Claire Robyns, Guest Blogger :: Romancing the Scot

A warm thank-you to the hostesses for having me here today.

For me, there’s nothing hotter than a medieval Scottish warrior. Maybe because of the turbulent history of Scotland were lairds tended to act like mini-kings within their small domains and were often left to go about their wayward way without the obvious subservience that the English barons paid their king. Or maybe it’s just the thought of all those kilts swirling high in battle

As a writer, medieval Scotland is a clear blue sky through which my imagination can soar, suspending reality without suspending belief. When I was researching Betrayed, I was amused and pleased to find that for every outlandish scheme I plotted, there was a documented occurrence of a border laird doing just that.

Two Feuding Families

Amber Jardin has no taste for the bitter feud started before her father’s banishment. But now that he’s passed, she’s had to return to  Scotland and his barbaric people. After her bloodthirsty uncle kidnaps one of the family’s rivals, Amber is in turn captured by Krayne Johnstone, the enemy laird. Despite their enmity, their attraction is immediate—and unfortunate, as Amber has sworn to escape.

One Lusty Temptation

Krayne is amazed at the wildcat’s repeated attempts to flee. He should steel himself against her beguiling ways—yet with time, he is driven more witless with lust. When the ransom exchange fails and Krayne is left with Amber, he finds he cannot tolerate the thought of her with another man—and she cannot tolerate the thought of returning to her uncle’s home.

Will passion and love win out over mistrust and betrayal in time to prevent an all-out war?

And now, a little about my wayward Scottish laird and his English lady…

Krayne Johnstone became laird of Wamphray at the age of 12. He’s a man shaped by the harsh land. He has no clue that a heart is good for anything other than pumping blood to his sword arm. Before he could even start to fall in love with Amber, I had to teach the poor man what love is. But he is honourable and noble, and he has excellent reasons for distrusting scheming women.

Amber Jardin has led a pampered life in England and is totally unprepared for the barbaric realities of Scotland. But she’s not one to simper and bemoan her fate. She’s determined to shape her future and use whatever means on hand to do it. In this case, it’s her body. Amber is not perfect, far from it, but then I’ve never liked my heroines flawless. I don’t necessarily approve of everything she does, but I admire her courage and determination.

Here’s a small snippet that, I think, defines the characters of the hero and heroine, and how they interact with each other in this story. These two have such different views on life (and a woman’s place) and they were never going to have an easy time…

Her gaze slid down the length of this mighty warrior, missing no detail along the way, and she had to take a step back for fear of punching that expression from his face. “You will stand there, all muscle and brawn, and attack my only means of defence?”

Krayne growled at the argument, refusing to admit she made a valid point. “God himself surely had a reason for blessing man with strength and ours is not ta question.”

Her hands settled on the flare of her hips as a spark lit her eyes. “And God surely had a reason for giving women pretty curves and the intellect to use them.”

You can read a longer excerpt at http://www.clairerobyns.com/Betrayed.html

Betrayed is available at http://carinapress.com

Well, it’s been fun and I’m delighted to have this opportunity to share a little about my new release. I’d love to hear from everyone about your favourite type of hero. Alpha or Beta? Scottish Warrior, Latino Lover or Easy Loving Guy? And is this the same guy you’d go skinny dipping with on a balmy summer eve? Is your fantasy dream guy at all like the type of men you’re drawn to in real life?

You can connect with Claire Robyns on

Website: http://www.clairerobyns.com/

Blog: http://www.clairerobyns.blogspot.com/

Tagged as: Betrayed, Claire Robyns, historical, Scottish Warrior