The Secret (Highlands' Lairds Book 1)

As I just stated, this not the first time I read this book. I got it in paperback over 20 years ago and have since added it on my Kindle. The Secret has always been one of my top three favorite historical romance novels by the magnificent Julie Garwood. The thing I've always liked most about this one is the main characters and the friendship between Judith & FC.Judith is a delightful character! She's smart, bold and extremely loyal. Even though she had a tumultuous childhood she still managed to be optimistic and find joy in things that made her happy. She's also very intuitive and clever. Ian was your typical no nonsense, rough around the edges Highland laird but he was open-minded enough to those around him and would actually consider new ideas. He had all of the qualities of a great leader but wasn't so closed off so as not to be a part of the lives of his clan. He also was smart enough to recognize his true feelings for Judith early on and was not only willing to show it but didn't deny these feelings throughout the entire book. Really great characters!!Loyalty is a trait I admire most in people. Judith, Catherine Frances AND Ian had it in spades! It would've been extremely difficult to stay close to or even in touch with someone who lived far away back then much less be able to remain that loyal to each other. These two women did manage it. Their relationship was inspirational!This book has it all. Romance, intrigue, drama, beauty, great characters and strong women. If you like historical romance then you've gotta read this one. Or re-read it a dozen times or so like I have!😘

Great story. Funny, sweet and so very wonderful. I wish she still wrote these kinds of books. Highly recommend. I did not want it to end.

A greatg read!! Such a great story, I was lost in their world! I couldn't put it down! The power of friendship was displayed beautifully here.

The Secret is a historical romance that takes place in the 1200's on the picturesque border of Scotland and England.Lady Judith Hampton of England and Frances Catherine Kirkcaldy of Scotland, became the best of friends when they were too young to realize that they were supposed to be enemies. And when that fact did come to light, neither one cared, not even a little bit. They were best friends, and that's how their relationship was going to stay.Lady Judith treasured the six months out of every year that she got to stay with her Aunt and Uncle who resided on the "Border". Living with them was bliss. It not only gave her months of freedom from the abuse and neglect that she regularly suffered from her Mother and her drunkard Uncle Tekel, but it also gave her precious time to spend with her Scottish friend, Frances Catherine.While the two were still young girls, Frances Catherine confessed to Judith how afraid she was of having a baby. In her family, women often died while birthing a child. There was a long history of them and Frances Catherine was petrified that she would end up be added to that list. Judith made a solemn promise to Frances Catherine that day. She promised that no matter where she was, that she would travel to Frances Catherine, and be by her side when it was her time to birth her first child.As time past, physical distance was destined to come between the two friends. Frances Catherine was marrying a man who lived in the Highlands of Scotland. But before she married, she made him promise that he would allow her English friend to come and be with her during her labor and delivery of their first child. Patrick agreed of course. How could he not? Even though he knew it was going to be a difficult and sticky situation. So when Frances Catherine's time came near, Patrick approached the council with his wife's request, but as he feared, they denied it. Ian Maitland was not only Patrick's brother, he was the Laird. And as Laird, he declared that not only would the gates open and welcome Lady Judith into their Keep, but that he, and a few warriors were going to be leaving immediately for England, to locate Lady Judith and bring her back. Ian knew though, that his noble declaration wasn't really as righteous as it sounded. Lady Judith he knew, would not be returning with him because, 1. it was common knowledge that the English never keep their promises and 2. he was not going to have any females accompanying him. So unless Lady Judith was able to convince a female from England to ride with her into enemy territory, and spend several days and nights with men that were complete strangers, she was on her own. No, the proper English Lady Judith Hampton would not be riding back with him, he was sure of it. But Ian would soon realize that he was very much mistaken about who exactly Lady Judith was, because not only would he find her anxiously awaiting his arrival, she would be packed and ready to journey with him back to Scotland.Judith felt her knees weaken when she spotted the Scottish warriors riding towards her. Why wasn't there any women? Surely they didn't expect her to travel alone with them? They were all men, and fierce looking ones at that. Even though Judith wanted to run and hide, she couldn't. She had made a promise to Frances Catherine and she was going to keep it. Besides, she had just spent several months studying with a midwife and learning all about how to handle difficult deliveries. No, she was traveling to Scotland to assist Frances Catherine, and that was that. So Judith squared her shoulders, gathered her belongings, and mounted a horse. Ian couldn't believe it! Even his own warriors were snickering when they realized the pickle that Ian had put himself in. This feisty, independent, beautiful English woman was actually coming with them! Incredible! Ian had no idea what he was in for, nor did Lady Judith. But they were soon going to find out. I enjoyed reading "The Secret" and even though the story was somewhat predictable, and the characters too perfect, I liked it. I found the book humorous and witty and very well written. Reading "The Secret" made it easy for me to escape this modern day world, and travel back in time. I highly recommend taking the journey.

