#BookReview: Devil in Tartan by Julia London!! @JuliaFLondon @HarlequinBooks @NetGalley #DevilInTartan #NetGalley

Title: Devil in Tartan
Author: Julia London
Genre: Romance, Historical, Scottish
Series: The Highland Grooms Book 4
Publisher: Harlequin Books
Publication Date: February 20, 2018
Length: 384 pages
Source: ARC - NetGalley
Purchase: Amazon, Book Depository


Book Description:

Peril and passion on enemy seas…

Lottie Livingstone bears the weight of an island on her shoulders. Under threat of losing their home, she and her clan take to the seas to sell a shipload of illegal whiskey. When an attack leaves them vulnerable, she transforms from a maiden daughter to a clever warrior. For survival, she orchestrates the siege of a rival’s ship and now holds the devilish Scottish captain Aulay Mackenzie under her command.
Tied, captive and forced to watch a stunning siren commandeer the Mackenzie ship, Aulay burns with the desire to seize control—of the ship and Lottie. He has resigned himself to a life of solitude on the open seas, but her beauty tantalizes him like nothing has before. As authorities and enemies close in, he is torn between surrendering her to justice and defending her from assailants. He’ll lose her forever, unless he’s willing to sacrifice the unimaginable… 

My Opinion:
I enjoyed this Scottish tale. I could almost feel myself at sea with Aulay and Lottie at certain points in the story. I found it adorable how she was with her father and brother. I didn't like how she second-guessed herself on several occasion, as we might have all done ourselves, but I thought it was overdone in this book. I didn't like how much Lottie would go back and forth with any decision she made. It seemed to be too much of a tug of war. I can understand the second guessing but not so much that it was the basis of all her decisions.

Lottie has to get rid of a shipment for her family before the owner of the land finds out and they get in trouble. A lot of things happen and her father isn't able to make decisions like he should have been doing all along. He is a poor excuse of a Chief of Lottie's family. She has taken charge of the family since his father isn't capable of doing so since his wife passed away (before that even). His late wife was doing it before Lottie. Lottie is used to the role but feels she is a poor decision maker and everything is her fault. The two are mixed for me and therefore the book is a mix of emotions for me. Lottie did have a good plan but nothing seemed to be on her side and that was sad for her.

The sizzle in the love scenes was ok but didn't make me pant for more. It was more a gloss over for me - i.e. there, but not exciting. Although I felt they were right for each other, I didn't get into either of their characters nor could really relate to them. I liked that he painted but it wasn't explored or even enticing. Lottie although at first seemed like a strong female character, I didn't feel like she was.

I did, however, enjoy the writing, it flowed well and I didn't get bored with it. My favorite part was the ending. I like that little twist and how the clan came together to help the family. I enjoyed the book and will get another in this series to see if I like it. You didn't really feel that you missed others stories in this book, there was a small part here and there sprinkled in of others but nothing that made you say "Oh, NO, what am I missing." which I enjoyed. I hate when you feel like you are missing big parts in the backstory and this didn't have that.

I give this book 3.5 of 5 stars!

About the Author:

Julia London is the New York Times, USA Today, and Publisher's Weekly bestselling author of more than thirty novels, including the popular Secrets of Hadley Green series, the Cabot Sisters series and The Highland Grooms historical romance series. She also wrote the Pine River and the Lake Haven contemporary romance series. She is a six-time finalist for the prestigious RITA Award for excellence in romantic fiction, and RT Bookclub award recipient for Best Historical Romance for Dangerous Gentleman. She lives in Austin, Texas. 

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Disclaimer: I received this ARC from Netgalley/Harlequin Publishing with no expectations of a review. No one sponsored or endorsed this post. All opinions are honest and they are my own. All information on the book or author can be found at the author's website. Thank you to Netgalley/Harlequin Publishing for giving me a chance to read this novel. 

Happy Reading!