Tag Archives: Scotland

A Birthday Post from Maggie Robinson + A Giveaway!

My darlings today we have birthday girl Maggie Robinson visiting with us! <3 She was recently in Scotland, but we like her anyway because it’s her birthday. 😉 Maggie was also totally awesome and has not only a giveaway for you, but her own question, so I’ll just leave you in her capable hands! (And remember to wish her a very happy birthday! Maggie I hope you have a brilliant day with lots of cake and ice cream :D)

In the Heart of the HighlanderI’m way past the presents-candles-spanking stage, though I would never turn away a piece of frosted cake. Hey, I’ll eat almost anything with frosting. But I love my birthday anyway, mostly because it’s in the fall. It’s as if a whole season sets itself on fire just for me, turns the sky its bluest ever, insists upon those forgivingly roomy sweaters. I’m still on a “Fall starts the beginning of everything” schedule, even though my school and teaching days are behind me. I get energized by crisp air, crisp apples, crisp leaves. October is the most glorious month, and then it’s all downhill from there, LOL. I live in Maine, where I’m soon to be buried in snow (but it’s great for staying inside and writing!).

Harris Tweed BagI have a new book out too, which makes October even more special. In the Heart of the Highlander is a fun change-of-identity romp, which makes it perfect for Halloween reading. Who doesn’t like to pretend to be something they’re not? And in the birthday gift department, I’m giving readers a chance at a great one—a Harris Tweed handbag worth 77.50 pounds. (That’s about $120.) You can visit my contest page for details, and read the first chapter of the book too if you have time.

Atholl PalaceI bought the bag in my favorite Highland store, Macnaughtons of Pitlochry. Pitlochry and its Atholl Palace Hotel were the inspirations for the setting of Highlander. We’ve visited the hotel twice, and each time there have been weddings and lots and lots of men in kilts. How can one go wrong?

Scotland is one of my favorite places. It turns out my husband’s paternal side emigrated from there to Nova Scotia in the 1800s. (He tells me the family lore is that they were “thrown out” of Scotland. I can believe it.) When they came to Maine, they changed Robertson to Robinson because they thought it would make American assimilation easier and it sounded “more English.” It makes me laugh, because every time I say my name, people write down Robertson. Just think, I should be even closer to Nora Roberts on the shelf. 😉

McNaughtonsSo, happy birthday to me and all the Robertson and Robinson clans. Does your family name have a story? Have you ever been thrown out of a country? What’s in your purse that you can’t do without? Answer any or all questions and I’ll give one commenter a copy of In the Arms of the Heiress, the first Ladies Unlaced book!

Regency Romance outside the London Ballroom: Cathy Maxwell and The Devil’s Heart

Hi friends! Today we’ve got Kim visiting with us. 🙂 She’s been a long time visitor to the blog, and I also believe she’s a “wrangler” for Cathy Maxwell. So if you get Ms. Maxwell’s newsletter, yes, she’s that Kim. 😀 Or I’m just wrong, overtired and cranky from missing RT. Your pick. 😉

Regency Romance outside the London Ballroom: Cathy Maxwell and The Devil’s Heart

I am an unabashed fan of Downton Abbey. The Edwardian ensemble is a visual treat – the house, the village, and the countryside – sights fans would not see if the melodrama took place in a London Ballroom. The Ballroom is the center of most Regency Romances … and that’s why I appreciate when an author takes to the countryside. Cathy Maxwell not only takes to the countryside, she delivers readers to the soul of Scotland, the Highlands, in The Devil’s Heart, Book Three in the Chattan Curse:

They call her the Unattainable. Lady Margaret Chattan spurned every suitor for her hand, vowing never to marry. The only way to break the curse plaguing her family for two centuries is this ultimate sacrifice. But now her brothers’ lives are in danger. Determined to save them, she risks her very soul by traveling into the heart of the highlands to battle a force that has transcended time.

Heath Macnachtan is not superstitious. Laird of the most independent, nonconforming, madly infuriating clan ever to grace Scotland, he believes he has his hands full. And then, a woman lauded as one of the most beautiful in England, arrives on his doorstep with wild accusations and a mystical quest . . . one that just might help him discover who murdered his own brother.

But the real danger for Heath and Margaret is not a supernatural foe, but a very real love that could destroy them both.

I have traveled to Scotland and scoured the Highlands for crumbling castles. I have sat in quiet solitude as the wind whistled through the romantic ruins, breathing life into the stones that have witnessed a violent history. Maxwell captures the majesty, mystery, and magic of the Highlands in The Devil’s Heart. But it’s more than countryside, it’s the characters. Lady Margaret Chattan abandons London society to confront a long dead witch. Heath Macnachtan transforms from Naval Officer to unexpected laird of a poor clan. Together, they find love against all odds … the thrilling climax requires a box of tissues.

Check out an excerpt for The Devil’s Heart on Cathy’s website at cathymaxwell.com. Follow on Twitter @maxwellcathy and Facebook at the Cathy Maxwell Fan Page.

I would like to share The Devil’s Heart with one commenter here at A Little Bit Tart, A Little Bit Sweet.

I guess the question comes down to me, because I like having substance to comments. I find it more interesting. So my question is – or slew of questions but you can pick your favorite to answer (or all of them!): do you have a favorite setting for books? Have you ever been to Scotland? Or a Regency themed ball? Ever read a book set somewhere that you then desperately wanted to visit?

Or just say how your weekend is going. (If you’re at RT, I don’t wanna hear it, unless you’re going to send me something. E.g. my favorite author. ;))