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Pirates of King's Landing #1
No Rest for the Wicked
A lady’s guide to surviving aboard a pirate ship:
1) Dress as a cabin boy.
2) Avoid drinking too much rum when the handsome captain is around.
3) Do not let the captain kiss you…again.
The last thing Roberta Harcourt needs is to be trapped on a ship with pirates. After she is separated from her father when their ship is attacked, Roberta finds herself the unwilling guest of sinfully handsome Captain Dominic Grey. He gives her two choices: to share his bed and maintain her life as a lady, or she can sleep on the floor of his cabin and live the life of a cabin boy until he decides to set her free. Refusing to be seduced by a pirate, she dresses in breeches and assumes duties on board his ship among the men, but each night, sharing a cabin with the brooding, seductively intense captain, she begins to wonder if letting him kiss her again might be a rule worth breaking…
Dominic lost his innocence long ago when he was kidnapped and sold into indentured servitude in the West Indies. Determined to leave the painful memories of his past behind, he looks only to the future and the next prize he and his crew can capture on the high seas…until he discovers and captures the feisty daughter of a naval admiral. Protecting her from other pirates and preventing her marriage to an English officer is all in a day’s work for a pirate. But Dominic is determined to play the gentleman he once was born to be. He tries to resist the siren’s call of her sweet lips, especially when she’s arguing with him. But damned if the woman wasn’t meant to be a pirate, because she’s stealing his heart…
1) Dress as a cabin boy.
2) Avoid drinking too much rum when the handsome captain is around.
3) Do not let the captain kiss you…again.
The last thing Roberta Harcourt needs is to be trapped on a ship with pirates. After she is separated from her father when their ship is attacked, Roberta finds herself the unwilling guest of sinfully handsome Captain Dominic Grey. He gives her two choices: to share his bed and maintain her life as a lady, or she can sleep on the floor of his cabin and live the life of a cabin boy until he decides to set her free. Refusing to be seduced by a pirate, she dresses in breeches and assumes duties on board his ship among the men, but each night, sharing a cabin with the brooding, seductively intense captain, she begins to wonder if letting him kiss her again might be a rule worth breaking…
Dominic lost his innocence long ago when he was kidnapped and sold into indentured servitude in the West Indies. Determined to leave the painful memories of his past behind, he looks only to the future and the next prize he and his crew can capture on the high seas…until he discovers and captures the feisty daughter of a naval admiral. Protecting her from other pirates and preventing her marriage to an English officer is all in a day’s work for a pirate. But Dominic is determined to play the gentleman he once was born to be. He tries to resist the siren’s call of her sweet lips, especially when she’s arguing with him. But damned if the woman wasn’t meant to be a pirate, because she’s stealing his heart…
310 pages, Paperback
First published October 30, 2019
129 people are currently reading
493 people want to read
About the author
Lauren Smith
143 books2,211 followersLauren Smith is a USA Today Best-Selling author and an Oklahoma attorney. She knew she was destined to be a romance writer when she attempted to re-write the entire Titanic movie just to save Jack from drowning. Connecting with readers by writing emotionally moving, realistic and sexy romances no matter what time period is her passion. She’s won multiple awards in several romance subgenres including: New England Reader’s Choice Awards, Greater Detroit BookSeller’s Best Awards, Amazon.com Breakthrough Novel Award Quarter-Finalist and a Semi-Finalist for the Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley Award. To connect with Lauren, visit her at www.laurensmithbooks.com or twitter at @LSmithAuthor.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 102 reviews
June 17, 2024
3☆ Yo, Ho, up for a spot of light whipping?
Overall this was a decent pirate story, and the ending offered a fair amount of interesting dramatics to make you strangle your Kindle. BUT the romance was somewhat lacking for me; I mainly felt the lust and reluctant admiration between Dominic and Roberta, not really love? I enjoyed the twist around the 65% mark but wish Dominic had taken it and run with it all the way--enough of the "alas we cannot because..." Heads up re brief recollections of kidnap, enslavement, abuse, and SA of the hero when he was a teenager.
Now, regarding that "light whipping" I mentioned: I know, I KNOW, it's historical romance, so more socially-sanctioned violence--and certainly around 'disciplining' women--that wasn't considered 'abuse' at the time. Still, I wasn't ok with what went down here, because Bollox.
Still, I'm going to give Book 2 a shot because I dig Nick Flynn's character and am thinking he'll make a more likeable hero. For one thing, he bodily attacked Dom to try to prevent him from going through with his dumbass light whipping plan. So he's got that going for him.
Overall this was a decent pirate story, and the ending offered a fair amount of interesting dramatics to make you strangle your Kindle. BUT the romance was somewhat lacking for me; I mainly felt the lust and reluctant admiration between Dominic and Roberta, not really love? I enjoyed the twist around the 65% mark but wish Dominic had taken it and run with it all the way--enough of the "alas we cannot because..." Heads up re brief recollections of kidnap, enslavement, abuse, and SA of the hero when he was a teenager.
Now, regarding that "light whipping" I mentioned: I know, I KNOW, it's historical romance, so more socially-sanctioned violence--and certainly around 'disciplining' women--that wasn't considered 'abuse' at the time. Still, I wasn't ok with what went down here, because Bollox.
Still, I'm going to give Book 2 a shot because I dig Nick Flynn's character and am thinking he'll make a more likeable hero. For one thing, he bodily attacked Dom to try to prevent him from going through with his dumbass light whipping plan. So he's got that going for him.
April 19, 2025
Read: 4/7/25
setting: 1741 Caribbean
4.5 stars
What a fun, entertaining ride! This book put a smile on my face. I liked the humor the best.
Plot:
The story starts off with Dominic being kidnapped at fourteen and impressed to an evil pirate who enjoyed little boys. Dominic eventually killed that pirate. Unfortunately, he can't return home after all the crimes he was forced to commit. His father, the Earl, has Dominic's little brother as an heir, so he doesn't need Dominic. That's what Dominic thinks anyway. So Dominic decided to embrace the pirate life.
Roberta "Robbie" Hancourt craves adventure. Her father is an admiral, and she has spent her life at sea. It's where she's the most happy. They are on their way to the Caribbean because her father has a new position. He wants his daughter married and settled. He doesn't push her, but he would like to see Robbie secure in life. Robbie doesn't want to marry anyone. Any husband would force her to stay home and knit. She loves the sea and won't give it up. Unfortunately, her ship is attacked by pirates. Guess who? Robbie hides in her cabin during the battle and dresses her and her maid as cabin boys. She doesn't know that Dom already set the survivors in the long boats.
The moment he meets Robbie, he senses something odd about her. It doesn't take him long to figure out she's a beautiful girl. He gives Robbie a choice. She can work as a real cabin boy or share his bed. Can you guess which one she chooses? To his chagrin, Robbie loves the hard work. No matter the task, she has a smile on her face. She wasn't supposed to enjoy hard work.
Dom has another problem. His childhood bff was also on Robbie's ship. 15 years, and they still recognized each other. Dom keeps Nathan as a prisoner until he can be released at shore. Nathan's presence reminds Dominic of the life he had before his kidnapping. Dominic is trying to forget a time when he dreamed of his family and Nathan so he could endure his suffering. Slowly, Dominic's conscience starts to emerge as he starts to remember the boy he once was and how he used to protect the weak. Dominic still does that but in a different way. He is still a good man.
