The Devil of Clan Sinclair

Clan Sinclair #1

by Karen Ranney

For Virginia Traylor, Countess of Barrett, marriage was merely the vehicle to buy her father a title. Widowhood, however, brings a host of problems. For her husband deliberately spent the money intended for Virginia and her in-laws, leaving them penniless—unless she produces an heir. Desperate and confused, Virginia embarks on a fateful journey that brings her to the doorstep of the only man she's ever loved...

He's known as The Devil, but Macrath Sinclair doesn't care. He moved to a tiny Scottish village in hopes of continuing his work as an inventor and starting a family of his own. He bought the house; he chose the woman. Unfortunately, Virginia didn't choose him. Macrath knows he should turn her away now, but she needs him, and he wants her more than ever. Whatever game Virginia's playing, Macrath intends to win—one wickedly seductive deed at a time...

Genres: Historical Romance, Romance, Historical, Scotland, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Regency

378 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published July 15, 2013

About the author

I’m a writer who’s been privileged to have attained the New York Times and USA Today Bestseller Lists.

Although I've primarily written historical romance, I've also written contemporary romantic suspense, a murder mystery, and I'm having a wonderful time writing about a vampire who is being challenged by her new state of being. (The Montgomery Chronicles: The Fertile Vampire and The Reluctant Goddess coming March 12, 2015.)

I believe in the power of the individual, the magnificence of the human spirit, and always looking for the positive in any situation. I write about people who have been challenged by life itself but who win in the end.

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Website: http://karenranney.com
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @Karen_Ranney

Reviews

[Blythe Smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ah, my favorite. A conflict that could have been resolved in five minutes if the hero and heroine would just have the conversation they refuse to have. It could go something like this:

Heroine: "I am trying to get pregnant with your child and pass him off as my dead husband's son and heir because otherwise my in-laws will be poverty stricken, and even though my husband was a real dick I like my in-laws. But I really love you."

Hero: "Conveniently, I am independently wealthy and can take care of everyone."

Heroine: "Great! I guess the book's over then."

[Sandi *~The Pirate Wench~* · Rating 3 out of 5]

Setting: 1869 Scotland

3 1/2 Stars for this reader.

When her husband dies without an heir,Virginia Traylor Countess of Barrett,is desperate to find a way to save the family. So following her mother-in-law's advice,she rushes to her childhood sweetheart. Macrath Sinclair has made a fortune as an inventor and had at one time built a house for Virginia, yet she
broke his heart and wed another man. Macrath has no idea what she has suffered in the marriage her father arranged for her nor why she has now come to him. But,he doesn't care, she is in his house and in his bed. Their mutual seduction brings them both joy but after several weeks,Virginia runs off and again leaves Macrath. But this time he is not so quick to forgive her! He and Virginia will have to learn that the power of love must be stronger than their pride,or all will be lost for them. As you fall into Virginia and Macrath's story,you will either love or hate these characters. The story provided enough back and forth in their relationship to tug at the heart strings and did keep me riveted,with it's carefully plotted story of passion and suspense but it also was filled with lots of angst which I'm not fond of in my romances be they historical or contemporary. So I was rather on the fence with these two hence my 3 1/2 star.
This is the first book in the "Wicked Widows" series by this author and I may try the next one with hopes of better characters and minus all that angst. Aside from that a good romance.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had mixed feelings about this book. Overall, I liked it. The first half was rather slow and a bit hard to stay interested in. The beginning would also have a chapter or two of the present time, then a chapter of flashback for the backstory, another chapter or two in the present, then flashback, etc. This went on for quite a while. I prefer my backstory mostly all at once - the constant back and forth was sometimes hard to follow. Things definitely picked up in the second half and I enjoyed it much more at that point.

Virginia was an American heiress, brought to London by her father to marry a man with a title. He didn't care what she wanted, she would basically go to the highest bidder. In the meantime, Virginia had met a Scottish man, a self-made millionaire, who understood her. They would meet at balls or other places where she could escape, and talk about politics, science, literature or anything that caught their fancy. They fell in love, but her father wouldn't even consider Macrath as a suitor. She was forced to marry the earl and forbidden to see or speak to Macrath.

Less than a year later, her husband was dead, and she discovered that all the money she had brought to the marriage had been used to purchase land that was then left to the cousin who inherited the title. Virginia and her mother- and sisters-in-law, were left with nothing unless Virginia had produced a son. Her mother-in-law, whom I DID NOT like at all, convinced her that she needed to quickly find a man who could get her pregnant with a child she could pass off as her husband's. Virginia did not like that idea at all, but could see no other option to keep them from becoming destitute. So she ran off to Scotland to try to seduce Macrath.

Macrath was stunned to see Virginia show up at Drumvagen. He had been unable to forget her after her marriage and had buried himself in his work. He was happy to have her there and hoped to make her want to stay. He was very willing to show her "how it's supposed to be between a man and a woman". After just a few days he's devastated to find out she has no intention of staying in Scotland, but returning to London. They part ways, and he heads off to Australia on business and she returns to London to take care of her family.

Unsurprisingly, she does end up pregnant and has a son, who the world assumes is her husband's. The baby is just a few months old when smallpox sweeps through London and Virginia becomes quite ill. Macrath returns to London about that time, and discovering the truth about the child, takes the baby back to Scotland while Virginia is ill, without telling her. She chases after him before she is fully recovered. When she arrives, he is still furious at her deception and refuses to allow her in the house or to see the baby. Over the next couple weeks she is stuck in a cottage on the estate and still unable to see the baby. By this point, Virginia has finally started to find a backbone and refuses to be kept away. I really enjoyed her determination and seeing what she does.

Over the next few weeks, Macrath begins to soften toward Virginia a little as he sees what a good mother she really is. Virginia also sees Macrath's happiness in being a father. But she still refuses to consider staying in Scotland, determined to keep up the deception and protect her family. It is getting harder for each of them, as their feelings for each other have only gotten stronger. The conflict could have been greatly reduced if she had just told him what the problem was.

Things were also complicated by her late husband's personal assistant, who was obsessed with Virginia. He was determined to have her for himself, and willing to do anything to get her. Over the course of the book he went from creepy to obsessed to dangerous. His appearance in Scotland added a layer of intensity that finally brought Macrath and Virginia together.

Virginia irritated me through most of the book because of her unwillingness to tell Macrath what was going on. She did have redeeming qualities. I liked her determination to take care of her son herself, no turn him over to nannies and we nurses. She was also kind to her in-laws, even though the mother-in-law was a piece of work. I didn't like that woman at all. Virginia was also pretty down-to-earth. She really didn't care about the benefits of the title. But until she became a mother, I found her to be rather a doormat.

Macrath I liked a lot. He made something of himself through his own hard work. He was true to himself, not trying to change to fit in with the aristocracy. I liked the way he treated Virginia like an intelligent human being when they had their discussions in the first part of the book. I completely understood his anger when he found out about the baby. I even understood his actions when Virginia came to Scotland, even though I felt he could have handled things a little better. I liked seeing him soften toward her, and realize that he still wanted her in his life. I thought his pursuit of her was pretty sweet.

