Highland Rebel
Set in a dangerous time of religious and political upheaval and civil war, HIGHLAND REBEL tells the story of Catherine Drummond and Jamie Sinclair, two proud and lonely outcasts whose struggle for acceptance and survival draws them together in a partnership based on mutual interest that will transform them both. In so doing it transports the reader to Ireland, the Scottish Highlands, the court of King James II, and the coffee houses, backstreets and taverns of seventeenth century London, while chronicling the brief reign of England’s last Stuart king.
Born in the waning days of Cromwell’s England, despised as a bastard by his Puritan father, and abandoned by his mother, James Sinclair has learned from an early age to fend for himself. Charming, dangerous, and decidedly amoral, his quick wit, good looks and military prowess have served him well in the courts of two Stuart Kings, the grudgingly Protestant Charles II and the openly Catholic King James. Adventurer, courtier, mercenary and spy, he’s a master of disguise who can transform from aristocrat to beggar and disappear in any crowd. Sent to mind a troop of foreign mercenaries, he looks forward to completing his mission and collecting his reward, and when an inconvenient spark of gallantry and his own perverse humor cause him to marry a maid captured on the battlefield he intends the marriage to be in name only.
Raised in the Scottish Highlands, heiress to a title, a fortune founded on the whiskey trade, and properties in Scotland and in France, Cat Drummond is far from the camp follower Jamie mistakes her for. Fiercely loyal to family, clan and king, she’s born to rule, trained on the field of battle and at the court of Versailles, and equally comfortable in men’s breeches or a gown. Disguised as beggars on the streets of London, or glittering amongst the courtiers of Whitehall Palace, Catherine and Jamie will join forces in an age where treachery and adultery are the fashion, and cynicism, cruelty and barbed wit are the qualities most admired. But in a world where family, creed, and princes can’t be trusted, and faith fuels intolerance, hatred, and war, they’ll soon find themselves on opposite sides of a growing conflict that will force them to question everything they know, and test the bounds of friendship, loyalty and love.
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Reviews
"A true love story of polar opposites forced together, only to find that they feed each other's hottest fires"
-Readin' Something Crazy
"Set during the religious warfare in the reign of James II of England (1685-1688), this rousing historical romance pits the fearless Catherine Drummond, the daughter of a Highland laird, against Jamie Sinclair, a seasoned soldier, adventurer, and spy who lives by his wit and sword.
After Jamie impulsively marries Catherine on the battlefield to keep her from being defiled and executed by the king’s mercenaries, their lives and fortunes become entwined. Whether in the Highlands, on Jamie’s estate, or in the London court of King James, they navigate through intolerance and ever-shifting political and personal alliances of Restoration England, Jacobite Scotland, and Ireland. They grow to respect, protect, and love each other over the course of adventures that test friendship, family ties, and intimacy.
Highland Rebel represents the best of the genre: carefully researched, with complex, compelling characters and a good, galloping plot that, despite a slightly sagging middle, is sure to please. Upscale historical romance at its best! Highly recommended."
-Eileen Charbonneau
HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW Editors’ choice
"Jamie Sinclair and Catherine "Cat" Drummond are thrown together by fate when her Highlanders do battle with King James' mercenaries. To save her from his cohorts who want to rape and murder their battlefield prize, he marries the strong willed girl. She returns the favor when he is captured, beaten and whipped by her clansman. A marriage in name only is uncomfortable for them both. Attracted to one another instantly, their lives take many turns as their friendship grows.
Judith James pens a tale that captures me from the beginning and doesn't let go. The ups and downs of the relationship are ongoing as they seem to take turns rescuing one another from the machinations of the aristocracy. In favor one minute, shunned the next Jamie finds it rough going both with the King and with Cat. Some of their romps through the back streets of London are hilarious. Cat dresses up as a young man to accompany Jamie through the coffee houses and brothels. Ms. James paints such vivid scenes for us that it's easy to see the places, people and times they live in.