I liked this couple together. They balanced each other out really well. Their dialogue had me laughing so much.
There is also an evil villain around the corner. He is the brother of the pirate who hurt Dominic. He enjoys pain, and he especially enjoyed watching his brother hurt Dominic. Strangely, the man never tried to even the score. He was waiting until he could take something important away from Dominic. Hmm, who could that be? 🤔
problems:
I don't think the sexual abuse was really necessary to this story, even if it happened in flashbacks. It felt out of place in such a light book.
Conclusion: This book was such a pleasure to read. I needed a light, funny story. I'm not a pirate book fan, but this keeper.
setting: 1741 Caribbean
4.5 stars
What a fun, entertaining ride! This book put a smile on my face. I liked the humor the best.
Plot:
The story starts off with Dominic being kidnapped at fourteen and impressed to an evil pirate who enjoyed little boys. Dominic eventually killed that pirate. Unfortunately, he can't return home after all the crimes he was forced to commit. His father, the Earl, has Dominic's little brother as an heir, so he doesn't need Dominic. That's what Dominic thinks anyway. So Dominic decided to embrace the pirate life.
Roberta "Robbie" Hancourt craves adventure. Her father is an admiral, and she has spent her life at sea. It's where she's the most happy. They are on their way to the Caribbean because her father has a new position. He wants his daughter married and settled. He doesn't push her, but he would like to see Robbie secure in life. Robbie doesn't want to marry anyone. Any husband would force her to stay home and knit. She loves the sea and won't give it up. Unfortunately, her ship is attacked by pirates. Guess who? Robbie hides in her cabin during the battle and dresses her and her maid as cabin boys. She doesn't know that Dom already set the survivors in the long boats.
The moment he meets Robbie, he senses something odd about her. It doesn't take him long to figure out she's a beautiful girl. He gives Robbie a choice. She can work as a real cabin boy or share his bed. Can you guess which one she chooses? To his chagrin, Robbie loves the hard work. No matter the task, she has a smile on her face. She wasn't supposed to enjoy hard work.
Dom has another problem. His childhood bff was also on Robbie's ship. 15 years, and they still recognized each other. Dom keeps Nathan as a prisoner until he can be released at shore. Nathan's presence reminds Dominic of the life he had before his kidnapping. Dominic is trying to forget a time when he dreamed of his family and Nathan so he could endure his suffering. Slowly, Dominic's conscience starts to emerge as he starts to remember the boy he once was and how he used to protect the weak. Dominic still does that but in a different way. He is still a good man.
I liked this couple together. They balanced each other out really well. Their dialogue had me laughing so much.
There is also an evil villain around the corner. He is the brother of the pirate who hurt Dominic. He enjoys pain, and he especially enjoyed watching his brother hurt Dominic. Strangely, the man never tried to even the score. He was waiting until he could take something important away from Dominic. Hmm, who could that be? 🤔
problems:
I don't think the sexual abuse was really necessary to this story, even if it happened in flashbacks. It felt out of place in such a light book.
Conclusion: This book was such a pleasure to read. I needed a light, funny story. I'm not a pirate book fan, but this keeper.
June 27, 2021
3.7 stars. Its rare I read a pirate historical romance that I really enjoy and this was highly entertaining! Perfect read for early mornings
April 11, 2023
This was charming and fast paced and absolutely a great time!
I haven't read enough pirate romances, so this series has been high on my list. Totally worth the read.
4.5 stars
2.5 on the spice scale
I haven't read enough pirate romances, so this series has been high on my list. Totally worth the read.
4.5 stars
2.5 on the spice scale
June 11, 2024
3/5 ★ A classic pirate romance. Woman ends up on a pirate ship... sexy pirate captain is taken with the woman...
THOUGHTS
I read the 2nd book, In Like Flynn first, and loved it (5 stars) and in comparison, this one didn't quite measure up.
The romance between our two main characters came a bit too easy. The mains were also pretty classic archetypes of the genre. She's an admiral's daughter, who loves to be out on the sea, but that's not what is in store for her as a proper English lady. The pirate captain is a complicated man, who is a good man, who has done bad things, and longs for a woman who is more than a hot body to slake his lusts... he longs for a woman who can be an equal partner in his life...
There's one scene that bonds them that I was not a fan of.
If you like pirate romances, this one is well written, and the story moves along, but, for me, it lacks the special something I was hoping to find here.
If I were you, I'd just skip to book 2.
👀 POV: 3rd person, both MCs
🚨Slow burn » 🕯️➳❥❤️🔥« Insta-lust/love: Cautious undeniable attraction that leads to more.
💟 M/F
➡️ virgin FMC + experienced MMC
🌶️ Spicy Level: 3/5
🔥 How much spice: 2.5/5
My spicy scale:
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 5 = high spice (*VERY* explicitly spicy/erotica)
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 4 = med-high spice (EXPLICITLY spicy)
🌶️🌶️🌶️ 3 = medium spice (spice happens, and it’s on the page)
🌶️🌶️ 2 = low-med spice (explicit spice is pretty light)
🌶️ 1 = closed door/no spice
WHAT YOU’RE IN FOR:
💠 woman pretending to be a boy
💠 horrific past abuse of the MMC
💠 a pretty significant heap of convenient coincidences
🎧Audiobook Narrator(s):
✅ Cornell Collins
THOUGHTS
I read the 2nd book, In Like Flynn first, and loved it (5 stars) and in comparison, this one didn't quite measure up.
The romance between our two main characters came a bit too easy. The mains were also pretty classic archetypes of the genre. She's an admiral's daughter, who loves to be out on the sea, but that's not what is in store for her as a proper English lady. The pirate captain is a complicated man, who is a good man, who has done bad things, and longs for a woman who is more than a hot body to slake his lusts... he longs for a woman who can be an equal partner in his life...
There's one scene that bonds them that I was not a fan of.
If you like pirate romances, this one is well written, and the story moves along, but, for me, it lacks the special something I was hoping to find here.
If I were you, I'd just skip to book 2.
👀 POV: 3rd person, both MCs
🚨Slow burn » 🕯️➳❥❤️🔥« Insta-lust/love: Cautious undeniable attraction that leads to more.
💟 M/F
➡️ virgin FMC + experienced MMC
🌶️ Spicy Level: 3/5
🔥 How much spice: 2.5/5
My spicy scale:
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 5 = high spice (*VERY* explicitly spicy/erotica)
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 4 = med-high spice (EXPLICITLY spicy)
🌶️🌶️🌶️ 3 = medium spice (spice happens, and it’s on the page)
🌶️🌶️ 2 = low-med spice (explicit spice is pretty light)
🌶️ 1 = closed door/no spice
WHAT YOU’RE IN FOR:
💠 woman pretending to be a boy
💠 horrific past abuse of the MMC
💠 a pretty significant heap of convenient coincidences
🎧Audiobook Narrator(s):
✅ Cornell Collins
October 31, 2019
Like a pirate captures a ship, this story stole my heart, one page at a time! An adventure with a pirate, who was once a young boy of the nobility. That is until he was kidnapped and had a terrible life until years later he was able to get away. Now having his own ship, the Emerald Dragon, Dominic thought of himself as a privateer, but he could not pass up the chance to free other men and women who had been taken as slaves and setting them free.
