#BookReview: Hero of a Highland Wolf by Terry Spear - 5 Wine Glasses

Title: Hero of a Highland Wolf
Series: Heart of the Wolf #14
Author: Terry Spear
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 320 pages
Published: August 5th 2014 by Sourcebooks Casablanca
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | Kindle | B&N | ARe
Source: NetGalley
Reviewer: Linda
Rating: 5/5

She's ready for change...

Colleen Playfair has never been to Scotland, but when she discovers she must spend a year and a day overseas learning to manage her newly inherited estate, she's ready for the challenge. She even has some ideas for improvements-if she can get past the sexy werewolf who seems convinced he's the one in charge.

But he's digging in his claws...

Grant MacQuarrie and his clan have been managing Farraige Castle for three centuries. The last thing he wants is a meddling American heiress trying to change the way things have always been done. He's more than willing to fight the she-wolf every step of the way, using every tool at his disposal. And if that means taking the lass to bed, well...all the better.

Locked in a battle of wills, caught in an attraction they can't escape, Colleen and Grant must find a way to work together...or face losing it all.

Thoughts:
They're enemies.  They're lovers.  It's dangerously complicated.

HERO OF A HIGHLAND WOLF by Terry Spear is a wonderful romance featuring titillating, brawny, kilted Highland wolves!  The tale is riveting as I had to stay up until the early morning to finish it.  :-)

HERO OF A HIGHLAND WOLF is the fourteenth novel in her Heart of the Wolf series.  Each of these books can be easily read as standalones even though there are interconnected characters.   If you can, I highly recommend reading all the books in this series as they are all fantastically fun!  This particular book is the story of Laird Grant MacQuarrie and Lady Colleen Playfair.  

As the story begins, Colleen, our heroine,  arrives at Farraige Castle, a castle she has inherited and must reside in for a year and a day according to the terms of the will.   She has been forewarned by her friend, Julia Wildthorn,  mate to Ian MacNeil, that the men managing her castle aren't thrilled by her impending arrival and they are going to make things difficult for her in the hope that she'll give up and hightail it back to the States.  In Grant's words:

"Besides,” he said, clomping down the centuries-old stone steps, “she won’t last that long. Once she sees all those sharp swords and dirks, and all that fighting and mayhem, she’ll turn around and leave, realizing she really didn’t want to stay here after all.

Just imagine a huge castle in Scotland filled with oiled, strapping werewolves engaged in sword fights while wearing only kilts.  Ooh la la!

She drove into the inner bailey and saw the sight she had tried to envision on the way here.  But nothing had prepared her for this.  Hot, hot, hot men in kilts with oiled abs, pecs, and bare legs, and wearing leather boots -- some ancient, others more modern.  The men were absolutely drool worthy!  The only thing she regretted was that she hadn't been given the opportunity to oil them down.

With the following quote - another of my favorites -, Terry adroitly answers the question of what Highlanders wear under their kilts...

She loved the way the wind whipped their kilts about.  She caught a gorgeous shot of Grant's very toned, hot ass.  That would teach him to go without any briefs on a windy day!  Maybe he thought she would be so shocked to see him naked beneath the kilt that she'd run off.

Not her.

Instead of being cowed, Colleen videotapes the war games.  Grant, our arrogant hero, is shocked to see that Colleen's not cowed by their antics as he'd envisioned.  Grant's family had taken care of the castle for ages.  Colleen's father, a jackass, had made his family's lives miserable.  Thinking "like father, like daughter," he wasn't thrilled about this lass coming in, repeating her father's mistakes and running his people ragged.  Grant will do anything to keep the Playfair heir from interfering with his pack and the castle that the pack has made their home.   But... he never expected to have to fight his own attraction to her.

They stood high on top of the hill overlooking the glen, the water rushing by, the sheep grazing on the green grass across the burn, and white clouds passing overhead against the blue sky.

He still had hold of her arm, but then he released her, cupped her face with both hands, and kissed her.

I loved both Colleen and Grant.  Both were alphas, feisty, stubborn, and passionate in both war and peace, so the reader knows without a doubt that there's going to be a battle of wills.  And there is.  Then... Wowze!  Once their romance ignited, it was intense ...like set-your-sheets-on-fire NOW!

I had so many favorite scenes in this book!  The ladies' pirate party at Ian's castle was a hoot, especially when the men crashed the party.  The scene was also sweet and hot, a perfect combo to keep the reader glued to the book:

On the other hand, they were alone in the dark, and that had her thinking of kissing and other possibilities, which she swore she was going to ignore this very minute!
"What a delightful scent I smell," he said, drawing closer, his stride shorter now, his voice seductive, playful, and very interested.
She would not let him get her all excited again, not let him melt her with his touches and then leave again.
"I hear your breathing, lassie, and your heart beating out of bonds.  The lass isn't stealing the laird's wine, is she?"...
He laughed, his voice dark and sexy.  "You are not in charge of this castle,  You are a pirate.  What should I do with a pirate who is stealing the laird's wine, eh?  When he is my best friend?"...
"I believe I've found the lassie I want to keep for my own."...
"Why is the door locked?" Julia asked.
"We are negotiating terms of surrender," Grant hollered back.  "I'm no releasing my captive maiden until we get this right."...
She never thought she would mate her next wolf like this -- in a Highland castle's wine cellar with a hot alpha wolf wearing a kilt and nothing else, while she wore a medieval wench's gown and nothing underneath.

Secondary characters are well-written too from Laird Archibald Borthwick, who competes with Grant for Colleen's affection, to Grant's brothers (who need their own books!), returning favorite characters from previous books and more.  The dastardly villain remained hidden from me until the very end.   I loved the camaraderie of the members of the pack, especially when they helped push Grant towards mating Colleen.  LOL!  They even signed a petition!

I do not know how Terry does it, but she writes the best stories!  Her word building and character development are first rate, as always.  Her humor is evident throughout with loads of laugh-out-loud moments.  I'm a huge fan of hers and her books are always must-reads for me.

Her Highland wolves tales are incredible, rousing, entertaining adventures and can be counted on to leave my face sore from smiling.  If you are craving a really good paranormal read with SEXY kilted Highland wolves, smokin'  hot chemistry, nonstop action, thrilling suspense, danger, surprising twists and beautiful Scottish settings, look no further than HERO OF A HIGHLAND WOLF!