What do you think?
Rate this book
Mackinnon #4
So This Is Love
He wanted a virgin, but he got a woman with love in her past...Maggie Ramsay was alone, homeless, and widowed with three children—the man she loved and her life at Glengarry Castle destroyed in one murderous act. Her desperate circumstances called for desperate marriage to a man she'd never met. As the bride of California timber baron Adrian Mackinnon, she would have a new life, a new beginning...away from the danger that still threatened her young son.Adrian Mackinnon wanted a perfect jewel to crown his redwood empire; a beautiful, ornamental wife to give him heirs. But Maggie Ramsay, with her Scot's logic, dry humor—and her past—was not what he had bargained for. Undaunted, Maggie met the challenge of the primitive raw forest and Adrian's own blustery ways head-on, winning the hearts of every man at camp, and tackling a business no ordinary woman would dare. She also found herself in love with her husband. But the closer she got to Adrian's aching heart, the harder he pushed her away. He was determined to prove he needed no one—until greed and passion threatened all he owned, and he was faced with a choice no man should ever have to make.
410 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1993
11 people are currently reading
182 people want to read
About the author
Elaine Coffman
63 books117 followersBarbara Elaine Gunter was born in San Diego, California, to William Samuel Gunter, Jr., a naval officer and Edna Marie (née Davidson) Gunter, a homemaker. From the age of three she lived in Midland, Texas and graduated from Midland High School. After she received a degree in elementary education from North Texas State University, she taught elementary school in Midland, Texas, while working on her Master’s Degree and certification for Language and Learning Disabilities at Texas Tech in Lubbock.
Elaine currently resides in Austin, Texas, where her son, Chuck, also lives. She has two daughters, Lesley who resides in Raleigh, N.C. and Ashley, who lives in San Diego, California.
Elaine Coffman is a New York Times bestselling author with a large international following. She has penned novels in both the historical romance genre and suspense. A lover of history, she has penned several novels set in Scotland, Regency England, Italy and the American West. To date, she is the author of nineteen novels and five novellas.
While writing her first novel, My Enemy, My Love, she found herself inspired by a letter her great-great grandmother, Susannah Jane Dowell Shacklett wrote in 1920, telling about her journey from Brandeburg, Kentucky to San Antonio, Texas, and then going with an army escort to El Paso, Texas, where her brother, Ben Dowell, a veteran of the Mexican War, was El Paso's first mayor.
Elaine continued to write best-selling, award-winning books until the publication of her eleventh novel, If You Loved Me, which was the last book of her beloved Mackinnon series and her first book to hit the New York Times bestseller list.
Her first suspense novel, Alone in the Dark, was published by Pocket books in 2006.
Elaine currently resides in Austin, Texas, where her son, Chuck, also lives. She has two daughters, Lesley who resides in Raleigh, N.C. and Ashley, who lives in San Diego, California.
Elaine Coffman is a New York Times bestselling author with a large international following. She has penned novels in both the historical romance genre and suspense. A lover of history, she has penned several novels set in Scotland, Regency England, Italy and the American West. To date, she is the author of nineteen novels and five novellas.
While writing her first novel, My Enemy, My Love, she found herself inspired by a letter her great-great grandmother, Susannah Jane Dowell Shacklett wrote in 1920, telling about her journey from Brandeburg, Kentucky to San Antonio, Texas, and then going with an army escort to El Paso, Texas, where her brother, Ben Dowell, a veteran of the Mexican War, was El Paso's first mayor.
Elaine continued to write best-selling, award-winning books until the publication of her eleventh novel, If You Loved Me, which was the last book of her beloved Mackinnon series and her first book to hit the New York Times bestseller list.
Her first suspense novel, Alone in the Dark, was published by Pocket books in 2006.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
November 4, 2021
So this is Love
Best last one of a book ever! I really thought this book would be awful and at first the hero was awful but the book wasn't. I was unable to put it down. I didn't think I was going to like it, and I didn't. I loved it! Maggie was a great heroine and Adrian, well he was just Adrian until the end, then he became a hero. Ross sends Maggie to Adrian to marry. At first he thought she was plain, and he wanted a beauty. He also wanted a virgin, but she was a widow. So she was everything he didn't want, or did he. But she has a bigger secret he doesn't know and she is advised to wait to tell him so they can get used to one another. And they almost do, but the secret in the form of three little children show up before that can happen. One is almost dead, Ainsley, who I adored , and there is Fletcher and Barrie. Two girls and a boy. He is very angry and tells her when the next ship docks she is out of there. But passion still flares between them and she loves him. So many things come between them including treachery and pride and miscommunication. But the ending, oh that ending, made me cry. It was just so beautiful. And Adrian, at the end, says to her, 'so this is love'. My heart swooned! LoL. Free in KU and I have to finish the rest now.