His life was about to get more interesting as he was about to meet a petite, fiery red-haired beauty that was not your usual placid miss.
Roberta was on a voyage with her father, an Admiral, going to Port Royal. She'd grown up on the sea and loved everything about it. So when they spotted the Emerald Dragon, she knew about the pirate captain. "Some said he was handsome enough that the devil himself was jealous of the pirate's good looks.". Aye he was!
Lauren Smith quickly captured my attention with her gift for details and creating an atmosphere that I almost felt I was on the ship! The characters came to life and I became invested quickly with Dom and Roberta.
My heart went out to what Dom had to endure being held captive, but his heart was still there and it seemed that it was about to be taken by one up to the task. Filled with adventure, emotion, and everything you want in a Pirates of Britannia story, you'll not want to miss one second when you open the first page! Perfect!!
His life was about to get more interesting as he was about to meet a petite, fiery red-haired beauty that was not your usual placid miss.
Roberta was on a voyage with her father, an Admiral, going to Port Royal. She'd grown up on the sea and loved everything about it. So when they spotted the Emerald Dragon, she knew about the pirate captain. "Some said he was handsome enough that the devil himself was jealous of the pirate's good looks.". Aye he was!
Lauren Smith quickly captured my attention with her gift for details and creating an atmosphere that I almost felt I was on the ship! The characters came to life and I became invested quickly with Dom and Roberta.
My heart went out to what Dom had to endure being held captive, but his heart was still there and it seemed that it was about to be taken by one up to the task. Filled with adventure, emotion, and everything you want in a Pirates of Britannia story, you'll not want to miss one second when you open the first page! Perfect!!
June 1, 2024
There could have been some more sexual tension, but I enjoyed the story overall. There is nothing new compared to other pirate HRs. There's the forced proximity because the heroine is the cabin boy and sleeps in the captain's bed chamber, there's a thunderstorm, there's the brief stop on land, and the villainous pirate and British Navy are going after the hero. Whenever there's a hanging scene, I always think of The Pirates of the Caribbean.
If there's one thing that stood out from other pirate HRs (at least for me), it's the prologue and what happened to the hero as a teenager (read content warning). It's the first I've read of this situation. Poor, poor child.
Content warnings:
If there's one thing that stood out from other pirate HRs (at least for me), it's the prologue and what happened to the hero as a teenager (read content warning). It's the first I've read of this situation. Poor, poor child.
Content warnings:
July 22, 2022
Outstanding pirate story — Dominic stole my heart!
October 30, 2019
No Rest for the Wicked
Pirates of Britannia Connected World
Lauren Smith
https://www.facebook.com/LaurenDianaS...
Release date 10/30/2019
Publisher DragonMedia Publishing
Blurb :
A wicked pirate, a lady-turned cabin boy and a love reaching the distant horizon.
Your next Pirate Adventure awaits You!
A lady’s guide to surviving aboard a pirate ship:
1)Dress as a cabin boy.
2)Avoid drinking too much rum when the handsome captain is around.
3)Do not let the captain kiss you…again.
The last thing Roberta Harcourt needs is to be trapped on a ship with pirates. After she is separated from her father when their ship is attacked, Roberta finds herself the unwilling guest of sinfully handsome Captain Dominic Grey. He gives her two choices: to share his bed and maintain her life as a lady, or she can sleep on the floor of his cabin and live the life of a cabin boy until he decides to set her free. Refusing to be seduced by a pirate, she dresses in breeches and assumes duties on board his ship among the men, but each night, sharing a cabin with the brooding, seductively intense captain, she begins to wonder if letting him kiss her again might be a rule worth breaking…
Dominic lost his innocence long ago when he was kidnapped and sold into indentured servitude in the West Indies. Determined to leave the painful memories of his past behind, he looks only to the future and the next prize he and his crew can capture on the high seas…until he discovers and captures the feisty daughter of a naval admiral. Protecting her from other pirates and preventing her marriage to an English officer is all in a day’s work for a pirate. But Dominic is determined to play the gentleman he once was born to be. He tries to resist the siren’s call of her sweet lips, especially when she’s arguing with him.
But damned if the woman wasn’t meant to be a pirate because she’s stealing his heart…
My review:
What a woman hiding as a boy is to do when she is drawn to the one man she must avoid at all cost ...
It is thanks to Barbara’s review for Flippin’Pages Book Reviews I preordered this one book.
In this series, I have only read Mrs Meara Platt’s Pearls of Fire because of the author.
But I really need to read more from this multiple authors series.
I have read some books by Lauren Smith from here and there, and while I adored Wicked Designs, with so many different characters, and many books to go backward in this series, I was some time lost.
But here, everybody is newly introduced so it is the perfect read.
Plus I have read very few pirates stories, I do not know why but I am not very attracted to them, maybe because of the image of dirty bloodthirsty peoples they send.
But here, even if he hardened his heart, Dominic is still a kind soul, why he suffered so much, to protect others weaker.
When he first appears as ruthless man, it is to hide better the fair soul he has always been.
Still he believes he is lost to his kin as he had to become a toughened pirate who perpetrate many crimes.
Roberta had a very unusual upbringing while following her father on the seas. It gave her a freedom she is afraid to relinquish for the security of the ballrooms and parlors.
So when she finds herself being held on a pirate ship, she embraces the experience.
Alas she knows it is temporary and soon she might return to civil society.
Yet in the short times they were acquainted, a longing for more from both sides settled between them.
From there, their journey is supplemented with storms, battles, treachery and sensual times.
Their happy ending is one to be earned and it is not be a smooth road with twists and turns until the very last moment bounce.
I loved Mrs Smith’s heroes and side characters, even the bad guy was crafted to be hated with all our hearts. She embarked us in a moving voyage where two souls would reveal their true value.
5 stars
https://www.facebook.com/429830134272...
Pirates of Britannia Connected World
Lauren Smith
https://www.facebook.com/LaurenDianaS...
Release date 10/30/2019
Publisher DragonMedia Publishing
Blurb :
A wicked pirate, a lady-turned cabin boy and a love reaching the distant horizon.
Your next Pirate Adventure awaits You!
A lady’s guide to surviving aboard a pirate ship:
1)Dress as a cabin boy.
2)Avoid drinking too much rum when the handsome captain is around.
3)Do not let the captain kiss you…again.
The last thing Roberta Harcourt needs is to be trapped on a ship with pirates. After she is separated from her father when their ship is attacked, Roberta finds herself the unwilling guest of sinfully handsome Captain Dominic Grey. He gives her two choices: to share his bed and maintain her life as a lady, or she can sleep on the floor of his cabin and live the life of a cabin boy until he decides to set her free. Refusing to be seduced by a pirate, she dresses in breeches and assumes duties on board his ship among the men, but each night, sharing a cabin with the brooding, seductively intense captain, she begins to wonder if letting him kiss her again might be a rule worth breaking…
Dominic lost his innocence long ago when he was kidnapped and sold into indentured servitude in the West Indies. Determined to leave the painful memories of his past behind, he looks only to the future and the next prize he and his crew can capture on the high seas…until he discovers and captures the feisty daughter of a naval admiral. Protecting her from other pirates and preventing her marriage to an English officer is all in a day’s work for a pirate. But Dominic is determined to play the gentleman he once was born to be. He tries to resist the siren’s call of her sweet lips, especially when she’s arguing with him.
