I can never resist a Highlander romance. Shake a sporran in my direction and I'm there. The Highland Heir was incredibly sweet and a splendid example of a friends-to-lovers romance. These two characters were bonafide soulmates even before they engaged in a Celtic handfasting ceremony. Kieran and Ella were meant to be, but goodness gracious they were young! They were barely 20 years old and I kept expecting there to be a flashforward showing them older and wiser. Nope. These spring chickens wouldn't have been able to purchase a beer in America, but they could certainly sign a marriage contract with nary a blink.

The Highland Heir featured the sweetest little lovebirds but I felt like they were leaving the nest too early. They were so young and Kieran was promised to another woman. It felt strange seeing their relationship progress despite him being engaged to someone else. I knew they were destined to be together, but I felt conflicted. As I stated they were painfully young and their prefrontal cortexes weren't fully developed. I'm sure I would be more supportive if they were older and unencumbered.

The Highland Heir was as soft as a Scottish summer, but it could do with a few more years of maturing in the wine barrel. I'd be happy to read more from this author if she writes more Scottish romances. I would prefer my protagonists in the future to be more seasoned than these plain old chicken breasts in The Highland Heir. I'm a full supporter of love matches, but please check for wayward engagement rings when matchmaking for The Highland Heir.

I loved the story between Kieran and Ellie; the friends to lovers transition was cute and well executed. I felt that the reconciliation between father and son was rushed, for me I would have wanted to read a more natural and realistic path to healing between the two characters.

This was my first book by this author. I thought the writing was decent and the story flowed well. I liked how Kieran and Ella went from friends to lover in a slow way. Each waking up to the changes that were coming and what it would mean for their friendship and relationship.

I did not like how the end with Kieran and his father was wrapped up in a pretty bow and all was forgiven so easily.

I thought the idea for this book was really interesting (see Author's Note at the end). Having read 'Her Forbidden Highlander Husband' I saw the comparison to what happens to the characters in that only with the roles reversed. I loved the relationship between Ellie and Kieran. I'm not always a fan of the friends to lovers setup because it perpetuates the myth that men and women can't just be friends, but it worked here. The nature of their relationship could only have had one conclusion - that they would fall in love with one another. Although Kieran's impending forced marriage is not what they wanted (or what we wanted as readers) it at least opened their eyes to how they felt about one another. I liked that Ellie and Kieran were very open and honest with one another about their feelings (once they both came to terms with them) rather than staying quiet and suffering alone. Had they not taken some of those big leaps in their relationship they probably would have just accepted their fates assuming the other didn't feel the same way. The twist with Kieran's thought-to-be-dead brother provided a somewhat easy solution to the problem. I felt so bad for Kieran when the reveal happened because of how easily his father forgot all about him. If Teague hadn't pointed out to everyone who Kieran was I don't think Rolfe would have even realized he was being left out. Speaking of Rolfe, I think he got off a little too easily for being so awful to Kieran for his entire life. He didn't care for Kieran's feelings (even after he had yelled at him in a previous chapter) until he found out about Brody making it clear that he never would have changed his mind or behavior had that not happened. Back to Ellie and Kieran. I respected Ellie's decision to leave her home and seek out Arran but I'm also so glad she realized that was not going to be the right thing for either of them. I was also relieved that it turned out he was hoping she would mend his already broken heart and that she hadn't hurt him further by changing her mind about them marrying. It also allowed for the great moment in which Kieran shows up to ask her to marry him (I love that scene). The epilogue offers some humor and also shows that Kieran finally gets the kind of family he always wanted.

Oh my my my....Allison took me on adventure so detailed I felt I was there. If you're looking for a breathtaking adventure full of twists and turns this is the story that will expel you into an adventure that you will never forget.