The clan battles of 16th-century Scotland form the backdrop for this slow-moving romance from Fletcher (Irish Hope, etc.), which starts with a bang but unfolds with formulaic leisure. Moira Maclean, daughter of a clan leader, has grown up in a convent, virtually forgotten by her father until, at 29, she's considered too old for childbearing. Suddenly a battle-weary warrior named Ian Cameron appears with his men, shattering the nighttime peace of the convent. He brings a token from her father, who he claims insisted on his deathbed that Moira marry Ian to prevent a war. Alarmed but obedient, she goes through with the hurried ceremony and its consummation, then is shocked when more men arrive—her father, very much alive, and her brothers. Furious that she has wed their enemy, they leave in disgust. Ian departs as well, but returns a few months later to claim his wife. While on their journey to join his clan, she finds that their marriage really did prevent a war but, for reasons unknown, someone is now threatening her life. With its feisty heroine, sensitive hero and numerous sex scenes, this book should satisfy Fletcher's fans, but others may be disturbed by her hero and heroine's anachronistic behavior (Ian's assurances to Moira that he'll always "be there" for her and her relentlessly defiant attitude toward him). (Mar.)