Dialogue is often witty, sometimes sad. Jamie's life helped make him what he is but it's easy to empathize with him and admire him for getting as far in life as he has. Cat grew up as a favored daughter but learned to fight and play like her male comrades in the Drummond clan. Both have suffered things with their family that handicaps them but rise above it most of the time.
Secondary characters are many and help to enhance the tale. Jamie seems to know all the famous and infamous people of the times which helps the historical facet of the book come alive. This is one of those tales where we can't help but root for the two main characters to finally admit to their feelings. They're so dynamic and adorable together we want to wring their necks at times for being so obtuse! Ms. James makes this an unforgettable tale. " Five Hearts.
-Romance Studio: Dee Dailey
James Sinclair is that most common of English Lords, possessed of titles and land but completely devoid of cash. He desperately needs a rich heiress for a wife and thinks he will earn one in the mercenary service of the Stuarts, though they are making it hard for him. It took a cunning mind to serve both Protestant King Charles II and his successor, the Catholic King James II. But Jamie managed it, though he was required to fight yet another war in the process.
In the bloody aftermath of a battle against Scotland, the mercenary troop has taken a prisoner of war, a boy that they are planning to torture. When his helmet is removed and long hair tumbles out, they realize that they have captured a woman. And they plan to make the most of their prize. Jamie is sickened by their violent intentions and saves the woman from rape and worse the only way he can, by fetching his priest and marrying her on the spot. He is only able to learn her name - Catherine Drummond - before she escapes out the back of the tent and is gone.
Catherine finds her way back to her men and the party make their way to their home in the Highlands of Scotland. Since her father, the Earl of Moray, died, Catherine has been fighting for her place. If she had been male, she would have been his heir. And she is as able as any man, even in combat. But she is a woman and most of her father's people refuse to follow her. They want to marry her off, she is an irritating encumbrance that the current heir would be glad to be rid of. Her battlefield marriage turns out to be a godsend, they can hardly force her to marry when she is already wed.
While Jamie was relieved to have saved Catherine from her fate, she is a hindrance to him and his plans. He sets off to follow her, when he finds her he fully intends to have their marriage annulled so that he can marry his heiress. It proves to be much harder than he thought it would be, Catherine is unlike any woman he has ever met. For her part, Catherine is reluctant to release Jamie, the marriage is all that is protecting her from a distasteful, forced union. And there is the little matter of her family trying to kill him so that she will be a widow and free to marry again. Their journey will be fraught with excitement and danger, there are forces at work that are greater than their own desires.
I don't think the cover does this book justice. I suppose it is a historical romance, but I think it leans more to historical fiction. It even has a very informative "Historical Note" in the back. It is NOT a typical "bodice ripper" romance. (There are no ripping bodices here!) The author is an excellent writer who did extensive research and it shows in the depth of her characters and the liveliness of her settings. Jamie is hard on the outside but on the inside he is a little boy who never had the love or support of a family. He is strong and capable with a caustic sense of humor. Catherine is not a typical heroine and is far from a shrinking violet. She is a revelation to Jamie, independent and courageous, more than a match for him. Their verbal sparring, at turns funny and biting, were my favorite parts of this excellent novel. Add the sweeping vistas of the Highlands and the lush valleys of Ireland and you have a winning combination. If you like historical fiction, you will enjoy Highland Rebel . I know I did!
There's nothing like a deliciously handsome bad boy and a wonderfully strong heroine to kick the day up a notch. For that matter, this pairing tends to kick the evening up a notch as well. HIGHLAND REBEL by Judith James was a wonderfully passionate and action filled romance that left me flipping back through the book, searching for more. Her writing flows nicely, her characters come alive and the story was so beautifully developed that the pages would just fly by without me even noticing.
Jamie is the hero of this story and what a hero he is! He's definitely not your typical knight in shining armor. He can be polite and chivalrous, but typically his demeanor can be described as that of a rogue. Growing up in a tough environment, Jamie had to learn early how to detach himself from the world. He lives his life attempting to create something for himself out of nothing. Jumping back and forth between religions and political side, the only thing he cares about is his self and his own advancement. That is until the day he sees a helpless woman get captured by the band of bloodthirsty and cruel soldiers he is supposed to supervise.
