Kresley Cole - MacCarrick Brothers trilogy

I've been a fan of Kresley Cole's PNR Immortal After dark series since I've read the first book, around 2007 or 2008. While in my PNR obsession period, I've read many, many books in the genre and some authors' work was clearly more appealing than others and this author was quite well liked. 

At that time, I've also decided to get her historical romance series featuring the three Scottish brothers for no other reason than the fact it was written by her. I also like historical romance and it wasn't such a hard task to want to read these books too, but it's true I wasn't motivated by their blurbs.

Now that I'm aiming to make the effort to read books which have been languishing in the Goodreads' "want to read" pile for the longest, this trilogy finally caught up my attention. I've decided to read them all in a row (usually, I prefer to read series one installment a month, more or less) and get it over with. I know, this sounds a bit harsh but the truth is that by picking the first installment and checking the others, I wasn't really that motivated to read the trilogy, not as I am in regards to other historical romances.

I think my issue was with the type of plots: all brothers are somehow involved with spying or mercenary type of activities and while this is set in the 1830s, it didn't really give me that vibe. They also believe their family is cursed and none of them will have a happy marriage, nor will they have children. This is the driving force behind some of their decisions and some plot moves but it felt to me that it made the overall story a bit frustrating at times, because it was an actual simple thing to overcome.

1.If You Dare

This is the story of Courtland, the youngest brother. He is a mercenary, working for a man in Andorra but makes the decision to switch sides and this doesn't go well. He is rescued by Annalía, the woman who is his former boss' fiance. At first he only wants to use her as tool for revenge but they fall in love and he decides to help her fight the fiancé and the harm he could cause. I was feeling rather meh abut this, actually. The story itself wasn't bad, and I liked the final part, but there was a lot in the middle I struggled to care for. This made the reading experience a little boring and all the plan discussion of doing this and that, along with the protagonist's sexy times - which felt out of place - turned this story into something a bit disjointed. 

Grade: 5/10

2. If You Desire

This is the story of the middle brother, Hugh, who is a spy and assassin. Hugh believes his talents are only related to his ability to dispatch someone and he has had a good mentor, Davis. Hugh responds to lord Weyland and he has always thought his work helped but he can't hide that his fascination with Weyland's daughter Jane also compelled him to accept her father's proposal, especially since he believed he could not marry her. The problem is that his mentor Davis is now on a mission to destroy Weyland and he plans on using Jane, and Hugh is tasked with protecting her. After years denying their attraction, they now need to be together, and their relationship clearly evolved. My problem is that the writing in this book simply discouraged me and I could find no real interest in this couple's story. It was quite a task to finish, even more so because I disliked Jane's personality.

Grade: 4/10

3.If You Deceive

This is the story of Ethan, the oldest brother. Ethan also does some enforcing/spying work and he is the one feeling the curse the most. He was always considered a good looking man but that changed when a man who caught him with his wife mistook the situation and ordered his torture. Later, Ethan got his revenge when the woman and her daughter were left destitute but now he learns the daughter, Madeleine, is looking for a husband and he decides to finish his revenge by deceiving her. Of course, things don't happen that easily and they fall in love. I liked this story the most but I feel conflicted because it was the darkest one, in terms of vibe and in what happens. Madeleine had a hard life and is living in poverty in Paris. I think her despairing situation and what Ethan does only exacerbate the whole thing and I still don't feel fully convinced by the expected happy ending. I think the positive elements weren't always balanced well enough with the less good ones.

Grade: 6/10

In summary, this trilogy didn't really grab me. I might be guilty of already having low expectations and yes, a certain lack of general interest, but I wasn't fully convinced by the stories presented. I kept hoping that all characters would have been different in some aspect or that they would make other choices in key moments... well, wishing for difference when it was not possible to change anything anyway always leads to disappointment.

I feel glad I've read the books and that I can move on from the thought of having them just waiting. I've liked certain elements but not all.

Generally speaking, the average of the three books is ordinary. My conclusion is that while I like the author's voice in PNR, her historical romance one didn't win me over.

Grade: 5/10