[Lover of Romance · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have really enjoyed this author over the years, and even though I haven't read too many of her books, I was very delighted to get a chance to get a copy of this ARC through Avon and Edelweiss. I think out of all of books I have had the pleasure of reading from this author, this one would be at the top of my list. I would recommend it to anyone, it does have a bit of betrayal and distrust between the couple especially with how they began. However I found that from beginning to end I was entertained and there wasn't one moment of boredom. I could honestly conduct a hour or two long conversation about this book, but I wont take that long LOL

It begins with when they first fall in love, they start to slowly court, and their relationship is sweet and tender and innocent. Virginia is a American, and has come to England with her father to find a husband. Macrath has worked hard his whole life to get as accomplished as he is now. When Virginia's father demands that she marry a Count, she realizes that she will have to give up the man she loves. A year later Virginia has just recently become a widow, and according to her mother in law, she must get pregnant immediately. Knowing she has no other choice, she decides to go up to Scotland to find Macrath, and seduce him. Virginia's feelings for him coming washing back the moment she is back in his arms and then leaves him again. Macrath isn't one to be used, or to give his heart twice to the same woman. So he decided to leave for a while, and heads down to Australia for a year. When he returns he decides to visit Virginia on a impulse, but he finds that she is barely recovering from a deathly sickness, and finds out that he has a son, that she never told him about. So deciding to turn the table on her, and before Virginia knows it she is chasing after Macrath, only to find herself in a situation where she could lose herself in him, and doesn't know if she could have the strength to leave or stay with him forever.

The Devil of Clan Sinclair is quite a sensational story that swept me off my feet. I loved how their sweet romance turns into a vital love story where the focus is about the love that lasts. This couple goes through quite a bit of hurdles, and at first I didn't like Virginia, I had a hard time getting used to her character. She seemed to me to be the type that would be not willing to fight for who you love. She seems to be lacking some spine, she could have been a bit more bolder. However I had no issues with Macrath, he never gave up on Virginia no matter how much she hurt him. I loved his strength and perseverance. In the end though, I enjoyed seeing how the story plays out, and it ended up be a endearing story that won my heart over in the end!! A story I would recommend to anyone that enjoys a sensually filled romance that is bound to endear you.

[Tracy Emro · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG! No one and I mean no one writes angst and heart wrenching anguish better than Karen Ranney. Seriously, no one!

I loved this story. Macrath is the hero every woman secretly hopes to find. That's another thing Ms Ranney writes well - heroes who love from the depths of their souls with steadfast devotion. Sigh.....

Virginia was not my favorite heroine, but she redeemed herself in the end and I never doubted her love for Macrath. I didn't understand why she did the things she did and made the choices she made until the very end of the book - I wish I had known earlier. I wasted most if the book not liking her :)

I am really looking forward to Mairi and Ellice's story's. Hopefully they will be a little more lighthearted than the last few books - because if there is a draw back to Ms Ranney's writing it would be that it is emotionally exhausting to read.

[Kristina · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had a lot of issues with this book, and this review does contain spoilers.

First off, I don't normally harp on a title, but I can't for the life of me figure out why this book is titled as it is: The Devil of Clan Sinclair. I always try to read a historical book from the perspective of the time period, and in that respect, women had very little rights and men had dominance over the women and children in their lives. Yes, that sucks, I agree. Within the historical setting though, the only thing Macrath did to warrant the title of Devil was take his natural born son from his mother when he found out he had been born. Yes, I stress, that is awful, but really it is a moot point since he already had the title "Devil" before this incident took place. Why was he called the Devil of Clan Sinclair? I have no idea. He has no "clan," although he is trying to make on for himself, and he is a good man to the people in his employ, he loves Virginia and is honest and open with her and is willing to do anything for her (up to the point she decided to repay that by lying and manipulating him, but more on that later). So why is he known as a devil?



Then there is the whole issue of Virginia lying to and trying to manipulate the man she supposedly loves in order to create a bigger lie to present the entire population of London with: An heir which she won't tell the actual father about because she's going to play it off like the baby is her dead husband's so the titles and lands don't go to some unseen cousin.

Yep, this is going to be a relationship that can weather any turmoil. *Note sarcasm*

Why couldn't she just tell Macrath about her predicament? That her husband was a horrible man that left her with nothing? Had Macrath ever, ever indicated he was vengeful, or spiteful, or heartless? NO, he never did. In fact, he even welcomed her with open arms after she married someone instead of himself and that said husband died. He was willing to give her everything he couldn't in the beginning, but instead she lies to him and thinks manipulating him into knocking her up is the best course of action. Good thing her plan worked out with just one night together because I don't know what plan B was.

Lastly, this is a series which in and of itself I am not complaining about but these two thoughts come to mind:

1) The people that the other books are going to be about were just shadows in this book. They took up a maximum of 4-5 pages that I recall and were not all that strong on paper or in mind. Why should I be invested to read the upcoming books then? I am much more interested in some of the secondary characters we actually had time to develop emotions for. Where is Hannah's story?? Is she not worthy of a book since she is part of the staff? Remember Anna Bates? I've cried and laughed with her character on Downton Abbey a lot more than some of the other main characters. Readers are not adverse to these stories.



2) The Devil was not at all a bad guy. Is the Virgin going to be not so pure and the Witch just someone who likes chamomile tea? I don't know, but I am a tad bit worried...

I didn't completely hate the book though. It was okay (aka Two Stars). It was a quick and easy read, but I can't say I'd go out of my way to recommend it to people.

[Aly is so frigging bored · Rating 3 out of 5]

Buddy read with Layla

[Lady Wesley · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

This book is the first in a planned series called “Clan Sinclair,” but you won’t find kilts or bagpipes or wee bonnie lasses in this mid-Victorian setting. Macrath Sinclair is a Scotsman who has worked his way up from newsboy to prosperous owner of a printing business in Edinburgh. Macrath also is an inventor, and he’s trying to perfect an ice machine; this aspect of the story is based upon the work of James Harrison, a Scottish-born Australian who wanted to develop refrigeration for transporting beef from Australia to England.

When he accompanies his sister to London for the Season, he meets and falls in love with American heiress Virginia Anderson. Virginia has been brought to London by her high-handed father, who wants a British title in the family and who finds Macrath unsuitable for his daughter. Before she knows what is happening, Virginia is betrothed and quickly married to Lawrence Traylor, Earl of Barrett, and Macrath is back at his Scottish estate, Drumvagen.

Within six months of her marriage, Lawrence, who always had been sickly, dies, leaving Virginia to live with his mother, Enid, and his sisters, Eudora and Ellice. The title, and all of Virginia’s fortune, will go to Lawrence’s ungenerous cousin – unless Virginia produces an heir. Enid urges her to find some gentleman who will help her do so. And quickly. The only man upon whom Virginia can call is Macrath, so immediately after the funeral she and her maid hie off to Scotland.

Macrath is shocked when Virginia shows up on his doorstep, but he shows surprisingly little curiosity about her sudden visit. She is heartbroken to learn that Macrath had written her and tried to see her but been turned away by her (now deceased) father. Virginia confesses how she was forced into marrying by her father and what a miserable marriage she had. Virginia’s mother-in-law had told her that seduction would not be difficult. “All you need do is suggest your willingness and the male will do the rest.” And that’s pretty much what happens.

