Sold to a Laird

The Tulloch Sgàthán Trilogy #1

by Karen Ranney

When Douglas Eston arrives at the home of the Duke of Herridge, he expects to leave with an investment—not a wife! With his brilliant ideas attracting attention all over London, Douglas does not need to rely on the duke. But when he meets Lady Sarah Baines, the stubborn beauty whose virtue her father would willingly sell, Douglas finds himself utterly entranced and desperate to protect her.

Lady Sarah Baines always knew her father was cruel. But this time he's gone too far. Demanding that she marry a complete stranger—even an absurdly handsome one with eyes the color of a dawn sky—is utterly ridiculous. She swears she'll never submit to the wanton delights of the marriage bed. But soon Douglas's considerable charms prove impossible to resist... and the decadent ecstasy he offers shows Sarah that an affair that began with business can end with the ultimate pleasure.

Genres: Historical Romance, Romance, Historical, Historical Fiction, Scotland, Adult, Victorian

371 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published November 4, 2009

About the author

I’m a writer who’s been privileged to have attained the New York Times and USA Today Bestseller Lists.

Although I've primarily written historical romance, I've also written contemporary romantic suspense, a murder mystery, and I'm having a wonderful time writing about a vampire who is being challenged by her new state of being. (The Montgomery Chronicles: The Fertile Vampire and The Reluctant Goddess coming March 12, 2015.)

I believe in the power of the individual, the magnificence of the human spirit, and always looking for the positive in any situation. I write about people who have been challenged by life itself but who win in the end.

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Website: http://karenranney.com
Email: karen@karenranney.com
Twitter: @Karen_Ranney

Reviews

[Monique Takens · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ik heb de Nederlands talige uitgave gelezen : Verboden genot - Candlelight Historische roman 893 .
Douglas Eston is verbijsterd als de Hertog van Herridge hem in ruil voor zijn zelfgemaakte diamanten zijn dochter als vrouw aanbiedt . Om de beeldschone Sarah te beschermen tegen haar vader gaat hij akkoord met deze transactie , en Sarah kan niet anders dan erin mee gaan want anders stuurt haar harteloze vader haar en haar op sterven liggende moeder naar Schotland .

[willaful]

Despite liking the characters, I just could not maintain interest in this story. It begins very abruptly and implausibly -- okay, so I tried to adjust to it being that kind of narrative. Then it meandered off into a long discussion about all the housecleaning/supervisory duties in a grand old house. If it had started out in a leisurely way, I might have been able to go with the flow, but it just felt like the world's most boring roller coaster ride.

[SheLove2Read]

B-O-R-I-N-G

[nurmawati · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars
Sungguh membosankan...baca buku ini sungguh melelahkan...
Dan mood baca ku lenyap abis namatin buku ini.
Gak sanggup bikin ripiu.
Sekian.

[Brandy *Ahviel* · Rating 3 out of 5]

okay I am not sure how to write this review, only because the book was okay but it still left alot to be desired. For myself I saw this in a three part series. Girl forced to marry man, girl takes man to her home to finish caring for her sick mother, mother dies, girl heads off to scotland to take care of some unfinished business, girl and man start falling in love, then coming back home man discovers his marriage could be destroyed and from there it is about the man and woman fighting for a brief moment to free him..

I actually had to force myself to finish this book ..

[Lady Darcie · Rating 5 out of 5]

If only i could find someone like Douglas....he's such a great guy by helping Sarah through her time of need (such as losing her mother and learning she has a family in scotland, not to mention dealing with her evil father). The only thing that i didn't like was the way sarah acted. she drove me crazy with all the proper crap. But once she started to open up she is such a sweet person who only wants to be loved.

[Christine Sumner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some times I like to read a "trashy" romance as a palate cleanser between books - it's kind of like literary Sorbet...

[Patti TheLoveJunkee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sold to a Laird is the story of Lady Sarah Baines, daughter of the Duke of Herridge. The Duke is a cold, hard man who apparently has no love or use for his daughter. When the story opens, the duke is meeting with Douglas Eston in his office when Sarah barges in and demands that he not send her mother off to Scotland. She is very ill and the trip could kill her. The Duke takes one look at Sarah and offers her to Mr. Eston instead of cash to buy himself partnership in Mr. Eston's venture. For reasons unknown even to himself, Mr. Eston accepts the offer and they are married two days later.