Best last one of a book ever! I really thought this book would be awful and at first the hero was awful but the book wasn't. I was unable to put it down. I didn't think I was going to like it, and I didn't. I loved it! Maggie was a great heroine and Adrian, well he was just Adrian until the end, then he became a hero. Ross sends Maggie to Adrian to marry. At first he thought she was plain, and he wanted a beauty. He also wanted a virgin, but she was a widow. So she was everything he didn't want, or did he. But she has a bigger secret he doesn't know and she is advised to wait to tell him so they can get used to one another. And they almost do, but the secret in the form of three little children show up before that can happen. One is almost dead, Ainsley, who I adored , and there is Fletcher and Barrie. Two girls and a boy. He is very angry and tells her when the next ship docks she is out of there. But passion still flares between them and she loves him. So many things come between them including treachery and pride and miscommunication. But the ending, oh that ending, made me cry. It was just so beautiful. And Adrian, at the end, says to her, 'so this is love'. My heart swooned! LoL. Free in KU and I have to finish the rest now.
July 26, 2016
So This Is Love by Elaine Coffman
I enjoyed this story, sometimes it's good not to get what you think you want.
The description of the book I am listing below is from the back jacket of the book. I'm adding it because I believe the one on the Goodreads page does not depict this story.
He wanted a virgin, but he got a woman with love in her past....
Maggie Ramsay was alone, homeless, and widowed with three children—the man she loved and her life at Glengarry Castle destroyed in one murderous act. Her desperate circumstances called for desperate measures: marriage to a man she'd never met. As the bride of California timber baron Adrian Mackinnon she would have a new life, a new beginning ... away from the danger that still threatened her young son.
Adrian Mackinnon wanted a perfect jewel to crown his redwood empire; a beautiful, ornamental wife to give him heirs. But Maggie Ramsay, with her Scot's logic, dry humor--and her past—was not what he had bargained for. Undaunted, Maggie met the challenge of the primitive raw forest and Adrian's own blustery ways head-on, winning the hearts of every man at camp, and tackling a business no ordinary woman would dare. She also found herself in love with her husband. But the closer she got to Adrian's aching heart, the harder he pushed her away. He was determined to prove he needed no one—until greed and passion threatened all he owned, and he was faced with a choice no man should ever have to make....
I enjoyed this story, sometimes it's good not to get what you think you want.
The description of the book I am listing below is from the back jacket of the book. I'm adding it because I believe the one on the Goodreads page does not depict this story.
He wanted a virgin, but he got a woman with love in her past....
Maggie Ramsay was alone, homeless, and widowed with three children—the man she loved and her life at Glengarry Castle destroyed in one murderous act. Her desperate circumstances called for desperate measures: marriage to a man she'd never met. As the bride of California timber baron Adrian Mackinnon she would have a new life, a new beginning ... away from the danger that still threatened her young son.
Adrian Mackinnon wanted a perfect jewel to crown his redwood empire; a beautiful, ornamental wife to give him heirs. But Maggie Ramsay, with her Scot's logic, dry humor--and her past—was not what he had bargained for. Undaunted, Maggie met the challenge of the primitive raw forest and Adrian's own blustery ways head-on, winning the hearts of every man at camp, and tackling a business no ordinary woman would dare. She also found herself in love with her husband. But the closer she got to Adrian's aching heart, the harder he pushed her away. He was determined to prove he needed no one—until greed and passion threatened all he owned, and he was faced with a choice no man should ever have to make....
June 15, 2019
Until I finished this amazing book, I did not realize that I'd jumped into the middle of a multi-part series (see below). The best part of this is that I will be able to spend more time with these characters. Make no mistake, these people are real, they grieve and suffer aplenty.
Maggie, born and raised a Scot, has lost her husband at the hands of a dangerous relative. With three young children, she must pay attention to the threats made against her son. Because of her desperate situation, she accepts a proxy marriage to Adrian Mackinnon, a wealthy man of California. Adrian is still grieving his lost love -- who married his twin brother, Alex.
Because of his busy life and few opportunities for meeting the type of woman he wants to marry (she must be beautiful, accomplished, be graceful, able to bear children, etc.). He sends a letter to his brother Ross, a duke in Scotland. Ross realizes that Maggie is just the right woman for Adrian, even though she does not meet all of Adrian's requirements. Ross leaves out of the returning letter that Maggie is a widow with three children.
Adrian is a bitter man who still loves his brother's wife, Katherine. Although she does not appear in this book, she is a heavy presence through most of the book. When Adrian finds that his brother is sending a wife for him, Adrian looks for ways to dislike her. When Maggie and Adrian meet, the fireworks begin -- and continue for some time.
