*Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.*

A fun but not particularly remarkable historical romance set in the 13th century in Scotland. The plot felt a bit repetitive at times as the MMC searches for his brother's murderer and leaves his wife at home wondering if he likes her. I liked the characters generally, though wanted to slap the MMC up the back of the head a few times. It's very much love-at-first-sight combined with an arranged marriage (by the King of the Scots no less!). The steamy scenes redeemed some of the slower points but were also sometimes a bit much for the circumstances of their getting together (nothing too outlandish though).
The ending dragged on, but also left a major plot point unresolved. Perhaps it will be addressed in a later book in the series?
All in all, I enjoyed my time escaping to the Scottish Highlands.

This book is set in medieval Scotland. The Scottish king has decided to marry some of his highlander clans to the border clans in hope of making a less war like Scotland.
Our hero has his hands full after the murder of his brother. The last thing he has time for is a summons from the king.
Our heroine is struggling to keep food on the table, and look after her father. She might be saved from a troublesome neighbour by this summons from the king.
Our characters have an emotional journey and quite the adventure to face. They also have a murder to solve.
Great fun.

There is a lot going on in this story. A young woman, Kendra, is being forced to marry unless she can find the coin to break the agreement. Until the King steps in and has her marry Magnus, who has his own issues going on. A murder, lost coin, and a villain are just the tip of the story. Filled with great characters and lots of them, this highlander's tale will hold your attention all the way through.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Dragonblade Publishing for a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Not interesting.

A marriage arranged by the king and a reluctant groom, makes this a sweet romance, although I found the storyline a little patchy. There were too many sub-plots to this book, and together it seemed as though they were all conveniently stitched up without any real drama. Certainly, Laird Magnus seems insincere in his commitment to the marriage, leaving Kendra floundering in her new home with her own burdens to bear. Fortunately, he does come to his senses and the novel comes to a sweet conclusion. I received a copy of this book as a gift through Dragonblade Publishing and NetGalley and this is my honest and voluntary review.

Kendra is a sweetheart with a kind heart who is used to being independent and speaking her mind. I love this about her character. Unfortunately, she has a father who is ill and causes her a lot of trouble. How she maneuvers the grumpy Magnus, her ill father and the villain of this story was well written and made a great storyline.

Magnus’s difficult decision with confronting his enemy or getting his wife really speaks for his character growth in the story when he makes his decision. Of all the characters in this book Magnus, his mother and his brother Jake had the most growth in character enriching the storyline and creating a lovely book worth reading.

Murder, Vengeance, Mystery, Finding Forever Love
A decree from the king, his brother is murdered, and a new bride for Magnus. He certainly has a lot of his plate to deal with.
Kendra also has many adjustments to make with being a newlywed lass with an aging father with dementia, and a new clan to live with.
I really enjoyed this deeply emotional story, and the large cast of characters were complex and added much to the story.
The main plot of finding one's forever love, solving the murder of Magnus's brother, and missing coin.
We follow Magnus and Kendra through their many heartfelt struggles before they truly discover just how much they love each other which brings them to a very rewarding happy conclusion.
📖Book Rating 4.5 rounded up to 5⭐

I truly enjoyed the story. It’s well written, has a great storyline and is very entertaining. Married as commanded by King Alexander, Magnus and Kendra start their life together but soon issues arise that tear they apart. There is a HEA but it does not come quickly and there are several incidents that seem to keep them apart. Love conquers all things in due time. I loved the story and would highly recommend it.
I recheived a free copy of this book via NetGalley and are voluntarily leaving a review.

This second book in the Highland Vows and Vengeance series is captivating and well written. It had emotional issues and interesting characters with many struggles. I enjoyed that love overcomes all obstacles in the end. I highly recommend reading!

I previously read Bride Takes a Scot and I was looking forward to the next volume. I had hoped it would feature the cousin of the previous hero, but alas it did not. The Highland Vows & Vengeance collection focuses on the bold brawny men contracted by the king to find brides and unite the different clans. I did enjoy certain elements in Bride Takes a Laird and found it to be more enjoyable than its predecessor. Our couple seemed better suited and the laird didn't have a mute son at home to kill the mood. Magnus and Kendra seemed sweet together, but the writing grew repetitive. We would have action, love scene, small revelation: rinse, wash, repeat. The beginning was also incredibly slow and it took a few chapters for our couple to even meet at the castle. I'm happy to have read these first two books to get my Scottish fix, but I will not be continuing with this series. I will give credit that these stories seem well-researched and I can tell the author puts in a lot of effort in her books. I prefer my romances a bit more fast-paced, yet I am thankful for this great opportunity. I adore Dragonblade Publishing. I'm always willing to try out their books, despite not all of them being tailored to my taste. The Bride may take her Laird, but I'll just take my wedding cake in a to-go box.

This book was interesting. When duty gets in the way of trust and love, relationships can become rocky. Magnus and Kendra are ordered by the king to marry. She sees this as a way out of an unwanted marriage. He reluctantly accepts his duty. Except that Kendra's father is ailing, her brother is gone, and her father accepted a bride price in gold, which is missing. She is grappling with all this and her growing attraction for Magnus. Magnus is duty bound, as a new Laird and in a mission to find his brothers killer. He has little time for his bride and his attraction to her. Things come to head when Kendra leaves only for Magnus to realize that she is above his duty and more.

Overall, it is a well paced, fast read with real struggles that the characters face.

#netgalley

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Bride Takes a Laird by Kara Griffin is a third person dual-POV historical romance set in the Scottish Highlands. Kendra’s father has fallen ill and is struggling to remember important things, including where he put the gold from a bride price he accepted without speaking to Kendra. When the king demands Kendra wed a laird, she finds a way to break the unwanted marriage contract, but as long as the gold is missing, it’s going to hang over her head.

Magnus is a more serious character than Kendra, rarely smiling and taking his responsibilities as a laird quite seriously. By the time the plot starts, there’s not a whole lot for him to be thrilled about. While he always wanted to be the laird, he only recently came into the position and it was on the back of his brother being murdered and several of his clansmen also being killed, including the person in charge of the accounting. He has too much to do, too little time, and now has to adjust to being a married man under the orders of his king.

Kendra’s major flaw is that she struggles to let her husband in. She’s already dealing a lot with her father’s health and she refuses to tell Magnus about the bride price situation. When it rears its ugly head, she admits that she’s ashamed of it and would keep it to herself forever if she could. Given that she didn’t want to marry the initial suitor, I think a lot of it is truly tied up in her father’s health and how much she’s had to do to keep their lands running, things that her father was expected to handle. I can understand that. When things are tied up in the health of a parent, it gets a lot more complicated.

I would recommend this to fans of Scottish romance where the male lead is more serious and devoted to his community and readers of historical romance who like plot points involving murder mysteries

I enjoyed this one. I liked the setting and the characters were interesting. I really enjoyed Kendra's character. She's determined, smart and kindhearted. She spends a lot of the book torn in two which I think was a great internal conflict. Magnus was a good male lead. He is trying to solve a murder mystery but at the same time cannot help but be distracted by his bonnie wife. I thought their relationship was well developed and romantic.

Would recommend if you like Highland romances.