This book seemed to me to be divided into three parts; the first part centered on Sarah and Douglas marrying and moving into Sarah's country home, Chavensworth, and caring for her ailing mother and the aftereffects of her illness. During this time Douglas shows himself to be a true gentleman and supports Sarah when she needs him even though she hasn't given him much reason to be kind to her. I really liked him.

The middle of the book surrounds Sarah and Douglas' trip to Scotland to visit Sarah's maternal grandfather. Sarah's mother left her family to marry the Duke and never had any communication with them after that. Some family secrets were hinted at and Sarah and Douglas grew into their marriage a bit more comfortably at this point.

The last third of the book takes place after their return to Chavensworth. The Duke was impatient for Douglas to show results in their joint venture; then there was an accident and Douglas had to start over from scratch so the Duke threatened to dissolve Sarah and Douglas' marriage and kidnapped him to force him to fulfill their deal.

I enjoyed this story, and I liked Douglas very much. I didn't like Sarah as much, she kind of got on my nerves at times- she was very prim and proper (which I guess I realize was normal for the time) and she spent a lot of time ignoring Douglas and then worrying that he didn't want to be married to her anymore. I liked the side characters but wish Ms. Ranney would have fleshed them out a bit more; there was some interesting romance happening on the sidelines.

I give this book 3 1/2 stars, it was an enjoyable read.

[Paranormal Romance · Rating 3 out of 5]

Heartbroken over the slow and painful illness that is killing her mother, the heroine finally takes up enough courage to confront her tyrant of a father. In the process, she invades a meeting between him and a young man who's looking for an investment. As punishment for her disobedience the father sells his daughter to the man is return for his inventions. Horrified, the heroine finds herself shackled to a stranger.

The hero has found a way to create diamonds so as a result he's a very rich man-a whole away from the street thief he was as a youth. Because he's rich, he has no requirement to wed against his will. And though the heroine is striking with her pitch-black hair, he admits she's no great beauty. But from the first moment he laid eyes on her he fell in love. It was such a lovely thing, the hero's love for his skittish and self-conscious wife. He's a gentle and patient man who is willing to wait for the heroine to feel the same way about him. In the way are a lot of hurtles including the heroine's mother’s death and subsequent travels to Scotland but throughout the journey the heroine slowly began to realize just how dependent she's become on the hero's strength.

I myself fell in love with the hero from the first instant. He was strong but passive and dominate but submissive to a point in regards to his wife's comfort. He did have a habit of walking around half naked and at times completely naked-much to the heroine's equal displeasure and secret pleasure. He also had a very strong obsession with her breasts and remarked on them during every sexual encounter. I was a little put off my it after so many descriptions but hey, to each his own. I really liked the heroine who was kept such a tight hold of her emotions and feelings before the hero began to slowly weave his way inside. There is some paranormal activity in the form of a magical mirror which will show you your future but otherwise it was a pretty standard historical romance.

[Natasha · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I first read the blurb for Sold to a Laird, I was so excited to read the entire story. However as I start reading the story I became more and more disappointed.

Firstly, Douglas, the hero is not a laird until the ending of the story. He was an adventurer, scientist and businessman throughout the whole story until he inherited Sarah's grandfather scottish castle in the end.

Secondly, 90% of this book is set in england rather than scotland. There is hardly any gaelic language in this story. I really thought by reading the blurb that Douglas is a highland laird with his own clan and castle. Nope, none of that. This story is set in England on Sarah's father estate of chavensworth. Everybody is speaking English. I was hoping fo some sexy scottish brogue. None of that.

Thirdly there is hardly any romance between Sarah and Douglas. They had a marriage of convenience. The first half of the story is Sarah trying to care for her sick mother who eventually died and the second half is sarah discovering that the man who she thought is her father is not her father at all. Her whole family tree is messed up so there is hardly any time for romance. No balls, no nice gowns, no rendezvous between her and douglas, no tryst in the moonlit garden. None. As I said, hardly any romance.

Really disappointed in this one.

[Hope Vollm · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was pretty unsure about Sarah at the beginning. She was SO proper and I just couldn't relate to her. As the story moved along I grew to like her more.