Macrath and Virginia are as much in love as ever. He asks her to stay with him, but she cannot even though she wants to. She feels a deep responsibility to her surviving family members, who will be penniless if her scheme fails. When she returns to London after only a couple of days, Macrath sets off for Australia, where he’s entered a competition to test refrigeration techniques for transporting beef. During the many months that he’s gone, Virginia gives birth to a son and the title appears to be secured.

During his successful voyage back to London, Macrath decides to set aside his wounded pride, so he sets out immediately to see Virginia and ask her to marry him. After barging his way into Virginia’s house, Macrath discovers from the servants that she is ill with smallpox, but that “the child” is healthy. The child? Suddenly Macrath knows everything, and he is furious. He immediately packs up the baby, the wet nurse, and the nursemaid and takes them all to Scotland.

Although not yet fully recovered, Virginia follows Macrath to Drumvagen, but he won’t even let her in the house. What follows is a war of wits and will between Virginia and Macrath over this tiny beloved baby. It is an complex, angst-ridden story, given that these two people both love and hate one another, and their route to an HEA is neither smooth nor predictable.

I adore Karen Ranney’s writing, but I have two problems with this book. In the first third of the book, the time repeatedly shifts between the past and present. I found this distracting and at times confusing. Second, the solution to most of Macrath’s and Virginia’s problems seems obvious if the pair would only communicate honestly with one another. Of course, then this novel would be only a short story, so I suggest that the reader just roll with it and enjoy the interplay between this luscious hero and his devoted heroine.

[Alina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Also reviewed for Alina Melinda's Reads.
I have an odd déjà vu feeling with this one. The plot of this book seems oddly familiar to me. It might be because I may have :

a ) read another book with similar story line
b ) I started reading this book a while back but got bored and gave up on it.

Now b) is unlikely to happen as I never drop a book , no matter how boring it is I force myself in reading it until I'm done. Also I came across this book on Amazon and simply purchased it out of curiosity- I didn't had it on my to-read list on GR.

Now to get to the point.
Don't you just love an unnecessary conflict that could have been resolved in five minutes ? All they had to do was to COMMUNICATE . Virginia is forced to marry a man she didn't loved, however, her husband was very ill and died shortly after. Now Virginia is desperate to find a way to save her family (and by "family" I mean her mother-in-law and the rest of the relatives of the defunct husband). During her short marriage she never stopped thinking about Macrath , a Scottish (rich) inventor who made all the needed preparations for them to start a happy life together.
To explain more detailed : Virginia and her husband were unable to conceive a child during their marriage, so without an official heir all of their wealth goes out the window (her husband's cousin inherited the title) , forcing Virginia to either work (so she can support herself and the rest of the women in the family) or marry a rich guy.
You can easily guess what Virginia did.
Of course she went to Scotland to find Macrath, her true love and sweetheart. Macrath never understood why Virginia got married to another guy and soon he will find out how miserable her marriage truly was. Virginia's father played both of them. Sure, now they try to get over their prides and they try to fix whatever can be fixed, their relationship goes back and forth because the lack of communication. And they are not being completely truthful either.
The characters of this story are overly dramatic, you either love them or you hate them.
I personally hate Virginia.
I understood how tragic it was for her , being forced to marry a man she didn't love and all that; but I never understood why the hell she tried to get pregnant with a child so she could pass him off as her husband's and inherit the wealth.
Yep, that is what our heroine did. She went to Scotland to seduce her childhood sweetheart , get pregnant and then leave Macrath . Which she did. Had Macrath' son. And left Macrtah all by himself while she returned home and made everyone believe that the boy is her late husbands.
Seriously now, I'm so pissed off on this book ! This girl has no backbone and please, please don't talk to me about true love !!I can't wrap my head around her way of thinking. Her husband was death. She was young and finally free to marry her sweetheart - who was RICH enough to support her and her family - but she ended up backstabbing him.
The only thing that I enjoyed in this book was Macrath's revenge over Virginia.

[Atunah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am never let down by Ranney.

In this one the hero and the heroine have to overcome quite some obstacles to be together. They meet and fall almost instantly in love, but her father a wealthy american, wants a title for his daughter and is not about to let her marry a Scot.

So they are apart with her married to someone else. Hero is an inventor of an ice machine and pines for her.

She then blows back into his life as a widow and then the even bigger problems between them start. She does something pretty despicable, but she does it for the family of her dead husband.
He also later does something pretty bad out of being hurt by her. So they both act against each other in pretty horrible ways, out of hurt.

Its how they find their way back to each other that is the meat of this story. Quite the flawed people in this one.

Only thing I didn't like was the somewhat abrupt ending. I would have liked to see it more "finished" for lack of a better word.

[Kay · Rating 1 out of 5]

Reading this romance novel was a chore, a grin and bear it kind of reading experience. There is not much to like about the hero or heroine. Macrath Sinclair, neither devil nor laird, isn't a bad guy, but his smarmy manner makes him distinctly unsympathetic. At best, he's a nonentity. The heroine, Virginia, is worse; her pretend innocence masks machinations that are ethically compromising. The servants, on the other hand, are quite likable and well-drawn characters. However, when a reader is enamoured of minor secondary characters, there is a problem here. The writing is awkward at worse and prosaic at best.

I received an ARE from Avon Books via Edelweiss in exchange for this honest review.

If you'd like to read the review in its entirety, you may follow this link:

http://missbatesreadsromance.com/2013...

[Sally Jask-eh · Rating 5 out of 5]

mostly loved, did not make sense sometimes, angsty. awesome scottish seaside locale

[May Mostly Romance · Rating 1 out of 5]

ด้วยเหตุผลบางอย่าง (ที่ตัวเราเองก็ไม่รู้ว่าคืออะไร) จู่ ๆ เราก็หยุดอ่านงานเขียนของคาเรน เรนนีย์ไปหลายปี ซึ่งก็แปลกนะคะ เพราะก่อนหน้านั้นเราอ่านงานของเธอได้ตลอด เรียกว่า วางขายก็ออก แล้วก็ชะงักไปซะอย่างนั้น

ทำให้พอได้เล่มนี้มาจากร้านหนังสือ พล็อตเรื่องแนวรักเก่าหวนคืน ซึ่งเป็นแนวที่เราชอบอยู่ ก็เลยเกิดอาการฮึดรีบหยิบมาอ่านทันใด แต่เรากลับพบว่า มีปัญหากับคาแร็คเตอร์ของนางเอกในเล่มนี้อย่างจริงจัง

เราเป็นคนที่มีศีลธรรมไม่เท่าเทียมกันค่ะ เราสามารถให้อภัยการกระทำของพระเอกได้เกือบทุกอย่างนะคะ ยิ่งคาแร็คเตอร์ของเขามืดมนเท่าไหร เจ้าเล่ห์ ใจร้าย เอาเปรียบมากเท่าไหร เรายิ่งคิดว่า เขาน่าสนใจ แต่เราไม่ได้เป็นเช่นนั้นกับนางเอก เราเคยอ่านเจอบทความว่า คนเรามักตัดสินเพศด้วยกันด้วยมาตรฐานที่สูงสุดเสมอ เราคิดว่า มันจริงค่ะ

