A Highlander walks into a bar by Laura Trentham

The timeless romance, soaring passion—and gorgeous men—of Scotland comes to modern-day America. And the rules of love will never be the same…


Isabel Buchanan is fiery, funny, and never at a loss for words. But she is struck speechless when her mother returns from a trip to Scotland with a six-foot-tall, very handsome souvenir. Izzy’s mother is so infatuated by the fellow that Izzy has to plan their annual Highland Games all by herself. Well, not completely by herself. The Highlander’s strapping young nephew has come looking for his uncle…


Alasdair Blackmoor has never seen a place as friendly as this small Georgia town—or a girl as brilliant and beguiling as Izzy. Instead of saving his uncle, who seems to be having a lovely time, Alasdair decides he’d rather help Izzy with the Highland Games. Show her how to dance like a Highlander. Drink like a Highlander. And maybe, just maybe, fall in love with a Highlander. But when the games are over, where do they go from here?
(From Goodreads)

My thoughts:
This was such an entertaining read. Just perfect for summer when my head miraculously refuses to concentrate on merits of literary fiction, but wants romance, romance, romance.... And I got plenty of it with two lovely Scottish-American couples exploring what home, tradition and love is under hot Georgian sun.
I'll start with the characters this time. Isabel (Izzy) is such a contradiction in terms. A passionate redhead with totally unruly curly hair, wild imagination and a very practical job of an accountant. Isabel's father started Highland Games in his little southern town with a fair percentage of Scottish descendants. The festival was designed to help local businesses and bring in tourists, so you can see how important it is for Isabel to continue her family tradition after her father's death. She is usually helped by her mother, but this year Rose Buchanan might be a bit negligent in her duties of the festival orgaiser. She's just come back from Scotland accompanied by a guest. Gareth is the caretaker of a real Scottish manor and is a real gentleman as far as Rose is concerned. But Izzy's suspicions are only doubled, when another Highlander walks in and claims he is an old mate of Gareth's. It's just that he is way too young (Izzy's age) and heart-stoppingly gorgeous with his dark wavy hair, a hint of stubble and sexy brogue (okay, here I am picturing my favourite Dr Who, can you blame me?). We quickly find out that Alasdaire's based in London and works for an investment company. Are they here to trick Rose and Isabel out of their beloved Stonehaven property? and what would happen to the festival if the Buchanans were not there to safeguard the tradition?
I love the way the novel is written from two POVs and Alasdair's intentions are more similar to Isabel's than she can guess. He is here to protect his Uncle Gareth, his property and his heart.
As the events unfold, there are plenty of fun moments, tension building and yes, romance.
I enjoyed the first and the last third of the book a bit more than the hot and steamy scenes. Maybe I was looking more for humour and magic of attraction. Maybe the traditional me doesn't expect instalove to last and I really was rooting for these two couples to overcome their geographic incompatibility and Izzy's lack of coordination (which resulted in a few accidents).
As it was the few hours I spent with this book flew by too fast and I was sorry to leave Highland, Georgia. Fortunately, this is just the beginning and the second book is brewing somewhere (I wanted to say in Scottish moors, but I'm not sure where the author resides and comes up with her wonderful ideas). All we have to do is wait for the ancient magic and modern romance to make its appearance again.

Thank you to Edelweiss and St.Martin's for the review copy provided in exchange for an honest opinion.