Love Beyond Measure

By: Bethany Claire

Narrated by: Lily Collingwood

Length: 7 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's Summary

What is life worth without the love you're meant for?

Sent to the brink of death by his own brother's blade, Eoghanan McMillan clings to the brief moments he spends in the shadows, watching from afar the beautiful lass he's never met. He spends his time some four centuries after his birth, slowly building his strength so that he may return home, but each glimpse into the woman's life leaves him wanting. He wants nothing more than to know her.

When Grace Mitchell's job as a photojournalist sends her to Scotland with her young son, Cooper, in tow, her greatest wish is to escape from the aftermath of the wedding she abandoned. Instead, her life complicates further when she meets the mysterious, scarred, and alluring Eoghanan McMillan, a man so unlike any she's ever known. She falls for him quickly, but, after a spell sends them back in time to the 17th century, Grace is forced to accept the amazing truth about the man she's just beginning to know and to re-think the life she had planned for herself.

Will their love for one another be enough to make Grace stay in a time so different from her own - a decision that will alter the direction of her young son's life entirely? Or will she sacrifice a future with the man she loves to give her son a life of normalcy? In the end, she may just learn that the decision isn't hers to make.

©2014 Bethany Claire (P)2016 Bethany Claire

A moments glance

Would you listen to Love Beyond Measure again? Why?

Yes, I enjoyed the story and the performance. Lily Collingwood is gifted with the ability to bring the charters their own voice.

What did you like best about this story?

It bought the story into the present time and introduces Grace and Cooper into the magical world waiting for them in Scotland. It was fun to listen to them getting a glimpse of Eoghanan before they actually met him.

Have you listened to any of Lily Collingwood’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have listed to all of the available Bethany Claire Morna's Legacy books. I'm going to look to see if she has other titles

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes. I didn't want to put it down to go to work or to sleep.

Any additional comments?

I can't wait for more of both Bethany Claire and Lily Collingwood's books and performances.

Morna has magic; Bethany & Lily have magic too!

Would you listen to Love Beyond Measure again? Why?

Without question. It had me spellbound - which is why my review title states that "...Bethany and Lily have magic." I downloaded the book just after the polls closed on Super Tuesday. I did nothing else but take potty breaks until I'd finished it! If I thought the story was powerful when I read the ebook, I had no idea how it would capture and hold me while listening to it via audible.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Love Beyond Measure?

I'm going to challenge myself to word this to avoid the risk of presenting a spoiler - my most memorable moment was when Charles was walking Grace to the most magical day of her life and he shared with her how his wife let him know the depths of how/why she thought of Grace as their own daughter. I honestly cried as I listened to that part.

Which scene was your favorite?

There are many....to pick one would require putting them all in a hat and picking one randomly...and again it's hard to answer this question without presenting a spoiler, so I'll try to word it in a way as not to do so....the scene when Cooper knew he was facing imminent danger and the plans he made to face it and thwart it.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Absolutely....although I hadn't planned to do that when I first clicked on 'listen now' that is what happened. I downloaded the book on my smartphone after I left my polling place on Super Tuesday...started listening to it on my drive home, continued listening to it as I entered the house and got settled and remained comfortably seated on the comfy couch in my office until it was finished....stopping only for bathroom breaks.

Any additional comments?

I think this book presented the greatest challenge for Lily Collingwood to try to adequately represent the voice of a phenomenal child like Cooper. At the beginning I wasn't sure it met what I had conjured up in my mind that he would sound like after having read the ebook. But by the time I'd gotten half-way through the audible book, I was sold.

This story was like new as I listened to it. Many times throughout my listening experience, I closed my eyes and got lost in what Lily was saying/how she delivered the story. When you're reading a traditional book or an ebook and you get to a point where you want to close your eyes at a particularly moving scene, the story stops until you can open your eyes and continue reading. But when you're listening, the story never stops....you can surrender to your emotions and continue experiencing the story. I cried, smiled and laughed while listening. At times...especially during the love scenes, I imagined myself reacting to the things that EO was saying to Grace and I felt the love.

I would highly recommend this book to all fans of the Morna's Legacy series. If anyone who is unfamiliar with the series gets their hands on it, I recommend experiencing the books in order. This is book 4 of a series of 7 (soon to be 8).


“I received a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest
review.”

Good.... but.....

I felt as though this was just a brief idea written out to take as long as possible without any effort to development it past the very basics. I guess I felt cheated! I was so upset when I realized it was about finished and I was still waiting for it to start. It's been quite a while since I read the previous books in this series but I remember loving them.... I was looking forward to that again.... aw well.....

not up to par

I was disappointed In this recent book. The other books had more detail and story. This book was not as well developed.

Not so Good.

Way to much love making not enough story. Compared to the other books in this series...this was the most boring and predictable.

Wonderful Romance....

Loved the story line. However, I would have appreciated a little less predictability. A few surprises or unexpected twists would have been nice.

The Past Comes to the Present!

Characters: Eoghanan McMillan & Grace Mitchell
Setting: Scotland (Past/Present)
Mature Themes: Sex & violence

Recommendation: If you’ve liked the story so far, keep at it, they are still enjoyable and in this one you’ll see a lot more of Morna. Besides, Cooper is worth reading/listening to.