I kind of felt like both Sarah and Douglas were sot of surface characters. There were some parts where they talked about their past and things, but I felt like a lot of the book happened in their heads. I would have liked more between them.

The story moved along at an okay clip but I never felt invested.

[Micheila Hideki · Rating 2 out of 5]

⭐2.0
Carino, non fosse stata per la prima parte dove lei è odiosa ho trovato la narrazione piacevole. Douglas credo di amarlo, super calmo (molto lontano dagli eroi focosi della Kleylas o della Quinn) dove con resilienza e seduzione riesce a conquistare la donna di cui si è innamorato a prima vista. 190 pagine carine, se, come già detto, non fosse stato per la prima parte dove davvero Sarah sarebbe da ammazzare

[Kathleen Crowell · Rating 2 out of 5]

Got to 87%. There was some good writing and a few well-written interactions, but seriously, Sarah is one of the worst and most depressing characters I’ve ever read. The last book I read by KR was way more fun to read.

[Dc dewi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Baca sinopsis langsung tertarik dan saat baca,asli bikin pusing krn g jelas mo kemana.sifatnya g jelas.Sarah sok iye.brasa princess.Douglas sok jd pahlawan kesiangan.
Baru halaman 24 sangat memBOSANkan!!

[Ana · Rating 2 out of 5]

The ending is too cookie cutter and too abrupt, it needs more resolution imho. There maybe a part 2 that I don't know about though.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

Started off ok but kinda crashed.You don’t really ever get to know the characters and they all seem flat.

[Marilyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

good but a little too slow for me

[Lamonica Williams-Mason · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Decent fluff read

Quick fluff read. Ending set up for book #2.
Going to read next book in the series.
3 1/2 stars

[Vanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Aatikah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweet Temptation

[Jesslyn Lettan · Rating 1 out of 5]

dnf

[Sarah Verity · Rating 4 out of 5]

*spoilers*

**NOTE: This review is written using my old process. Which is just me chatting about the book. All new reviews starting in 2022 will be written with my easy to read, easy to understand, review layout!

I've been collecting Karen Ranney's complete blacklist and finally read my first book by her!

This one is slightly deceiving by the title and cover. Yes Douglas is Scottish technically, but not quite a Laird, not until the end of the book. By reading the title and looking at the cover you would think this is a Highland romance involving a Scottish Laird that takes place in Scotland. Alas, this story starts and remains, almost entirely but not quite, in England.

This one involves Insta-Love, of a sort. And only on one side. Douglas sees her and immediately agrees with her father to marry her. To help her, but also because he doesn't want to let her slip away. He feels something and knows it would be a colossal mistake if he doesn't marry her.

I really enjoyed how, even though he didn't fully realize it was love at first, he was honest with himself about how he felt and went with it. I loved how respectful and understanding he was towards Sarah. And how much he fought his desire for her until she was ready.

Sarah, having just met the man, is very stand-offish and does what she wants. Almost acting as if she doesn't actually have a husband. Which is understandable, but in all actuality it more often than not wouldn't have went down that way for a woman.

Even though I understand Sarah's situation, and I agree that she should have set boundaries and did what she needed to feel comfortable, there were some moments where I felt slightly annoyed by her actions. And I think this was because of how different Douglas would approach her. How very calm and caring he was. But I also understand how Sarah was treated growing up, her trust issues and fears, so her behavior made perfect sense. Even though I felt annoyed at times, I still really enjoyed and cared for her character. And understood her. You can't expect characters to be perfectly perfect. And I could definitely understand where she was coming from.

There was a rough part that was hard for me to read in this. Not that it hit home personally, it was just very sad. When Sarah's mom passes away. When she finds the letters between her mother and real father... I cried so much reading that last love letter from her father to her mother, when he was passing away and knew for sure that they would never see each other. I had to put the book down. And then I picked it up and reread it twice. Just wallowing in the misery. Tears flowing. (Yea I'm a bit self-destructive at times.) It was so emotional. I have to say well-done to Karen on this, she wrote it so well and conveyed the emotions perfectly in this story.

There was also a lot of back and forth going on. It gave off a bit of a slow pace for a majority of the story, and then picked up into a fast pace where alot was happening. So that was the only aspect that was a little off-puting to me. However it wasn't a big problem for me or lessened the story in any way.