But damned if the woman wasn’t meant to be a pirate because she’s stealing his heart…
My review:
What a woman hiding as a boy is to do when she is drawn to the one man she must avoid at all cost ...
It is thanks to Barbara’s review for Flippin’Pages Book Reviews I preordered this one book.
In this series, I have only read Mrs Meara Platt’s Pearls of Fire because of the author.
But I really need to read more from this multiple authors series.
I have read some books by Lauren Smith from here and there, and while I adored Wicked Designs, with so many different characters, and many books to go backward in this series, I was some time lost.
But here, everybody is newly introduced so it is the perfect read.
Plus I have read very few pirates stories, I do not know why but I am not very attracted to them, maybe because of the image of dirty bloodthirsty peoples they send.
But here, even if he hardened his heart, Dominic is still a kind soul, why he suffered so much, to protect others weaker.
When he first appears as ruthless man, it is to hide better the fair soul he has always been.
Still he believes he is lost to his kin as he had to become a toughened pirate who perpetrate many crimes.
Roberta had a very unusual upbringing while following her father on the seas. It gave her a freedom she is afraid to relinquish for the security of the ballrooms and parlors.
So when she finds herself being held on a pirate ship, she embraces the experience.
Alas she knows it is temporary and soon she might return to civil society.
Yet in the short times they were acquainted, a longing for more from both sides settled between them.
From there, their journey is supplemented with storms, battles, treachery and sensual times.
Their happy ending is one to be earned and it is not be a smooth road with twists and turns until the very last moment bounce.
I loved Mrs Smith’s heroes and side characters, even the bad guy was crafted to be hated with all our hearts. She embarked us in a moving voyage where two souls would reveal their true value.
5 stars
https://www.facebook.com/429830134272...
February 4, 2020
“No Rest for the Wicked” is an enchanting, captivating tale that keeps readers engaged from the first page.
Read full review in the 2020 February issue of InD'tale Magazine.
Read full review in the 2020 February issue of InD'tale Magazine.
March 19, 2022
Rekindled my long lost love for pirate romances.I absolutely loved Dom. He was tough and daring but still charming and a good man at heart. And Roberta was a great heroine who held her own. Smart, brave and resourceful. She is truly a strong heroine, who toughed it out through many a trying adventure and demonstrated a cool and cunning character. To be noted, with it being a pirate romance, there are several potential triggers throughout (will include warnings below). A bit of typical pirate plot, but also some nice twists. Definitely plenty of adventure and action. Well written and you don't want to put it down (there were a few grammatical typos/errors but did not detract from my enjoyment). It's a slow burn, but there is some heat🔥🔥. Also some very tender moments, and even made me tear up a bit. There's even a touching bromance side story that was wonderfully portrayed. I'm looking forward to Nicholas' story.
Thank you to the author for providing a copy.
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Content warnings: several instances of kidnap, past molestation, mild flogging, violence, murder
Thank you to the author for providing a copy.
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Content warnings: several instances of kidnap, past molestation, mild flogging, violence, murder
April 14, 2024
⭐️2/5⭐️
The writing is good but the romance is not. I would have scored this a 3 normally but I was so disappointed in the love story, the actual writing couldn’t make up for it.
💕FOR THE REASONS I READ ROMANCE:
The Connection of the Couple: 3/5
Do I believe the couple will endure after the last chapter: 2/5
Couple spent enough happy times together: 4/5
Give and Take balance between the couple: 1/5
Couple was balanced and suited: 3/5
Banter and Fun Times: 3/5
🖋️THE WORDS
Show and not Tell: 4/5
Was I transported and enraptured: 4/5
Was the language sophisticated: 4.5/5
⛔️(SPOILERS BELOW)⛔️
🌸OTHER NOTES
My personal taste:
This was well written but the love story was pretty terrible. An H like this should not be a hero in a romance because his lack of respect, honor and unwillingness to commit mirrors everything we don’t want in a man. And the h was there for it, perfectly willing to accept the little he was giving. You may say I am old-fashioned because I can’t accept historical regency romances that have sex before marriage, but if the marriage doesn’t happen then I feel like I am reading a story about a cheap hussy who happened to land herself an earl.
Characters Likability:
H: He came across to me like he was not sure about his love and commitment to the h. First, he sent her away after he took her virginity and had an outside force not intervened, he would not have gone after her. Second, he either could not or would not find a way for them to be together at any point. Thirdly, he had no intention to marry her yet kept having sex with her without protection. Fourth, he had the gall to do this under the nose of her father, disrespectful! And lastly, the couple had gone back to England and the h was with him in his house after his family reunion, and I couldn’t help but feel like he finally proposed because he had ran out of excuses.
h: I liked her at first, she was resilient and strong, she was no victim or damsel in distress, she was a fighter and had some good grit, she was also emotionally vulnerable. When it came to the H though, she was a bit of a doormat, I didn’t like that. I thought she gave him too many allowances and devalued herself, thinking and saying that the H had better prospects than her and being ok with it after she had given him her virtue and was probably pregnant out of wedlock, she didn’t once think he should hold up his end of the bargain too, that if he truly loved her, he should not leave her like that and just like that. It felt like she had to follow him, not let him out of her sight to get the marriage proposal she deserved. Run after him, why don’t you.
*I felt the connection of the couple as they got to know each other came from kissing, desire and intimate touching, there was some admiration from the H as well but there was no real friendship or banter shown. At Kings Landing, there were good conversations to add on to the sex but, I wish this would have happened before the sex, to give context as to why she gave herself to him.
Angst, was it worth it? Yes, there was a point I felt afraid for the couple when the H first sent the h away and had to fight another pirate, then he shows up when she thought she would never see him again, that was well done.
Push Pull: The H pushes the h away almost the whole time after the h declares her love. What was most annoying about it was it felt like he was deliberately seducing her before that, only to be super clear on the fact they can’t be together. It would have been more gentlemanly to push her away before seducing her because he didn’t know how they could be together.
The Ending: The happy ending for the H, his escaping the noose and reuniting with his family was great. The ending for the couple was eye-rolling, in a way that was “that’s it?” And the epilogue was not about them, it was about the couple of the next book, another eye roll.
SUMMARY
My favorite thing about this book:
I enjoyed the times at sea, what a great trooper the h was sinking into her role. I also liked the reveal of the H as King at the right time. If I had my way, this would have been his plan from the beginning, with him expressing his marrying her at this point.
What I didn’t like:
I did not understand the purpose of the flogging scene. The H’s reasoning for this to the h was to teach her a lesson and for her to be equal in treatment to all the other sailors. BUT, there hadn’t been a flogging in 6 months and that was not standard practice in their ship as punishment, so why did he lie to her and hurt her? This whole scene seemed rather pointless and further painted the H in a bad light.
This might be a minor point but my OCD brain cannot get over it, forgive me. Right before their first time having sex, the author points out the dirtiness of the sailors in general. Then the couple goes upstairs and has sex for the first time without a bath. Sorry! But, ew! This love story, in general, just lacked finesse.
Should you read this: If I had known how topsy turvy the romance was, I would have skipped this. It was a well written story though, plot was well-paced and exciting.
