Girl in the Castle - Lizzie Lamb

Date of Reading: 13/05/2018

Author: Lizzie Lamb

Publication Year: 2017

Rating: 4.5/5

(This review is part of the blog tour organised by Love Books Group Tours)

About the book:

Her academic career in tatters, Dr Henriette Bruar needs somewhere to lay low, plan her comeback and restore her tarnished reputation. Fate takes her to a remote Scottish castle to auction the contents of an ancient library to pay the laird's mounting debts. The family are in deep mourning over a tragedy which happened years before, resulting in a toxic relationship between the laird and his son, Keir MacKenzie. Cue a phantom piper, a lost Jacobite treasure, and a cast of characters who - with Henri’s help, encourage the MacKenzies to confront the past and move on. However - will the Girl in the Castle be able to return to university once her task is completed, and leave gorgeous, sexy Keir MacKenzie behind?

My Review:

       The book's cover was not to my taste and being averse to highland adventures, it was not my intention to read it. But then comes the matter of heroine who is an academic which I can't pass on. So here I am, finishing another enchanting novel and happy in being so wrong in first impressions. 
      
Here are the reasons why I enjoyed the story so much:

Protagonist: As mentioned above a willful heroine with strong academic credentials is one of my weaknesses. And Dr. Henriette Bruar more than qualifies the description. She reminded me a lot of Evelyn in "The Mummy", with all her I-am-the-expert speeches. The author has managed to weave along with it the not so pretty picture of the university politics showing the cutthroat competition that has begun to degrade even our scholarly pursuits.

Setting: An ancient Scottish castle -- the most beautiful background for an amazing Gothic romance! Added to this is the perfect blend of supernatural, family tragedy and a hidden treasure making this an unforgettable read. If you haven't visited the Highlands, after this you will definitely want to.

Characters: Author creates a cosy scene with a few servants, the master and his son. Even the wicked cousins are difficult to hate. I loved Sandy aka Alexander even though he is far from being the rugged hero.

Narration: The omniscient narrator follows the perceptions of Henriette which was a welcome change from the usual romance reads. Kind of felt like going through the modern 'Jane Eyre'.

      All in all, I will recommend this book to anyone who likes romance with a slight sprinkle of mystery.

Meet the author:

After teaching her 1000th pupil and working as a deputy headteacher in a large primary school, Lizzie decided to pursue her first love: writing. She joined the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s New Writers’ Scheme, wrote Tall, Dark and Kilted (2012), followed a year later by Boot Camp Bride. Although much of her time is taken up publicising her novels she published a third novel Scotch on the Rocks in July 2015. It achieved Best Seller status within two weeks of appearing on Amazon. Her latest novel Girl in the Castle was published in 2017 and reached #3 in the charts. Lizzie is a founding member of indie publishing group – New Romantics Press and has held author events in many venues and loves meeting readers. In March 2016, Lizzie was a finalist in the prestigious Exeter Novel Prize for Scotch on the Rocks. In November, she co-hosted an author event at Aspinall, St Pancras, talking about writing and the amount of research she puts into her novels. Lizzie lives in Leicestershire (UK) with her husband and a naughty parrot called Jasper.