Review: Embrace the Highland Warrior

Embrace the Highland Warrior (Highland Warrior - Book 2) by Anita Clenney


Publication Date: November 2011
Publisher: Sourcebooks Inc.
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Pages: Paperback, 352pp
ISBN-13: 9781402251269
ISBN: 1402251262

(Received for an honest review from Sourcebooks Casablanca)


Purchase: Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, IndieBound


Anita Clenney on the WEB: website, blog, facebook, twitter


Excerpt from Embrace the Highland Warrior


Synopsis:


THEY WERE DRIVEN APART BY A TIMELESS SECRET...


Cody MacBain let the woman of his destiny slip away. A member of an ancient clan of Scottish warriors, he grew up beside Shay Logan as her secret protector, but his heart compelled him to become more. Until Shay's true identity was revealed, and the fated pairs chance was gone...


BUT DANGER WILL DRIVE THEM BACK INTO EACH OTHER'S ARMS...


Shay fell for the boy next door, suspecting nothing of the ancient secrets he guarded. After what appeared to be a stinging betrayal, she's tried to banish the memories of her first love. However, the machinations of the sinister demon that left her for dead will force her to confront her past head on.


Now she must learn to embrace her warrior nature, and the warrior who has always watched over her, in order to turn back a tide of unspeakable evil...


Thoughts:


Embrace the Highland Warrior is the second book in Anita Clenney's Highland 
Warrior series. It follows close on the heels of Awaken the Highland Warrior and offers readers a blend of paranormal romance and romantic suspense. Romance fans who like their novels with a lot of action will really enjoy this series about the mysterious clan of Highland warriors who defend the world from Demons. Clenney uses humor, spirited dialogue and some very sexy paranormal characters to heat up this book and take readers on an adventure they won't soon forget. 

Clenney gives her readers a lot to think about in her novels and Embrace the Highland Warrior is no exception. Her characters are sharp, witty and full of passion, a trait that is synonymous with the Highland spirit. Being of Scottish descent (my father is among the first of his clan born in the US), I am always curious to see how authors treat Highlanders. I often feel that they don't understand the passion and the heart that it took for the Highlanders of old to survive in their world. It is obvious that Clenney has a deep sense of who these men and women were and what they were willing to fight for: family, home and love and duty. The Connor clan embodies all of these characteristics and Clenney does a fantastic job of showing them as not only handsome and sexy, but also as loyal and passionate and their women were no less raw or honest.

Cody is a Highland Warrior but the woman he loves, Shay is a warrior as well, even though in the beginning she doesn't know it. These two have a lot of issues to face before they can even consider their feelings for each other. Cody is portrayed as a man on a mission, he will do whatever it takes to protect Shay now that he has her back. He is loyal to the bone and takes his duty to rid the world of demons very seriously. He comes across as dark and bit brooding but willing to take a chance for love. Shay is a very strong woman, even before she learns of her warrior heritage. She is resourceful and full of determination. The combination of these two characters is explosive. Clenney makes it impossible to see them with anyone else. The heat is ramped up between them even more as the situation with the demons and vampires gets more complicated. As passionate people that spills over into their romantic life and readers will love the searing intensity of their love.

I liked the way Clenney slips back and forth between the past and the present with helps to solidify the reasons that Cody and Shay separated and why they come back together. It also serves to enlighten the reader about the clan itself and the other members that I hope to read more about in subsequent books in this series. The banter between all of the characters is fun to read and provides a lot of insight into the workings of the clan and how each of these very well developed characters interact. Clenney uses humor, with the matchmaking aunts, and sheer sex appeal with a number of sexy Highlanders to move the plot along at a quick speed. There is so much action in this one, that readers will probably find themselves holding their breath at some points. Clenney provides readers with an intense love story and a very suspenseful sub-plot. The vampires and demons give readers some well written villains that are just as charismatic as their Highland opposites.

There is a lot going on in this one, but I think that's one of the things that makes it so interesting. The twists and turns are well placed and add to the overall drama of the novel. I recommend this one to readers who are looking for a paranormal romance that will knock their socks off! This series is fast becoming a favorite of mine and I can't wait to see what Clenney comes up with next for this clan. 

Embrace the Highland Warrior is available NOW from your favorite bookseller.

I'm giving this one 5 out of 5 apples from my book bag!

Anita Clenney writes paranormal romance and romantic suspense. Before giving herself over to the writing bug, she worked in a pickle factory and a preschool, booked shows Aztec Fire Dancers, and was a secretary, an executive assistant, and a Realtor. She lives with her husband and two children in suburban Virginia not far from Washington D.C.