Review: Very Incomplete Story-Line
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 12 27, 2013
Note by the author that this book was "Published by Dell in 1991 as THE BLACK ROSE - This ebook edition has been extensively revised to better reflect the author's original vision."  Since I have never read the original book, "The Black Rose," I do wonder if some parts of "Seven Nights with a Pirate" might have been more easily understood had I read the original work.  As I was reading, I couldn't help but feel as though I was missing out on vital parts of the story.Background:  Viscount Ravenhurst was a naval hero - hardened by the battles he endured, specifically the battle at Trafalgar.  He has been requested by the government to travel to Romney Marsh - home of a major smuggling operation in order to unearth a spy (the Romney Marsh Fox) believed to be selling secrets to Napoleon.**Spoilers** Coincidentally, Ravenhurst has previous connections to the Romney Marsh area - specifically with Tess Leighton with whom he fell in love five years previously and to whom he had hoped to marry at one time.  He hasn't seen her for five long years but he has never been able to get her out of his blood.  It's obvious that things didn't work out with Ravenhurst and Tess but we are left to try and figure out exactly how and why things didn't work out throughout the entire book.  In fact, I never was able to figure out exactly what happened, except that it involved Tess's cruel father, also lies and secrets that were kept from both parties for five years.  At any rate, Ravenhurst agrees to go to Romney Marsh where he meets up with Tess - now trying to work off her father's old debts while attempting to keep her family's inn running by involving herself in the local smuggling operations.I wanted to like this book and in fact, I found the primary characters interesting enough - there was a lot of fire between Ravenhurst and Tess but he was full of anger and she was determined that she would never be able to have Ravenhurst because of circumstances in her past.  Apparently, her father gambled and wenched away the family fortune and then had nothing left to sell except for Tess and this is one of the major incomplete parts of the story. Tess has recurring nightmares which involve being kept in the dark in a tunnel and she can't sleep without a light in her room but we never have the full story of what happened. Her cruel father is now dead and she is alone in the world with the exception of a younger brother currently at Oxford. This is a major source of contention and frustration with people who love Tess because she works her fingers to the bone and risks her life in the smuggling operations while her brother has all the advantages of a young gentleman without any effort on his part.In Part 2 of the book, Tess is the victim of an explosion but is rescued by a pirate which results in her spending a week with him on his ship and on the island where he has a cottage -  thus the name of the book - "Seven Nights with a Pirate."  There is a lot of passion and fire between Tess and the pirate - and, yet - up to this point, it's obvious that she still has major feelings for Ravenhurst. So, there are a lot of questions that continually go through the reader's mind.  I will say that by the end of the book, we do have an understanding about Ravenhurst's relationship with Tess and also the pirate's relationship with her - nothing we didn't suspect of course. Finally, there are answers to the identity of yet another major character - the Romney Marsh Fox and his relationship with Tess.This book became somewhat tedious because so much desired information is missing. I was constantly frustrated - especially by the end of the book when I realized I would not be getting the answers to some of my questions. At one point, I actually thought perhaps a huge section of the book was placed in the wrong area of the book because it just didn't seem to fit.  In fact, I felt this way about several sections although to a lesser degree.  All in all, I felt this book had a lot of potential but I would have liked more complete information regarding the following:Why did Tess have nightmares about the tunnel, darkness, and how did she lose her virginity - why didn't she feel worthy to become a wife?  Did her father succeed in selling her to one man, to several men, or did she escape that nightmare?What was the relationship to the woman brought to the island where the Pirate lived and who was obviously raped by the military staff which resulted in her pregnancy and eventual death?Exactly how did it work that on occasions Tess acted as The Romney Marsh Fox - was it with the permission and knowledge of the real Romney Marsh Fox?  I never quite figured that out.When Ravenhurst left Romney Marsh to travel to London for a meeting with the government official for whom he was working, it seemed as though it was their first meeting.  He had actually been in his spying role for a few weeks at this point.Last - although Ravenhurst was mad for Tess, he would leave without any explanation for a few days at a time knowing full well she was in danger with the officials who were trying to capture the smugglers.  Specifically, the leader who kept coming and tearing up her hotel and demanding to be alone with her, threatening to have his way with her.  Ravenhurst's character let me down on these occasions.  Yes, he did manage to show up a couple of times when she was in way over her head but then he would leave for days at a time.I would give this book a 1 star or 2 star rating for the most incomplete and frustrating story-line of any book I have ever read except that I really did love the pirate - he was awesome - therefore, my 3 star rating.