Catherine was her father's favorite child and often reminded that it was a shame she was born a female. Nevertheless, she spent her childhood in her father's footsteps and has grown up into something of a tomboy. She accompanies the men on fishing trips and raids, much to the disappointment of her brother and cousin. It's the latest mission, a mission to rescue one of her kind caught in a battle with the English that might spell Catherine's demise. Surrounded by men looking for a bit of entertainment, the only prayer in sight is the strange gentleman with the hard eyes and devious scheme. Before she knows it she's free of the men after her flesh yet she finds herself in the worst place of all: married.
James has written a great story full of so many twists and turns that it was impossible to not stay engaged with the characters. The marriage between Jamie and Catherine occasionally flip flops between being beneficial and a nuisance between one party and the other. This adds a bit of humor to the book at times and suspense at others. The underlying political intrigue is wonderful as we watch Jamie attempt to make a life for himself and Catherine attempt to take back her lands from her overbearing male kin. With a pair so oddly matched, James has really created a great story in making the two rely on each for the solutions to the many problems that arise.
HIGHLAND REBEL is quite the passionate romance and I think a large part of this is due to the fact that James's characters were so well developed. By the end of the second chapter, Jamie and Catherine already come to life and the reality that they create continues through to the very last page. It's not easy to create fictional characters with a feel of authenticity, but James has accomplished this in HIGHLAND REBEL and the story is better for it.
Outside of great characters, another thing that really makes a book wonderful to me is the tension. The story needs to have tension - a feeling of being pulled along - in order to capture the readers' interest and keep them turning the pages. This feeling of tension is what makes you say, "Okay, one more chapter," and then makes you continue turning the pages after that chapter. I am pleased to say that James did a wonderful job with the tension in HIGHLAND REBEL. I love to read so it's already difficult for me to put books down but I have been known to do it. With HIGHLAND REBEL, as with a few others, I found myself making excuses to stay up late to read or get up early to get a few extra hours in. Even though I was finally able to put the book down for the night, it haunted my dreams and inevitably would find its way into my hands in the morning. That's the sign of an awesome book.
Fair warning time: This book has adult themes and adult scenes. I would give it a sensuality rating of 4 out of 5.
I definitely have to give HIGHLAND REBEL top marks. I figured the book might be good from the synopsis, but fell in love with it by the second page. The emotion that James writes with and the ability she has to draw you into the story, making your heartbeat rapidly was just amazing. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a great Romance or a great Action. This book encompasses the best of both of those worlds.
As a man who’d seen more than enough of wars and their Kings, Jamie Sinclair was ready to ride in one last battle before finally retiring to the life he’s dreamt of. That is until a beautiful highlander is captured, leaving it up to Jamie to either marry or leave her to die. Taking a wife wasn’t what Jamie Sinclair had in mind, especially one who could easily be a camp follower without a title. Despite his desire to stay in the King’s favor, something about the woman’s bravery strikes a chord with him. In an instant he finds himself wed to a woman who by birth should be his enemy and yet, just might be his destiny.
Highland Rebel is an incredible journey of a book! Not only is the setting detailed enough to take the reader through time, the story is beautiful. I could see the characters struggle to love one another in a time when living in different countries was as good as living in different worlds. I’m thoroughly impressed by Ms. James! Five stars for Highland Rebel.
It took me a while to realize why loving romance comes naturally to so many folks who also dig "high art." For instance, lots of opera - the opera buffo gems of the 18thC for instance -- is pretty much romance with a nice beat you can minuet to. And so many of opera's staged conventions, from comic errors to confused identity and every form of struggle on the way to HEA between, is the divine-to-sublime stuff of romantic fantasy.
One twist to opera history folks aren't always hip to is that men often "sang" the roles of chicks. Famous castrati - men castrated as boys and trained to have glorious soprano voices - played heroic roles, but sometimes filled the bill for female characters.
