A MacKenzie Clan Gathering (Jennifer Ashley)

Note

So my initial instinct was to read this before reading The Stolen Mackenzie Bride because this was the order in which I had bought the books back in 2015 (and now I feel really guilty because I’ve had The Stolen Mackenzie since September 2015 and I still haven’t read it.) So I know they’re out of order, but this book is the last of the Victorian Mackenzies before Jennifer Ashley published a trilogy about the Culloden Mackenzies from the 1740s. I’m going to leave my master list order the way it is.

Overall Response

So I recently purchased The Mackenzie Chronicles, which serves as an overview of the series. Each book has some information about the characters and plot, and also a note from Jennifer Ashley about writing the book. it turns out the title was decided upon before she wrote the story, so I’m glad I know that because I was gonna kind read her for not really doing a clan gathering. I’ll set it aside because I get how publishing works and sometimes writing goes in a different direction.

This is relatively good. It’s mostly Ian and Beth–and when I say that, it’s Ian. Beth has kind of stopped being her own character which is kind of sad since I adored her in the The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie. Here, she’s a supporting character whose primary and defining characteristic is being the center of Ian’s world. That’s fine, but now the character is just less interesting.

The story here is a dual one — Ian is at Kilmorgan Castle when Hart’s art collection is stolen, and Beth’s brother-in-law (from her first marriage) arrives, wanting to help Ian with his madness. Both stories are good, even though I think the latter is probably better. The mystery is entertaining, but I felt like the ending was rushed.

The supporting cast is a little easier to take since the Mackenzies don’t show up en masse until the very end of the book, and Daniel’s appearance is at a minimum. I’m probably never going to recover from how much I did not like him in Wicked Deeds, which is a shame since he’s all over this series. This is what happens when you read things with a critical eye. Lloyd is back and I’m happy to see him! I love him getting to deal with his half-brothers and approaching the mystery.

This is a solid book, but it’s not spectacular, and the fact that Ian is really the only character makes it a little less fun for me since I come to romance novels for both sides of the romance. There’s actually…no romance here. We’re not even really revisiting characters–we’re just spending more time with Ian. That’s fine, but it’s not what I’m here for.

Scandal And The Duchess (Jennifer Ashley)

Overall Response

I remember not being wildly in love with this novella the first time I read it, and I remain underwhelmed during this reread. I think my main problem is that all of the material is here–the elements are present that should make this a good book. I genuinely like Rose and Steven. I think, for once, the supporting cast is well-used. The plot catches my interest and seems well suited to the novella length.

The problem here is that everything is on the surface–it’s undeveloped. I want to know more about Rose and Steven and their backstory. Steven seems like he’s got this super angsty reason for being in London and then you find out what happened, and you’re like…what? Rose is supposed to be this scandal-plagued duchess, but the material surrounding her scandals seems really underwhelming.

I just found myself wanting to know more and not being satisfied with the way it ends.

The Untamed MacKenzie (Jennifer Ashley)

Overall Response

I was happy to finally get to Louisa and Lloyd, since both of their characters have been part of the series since The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie and Lady Isabella’s Scandalous Marriage. They shared a moment in the The Duke’s Perfect Wife and The Perfect Gift, so we knew they would end up together. But how would Jennifer Ashley write the story of the illegitimate police inspector and scandalous daughter of the ton?

Naturally, they’re brought together by the murder of a bishop who wanted to marry Louisa. She’s the suspect, and Lloyd is trying to clear her name. Of course, the rest of the Mackenzies make their appearance, and in a lot ways, this novella puts to bed the story of the Mackenzie brothers as Lloyd is the last son of the duke to find peace.

I wrote in my review of The Perfect Gift that Ian is Jennifer Ashley’s favorite Mackenzie to write about because he is in every single book, but Daniel is a close second. He plays a major supporting role here, and I’m not sure how I feel about it. We’ve seen Daniel since the first book as a teenager beyond his years, and here he’s eighteen clearly going on forty. The next book is his, which I’m actually in the middle of reading now, and I just don’t know if I like Daniel. I’m still sorting that out.

I do, however, like Lloyd a great deal, and I would have loved if he had his own full-book treatment. I wanted to get know him more–I wanted to see his romance with Louisa deepen. I wanted a better character development journey from the clearly insane inspector of the first book I like Louisa just fine, and I think she’s a great foil for Lloyd. I’m just not sold on their romance by the end the way I should be.