This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review.

Introduction
The Groom Wore Plaid is the second book in the "Highland Weddings" and I was intrigued to pick this author up as its been a long while since I have read this author but I have to say I ADORED this one so completely. It has been so long since I had read this author that I had forgotten how charming and delightful her writing is. There was such top notch banter between our main protagonists and it was just plain good fun to see them interact. We have some interesting tropes that come together in this one as well as a unique time era that we normally don't see in recently published historical romance as this is mid 1700's Scotland. I just loved the way that discussed Jacobite rebellion and the fight for Scotland's independence from England.

The Main Protagonists
The Hero: Owen Duff
-Highland Laird
-Alphamellow
-Strong
-Capable Leader

The Heroine: Maggie McCallum
-Has dreams/visions of events in the future
-betrothed to Owen
-Family is enemy to the Duff's

Summary
Maggie and Owen were once friends when they were younger and there was a young love that was building between them, but Owen was engaged to marry, but when Maggie has a vision of his fiancee dying, he didn't believe her and she ended up dead. Now its been more than a decade later, and to bring peace to their families and clan, they honor the agreement that was originally made between their families. Owen is determined to make this work, but when Maggie has a dream of Owen being mortally injured on their wedding day, she is determined to make sure that this doesn't come true. But as Maggie and Owen's wills clash, so does the love they feel for each other, but who will win in the end?

My Outlook
The Groom Wore Plaid was such a delightful story and I honestly had such love for this one. It was such a delight to read and I absolutely enjoyed every single moment of this one here. It was so enjoyable to read. And seeing the way that the author implemented the humor was such so much fun to read. There is something in the writing style of Gayle Callen that is just so endearing and addictive. From the first chapter, you are immediately swept up in the story and in the romance. The way that these two banter was so fun. Seeing the way that Owen and Maggie compete with each other was intriguing, you can see as the story builds, how much they are attracted to each other and how their feelings for each other are growing.

Gayle Callen really implemented some unique elements to the story line that added some edge to it. We do have a villain here, which might be predictable. I saw it coming a bit, but I don't think its obvious so it might surprise you in the end. I did feel like the ending was a bit anticlimatic though. But I enjoyed seeing how the dream of Maggie get resolved in the end and the turnout of the ending really satisfied the story overall. There is some angst between the families and I felt like that was well played out. I do think fans of highlander romances, will become endeared to this one.

Overall View
I found The Groom Wore Plaid to be such a talented and tasteful romance that implements elements of danger, intrigue and passion well balanced all the way throughout and leaves the reader fully satisfied!

Rating Evaluation:
Plot: 4.5
World Building: 4
Cover: 5
Hero: 4
Heroine: 4
Steam: 4
Heart & Feels: 4
Ending:3.5
Overall View: 4 ( )

Maggie and Owen. We were introduced to these 2 in book 1 of the series and this book continues their story. They plan to marry to fulfill the contract but there was a hint that they have met previously and have sort sort of history together.
It is a good story, she has dreams of future events and he is a scientist so has no time for fantasy. An interesting twist to a week travelled story-line. ( )

I messed up on this book and it's totally my fault. I meant to read [b:The Wrong Bride|24805344|The Wrong Bride (Highland Weddings, #1)|Gayle Callen|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1428365224s/24805344.jpg|44443721] before I got around to [b:The Groom Wore Plaid|25654615|The Groom Wore Plaid (Highland Weddings, #2)|Gayle Callen|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1448831476s/25654615.jpg|45475913]... but I totally forgot and then I was crunched for time and couldn't fit it into my schedule. I urge everyone to read the books in the correct order b/c this 2nd installment of the Highland Weddings series is a sequel to the first book. There were many references to things you would probably know if you did things properly... unlike my sorry self. I was kicking myself as I read, believe me.

Our H/h in this story are members of feuding clans who have decided to marry to end the conflict between their people. This peace-keeping marriage was supposed to happen with different clan members, namely Hugh McCallum and Catriona Duff. However, if/when you read that first book, you will know things went awry, and now Maggie and Owen are on the hook to carry out the marriage contract.

Maggie McCallum has always held herself apart from others, afraid of being labeled a witch if people were to learn of her prophetic dreams. People already make signs to ward off evil when they see her two different colored eyes. Maggie starts having second thoughts about the impending marriage after she has a dream about Owen's death, and she starts trying to push Owen away in the silliest ways. I felt sorry for Maggie being seen as an enemy in her future home, but she held her head high and persevered.

Owen Duff is not the typical highland hero; he does not come off as an alpha male warrior. Instead, Owen's interests have always been more focused on scientific pursuits. He likes astronomy, inventions and modern conveniences of the time. His father hid him away in London during the 1715 Rising, so now that he is back he feels he must prove himself as a worthy chieftain to his people. While Owen is reacquainting himself with Highland customs such as swimming the loch, wrestling and target shooting, he is also trying to woo a reluctant Maggie.

The courtship between Maggie and Owen was contemptuous. Owen doesn't believe that Maggie is a seer, and Maggie is determined to find a way out of the marriage contract. Owen is kissing and Maggie is sniping. So there was lots and lots of drama. While I liked each of the characters individually, the disdain between them was sometimes grating. Once Maggie cools her jets and decides to stop working against Owen, things were much better.

The plot to stop the marriage was interesting and laid out well. I had my suspicions about the culprit, but it wasn't glaringly obvious so I enjoyed unraveling the mystery as I read. I would have liked to see the motive explored a little more because it seemed to be a tad glossed over.

Overall, this was an enjoyable story with a good amount of steam for a historical. I think I would have been more engaged had I not forgot to read the first book. I received an advanced copy of this book from Avon via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. 3.5 stars / 3 flames. ( )