Review: A Different Spin on Pirates and Romance
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 02 26, 2013
This book doesn't follow the conventional romance recipe and I was grateful for that. How many roguish heroes can come and sweep the poor innocent woman off into the sunset before you begin to yawn? The main character in this book is not conventional, nor is she a poor hapless twit. She is fiery, strong, funny and determined. She made all the other heroines look bad, in my opinion.The hero is no slouch either, and if you like your romance a bit spicy, this book will most likely work well for you. The heat is apparent from the first meeting of the characters. I liked that this book had believable elements as well as some that were more fantastical. I think the author found a nice balance in writing this. It wasn't boring, but it also wasn't so far fetched that I was doing the eye-roll. Her characters played well off of each other and were different enough that it gave them a natural spark.The descriptions of sailing, the parts of the ship and the duties of the crew were wonderful. It is clear that Sharon Cullen did her homework before writing this novel. She used vibrant language that colored her scenes in a lovely way and made the images I got from reading this highly memorable.The dialogue between the two main characters was often funny. I enjoyed the way that Emmaline responded to Nicholas in the beginning of their relationship. She never backed down from an argument, and it made me love her. She had the type of personality that kept me reading, eager to see what she would say to him next.The only thing that I wasn't 100 percent in love with was the "big reveal" of Anne's secret. I felt it lacked a little gusto. I might have liked to have seen more shock...amazement...horror, something.My favorite part of this story was the end. I hate when books end in an obvious way, and this one still had a bit of mystery until the very last page. I have always been a fan of the historical romance, and this is definitely an author that I will be watching from this point forward.Overall this was a fun book with a different approach that fans of the genre will be thrilled with. I am happy I had the opportunity to read it.I received a copy of this book as a digital ARC from the publisher.