This story had me giggling at the way Judith innocently captures the love of all the characters she encounters. Of course, there are the intimate moments that make the heart beat faster too! Once I started it, I couldn't put it down!

I love a good Scottish historical romance and this one ticked all of my boxes. Low on angst but intense on the emotion this was such a breath of fresh air. It’s an older one but has definitely aged well and I raced through this in record time. This brought all of the feel-good vibes and left me with a warm glow.Frances Catherine and Judith meet as children at an annual festival on the border. Too young to realise the constraints on their potential friendship. One English the other Scottish the two form a lifelong bond. Frances Catherine now living as a Maitland upon her marriage and fearing the birth ahead calls upon a promise made long ago by her childhood confidant to attend her in her confinement.The Maitland clan are set in their ways and doesn’t welcome outsiders into their midst often but an exception is made for Judith though the clan's council and current Laird don’t believe she’ll honour her promise and that it will be a wasted journey. It’s with this in mind and being Francis Catherine’s brother-in-law that Iain the current Laird undertakes the talk of collecting the English woman.Judith's life isn’t a bed of roses she is forced to spend six months of the year with a cruel disinterested mother and an abusive uncle. The remaining six she spends with her other aunt and uncle who were warm and loving. When she discovers on her eleventh birthday that she’s been lied to her whole life the only person she confides in is her dear friend Frances Catherine and she’s spent the last few years uncovering all she can on the subject of childbirth to assist her friend.I liked Judith she had an uncomplicated and warm manner. She’s a good person and wears her heart on her sleeve. Like a lot of these older historical’s she was rather easily hurt and quite naive but I found that actually adorable. Iain by contrast was your typical alpha male. Infallible in all things. He could be quite chauvinistic and arrogant but he was thankfully tempered with the ability to adapt and change when needed. He’s definitely a man’s man and was all smouldering intense looks and the need to protect what he considers his.This definitely had the gender roles firmly defined but considering it was set in the year 1200 it seemed authentic to the times. I also loved how Iain was patience personified and incredibly gentle with Judith both physically and emotionally he could be a real poppet and was prepared to do what he needed to and protect his wife. He also wasn’t one for flying off the handle either which I did appreciate.This isn’t a story of high angst which was another plus point. There’s no OW drama and this relies on its simplicity and feel-good vibe which worked. There is a secret here that Judith does keep close to her chest that could potentially affect her future within the clan but considering Iain discovers this information quite early on but doesn’t inform her it wasn’t really a real roadblock to their future happiness and if anything it only made Iain want to protect Judith more vehemently. The chemistry between Judith and Iain was scorching and felt believable. As a couple, I did like these two a great deal.This also had some lovely female solidarity which was nice and I did love the friendship forged by Judith and Frances Catherine and then later other women in the clan. This was dual POV and had an easy writing style all in all if you like yourselves a Scottish historical romance with plenty of heart this one definitely delivers the goods.

I could not tell you how often I have read this book in the last 10 years, at least 10 times for sure. As soon as I read it, I placed it on my 'keeper' shelves and it has been well used since then. I have found Julie Garwood to be one of the best historical authors out there. I have read all her books and I enjoyed (and kept) the contemporary ones also but they can't beat her historicals. I have read all of them and have kept most of them; there are only 20 though 6 of them are westerns, not my usual fare.I got bored with reading historical romances years ago but then I realized it was more being bored with the Regencies than anything else. Ms Garwood's historical are mostly more from the Medieval era and those ended up being my favorites My all time favorites are The Secret , Ransom, The Bride, Gentle Warrior, and Prince Charming (who is anything but).I highly recommend them all, even the contemporaries, but especially my 5 favorites.

A lifelong friendship between two children triumphs over the hatred between the English and the Scots . This amazing book by Julie Garwood is the first in the Highlands’ Lairds Series ,Book 1 . The story is built around a childhood promise between two fast friends should one of them become pregnant .Judith travels to Scotland with Laird Ian to assist her friend with her delivery . She has been studying and following the Healers and Midwives around to learn their knowledge. But she finds knowledge can be a dangerous thing to some individuals. Can love be found for Judith and Ian ? Can a Laird chose between love or Clan ?

This book took FOREVER to get to me. Like more than a month. I've got books from America that came waaaay qicker than from England that is in Europe as my country is. But other than that inconvenience I'm really pleased with my buy. Sure it has a bit of damage on the cover, which was expected, but no other tearing or notes in the book or anything. The story itself.... well what can I say other than I've already read the book online a few months back and I loved it so much I had to buy it phisical too. Julie Garwood is my favourite author and if you like historical novels or highlander books you should definitely check this one out!

When Judith begins her travels to Scotland with the men sent to retrieve her to help her see her best-friend she starts falling in love with the chieftain Iain Maclean.The friendship between the heroine and her best-friend Frances Catherine was lovely.This read may not be historically accurate but I honestly don't care. An enjoyable re-read, I'll be picking up this book again in the future.