Perhaps then, it's not surprising to note that at the same time female parts were being written for castrati, male roles in the opera were being created to be sung by, you guessed it: chicks.
Of these travesti or "trouser roles," one of the most famous is that of Cherubino from Mozart's "Le Nozze di Figaro/The Marriage of Figaro." Cherubino is a young page aflame with adolescent desire which inconveniently causes him to become lustily infatuated with most every pretty woman he sees - from lady to lady's maid. He describes his heart's affliction to two women he, em, esteems, in the exquisite, "Voi che sapete," which you simply must take a gander at here or below.
The travesti character in romance isn't just a neat way to throw off the gender balance in the ol' boy meets girl. The switcheroo - especially in the historical - is about the same thing as the change-up in Figaro: Access to power.
In Mozart's Figaro - based on a Beaumarchais satire of aristocracy - Cherubino has access to all the characters regardless of class, because of his ability to hide in plain site and, at one point, dress as a woman. In romance, a heroine generally cross dresses to gain the things men in her time take for granted, and remain unavailable to women even after class lines fade: Education, business opportunity and, often, plain old spicy life variety.
Yet sometimes heroines spend time en travesti out of responsibility, as is the case with Catherine Drummond, heroine of Judith James' exceptional "Highland Rebel ." Heiress and rightful laird of her clan, Catherine's forced out of chief's position, but it doesn't stop her from risking life/ limb for her people. Dressed for battle as a boy, she's captured in the melee, then saved from rape and a slow death when cynical King's man Jamie Sinclair marries her amidst the gore. Even as they spend time together in both London and the Highlands - and Sinclair encourages Catherine to dress as a man so he can show her the life she deserves - Sinclair remains solitary and unreachable, and one of the most intriguing heroes of this year.
Jane de Westin of Blythe Gifford's smart and sensual medieval, "In the Master's Bed," always feels more "herself" when wearing comfortable boys' clothing and spending time studying and reading as opposed to learning the womanly arts. When she runs off as "John" to study in the all-male world of Cambridge, she's taken under the wing of Duncan, a brawny soldier/scholar. Jane's befuddled because she's finally met a man who makes her feel womanly. Duncan's a bit scandalized that he feels soft emotions for this boy, "John," and when he finds out the truth of John/Jane, unfortunately, he wants badly to treat her like a lady - and not just in bed.
Opera singers love the pants roles because they allow so much freedom of movement and expression in productions that don't allow female roles the same in historical context. Guess that works pretty much the same for the romance heroine pantser, and for we readers who want to imagine our contemporary selves in historical roles with which we can identify -- and in novels that are grand in their scope and entertainment.
To me, that makes romance high art, indeed.
Catherine Drummond is a Highland heiress who is just as comfortable in the ballroom as she is in boy’s breeches. When she is caught in an enemy camp, she fears the worst until a handsome devil rescues her by marrying her. She wants her freedom, and her chieftan wants her to marry a man of his choosing, so the marriage is actually to her benefit. She sends her new husband on his way back to England until such time she requires an annulment.
James Sinclair is charming, handsome, and has many faces. He’s quick witted and can blend in easily as a beggar on the street, or as one of the King’s favored in the palace. When he sets his eyes on Catherine, he figures the marriage would be easily annulled and she would be safe. He didn’t count on her out-witting him and sending him back to England.
So after a year goes by and Jamie finds himself almost ruined, he is surprised yet delighted to see his wife upon his doorstep. She has a proposition to make with him that could fix both of their problems. The biggest hurdle of all though is the attraction the two of them have.
Highland Rebel is filled with a rich historical background that lends credence to the story. Jamie and Cat are two polar opposite characters that simply sizzle together. They belong to one another like peanut butter and jelly. The fireworks between them is phenomenal and the romance is tender, yet molten hot. The reparte’ between the two of them had me in stitches sometimes. Highland Rebel is a historical romance treat you won’t want to miss.
-Wendy's Minding Spot