The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie

This is a first read for me of Jennifer Ashley. I liked it. A lot. Enough that I would read more of her work. The book itself is funny, strange, and entertaining. I like atypical heroes...and one with Asperger's is as atypical as they come. ( )

A romance novel in which the hero has Asperger's (though it's not called it in the book, being set in the mid-19th century).

I'd want the opinion of a person with Asperger's on how accurate Lord Ian's portrayal actually is, but from my perspective as the parent of someone with autism, his traits generally ring true. The fascination with the ink drop, tasting a bowl with no idea that people might find that strange, the difficulty in lying, the confusion about what other people mean, being overwhelmed by crowds.... There was an occasional place where he seemed too socially aware for how he'd been previously depicted, but overall he worked for me. And his question to Beth at the end of the book was excellent.

I also bought Beth as a person who'd be able to handle Ian's odd behavior. Her background makes it possible for her to take his blunt words and actions in stride; her willingness to help people serves her well with him.

The MacKenzie family is interesting, though the sequel-fishing was a bit heavy-handed in places. The suspense subplot was a bit over-the-top, but it did reveal aspects of Ian and Hart's relationship well.

Overall, a greatly enjoyable book. ( )

Loved it!

Review to come. :) ( )

Re-read #3(?) - Ian and his ming bowls (swoon). This time through I skipped the "mystery" and read all of the family dish. For some reason I have no desire to re-read Mac and Isabella's story (though they were sweet), but I can't get enough of Ian and eagerly anticipate Hart's book. This book makes me want to read Untie My Heart and The Raven Prince. Looks like I'm in a widows finding love...



Re-read#4 - I tend to gloss over Inspector Fellows for the first half of the book, but Beth and Ian are word by word fabulous no matter how many times I've read them before. I've never felt the urge to retread Mac and Isabella's story, but I'm so impatient for Hart's book I may do so this time around.

#5 (4/4/12): Reading Hart and Eleanor's story has brought me once again back to Ian and Beth. Still skip Fellows (until the end), and just now able to articulate how "young", stylistically, the unique journal sections seem. Ashley has matured as a writer since this first book, but these characters are absolutely unbeatable. ( )

Why did I read this book?
I love to read different genres, and nothing is better for randomizing your reading list than 'Random Book List Challenges' at Romance Readers Reading Challenges Group. I neglected this challenge, but I am determined to get back in the saddle and from random list #118 this book was my pick.

My thoughts:
Historical romances are one of my guilty pleasures, but after some time, they all start to look the same.
[b:The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie|5981872|The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie (Highland Pleasures, #1)|Jennifer Ashley|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1322336718s/5981872.jpg|6155268] is a refreshing and original story. As the tittle says, lord Ian Mackenzie is crazy. Ok, not maniacaly crazy. More Raymond from movie Rain Man type of crazy. But he looks like this.
Bet is young widow that inherited money and got promoted to higher ranks of society. She's not much interested into nobility, but some members of 'polite' society are definitely interested in her. Some want her money, and some, like Ian, want her.
I liked both Beth and Ian, they are strong well developed characters. There is enough romance, sexy times and even some murder mystery to keep you entertained.
What I did not like? Murder mystery was a little bit transparent. Also I liked the rest of Mackenzie brother, but they were not described much, but I hope we will learn more about them in next books.

My rating: 4 stars

Will I be reading next book in series? YES!

I recommend this book to fans of: historical romances, tortured heroes with complex personalities, strong and independent non-virginal heroines, big quirky families.

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