Will this go on my favorites shelf to read again:
The writing is good but the romance is not. I would have scored this a 3 normally but I was so disappointed in the love story, the actual writing couldn’t make up for it.
💕FOR THE REASONS I READ ROMANCE:
The Connection of the Couple: 3/5
Do I believe the couple will endure after the last chapter: 2/5
Couple spent enough happy times together: 4/5
Give and Take balance between the couple: 1/5
Couple was balanced and suited: 3/5
Banter and Fun Times: 3/5
🖋️THE WORDS
Show and not Tell: 4/5
Was I transported and enraptured: 4/5
Was the language sophisticated: 4.5/5
⛔️(SPOILERS BELOW)⛔️
🌸OTHER NOTES
My personal taste:
This was well written but the love story was pretty terrible. An H like this should not be a hero in a romance because his lack of respect, honor and unwillingness to commit mirrors everything we don’t want in a man. And the h was there for it, perfectly willing to accept the little he was giving. You may say I am old-fashioned because I can’t accept historical regency romances that have sex before marriage, but if the marriage doesn’t happen then I feel like I am reading a story about a cheap hussy who happened to land herself an earl.
Characters Likability:
H: He came across to me like he was not sure about his love and commitment to the h. First, he sent her away after he took her virginity and had an outside force not intervened, he would not have gone after her. Second, he either could not or would not find a way for them to be together at any point. Thirdly, he had no intention to marry her yet kept having sex with her without protection. Fourth, he had the gall to do this under the nose of her father, disrespectful! And lastly, the couple had gone back to England and the h was with him in his house after his family reunion, and I couldn’t help but feel like he finally proposed because he had ran out of excuses.
h: I liked her at first, she was resilient and strong, she was no victim or damsel in distress, she was a fighter and had some good grit, she was also emotionally vulnerable. When it came to the H though, she was a bit of a doormat, I didn’t like that. I thought she gave him too many allowances and devalued herself, thinking and saying that the H had better prospects than her and being ok with it after she had given him her virtue and was probably pregnant out of wedlock, she didn’t once think he should hold up his end of the bargain too, that if he truly loved her, he should not leave her like that and just like that. It felt like she had to follow him, not let him out of her sight to get the marriage proposal she deserved. Run after him, why don’t you.
*I felt the connection of the couple as they got to know each other came from kissing, desire and intimate touching, there was some admiration from the H as well but there was no real friendship or banter shown. At Kings Landing, there were good conversations to add on to the sex but, I wish this would have happened before the sex, to give context as to why she gave herself to him.
Angst, was it worth it? Yes, there was a point I felt afraid for the couple when the H first sent the h away and had to fight another pirate, then he shows up when she thought she would never see him again, that was well done.
Push Pull: The H pushes the h away almost the whole time after the h declares her love. What was most annoying about it was it felt like he was deliberately seducing her before that, only to be super clear on the fact they can’t be together. It would have been more gentlemanly to push her away before seducing her because he didn’t know how they could be together.
The Ending: The happy ending for the H, his escaping the noose and reuniting with his family was great. The ending for the couple was eye-rolling, in a way that was “that’s it?” And the epilogue was not about them, it was about the couple of the next book, another eye roll.
SUMMARY
My favorite thing about this book:
I enjoyed the times at sea, what a great trooper the h was sinking into her role. I also liked the reveal of the H as King at the right time. If I had my way, this would have been his plan from the beginning, with him expressing his marrying her at this point.
What I didn’t like:
I did not understand the purpose of the flogging scene. The H’s reasoning for this to the h was to teach her a lesson and for her to be equal in treatment to all the other sailors. BUT, there hadn’t been a flogging in 6 months and that was not standard practice in their ship as punishment, so why did he lie to her and hurt her? This whole scene seemed rather pointless and further painted the H in a bad light.
This might be a minor point but my OCD brain cannot get over it, forgive me. Right before their first time having sex, the author points out the dirtiness of the sailors in general. Then the couple goes upstairs and has sex for the first time without a bath. Sorry! But, ew! This love story, in general, just lacked finesse.
Should you read this: If I had known how topsy turvy the romance was, I would have skipped this. It was a well written story though, plot was well-paced and exciting.
Will this go on my favorites shelf to read again:
February 15, 2024
4.5/5
Really enjoyed this book! I’ve been looking for a fun pirate romance that didn’t get into dark romance and this delivered. Well written and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Really enjoyed this book! I’ve been looking for a fun pirate romance that didn’t get into dark romance and this delivered. Well written and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Want to read
March 1, 2020🎁 FREE on Amazon today (3/1/2020)! 🎁
October 12, 2019
Series: Pirates of Britannia Connected World
Publication Date: 10/30/19
Number of Pages: 219
This book is the author’s first foray into writing a pirate story and I can tell you – she has absolutely outdone herself. This is an excellent read. The excitement starts on the first page and doesn’t let up till the last. The book will tear your heart out and then put it all back together again – and there is a twist at the end that will absolutely floor you!
Dominic Greyville, the heir to the Earl of Camden, was fourteen when he was kidnapped and sold into slavery. He suffered years of torture and abuse and was forced into becoming a pirate. Now, fourteen years later, he is a pirate and captain of his own sloop, the Emerald Dragon. He and his crew spend as much time attacking slave ships and freeing the slaves as they do capturing treasure, but that won’t keep them from being hanged if they are ever caught.
Roberta (Robbie) Harcourt was raised on the sea. She lost her mother when she was very young and her father couldn’t bear being separated from her, so she went on many of his sea voyages. She loved the freedom and adventure of the sea and hoped that her new life in Port Royal where her father Rear Admiral Harcourt would now be based.
Dominic gets word that there is a ship with ‘precious’ cargo headed toward Port Royal. It is such important cargo that there is a rear admiral traveling with it. That certainly whets a pirate’s appetite. It doesn’t take much effort for the Emerald Dragon to overtake the Fortune and capture all on board. After the captives are placed in a longboat with instruments to head them toward Port Royal, the Fortune begins to sink. Except – they found two cabin boys hiding in a closet. It is too late to get them onto the longboats, so Dominic’s crew takes them along with them. It doesn’t take Dominic long to realize that the cabin boys aren’t boys at all.
I loved seeing Roberta and Dominic dance around each other. The attraction was strong an the more Roberta learned about Dominic, the greater the attraction. There can be no life together for them – Dom is a pirate and would hanged if he were caught.
You really have to read this wonderful pirate story. It is filled with love, friendship, enemies, and so very much excitement and suspense. The ending – all I can say is WOW!
I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Publication Date: 10/30/19
Number of Pages: 219
This book is the author’s first foray into writing a pirate story and I can tell you – she has absolutely outdone herself. This is an excellent read. The excitement starts on the first page and doesn’t let up till the last. The book will tear your heart out and then put it all back together again – and there is a twist at the end that will absolutely floor you!
Dominic Greyville, the heir to the Earl of Camden, was fourteen when he was kidnapped and sold into slavery. He suffered years of torture and abuse and was forced into becoming a pirate. Now, fourteen years later, he is a pirate and captain of his own sloop, the Emerald Dragon. He and his crew spend as much time attacking slave ships and freeing the slaves as they do capturing treasure, but that won’t keep them from being hanged if they are ever caught.
