After witnessing the murder of his mother at this father's hands, eight-year-old Ian Mackenzie is committed to an insane asylum. (In part because his father doesn't understand him. Mostly so Ian's testimony would never be accepted in a court of law.) When his father dies and his eldest brother becomes Duke, Ian is released. His brother uses his phenomenal memory to advance his political career and the family's fortunes.

Ian suffers from Asperger syndrome. He only feels truly calm when he holds Ming porcelain bowls, or is with Beth. ( )

I hadn't planned to pick this one up, but since it was highly recommended by KristieJ and AmyC, I thought I'd give it a try. It was an enjoyable read. I didn't think much of the heroine Beth, she didn't really stand out for me. But Ian and the rest of the Mackenzie brothers were very intriguing and boy do they have some issues. Lucky for us each of the Mackenzie brothers will be getting their own book.

Reviewed on May 22, 2009 ( )

Fantastic..Amazing...Wonderfully different.
Loved it and can't wait for the next one. ( )

Ian MacKenzie is one of the most unique heroes I think I’ve ever read. He suffers from what we know is a form of Autism. He had spent many years of his childhood in an insane asylum and as we know – they weren’t very nice places to be. But he was finally rescued by his oldest brother Hart, the very powerful Duke of Kilmorgan.

We first meet Ian when he is purchasing an ancient bowl from an unscrupulous fortune hunter. The dastardly dude goes on to boast about his conquests and his plans to continue despite getting married.

Beth Ackerly is the fiancé and heroine in question and she first meets our hero Ian at the theatre where he slips her a note explaining that her fiancé is Not a Nice Man.

Ian is……..what can I say about him that would do him justice? The word Unique works. He is totally and utterly without guile and says what he thinks – exactly what he thinks. He doesn’t know how to hide his thoughts. And he doesn't understand humour - no matter how Beth tries to make him smile. Beth is quite nonplussed by him, yet very attracted at the same time. And though he is very physically attracted to her, he tells Beth that he will never love her, not that he doesn’t want to love her, he is just incapable of it.

Because of his autism, he is unable to look her in the eyes though he wants to. His brain just shuts down when he tries. Although unable to love (or so he says – but this is a romance) he is very possessive of her and once he stakes his claim so to speak, becomes outraged to the point of violence whenever anyone – such as her now former fiancé – dares to try and harm her.

I think the closest I can think of in terms of the kind of hero he makes is Simple Jess by Pamela Morisi. But Ian isn’t simple – not by any means. Instead he borders on brilliant to genius in many areas. He is alternately touchingly naïve and incredibly, sexily experienced. Because he is out of touch with emotions, he uses his senses a lot and in some very inventive ways.

And the heroine Beth; she is an equally incredible heroine. Although she doesn’t understand Ian exactly, she accepts him as he is for all of his oddness. And she is touchingly, wonderfully protective of him – to the point of going toe to toe with his powerful brother the duke when she thinks Hart is just using him for his brilliant math skills and recall abilities. I just loved her to pieces. Although quite wealthy, she came by the wealth in a different kind of way. She started her life in the slums of London and slowly moved her way up in life. So unlike many historical heroines, she is quite savvy and as she is also a widow, she has experienced the pleasures of intimacy. When Ian and Beth are together, the chemistry is combustible. These are two vividly drawn characters. In addition to our main characters, there are also Ian’s brothers. Indulgent, protective, confused – all are ways they relate to their younger, ‘different’ brother, they are equally vivid characters and all the way through the book I kept hoping they would get their own stories and I don’t normally think like that. And I’m very happy to say they are, though it looks like I’ll have to wait for a while until I get to their stories. I was even most impressed with Curry, Ian’s valet and general care-taker and errand runner.

As if to die for hero and heroine and great secondary characters weren’t enough, there is an interesting mystery to boot. There is an Inspector Javert type character who is investigating the murder of a young woman in a brothel a couple of years previously and following the MacKenzie clan. When another young woman related to the original murder is found dead, he is bound and determined that it is young Ian who did the killing and will do just about anything to try and prove it including trying to undermine the budding romance between Ian and Beth.

Heck - I even love the title of this book. It too is different and unique. ( )

Oh, oh, oh! I loved, loved, loved "The Madness of Lord Ian MacKenzie" by Jennifer Ashley! I began the book two hours ago and could NOT put it down. I laughed and I cried from both sadness and joy. The characters and the plot are at times mysterious and softly heartbreaking, but the ending is probably one of the best I've ever read.

She is Mrs. Beth Acklerly, the impoverished daughter of a sham French peer and a disowned daughter of an English squire. She was saved from life on the streets by a poor vicar and widowed shortly afterward. For the last several years, she served as companion to a rich widow who left Beth her entire fortune at her death. Not long afterward, she becomes engaged to Sir Mather; mostly just to avoid being alone. Then...she meets the infamous Mad Lord Ian MacKenzie.

He is Ian MacKenzie and his childhood is the stuff of nightmares. Being nobly born didn't do anything for Ian but make it easy for his father to have him locked away in an asylum from the age of eleven where he suffered ice baths, shock treatments, and other unspeakable 'treatments' until his father died and his brother, the new Duke immediately had him freed. He still has difficulties with crowds, but reads a book a day, has a perfect memory for anything he's seen, heard, or read, and has many other characteristics of a genius. He can become lost in the perfection of a raindrop or the line of a drawing. He's blunt, suffers from headaches, and uses sex to forget. Then he meets a woman whose mere touch can still the noise with eyes of the most beautiful blue...and Mad Lord Ian is lost.

Two flawed characters who come together in what must be one of the most unusual meetings I've ever read. They have both learned from their pasts to see beyond the surface and what they find in each other has got to be one of the more beautiful and romantic stories I've ever read. I've been a fan of Jennifer Ashley's stories, but I just can't gush enough about this one. The vulnerabilities of each character and the growth of their relationship entwined with a murder mystery and the joys and pains of a family that today we would call dysfunctional really tugged at my emotions. Four brothers, each with their own type of 'madness' that I would call genius--I can't wait for the next MacKenzie story and was mightily disappointed to find out "Lady Isabella's Scandalous Marriage" isn't scheduled to release until 2010!!!

Jennifer Ashley also writes scorching paranormals under the name Allyson James so I guess I'll have to be content with her upcoming releases under that name. But I have to say that for me, "The Madness of Lord Ian MacKenzie" will be a hard story to top. The prose, the plot, the characters, and the pacing were all top notch and it's a story that will stay with me and make me smile whenever I remember. How's that for a recommendation? ( )