Mary Wine is a skillful storyteller who creates romantic tales full of intrigue, love and just enough flare of drama to keep readers flipping the pages.

Brina Chattan is the youngest of the Chattan daughters. Promised to the church, Brina knows her purpose in life. Of three daughters, Brina has easily accepted the reality of her father’s promise to the abbey. Though she is feisty and strong-willed, Brina believes that she will bring some good to the church and Scotland. But when her sister Deirdre, who is promised to marry Connor Lindsey, escapes one night to seek passion in the arms of a Douglas man, the life Brina has grown to know changes forever. Connor has his own agenda for marrying a Chattan daughter. His sister has been abducted by the Douglas clan and they refuse to return her. He needs to form strong reputable relationships with the other Highlanders and the Chattan clan is just where he wants to start. But after he discovers Deirdre has betrayed him, he sets off to secure his alliance even if it means stealing the bride of Christ himself.

On her way to the abbey with her father, Brina is stolen from her clan by Laird Lindsey. She is shocked that a man would dare commit such a crime to gain an allegiance. She demands and fights to be taken to the abbey to become a nun but Connor refuses. He is surprised to learn firsthand that Brina is a hellcat, not a woman to be taken lightly.

For the better part of the book, the two remain in a constant battle. She refuses to relent to be his wife, and he refuses to return her back to her father. The alpha male and the hellcat made for some interesting scenes. I enjoyed the banter and quick dialogue between the characters.

Since Brina has been raised to prepare herself for the church, she has never had certain luxuries in life. When she arrives at the Lindsey compound, she has to adapt to being waited on and being viewed as the mistress of the house. I love how she slowly becomes exposed to the real world and enjoys the simple treasures of life.

The first touch of his lips was soul shattering. She jerked, her hands coming up to plant solidly against his chest and push with every ounce of strength that she had. She twisted her face away from his, escaping from the kiss for a moment.

“No one has ever kissed me!” she shrieked, unable to remain composed. She struck out at him, her nails trying to find something soft to dig into.”

“A fact that needs changing.”

Though Connor is a true alpha male, he realizes Brina is not only innocent in flesh but innocent to the world at large. I appreciated that he is strong-willed, making sure Brina knows he will not change his mind, but his approach to getting her to agree to be his bride is slow.

In spite of her temper, his voice remained controlled and husky. He leaned down and placed another soft kiss against her cheek. “Admit that ye enjoy it, Brina. I swear that I do as well, for ye lips are as sweet as honey.”

She shivered, the dark promise in his voice threatening to lure her away like a fairy song from legend.

“But… it’s… sinful…”

The love scenes are beautiful and descriptive. Connor is skillful in making sure Brina enjoys the passions between the sheets.

If you enjoy a good Highland story, then Highland Hellcat is worth picking up. Samantha