Surrender by Pamela Clare

Dorchester Publishing sent out a few Advanced Readers Copies of this release, and I was fortunate enough to receive one. This is the first book in a new trilogy by Pamela Clare which tells the story of the MacKinnon brothers, who have been pressed to serve the British after being falsely accused of Murder.

In this first installment we meet the brothers and get to know the circumstances that has the brothers, as highlanders and jacobites, working as Rangers in the French / British war. We then meet Lady Anne Burness Campbell who also has been falsely accused of a crime and is sold into indentured labor to the colonies.

When Iain (the eldest of the MacKinnon brothers decides to intervene and save Anne from rape and then death, the writing is set on the wall.

This was my first book by Clare and I was pleasantly surprised. I received the book as an ARC and to be honest, I had no expectations for the piece. The blurb on the back of the book just didn't make it sound that exciting and I found that I had no real interest in reading it right away, but I had committed myself to read the book and so I started it as soon as I got it.

As soon as I situated where in history the events took place, the book came alive. I am a BIG Last of the Mohicans fan and the atmosphere that was created in the book reminded me of that movie/book. The brothers had been adopted by a tribe of Indians and they fought crudely like the Highlanders and Indians were known to fight. The romance between Iain and Annie was not rushed or hindered by a bunch of silly misunderstandings. When Iain reacted stupidly, he admitted it and accepted his flaw. He realized the importance in life and treasured his time alive. This is how I would expect a sensible man would act in a time of war like the brothers lived in.

The rhythm Clare set in the plot had great timing and the characters were all well developed. When you closed the book you felt as if you were leaving good friends behind. This is something that an author writing a series needs to establish from book one. You need to want to go back and read about those other two brothers. You need to care about the characters and feel the need to revisit them. I must admit that even the 'villain' of the book, at the end, had me wanting a HEA for him as well.

Besides all that... the book was quite steamy. Lord William and his friendly fingers and Iain with his handy razor, made the book sizzle with scenes that were just not your typical 'let's go tupping!'. Definitely a series to watch out for and an author with great talent.

Grade: B+