#Review #newrelease: Take Me, I’m Yours by Lizzie Lamb @lizzie_lamb #Wisconsin #romance

Lizzie Lamb is one of the loveliest people I know, and I think I might just be as excited as she is (OK, maybe not quite!) about the release of her latest book, Take Me, I’m Yours, on 24th July. Available for preorder, published by New Romantics Press – and I feel immensely privileged that Lizzie trusted me with an early copy of the e-book so that I could tell everyone what I thought. And I won’t keep anyone in suspense – I loved it!

India Buchanan plans to set up an English-Style bed and breakfast establishment in her great-aunt’s home, MacFarlane Landing, Wisconsin. But she’s reckoned without opposition from Logan MacFarlane whose family once owned her aunt’s house and now want it back. MacFarlane is in no mood to be denied. His grandfather’s living on borrowed time and Logan has vowed to ensure the old man sees out his days in their former home. India’s great-aunt has other ideas and has threatened to burn the house to the ground before she lets a MacFarlane set foot in it. There’s a story here. One the family elders aren’t prepared to share. When India finds herself in Logan’s debt, her feelings towards him change. However, the past casts a long shadow and events conspire to deny them the love and happiness they both deserve. Can India and Logan’s love overcome all odds? Or is history about to repeat itself?

I’m guessing that the first surprise for anyone who’s read Lizzie Lamb’s books before will be the book’s setting – but worry not, I did spot a piper, a few strategically placed tartan cushions and a smidgeon of Scots ancestry. There’s a perfect sense of place about this book, the Wisconsin setting brought to life with some wonderfully vivid descriptions – the Buchanan property, the dilapidated lighthouse, the landing – and a real feel for the small town community where everyone is more involved in everyone else’s business than their own.

From the moment that Logan MacFarlane roars into view on his vintage Triumph motorcycle and India Buchanan grabs her monkey wrench to defend herself for their first skirmish, I knew I was going to love this book. They’re both complex characters, exceptionally well-drawn – tremendously likeable, neither quite what they appear, with difficult personal histories and a few lifetimes of family history to overcome. The book builds into a strong and believable love story, but things certainly don’t go smoothly – and I thoroughly enjoyed every twist and turn of the story, and the family history that so complicates the way it moves forward.

I have to say that Logan had me from the moment he removed his Raybans and hung them over the Triumph’s handlebars – but I did rather like it when he peeled off his leathers. He’s pretty hot in his more usual sharply cut suit too, and the temperature certainly rises when he takes that off. He has that slightly aggressive edge but also a real vulnerability and capacity for tenderness – goodness, that’s my kind of man! There’s a tremendous warmth to the whole story – not too hot, just enough to make your heart beat a little faster and bring a flush to your cheeks – and the more I got to know both Logan and India, the obstacles to their getting together steadily mounting with the weight of history and a few hidden secrets, the more I wanted there to be an unlikely happy ending. And although the story is largely a double-hander, the supporting cast is excellent too – the MacFarlane grandfather with his battles with his nurse and passion for old movies, the larger than life Great Aunt Elspeth, India’s supportive and lovely friend Lotte.

The author has a particularly special touch with dialogue – the exchanges between India and Logan sparkle and fizz, but I also loved Logan’s relationship with his grandfather (beautifully drawn, with real love and affection) and lndia’s with her great aunt. Her set pieces are excellent too – one near the book’s start that really sets the scene for the story and what’s to come, another near the book’s end that had my heart in my mouth and was just wonderfully described. The story is essentially a classic “will they, won’t they” – but I really enjoyed the degrees of complication, and the history, both personal and family, gave it real depth. And that depth also came from the strength of the characters and the emotional content – real people, real feelings, beautifully handled.

Anyone who’s enjoyed Lizzie Lamb’s other books will love this one as much as I did – and if you’ve never read one of her books before, I’d so recommend you give this one a try.

About the author

After teaching her 1000th pupil and working as a deputy head teacher in a large primary school, Lizzie decided to pursue her first love: writing. She joined the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s New Writers’ Scheme, wrote Tall, Dark and Kilted (2012), quickly followed by Boot Camp Bride. Although much of her time is taken promoting her novels she published Scotch on the Rocks, which achieved Best Seller status within two weeks of appearing on Amazon. Her next novel, Girl in the Castle, reached #3 in the Amazon charts. Lizzie is a founder member of indie publishing group – New Romantics Press, and has co-hosted author events at Aspinall, St Pancras and Waterstones, Kensington, talking about writing and the research which underpins her novels.

Lizzie’s latest romance Take Me, I’m Yours is set in Wisconsin, a part of the USA which she adores. She has further Scottish-themed romances planned and this summer has toured the Scottish Highlands in her caravan researching men in kilts. What’s not to like? As for the years she spent as a teacher, they haven’t quite gone to waste as she is building up a reputation as a go-to speaker on indie publishing, and how to plan, write, and publish a debut novel. Lizzie lives in Leicestershire (UK) with her husband, David.

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