Highland Surrender

By: Tracy Brogan

Narrated by: Sarah Coomes

Length: 12 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

Defiant Highland beauty Fiona Sinclair is shocked by her brothers’ treachery. To seal a fragile truce, they have traded her hand in marriage to their sworn enemy, a man she has never met, a man she was raised to despise. With no choice but to wed, Fiona makes her own private vow: Though she may sacrifice her freedom, she will never surrender her heart.

Commanded into marriage by the king, Myles Campbell is no more willing than his reluctant bride. Still, she is a rare beauty, passionate enough to warm even the coldest marriage bed. But Myles quickly realizes Fiona Sinclair isn’t some common wench: She has a warrior’s spirit and a fierce pride that only a fool would try to tame. And Myles Campbell is no fool. Their marriage was meant to unite warring clans. They never imagined it would ignite a once-in-a-lifetime love….

©2012 Tracy Brogan (P)2012 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Nice surprise. Toe-curling highlander romance...

This is a great little story. Tons of chemistry between the lead characters, passionate love scenes, and the best supporting characters ever!! Sarah Coomes adds so much to the characters with her narration and wonderful accents.

I also enjoyed the touches of historical context: King James of Scotland married Marie de Guise, who had famously turned down Henry VIII's marriage proposal after the death of his 3rd wife.The story takes place around this time. The hero's family is close to King Jamie and spend time at his court. There are a few political issues and historical events that add complexities to the story.

Definitely recommended if you are in the mood for a highlander story! (I'm always in the mood for highlanders!! Audible give us more!!!) :)

LAIRDS, LASSIES & A KING - MAKE IT A GREAT LISTEN

Well how did this brilliant historical Highland romance get by me??? I get heart palpitations at the thought this nearly never made it into my library (phew, that was a close one).

Poor Highland hunk Myles is forced to marry another clan's daughter and what a wee bitch she is - she makes his life a misery as they journey back to his home by running away, shooting an arrow in his leg and generally being angry and miserable but he's being sooo patient, kind and sexy. Great plot containing strong characters who all get involved in one way or another to make this listen funny, exciting, enjoyable and a joy to listen to. There were sex scenes but they weren't very descriptive however the lack of any heat was easily made-up by the pure entertainment factor of this listen.

Worth a credit? Oh aye (YES) it's bin ma furst book by the bonny wee TB but it wilnee be ma last as it wer offa gid (oh I'm doomed - lock me up and throw away the key 'cause I've listened to too many Highland romps now).

A story that might have been great . . . But

Would you try another book from Tracy Brogan and/or Sarah Coomes?

Tracy Brogan has a good story, but will never buy another book narrated by Sarah Cooms

What was one of the most memorable moments of Highland Surrender?

Those times that gave little snippets of the mystery surrounding the characters.

How could the performance have been better?

Sarah has a tendency to whine, and drag out the end of sentences. This does not have the wanted effect of drawing out emotion, but will only get very irritating and remind one of the late night commercial that will try to involve your emotions for the hungry child or battered pet dog. The whole thing quite puts ones teeth on edge.

Do you think Highland Surrender needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

No, most lives were quick wrapped up at the end of this book.

Great book

Where does Highland Surrender rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
I have read a lot of highland novels this one was great not predictable. This was definitely worth the credit.

Narrator is awful :-(

The only reason why I struggled through this book, is because the story is really nice. The narrator has this habit of ending nearly each sentence on a higher note which makes her sound like she's in pain (or annoyed). Her accents are really excellent though. I wont purchase another book with the same narrator, but will with the same author.

A Highland Adventure worth the ride!

Imagine being raised to hate a man who was responsible for the violent death of your beloved mother, only to be forced into marriage to his eldest son, and swept away to live among a sworn enemy…..This was the fate of Fiona Sinclair, eldest daughter of deceased Laird Sinclair.

Fiona was ushered as the sacrifice for peace between the Campbell and Sinclair clans, by decree of King James. Laird Campbell and her two older brothers, John and Laird Simon, follow the orders of the king in agreeing to the match and therefore establishing a fragile alliance.

Fiona is told that if she does not follow through with this arrangement, her 13-year old sister will have to marry in her stead. Feisty and beautiful Fiona faces her fate with courage, and an inner conflict that storms deep within her heart. But, as her fate is sealed through marriage, questions about a previous generation's actions and stories she has been told as a girl seem to meet the harsh truth that there are other family secrets that cannot be ignored, and a change of heart and mind toward her husband is inevitable.

