My Heartâs In The Highlands by Amy Hoff (Book Review)
Hey fam, we ready to talk about a Scottish lesbian time traveling romance?Â
Also, just an upfront disclaimer on this one: I received an ARC (advance review copy) copy of this book from the Publisher and am writing this review voluntarily.
A Quick Summary:
My Heartâs in the Highlands by Amy Hoff is a sapphic time travel romance set in Scotland, starting in the late 1880s. Lady Jane Crichton is a learned woman of science (based on the historic âEdinburgh Sevenâ), who has spent her lifetime railing against the restraints of Scottish Victorian life and the expectations placed upon her. Fortunately for Jane, she finds herself in a marriage of convenience (heâs gay and needed a beard to protect his political career, and she needed the financial freedom and support of a wealthy patron. Theyâre buds about it.) and with the help of her husband, Jane is able to fund her own research and builds a functioning time machine.Â
Unfortunately for Jane her time machine malfunctions during one of its voyages, and she finds herself thrown back in time, crash landing into the 13th century. And also into Ainslie nic Dòmhnaill, who is next in line to inherit the great Clan Donald. Which is one hell of a way to find out your a lesbian, but also 10/10 would willingly fall back in time and into the arms of a buff Scottish warrior woman. But Jane also holds a secret. She knows what will become of these lands, and to the people that live on them, and she must choose between her fairy tale romance, or the harsh reality of history that lies ahead. Can her and Ainslieâs love survive? Or will they be torn apart by time?Â
Review:
Okay, so for some perspective going into this review, I am a Scottish editor, and I have worked extensively in the realms of Scottish Historical Romance. Most of you have probably heard of the term âBritpacker,â so if it helps, think of me as a âScots SifterââI catch chunks of inaccuracy and gently nudge the phonetic (mis)spellings toward the realms of the accurate. And as a Scottish person who reads romance for both fun and work, itâs a breath of fresh air to read someone who knows what they are doing in this regard. The historical details many readers crave are there in spades, lovingly rendered through beautiful and flowing prose. The (accurate!!!) use of Scots and Gaelic are also masterfully included in the dialect without feeling contrived, and overall enriches the narrative. Hoff is someone who loves Scottish culture and knows it well, and it shows.
(A note for history foodie buffs: I caught one slip-up in the form of potatoes being mentioned in the 13th century when they didnât arrive in Scotland until 1739. I am, however, willing to concede that perhaps our heroine Lady Jane is perhaps not the first time traveler to have crash-landed into the Highlands. The others were merely better supplied. EDIT: Iâve been informed this error will be corrected in the next print.) As a heroine, Lady Jane is charmingly out of time and place even before she sets foot in her time machine. A woman in her later thirties (a novelty Iâll never tire of in Romance), she holds many convictions and beliefs, both about history and herself. All of which are proven wrong the moment she is flung back in time and meets the charming (and I cannot stress this enough) incredibly buff warrior woman, Ainslie nic Dòmhnaill. Setting aside my more analytical interests in this text, allow me to just say, I would die for Ainslie; something which I feel secure in saying would not happen, as Ainslie would murder anyone that tried. (And I would hold her golden torque and flower all starry-eyed while she did it.) However, there were one or two things that jumped out at me, both as a reader and an editor. While some scenes are concisely eloquent, there are a areas where pacing (and grammar) fall down, and the book feels like it could use with tightening up with another pass at editing. There was very little build up to the romance itself, which is fine, the instant true love trope is a well-loved trope for a reason. But it felt out of character for Jane, who presents initially as either on the demi or ace spectrum, but then falls immediately, if not in love, then certainly in lust with Ainslie. If this was intentional, I cannot say, but her sudden switch in dynamic is jarring and could have used a little gentler development.
Once the romance begins, it is sweet and enjoyable for the most part, but also again not without issue. Thereâs a distinct lack of verbal consent which modern readers might find discomfiting, especially in the LGBTQ+ spheres which paved the way for better consent and relationship dynamics in modern romance, and if I were asked to tag this book, Iâd likely opt to tag it as âdubious consentâ just to cover any potential triggers for people who would be unsettled by that sort of thing. (âTell me noâ being met with silence is not the same as consent. It might have worked 20 years ago in publishing, but it wouldnât/shouldnât fly now.) I like the characters dearly. Ainslie is smitten with Jane the moment she sets eyes on her, even if Jane is initially very awkward and prickly. Jane is also taken with her glorious redheaded warrior, and frankly, who could blame her? The book also has several of my favorite romantic tropes in it, including the all-time favorite âThereâs Only One Bedâ, though I wish more had been made of them. The sex scenes are hot and also sweetly endearing at times, though again I would like to see more explicit consent. Overall, itâs not a bad debut novel into the forays of Romance for a first-time Romance author. Itâs enjoyable, but I am left with nagging the feeling that it could have been so much more. To my mind, where this book truly excels is Hoffâs love affair with history and Scotland itself. Their narrative shines in moments of reflection, and the subtle and nuanced injections of historical detail, which in my experience, are rarely done so well in this genre. But this is however a Romance novel, and the time-traveling scientist lesbian and her buff redhead warrior girlfriend felt second fiddle to the history at times, which was disappointing because how often do you get to say those words together? Not enough, in my opinion. Overall, Iâd rate this as 3.5 out of 5, though it would have been a solid four were it not for the issues surrounding pacing and consent. If Hoff chose to continue the series, however, Iâd absolutely be down for more of it. I want to see the characters grow and thrive. I just think a little more experience with the genre (and better editing) is needed first. My Heartâs In the Highlands is available now on Kindle, Paperback, and most other online retail stores. You can also buy directly from the Publisher.
