title: Swept Away by the Merman
author: Cox, Helen Louise
description: Never interfere with humans.That was Lawrence's cardinal rule. One that he lived by. And yet, at this very moment, the most beguiling human woman he had ever seen lay in his cave.1913 Coney IslandWhen Rose Miller's mother poisons her whole family and Rose narrowly escapes with her life, she is tortured by questions about why her mother would commit such an outrageous and murderous act. Unable to live with her survivor's guilt, Rose attempts to drown herself in the Atlantic. Little does she know that a beastly creature dwells in those blue depths and she is swimming straight into his arms.Ex-Union soldier Lawrence Carter has lived for fifty years with the beastly curse cast by a woman he refused to marry. In that time he has isolated himself from a society that would fear or exploit his unnatural guise of half man, half fish. On spying an autumn-haired beauty sinking beneath the surface of the cold Atlantic however, he is moved to rescue her from certain death.Neither Rose nor Lawrence feel they have a place in proper society but when the shell necklace that binds Lawrence to his startling form begins to glow, he knows he only has three days left to live. In an attempt to do something noble with his remaining hours on earth, Lawrence vows to uncover the truth about Rose's murderous mother to give the lady who is fast stealing his heart the closure she needs. But will he be able to keep her safe from the true villains that lurk in the back alleys of New York City and will his honourable deed be enough to break the curse? A steamy historical romance novella with a fairytale twist.