LOVED this story! Reid makes a promise to a dying friend to care for his daughter. When Reid arrives at the Kennet home, he discovers that his friend's daughter is not a wee lass, but a full-grown woman just out of finishing school. He needs to marry her off so he can return to the Jacobite cause.

Audrey is shocked and distraught over losing her father and now this fierce Highlander shows up with one goal, to get her married off so he can leave. And she is not afraid to tell this over-sized, stubborn Scot just what she thinks even though she's considered a shy wallflower. He just brings it out of her!

A small piece of history plucked from the past and woven into a romance like only this author can do. Both characters were lovable and relate-able. The villain in this story will have you scowling at your book. I wanted to climb in and strangle him myself.

Exciting, steady-paced read and I highly recommend it.

This series is one of Amy's best. It gets better with every new book! Excellent series. Excellent storyline. Excellent characters.

A story really appeals to me when a hero, once given his word, will follow through even when it is inconvenient and neigh impossible to make it happen.  Such is the case with Reid MacKenzie, Earl of Seaforth, when he vows to a dying associate working for the cause, to protect his daughter, much as a guardian would. 

The girl, Miss Audrey Kennet, isn’t a wee lass as Reid thinks, but a woman full-grown with the most beguiling blue eyes.  Yes, the reader knows Reid will sink in the mire of lust, love, or both long before he knows it, and then it's too late!  

His plans change according to the circumstances.  He can’t place her in boarding school, not even finishing school, because she’s completed her schooling. She’s of marriageable age, so all he needs to do it put Nicholas Kennet’s business in order and find a lad to marry her to.

As in any good story, and Amy Jarecki always tells whoppers, simply going from A to B is fraught with challenges.  Here, Miss Audrey herself and other outside forces have Reid reworking his plans over and over.

Reid gets drawn into the net of caring (he’d rather not!)--he needs to get on with his own life.  The cause needs him.  His clan needs their chieftain with an added obligation which perils his freedom. His father made a pack with his uncle (again that honor thing) which has him already betrothed to his father’s uncle's daughter.  What is more important than unifying the clan and working for the cause?  The Earl of Seaforth will be pulled in every direction, his heart being tattered in the process.

Audrey Kennet has more than beguiling blue eyes.  She’s a woman of honor herself and demands to pay back the times Reid has protected her.  She loses a little more of her heart to him every day.  Frankly, they are a match made in heaven.

As with the rest of this series, this is an exciting read, suspenseful, full of danger plus  experiencing what a man in love will do as he grapples with the anguish of satisfying his heart and doing the honorable thing.

This is the third story in Lords of the Highland series and my least favorite out of the three. For that I blame both hero and heroine. I just couldn't warm up to either of them.

He was way too much "male" for me and I believe for the heroine as well. On the other hand, the heroine's character was a contradiction of shy and downright defiant.

The plot itself wasn't bad and the pace was the only thing that kept me going. Oh, and some secondary characters that were very entertaining.

Ms. Jarecki is an author that I enjoy reading because she does have a gift of placing her readers right in the middle of her stories and showing us wonderful landscape of parts of the world most of us wish we could see and touch. This is the reason why I come back to the worlds she creates.

Melanie for b2b

another fabulous book by a wonderful author! The highland guardian is a wonderful scottish historical and one that you will love! Lots of interesting characters and storyline is fantastic. Lots of action and twists and turns. I loved this book

I thoroughly enjoyed the story about Reid and Audrey. Fulfilling a promise to a dying friend he agrees to become guardian to his daughter thinking she is a child. To his surprise she is a full grown woman. This story has more than just romance, it has the intrigue and history and the coming together of two people from different places and the obstacles they have to overcome. There is also steamy romance!! I love that she incorporates characters from her other books but this is also a stand alone. I love reading Amy’s books and if you have not read the, before I would definitely recommend this one!

Oh my, but this is a wonderful book!

