HIGHLANDER WEEK: Guest Post & Giveaway w/author Laura Hunsaker of Highland Destiny

Happy Day 3 of Highlander Week! Some of ye might recognize the fabulous lady guest posting today, a huge thank ye to Laurie for taking the time to stop by! =)

Why Highlanders?

When asked to guest post here for Highlander Week, how could I say “no?” For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Laura Hunsaker, author of Highland Destiny, and otherwise known as the Highland Hussy over at www.demonloversbooksandmore.com . And I love Scottish Romances.

I’d like to talk about them, and the heroes who inspired these books. So today, I ask you, Why Highlanders? No really, what’s so sexy about them.

Here is what we think of:

I mean, think about it. In Highland Destiny, it’s the eighteenth century, so their kilts were actually Féileadh Mòr which are plaids, worn up and over the shoulder so they could be used as a hood and cloak at the same time (not a low slung and super sexy kilt like we see). They don’t bathe as often, they are hairy, smelly, and by all rights, that should be unattractive, right? And yet, we find them romantic. I mean, I know I do!

Here is what they probably looked like:

(btw, don’t google hairy men in kilts, because dude!! Seriously, just dude.)

During the Highland Clearances, the English basically decide to take their lands. So they drive them out. So this is where I see the hero we romance authors have based ours on. These men are fighting for their homes, for their (yes, alright Braveheart fans, for their “FREEDOM!”) for a way of life that had been theirs for centuries. They fought with rocks, with trees (think caber tossing) they fought with anything they could because they had nothing. And they never gave up. The Highlanders are now known for being honorable and protective of their clans. The ones we read about are usually an honorable warrior who puts the good of his clan above all. How can we resist that? Add to that story, a super sexy book cover model with a waxed chest and we have the perfect Scottish Romantic hero.

So my question to you is, why do we romanticize the Highlanders? Why them, and not, say, the Irish? They wore kilts. They have sexy accents. What’s the draw to the Scots?

Thank you Crystal, for letting me take over your blog today :D

~*GIVEAWAY*~

Laura is giving away a digital copy of her debut novel, Highland Destiny!

“He stole his enemy’s bride out of vengeance, but now he wants her for his own.”

Mackenzie Stewart’s in Scotland for a much-needed vacation. During the castle tour, Mackenzie becomes completely enamored with a painting of one of the previous lairds. Two gentlemen come up behind her and, begging her pardon, they kidnap her, dragging her through time.

The men are sorcerers attempting to end a feud that has plagued their lands for years. Their patron has begun to dabble in the black arts, and between his irrational thirst for power, and his dark secret, the sorcerers are frightened. They believe Mackenzie can break the Stewart curse. They try to convince her to play along with their crazy scheme: marriage to the evil John Campbell.

Before Mackenzie can protest, her carriage is halted and the door thrown open. For a split-second she is arrested by the same beautiful piercing blue eyes that belonged in an oil painting.

Mackenzie then finds herself the victim of a second kidnapping!

Her new captor, however, does nothing but tempt her body and her temper. Believing her to in fact be the betrothed of his mortal enemy the Campbell, Connor originally sets out to capture his enemy’s betrothed. He never thought he would be so attracted to her that he’d want to keep her.

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To enter, just leave a comment answering Laura's question at the end of her post. 

Make sure to leave your email address while commenting. Giveaway will end at 11:59pm on May 21th, open Internationally.