Date published November 2008
ISBN 08439-5488-4
Genre Historical Romance
Mass Market Paperback
Reviewed by Gina
Trapped by her unsavory uncle’s machinations, accused of a crime she didn't commit, Lady Anne Campbell is branded and sent as a criminal from her home in Scotland to the American frontier as an indentured servant. Only a short time after being bought by the Hawes she wonders how she will live out fourteen years of beatings by the odious couple.
Iain MacKinnon has journeyed with his brothers, Morgan and Connor, to Albany planning to have their mother’s wedding ring sized for his bride to be. Before the deed can be done, however, the MacKinnon brothers come upon a prostitute and the customer who is not only bent on denying her the price of her favors, but beating her as well. A man of honor, Iain rushes to her rescue and falls under the eye of Lord William Wentworth, commander of Fort Elizabeth. Wentworth offers Iain a bargain—become a Ranger and fight on the side of England or hang for killing the man who was beating the prostitute. Iain chooses life and his brothers join him in the fight against the French.
Returning from a patrol Iain comes upon Anne as she fleas a band of attacking Abenaki. His sense of honor prevents him from following his orders and he rushes to her rescue. Unable to explain his feelings, Iain risks all to save her and finds himself falling in love with Anne. Anne as well finds she cannot resist her growing feelings for Iain, but the shadow of her secrets haunts her. More than being falsely accused of being a thief, Anne is an Argyle Campbell, the clan that cost the MacKinnons to lose all at Culloden. A bigger fly in the ointment is Lord Wentworth—he covets Anne as he has wanted no other. Torn between his own sense of duty and desire for Anne, he jeopardizes the lives of not only Iain, but his Rangers and Anne as well.
SURRENDER is one of the best books I have read this year. Ms. Clare vividly captures the emotional highs and lows of life, love and the choices we make. Ms. Clare brings together two people with so much in common, yet they are worlds apart. The relationship between Iain and Anne is intense and that alone makes the story unforgettable. The specter of Culloden looms over both of their heads despite the fact they are fighting their own battles to survive an ocean away. Lord Wentworth is the icing on the cake as a perpetual fly in their ointment. Every scene he appeared in I cringed, waiting for him to do something so utterly despicable that Iain would cleave him in two with his claymore. Wentworth is the slimiest of villains. You feel the tendrils of fear even when he lays in his bed, pleasuring himself with thoughts of Anne. I cheered each time Iain outsmarted him.
More than giving readers a collections of villains—the French the Abenaki, Wentworth and Anne’s uncle, she takes readers into Wentworth’s mind and we watch his own conflicts play out on the pages.
With meticulous attention to detail, Ms. Clare takes her readers into the forests of upstate New York, takes them into the frozen lake of winter and behind the walls of Fort Elizabeth. Each character is unique and carries their own unique voice. While this is intended to be a three book series featuring the MacKinnon brothers, I’d be thrilled to also see Lt. Cooke end up with his own story. In contrast to Iain’s potent masculinity, Cooke is appealing in his own way. I eagerly look forward to Connor and Morgan’s stories.
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