It kept my interest and was written very well. With lots of emotion and details. It was overall a very enjoyable and beautiful story. I'm definitely excited to read more by her!

[Wenny Widjaja · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sebelum baca buku ini , saya melihat review2 yang ada dan hampir semuanya berkomentar buku ini membosankan, sempat dilema juga saya antara mau baca atau tidak, tp karena dilihat dari sinopsisnya bagus jadilah saya mulai baca buku ini.

Namun ternyata tidak sesuai dugaan saya, walau buku ini rasanya datar saja tapi saya ga bisa lepas membacanya, karena penasaran dengan hero dan heroine kita. Yang bikin buku ini memikat saya adalah bagaimana Douglas mencoba membuka hati Sarah dengan percakapan-percakapan kecil perlahan-lahan, bukan seperti HR lainnya yang terlihat menggebu2. Sarah yang juga menutup diri, dingin, bersikap putri duke sejati lama-lama akhirnya luluh dan mulai tertarik sama suaminya.
Menurut saya cerita buku ini manis. Sedih pun ada, bagian yang lucu pun ada, bahkan diakhir-akhir saya bisa berkata buku ini seru karena ditambah action meledakkan rumah. Kata-kata yang paling saya ingat "si bodoh itu meledakkan dirinya sendiri" dan endingnya pun sempurna.

[K · Rating 4 out of 5]

At first, I was not sure whether to give a rating of 3 stars or 4. I guess what finally decided me was the fact that I couldn't put the book down and finished it within 2 days. Now for those who know me, reading a book so quickly is nothing new. What makes this one unique though, is I thought the story was only okay. Despite that, I loved watching the love blossom between the two main characters, and the devotion, patience, and love Douglas showed to Lady Sarah (after all, don't we all dream of a love like that?). As w/ her other books, I like Ranney's attention to details and inclusion of Scotland. I guess what it comes down to is this... I loved the romance of the story, but found the story itself only okay. For fans of romance I would definately recommend this book. However, for those other readers, I will leave it up to them.

[Aquit · Rating 2 out of 5]

The hero was actually nice, caring, and warm hearted and not a ass like most heroes these days. The girl could had use a bit of a personality make-over but overall it was a okay story. I got bored by the time they headed off to Scotland. The little "drama" at the end involving Sarah's father wasn't worth the price to print. I wish the author had focused more on their romance and not get side tracked from past lifes and other small things.

[Angels · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was just okay it could have been so much more.This was a romance book right ? Where was the romance. The plot started out good the idea of being able to manufacture your own diamonds sounds adventurous right ?This book was lacking all the way around I so much wanted to like this book but did everything i could to get through it . This book was not for me and I love Karen's books , those of hers I read in the past were great so what happen here.

[Shuriu · Rating 2 out of 5]

"He's quite attractive, Mother. You can almost see him as a knight in armor, holding his helm under one arm. He is very commanding in his way, but he doesn't seem that way at fist. I've noticed that he seems to study a situation with some intensity before deciding what to do. Then, once he's decided, he acts with a great deal of forcefulness. He isn't arrogant. He isn't rude. He's just there, like a boulder, or an oak. You know he will not be moved." (p. 78)

[Alyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book. The storyline is good and I like both of the characters. Douglas is to die for. A bit too good to be true. Even Sarah questions his behavior. There were some parts that I felt was slow and didn't care much about but they were still necessary to the story. I'm not sure if I will continue on with this series though. Maybe if I happen to see it at the library but for now it isn't on the top of my list.

[Iin · Rating 1 out of 5]

ummm.... gimana ya.. ide ceritanya sih aku lumayan suka, ttg heroine yg gak pernah merasa dicintai yg dijual gitu aja ke hero yg terpikat pd pandangan pertama. Tp karakter2 di cerita ini semuanya kurang kuat menurutku. Awalnya, liat kata 'Laird' di judulnya bikin aku pengen nyerbu buku ini, dgn harapan ya kayak2 Lairdnya Julie Garwood lah. Tapi ternyata....
Si heroine-nya jg tipe yg membosankan, terlalu 'meninggikan' statusnya dan dingin, kurang asik lah pokoknya. Maaf...