| From RomanceJunkies.com Historical
Heralded as the Scottish Songbird, Grace MacEachin, isn’t interested in furthering her career in the theater and certainly has no desire to take a lover despite all the betting taking place about who will be the first to bed her. Her focus is solely on proving her father innocent of a crime that tore apart her family when she was still a child. Blackmailing the guilty party (or parties) as the case may be seems like the perfect revenge, or it did until Richard becomes involved. Suddenly the hellion finds herself facing a stuffy, boring bean counter who has no interest in living life to the fullest, but then he’s never encountered anyone like Grace before.
Richard Lynsted is determined to put a stop to Grace’s blackmail attempts on his father and uncle. It’s completely ludicrous to think that either of the men he’s known his whole life would commit the sort of crime Grace claims. Her insistence of their guilt forces him to make a life altering decision – he’ll accompany her to Scotland and confront her father and learn the truth of the matter. Only traveling with Grace proves to be more perilous and frustrating than he’d ever imagined. Richard has his life all planned out right down to the well-bred woman he’ll eventually marry but Grace’s zest for life and spirited nature have him rethinking his plans.
Grace isn’t happy being a part of the theater, what she really wants is to return home to her beloved Scotland and following an attack by the theater manager she vows to do just that. Thanks to Richard’s timely rescue she doesn’t come to any harm but somehow Richard seems like he could be more of a threat. While he’s convinced of his family’s innocence, she’s just as convinced of their guilt and the only way to satisfy them both is to get to the bottom of the story. What begins as a simple short venture turns into a surprising adventure full of betrayal, pitfalls, laughable arguments, lively discussions and tons of challenges neither of them ever anticipated. Richard insists that the woman he marries will be well-bred and the perfect model of decorum - Grace is anything but … however she fires his blood like no other woman ever could. What will happen once they reach their destination and the truth about the long ago crime is revealed?
THE MARRIAGE RING by Cathy Maxwell is a fun and imaginative historical romp over the English and Scottish countryside. Grace’s feisty and assertive nature contradicts Richard’s more cautious and controlled persona which results in some hilariously stunning scenes and dialogue. What I especially loved about this story was the emotions these characters and their situations evoked. Richard and Grace are strong characters who aren’t perfect by any means but they discover that sometimes perfect is way too boring and what they want is a little excitement – which they certainly manage to find. Ms. Maxwell installs the perfect blend of humor, romance and even suspense to create a beautiful story which will have readers on the edge of their seats questioning just how things will play out once this couple reaches their final destination.
Readers first met Grace in IN A HIGHLANDER’S BED and SEDUCTION AT CHRISTMAS and then got to know her much better in THE EARL CLAIMS HIS WIFE, so it’s only fitting that this young woman be given a story of her own. Don’t worry if you haven’t read the other stories though, THE MARRIAGE RING can be read as a stand-alone, though I have to admit I’m curious enough that I intend to read the previous novel just because I am curious about her friend.
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