เวอร์จิเนีย สาวน้อยอเมริกันซึ่งเดินทางมาอังกฤษเพื่อมองหาสามี และเธอก็คิดว่าได้พบกับเขาแล้ว แม็คคาธ ซินแคลร์ หนุ่มสก๊อตผู้สร้างเนื้อสร้างตัวจากมันสมอง (ที่คิดค้นเครื่องทำน้ำแข็งได้สำเร็จ) เป็นชายคนที่เธอรักอย่างสุดหัวใจ แต่บิดาของเธอมีความคิดที่แตกต่างออกไป และเวอร์จิเนียถูกบังคับให้แต่งงานกับขุนนางยศเอิร์ล เพียงเพื่อจะพบว่า ในอีกหนึ่งปีต่อมา สามีก็เสียชีวิต แถมแย่ไปกว่าเดิม เขาใ��ร้ายไม่ทิ้งสมบัติอะไรไว้ให้เธอ และญาติพี่น้องของตัวเองเลยสักนิดเดียว

ทำให้แม่สามีต้องวางแผนร้ายกาจ เวอร์จิเนียจะต้องตั้งท้องทายาทของบรรดาศักดิ์ ซึ่งหญิงสาวก็ยอมแพ้ตามแรงกดดันนั้น ซึ่งชายคนเดียวที่เธอคิดออกว่า อยากมีความสัมพันธ์ลึกซึ้งด้วยก็คือแม็คคาธ

แผนการสำเร็จ เวอร์จิเนียคลอดลูกชาย ที่กลายเป็นท่านเอิร์ลคนต่อไป แต่เมื่อแม็คคาธพบความจริงของแผนการทั้งหมด เรื่องก็วุ่นวายขึ้น

เราไม่ชอบนางเอก นี่เป็นการอ่านหนังสือที่อึดอัดมาก เรารังเกียจเธออย่างรุนแรง เริ่่มตั้งแต่ต้นเรื่อง พระเอกไม่ใช่คนสิ้นไร้ไม้ตอก เขาเป็นเศรษฐีมีเงิน เพียงแต่ไม่มีชาติตระกูล และเขาก็แสดงออกให้เห็นชัดเจนแล้วว่า รักเธอมากขนาดไหน ทั้งคู่เข้ากันได้แค่ไหน แต่เวอร์จิเนียก็ยังเลือกที่จะทำตัวเป็นผู้หญิงไร้ทางเลือก เธอยอมให้พ่อกดดัน และบีบบังคับให้แต่งงานกับชายคนที่เธอไม่ได้รัก

จากนั้นเมื่อเป็นหม้าย เวอร์จิเนียก็ยอมแพ้ต่อแรงกดดันของมารดาสามี เดินทางไปหาพระเอก เพื่อหลอกให้เขามีความสัมพันธ์ฉันท์ชู้สาวด้วย เพื่อให้ตัวเองตั้งท้อง เพื่อจะได้เอาเด็กมาหลอกว่าเป็นทายาทของสามีที่เสียชีวิตไป นั่นมันชั่วร้ายมาก ๆ ทั้งเลวร้ายต่อพระเอก ที่แม้จะโดนนางเอกทิ้งไปแต่งงานกับคนอื่น เขาก็ยังให้อภัย และหวังจะเริ่มต้นกันใหม่ แล้วก็เลวร้ายต่อทายาทที่แท้จริงของบรรดาศักดิ์นั่นอีก มันเป็นการโกง

ตลอดทั้งเรื่อง คนแต่งให้เหตุผลของการกระทำของเวอร์จิเนียสารพัด ว่าเธอถูกพ่อครอบงำ ถูกสังคมกดดัน ทำให้เธอทำในสิ่งที่เธอทำลงไป เราพยายามมองอย่างเห็นใจเธอนะคะ แต่เราทำไม่ได้ มันอาจจะไม่ถูกที่เอาตัวเองไปตัดสิน เพราะเราไม่เคยอยู่ในสถานการณ์เดียวกับเธอ แต่เราช่วยไม่ได้ค่ะ เราตัดสินเธอ และเธอสอบไม่ผ่าน เรายอมรับการกระทำของเธอไม่ได้ ไม่ว่าจะด้วยเหตุผลอะไรก็ตาม (เหมือนอย่างที่เราคงไม่มีวันชอบเรื่อง Prisoner of my desire ของโจฮันนา ลินด์เซย์)

มันเป็นการเริ่มต้นที่แย่นะคะ เพราะเราตั้งแง่กับนางเอก เราไม่ชอบเธอ เราเกลียดเธอด้วยซ้ำ แล้วก็สงสารพระเอก เพราะเขารักเธอจริง ๆ นั่นทำให้ไม่มีการไถ่บาป เพราะท้ายที่สุดพระเอกก็ต้องให้อภัย เขารักเธอมากขนาดนั้น

แต่สำหรับเราซึ่งไม่ได้รักเธอแม้แต่นิดเดียว เราให้อภัยเธอไม่ได้ค่ะ

ส่วนคนที่ไม่มีปัญหากับพล็อตแบบนี้ ในแง่การเขียน การเล่าเรื่องถือว่าลื่นไหลอ่านได้เลยนะคะ รีวิวอันนี้เป็นเรื่องค่านิยมส่วนตัวมาก ๆ ค่ะ เรารับเรื่องแบบนี้ไม่ได้จริง ๆ

คะแนนที่ 47

[Farrah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super sweet and lovely romance! The Devil of Clan Sinclair was a wonderful historical romance. It was sweet, steamy, and a fantastic read. Loved it!

Virginia was a good heroine. On one hand, I really liked that she was a strong character, in that she was so determined to take care of her family. And, for the most part, she was a likable heroine. But, sometimes, I just got so frustrated with her. For example, it was unfair of her that, when she knew Macrath had been in love with her, she went to him to get pregnant. Didn't she consider that it would be like pouring salt on a wound, since she was planning to leave him? And, also, how she expected Macrath to just give up his child. In the beginning, it was wrong of her to hide his son from him. That wasn't fair. Then, I don't understand how she expected Macrath to give his son up. She knew that he was the kind of honorable, loving man who would never abandon his child. And she loved him for that. So, why did she expect him to do the opposite of his nature? It was frustrating. But, though I did get annoyed with her, it wasn't enough to make me dislike her. I still thought she was a lovely heroine. I just wanted to shake some sense into her a few times.

Macrath was perfect. I had absolutely no complaints about him. He was so sweet and wonderful and adorable. He literally had no flaws. He was amazing and I adored him.

The romance was sweet and steamy. Despite their first relationship having been torn apart by Virginia's forced marriage, they were still in love with each other. I thought it was so sweet that, after a year, they were still totally in love. And, there was a ton of chemistry between them. Made even more intense by their time apart. I thought they were a lovely couple.

The plot was fast paced and I was hooked the entire way through. I really enjoyed the story. It was so sweet. And the ending was wonderful. It definitely left a smile of my face when I finished the book.

The Devil of Clan Sinclair was a wonderful historical romance. I really enjoyed this book. It was sweet and lovely and just brilliant! Lovers of romance, this is a book you'll want to check out.

*I received a free copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a sucker for anything that has Clan in the title, I love those highlanders as they lord over the Scottish lands. This is an enjoyable story about betrayal, loss and renewed love.

