Highlander Undone

At the start of Brockway’s latest Regency romance (after A Touch of Scandal), Jack Cameron, captain of Her Majesty’s Cormack Highlanders, learns that a traitorous member of the Royal Dragoons has been taking money to assist slave traders in the Sudan. While Jack is visiting his great-uncle, he encounters artist Adelaide Hoodless, a widow whose abusive husband was an officer in the Royal Dragoons. Addie’s brother, Ted, has been commissioned to paint portraits of the Royal Dragoon officers, so Jack devises a plan to infiltrate the studio and gather evidence against the traitor. But Ted will not allow him anywhere near the studio if he thinks it’ll upset his sister, who despises all men in uniform, so Jack immediately sets out to win her trust. Feeling guilty about his charade, Jack makes every attempt to restrain his feelings for Addie, but he falls hard, and slowly she grows fond of him. Jack’s plan never comes to fruition, a glaring flaw that Brockway attempts to cover with a quick fix. Some characters are unnecessary, occupying the book’s focus without moving the story along, and the pace often slows, but art lovers will appreciate the homage to the painter’s craft. (Sept.)