A Contemporary Romance with a Bit of Scottish Magick
Wild Scottish Knight: A fun opposites attract magical romance
The Enchanted Highlands
Fantasy Romance, Romantic Comedy
Lovewrite Publishing
April 4, 2023
Ebook, Paperback, Hardcover, Audiobook
312
Opposites attract in this modern-day fairytale when American, Sophie MacKnight, inherits a Scottish castle along with a hot grumpy Scotsman who is tasked with training her to be a magickal knight before the Kelpies wreak havoc on the people of Loren Brae.
The knight was supposed to be a man.
Not me, Sophie MacKnight, a marketing associate from California.
This must be a practical joke that the Scots play on visiting Americans. Because otherwise I’ve inherited a haunted castle in Scotland, along with one irritatingly sexy Scotsman, who would be delighted if I turned tail and ran.
Frankly, I thought I would fly here, sell the heap of bricks, and head back home to a life that I…well, I was comfortable with at the very least. Instead, the people of Loren Brae are in trouble, and it appears that as the new owner of the castle, I’m next in line to reinstate the magickal Order of Caledonia. Which means, first, I have to learn to believe in magick. And secondly, I have to train to become a knight.
And my trainer? None other than Lachlan Campbell, the grumpiest man I’ve ever had the annoyance of meeting. It’s a toss-up who is pricklier, Lachlan, or his kilted Chihuahua, Sir Buster. Not only does Lachlan think that I can’t hack it, but he also resents my claim on his castle.
If only he didn’t look so devastatingly hot in his kilt.
Now, I’m stuck proving myself to him, all while trying to figure out how to help my new friends in Loren Brae.
Sparks fly as our swords meet, and we battle our rising attraction for each other.
Who will win in this (Highland) game of love?
Wild Scottish Knight by Tricia O’Malley is the first in the new published series called The Enchanted Highlands. This series opens with the story of Sophie MacKnight, a brand manager for her uncle’s multi-million dollar security firm and the surprise inheritor of an ancient castle in the Scottish town of Loren Brae upon his death. At first, Sophie plans to sell the old pile of bricks and move on, but the stipulations in her uncle’s will state that she needs to move to the castle for the next year in order to help manage the estate — or else she’ll lose all her inheritance. As someone who finds stability in spreadsheets and prickles at changes in her routine, Sophie only goes because she loves her uncle and is dedicated to his ongoing legacy. The reader is now braced for a self-discovery story with some sass, a bit of magick, and definitely some spice.
The old pile of bricks that Sophie inherited is an actual, haunted castle next to a loch in the middle of the Scottish Highlands where legends quite literally have come to life. The Kelpies (mythical water horses) are terrorizing the castle and the surrounding village of Loren Brae and only a “knight” who has come to restore the ancient Order of Caledonia can subdue them. Sophie is that knight and she must pass challenges of the order, such as chivalry, generosity, and courage, to unlock the magick that will hold the Kelpies at bay and protect the Stone of Truth.
Oh, yes. My heart was huge and I had so much to give. Instead of looking at all the ways I could fail the lovely people I’d met here, maybe it was time for me to show them all the ways I could help.
Me. Sophie MacKnight.
The Knight of the Order of Caledonia.
To think I’d always been looking for a knight in shining armor when the person I needed to rescue me had been staring back in the mirror all along.
There is just one unanticipated challenge for Sophie: falling head-over-heels for the grumpy Scottish castle-keeper, Lachlan Campbell. Lachlan grew up in Loren Brae and has seen firsthand how a town full of legend and magick can bring misfortune. He is skeptical of Sophie’s role as the knight, of the Order of Caledonia, and even of the Kelpies. But what he cannot deny is the instant attraction between them and the longing he has for her company and touch.
Wild Scottish Knight is not a “high fantasy” story. It reads like a contemporary, spicy romance imbued with faint brushes of magick. Sophie discovers through her knightly challenges that it is the ordinary acts of kindness and bravery that make one worthy and, even when one fails, redemption is found in love, dedication, and family. As a reader, I am used to more thorough world-building fantasy novels. Yet I found this story to be quirky, funny, and small-town charming. I wanted a story to make me laugh and remind me that sexiness and confidence can come in unlikely packages. Wild Scottish Knight did not disappoint. It does not tie up every loose end in the new legend of Loren Brae, but that’s not the point. I suspect the series will unfold with the stories of a whole host of unlikely heroes as the new Order of Caledonia forms to protect the people of their beloved Scottish village. For more of the Enchanted Highlands series, the second book, Wild Scottish Love, is now available!
Celeste is a woman who is unwavering about certain things in life; three of those being books, cats, and cold brew coffee. If she can enjoy all three at the same time, it’s going to be a good day. Her favorite genres are fantasy or sci-fi romance, historical romance, and historical fiction but every few books she likes to mix it up with contemporary fiction, a good psychological thriller, or an inspiring memoir. She has a busy schedule working full-time for an online university but she makes sure to unwind each day with stories, either by reading to her elementary school-aged daughter or tucking herself in bed with her Kindle or the latest book she picked up at a local book store.