Roberta (Robbie) Harcourt was raised on the sea. She lost her mother when she was very young and her father couldn’t bear being separated from her, so she went on many of his sea voyages. She loved the freedom and adventure of the sea and hoped that her new life in Port Royal where her father Rear Admiral Harcourt would now be based.
Dominic gets word that there is a ship with ‘precious’ cargo headed toward Port Royal. It is such important cargo that there is a rear admiral traveling with it. That certainly whets a pirate’s appetite. It doesn’t take much effort for the Emerald Dragon to overtake the Fortune and capture all on board. After the captives are placed in a longboat with instruments to head them toward Port Royal, the Fortune begins to sink. Except – they found two cabin boys hiding in a closet. It is too late to get them onto the longboats, so Dominic’s crew takes them along with them. It doesn’t take Dominic long to realize that the cabin boys aren’t boys at all.
I loved seeing Roberta and Dominic dance around each other. The attraction was strong an the more Roberta learned about Dominic, the greater the attraction. There can be no life together for them – Dom is a pirate and would hanged if he were caught.
You really have to read this wonderful pirate story. It is filled with love, friendship, enemies, and so very much excitement and suspense. The ending – all I can say is WOW!
I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
February 13, 2025
The three books in the #PiratesOfKingsLanding series have recently been re-released as a boxset - hopefully this means the fourth will follow soon 🤞 - and I simply couldn’t resist grabbing an ARC!
Roberta & Dominic
She’s an admiral’s daughter - raised on a ship, independent, bright and nothing like a demure English miss ought to be - travelling with her father to his new posting in the West Indies when their ship gets attacked by pirates.
He’s the pirate. Born and raised an earl’s heir, he was taken from his family at fourteen and sold to a cruel and abusive captain. Now, a decade and a half later, he’s captain of his own ship… but the pirate life has lost its luster - not that he could ever go home.
While Dom meant to keep the other vessel’s lieutenant, he didn’t intend to adopt two hidden cabin boys. Especially when they turn out to be a lady and her maid. The latter can go to the galley, but what to do with her delectable mistress… He offers his bed, she chooses cabin boy duties - and that means obeying the captain. For better or for worse.
A scrumptious forbidden and nearly impossible romance, an unexpected reunion, stormy seas, verbal sparring aplenty, discipline, a narrow escape, a generous island host, a vicious kidnapping, a crow's nest reckoning and a man willing to make the ultimate sacrifice to save his heart and soul.
Humour, quick wit, passion, heartbreak and healing. There’s nothing like a deeply scarred and haunted but innately protective hero and a brave feisty heroine, determined to fight for her freedom, falling hard, fast and irrevocably for each other! This books ticked all the boxes: thrilling adventure, life-threatening danger, sizzling tension and all-consuming all-conquering love. Why else would you read a pirate romance?
Wonderfully entertaining and captivating, I loved it start to finish!
Roberta & Dominic
She’s an admiral’s daughter - raised on a ship, independent, bright and nothing like a demure English miss ought to be - travelling with her father to his new posting in the West Indies when their ship gets attacked by pirates.
He’s the pirate. Born and raised an earl’s heir, he was taken from his family at fourteen and sold to a cruel and abusive captain. Now, a decade and a half later, he’s captain of his own ship… but the pirate life has lost its luster - not that he could ever go home.
While Dom meant to keep the other vessel’s lieutenant, he didn’t intend to adopt two hidden cabin boys. Especially when they turn out to be a lady and her maid. The latter can go to the galley, but what to do with her delectable mistress… He offers his bed, she chooses cabin boy duties - and that means obeying the captain. For better or for worse.
A scrumptious forbidden and nearly impossible romance, an unexpected reunion, stormy seas, verbal sparring aplenty, discipline, a narrow escape, a generous island host, a vicious kidnapping, a crow's nest reckoning and a man willing to make the ultimate sacrifice to save his heart and soul.
Humour, quick wit, passion, heartbreak and healing. There’s nothing like a deeply scarred and haunted but innately protective hero and a brave feisty heroine, determined to fight for her freedom, falling hard, fast and irrevocably for each other! This books ticked all the boxes: thrilling adventure, life-threatening danger, sizzling tension and all-consuming all-conquering love. Why else would you read a pirate romance?
Wonderfully entertaining and captivating, I loved it start to finish!
August 21, 2022
I enjoyed the awesome entertainment of Roberta taking to the seas with the man that she loves. I thank the writer for keeping the story narrative and dialogue simple for the reader. I thought this helped with making the book more easy to read very enjoyable at the same time.
September 24, 2023
I was NOT PREPARED. My heart laughed, cried and swooned to full capacity. If Pirates of the Caribbean fanfic could be streamlined into a novel this is it people. I would read some CW for this book for sure but I’m gonna buy the rest of the series immediately.
January 1, 2025
Plot: 4/5 • Smut: 2/5 ——————> A lady trying to pass as a cabin boy, but soon is reveled. There wasn’t much smut, but the little spice there is was good. We get an HEA between the two.
February 16, 2020
Love Those Pirates!
SAIL TO THE SOUTH! It's the Emerald Dragon sir! Captain Dominic Grey stalking his prey, the Fortune, like a wolf silently sneaking up then pouncing when it's to late for the Fortune to have a chance to become victorious this day. Dominic's hunting ground were the West Indies and the coast of Spain and Portugal in No Rest For the Wicked. Kidnapped at age 14 and sold into servitude his young life was brutal and hard. Roberta a feisty vixen, was raised by her father a naval admiral, has spent most her life at sea with her father. When the Emerald Dragon wins victory over the Fortune Dominic finds two cabin boys hiding, it takes him to realize "his cabin boys" are young ladies! Now the real battle begins for Dominic and Roberta, or Robbie as she is known aboard ship. Dominic gives "Robbie" two choices: share his bed or live the life as a cabin boy. Roberta decides the life of a cabin boy is her choice until Dominic takes her in his arms and kisses her sweet lips! Roberta tries to resist the pull of her sinfully handsome, brooding pirate. With a demented pirate from Dominic's past out for revenge at any cost Dominic must protect Roberta at all cost or loose her forever! With delicious passion, drama, trials and tribulations, hope, uncertainty, battles at sea, cutlesses swinging pirates and while the suspense builds and tensions soar with twist and turns abound that makes for one fantastic read by Lauren Smith! No Rest For the Wicked is one of those books that will keep you sitting on the edge of your turning the pages until the very end. I sure hope there is a book that tells the adventure of Nicholas and "Bryan Holland" who was a woman dressed as a man!
SAIL TO THE SOUTH! It's the Emerald Dragon sir! Captain Dominic Grey stalking his prey, the Fortune, like a wolf silently sneaking up then pouncing when it's to late for the Fortune to have a chance to become victorious this day. Dominic's hunting ground were the West Indies and the coast of Spain and Portugal in No Rest For the Wicked. Kidnapped at age 14 and sold into servitude his young life was brutal and hard. Roberta a feisty vixen, was raised by her father a naval admiral, has spent most her life at sea with her father. When the Emerald Dragon wins victory over the Fortune Dominic finds two cabin boys hiding, it takes him to realize "his cabin boys" are young ladies! Now the real battle begins for Dominic and Roberta, or Robbie as she is known aboard ship. Dominic gives "Robbie" two choices: share his bed or live the life as a cabin boy. Roberta decides the life of a cabin boy is her choice until Dominic takes her in his arms and kisses her sweet lips! Roberta tries to resist the pull of her sinfully handsome, brooding pirate. With a demented pirate from Dominic's past out for revenge at any cost Dominic must protect Roberta at all cost or loose her forever! With delicious passion, drama, trials and tribulations, hope, uncertainty, battles at sea, cutlesses swinging pirates and while the suspense builds and tensions soar with twist and turns abound that makes for one fantastic read by Lauren Smith! No Rest For the Wicked is one of those books that will keep you sitting on the edge of your turning the pages until the very end. I sure hope there is a book that tells the adventure of Nicholas and "Bryan Holland" who was a woman dressed as a man!
