Monday, May 27, 2019

Review: The Wicked Viscount by Heather McCollum

The Wicked Viscount by Heather McCollum
Series: The Campbells, Book 3
Publisher: Entangled: Amara
Genre: Historical Romance
ISBN: 9781640637979
Release Date: May 27, 2019
Source: Publisher
Buy it here: Amazon | B&N | Kobo | Entangled
Heather McCollum Reading Order

1685, Scottish Highlands

Cat Campbell knows all about Nathaniel Worthington, fifth Viscount of Lincolnshire. The determined Englishman is never far from Finlarig Castle, where his sisters train women to do more than read and write. And thanks to the fiery kiss they shared nearly a year ago he is never far from her thoughts. No one ever trained her how to forget an irresistible man.

Nathaniel knows he should keep his distance from the fierce Scottish lass, but when an urgent letter from Queen Catherine calls Cat to London, he can’t resist volunteering to escort her. The tension between the two has simmered for months, but the long journey in close quarters creates a raging wildfire that could burn them both.

Secrets of their past and the treachery lurking at court put both their future together and their very lives at risk.

Cat Campbell is a healer, a fighter, and a Highland Rose. She’s a plain-speaking woman who fights with bow and arrow or dagger rather than words. But when Queen Catherine needs the help of a Highland Rose in court, Cat is the best candidate to go to her aid. Whitehall is a world away from what Cat knows, filled with scheming, politics, and words that could be far more deadly than a knife. The only person she can trust is her escort, Viscount Nathaniel Worthington, whose sisters run the Highland Roses School. Nathaniel drives her mad, mostly due to the attraction that’s been simmering between the two of them for over a year. Close quarters make the pull between them harder to resist. But can their burgeoning relationship survive the danger that awaits them at court?

Two strong-willed characters with excellent chemistry find love in The Wicked Viscount. Heather McCollum has brought both the glamour and the seedy underbelly of seventeenth century court life to life in this book, but it’s the Nathaniel and Cat who grabbed my attention from the start and made the pages of the story fly by.

Cat is very much a rose with thorns; beautiful but deadly. She’s smart, honest, and even when out of her depth and under pressure she stands strong. Cat has survived tremendous loss and hardship and has vulnerabilities, yet she remains a fierce protector willing to stand up for anyone who needs it. I adored her from the start and I couldn’t wait to see her fall in love with Nathaniel. Nathaniel was raised in his father’s image, but he’s a far different man from his sire. He has a strong core of honor, a protective streak a mile wide, and a distaste for the machinations at court. I was excited to see Nathaniel and Cat get together, as they struck sparks off one another in previous Campbell books. The two of them did not disappoint. The energy between them crackles and their dialogue as they travel to London made me smile more than once. When they give into their desires, The Wicked Viscount gets deliciously – dare I say it? – wicked. While it’s clear they’re made for each other, the ghosts of Cat’s past and the bindings his father’s will have placed on Nathaniel mean that love may not be enough for them to get their happily ever after.

Queen Catherine did not call for a Highland Rose out of misplaced alarm, which means much of The Wicked Viscount deals with unearthing traitors, palace politics, and venomous mean girls. Much like Cat, I’m not one for court gossip, deception, or intrigue but I was still engaged in the story, especially when seeing things through Cat’s eyes. I cannot say much about what happens at court for fear of spoiling the story. Suffice it to say that Ms. McCollum kept things interesting and I enjoyed watching the action build to an exciting climax.

The Wicked Viscount is the third book in the Campbells series (previously known as the Highland Roses School series), but it can easily be read as a standalone. I’ve enjoyed every book in this series with its brave Highland Roses who defend themselves and others and the men who love them and do the same. I cannot wait to return to the Highlands and see what Ms. McCollum has in store for the next Campbell hero or heroine!


FTC Disclosure: I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

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