HERO:
I really LOVED the hero, Myles Campbell, the eldest son of the Laird & Earl Campbell, and I thought his approach with Fiona was just perfect in every step of their relationship. I felt sorry for the warrior because although he was taken aback, and very attracted to Fiona (since the beginning), for her beauty and fiery spirit, he was also in for a rough ride due to her scorn. I liked his strong principle and belief in marriage. Once he said his vows, his mind was set toward Fiona and he left his previous love behind and put everything into making his marriage work. He was constantly trying different strategies to make Fiona warm up to him. Myles is was a strong, confident and humorous man who had a great depth for compassion and love. He was immensely patient with FIona as he worked hard to reach out to her and persuade her that their marriage was one worthy of love and happiness.

HEROINE:
Fiona was beautiful, passionate and fiercely loyal to those she loves, namely her family and clan. She was devastated to have to live with her sworn enemy and worse that her new father in law was responsible for her mother's death. Whenever I became annoyed with the way Fiona treated Myles (believe me her tongue had a sharp edge that could cut down any man), I thought about her pain which was palpable, as she mourned the death of her mother. It's hard to dispel years of being taught to hate.

However, when Fiona learns the truth surrounding her mother's death, she finally allows herself to love Myles, and her new family, and this part of the story is simply MAGIC. The love between the two is shared like a flood, and you just feel their absolute bliss and elation. The two give in to each other and there are moments of ecstasy, with steamy love and intimacy.

This story captured my attention from beginning to end. I was sad that it ended, but so relieved there was an epilogue. I would really LOVE to see this made into a series. There are many elements that just worked out so nicely in this story. This novel is very well written and enjoyable. There are many side characters to the leads who are wonderful and interesting. There is humor, persistent romance, great family moments, treachery, but also tragedy that make this a great, Scottish adventure.

By the way, the narrator was FABULOUS! I will be looking for other books narrated by Sarah Coomes…she's simply amazing and she really brought all of the characters to life. This was a nice little piece of delicious.

I will also be looking for other books by this author….I'm impressed.

Pretty good historical

The book itself has an interesting storyline and the narration is pretty good EXCEPT during sex scenes. During sex scenes, I had the feeling that the narrator has one of two things going on

-- 1) she either has no idea how ecstasy is SUPPOSED to sound, because she made it sound like a cat in severe pain... OR.....

-- 2) she had a contract that paid her by the syllable ( ie.. She said the word "Pleasure" repeatedly, but it came out more like Ph-lea-hea-shu-re). That is bad enough, but I could live with it; however, the word "Burst" ( which came out like Buuur-rrr-sss-stttttt with the inflection up and down and up and down on one freaking word!) will make you want to throw the speaker across the room... UGH!!!!! Otherwise, the narrator does a lovely job and has a great Scottish, French, and British voice, both male and female.

The story itself is pretty good. It has some mystery and an old hidden romance. It has some intrigue and a slightly clunky conspiracy theory to take over the throne. That gives the H/h a little bit of a struggle. I LOVE the Aunt (Can't wait for her story!)

I like the Heroine, but she is hot and cold. One minute she HATES the hero and the next she is trying to resist his kisses, then she wants him, and the next page she hates him again. The poor man can really do nothing right in her eyes, yet he keeps on trying.

The hero on the other hand... well.... He is kinda whipped. He seems tough and rugged but sensitive and sweet. Sometimes a little too sweet as his main focus in life is having Fiona's Kisses. There are points where you want to tell him "MAN UP!!" But I liked him alright UNTIL the point where he was absolutely sure that she betrayed him. It was resolved quickly, but wow, there is a MAJOR trust issue there and he doesn't even give the woman he professes to love the benefit of the doubt. That put a sour taste in my mouth for
him. Maybe I am just fickle...

All in all, it is not a bad choice. It's a pretty good book with a good story and some sex scenes that I bet would be awesome in reading them but not so much in listening to them. I didn't BUURRSSSTTT with love for the book, but I don't feel like I wasted my credit either. Pretty good...

Great performance

Sarah Coomes was the perfect choice to narrate this story. Her performance brought the story to life.

Amazing performance from the narrator

I really enjoy this audiobook. But i was really amazed by the presentation of the narrator. She took me in with her performance. I am going to find more books read by her

what a fabulous surprise

I have to say I almost did not buy this book but due to previous reviews I did. And I am so glad that I did. Wonderful in-depth characters and the truest definition of historical romance. Buy this book. You will not regret it