“You are not who you are because of where you come from; you are who you are because of where you choose to go.”
Under Loch and Key by Lana Ferguson
The Story:
Keyanna “Key” MacKay is used to secrets. Raised by a single father who never divulged his past, it’s only after his death that she finds herself thrust into the world he’d always refused to speak of. With just a childhood bedtime story about a monster that saved her father’s life and the name of her estranged grandmother to go off of, Key has no idea what she’ll find in Scotland. But repeating her father’s mistakes and being rescued by a gorgeous, angry Scotsman—who thinks she’s an idiot—is definitely the last thing she expects.
Lachlan Greer has his own secrets to keep, especially from the bonnie lass he pulls to safety from the slippery shore—a lass with captivating eyes and the last name he’s been taught not to trust. He’s looking for answers as well, and Key’s presence on the grounds they both now occupy presents a real problem. It’s even more troublesome when he gets a front row seat to the lukewarm welcome Key receives from her family; the strange powers she begins to develop; and the fierce determination she brings to every obstacle in her path. Things he shouldn’t care about, and someone he definitely doesn’t find wildly attractive.
When their secrets collide, it becomes clear that Lachlan could hold the answers Keyanna is after—and that she might also be the key to uncovering his. Up against time, mystery, and a centuries old curse, they’ll quickly discover that magic might not only be in fairy tales, and that love can be a real loch-mess.
Key Elements:
Romantasy, Romance, Scotland, Loch Ness Monster, Family, Paranormal Romance, Curse, Small-town Romance, Open-door Romance, Grumpy x Sunshine
Why This Rating?
What a fun and delicious story! It is a perfect combination of small-town, cozy romance with paranormal, fantasy elements that I really enjoyed. I have’t picked up this mix of elements in a good while. You better believe this genre is back on my radar now though! This felt like a fast read to me. Mostly because the writing was straight forward with minimal straying into fluff moments, but I also really liked the main characters. Hell, even some of the side characters were fun! And considering this is my first book from this author, I am excited to pick up more of her writing.
I think the writing was perfect for this story. It stayed fun and kept up a constant pace the had me hooked. There was always something happening. It didn’t matter if it was exploring castles, highland games, learning new secrets, smutty moments, or the occasional dangerous situations, Ferguson kept you invested in the story. The conversations flowed wonderfully. Strong one-liners that had me cracking up. The brogue accents that came through from the characters were fantastic! I didn’t listen to this one, so someone will have to say if the readers did the accent justice, but the writing sure left me hearing the brogue easily enough. The biggest downside I had toward the writing was how we were given the plot pieces for the end of the story. The “hints” that were scattered throughout were very obvious to me once we started to learn stuff from Lachlan. For the most part, things were nonchalant when spoken or described so don’t worry if you didn’t catch it any. However, there was just something a bit extra about those moments that made my spidey-reading senses perk up and zero in on them a bit more. Even though I had the ending figured out early on, it didn’t ruin the reading experience. There was enough other stuff going on that the story kept me entertained.
The romance starts slow. Our grumpy Scotsman and sunny MacKay cannot stand one another (or so they say) for the first portion of the story. It isn’t quite an enemy to lover, but considering this is a cozy, contemporary setting it might as well be. Once the difference are set aside, Light the Torches We’ve Got Fire Y’all! They fall fast for one another once they get over the denial they’ve been hiding behind. Then it get steamy! Open-door romance all the way! There is even *cough* a monster moment *cough* that had me blushing, yet was done really tasteful and wasn’t completely crazy… I never thought I would say that… I swear I went into this one not knowing that was in here. But like, alright, everyone’s happy, no one’s hurt, and it wasn’t uncomfortable. With a tag such as paranormal romance, I wasn’t sure what kind of story I was walking into with this one. I mean the author gives us an apology in the dedication because she made Nessie a guy, so who KNEW what was gonna happen.
This was a read that I think any Romance readers out there would really enjoy. It has enough of a story to keep the reading interesting. A great line up of smexy moments that we aren’t waiting for the entire book to happen. The pull of necessity for the story actually feels like it is something to move the story along and not a happenstance thing. And Scottish accent – because Yes and Always. It was an all around cute, yummy, and enjoyable read.
TL;DR – Nessie (a.k.a. Loch Ness Monster) is real, just with a twist that you’ve never heard about before. Keyanna (a.k.a. Key) and Lachlan (a.k.a. Smokin’ Hot Scotsman) find out that they’ve got more than simply chemistry together. It just happens to be ancient, massive, and been hanging around for awhile – I’ll let you decide what that means. With some great bantering, hilarious jokes, and a little bit of competition, this cozy paranormal romance is a splash in the good reads pond so far.
Time to get lost in the next story!