Coming back from France, with a missive from Prince James on his person, Captain Reid MacKenzie’s ship is hit by Her Majesty’s Navy’s cannonballs. Reid’s ship is sunk, and as his best friend Nicholas Kennet lay dying, he entrusts Reid with the welfare of his daughter Audrey. At barely twenty three, Reid hardly sees himself as a guardian of a wee lass: his life is busy as it is with his estates, and the Jacobite cause he champions. However, a nineteen year-old very fetching ward is a problem he doesn’t need.

THE HIGHLAND GUARDIAN is book 3 in Amy Jarecki’s marvellous Lord of the Highland series, and this book is the best of them all! Against the backdrop of Scotland’s precarious position in Britain, Ms. Jarecki weaves an amazingly believable romance, fraught with peril and treachery. THE HIGHLAND GUARDIAN unfolds at breakneck speed, while fierce battles on land are fought, and danger lurks at sea, all made astonishingly authentic with the addition of fabulous historical details and crystal-clear descriptions from the author.

THE HIGHLAND GUARDIAN is an extraordinarily exciting book, filled with spectacular action and unexpected twists that barely give the reader time to breathe. The writing is flawless, elegant yet unpretentious; the dialogues superb, and the characters magnificently fleshed-out, even the chief villain makes your skin crawl in a chillingly realistic manner. Reid is a splendid hero: confident, utterly charming, and yet not indestructible – and this is one of the several highlights of the book; boy, does Reid go through a lot! And Audrey is one of the best heroines ever written: very clever and talented in many ways, still clumsy at one thing, she discovers strengths she never knew she possesses, and this Sassenach lassie braves danger as well as a braw Highlander: dear readers, this is how unforgettable characters should be written! THE HIGHLAND GUARDIAN is a perfect blend of action, history, and romance; I highly recommend this excellent book which is one of this year’s best!
I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book.
Reviewed by AnnMarie for Buried Under Romance

In May 1711 Reid MacKenzie was trying to escape from a Royal Navy ship because he carried a very important missive for those loyal to the cause to ensure the succession of James Stuart to the throne. Even though Reid is able to escape barely with his life another one of his shipmates and very good friends is severely injured. As his friend lies dying he asks Reid to watch over and be guardian to his daughter which Reid can’t deny and agrees wholeheartedly to take on the task. When Reid gets to shore and the man’s residence to bring news of the man’s death, pay his respects and inform the daughter of her father’s death. When Reid meets Audrey Kennet he is very shocked because he was expecting a child not a full-grown beautiful woman. As Reid wonders what to do with Audrey and finding her a suitable husband he can’t help but wish he could be Audrey’s husband instead. Reid knows that his feelings for Audrey are dangerous which could not only cost him his mission as well as his life. Is Reid willing to settle for being just Audrey’s guardian or will he be willing to sacrifice everything for her?
It’s been a while since I’ve read one of Ms. Amy Jarecki’s stories but when I do I am not only ready to immerse myself in her stories but the wonderfully historical attention to detail she puts in them. Ms. Jarecki writes with an intense understanding of not only the story but the characters breathe life with complex plot twists and a dash of politics thrown in but not to boggle down the story or the sizzling romance between the protagonists.
Reid the strong handsome highlander hero is not only swoon-worthy but is one I couldn’t help but fall for with each page. What normal woman could resist him and not want to jump his bones? He is definitely on my ever growing list of book boyfriends. Audrey is also another great heroine beautiful, smart, caring and willing to take care of everyone including Reid. In a sense I couldn’t help being a little jealous of her since she had Reid. I didn’t understand why Reid didn’t just give his cousin to Dunn obviously there is an attraction there may be in an upcoming book that happens still I am curious if Dunn ever finds someone. I am eagerly looking forward to reading the next in the lords of the highlands series or any of Ms. Jarecki stories!

