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Known as
the Shrew of Assynt Castle, Catriona MacLeod flees from her home and
across the
Scottish Highlands when she learns she is betrothed and her
husband-to-be will arrive
in a sennight. Catriona vows that she
will live her life her own way, never marry and never bend to the laws
of any
man. On her journey, Catriona meets a
young
bard, who assists her out of the bad weather and protects her. But when Catriona learns the bard is heading
for her own home, Assynt Castle and knows who she is,
she doesn’t
want to be in his company any longer. Catriona finds that she has to
convince
the bard to help her get away from her domineering family. Can she
convince him
to help her?
Tayg Munro,
one of King Robert the Bruce’s warriors, disguises himself as a simple
bard to
carry a missive to Assynt Castle from the King. Along the way, Tayg meets Catriona MacLeod,
who he can’t believe is the much talked about Shrew of Assynt Castle,
for she
is far from ugly as many have claimed her to be. After
realizing a few truths about Assynt Castle from Catriona, Tayg
finds himself torn
between duty and the need to help Catriona with her quest.
As Catriona
and Tayg realize how much they can help one another, they are thrown
into more
trouble than either expected. They
battle Catriona’s brothers, the life-threatening weather and find a
trust for
another person that means more to them than anything. Can Tayg tame the
Shrew
of Assynt Castle? Can Tayg and Catriona
conquer anything by working together?
Laurin
Wittig pens a delightful heroine with Catriona MacLeod.
Throughout Charming the Shrew,
I was charmed by Catriona’s
determination and strength, as well as her compassion and her desire to
be free
to make her own choices and be valued for her mind. Tayg, what to say
about
this charmer, except that he is most certainly that!
Tayg is a hero that we all can love.
His strength and honour are amazing and his
loyalty is passionate. This is my first
read
by Laurin Wittig and I thoroughly enjoyed her romp through the Scottish
Highlands with Tayg and Catriona. I
found Ms. Wittig’s portrayal of the Highlands and the words she used,
enhanced Scotland’s beauty and the
richness of the
story.
Charming the Shrew is a charming, fun and
captivating
story of love, honour, passion and poignant words that enrich it. Ms. Wittig is a wonderful storyteller and
captures
the essence of history and love in Charming
the Shrew. It is a powerful historical romance, not to be
missed!
Reviewed by Tracey West
for The Road
to Romance
February 20, 2004
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