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One Man’s Love – Karen Ranney
The Highland Lords
Book One
AVON,
April 2001
ISBN-13: 978-0380813001
ISBN-10: 0380813009
Reviewed by Laurel
May 2004
Alex Landers has spent his summers in Scotland known has Ian MacRae. When he sees his mother get brutally murdered and raped. He shuns his Scottish Heritage, blaming the rivalries of the Scots for her murder. He joins the English Army excelling through the ranks becoming a Colonel. He became know has the Butcher of Inverness during the Scottish uprising and defeat for his merciless, a tactful ways of dealing with traitors to The British Law. When he assigned to his family home Gilmour in Scotland he is not thrilled. For he has not stepped foot on the land, not wanting to visit the past. Major Sedgewick who has a grudge against him mars his arrival, but further more believes “the long arm of the English should be felt by everyone, no matter what the means.” Coming into camp Alex is prompted to imprison an old man for playing his Bag Pipes, a punishment worthy of hanging for they had been outlawed during the uprising. In exchange for letting him go, his childhood sweetheart Leitis MacRae offers to go in his place, and become the hostage of The Butcher, not realizing that The Butcher and Ian MacRae are one in the same.
Leitis MacRae has seen the horrible ravishes of the war. Watched most of her clansmen be killed or not return from Culloden. Struggling to just survive and ensure a belly full of food at least once a day. She is grief stricken when Major Sedgewick burns down her home, losing valuable keepsakes of her family and friends. She makes a deal with The Butcher to become his hostage in exchange for letting her last remaining relative go free. She is feisty, determined, and at her wits end. But sometimes the best thought out plans can be a person’s downfall. Especially since the very person she is trying to save from hanging boldly picks up his bagpipes and starts piping in the glen the moment he is set free.
Leitis is not a very agreeable hostage, knowing the castle Gilmour inside and out, she manages to escape her confines, ending up in the caves below the castle that her and Ian MacRae played has children. The Butcher upon discovering that she has escaped starts looking for her and comes upon her in the caves. He is starting to have those feelings about her that he had when he was younger and is rather lenient with her wish surprises her. During conversation it is revealed that is was the English that murdered the former Countess not a rival Scottish Clan, which sets up great conflict inside of The Butcher. He devises a plan with the help of his aide and confidant. Give Leitis lienacy in her confines knowing she will go back to the caves.
At the caves he appears to her in yet another guise and name as The Raven. Under this guise he reveals to her that he is Ian MacRae and offers to help smuggle the remaining clan members out of Gilmour into safety. Through different acts of kindness, Leitis starts to put two and two together and realizes The Butcher and The Raven are one and the same. At first she was mad, and disillusioned for she gave her heart and soul to The Raven in the caves before she came upon this conclusion. Still she helps him speed plans along when Major Sedgewick discovers what The Butcher has been up to. In a daring escape the remaining clan members are whisked away out of Scotland and headed for The New Scotland (Nova Scotia).
This book was great in historical details, and even made mention of how one of my provinces up here in Canada came to be. However there were too many names for the main character, Alex/Ian/The Butcher/The Raven for me to keep track of at times. There was no real clear plot to this book, rather it changed a few times and I was left shaking my head and rereading a chapter here or there just to make sure I did not miss anything. I found myself frustrated with both the hero and heroine for their beliefs and ideas. I was wishing out loud that Leitis would put two and two together and actually sighed a huge relief out loud when she did. If there was a love story in this book I missed it. I looked at this book more of the trails and tribulations that Scots faced after the Battle of Culloden. The hardships were tremendous and the use of historical information was aptly placed if slightly altered to fit this story.
I will continue to read this series, for the history content alone is enough to attract me to her writing. I’ve always been partial to books set around this time. I usually have a love story to tidy the book up. Instead I got two people just learning to survive with the times and coming together out of need and no men in kilts for they were outlawed around this time to.
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