The Highland Guardian
by Amy Jarecki
Well... BUY BUY BUY BUY BUY!!!!
First, my heart tugged with the loss....Then I smiled at the expectations and the meeting of the two. Then I laughed and smiled, and became emotional. There is such a gamut of emotions tied to this book. I really loved reading this story. Now for the rest. This author is beginning to be a favorite of mine. Her books pull me into the story and I just cannot get away from reading it! I love the way she portrays her characters and the situations in the book. The romance and the plot line is not all sex, it is a story that is a beautiful romance with suspense, mystery and passion. I can only say buy this book and let it take you into another world. A great read! I was given this book in return for an honest review. Regards, Anna

I adored Jarecki's first series and rated all the books as 5 star. Since then, it's almost as if someone else is writing the books. I got 50% through this book and couldn't finish it, sorry!

A sacred vow and complications ______ 3 1/2 stars

When Scotsman Reid MacKenzie, Earl of Seaforth promises a dying companion to become guardian of his child, Reid's thinking a young lass who could be placed in Boarding school. Imagine his shock when then lass transmorphs into a young, attractive Sassenach woman of marriageable age. Reid's fall back plan is to marry her off quickly so that he can continue down the path his responsibilities lead.
When a devastated Audrey Kennet learns of his plans for her, she decides she has plans of her own. Not so easy! Especially as the air fairly crackles between Reid and herself.
On the sidelines, yet significant, the players are an English officer who revels in torment and cruelty and an illegitimate, somewhat deranged cousin of Audrey's who is eyeing off her inheritance.
When these two join forces both Audrey and Reid are in danger.
Threats from outside of Jacobite involvements and thwarted plans play a part.
Audrey and Reid's mutual attraction escalates. Yet it cannot be. Reid has other plans!
I enjoyed both these characters. Reid for his somewhat distracted championship of Audrey and Audrey for the quiet determination she exhibits. Both are strong characters but together they just don't quite have 'it'. Reid really annoyed me occasionally, although to give him his due he was a man of his word to the nth degree.

A NetGalley ARC

The Highland Guardian is the third book in the Lords of the Highlands series by Amy Jarecki. It can easily be read as a stand-alone, but if you haven't read the first 2 books already, I am sure you will want to read them once you have finished this one. Yes, it's that wonderful a book.

The Earl of Seaforth, Captain Reid MacKenzie is a Jacobite. He becomes the guardian of a young girl when he makes a vow to his dying friend to look after her. He really has no time to take on a ward, but he won't go back on his word. Unfortunately for him, thoughts of sending her off to boarding school while he carries on fighting for the Jacobite cause, fly out the window when he meets her and learns she is 19 years old. Not a young child at all! Now his job escalates as he realises he must try to marry her off as soon as possible, it's the only solution.

Audrey Kennet is Reid's ward. Devastated to learn that her father has been killed, she is even more distraught when she learns that Reid is intent on marrying her off to any suitable suitor he can find. At 19 Audrey is a wallflower, she hasn't had men chasing after her, and she certainly doesn't want to be forced into a marriage for her guardian's sake.

Audrey and Reid start spending time together, he is helping prepare her for a ball and helping to find her future husband. It isn't long until circumstances find them realising that they are hugely attracted to each other. Audrey would like nothing more than to marry Reid, but he can't marry an English woman, it would cause chaos among the clans that he is trying to unite, and he would have to forego a promise that he made his father. He must fight his attraction to her, but it's not as easy as he would hope.

I adored this story, it captured me from the very first page. Not only do we have the wonderful romantic aspect of the story, and the very passionate moments when Reid, the sexy highlander, and Audrey, the innocent beauty, can't help but fall into each other's arms, but there is the drama that comes from Reid's fight for the cause. There is a very evil character who causes a lot of trouble for Reid, I wish I could say what he causes to happen, but that would be a huge spoiler. Suffice to say I learned to despise that character, and also to cry tears for Reid. Of course, knowing that the Jacobite cause was a real thing, makes this story all the more emotional. Amy Jarecki tells an engrossing tale including much drama, devious backstabbing, and of course, very passionate romance, making this a perfect read for me. Just my cup of tea.

I voluntarily reviewed an advance readers' copy of this book.

I did not want to put this story down. Audrey's strength and smarts made her a fun heroine, and I wanted her to be happy. Reid's sense of duty and his struggle to come to terms with his future had me smiling and shaking my head. As they fought all the dangers around them, I kept turning the pages to see how it turned out. I loved the history behind the story as well. I highly recommend this book.

