Thunder On The Moor by Andrea Matthews
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is a tale of Scotland vs England in the 16th Century but with a 20th Century twist, Maggie Armstrong is a strong willed young woman, she takes after her dad for that one, it isn’t surprising because she was brought up on tales of his past, of the Border Reivers and their adventures, including an old picture of a portrait from the time, without knowing exactly how long ago his past actually was. It is summertime and Maggie wants to go to a dig in the USA, but her dad feels that it is time to go to Scotland with her, he says it is to meet his family, but she thinks it is just another archeological dig, but she can’t understand why she has to dress the part as well when they get to their destination. That is until he says that they are going back to the 16th Century and when all hell breaks loose with wind, sparks of light and then a calm which is broken by some scottish voices hailing them from a distance on horseback with an Englishman thrown over one of their saddles.

As the riders approach them, one of the recognises her father and dismounts to give him a bear hug and then she is introduced to them, in all the excitement the Englishman escapes the groups clutches, but he is allowed to go for now, there is more excitement to be had with the prodigal son returning after all this time and as they set off to her dad’s ancestral home, it finally sinks in that Maggie is indeed in the 16th Century and so far, it is just like her father described, the deciding fact is that she sees the spitting image of the man from the portrait in her fathers book, she almost goes to where she has spotted him until her father pulls her back and reminds her of the dangers surrounding her.

As Maggie becomes more acquainted with the immediate family, it is decided that a celebration is in order and the whole of the family is invited and there are a lot of them there, but one in particular catches Maggie’s eye and she catches his at the same time, so they are introduced by a cousin as Ian Rutherford and they spend the evening talking to each other and spending time together, but this doesn’t go unnoticed by her father or her uncle. As time passes, they seem keen on each other and as the time dictates, Ian asks for permission to court Maggie and also to begin the process for a betrothal, this is a bit much for Maggie and she starts to protest as her 20th Century independence balks at the idea of it, however, as time goes on, she slowly comes to the realisation that these two worlds are making it hard to respect the families decisions and this is made even harder when she runs into the dashing Englishman and he introduces himself as Bonnie Will Foster.

As time progresses, Maggie is torn between her feelings for Ian and Will and as the Reiver life throws a tragic event into her life, she is overcome with grief and is pulled every which way she could be as she encounters lies, betrayal and blood feuds rage, but will she be able to overcome the events of border life and make the choices she needs to, or will her heart be broken again and again? This is a tale filled with passion, grief, revelations and danger at every turn, but a page turner for sure.

Reviewed by @roxsannel

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