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Clan MacKenzie #1
Threads of Destiny
"Threads of Destiny" is the book from which all of Arnette Lamb's characters originated, and "Romantic Times" gives it the highest rating saying, "You'll laugh and cry as you are drawn into this rich romance filled with marvelous characters".
Lady Suisan Harper couldn't take her eyes from the dangerously attractive man whose presence filled the candlelit room—Myles Cunningham. She had expected a weakling; he was strong. She had expected cold indifference; he drew her to him with a hot and hungry look. But of course he believed she was only Maura, a saucy maid happy to share a wealthy man's bed.
Handsome or not, Myles had nearly driven her family's weaving business to ruin. He had even stolen the patterns for her family's clan tartans, symbols of Scottish independence outlawed by the English king. Suisan had come to London willing to risk her honor and her freedom to get them back. But now, as Myles' lips brushed hers with fire, her carefully woven thread of lies began to unravel...and a silken strand of desire began binding her destiny to this irresistible man—her enemy and her beloved.
Lady Suisan Harper couldn't take her eyes from the dangerously attractive man whose presence filled the candlelit room—Myles Cunningham. She had expected a weakling; he was strong. She had expected cold indifference; he drew her to him with a hot and hungry look. But of course he believed she was only Maura, a saucy maid happy to share a wealthy man's bed.
Handsome or not, Myles had nearly driven her family's weaving business to ruin. He had even stolen the patterns for her family's clan tartans, symbols of Scottish independence outlawed by the English king. Suisan had come to London willing to risk her honor and her freedom to get them back. But now, as Myles' lips brushed hers with fire, her carefully woven thread of lies began to unravel...and a silken strand of desire began binding her destiny to this irresistible man—her enemy and her beloved.
370 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1990
2 people are currently reading
340 people want to read
About the author
Arnette Lamb
19 books66 followersArnette Lamb was an American writer of 13 romance novels from 1995 to 1998. She was born in 1947 in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A. and she died prematurely from cancer on September 18, 1998. Her funeral service was held in the Rothko Chapel in Houston, Texas.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
May 20, 2016
Post Culloden Treachery & and a Scottish Woman’s Love for an Englishman
This is the first book in Lamb’s Clan Mackenzie series. Set in 1760, initially in London and then in Scotland, it’s the story of Lady Suisan Harper who has come from her home in Scotland to steal from one Myles Cunningham the patterns for her clan’s tartans he hides in his basement.
Early on, it is made clear Myles is innocent of any thievery and it’s her uncle, Robert, who is the culprit. The possession of the tartan patterns is a crime under English law and Robert wants to frame Myles and see him hung. Suisan, dyes her red hair black to work undercover in Myles London home as a maid. Then she willingly becomes his mistress, so I guess it was a good thing he was not the culprit she initially believed him to be. But only we, the readers, know that, so she’s sleeping with the enemy.
The idea of an undercover maid, while not new, was intriguing, but I kept wondering why Myles didn’t notice his “maid” had the speech and manners of a lady, which she must have had. Her attitude was anything but subservient. And then there was Myles… sleeping with the help with no thought of making bastards or how to take care of the woman whose innocence he had knowingly taken. How heroic is that? When Suisan’s own maid tells her “it was time you became a woman”, I nearly gagged. No lady’s maid would express such a thought in the 18th century, knowing the consequences for her mistress. But, ah well…
Lamb does a good job with the historical detail and has obviously done her homework on weaving and cloth dyes of the period. Kudos to her for that.
The heroine’s character seemed to waiver between a strong, determined woman who refused to become Myles’ “whore” (her word) and then gladly saunters off to his bed, uncaring for the consequences. My, what a change, all in the space of a few days! And, once in Scotland, everything (and I do mean everything) made her think of Myles who she’d up and left in London.
But from then on it was an exciting story. For those who love Lamb’s stories, this first is a must.
The Clan Mackenzie series:
Threads of Destiny
Highland Rogue
Betrayed
Beguiled
True Heart
This is the first book in Lamb’s Clan Mackenzie series. Set in 1760, initially in London and then in Scotland, it’s the story of Lady Suisan Harper who has come from her home in Scotland to steal from one Myles Cunningham the patterns for her clan’s tartans he hides in his basement.
Early on, it is made clear Myles is innocent of any thievery and it’s her uncle, Robert, who is the culprit. The possession of the tartan patterns is a crime under English law and Robert wants to frame Myles and see him hung. Suisan, dyes her red hair black to work undercover in Myles London home as a maid. Then she willingly becomes his mistress, so I guess it was a good thing he was not the culprit she initially believed him to be. But only we, the readers, know that, so she’s sleeping with the enemy.
The idea of an undercover maid, while not new, was intriguing, but I kept wondering why Myles didn’t notice his “maid” had the speech and manners of a lady, which she must have had. Her attitude was anything but subservient. And then there was Myles… sleeping with the help with no thought of making bastards or how to take care of the woman whose innocence he had knowingly taken. How heroic is that? When Suisan’s own maid tells her “it was time you became a woman”, I nearly gagged. No lady’s maid would express such a thought in the 18th century, knowing the consequences for her mistress. But, ah well…
Lamb does a good job with the historical detail and has obviously done her homework on weaving and cloth dyes of the period. Kudos to her for that.