I received a copy of this story through Netgalley, and this is my unsolicited review.

This book grabs the reader from the first with the tale of Reid and Audrey. This author always delivers good story line, great characters and interactions for unforgettable read. Settle into a comfortable chair for this new tale.

Ebook from netgalley and publishers with thanks. Opinions are entirely my own.

Though I have seen Amy Jarecki’s name around for years in the historical romance section, I don’t remember reading many books by her. Perhaps because of my tendency to read other genres first, but I found The Highland Guardian to be a wonderful surprise. I also thought the book would be medieval in time, but it takes place in the early 1700’s, dealing with the Jacobite cause. Not knowing a lot about the time, I can’t speak as to the accuracy of the events. It reads believable as if all is correct, so I think the author knows her stuff.

The two main characters are amusingly matched as the charismatic Scottish leader, Reid MacKenzie, with the painfully shy heroine. Audrey Kennet is especially well-drawn as the timid woman who stills has a back bone. I like how she would not be pushed aside, no matter how difficult it was for her to stand up for herself.

The Highland Guardian reads well as a stand-alone with no confusions or background stories that I needed to know from previous books. However, now that I have meet this group of characters, I would like to read the others in the series especially The Highland Commander. That speaks highly of Ms. Jarecki’s style of pulling the reader into a story.

i think reid mackenzie just became my favorite hero of this series. i've mentioned this before but it's fascinating reading about these characters who are on the losing side of history. based on real people, the fictionalized love stories have all been fantastic. and in the highland guardian, reid and audrey's love story really has a chance to shine.

when he promises nicholas kennet that he'll watch over his daughter, reid mackenzie imagines a young girl in pigtails who he'll ship off to boarding school. what he discovers is that miss audrey kennet is a lovely young woman, all of nineteen, too old for a guardian, but given society's rules, also in need of someone to watch over her.

at first suspicious of the man who brings her tidings of her father's death, she begins to change her tune when he doesn't immediately treat her as incapable of rational thought. he respects her intelligence and gives her more freedom than she expects. but it's when he stands up for her and refuses to allow her to be forced into marriage that she really takes notice. even though his stated goal is to marry her off and have her settled and out of his hair, he refuses to take the first proposal that comes along. he wants to give her a real chance at happiness.

possibly because he knows what it is to be bound by someone else's promise. he isn't entirely free to choose his own mate. and this holds him back from freely expressing himself to audrey. even if it is readily apparent to one and all that he's totally in love with her. and she with him.

they must fight some pretty tough odds, including false imprisonment, a wild escape, a dragoon of redcoats, and the remote scottish highlands. but when audrey and reid stand together they find a way to prevail. the strength of their connection, the way they will fight to save one another says it all.

this was a very enjoyable read, combining action and adventure with a lush historical backdrop and characters who feel so real.

**the highland guardian will publish on december 19, 2016. i received an advance reader copy courtesy of netgalley/grand central publishing (forever) in exchange for my honest review.

Another excellent and exciting story from one of, to my mind, best story tellers around.

I loved Reid and Audrey,

Upholding a dying man's wish Reid, doesn't realise the daughter of his friend he is to protect is no wee lass but a full grown woman

I received a copy from Netgalley and voluntarily leave my own thoughts

The wallflower discovers she's stronger and has more going for her than she ever knew! The hero of our story who has always been the responsible one, finds himself with more to deal with than he ever dreamed of. Oh this is going into my favorites file.

Reid MacKenzie is a Scottish Earl, Captain of his own galley returning from France on a mission for Queen Anne and as leader of the Scottish Defenders. In his youth he was a ward of Queen Anne after his parents died and became one of her favorite Scots. He went to France to plead with James Stuart to convert to Protestantism so he could inherit the English throne upon Queen Anne's death. Otherwise the Scottish/English Stuart line would end and the Hanover line would take over. His ship was sunk by an errant "warning shot" by an English Navy ship patrolling the coastal waters. On board was Nicholas Kennet, a wealthy English coal miner who what helping to fund the "Jacobites". He was the only fatality. As Nicholas is dying he extracts a promise from Reid to see to the wellbeing of his only daughter and heir, Audrey. Unbeknownst to Reid said daughter is 19, newly home from boarding school and a professed "wallflower".