Maggie is everything a man could want; she's patient, yet humorous; intelligent, yet fun-loving. She does not intentionally deceive Adrian, she just is unaware that Ross left out the mention of children and her widowhood. When Adrian berates Maggie, she doesn't pout -- she gives as good as she gets. Adrian is thunderstruck by her bravery and audacity.
Adrian has some serious past issues to address and Maggie helps him as much as she can. Her past is not as troublesome but she worries that the Scottish duke can harm her son; can he reach California with his threats? Besides Adrian's history, he has a problem with a competing lumber company. They are trying to destroy Adrian's business, even though it is the largest in California.
Mollie Polly is a treasure and adds so much to the story. Early on, she realizes that Maggie is just what Adrian needs and she keeps up a steady barrage of arrows at Adrian, to warn him of his behavior. Some of their conversations are laugh-out-loud funny. This banter helps the reader understand that Adrian's bark is just that -- bark. He adapts with time -- it is what the reader holds onto while Adrian struggles to change.
This is a terrific book. Now I plan to start at the beginning of the series.
MacKinnon Brothers Series
1. Angel in Marble (1991)
2. For All the Right Reasons (1991)
3. Somewhere Along the Way (1992)
**4. So This Is Love (1993)
5. Heaven Knows (1994)
6. When Love Comes Along (1995)
7. If You Love Me (1997)
Maggie, born and raised a Scot, has lost her husband at the hands of a dangerous relative. With three young children, she must pay attention to the threats made against her son. Because of her desperate situation, she accepts a proxy marriage to Adrian Mackinnon, a wealthy man of California. Adrian is still grieving his lost love -- who married his twin brother, Alex.
Because of his busy life and few opportunities for meeting the type of woman he wants to marry (she must be beautiful, accomplished, be graceful, able to bear children, etc.). He sends a letter to his brother Ross, a duke in Scotland. Ross realizes that Maggie is just the right woman for Adrian, even though she does not meet all of Adrian's requirements. Ross leaves out of the returning letter that Maggie is a widow with three children.
Adrian is a bitter man who still loves his brother's wife, Katherine. Although she does not appear in this book, she is a heavy presence through most of the book. When Adrian finds that his brother is sending a wife for him, Adrian looks for ways to dislike her. When Maggie and Adrian meet, the fireworks begin -- and continue for some time.
Maggie is everything a man could want; she's patient, yet humorous; intelligent, yet fun-loving. She does not intentionally deceive Adrian, she just is unaware that Ross left out the mention of children and her widowhood. When Adrian berates Maggie, she doesn't pout -- she gives as good as she gets. Adrian is thunderstruck by her bravery and audacity.
Adrian has some serious past issues to address and Maggie helps him as much as she can. Her past is not as troublesome but she worries that the Scottish duke can harm her son; can he reach California with his threats? Besides Adrian's history, he has a problem with a competing lumber company. They are trying to destroy Adrian's business, even though it is the largest in California.
Mollie Polly is a treasure and adds so much to the story. Early on, she realizes that Maggie is just what Adrian needs and she keeps up a steady barrage of arrows at Adrian, to warn him of his behavior. Some of their conversations are laugh-out-loud funny. This banter helps the reader understand that Adrian's bark is just that -- bark. He adapts with time -- it is what the reader holds onto while Adrian struggles to change.
This is a terrific book. Now I plan to start at the beginning of the series.
MacKinnon Brothers Series
1. Angel in Marble (1991)
2. For All the Right Reasons (1991)
3. Somewhere Along the Way (1992)
**4. So This Is Love (1993)
5. Heaven Knows (1994)
6. When Love Comes Along (1995)
7. If You Love Me (1997)
May 10, 2019
A book you just can't put down. A story you can forget your surroundings with. Looking up and hours have past. A story you can laugh and cry out loud with. A wonderful continuation of the McKinnon brothers. Can't wait for the next in the series
dnf
April 22, 2021dnf @ 34%
look, the stepback on this book is so fucking sexy that you will literally have to pry my copy out of my cold dead hands to make me relinquish it.
that being said ... lmao
look, the stepback on this book is so fucking sexy that you will literally have to pry my copy out of my cold dead hands to make me relinquish it.
that being said ... lmao
August 5, 2013
A little frustrated with this "mail-order" bride story in that Maggie and Adrian kept working at cross purposes despite their intense sexual attraction. Still, this was a good in that I was eager to follow up with the MacKinnon brothers, yet I would have liked for their romance to have worked another way. 3.5 stars.
Read
August 14, 2013My first book I read over the summer. Loved it(:
Read
June 4, 2016Used - Good - binding worn
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews