The Bride

Summary:

By edict of the king, the mighty Scottish laird Alec Kincaid must take an English bride. His choice was Jamie, youngest daughter of Baron Jamison...a feisty, violet-eyed beauty. Alec ached to touch her, to tame her, to possess her...forever. But Jamie vowed never to surrender to this highland barbarian.

He was everything her heart warned against—an arrogant scoundrel whose rough good looks spoke of savage pleasures. And thought Kincaid's scorching kisses fired her blood, she brazenly resisted him...until one rapturous moment quelled their clash of wills, and something far more dangerous than desire threatened to conquer her senses...

Staff Review:

The Bride by Julie Garwood is an historical romance set in England and Scotland in 1100. Alec Kincaid has been instructed by his king to marry an English bride, one of the daughters of Barron Jamison. Jamie has been ordered to marry a Scot by her King. Both rulers believe that this marriage alliance will help avert war between the two nations. Alec is laird of the Kincaid clan. He has a horrid reputation. Some rumors say he killed his first wife. Jamie is the fifth child of Barron Jamison and is the one that holds the family together. Alec and Jamie find themselves married and traveling to Kincaid land in the Highlands where they will face a group of Highlanders contemptuous of the English, a killer who will not abide Alec’s happiness in even an arranged marriage and the relationship and marriage that will either make or break them. This was the first romance I read where I laughed out loud. Alec and Jamie’s banter, attraction and eventual fall into love are funny, touching and realistic. The steam level is low. But the readability is blazing! This is the first book by Julie Garwood that I read and I enjoyed it so much that it has become a comfort read that I’ve read again and again since the late 1980’s. Don’t miss it. 

-- by Beret B.