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Catherine Depford is a wealthy heiress and could have her pick of most eligible titled bachelors but she was confused and afraid that the madness which took her mother’s life would descend on her. Catherine’s fears are real as she has been having dreams of a Scottish warrior claiming her body - igniting her with passion, and voices constantly reverberating in her head chanting curses over and over when she least expects it. Expecting to follow in her mother’s footsteps she must find a kind and caring man should the worst happen. Highland chief Gabriel MacBraedon has come to London, to claim his bride. Not the woman he loved, but the bride who will satisfy an ancient curse that has dragged his clan into poverty and despair. An honorable man, he will do his duty to save his clan but in finding Catherine, Gabriel never expected to find the woman he would be able to love and cherish. *** I’ve always been pleased with this author whose talent for writing sensual romantic adventures has always drawn me like a magnet when I see her books on the shelf. In THE NIGHT BEFORE THE WEDDING, Mullins sets an unusual stage with a bit of a fantastical plot. All of it surrounds an ancient curse that will either return harmony and bounty to the MacBraedon and Farlan clans, or plunge them deeper in despair – all of it hinging on whether one woman, Catherine Depford, will wed the chief of the MacBraedon clan. Mullins ties together a neat scenario with the telling of Catherine’s mother Mad Glynis, who rejected the former MacBraedon chief and ran away with an Englishman, only to go completely insane some years later taking her own life. Catherine’s father never told her the story of her Scottish background and only watched for signs of madness in his daughter, hoping that he could find (buy) her a kind husband before she went mad, a man who would care for her after he was gone. As part of Catherine’s symptoms Mullins came up with a very unusual and entertaining element where Catherine began speaking in fluid Gaelic, a language she’d never heard before! This was turned into a humorous event when the only one who understood her was her maid Peg, who was basically planted in the household to both help Catherine accept her fate and aid Gabriel in winning her over. This was a sweet and rather simple romance with only a few minor barriers towards the two leads achieving happiness. Unfortunately, while Gabriel came across as extremely kind, honorable, handsome as the devil and a perfect mate for Catherine – I didn’t ‘feel’ the love. There was plenty of lust and physical attraction, but that spark of love that sets apart a good love story from a great one was not an emotion I felt strongly. Sorry to say, this was not one of Ms. Mullins best efforts. Marilyn Rondeau – Reviewers International Organization (RIO) |
The Night before the wedding
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