The Highland Commander

Jarecki’s second Lords of the Highlands historical (after The Highland Duke), set in early-18th-century England, sizzles with romance and undercurrents of treason. Sparks fly between Lady Magdalen “Maddie” Keith and naval officer Aiden Murray when they first meet at a masked ball. Their romance ignites months later, when he is home in London on leave and she is searching for a way to free her father from prison. She’s illegitimate and he’s a duke’s younger son, so they both face considerable social challenges. Jarecki brings the novel to life with vivid historical detail: Maddie, who plays the harp in Queen Anne’s court, must endure backstabbing from the queen’s other ladies when Aiden goes out to sea. The pace of the novel and complexity of the characters both improve when Aiden returns and Maddie is accused of a vicious crime against the queen. Readers who stick it out through the slower early sections will be rewarded. Agent: Elaine Spencer, Knight Agency. (July)