Kilgannon

Setting: Scottish Highlands, 1712
Sensuality: 7

Mary Lowell is enjoying the social whirl of a London season when Alex MacGannon, Earl of Kilgannon, walks into her aunt's ballroom. It's love at first sight but their courtship isn't an easy one; instead, it's fraught with misunderstandings, the intervention of another jealous suitor, and an attack on Mary's life. Despite her aunt's warnings about the danger and hardships of life in the Highlands, Mary is determined and marries her handsome Scotsman. She quickly learns that marriage to a Scottish laird involves complications that she's never considered, while Alex finds that having a beautiful, intelligent wife can sometimes make life difficult. And as if settling into marriage and sharing their life isn't challenging enough, the threat of betrayal and war swirls over Kilgannon, threatening their happiness and the lives of the clan.

The world of well-to-do Londoners and Highland clansmen comes alive in this memorable historical, immersing the reader in the sights and sounds of the early 1700s. The characters are well drawn, while the tightly woven plot keeps one turning the pages without pause. The sequel to this story, The Wild Rose of Kilgannon, is soon to follow, bringing us the further adventures of Mary and Alec. --Lois Faye Dyer

Givens's debut romanceAset in England and Scotland in the early 1700s, when tensions ran high during Queen Anne's reignAsubtly weaves a tale of personal and historical conflict. Mary Lowell, a sheltered young Englishwoman, is shocked by her strong feelings when she meets barbaric Scottish chieftain Alex MacGannon, Earl of Kilgannon, at a ball in London. After a rocky courtship, MacGannon whisks Mary back to his clan in the Scottish Highlands, where they face danger amid tumultuous rebellion. Alex displays both a sense of humor and unshakable integrity, and Mary's quiet strength is revealed through her first-person narration. The only serious flaw in this well-researched historical is that, in her effort to set up a sequel, Givens fails to resolve major conflicts, a tactic that may leave readers dissatisfied. (Oct.)
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