some love and gives him his own book. Out of five stars I stamp this with 3 stars. It's more like 3.4, but I rounded. Sorry for the short review.

Favorite Character(s): James (awwwwww), Declan (though a horrid rogue, I liked him), Rosalia (a strong woman with real flaws), Asling (bahahaha, she was great), and Aiden (poor man married to the Iron Woman, aka Asling).

Not-so Favorite Character(s): Ciaran (mmm), Rosalia's mom (bitch), The English Beast, and The eviiiiiiiil Campbells (just eviiiiiiil)

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<3CaroleRae

Who, What, Where?

This meme was created by Melissa over at My World in Words and Pages. This meme is a way to share where you are, who you are with, and what is going on in your book. Make sure to not give away any major spoilers. 

Happy Wednesday everyone! How is everyone doing? I'm doing extremely peachy. ^.^ Yesterday, at first, was bound to be a hopeless loss and I seemed destined to be bored and lonely, however a special friend of mine decided he wanted to hang out, go shopping with me, and meet my parents. Just WOW. So the day that was at first destined to be boring and lame, turned into quite an adventure. 

Anyways, this week I'm still reading Temptation in a Kilt. 

I'm with Ciaran and Rosalia. In 16 century (I believe) Scotland. We just arrived to Ciaran's home after nearly being killed by the eviiiiiiil Campbells. Rosalia met nearly everyone from Ciaran's family. There is a little awkwardness, for I think Rosalia is falling for the man. Hahaha.