Audiobook Review: Highland Wedding by Hannah Howell {Narrated by Ashford MacNab}

The vivid scar that spans Sir Iain MacLagan's cheek is a daily reminder of the wife he lost - and of the enemy that still stalks him. Commanded by Scotland's king to remarry in order to unite two powerful border clans, lain reluctantly weds Islaen MacRoth, a woman whose delicate appearance belies a playful, seductive nature that proves dangerously attractive to a man who has vowed never to jeopardize his heart, or his loved ones, again...

 

Raised with eleven boisterous brothers, Islaen has little time for foolish romantic notions. Even so, she hoped for more than a forced marriage to a man who shares her bed, but not her life. Step by step, Islaen sets out to wear down Iain's defenses.

 

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.| Narrator: Ashford MacNab | Length: 11 hours and 58 minutes | Source: Publisher | Ratings: Story-3 Cups, Performance-1 Cup

So I struggle with Hannah Howell’s books and I’ve never really found one that really hooked me although I found Highland Wedding to be enjoyable. It has the forced marriage trope and I do so enjoy watching the dynamics of a forced marriage unfold.

 

The meeting of the characters at the start is a bit different for your standard historical romance and it may throw some readers off, but I rather enjoyed the odd start. Both Islean or Iain are flawed, she’s not really comfortable with herself and he allows his fear to turn him into a jerk most of the time. His fear is reasonable yet he doesn’t handle himself that well. What I really enjoyed was watching Islean come into her own and seeing how she and Iain grow closer.

 

What I struggled with in the plot was the chemistry between Islean and Iain. There’s an attraction there but it seemed undeveloped and not fleshed out.

 

I didn’t really enjoy the narrator. I found her to be boring and I had to force myself to listen. I really wish she would have been able to liven this one up.

 

Overall, it was an okay story but the narrator could have been better.   



 

What’s your favorite romance trope?