New and Improved! Jack: A Scottish Outlaw has been enhanced with new content.
HAPPILY EVER AFTERS THAT KEEP GOING! Jack and Bella's Happy Ending is just the beginning! Keep the magic going with fun word games and puzzles relating directly to Jack and Bella's story, which you will find at the end of this ebook!
When Lady Isabella Redesdale's carriage is attacked on the road north into Scotland, her virtue and her very life are threatened... But then a band of masked Highwaymen descend upon her attackers, stealing her away. When she finds out her hero is not a knight in shining armor but rather Jack MacVie, Scottish thief and outlaw to the crown, she is terrified that she escaped the clutches of one ruthless gang for another. Only what she discovers is that she has more in common with Jack than she first realizes. They both crave freedom--he from English tyranny and she from her loveless betrothal. But in a world where kings reign and birth dictates one's station, freedom is not won, it is stolen.
Join Jack and Isabella on a fast-paced, passionate journey where love rises above convention and brings the true villains to their knees.
"Lily Baldwin weaves thrilling tales in a beautiful, lyrical style, captivating readers from the first word to the last contented sigh." - Ceci Giltenan, Bestselling author
"Lily Baldwin...paints a beautiful literary picture with strong characters and an intriguing storyline." - Kathryn Le Veque, USA Today Bestselling author
"You know a book is great when you can feel the characters pain, their fears and their happiness...Lily Baldwin's books do that!" - Amazon Reviewer
Award-winning Historical Romance author Lily Baldwin loves writing, Scotland, her wonderful husband and beautiful young daughter--though not necessarily in that order. She has a BA in anthropology from the University of New Hampshire, and an MA in International Studies from Birmingham University in the UK. She daydreams constantly, and gets her best story ideas while running; she is even training for a half-marathon. She also finds inspiration in Nature, a quality revealed through the powerful description and drama in her books. Currently TO BEWITCH A HIGHLANDER, HIGHLAND THUNDER, and TO LOVE A WARRIOR (Books 1, 2 & 3 of the Isle of Mull series) are available. HIGHLAND SHADOWS, Beautiful Darkness Series, Book 1 is a Paranormal Highland Romance. Lily is hoping to release book 2 in the Beautiful Darkness Series in Spring 2016. A JEWEL IN THE VAULTS, an award-winning novella, will soon be available in audio! Most recently, Lily has released JACK: A Scottish Outlaw with the promise of many more Scottish Outlaws to come.
She lives in New England with her cherished husband and daughter.
"Jack: A Scottish Outlaw (Highland Outlaws Book 1)" by Lily Baldwin is not only the first book in this series but it is my first read from this author, and it will not be my last. I thoroughly enjoyed Jack MacVie and Lady Isabella Redesdale story. Jack's parents and youngest sister were murdered by guards from the King of England. Isabella's mother was in town when the massacre took place and also lost her life. The two meet in an unlikely place, during an unlikely time and find that they are soulmates. I LOVED this book.
Worth your time to read about love and heroes on both sides - Scottish and English. A wonderfully written, romantic historical novel that will have you riveted to your chair.
This is an OK start to the Highland Outlaw series, but it was a bit too short to have enough character development. My rating is 3 stars.
I liked both Jack and Bella, but I thought they fell in love a little too quickly for it to be believable. Bella got over her fear of Jack and his brothers way sooner than most women would -- after all, they were thieves and did kidnap her. I also thought Jack would have taken longer to realize that Bella was not cold and spoiled like the English nobles he had known, especially since he hated the English so much after their king slaughtered so many innocent people.
My main complaint, though, is that I wish the story had been longer, to allow for more character development. It would also have allowed for Jack and Bella to have a more believable time frame to fall in love.
My rating system is below. 1 star -- Hated it, or did not finish. I usually only give this rating if some of the content is truly objectionable to me, like if one of the main characters does something really awful, and gets away with it. 2 stars -- Didn't like it. This rating usually means that I thought the writing wasn't very good, the editing was terrible, I didn't like the characters, or it had other major flaws. 3 stars -- I liked it, but had some minor issues with it. This rating means that there were minor editing issues, the story needed more character development, it was just too unrealistic, or had some other fairly minor issue. The majority of books I read get this rating – I do not consider it a bad rating. 4 stars -- I liked it a lot. This is a high rating for me, and I rarely give a higher one. 5 stars -- I loved it, and will probably read it again. Very few books are good enough to get this rating from me. The ones that do are usually classics.
highly recommend the audiobook on youtube; the guy who reads it has a deep Scottish brogue & its *chef's kiss*. also there's sound effects. warning there are a couple moments where the narrator yells certain lines & scared the crap out of me. bare in mind it was 4am & I was laying in bed, but still. this narration is the only reason this bk is getting more than a 2.5/5 star rating.
as far as the story goes, it's very predictable & the romance is insta-lovey. not much is explored with the characters beyond their surface level traits. the real mvp is gertrude aka the nosey old bar maid whose only purpose is to tell bella's dad 'the only thing your daughter's hungry for is that dick.' I'm not fucking kidding, I bow to thee.
there's are some problematic moments where bella describes jack as being 'terrifying'. & then jack says 'he should've taken what he wanted from her (bella) when he had the chance'. this is after he claims that he's not a rapist or murderer, only a thief. so, make of that what you will. *yikes*
in the end it's a decent romp, great if you're inbetween bks or if you're in a slump.
