When it comes to historical romance, the setting of Scotland owns a subgenre all to itself. Scottish romances tend to feature Highlander heroes, feisty heroines, and a lot of fiery spirit of fighting against clans or the British trying to usurp the land.
On the Historical Romance Sampler podcast, we invite authors to read a sample of their work so you can discover whether their book belongs on your TBR. On Season One, we got to hear seven different historical romances set in Scotland or featuring Scottish main characters. Some of these take place in Roman era, others in the medieval period, and more in the Georgian and Regency epochs.
Listen to the full podcast episodes on this YouTube playlist, or scroll down to learn more about each book and where you can buy it.
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Scottish Romances (Across Eras) On Season 1 of The Historical Romance Sampler Podcast
She's a powerful Celtic woman. He's a Roman captive in her village. When their passion for each other grows, can they find a way to be together? Or will the conflicts between the Celts and Romans drive them apart?
In the Caledonii village, Riana is the chieftain’s oldest daughter and accustomed to position and authority. Until the day a Roman soldier is brought in and made a slave.
Despite her moral objections, she is directed by her father to tend to the Roman, to bring him back to health and make sure he's fed.
At first, he's nothing more than a curiosity for her, but as they spend time together during her duties to him, they forge a camaraderie that quickly becomes something more.
Something passionate and forbidden.
Horatio is a confident Roman soldier brought low after a night of missteps. Bound to slavery for the Caledonii tribe, he spends every waking moment biding his time and planning his escape. What he doesn't plan is the desire he feels for the very woman directed to keep him in chains.
His desire grows, as does his love for the red northern woman.
As their passions rise, Riana decides that she cannot see the man she loves enslaved. They concoct an escape that is successful at first but leads to disastrous results when the tables are turned.
Just when they think all is lost, their love for each other gives them one chance for survival. Will their love overcome the obstacles that would tear them apart?
Tropes In This Book:
Enemies To Lovers
Worker-Employer Forbidden Love
Action Adventure
Highland Love Comes Calling
By Celeste Barclay
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.55
13th century. A land on the brink of war. As the Scots organize and plan to defend their homeland from the English King Edward I, alliances form, subterfuge abounds, and true love is born.
Hamish Sutherland was never meant to be laird. Instead, he finds himself not only leading his clan as the Earl of Sutherland, but embroiled in a violent feud with his neighbor, the Earl of Ross. A Highlander, Hamish longs to return to his rugged home—until he finds himself craving the enigmatic young lady he danced with and whose intelligence charms him. Knowing only her first name, Hamish refuses to allow anyone to stand in the way of the woman he wants. There’s one problem…
Amelia Ross never imagined the commanding warrior with his imposing size could be so gentle as his touch brings her alive. Nor did she imagine that the one man she would wish to make her own would be her father’s most reviled enemy. Sworn to serve the queen, tested by a rival, and torn between love and duty, Amelia is nobody’s fool. A skilled diplomat and strategist, she’s the only person who can create a truce between Hamish and her father as they prepare alongside Robert the Bruce and William Wallace for the Battle of Stirling Bridge.
No matter the outcome, one thing is Hamish will stop at nothing to be with the woman he loves.
Discover how the House of Clan Sutherland began with Highland Love Comes Calling, the exciting prequel that introduces the couple who will forge a dynasty. This story picks up where Celeste Barclay’s Their Highland Beginning, the prequel to The Clan Sinclair, ends. House of Clan Sutherland is the newest edition to Celeste’s romantic, but often violent, medieval Scottish world that includes The Clan Sinclair, The Clan Sinclair Legacy, The Highland Ladies, and The Highland Ladies Always series. A world where family, love, loyalty, honor, and duty are everything.
Tropes In This Book:
Opposites Attract
Court Politics
Action Adventure
Highland Conquest
By Heather McCollum
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.15
Cain Sinclair has a plan. In order to finally bring peace to his clan, he will wed the young female chief of their greatest enemy. Only problem: capturing her and forcing her back to Sinclair castle doesn’t exactly make her want to say yes. Ella Sutherland may be clever, passionate, and shockingly beautiful, but what she isn’t is willing.
Every attempt Cain makes to woo her seems to backfire on him. A gift? The kitten practically claws his eyes out. A competitive game of chess? Even when he wins, he loses. It seems the only time the two ever see eye to eye is when they’re heating up Cain’s bed. Still, the only thing Ella truly wants is the one thing he cannot offer her: freedom.