I loved Audrey Kennet. She only had her Dad as a friend and they did everything together. She suddenly finds her life upside down, about to be married off to a stranger and ripped from her home. She has no relatives and suddenly find herself with a young stranger as her Guardian. After meeting with her father's solicitor, who is determined to turn her inheritance over to the crown as no woman can possibly inherit, she is determined to prove to the world she can run her own affairs. Each step of the way she finds more and more backbone and determination that she can control her own life and affairs. I loved seeing the wallflower blossom. And poor Reid can't walk away because he's made a promise he can't walk away from either. His problem is he's running out of time as he has to call a Clan meeting in Scotland in 3 months and here he is in England tending to Audrey. Enter the "slimy" Wagner Tupps determined to get his hands on Audrey and her inheritance. You see he's the illegitimate son of Audrey's uncle, Josiah. Amy takes us on a step by step journey of how Reid protects Audrey and Audrey grows into the woman her father would be proud of. I adored experiencing the journey by reading their story.

Thank you Amy and Hachette Book Group for giving me this ARC for an honest review.

The Highland Guardian is book 3 in the Lords of the Highland series but it is an absolute stand alone. Reid MacKenzie, Earl of Seaforth, is a Jacobite and has to hide his political leanings. On a return trip from meeting with Prince James in France, his ship is attacked and a passenger dies. His dying request is that Reid take over the care of his daughter, Audrey. Reid is expecting a young girl he can ship off to boarding school. However, Audrey is 19 and a recent graduate from a finishing school. So Reid's next plan? Marry her off!

Audrey is crushed by the death of her father. She wants to help run the mines her father founded because she cares about the workers and the town. But, she's a woman, so that isn't allowed. Reid pushes her to marry even though she is very uncomfortable with the whole idea. Then they start getting blackmailed! A slimy man with a grudge against Audrey's family wants Audrey's fortune and her hand in marriage. He threatens to out Reid's political leanings and tarnish Audrey's father's reputation. All this while feelings begin to build between Reid and Audrey. I am glad for the suspense of the blackmail plot and the danger of being discovered as a Jacobite because the relationship between Reid and Audrey would have been a little bland on its own.

Overall, The Highland Guardian was a great read that I really got sucked into! Reid and Audrey were great characters with depth and the supporting characters add flare and levity when needed! I have enjoyed this series by Jarecki a great deal and I don't usually like Scottish romances but this series really has been a delight!

Publisher's Description:

He has sworn to protect her... Captain Reid MacKenzie, Earl of Seaforth, is a man of his word. During a harrowing battle at sea, the heroic Highlander makes a vow to a dying friend to watch over the man's daughter. His plan: send the child to boarding school as quickly as possible so he can continue his mission. But Reid's new ward is no wee lass. She's a ravishing, fully grown woman, and it's all he can do to remember his duty and not seduce her himself.
But he might be her greatest threat... Miss Audrey Kennet is stunned by the news. First this kilted brute tells Audrey her father is dead, and next he insists she marry. But as Reid scours England for the most suitable husband, Audrey soon realizes the brave, brawny Scot is the only man she wants--though loving him means risking her lands, her freedom, and even her life.

My Thoughts:
I usually love everything I read by this author, but I could only feel luke warm about this title.
There just didn't seem to be any real chemistry between our couple.
Maybe the fact that our hero thought he was going to be in charge of a child that he could send off to boarding school was the beginning of his problem. Discovering his charge was far from a school girl turned him on his ear.
Our heroine was not what was expected.
I gave this book 3.25 of 5.0 stars for storyline and character development and a sensual rating of 3 of 5 flames.
I just didn't see anything that indicated these two belonged together.
I received a complimentary digital ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley to read and review. This in no way affected my opinion of this book which I read and reviewed voluntarily.