Alaina Claiborne by M.K. McClintock
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Genre: Historical Romantic Suspense
Source: Received kindle copy to review
Book Description: How far would you go to avenge your family and save the one you love?
In nineteenth-century
England, Alaina Claiborne had a loving family, a cherished friend, and devoted
servants. She spent her days riding across the grassy hills of the English
countryside, joyful and at peace.
Then tragedy strikes
and her world is forever changed. Searching for those responsible is her only
focus . . . until she meets Tristan.
Tristan Sheffield, a man
of many talents, searches out those who don’t want to be found. His past is
filled with secrets and deeds he would rather leave deeply buried. However,
when his life unexpectedly entwines with Alaina's, he soon discovers they share
more than a mutual desire to catch a murderer.
On their hunt for a
man driven by greed, Tristan and Alaina find that love is the greatest weapon
against evil, and they'll stop at nothing to survive.
My thoughts: The first thing that inspired my interest to read this book is the first name, Alaina. It's not one that I see often. It happens to be the first name of my sister-in-law who died several years ago. I also love historical romance.
Alaina is an orphan raised by her aunt and uncle. She was in a carriage that overturned while being chased by bandits. She witnessed the murder of her parents and lost her best friend in the tragic event.
Ten years have passed and Alaina meets her new neighbor, his name is Tristan and he is handsome and mysterious. Their lives intertwine as he is investigating the murder of her parents. It doesn't take long for the romantic feelings to blossom.
Alaina has repressed her memories of her parents death and Tristan is trying to get her to remember. Her nightmares begin and she starts to unravel the cloak shrouding her mind.
This book has action, mystery and romance. It didn't take me long to read, and I did enjoy it. There is some intimate moments that don't go into a ton of detail, I would recommend this book only to adults.
Read an Excerpt:
*********************
Across
the acres, darkness enveloped another, her surroundings illuminated by the
flickering flame of a lamp. Alaina moved around in the attic, searching through
trunks of the items that had come from her mother’s cottage in Ireland. It was
difficult to see so many memories that reminded her of her parents, but she
also found it calmed her. She had avoided these things since they had been
delivered years ago, but now her fears became secondary. She hoped that
something from her parents’ past would shed light on what was happening in the
present. Alaina rummaged through a trunk of some of her mother’s clothes, pulling them out and smelling them, hoping for a faint whiff of the soft rose scent her mother used to wear. There was something lingering around the old clothes, and it took Alaina back to a time when she was a little girl. Nevertheless, the memory ended there. She paused for a moment, as if the scent reminded her of something else besides her mother. She subsequently released the memory when she saw the bottom of the trunk was not as deep as it should have been. She pulled out the remaining dress and ran her fingers along the bottom and edges. She next looked on the outside of the trunk. Nearly six inches of extra space remained near the bottom on the inside.
Alaina
felt along the inside edges and became excited when she found a gap. Slowly reaching her fingers into the hole, she simultaneously pushed down on the other edge for leverage and surprised herself when the bottom tilted to reveal the extra space beneath. Removing the thin board, she set it aside and gasped when she turned back to the trunk.
“Oh, Mother. What did you do?”
She dreams of a time when life was simpler, the land rougher, and the journey more rewarding. With her heart deeply rooted in the past and her mind always on adventure, McClintock will always call Montana home.
McClintock is a member of Romance Writers of America, Montana Romance Writers, Hearts Through History Romance Writers, and Women Writing the West.
********************
MK's partial bucket list!
What are 10 items on your
bucket list?
Ride an elephant
Go on a horseback safari in Africa
Visit my friends in Ireland
Walk through Eilean Donan Castle
Learn to speak Gaelic
Walk along the entire length of Hadrian’s
Wall (what’s left of it)
Make a life for myself that doesn’t
require a cell phone
Have a photograph published in National
Geographic
Write a book Oprah would want to
recommend
Make a difference
About MK ~ McClintock is an over-worked entrepreneur,
baker of decadent desserts and all things chocolate, photographer of beautiful
places, and most importantly, a writer.
She dreams of a time when life was simpler, the land rougher, and the journey more rewarding. With her heart deeply rooted in the past and her mind always on adventure, McClintock will always call Montana home.
McClintock is a member of Romance Writers of America, Montana Romance Writers, Hearts Through History Romance Writers, and Women Writing the West.
Tour Giveaway
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2 Autographed copies of "Alaina Claiborne"
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Thank you for hosting me on your blog Lisa!
ReplyDeleteI love historical romance too!
ReplyDeleteOnly advice - where long pants when riding an elephant. When I was young a florist was having a grand opening during the summer. I had on shorts and boy are the hairs on the elephant scratchy
ReplyDeleteThanks for the chance!
ReplyDeleteThis book sounds SO good! The excerpt is very good and the 10 list is quite interesting really. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the giveaway!