Explore the highs and lows of an arranged marriage in the classic romance The Bride by Julie Garwood, where fiery clashes and fiery passion define a Scottish laird and his English bride’s journey.

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I continue my exploration of classic historical romances based on some recommendations I got from you guys.  I was actually really excited to read this one because I’ve seen it on my rec lists for years from so many people. And I’m pretty sure it’s my first book by Julie Garwood (or at least that I can remember). There were certainly some things about this story that I enjoyed but honestly it didn’t blow me away as I was expecting it to.

The trope and character types were my jam. I love a good grumpy hero and if you pair that with a spirited heroine and an arranged marriage, I’m sold.  So that for sure worked for me in this book. But the pacing probably could’ve reeled me in more had it not been as slow. That’s not to say it didn’t make sense given the situation both characters came from and how they landed on being together. I just wanted a little more spark and it took some time to get there. Another thing that I didn’t love was the cartoon villain, I really could’ve done without that added and sometimes unnecessary drama.

Once it did though, I absolutely loved these two together. They are quite the challenge for each other and as a couple I think they were quite memorable. Both so strong and determined to have their way, but especially our heroine who was willing to work with her situation of being dragged to another country and married off to a guy she’d never met and tried to adjust to that situation with grace and make the best of it for her future. I found that refreshing as it’s often the heroine who fights the imposition of an arranged marriage in these types of novels. That mix of Highland barbarian and English lady just always seems to work for me and it certainly shined in this book.

I’m very curious to read the next book because it’s also the same situation as this one featuring the heroine’s sister.  We saw a little glimpse of that from this book and I can’t wait to see what happened. I have to admit I’m not 100% sold on the heroine just from what we saw in this book. Especially when it comes to her behavior towards her sister. But I love seeing a character grow and I think her highlander is the one to show her the right way.

While this didn’t get a 5 star rating from me, I do think it should be required reading for fans of historical romance and especially classic historical romance. It’s certainly a book that is entertaining and fun.

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