Macrath Sinclair and Virginia were in love and as soon as she could convince her father, they were going to marry. Unfortunately her father was not going to let her marry a man from the highlands who is without a title. Instead her father marries her to an older man with health problems that took his anger out on those around him. He dies less than a year later and leaves his wife, mother and sister, penniless.

In order to survive, Virginia needs an heir and she knows just the man who could help her. She travels to Scotland and is welcome with some reservations by Macrath but he forgives her and they spend some wonderful nights together. Yet she still leaves him. He goes off to Australia with his invention, an ice machine that preserves food and returns a year later to find London in turmoil because of Small Pox.
When he hears Virginia is sick he goes to visit only to find out he has a son, without hesitation he whisks his son back to Scotland, and that is when the battle begins.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and as this is the first in the series, look forward to reading more. I had such feelings for Macrath, as he is first hurt when she marries without telling him why, then when she comes for help she does not tell him her problems and of course the worst one is when she withholds his son from him. He just pulls at your heartstrings.

I know Virginia had her issues, she did not want to be forced to marry and when she is free she does not go to Macrath with her heart, instead she deceives him. I know she did not have many choices but I wish she could have confided in him. I did like the chemistry between them and thought they fit well together. Both of them were stubborn and strong willed which is probably why it took them so long to forgive and find the happiness they deserve.

I will definitely be continuing the series and look forward to more.

Copy from publisher through Edelweiss for an honest review

[Janga · Rating 3 out of 5]

Did you ever read a book and know that you are just not the audience for it? That was my position with this book. I don’t share the passion many of my friends have for Scottish romances, I like strong heroines, I prefer understated drama to the spectacular, and I’m a tough sale for the impregnated-by-another-man plot. The Devil of Clan Sinclair is a well-written book, overflowing with high drama and passion and a truly creepy villain. I have no doubt that some readers will love it. I didn’t.

I struggled to suspend disbelief at a dozen points, including the convenient-for-the-plot death of Virginia’s father, the conviction that the child would be a boy, and Virginia’s two trips to Scotland. I can imagine some readers screaming about Virginia’s spinelessness for the first half of the book, but, given her nature, her upbringing, and the realities of women’s legal position in the 1860s, I could accept her lack of open defiance. But I hated that even within herself, she is passive until she becomes the mother bear.

For me, Macrath is the redeeming factor. I have a fondness for self-made heroes, and I loved his intelligence, his loyalty, and his stubborn love for Virginia. His reaction to his devil title is delightful, and his scenes with his son are definitely aww moments. He is a great hero. The best thing about Virginia is that she’s smart enough to fall for him.

So, my recommendation on this one is that if you love Scottish romances with lots of angst and drama, you may find this a rewarding read. If, like me, you prefer imagination’s tune to have a few more notes of reality, and you prefer subtlety to spectacle, this one probably won't be a book you want to rush to read.

See full review at The Romance Dish:
http://www.theromancedish.com/2013/07...

[Elis Madison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Virginia’s rich American daddy took her to England to buy a husband. She falls for Macrath Sinclair, but her daddy looks down his long rich nose at tradesmen—nothing but a title will do. And Virginia is not the kind of gal who fights for herself.



So she ends up marrying the sickly Earl of Barrett, who is not a happy guy.



He proceeds to deliberately blow all her money so that when he dies he will leave her and his mother and sisters penniless. He does some other not-so-nice things but I don’t want to spoil them for you. We never do find out why he’s such a jerk.

Anyhoo, Virginia, her m-i-l and s’s-i-l are all about to be out on the street, as a distant and not particularly kindly relation is next in line for the earldom. That is, unless Ginny managed to conceive before dear, dead hubby died. She didn’t, but that’s no obstacle. As soon as his corpse is in the ground, she hies herself to Scotland to rekindle an old flame for the purpose of getting herself a wee little earl. She knows it’s wrong, but she can’t help herself.

Natch, she and Mac (who is, by the way, an inventor who is filthy, stinking rich) are madly in love again. Which brings on a lot of pages where she reflects on “what can never be.”



And naturally, she doesn’t, like, tell Mac about her problems, so he could, like, solve them, or something. Which very nearly killed the story for me.

HOWEVER, Ranney has the good sense to toss in a creepy, rapey stalker, a dose of the pox (not that kind) and two abductions kept me from dwelling too much on the silly parts. So I’ll give this one 3.5.

[Rinou · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked the characters, they are logical, realistic, and engaging. I liked that the hidden truths are revealed quite quickly, without causing big misunderstanding. The rhythm was slow (as are all the books I read by KR) and pleasant as speed wasn't needed for this story. The plot is original and well done, but I admit to being frustrated not to know what really happens to the villain (perhaps because I like romantic suspense so much, I wanted a "clean" ending?)

My favorite book by this author, and I'm curious about the other that'll follow.

[ᑭᑌᑎƳᗩ [Punya Reviews...] · Rating 3 out of 5]

My review contains spoilers and they're mostly my thoughts as I went with the book... for more, visit Punya Reviews...

It was rather on impulse that I started reading The Devil of Clan Sinclair by Karen Ranney, book 1 of Clan Sinclair series. Never read anything by her before, but I dig anything that says ‘Highlander and Scottish’, so... um no surprise that I caved. I loved the author’s writing style, even with the narratives going back and forth into the past and the present. However, can’t say the same about the heroine of the story. I was engrossed enough to finish it but boy she tried my patience!

The story starts when Virginia, our h, has just been widowed. She’s been married to the invalid Earl of Barrett for about a year when he passed away due to weak health. Virginia never liked Lawrence and though it was consummated, she has never been with him after that night. She detested him as much as he did, hence no heir. Now, this poses a threat. Virginia originally hails from America. She was the only daughter of a wealthy businessman. Upon her marriage, Lawrence inherited everything, and in exchange, she got the title of a countess. Apparently, her husband went through it all, leaving her, her two SILs Eudora and Ellice and MIL, Enid, destitute. Since there is no male heir, everything that is left will go to a distant cousin through entailment. It was also apparent that the man will not take any responsibility of them. This leaves Virginia’s rather self-seeking MIL to use (yes, that was completely using her) her in a different way. Find a man, get pregnant, pass it off as Lawrence’s heir and keep the inheritance. After all, she and her two daughters never lived in poverty, so Virginia will have to help. She saved them once, she’d do it again.

This Virginia certainly will do. She apparently ‘loves’ her in laws enough and feels responsible for them. Acceding to Enid’s wishes, Virginia begins planning a ‘trip’ to Scotland where lives Macrath Sinclair, the man she once thought to be in love.

And so we’re told of their whirlwind relationship that was completely thwarted by Virginia’s autocratic and title-hungry father. Macrath and she met some times before her marriage. Virginia was a passive girl who was used to taking orders (as she remains for the most part of the story). She was also reserved, considered herself rather plain to look at, as a result, never felt confident enough to enter into this New World with style— the society of England and its thousand pesky rules. She lived a better life in America, though her father made it miserable from time to time by ignoring her completely, when not that, with his dictates. So the handsome Scot inventor Macrath Sinclair with his brilliant blue eyes and bright smile was the breath of fresh air she hungered for. It was also apparent that she could actually talk to him. He is nice to her, always encouraging her interests. Soon enough, love was blossoming. Macrath’s declaration surprises Virginia but exhilarates her no less. But that was not to be when her father suddenly announces her betrothal. Virginia chooses to bow down to his demand and marries Lawrence, leaving Macrath completely heartbroken.

