Under Loch and Key Paperback – December 3, 2024

After the death of her father and only family in the US, Keyanna “Key” MacKay goes to Scotland to finally meet her grandmother and find out more about her father’s life in Scotland before she was born.But she immediately meets a brutish man who apparently hates her on site and an unwelcoming grandmother.Slowly she discovers the secrets surrounding her family and the curse set upon their lands.🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿Review: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/🌶️This book was chosen by my local bookclub with the theme of the month being “Monster Romance”.This is very much a monster-light romance. It wasn’t nearly as risqué as most of us were wanting.However, it was a very fun story.🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿I went into the book thinking it was going to be more of a romcom where a girl travels to Scotland and accidentally falls in love with a lochness-shifter. And technically that was true.But it was also filled with Scottish lore, kelpies curses, and hidden fae.🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿It was a fun and easy read.

Loved the character development and overall story. Highly recommend! Good balance between creative story and delightful spice, too. I also appreciate the epilogue wrapping everything up nicely.

OK, so this was really fun and it was pretty good however I feel like the author really missed with not having the dad‘s be lovers. I literally got that vibe throughout the entire book that the dads were secretly lovers and that would’ve made this perfect to me. That’s literally like my biggest upset with this whole book is they gave lovers vibes throughout the entire book only to not end up lovers like I know that her dad is dead but seriously you’re telling me that his best friend couldn’t stand him leaving and turned into a beast for 26 years and they weren’t lovers???? Literally historians saying “they were roommates” when really they were lovers. I also wasn’t too big of a fan of the way this audiobook is done. It was done some sort of cross between duet narration and dual narration and I really loathe that. If you’re going to do this weird cross between the two just go the full length and do duet style. The narrators were pretty good and in all honesty it was a fun read.

I didn’t know what to expect going into this book but it was so much more than a shifter romance. The character development and grief that both main characters (and side characters) have gone through and their journey through it was so beautiful!This book had a curse that needed breaking, a shifter, magical powers, and lots of tension and spice between our two main characters.You’ll enjoy this book if you came for the romance story and shifter romance ❤️ If you get annoyed by figuring out curses faster than the main characters do, you may be slightly peeved but still enjoy this book 😂Also the audio book sounds amazing 🥵

A bit of a slower jump to get into, but delightful.Love the concept and story, and the epilogue was cavity inducing.

📖✨ Under Loch and Key by Lana Ferguson ✨📖If a Hallmark monster romance is your guilty pleasure, then grab your cozy blanket and dive into Under Loch and Key! 🏰🐉 This paranormal romance delivers plenty of cheesy, cringe worthy moments (in the best way!) but pairs them with a fun, lighthearted storyline and a touch of spice. 🌶️Keyanna’s journey to Scotland for family secrets and magic collides with Lachlan, her grumpy Scotsman savior—and their dynamic is full of bickering and slow burn potential. Think family curses, newfound powers, and a moody guy trying so hard not to care… yeah, we’ve seen it before, but it still hits. The chemistry wasn’t quite swoon worthy, but the quirky, magical setting kept me charmed.If you’re in the mood for a loch mess of magic, romance, and feel good vibes, this is one to add to your TBR! Just don’t expect to be blown away by the sparks. ✨👩‍❤️‍👨

This romantic fantasy takes place in a village in Scotland near the shores of Loch Lomond. It's got sea monsters, a centuries old curse, kelpies, an ancient castle, the emergence of new magic, and a long standing feud between two local families. Keyanna and Lachlan are at the center of the action. She's from America and part of the family that's been in opposition to his. They begin as adversaries and eventually become allies as they work together to figure out how to undo the curse affecting Lachlan's family. Both have lost their fathers and are ultimately searching for family. They need to learn to trust each other and to remember that they can choose their own paths.The characters are likable and their detective work to find the origin and solution for the curse was interesting. Nonetheless, I found myself skimming big sections in the middle of the book. Not sure if it was because the pacing was a little too slow or if it was because the author signalled the villain fairly early and I wanted my suspicions confirmed.