"An incredible reincarnation romance"

Mae Sutton has always been fascinated with Scotland. So much so, that when she had the opportunity to go to Scotland as an exchange student, she jumped at the chance. That was several years ago now, and she had been back home in Montana for a while, but the pull Scotland had over her never ended. When she started having dreams again about a dark castle ruin in Tulcairn, she decided once and for all to put the mystery behind her as to why she had spent most of her life dreaming about Moor Castle and a woman who lived a century before.

Aidan Ramsey owns the property where Moor Castle rests. His family has lived in Ramsay Hall in the Highlands for many generations and has heard of more then his share of mysterious happenings at the ruins -- people disappearing, strange sights and sounds in the vicinity of the castle, and much more. He also has dreamed most of his life of the castle, and one of his ancestors, Quinn Ramsay. When Aidan sees Mae during a tour of his home, he is shocked by her appearance. She looks exactly like his ancestor, Quinn's, wife, Maggie Mae, who disappeared 100 years ago and was never heard from again.

When Mae and Aidan meet, sparks fly from the first, and each is drawn to the other in ways they cannot explain. Also, a resurgence in Mae's dreams, which she learns are about Maggie Mae and Quinn, causes her to be more determined then ever to figure out why she has always been obsessed with Moor Castle. It has an aura of evil and gloom pervading it, so much so that Mae is overwhelmed, and she experiences flashes where she herself is living in the past, feeling Maggie Mae's same fascination with the ruins which may have been her downfall.

As Mae and Aidan spend more time together, they find themselves growing closer and closer. They also learn about each others' dreams and eventually come to realize they hold the answers to the mystery of what happened to Maggie Mae. But the evil surrounding Moor Castle is spreading, threatening to consume them both. They must come together to solve the mysteries surrounding Maggie Mae and Quinn, and to put an end to the castle's evil reign. What did happen to Maggie Mae on that long ago night? Did she abandon her husband to be with a lover as some suspected? Or was there something else involved in her disappearance and possible death? Only Mae and Aidan know for sure, and it is locked deep in their subconscious and the only way to draw it out is to face the evil in a fight for their souls on a night exactly like the one in 1898, on which Maggie Mae disappeared forever.

Wow!!! This is one intense read. It is extremely fascinating and will keep one engrossed from the very first page, and the introduction to the indomitable Mae Sutton. The theme behind this story is so amazing, it keeps the pages turning. Mae and Aidan are a perfect match, soul mates, if only they can come to terms with their unbelievable circumstances. They engage the reader in their lives, and those of their friends, all the way to the shocking conclusion. It is also different in that their adversary is not the traditional flesh and blood person, but an entity far more complex and indefinable, that is housed in the brooding castle.

The underlying reincarnation thread is so well-done, one can't help but believe. The blinking back and forth between past and present should be disconcerting, but it isn't. One understands what is happening in the dreams of Mae and Aidan and has no trouble following the story. This reviewer was blown away by the storyline. There are however, several instances of poor editing, which can be distracting, until one starts to just ignore them, to prevent being pulled out of the story. All in all, a phenomenal book, which has this reviewer eager to go find more works by Ms. Agnew.

© Kelley A. Hartsell, September 2002. All rights reserved.

Reviewed by Kelley Hartsell
Courtesy Love Romances
Posted November 16, 2003

Also available in paperback from the publisher.

Summary

Sometimes one lifetime is not enough. American Mae Sutton travels to Scotland to investigate the tormenting dreams that have plagued her since childhood. There she discovers a brooding Highlander and a secret that threatens her very existence.

One is compelled to explore a castle of evil reputation Mae experiences an intense and immediate attraction to Aidan Ramsay, conservator of the evil castle. When she sees a portrait of a female Ramsay ancestor, she then dreams about the woman and the man the ancestor desperately loved.

But in those dreams the man is Aidan, the woman is herself and the year is 1898!