Fair Is the Rose
Authors: Liz Curtis Higgs
P
RAISE FOR
Fair Is the Rose
“Wonderful writing and a terrific story.
Fair Is the Rose
explores living, breathing people with heart-wrenching conflicts and one woman with a faith that shines. The reader is transported. Be sure to have a box of tissues close at hand.”
—F
RANCINE
R
IVERS
, author of
Redeeming Love
“A colorful tapestry woven from painstaking research, a rich, vivid setting, and compelling, wonderfully real characters. With excellent writing and a keen understanding of human nature, Liz Curtis Higgs delivers a first-rate, fascinating historical saga. As big and bold a story as the Galloway landscape where it takes place and the hearts of the people who inhabit it.”
—B. J. H
OFF
, author of
Cadence
and
An Emerald Ballad
“
Och!
What a
guid buik!
Once again Liz Curtis Higgs transported me to eighteenth-century Scotland and caused me to lose my heart to Jamie, Leana, and Rose. I couldn’t help but yearn for all three to find lasting love and happiness. The next installment can’t get here fast enough to suit me.”
—R
OBIN
L
EE
H
ATCHER
, author of
Catching Katie
and
Beyond the Shadows
“
Fair Is the Rose
is an absolutely stunning sequel to
Thorn in My Heart
. I was transported back in time to my ancestral Scotland and relished every moment. An exceptional work!”
—L
INDA
L
EE
C
HAIKIN
, author of
Yesterday’s Promise
“Liz Higgs’s writing resonates with romance and the inward struggles of the human heart. You can almost hear the tunes rising o’er the brae.”
—P
ATRICIA
H
ICKMAN
, author of
Fallen Angels
and
Nazareth’s Song
P
RAISE FOR
Thorn in My Heart
“Liz Curtis Higgs takes readers on a remarkable journey to the Lowlands of Scotland. A luminous sense of hope shines through this truly wrenching story of characters who are both larger than life and all too human. This unforgettable saga is as multilayered, mysterious, and joyous as love and faith can be.”
—S
USAN
W
IGGS
,
New York Times
best-selling author
“Higgs, the best-selling author of twenty inspirational books, successfully tries her hand at her first historical novel. Readers will appreciate many of the moral lessons gently delivered, especially as James discovers that deception is a two-edged sword. Higgs’s fine writing … incorporates many lovely historical details, and her strong storytelling skills stand her in good stead here.”
—P
UBLISHERS
W
EEKLY
“Generously researched, heartily written, this grand stew of a novel is filled with meat, spice, and enough Scotch broth to satisfy the palate of the most finicky Scottish historical buffs. Compelling, shattering the barriers of time with frequently stunning imagery and always solid storytelling,
Thorn in My Heart
measures up against the finest historical fiction of our day.”
—L
ISA
S
AMSON
, author of
Women’s Intuition
“At once heart-wrenching and mesmerizing, Leana’s unrequited love for Jamie will keep the reader engrossed. Higgs’s extensive historical research brings this novel to life, from the details of the Lowland livelihood to the importance of religion in the lives of these Scots. This remarkable tale of selfless love will live on in the hearts and minds of readers.”
—R
OMANTIC
T
IMES
, Historical Romance TOP PICK
FAIR IS THE ROSE
PUBLISHED BY WATERBROOK PRESS
12265 Oracle Boulevard, Suite 200
Colorado Springs, CO 80921
All Scripture quotations are taken from the
King James Version
of the Bible.
The characters and events in this book are fictional, and any resemblance to actual persons or events is coincidental.
Copyright © 2004 by Liz Curtis Higgs
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published in the United States by WaterBrook Multnomah, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House Inc., New York.
WATERBROOK and its deer colophon are registered trademarks of Random House Inc.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Higgs, Liz Curtis.
Fair is the rose / Liz Curtis Higgs.
p. cm.
eISBN: 978-0-307-55221-1
1. Scotland—History—18th century—Fiction. 2. Triangles (Interpersonal relations)—Fiction. 3. Inheritance and succession—Fiction. 4. Brothers—Fiction. 5. Sisters—Fiction. I. Title.
PS3558.I36235F35 2004
813′.54—dc22
2003025341
v3.1
To Matt and Lilly Higgs
,
the two best encouragers
a mother could hope for
.
Your incredible support
makes my writing life possible
.
I love you with all my heart
.
To Bill Higgs
,
for everything
.
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Map
Epigraph
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-one
Chapter Twenty-two
Chapter Twenty-three
Chapter Twenty-four
Chapter Twenty-five
Chapter Twenty-six
Chapter Twenty-seven
Chapter Twenty-eight
Chapter Twenty-nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-one
Chapter Thirty-two
Chapter Thirty-three
Chapter Thirty-four
Chapter Thirty-five
Chapter Thirty-six
Chapter Thirty-seven
Chapter Thirty-eight
Chapter Thirty-nine
Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty-one
Chapter Forty-two
Chapter Forty-three
Chapter Forty-four
Chapter Forty-five
Chapter Forty-six
Chapter Forty-seven
Chapter Forty-eight
Chapter Forty-nine
Chapter Fifty
Chapter Fifty-one
Chapter Fifty-two
Chapter Fifty-three
Chapter Fifty-four
Chapter Fifty-five
Chapter Fifty-six
Chapter Fifty-seven
Chapter Fifty-eight
Chapter Fifty-nine
Chapter Sixty
Chapter Sixty-one
Chapter Sixty-two
Chapter Sixty-three
Chapter Sixty-four
Chapter Sixty-five
Chapter Sixty-six
Chapter Sixty-seven
Chapter Sixty-eight
Chapter Sixty-nine
Chapter Seventy
Chapter Seventy-one
Chapter Seventy-two