January 18, 2020
Kidnapped at the age of fourteen and sold to a French pirate, Dominic Greyville has long since buried what might have been and accepted life as a pirate and the fact that he can never go home. Rumors of a rich cargo lure him from Spain to the Caribbean where he seizes an English merchant ship, manned by Royal Navy men. Instead of treasure, he discovers an admiral bound for his new post, his best childhood friend, and two cabin boys who miss the boat taking the captured crew to Port Royal.
Roberta “Robbie” Harcourt craves adventure, a byproduct of being raised by her father who took her to sea after the death of her mother. When pirates attack her ship, she and her maid disguise themselves in boys’ attire. Maintaining the ruse will be difficult indeed, for Lucy is quite unnerved and not nearly as brave as her mistress. But Robbie is intent on living life to the fullest, since this may well be her last opportunity to do so before having to wed and settle down ashore.
The moment he meets Robbie, Dom knows something is odd about the lad. But coming face-to-face with Nicholas Flynn after all these years disturbs him more than he expects. To find his friend clad in the uniform of the enemy further complicates the issue. He throws Nicholas into the brig before going to confront his newest crew members. When he finally realizes the truth, he gives Robbie an ultimatum, but she’s determined to serve as his cabin boy no matter how difficult he makes the task.
What should be fun for Dominic turns out to be at first misery and then extreme danger – not only for him, but also Robbie and Lucy. The familiar pirate ship on the horizon brings with it a French monster, whose rancor has simmered for many years while he waits for the perfect time to unleash his vengeance.
One of my favorite lines in this story is Robbie’s quip, “Had the captain read that from some book entitled How to Infuriate Free and Independent Women? Perhaps he had written it.” (27) It perfectly sums up how women were treated in 1741, and how aggravating the male attitude would be for an individual like Robbie.
Smith deftly weaves pirate and maritime details into a story that brings the characters to life and transports readers back to the waning years of piracy in the Caribbean. Just when you think the romance is resolved, she adds another twist that either sends hearts soaring or plummeting, while twisting emotions into knots as intricate as those found aboard ships. Part of the Pirates of Britannia Connected World series, No Rest for the Wicked is reminiscent of swashbuckling tales of yore. It is adventure not to be missed and – in true piratical fashion – Smith includes an enticing treasure at the end that sets the stage for her next pirate adventure.
Roberta “Robbie” Harcourt craves adventure, a byproduct of being raised by her father who took her to sea after the death of her mother. When pirates attack her ship, she and her maid disguise themselves in boys’ attire. Maintaining the ruse will be difficult indeed, for Lucy is quite unnerved and not nearly as brave as her mistress. But Robbie is intent on living life to the fullest, since this may well be her last opportunity to do so before having to wed and settle down ashore.
The moment he meets Robbie, Dom knows something is odd about the lad. But coming face-to-face with Nicholas Flynn after all these years disturbs him more than he expects. To find his friend clad in the uniform of the enemy further complicates the issue. He throws Nicholas into the brig before going to confront his newest crew members. When he finally realizes the truth, he gives Robbie an ultimatum, but she’s determined to serve as his cabin boy no matter how difficult he makes the task.
What should be fun for Dominic turns out to be at first misery and then extreme danger – not only for him, but also Robbie and Lucy. The familiar pirate ship on the horizon brings with it a French monster, whose rancor has simmered for many years while he waits for the perfect time to unleash his vengeance.
One of my favorite lines in this story is Robbie’s quip, “Had the captain read that from some book entitled How to Infuriate Free and Independent Women? Perhaps he had written it.” (27) It perfectly sums up how women were treated in 1741, and how aggravating the male attitude would be for an individual like Robbie.
Smith deftly weaves pirate and maritime details into a story that brings the characters to life and transports readers back to the waning years of piracy in the Caribbean. Just when you think the romance is resolved, she adds another twist that either sends hearts soaring or plummeting, while twisting emotions into knots as intricate as those found aboard ships. Part of the Pirates of Britannia Connected World series, No Rest for the Wicked is reminiscent of swashbuckling tales of yore. It is adventure not to be missed and – in true piratical fashion – Smith includes an enticing treasure at the end that sets the stage for her next pirate adventure.
February 8, 2020
OMG!!!
Lauren - you simply CAN NOT leave Nick like that!!!
Seriously though, the story of Dominic Grey, peer of England and pirate Captain, just melted my heart! I am in love with the Pirates of Britannia, and this is an incredible addition to this series.
❤❤❤❤❤
Lauren - you simply CAN NOT leave Nick like that!!!
Seriously though, the story of Dominic Grey, peer of England and pirate Captain, just melted my heart! I am in love with the Pirates of Britannia, and this is an incredible addition to this series.
❤❤❤❤❤
February 2, 2020
Taken by a pirate
A young lady is taken by a pirate. She and her maid are dressed as cabin boys, but not for long. The captain knows a woman when he sees one. Both are attracted to each other, but the captain carries dark secrets. Adventure on the sea carries it's own risk. When revenge threatens her life a man can change for the better.Thoroughly enjoyed this romance. A definite keeper.
A young lady is taken by a pirate. She and her maid are dressed as cabin boys, but not for long. The captain knows a woman when he sees one. Both are attracted to each other, but the captain carries dark secrets. Adventure on the sea carries it's own risk. When revenge threatens her life a man can change for the better.Thoroughly enjoyed this romance. A definite keeper.
November 18, 2020
Oh, what a fab story. Lovely adventure with pirates and a female dressed as a cabin boy. So enjoyed reading this. 5☆
January 23, 2020
A whirlwind of a pirate adventure, not to be missed!
An addictively absorbing and cleverly written adventure that's packed with drama, burning passion, heartache, soul deep loyalty and characters so well thought out they suck you in, hold you imprisoned and entangle you in their fates to the point of heart wrenching and gut churning tears.
The connection between Robbie (Roberta) and Dominic just jumps of the page as Smith cleverly explores and develops their relationship from that unnerving instant spark of attraction to the sizzling and earth shatteringly profound. I felt every longing look, deep sigh, touching chuckle and heart pounding ache of fear.
This absolutely dazzling pirate adventure might be Smith's first but I'm so glad it won't be the last. She has vibrantly depicted a world of deceit, the harsh and unpredictable cruel perils of the sea while balancing it seemlessly with a crew of characters brimming with passion, intoxicating devotion and scrumptious banter and wit, ultimately tangling you in a riotous tempest of emotions and capturing your heart. Wow, these delightfully well rounded characters pull at your heart strings, grab your admiration and make you care for them just as must as the hero and heroine.
