Deception of a Highlander

Madeline Martin

Jul 2015 · Diversion Books

About this ebook

In this “tightly-plotted” Scottish romance of ardor and adventure, a desperate woman finds herself losing her heart to the very man she must betray (Publishers Weekly).
 
Young, beautiful Mariel Brandon never wanted to be a woman of intrigue. But when she and her young brother became indebted to Aaron, a fiendishly brilliant Englishman, he trained her to become a master spy and seductress—to be used however and whenever he wished.
 
Mariel’s latest mission is to gain the confidence of Scotsman Kieran MacDonald, whose powerful clan holds a heavily fortified castle on the Isle of Skye. Mariel is to convince Kieran to take her there. If she cannot do this, she is to kill him. And if does not succeed in that, Aaron will most certainly kill her brother.
 
What Mariel doesn’t count on is craving Kieran MacDonald almost immediately upon meeting him. Now she must keep her deadly secret from him as she devises a plan to save her brother, get her out from under Aaron’s cruel dominion, and keep her in Kieran’s strong arms forever.

Ratings and reviews

Mariel was forced to work for Aaron once she lost her parents to the plague. She tried to get out of the life that she hated but couldn't because Aaron kept her brother Jack hostage. Just when she though all hope was lost Aaron asks her to do one last task, promising to set both brother and sister free after it's done. Unfortunately Mariel will be forced to do the one thing that she has never had the stomach to do, kill someone. She hopes to get the information required from the Scottish Barbarian, so that she is not forced to murder him. Kieran MacDonnald is the laird of Skye, and he's extremely suspicious of beautiful English women. There is no denying that he is drawn to the mysterious Mariel, but he is equally sure that he is never going to act on what seems to be a mutual attraction. He's convinced that she will not survive the hard life at Skye and eventually will return to England. Instead he is surprised at how resilient she prove and how she wins over all his people. Just as he goes and falls in love with her, she decides that she needs to murder him. There are many moments in the book where human vulnerabilities are beautifully depicted. The moment when she realizes that she would need to sacrifice the man she loved, so that another child should not suffer like Jack has, was great. I particularly loved the way the author handled the scene where she is finally reunited with her brother, only to be rejected by him. Extremely well handled.

I love it. Strong heroine. Definitely took me there with them. Step by step. Definitely a page turner and we'll worth the read. Looking forward to the additional portions of the series.

Loved it. Wonderful book!