Book Review: The Devil Wears Plaid

I'll admit, only my love for Teresa Medeiros stories enabled me to pick up this book. The title, The Devil Wears Plaid, makes me cringe. It's cheesy and unoriginal and, really, Medeiros could do so much better.

But, I'm a diehard fan, so I tried to ignore it the best I could and get into the story.

According to the book's blurb:

Emmaline Marlowe is about to wed the extremely powerful laird of the Hepburn clan to save her father from debtor’s prison when ruffian Jamie Sinclair bursts into the abbey on a magnificent black horse and abducts her in one strong swoop. Though he is Hepburn’s sworn enemy, Emma’s mysterious captor is everything her bridegroom is not—handsome, virile, dangerous . . . and a perilous temptation for her yearning heart. Jamie expects Emma to be some milksop English miss, not a fiery, defiant beauty whose irresistible charms will tempt him at every turn. But he cannot allow either one of them to forget he is her enemy and she his pawn in the deadly Highland feud between the clans. So why does he still want her so badly for himself? Stealing his enemy’s bride was simple, but can he claim her innocence without losing his heart?

Okay, the blurb made me cringe a little, too. And the first chapter made me cringe again. (Not a very promising start.) The first part was pretty good and a bit funny, but as soon as the male love interest entered, I ended up rolling my eyes every other sentence. Yes, it's a romance, but would a girl who thinks she's about to be killed, kidnapped, raped, maimed etc? really notice her potential kidnapper's brawny forearms to such detail? It made the whole scene (which would have been a good one) feel forced and the attraction more than contrived. It started to feel as if someone was beating me over the head and screaming, "This is romance novel! Get it? Get it?"

But I had faith in Ms. Medeiros, so I kept reading.

The story got better, if a bit predictable (but, let's face it, I don't go into historical romance without EXPECTING the predictable). As more of Jamie's (totally coincidence that I'm reading two books set in the Scotland of old with male MCs by the name of Jamie, I swear) motives are revealed, the story picks up speed and a little more depth and soon I became just another reader along for the ride.

The ending, and Emma, pleasantly surprised me and left me with the happy afterglow (um, yeah) of a good romance novel. It's an enjoyable fluff read, and definitely not one of Medeiros' best. Still, it gave me what it promised.

Rating (out of five stars): 3
Recommended read? For those looking for a story with entertainment value, but not necessarily one that delivers anything exceptional or thought-provoking.