Grace and Jeffery are parents to a charming and bright little boy, Cooper, but their love is not one of sexy negligees and candle lit dinners. Tell that to Grace’s father. To avoid her family's pressures Grace runs to Scotland and uses a new work assignment as her escape. When she gets to Morna’s Inn, things are not as they seems, but then… when ever is it with Morna?

Love Beyond Measure was a little bit of a departure from the rest of the Morna series as the bulk of the story took place in the present in Scotland than in the past. This was also the first book where family was a main theme for the woman in the relationship. Yes, Brie had her mother, but for the most part she wasn’t in the same time. This dynamic and different perspective on family, paired with the longer modern day storyline was a welcome departure for the series as five books in, the series had the potential to become stale. Being able to see through Cooper’s eyes also helped to make this book stand on its own.

It’s now a lot easier for Bethany Claire to fall into stereotyping or “easy” plot tricks, thankfully she didn’t. Grace and Jeffery’s relationship and how they interact with one another and Cooper would easily be difficult for a Scotsman from the past to not understand, but with Eoghanan’s familial history he is extremely understanding of it. Here’s where this plot point was handled brilliantly, Grace had no idea. Really, six hours in and Eoghanan finally tells her that he was adopted by the McMillan clan. It would have been an easy out to use that face when he initially meets Jeffery, but it didn’t happen and the book was stronger for it.

All that good being said, this is book five in a series and it’s bound to have its weaknesses. This was the weakest in terms of the plot “climaxes,” in that the villain and the two main heartbeats of the story seemed rushed and as if they were after thoughts and add ins. There was also a lot more sex, too much, it was less about a deep emotional connection and more about instant-love and attraction, sad when the previous stories were so focused on strong women and Grace belongs within their ranks. One final criticism is Grace’s siblings. Throughout the book she mentioned she cares for them and loves them, but without hesitation and a thought to them she moves to the past with her kid, “father,” and best friend. Huh.

Audiobook Review:
Lily Collingwood’s Jeffery and Cooper are now on my list of all-time favorites! Cooper was child-like and adorable while Jeffery’s was gruff and american, a stark contrast to one another and the rest of the cast. Grace was still a generic woman as most of the American women have been. As usual, the recording quality was great with no hum or distortion and made the entire focus on the story.

Great Book!

Any additional comments?

LOVED It!
This is a great book; this is the fourth book in the Morna’s Legacy Series by Bethany Claire and narrated by Lily Collingwood. Eoghanan “EO” McMillan is on the brink of death from his own brother’s blade. He finds himself in Morna’s modern day in the 21st century. Grace Mitchell is a photojournalist and her job sends her to Scotland with her young son, Cooper. While in Scotland she meets EO and falls for him quickly. When a spell sends them back to the seventeenth century Grace must rethink her life she had planned.
The narrator Lily Collingwood did a wonderful job, and was very easy to listen too. She did a great job with the different characters and their voices.
If you are looking for a great romance with time travel, then you need to read this book. I can’t wait to read the next book by this author. Once I started listening to this book, I didn’t want to stop until the end.
A Review copy was provided to me in exchange for a fair and honest review. The free book held no determination on my personal review.

Fall in Love with this Book!

Any additional comments?

Love Beyond Measure is Book 4 in the time travel Morna's Legacy series written by Bethany Claire. These books are based in medieval Scotland, with some back and forth in the 21st century. Even though you could read this as a stand alone, the reader would definitely not know who some of the characters were, or the significance of their actions without reading the previous books.

In Love Beyond Hope, Eoghanan was almost fatally wounded by a sword blade while saving his families life. To save his life, he was sent back to the 21st century so that the good witch Morna could heal him.

In this book we find Eoghanan trying to build up his strength and time travel abilities so he can get home in time for the birth of his niece or nephew. Everytime he practices his travel abilities, he keeps seeing the same woman, Grace and her 5 year old precocious son, Cooper. As Eoghanan continues to be exposed to them, his fascination with them grows.

Grace has her own crazy life in the 21st century--she's a runaway bride! So she's running to Scotland for some peace of mind, but instead, Eoghanan just stirs her all up and confused her, especially when she ends up in the 17th century due to some crazy magic spell!

There is a great supporting cast of characters in this book, not the least of which is Cooper, the 5 year old going on 40. He is hilarious! Lily narrates his voice really cute. Also we have Jeffrey, Cooper's father-not-father. Yeah, I know...you'll just have to read the book to see what I mean! He ends up in medieval Scotland too! And then there's Ginty (boooo!) the bad witch, kidnapping and poisoning everyone. We hate her. With all of this you can tell this is another great Bethany Claire time travel book!

another in the legacy

what a great book ! I loved the characters and the storyline flows well. It is a continuation from Beodin's story following Eoinin and Grace with Cooper and Geoffrey thrown in for good measure. A storyline that has drama, danger and romance enough to suit most.
A good listen too (from Audible).
I highly recommend it but first read/listen to the previous books as they flow into each other pretty well.

good story

good stories, very enjoyable, but ruined by the American narrator, who kept lapsing into an Irish accent. why could a Scottish narrator not have been used?