Once Upon a Tartan (MacGregor Trilogy, #2)

by Grace Burrowes

"Tiberius Flynn may be every inch the English lord, but smart, headstrong beauty Hester Daniels has no use for his high-handed ways--no matter how handsome, charming, or beguiling he is. They only see eye to eye in caring about the feisty little girl who is under their protection. Tiberius's haughty insistence that his wealthy estate in England is a better place for the child than her beloved, rundown Scotland home sparks Hester's fierce protectiveness, and the battle lines are drawn."--from publisher's description.

• ISBN13: 9781402268694
• Publish Date: 6 August 2013 (first published 1 January 2013)
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 11 April 2017
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Sourcebooks, Inc
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 416
• Language: English

Reviews

[Angie]

Much like the first book, Once Upon a Tartan has romance blossoming in the midst of legal woes. I find this really interesting, even though in general, legalities don't really spark my interest. Tye is on his way to Scotland to fetch his niece, Fiona. He's not too savvy to all of the reasons, but his father has tasked him to bring Fiona back to London since his late son's will says she should be raised there. Upon his arrival, Tye sees that Fiona's mother and stepfather are away on their honeymoon, and she's been left in the care of her aunt Hester. From there he attempts to woo them back to London with him.

I wasn't quite sure about Once Upon a Tartan in the beginning, since as many of you know, I have an issue with children being the driving force of a romance. Fiona is very much center stage in the plot, but luckily, since she's not the child of either love interest, she is not what ultimately brings them together. She's just the side-plot, and has a more important role in someone else's schemes. I was quite curious as to why her grandfather was suddenly interested in her, as was the rest of her Scottish family. I can honestly say that I never would have guessed why! After Hester's fathers nefarious plans in The Bridegroom Wore Plaid, I had suspected something along those lines, but it is nothing like that at all. It was actually pretty sweet in a misguided sort of way.

As for the romance, I really enjoyed it! Tye and Hester bump heads at first, since he's not exactly the most charming man, and she certainly doesn't trust him after he shows up with no warning and fails to properly introduce himself. But she can't deny that she's attracted to him, and uses him to "get back in the saddle" at her aunt Ariadne's suggestions. I must say that I loved Aunt Ariadne! She's super old and super funny! That woman is scandalous! But she certainly points Hester in the right direction, and helps her overcome her guilt at "using" Tye or taking advantage of him. There's also more sex in this sequel, and Hester and Tye are certainly not lacking in chemistry!

I really liked Once Upon a Tartan. I did have a few issues with the plot. Mostly just that no one had any idea what was going on with Tye's father's sudden interest in Fiona, and didn't bother investigating it. All of her other uncles say that they'd fight to get her back and use all legal action at their disposable, and yet they didn't do that in the first place to see if what Tye claimed was in the will was even what was really in the will. That didn't seem believable to me at all. Other than that though, it's a sweet and sexy romance, with a side of family reunion.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.

[Amanda]

When you read an author's books back to back, sometimes it's fun to pick out aspects that appear with regular frequency. Hair brushing, braiding, mutual pleasuring in lieu of sex, wayward children... still enjoyable, though.