THIS SCOT OF MINE – Sophie Jordan
The Rogue Files – Book 4
Avon
ISBN-10: 0-06-246366-7
ISBN-13: 978-0-06-246366-1
ISBN-13: 978-0-06-246367-8 (Digital)
ASIN: B07C6824SG
March 2019
Historical Romance

Lady Clara Autenberry is on her way to her brother Marcus's Kilmarkie House in the Black Isle, Scotland. (Marcus was the hero featured in the third volume of  The Rogue Files  THE DUKE BUYS A BRIDE.) Clara's maid Marian travels with her even though Marian knows Clara will never return to London or be accepted by the ton. Her vile fiancée, the Earl of Roland, ended their engagement and exposed her disgrace. Clara knows she must leave London because she doesn't want her shame to play out against her family, and this way, she will be free of the abhorrent Roland. The weather is very cold, so they stop to get warm at an inn along the way and enter the dining room. There she and Marian witness a brawl between a very handsome Scotsman called MacLarin and a man he suspected stole his prize bull.

Laird Hunt MacLarin is captivated by the English woman, but living under a curse means he cannot act on his gut reactions even if he ever sees her again. The curse claims a MacLarin husband will die before they see their first child draw breath. Hunt's father, grandfather, and great-grandfather have all suffered from this curse. Yet when Marcus, who his sister is pregnant, asks Hunt to marry Clara, telling him of her condition. Hunt knows he will be able to make love to her until the child is born. Afterward he will abstain from sex. Once they are married, he discovers Clara still a virgin, and he might have impregnated her, which means he will die.

At MacLarin Keep Clara finds herself unwelcome by Hunt's grandmother. She thinks of the curse as nonsense, at least until strange accidents start happening to Hunt. While she is angry with him and he with her, they both want each other and need to find a way to keep him alive, which means separation. THIS SCOT OF MINE is full of physical attraction, angst, and longing until Hunt realizes if he is going to die anyway, he might as well enjoy the time he has with Clara. The question remains: can the curse be overcome or is their marriage doomed? Marian is a stalwart friend and mentor to Clara throughout the story, and it looks like the next volume might involve her.

Robin Lee