Now, after a year later, she’s going back to him to get herself pregnant by deceiving him in the process. Can you tell that I already was having a bad feeling about this story?

Gotta talk about Macrath’s life now. Son of a poor pressman, he started out as a humble broadside seller with a family mired in poverty, yet Macrath did everything in his power to win the dreaded poverty out. He has invented an ice-machine (story taken from a real life inventor, as the Author’s Note will explain to you), which in turn made him rather dirty rich. Poverty is a word Macrath will never want to hear again so he’s still building his empire to keep his sisters Mairi and Ceana and a cousin named Finella, happy and provided for. Finella came to live with them when she became an orphan, much like Macrath and his sisters. Even then he took her in. And now, she has become an integral part of the family.

A self-made man, Macrath, some years ago, bought a big mansion in the Highlands, called Drumvagen. He had always dreamed of his own place, a clan and a legacy and Drumvagen was just the beginning of it all. The big castle-like structure was abandoned half-built when Macrath took over and made it a home. He has an assorted bunch of staff but most important of them all is his ‘scary and manly’-looking housekeeper Brianag. Though she has a temper and is not scared of anyone or anything, Brianag’s grumpy demeanor hides a soft heart and a hand for healing. Since Mairi took over their father’s printing press and lives in Edinburgh, Macrath has bought her and Finella a house of their own. Finella takes care of it as the publication of the broadsides and other press related duties take up most of Mairi’s time.

Macrath visited London to give his younger sister, Ceana, a season that Mairi never had. And in that visit, he met the alluring American, Virginia Anderson. Macrath, the fool, fell for her on spot. From her features to her interest in the broadsides, politics and any other un-ladylike things immediately caught his attention. He knew that being a Scot and without a title, it’d be hard to get her father’s blessings. Though he didn’t like the man, Macrath was ready to beg to him for Virginia’s hand, thinking she returns his affections. She even became good friends with Ceana, a bonus for him. Macrath fashioned the adjoining room to his suits with everything that Virginia might love. Actually he remembered everything, including the fact that Virginia loves roses. Yet his dreams came crashing down when Virginia meekly went out of his life.

Macrath may not have known the whole story and how Virginia was intimidated to marry the guy (though I would’ve loved to see her fight a little), his love for her turned into something of a mixture of love and hate. Is that even possible to hate someone you love? And you can’t seem to stop loving even when a part of you hates them? When we meet Macrath, secretly, he’s still searching for the answer.

In between, Ceana marries and Macrath moves into Drumvagen permanently. He lives here, working on his new innovative ideas, trying to bury his heartache within himself. I must mention that Macrath has never been a womanizer. He was celibate when suddenly, one day, the widowed Countess of Barrett returns in his life. Macrath is instantly suspicious, not having a clue to what she wants.

When she was leaving for Scotland, thanks to her MIL’s help, Virginia had to face a dirty fact about her marriage. Lawrence’s personal assistant, a guy named Paul, has been giving her eyes. It was apparent that he had some kinda weird obsession over her. When Lawrence died, Paul, who is nothing but efficient, comes by the information about the entailment and the need of a male heir. He begins pursuing Virginia. It was more like coming onto her, though she never did anything to garner his attention. He makes innuendoes about giving her the male heir she needs. He eavesdrops one day, also gaining the knowledge about her trip to Scotland that’s supposed to be a total secret. With it, he later starts blackmailing Enid too. But before she was leaving Paul gives Virginia the shock of her life; that it was him, and not Lawrence, in her bed on her wedding night! I was totally surprised myself that how can she not differentiate between the two men? If the light was off and she didn’t see who it was, Lawrence was said to have been frail and weak, while Paul completely opposite of him; stocky-built and handsome in a cold, aloof way. I couldn’t believe that she couldn’t tell! WOW. But this realization makes her run even faster towards Scotland.

Virginia, with her ever faithful maid, Hannah, finally arrives in Drumvagen. The first 2 days go by rather swiftly and she’s successful in seducing Macrath with sweet words of longing (sorry, I didn’t believe a word she said). Macrath, the poor fool, was starving; both for sex and for her. The two factors were combustible enough and they end up having sex. Virginia makes sure of 'more than once' so that... you know. *SMH* Macrath pretty much begs her to stay with him, now that she’s a widow. But of course, Virginia has a ‘family’ to look after in London. She can’t be here, and marry Macrath! I didn’t even know how to react about her callous observations, and that everything she did was for a selfish reason. But what struck me the most was that, throughout the story, she NEVER ONCE gave a sh!t about Macrath’s feelings. Well, maybe she did in her own musings but always her other family won out and she’d callously dismiss Macrath as if he doesn’t matter, even KNOWING he loves her that much!

After Macrath realizes that Virginia has no true intention of being with him, he commands her to live. And she does, without any fight. Then, to escape the memory of their nights together, Macrath takes up on a new challenge concerning his ice-machine that leads him to Australia. Though Mairi and Finella aren’t happy, nothing can keep Macrath here... not for the next few months. In the meantime, back at London, Virginia finds herself pregnant. Her MIL is positively rubbing her hands with glee! At least that’s how I felt about her over-enthusiasm and super awkward questions. *eyeroll* Virginia has no intentions of telling Macrath. Though guilt rears its head for a while, Virginia stamps it down. After all, she has a family to rescue! I was so mad at her cause it was just NOT done. Again, she didn’t bother considering Marcrath’s side in all these and the fact that he has a right to know about his baby.

Ceana stops by and gives a heavily pregnant Virginia the news of Macrath’s departure and Virginia is sighing a breath of relief. So glad she doesn’t have to face Macrath, at least not now! When the baby is born, Enid, with her unhealthy obsession with the word ‘E’, names the boy Elliot. Of course it was a boy and anyone who saw him would’ve known that he’s Macrath’s, not the weak and pale Lawrence’s.

A couple of months pass by and Macrath decides to return to England. He contemplated marrying and settling down in Australia but his yearning for Virginia never died down. Not once. He kept thinking of her, loving and hating her with the same breathe. But things were about to go very, very wrong soon!

A few months into Elliot’s birth, small pox strikes London and its surrounding areas. The epidemic takes a lot of lives, including that of Eudora’s. When Virginia finally catches the disease, Elliot is forced to be secluded from her. THIS is when things begin to become much more dramatic and engrossing. While Virginia is very ill, Hannah, bless the girl, becomes the only person taking care of her. At that time, Macrath returns. Not only that, the poor darling immediate decides to see Virginia with a proposal of marriage. He’s determined to do anything to win her but unfortunately, the day he visits the Traylor House, his world comes crashing down again by the betrayal of the only woman he has ever loved. In a whirlwind, he hears of Virginia’s illness and then, the baby. When he bursts into the nursery and takes one look at the boy, Macrath had no remaining doubt. Elliot is his boy and Virginia never even bothered to tell him that he has become a father! That scene was probably one of the most prominent scenes of the story. Angry, hurt, feeling betrayed, Macrath makes fast decisions. He takes Elliot with him to Drumvagen. I, for one, didn’t blame Macrath.