Lady Isabella Redesdale has been trapped inside her home in Berwick after King Edward sacked the city. She was betrothed but doesn't want a loveless marriage so when her sister gives birth to her first child, Isabella set out for her sister's home in Scotland where there are bandits and roving Scots. Her carriage never makes it before it was attacked by brigands. Fearing for her life when she was captured by another group of brigands, Isabella was surprised when they turned out to be actually secret rebels fighting for independence for Scotland! As they travel north to Scotland, both realize that the other isn't what the other thought. Will Jack MacVie and Isabella Redesdale find true love?
The background of this story is accurate which makes the story believable. It's face-paced and it isn't a big book so it's easy to read.
Lily Baldwin is a new to me author. And I was pleasantly surprised at this story. It was detailed enough to make the reader feel as though they were in the woods with the Saints, or in the castle with the royals but not so much as to make the story tedious. I am so looking forward to reading about Quinn next. But I must admit, I am REALLY REALLY looking forward to Alec’s story. So far from his description, his story gonna be the most intense!!!
I Loved This Book! Jack is a rebel outlaw, robbing from the English to support the Scottish cause. In one such adventure, he and his brothers witness a young Englishwoman and her escort being attacked, robbed and assaulted. Of course they saved her and then they had to determine what to do with her. This book was full of adventure. Both Jack and Bella were longing for their own freedom that unexpectedly drew them together. Great characters. Loved all the brothers and their sister Rose.
Bella felt captive in her home with her father who has been grieving for 5 years. The village they lived in was attacked and many perished including Bellas mother. Bella went on a trip to visit her sister and was attacked. Jack and his brothers, witnessed the attack and saved Bella. Then the story thickens as truth comes out about Bella and Jack. I read this in a few hours, Great story with awesome characters.
Lady Isabella felt like a prisoner in her home ever since her mother was killed when King Edward attacked their town killing men women and children. and her father with drew into himself with grief. When a messenger comes letting them know that her sister had just had a son she begged her father to let her go. On her trip her carriage was attacked and the guards killed. She was almost raped and killed until Jack and his brothers rescue her. Loved the Story
I needed this book so badly. The last two I read were both good, but both plodded along. In this book Lady Redesdale's carriage was attacked and she came close to being raped. She was rescued by another band of outlaws. She was held hostage, but more like a visit with a loving family. She was returned home, but due to unforseen circumstances she, Jack and her father were riding for their lives as fugitives. A truly lovely story.
What a beautiful story of old England and Scottish wars. The taking of a lady and almost rape was a great story but to be done by the kings men's because her mom was not royalty was awful. But to do it to another Lord's betrothed that should have made him kill the Lord. But he didn't. Glad she had the good sense to go for Jack.
This is a bit of a typical story of romance novel type, but amusing and draws you back to read a few more pages till you're done and look at her other ones. A fair bit cheesy but fun and engaging. Gives you smiles now and again and is generally a good lazy read on quiet days.
I enjoyed this book. I like Lily 's style of writing. From the beginning, I was drawn into the drama. Jack and his brothers steal from the rich English nobles. They use the money for Scotland and orphans. It's on to the next book in this series.
You know that girl on Facebook who's in love with someone every time you turn around? Yeah, this Bella reminds me of that girl. I wished that I could slap her, and tell her it's not love- it's just hormones. Maybe with some character development this could be a better story.
This is such a great series. Perhaps this is the least exciting of the series because it’s a novella (I think!) and didn’t have a huge amount of plot, but it did a great job introducing characters and setting the series on its way.
I just couldn't get into this. It wasn't holding my attention even though it seemed well written. It drug for me and I didn't finish the book. It could have just been timing. Give it a try on Kindle Unlimited.
This short novella is very colorfully descriptive and captivating. I enjoyed it very much. After reading about Jack and his brothers, I feel I already know the characters and want to continue reading the series!
I had high hopes for this novel with 4 plus star rating but I read the beginning chapters three times before I could proceed into the story. It didn't engage my attention nor did it prove much better as I continued reading. Thankfully it was a quick read so time loss was minimal.
Fast paced love story between a Scottish rebel and an English lady. Our hero is longing to live a peaceful, contented life. Our heroine longs to escape her lonely life and find love. They come from different worlds. Can they find a way to stay together?
This story is action and suspense from start to finish. The characters are very strong and believable. I love the way everything came tog and I can’t wait to read book two.
The story of Bella and Jack is one of adventure and danger. Bella was the daughter of a noble and Jack was an outlaw with an unusual job for the Church. How could these two make a life together work? Read to find out. Good book!
Nobody and I repeat nobody used the word option in that century. When I read it its like a punch in the gut. I stop reading. Every now and then I think I might be surprised by these writers, never am.
This was my FIRST Historical fast paced contemporary romance I have read. I am debating whether I like it or not. In a effort to keep everything G/PG rated, it was a tad silly. I will read Book 2 before I write a real review.