The heroine’s character seemed to waiver between a strong, determined woman who refused to become Myles’ “whore” (her word) and then gladly saunters off to his bed, uncaring for the consequences. My, what a change, all in the space of a few days! And, once in Scotland, everything (and I do mean everything) made her think of Myles who she’d up and left in London.
But from then on it was an exciting story. For those who love Lamb’s stories, this first is a must.
The Clan Mackenzie series:
Threads of Destiny
Highland Rogue
Betrayed
Beguiled
True Heart
January 24, 2017
Typically love this author, but the main male character just rubbed me wrong. In today's world, he'd be charged with sexual harassment. I think I liked the second half of the book better than the first half.
July 11, 2022
I give the first half of the book 3 and the second half 4.5. Suisan needs to get back the sticks showing the patterns of all the clans' plaids. Their possession, however, has been outlawed and having them is treason. They are in Mile's house so she believes him to be the thief. She dyes her hair and pretends to be a servant to get access to his home. I did not like how Miles seduces Maura a.k.a. Suisan, who works for him and is much younger than him, then justifies it by saying she looked at him with longing. And Maura (Suisan) thinks he's behaved despicably to her and is a thief but he's handsome so she sleeps with him anyway. What? And is no one worried about an unwanted pregnancy? They also talk about each other in the past in sister/brother terms (he was adopted at 15) which is mildly gross.
Aside from Miles lack of integrity towards sex with a servant, he proves himself to be kind and considerate of his staff and her clan.
I found it frustrating that H and h took so long to clue into the nefarious deeds of Suisan's Uncle Robert. Suisan is supposed to be extremely intelligent but all through the book she's just not putting the clues together. Max's character shows nothing that would support Uncle Robert's accusations against him so it's frustrating that Suisan continues to refuse to believe Max when he tells her what's been going on.
Still, I couldn't put the book down so inspite of how aggravating I found it, I had to give it a 4.
Warning: Robert is gay and he and his lover are shown in a terrible light as is homosexuality.
Aside from Miles lack of integrity towards sex with a servant, he proves himself to be kind and considerate of his staff and her clan.
I found it frustrating that H and h took so long to clue into the nefarious deeds of Suisan's Uncle Robert. Suisan is supposed to be extremely intelligent but all through the book she's just not putting the clues together. Max's character shows nothing that would support Uncle Robert's accusations against him so it's frustrating that Suisan continues to refuse to believe Max when he tells her what's been going on.
Still, I couldn't put the book down so inspite of how aggravating I found it, I had to give it a 4.
Warning: Robert is gay and he and his lover are shown in a terrible light as is homosexuality.
March 16, 2023
"I just finished reading the latest literary masterpiece and I must say, it was truly something else. The author's ability to string together a series of incomprehensible sentences and irrelevant tangents was simply breathtaking. I found myself completely engrossed in the story of...well, I'm not quite sure what the story was about, but the author's use of obscure references and convoluted language had me feeling like a true intellectual.
The characters were as shallow as a kiddie pool, and their actions made absolutely no sense whatsoever, but somehow the author managed to make them seem relatable and complex. I especially enjoyed the way the protagonist went from being a hapless loser to a hapless loser with a romantic interest.
Overall, I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys being confused and frustrated by nonsensical plotlines and flat characters. It truly is a work of art, in the sense that it's a masterpiece of terrible writing."
The characters were as shallow as a kiddie pool, and their actions made absolutely no sense whatsoever, but somehow the author managed to make them seem relatable and complex. I especially enjoyed the way the protagonist went from being a hapless loser to a hapless loser with a romantic interest.
Overall, I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys being confused and frustrated by nonsensical plotlines and flat characters. It truly is a work of art, in the sense that it's a masterpiece of terrible writing."
July 27, 2025
Historical romance. Too bad that the story was based on a historical inaccuracy. Since it was only the men who were restricted from SOME of the wearing of the tartans, and women and children were not restricted, I find it impossible to believe that one would be hung for possessing the patterns for the plaids. And that 1 person would own all of them.
January 22, 2018
No había leído nada de esta autora y no me ha encantado creo que es demasiado largo.
Con algunas paginas menos la historia ganaría, porque lo alarga tanto que nada te sorprende te lo has imaginado por tu cuenta cada uno de los giros.
Con algunas paginas menos la historia ganaría, porque lo alarga tanto que nada te sorprende te lo has imaginado por tu cuenta cada uno de los giros.
July 4, 2017
Started as a 2 for being unbelievable, ended as a 4 for tears. Great plot.
October 19, 2017
Main character was an ass. It did have the element of a protagonist that is outside the relationship.
July 7, 2018
I had the hardest time liking Myles, and by the end I still didn't.
December 3, 2021
3,5*
Aj ked mam vyhrady k istym castiam pribehu, teda k ich prevedeniu (par veci tam bolo nedotiahnutych, par nelogickych a par divnych), tak sa mi to vcelku pacilo 😁😂.
Aj ked mam vyhrady k istym castiam pribehu, teda k ich prevedeniu (par veci tam bolo nedotiahnutych, par nelogickych a par divnych), tak sa mi to vcelku pacilo 😁😂.
November 21, 2024
Took off a star because of the extremely homophobic characters and stereotypes.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 9, 2011
A must read for Highland readers
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews