Branded a thief and held prisoner in a Scottish castle high upon a cliff by the dark and forbidding Earl of Erroll, Mary Hurst must find a way to free herself and gain possession of a mysterious artifact that can help her beloved brother regain his freedom.
Fortunately, Mary is no simple, schoolroom miss and the handsome earl is about to discover that spirited women do not take kindly to being imprisoned. Forced to deal with his recalcitrant (and he’s certain, devious) guest, Erroll finds himself reluctantly admitting that if he weren’t so sure she was a thief, he might be interested in the intrepid Mary. Might be, he reminds himself after he kisses her yet one more time . . .
Before Mary’s done, the earl will wish he’d never turned the key upon her door . . . and wonder if perhaps she really is a thief, and has stolen his heart!
This is the first book in Karen Hawkins new Hurst Amulet series. I love Karen Hawkins she is definitely in my Top Ten Historical Romance Authors.
This story starts out the series and the search for the Hurst family amulet that has long been thought to be a curse to whoever holds it in their possession. Mary Hurst gets a letter from her brother Michael, the adventurer and Egyptologist. He has been kidnapped and held prisoner during his search for the amulet and he needs a certain artifact to be delivered to his captors in order to set him free. So with her brothers all gone Mary sets off to Scotland to retrieve the box from the reclusive Earl of Erroll. Soon she finds herself branded a thief and imposter and held prisoner at the whim of the dominating Earl.
Angus Hay has not been the same since a fire claimed his wife seven years ago and left not only scars on his soul but also his body. He holes up in his half destroyed estate with his tomes and artifacts but when he meets fiery and tempting curvaceous Mary Hurst his heart thought long dead was alive again. He notices the similarities in looks in Mary to his late wife but Mary is more alive and more daring than Kiera ever was. He at first refuses to believe Mary is who she says she is because his friend Michael Hurst had sent a letter warning him that no matter what not to give the box to anyone no matter who they were.
Mary has a letter from Michael about needing the box but with Angus' contradicting letter from Michael warning of someone coming to try to take the box Angus needs confirmation that Mary is who she claims to be. So he takes Mary prisoner but he soon learns that he was a fool about not believing her and realizes he needs her in his life to make it brighter and make him feel alive once again.
This story was soo beautiful!! I loved how Mary helped Angus realize that even though he had scars on his body that he was still handsome and he deserved to live the life he had always dreamed of, of becoming an adventurer. Mary, too, wants to do what her brother does and together her and Angus will live an adventure. The story was soo well written and the tension and anticipation between Mary and Angus was palpable.
So I am sooo freaking excited to read the next book in the series Scandal in Scotland. Now I also want to read her Maclean series which stars two of Mary Hurst's sisters. I will have to work on getting those and of course adding them to the ever growing to be read pile of mine!! I will also need to read Much Ado About Marriage which is a prequel to not only the Hurst Amulet series but the Maclean series. Although I was not lost while reading this book I still want to read them because I love me a Scottish man!!
If you want to read Mary and Angus' story just go here --> One Night in Scotland (Hurst Amulet)
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