As Virginia regains consciousness, Hannah tells her of Macrath. She, though still ill and weak, decides to travel to Drumvagen. The mama-bear is on the hunt! When she reaches Drumvagen, Macrath doesn’t let her in, but he doesn’t send her away either. He lets her stay in a nearby cottage with a strict command. When she recovers enough strength, she MUST leave. She can see Elliot only if she leaves. Hannah is the one who is allowed to see the boy, who has become the center of Drumvagen and his father’s world in a very short time. Even the grumpy Brianag has softened towards the future heir to Clan Sinclair. The reason behind why the people of Drumvagen and the village nearby called Macrath ‘The Devil’ was a pretty funny story (thanks to Brianag), though the man is nothing but goodness, even if driven by ambition. And now, he has an heir. The name ‘Elliot’ is soon discarded in preference of a more Scottish name; Alistair.

After a while, things begin to settle down a little. Virginia proves to be stubborn enough to stay in that cottage. To her, Elliot is still the heir to the Earldom and she’s determined to leave with her son. And, to my utter annoyance, she kept finding ways to blame Macrath for her plight. She’s angry that he has taken Elliot from her, kept calling Elliot ‘her’ son, as if Macrath had no right. WOW! Not once had I felt any genuine guilty feelings coming from her. It was like she was stuck in her own bubble and refused to acknowledge the facts written in bold letters. Though I didn’t doubt her love for Elliot, her treatment of Macrath was abdominal, a fact made Macrath himself angry. He still doesn’t know how he can keep her here with him. Is it the money? Well, he has plenty of it. Is it the title then? Does she love her title so much that he means nothing to her? TBH, after what she did throughout, Macrath’s belief that Virginia probably doesn’t love him didn’t come to me as a surprise. And it broke my heart. It’s also not surprising that I wanted to slap this girl really hard every time she opened her mouth to put blames on him.

Of course, Macrath softens towards Virginia gradually, letting her inside Drumvagen to see Elliot. Moreover, he’d sit there with her, watching her playing with their son. Virginia was never comfortable with Macrath’s presence and I thought it was the subconscious guilt poking it’s head, though she refused to recognize it. She even begins whining about Macrath preferring Alistair over Elliot for his son’s name. Virginia wouldn’t call the baby anything but Elliot. Again, what Macrath thinks about his OWN SON doesn’t matter to her. And it was somewhere about 70% of the story.

Seeing her again regularly, having her near starts taking its toll on Macrath and the poor fool gives in to trying and convince Virginia, again, that she should marry him and be with him. They also start having sex. While Macrath was contemplating that he’s finally making some kinda progress with her, Virginia was having twinges of doubts... At Last! Yet every time she kept thinking of her London family, she kept backing off. Can she live here? Does she want to leave this beautiful place and rob Elliot off of his father’s affections? But what would happen to Ellice and Enid?

And we’re back to square one... *sigh*

When Paul finally snaps completely out of his mind, he sets out to Scotland, following Virginia’s trail. His plan: to ‘bring her back and show her that she belongs to him’ aka force her to acknowledge something that was never there (aka he’s insane). He’d kill that lowlife Scot this time if he tries to stop him.

Paul lies in wait to grab the chance of kidnapping Virginia, then drug her and carry her off to a ship bound to the America where they can begin life anew (?)... I’m not even going into the ravings of this lunatic but Virginia, in a desperate attempt to save herself, jumps off the ship. And who else but Macrath comes to her rescue? He ran outta Drumvagen the moment he heard of the incident and was able to give chase on one of his ships as soon as possible. What made me roll my eyes again, that it wasn’t the fact that Macrath saved her life or his repeated confessions of love that finally made Virginia agree to marry him. Macrath had to promise to take care of Ellice and Enid, welcoming them to Drumvagen. Poor guy.


After all, he said this to her:

“I would do anything for you, Virginia. Don’t you know?”


But Virginia, I was at that point beyond any comment. She basically ruined the story for me. To my estimation, she didn’t deserve Macrath and she probably deserved every bad thing that happened to her because of the way she hurt Macrath. Some might think I’m being harsh but I don’t care. Macrath was such a keeper, an amazing guy! To be so utterly in love, sticking to that person even when they’re spineless enough to spurn your affection at every turn... Unimaginable! If he was angry at Virginia, to me, it was justifiable. Yet he was the one who took the first step to resolve things with her. How can you not love a guy like this? HOW??? So it was no wonder that I never believed in anything Virginia said about loving Macrath and then act martyr because she was going to have to leave him anyway bla bla. I never thought she ever loved him as much as he did... if she did that is. 3.5 stars.

PS: not sure what happened to Paul cause he was never mentioned again. Was he caught? Was he able to escape to America? Not a clue. Weird!

[dumbells · Rating 1 out of 5]

I…. do not remember how this book ultimately ended… There was some more kidnapping in the end (like 50% of the book is that, people getting kidnapped) and the servants realized they shared deep abiding love, same as their masters and then…. They got off the ship? Did they go back to his castle? Did she bring all her destitute relatives and mother in love to live with her at her new hubbies place? I got no clue.

I remember the beginning and the craziness here and oh boy the drama. And just how conflicted the h was over luring the hero into a baby trap and not telling him about the kid and then suddenly the hero flips in his resentment of the heroine and resolved to seduce her? Wut. What is this? How to flip a relationship and everyone’s feelings in 2 chess moves or less?

I guess I never got attached to these two here. Maybe the supporting characters could have been ok, the servants being loyal and also respectful of their masters while at the same time falling in love if that had had a bit more page time. Instead we get the whole baby drama, and looking for the baby, and lamenting she can’t bring the baby with her and then being sorry the baby doesn’t know her father and on and on it goes… JUST TALK TO EACH OTHER ALREADY.

They spent so much time in their head (the heroine) and talking to everyone else about their partner and their intentions for their partner (the hero) that they really just needed to get their act together that share one open conversation except for that quazy-moment when they were both in the water at the end… I guess it just did not register untimely at all as I remembered nothing from what followed from that point on.

All there was in all drama centered books was just their preconceived notions about one another and them reacting based on what they expected the other person to react as or surprised they did not react like that and not knowing what to do with that info. Just a lot of pre-reactions that served no one any good and just muddled the water of the whole story. I don’t know why the author thought it would be a fitting avenue to use, maybe cuz it’s Historical romance and that is what other’s have used? I guess something new and different would have been better other than a heroine that actually cared about her babe unlike the other ladies of the time and did not care the hero was a Scot and bla bla bla.

Seen it.

Read it.

Heard it.

Over it.

[Kristina Coop-a-Loop · Rating 1 out of 5]

Every once in a while, I like to dip my toes into the steamy waters of a good romance. The key word here being “good.” I’m a critical reader and can’t often find romances that don’t irritate me with their insipid characters, predictable plots and eye-rolling sex scenes. When I find good authors, I usually stick with them. I came across Karen Ranney’s The Devil of Clan Sinclair in a used bookstore and thought, what the hell. Looks readable. I was wrong.

