Review: Sound of the Heart by Genevieve Graham

Title: Sound of the Heart
Author: Genevieve Graham
Paperback: 336 pages
Publisher: Berkley Trade
Release Date: May 1, 2012 
ISBN-10: 0425247341
ISBN-13: 978-0425247341
Source: Publisher
Goodreads   Amazon

From Genevieve Graham, author of Under the Same Sky, comes a sweeping romantic historical novel of one man’s strange gift and dangerous battles…
   

Dougal MacDonnell, a fierce warrior from the Highlands of Scotland, is able to hear the thoughts of other men and dream how the future will unfold. Devastated by the loss of his family during the Battle of Culloden in 1746, he fosters a deep hatred for the English. But when Glenna, the love of his life and a Scottish outlaw, is captured and shipped overseas, Dougal is forced to join an English army made of vanquished Scots. Now fighting on the side of his sworn enemies, he embarks on a journey that will take him across the seas to the colonies. There he will risk everything for the chance to find his true love.(Goodreads)

Review

Sound of the Heart is the companion novel to Under the Same Sky, which you don’t have to read before reading SoTH. Sound of the heart is a beautifully written historical romance, with just a touch of paranormal thrown in with the main character being able to read other men's minds. Genevieve Graham did such an amazing job of writing her characters that I couldn’t help but be enthralled by what was happening to each one as the story progressed.

I loved that Genevieve did not hold back with Sound of the Heart. This is a story set in Scotland during war time. The worst can come out of people during such times of war and Genevieve Graham did not hide from writing the ugliness that can happen, that made Sound of the Heart so much more real to me.

Now let me tell you about my new book boyfriend!

Dougal is a fierce Highland warrior who can take just about any man down. He is also drawn to protect those who are weaker than him. While he is imprisoned after being captured from battle, Dougal uses his special ability to find out that some of the men want to hurt two young drummer boys, Joseph and Aidan. Dougal protects the boys. See, Dougal is an awesome guy! I really fell for him! After a lot of work Dougal and his friends devise a plan to escape. Dougal and Aidan make it out.

OK, so I am not going to do any major spoilers! But, at the end of chapter 13 something shocking happens that had me tweeting Genevieve Graham to let her know I just read the big twist. What happened changes Dougal and Aidan’s life forever.

Once Dougal meets Glenna there is no one else for him. Glenna is an incredibly strong woman who has had to fight her whole life just to live. Glenna is my favorite character in Sound of the Heart, and a perfect match for Dougal.

The romance between Glenna and Dougal was wonderful to read. Glenna had hidden her love for Dougal for so long, that when Dougal realized he loved her too, all I wanted was for them to be together. But, life is not that easy for the two and they are captured and separated.

God, she loved him. She caught her breath, surprised by the unbidden jerk to her heart. She loved those eyes, those lips, the strength of those always worm hands….and all she’d ever wanted was to be near him. Her Dougal had a heart so big she had always feared she’d never completely fill it. But he filled hers until it overflowed, making her into a person almost worthy of him.    

I wont tell you what all happens but I will say that Glenna and Dougal’s time apart broke my heart, because of the things they had to go through to get back together.

I can’t wait to read more from Genevieve Graham! If you like romance at all you should give Sound of the heart a try. It satisfied me from beginning to end.

Happy reading,

Loved it! I want to know about everything this author writes.

Recommended For

Older teen and up: There is some language, nongraphic sex, violence, and a rape scene.