Book received as part of Good Reads First Reads program.

This book is sort of hard to rate for me. Mostly, it's a solid 3 1/2, others I'm fiddling with a 3 or almost a 2 1/2.

Once the book actually got into the past, history came alive in this author's hands. Suspenseful descriptions of battles, lush details in her world building, and a fascinating setting in history all lend for a fantastic journey into the past. I enjoyed exploring the world of medieval Scotland and witnessing the Battle of Halidon Hill which devastated so many Scottish families, noble and common. I was also intrigued by the bits about the Cathars. I've only read one other book that incorporated them and that just recently. So seeing them explored more in fiction was a real treat.

The main character's journey is another pro for this book. Seeing his journey from almost anal retentive and over-planning life to growing as a man to accept life's obstacles and work around them kept me reading. I could see real growth in Ross, as a man of both timelines and as an overall individual. Also enjoyable was the real start towards healing between Roslin and his father that was able to be carried over into modern day since it was left unfinished in the past.

The love story between Claire/Mariota and Ross/Roslin plucked my heartstrings. Even though their actual scenes together were semi-limited, I could literally feel their emotions and passion towards each other. Ross' wife, in both timelines, always stayed at the forefront of his thoughts and ambitions. Everything was about trying so hard to return to her arms, wherever they may be.

Unfortunately, this book was prevented from being a solid 5 stars by some major issues with pacing. The first third of the book was a meandering journey through the Highlands of Scotland that, while enjoyable in the vivid descriptions, really felt like the real story would never start. The last third, with the battle and build up to the climax, almost felt too cramped with story and action. The reader is almost left with no time to breathe. A little of that tension might have been better placed in the beginning rather than just the few little hints we received in flashbacks and feelings of deja vu.

There also seemed almost too much story crammed into the middle and end of the book. There were so many issues that could have stood a bit more exploration and delving into. As previously mentioned, the scenes where Roslin and Mariota were actually together were severely limited for a book striving for romance. And while what they had together was sweet and emotional, I could have stood for more of the together. I also felt like the animosity between Roslin, Malcolm, and Alan could have been explored more. The story behind why Roslin was in England and the politics behind the Scottish positions also peaked my interest without too much resolution.

Overall, this book was enjoyable once stuff actually started happening. And while there could have been so much more story explored here, the core of the story, Ross' journey and the love story, made me smile and cheer. I enjoyed the history bits enough to overlook the pacing issues. Definitely a nice introduction to this author. ( )

I really enjoyed this book.... It was one of those books where you can't stop turning the plot over in your head after you have finished it. I would love to read more books by this author.


** I received this book for free through a first reads promotion ( )