Review: The Hawk

The Hawk
Monica McCarty
Historical Romance/Scotland/1307
Highland Guard/Book 2
Ballantine/August 31, 2010

From the back cover ~

Erik MacSorley is unrivaled on the seas, a brilliant seafarer who has never encountered a wind he could not harness nor a woman he could not win—until he drags a wet, half-naked “nursemaid” out of the waters off the Irish coast. Ellie’s ordinary appearance belies the truth: she is in fact Lady Elyne de Burgh, the spirited daughter of the most powerful noble in Ireland, and a close ally of the English king. Worse, this confounding, fascinating, irresistible woman is determined to prove herself immune to his charms—a challenge he cannot resist.

Her captor may look every inch a powerful, rugged warrior, but Ellie vows it will take more than a twinkle in his blue eyes and a wickedly suggestive caress to impress her. Erik is as wild and untamed as the wind, sweeping away her resistance with a desire that resonates deep within her heart. Still, he is a man driven by loyalty, and she is a woman with secrets that could threaten his mission and jeopardize Bruce’s chance to reclaim his throne. As the battle for king and country sounds across the shores, will Ellie’s love be enough to finally tame the legend known as the Hawk?

This was a sweet romance of mistaken identity, dangerous situations and courageous men and women. If you read my review of the first book in this series, The Chief, then you know how much I enjoyed it and was looking forward to reading more in this series. After reading The Hawk I can't wait to read The Ranger, book 3.

This time our hero is a ladies man. Oh, my is he ever! Erik MacSorley or Hawk as he's know to his fellow Guards, is the youngest child with 5 older sisters. He loves women, all women. He enjoys their company and in true alpha male form is also very protective of them. One thing I did like is while he could be overbearing, he really did treat all women well whether they be lady or village maid. He's also very fierce in his loyalty to Scotland and almost a little too reckless with his own safety. I think it was a matter of being a bit overly confident in his abilities. He's an easy hero to like right off. He's one of those guys that is smart, good looking and charming but isn't arrogant about it.

Lady Elyne de Burgh is the daughter of the powerful Earl of Ulster and betrothed to Sir Ralph de Monthermer, former son-in-law of King Edward. But when she is captured by Hawk, she tells him she is a nursemaid, in an attempt to protect her life. So now she is Ellie, nursemaid and captive of the Scottish rebel, Hawk. Ellie is afraid and with good reason since she's in the hands of the enemy, even if he's gorgeous and a charmer. She's smart but also desperate to get away and does takes some serious risks but I really couldn't blame her. I liked that while she may have had a TSTL moment or two, she acted out of desperation and not stupidity. Certainly made for a more realistic read than her being the perfect captive.

The romance of Hawk and his captive is sweet and funny. I was pleasantly surprised at how amusing their dialogue was. Ellie is far better educated than the nursemaid she claims to be so her discussions with Hawk were not what he was expecting. She surprised him and sometimes confused him. She proved that he doesn't know women as well as he thought. LOL

Once again there is a lot of politics within the story. I loved how the various relations of this lord and that lady were woven with in the story. Some readers might not like all of the political and court intrigue - there are quite a few characters to keep track of. I like it when there are actual historical figures and McCarty does a good job bringing them to life.

I was caught up in the continuing story of the Highland Guard and Robert Bruce's quest for a Scotland free of English rule. I didn't enjoy The Hawk as much as The Chief primarily due to the story slowing down too much in the middle but it picked up towards the end with Hawk wooing and winning the woman of his heart.

Rating: B+

Books in this series ~

The Chief
The Hawk
The Ranger