But when Cain discovers she’s been harboring a secret—one that could threaten both clans’ very existence—he’ll have to decide between peace for the Sinclairs or the woman who’s captured his heart.
Tropes In This Book:
Enemies To Lovers
Grumpy/Sunshine
Battling Clans
For a Scot’s Heart Only
By Gina Conkle
Average Goodreads Rating: 3.41
A Lost Treasure
Corset maker Mary Fletcher lives a life of duty to her sister, her league, and to the Highland clan that took her in years ago. But as she continues the work of her fellow league members, hunting the lost Treasure of Arkaig, a deadly enemy encroaches—and Mary must chase clues in the most astonishing places.
A Favor Returned
Thomas West must save his family’s legacy. Miss Fletcher’s league owes him a debt of gratitude, and there’s no one he wants to collect from more than the icy dark-haired beauty. He can’t believe his luck when her plan takes them both to London’s finest brothel.
An Indecent Proposal
Soon, lines between duty and desire blur whenever Mary and Thomas meet. Secrets come to light about the gold and an undeniable love—a love that will be tested against all that they hold dear…if they survive.
Tropes In This Book:
Seamstress Heroine
Mystery Adventure Subplot
Working Class Hero
Never Cross a Highlander
By Lisa Rayne
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.00
Ailsa Connery has waited three long years to finally escape her enslavement at Stirling Castle and reunite with her clan. But her carefully laid plans are completely destroyed by the arrival of the infamous Highland warrior known as Dubh Mahoun, the Black Devil...who has plans of his own.
Kallum MacNeill's fearsome reputation has long allowed him to keep hidden his secret double life of freeing enslaved captives across the land. It's only when he kidnaps a servant lass—quite by accident—that he finds himself facing a wee predicament. He must accompany the lass home or risk her exposing his true identity. It'd be easy enough...if the feisty hellion didn't fight him at every turn.
As they make their way to the Highlands, the perils the two must face are surpassed only by their constant sparring. Soon, their heated sniping sparks heat of a totally different kind. The kind that ignites a hunger that could consume them both. Yet the difficult journey is no match for the dangerous secrets they're about to uncover.
Tropes In This Book:
Enemies To Lovers
Fake Identity
Working Class Hero and Heroine
He's the only man she can trust...but should she?
Craig Oliphant is known for his brawn, not his brains, but he is proud of who he is and what he’s accomplished. Leaving his years working the smithy behind, he’s finally passed the tests to become a trusted member of the King’s Hunters and assigned a mission which can bring him cartloads of glory.
Or drive him mad—one of the two.
Lady Elspeth Sinclair is in dire need of a not for her, but for her children. Her husband’s death left her nine-year-old son not just the next Laird Sinclair, but also the Earl of Dungotit…and someone wants him dead. The huge Hunter assigned to her family might be able to keep them safe, but no one warned her that after years of horror in the marriage bed, Craig might be the one to rekindle surprising feelings. But should a widow engage in such goings-on with her bodyguard, especially since they come from such different worlds?
Obviously.
Tropes In This Book:
Widowed Heroine
Road Trip
Hero Working Through Some Issues
Maggie and the Pirate’s Son
By Rose Prendeville
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.47
Once upon a time, Maggie Mackintosh Budge yearned for handsome rogues and breathtaking adventure. Now widowed after a disastrous marriage and desperate to escape her still-matchmaking father, she stows away on the nearest vessel because sometimes the only solution is running away to sea.
Bastian MacLeod never chose a life of piracy, but after coming of age under the brutal regime of Auldfarrand’s Revenge, his world has been limited to placating the volatile captain and staying one step ahead of the navy—that is until he discovers Maggie in the cargo hold. The first rule of piracy is: wenches are unlucky and will be cast overboard.
With Bastian’s help, Maggie disguises herself and joins the crew, but sparks between them ignite like St. Elmo’s Fire. Can they keep her secret—and keep their hands off each other—long enough to outwit the navy and hunt down the captain’s lost treasure? Or will bad luck send them both to the hangman’s noose?
Tropes In This Book:
Pirates!
Road Trip (well, ocean voyage!)
Fake Identity