Whence Came a Prince
It is 1790 in Galloway, Scotland. Leana McBride lives at her aunt’s cottage, nursing a broken heart, after the Kirk declared her marriage to Jamie McKie invalid. Their union had begun with a proxy wedding in which her father ordered her to take her sister Rose’s rightful place, but over time, it grew into a real and loving marriage. Now, Jamie and Rose are finally, lawfully wed and charged with raising Leana’s son. It’s a legal and emotional quagmire, great fodder for a novel, and Higgs doesn’t disappoint.
Readers will recognize similarities to the biblical triangle of Jacob, Leah, and Rachel, and just as in that story, the sisters’ greedy father schemes to obtain free labor from his son-in-law. Gentle Leana faces scorn from her aunt’s neighbors for her adultery, while Rose gains some long-awaited maturity. Jamie struggles with his love for two very different women, only one of whom he’s allowed to have. He longs to return home but worries that his brother will kill him for stealing his birthright. Though a happy ending is possible, the journey has its fair share of suffering and heartache.
This book is marketed as Christian fiction, but whatever your religion, seek out this series (beginning with Thorn in My Heart and Fair Is the Rose) if you love a heartfelt, poignant, and romantic story. After waiting a year to read the final volume, I was sad to see it end.