Virginia Taylor, Countess of Barrett, has a problem. Her husband is a man she detests and didn’t want to marry. Her father insisted—he wanted the title and Lawrence wanted the money to spend. And spend he did, all of it, until Virginia learned the family would penniless unless she produced an heir. Her problem? Her detestable husband died without impregnating her. The nerve! Now Virginia must find another man who will have sex with a (supposedly) grieving widow, quickly, and hope he has excellent and speedy sperm. And doesn’t ask questions. Who will she find? Why, her former flame, the Devil.

This isn’t a novel about the occult. The Devil is just a grumpy (but handsome and well-off) guy who likes to invent things and live alone in the Scottish wilderness. In a comfy house, with servants but that goes without saying. Virginia decides to visit the Devil (aka Macrath Sinclair), seduce him (multiple times if necessary) and leave. Why tell him anything? Lest you think this should be too easy (seriously, she doesn’t have to work too hard to get the Devil in bed), there’s another guy hanging around who suspects her scheme and plans to foil it because he wants sweet, sweet Virginia for himself.

And that’s where I gave up. Mostly I was bored. I mean, I probably could have finished it, but why bother. I know how it’s going to turn out and the characters aren’t interesting enough to watch them get there. Readers of romances, particularly old-timey British ones, may enjoy this novel. I deemed it not worth my time. Too many books to read, not enough time.

[Helena · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really did not care for this book. The writing was great but the STORY.... UGH!

Virginia is a widow who finds out that her husband left her, his mother and sisters nothing to live on. Desperate for help they decide to have her seduce her old fiance, Macrath (the one she jilted for her dead husband) and claim that the child is her late husband's.

I HATED this. The plan is so stupid, her invalid husband she's been married to for years (and never got pregnant from) dies and she needs to pretend to carry the heir? Talk about putting all your eggs in one basket. They had NO guarantee that shed even get pregnant with this plan. Also, from what we see Macrath and Virgina were pretty cute together and then her father basically sells her off to a lord for a title. It's a terrible unhappy marriage, but for some reason she's willing to do anything for her mother-in-law and sisters in law? But we never really see what inspires that devotion. Next when she arrives at his house, Macrath doesn't even really seem to care or question why she's here, they get it on and she runs again. If she REALLY loved this guy she should have just given their relationship a second go, not try to seduce him and steal his child. Yikes. Lastly - the title?! Macrath is literally like the nicest, most understanding guy and apparently he's a devil? He does nothing to Earl that title and since there's no "clan" it doesn't make sense.

[Brittany · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, I think I bought this book, because it has “devil” in the title. The storyline is kind of crazy! Virginia is an American heiress who has been brought to England to find a husband. She meets Macrath Sinclair, a wealthy self made man and they fall in love. Her father refuses to let her marry him and instead makes her marry an Earl. Her husband is sickly, but is also mean and treats Virginia and the rest of his family horribly. He dies one year into their marriage. He intentionally leaves his family destitute, so his mother in law comes up with a plan to save the family: Virginia needs to get pregnant with an heir, so they can retain rights to the earldom. Virginia goes to Macrath.

I don’t even want to tell you the craziness that ensues for the rest of this book. There is smallpox, a kidnapping, a stalker – it is perfectly unbelievable! I love high drama, so I was here for all aspects of this book. I didn’t really connect with the characters as much as I would have liked though. I liked Macrath, so I was not a fan of Virginia for following through with her mother in law’s plan. Virginia grows a lot throughout the book and finally finds her backbone, but I just wanted to shake her at times. This was a book where the hero and heroine really needed to sit down and lay all the cards on the table to realize THERE WAS A REASONABLE SOLUTION! This was the first Karen Ranney book I have read. While it’s not my favorite, I will continue to test the waters!

[iStarr · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Tale As Old As Time

First things first: I did not like Virginia Anderson at all. The MFC is a scheming, heartless bitch. An American heiress, then Countess, manipulates, deceives, and ruthlessly hurts the one man she ever claimed to love in the most heartless way imaginable.

The MMC, Macrath, is every woman’s dream: steadfast, true, honourable, charitable, not to mention handsome with brilliant blue eyes. His only failing, if one can call it that, is his ability to forgive the woman who seduces him, then keeps his child a secret, pretending that the child is that of her late husband.

Ugh!

The villain is truly villainous, a despicable man who is never brought to justice for the many crimes he committed. He basically just sails off into the sunset as it were.

As for all of the plotting and scheming, it was all for nothing. Truly the story could have had the same ending without all of the lies and betrayal. Just saying.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as good as the second book in the series, so I’m glad I started with that. The hero and heroine are less real. There’s much talk of a sister to Macrath and Mairi who does not appear in the second book and if she was mentioned at all, it was remarkably fleeting as I was infinitely confused by her importance here.

And. It is remarkably difficult to like a hero who kidnaps a child. Plus the hero and heroine swing widely from love to distrust repeatedly, and the villain has no reasonable motivation.

It’s as though all the pieces of Amanda Quick and Julia Quinn and other fine romance novelists are here, but something is missing. However, I’ve read much worse romances, and the second was really not bad so I’ll give the third a try.

[Rox · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, I enjoyed this one: good steam level and the angst was at a manageable level (as in, it didn't leave me emotionally paralyzed for a time).

*contains spoilers*

Tropes include:
✅ Second chance
✅ Secret baby
✅ Rags to riches hero

This was the first historical I've read where the heroine takes steps to get pregnant with an heir in order to not get thrown out of her dead husband's house. I admired Virginia's big heart - how she wanted to do this in order to save her MIL and sisters in law. Still, there was a lot of rage reading and frustration "Stop being such a doormat, Virginia!". Macrath was fine as a hero - definitely more patient than most people would be in his situation. Glad I read this but I don't think I'll need to reread.

Steam 🔥🔥🔥
Banter 🗣
Swoon 💕💕

[Abbey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This surprised me! It's unlike any historical romance I've read before - Virginia has to seduce her first love to get pregnant to save her husband's estate? The plot moves swiftly and neatly - though the external villain is a little mustache-twirly and didn't add much to the tension for me because it was obvious where that was going. I had to set aside some consent questions of her seducing Macrath under false pretenses, and I won't advocate for not telling the father about his child, but overall I enjoyed this and would check out more from Ranney in the future!

[Sandy Frediani · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maybe it's because I read this on the heels of another Karen Ranney book - The English Duke - that I find this with a bit too much internal dialogue. However the interplay between Macrath and Virginia is well done, especially when involving Elliot/Alistair. The ending leaves me wondering if we're going to run into Paul Henderson in the future. It wouldn't surprise me. One last thought, because it isn't explained - Enid's obsession with names beginning with E. All in all, another good book.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just wasn't captivated by the plot, it felt so slow at times and the constant back and forth (both in terms of past and present and the different POV of characters) made it hard for me to get into the flow of the story.
I didn't hate the story, it was romantic definitely, I just don't see myself wanting to return to these characters.
Also, the FML justification didn't hold up for me-- as I didn't like the mother in law and didn't really feel like the others were ever a thought in her mind.

[Margaret · Rating 5 out of 5]

The power of love

Virginia Taylor met the man of her dreams in London her first year of coming out. Before Macrath could offer for her, she was given to another man. This is no light reading. The pain and anguish this couple endures will suck you into the story. I couldn't rate this anything else but 5 STARS.