To say the least there wasn't apart of this tale that doesn't deserve praise as the plot flows so smoothly, quite literally like rum, that I warn you, it will leave a warm and shuddering kick for the experience. It compelled me so much I had to read until the small hours of the morning as my mind simply couldn't rest until the last satisfying word.
I just couldn't be happier at the promise of a series: (Flynn) Nicholas' tale is sure to be just as explosively palpable and enjoyable in is vivid portrayal. A read I highly recommend!!
An addictively absorbing and cleverly written adventure that's packed with drama, burning passion, heartache, soul deep loyalty and characters so well thought out they suck you in, hold you imprisoned and entangle you in their fates to the point of heart wrenching and gut churning tears.
The connection between Robbie (Roberta) and Dominic just jumps of the page as Smith cleverly explores and develops their relationship from that unnerving instant spark of attraction to the sizzling and earth shatteringly profound. I felt every longing look, deep sigh, touching chuckle and heart pounding ache of fear.
This absolutely dazzling pirate adventure might be Smith's first but I'm so glad it won't be the last. She has vibrantly depicted a world of deceit, the harsh and unpredictable cruel perils of the sea while balancing it seemlessly with a crew of characters brimming with passion, intoxicating devotion and scrumptious banter and wit, ultimately tangling you in a riotous tempest of emotions and capturing your heart. Wow, these delightfully well rounded characters pull at your heart strings, grab your admiration and make you care for them just as must as the hero and heroine.
To say the least there wasn't apart of this tale that doesn't deserve praise as the plot flows so smoothly, quite literally like rum, that I warn you, it will leave a warm and shuddering kick for the experience. It compelled me so much I had to read until the small hours of the morning as my mind simply couldn't rest until the last satisfying word.
I just couldn't be happier at the promise of a series: (Flynn) Nicholas' tale is sure to be just as explosively palpable and enjoyable in is vivid portrayal. A read I highly recommend!!
April 19, 2020
THIS WAS OKAY, VERY SWEET AND PREDICTABLE PIRATE ROMANCE. NOTHING NEW OR UNUSUAL.
DOM as a boy was kidnapped from the docks and shipped into slavery, stealing him from the comfortable life as a future Earl and starting his life as a pirate when he grows up. Renowned as Captain Grey, Dominic makes himself a startling reputation not just with looting but also freeing the slave ships he encounters. Dom may have been shaped by the harshness and brutality of his slavery, having killed his master at the age of 17. He believes that he can no longer return home, content to live his way in his new world. When he caught wind from one of his Spanish doxies about a 'treasure' being carried by a particular ship, he doesn't hesitate to attack it and only found an irresistible spitfire instead and a few trunks of dresses and bolts of cloth. Dom's attraction to Roberta is a classic case that we've all read before if you enjoy pirate romances. Sadly I wasn't captivated by it nor was I impressed, finding it to be average and slightly dull.
ROBERTA is your typical heroine who gets caught up in the life of the sea, being the daughter of a seaman, she's more comfortable at sea than in the drawing rooms of London. When one voyage leads her to become a delectable cabin boy in the arms of Captain Grey, she soon develops feelings for this man with a tortured past. Roberta's pretty much a sporting heroine because she can climb the rigs like a spider monkey and mop the poop deck like she has been born to do it.
OVERALL the chemistry between the MCs wasn't unique for me, or even compelling. The only emotional part of the story I LOVED the most is Dom's relationship with his family, and the reunion at the end.
DOM as a boy was kidnapped from the docks and shipped into slavery, stealing him from the comfortable life as a future Earl and starting his life as a pirate when he grows up. Renowned as Captain Grey, Dominic makes himself a startling reputation not just with looting but also freeing the slave ships he encounters. Dom may have been shaped by the harshness and brutality of his slavery, having killed his master at the age of 17. He believes that he can no longer return home, content to live his way in his new world. When he caught wind from one of his Spanish doxies about a 'treasure' being carried by a particular ship, he doesn't hesitate to attack it and only found an irresistible spitfire instead and a few trunks of dresses and bolts of cloth. Dom's attraction to Roberta is a classic case that we've all read before if you enjoy pirate romances. Sadly I wasn't captivated by it nor was I impressed, finding it to be average and slightly dull.
ROBERTA is your typical heroine who gets caught up in the life of the sea, being the daughter of a seaman, she's more comfortable at sea than in the drawing rooms of London. When one voyage leads her to become a delectable cabin boy in the arms of Captain Grey, she soon develops feelings for this man with a tortured past. Roberta's pretty much a sporting heroine because she can climb the rigs like a spider monkey and mop the poop deck like she has been born to do it.
OVERALL the chemistry between the MCs wasn't unique for me, or even compelling. The only emotional part of the story I LOVED the most is Dom's relationship with his family, and the reunion at the end.
November 2, 2019
It's always bittersweet to reach the end of a really good book, but it's especially exciting to get to the end and realize there will be a sequel. Squee!
Roberta, like so many of Lauren Smith's heroines, is a courageous, tenacious, loyal, tender, and competent woman who happens to crave the freedom of the ocean. It's no big surprise, then, when she falls in love with Dominic, the pirate. And of course, he falls in love with all of the qualities unique to Roberta, or as he gets to know her, Robbie.
Dominic's backstory is a tragic tale and I appreciate that the author didn't go into great detail, instead creating a sympathetic character who experienced tremendous abuse that was never described in great detail. I appreciate that because I read for the escape from reality and don't want to read that sort of thing when I know there really are people like that in the world.
Ms. Smith uses the story to demonstrate that even those who seem to make the choice to live a life of crime may not have ever had a choice at all. In fact, they may have been forced into it as children, as was Dominic. On the subject of Dominic as a character, he was an honorable man of integrity who found a way to embrace what he'd been forced to do while causing as little harm to his victims as possible. Nicholas, friend to both Roberta and Dominic, is the kind of friend we all aspire to have and to be. I'm glad he will be making an appearance in the next book.
I loved this book. More often than not, I am impressed by Lauren Smith. She creates realistic and sympathetic characters and unusual plots, making for inevitably memorable stories. This one is up there with some of her best.
Roberta, like so many of Lauren Smith's heroines, is a courageous, tenacious, loyal, tender, and competent woman who happens to crave the freedom of the ocean. It's no big surprise, then, when she falls in love with Dominic, the pirate. And of course, he falls in love with all of the qualities unique to Roberta, or as he gets to know her, Robbie.
Dominic's backstory is a tragic tale and I appreciate that the author didn't go into great detail, instead creating a sympathetic character who experienced tremendous abuse that was never described in great detail. I appreciate that because I read for the escape from reality and don't want to read that sort of thing when I know there really are people like that in the world.
Ms. Smith uses the story to demonstrate that even those who seem to make the choice to live a life of crime may not have ever had a choice at all. In fact, they may have been forced into it as children, as was Dominic. On the subject of Dominic as a character, he was an honorable man of integrity who found a way to embrace what he'd been forced to do while causing as little harm to his victims as possible. Nicholas, friend to both Roberta and Dominic, is the kind of friend we all aspire to have and to be. I'm glad he will be making an appearance in the next book.
I loved this book. More often than not, I am impressed by Lauren Smith. She creates realistic and sympathetic characters and unusual plots, making for inevitably memorable stories. This one is up there with some of her best.
October 28, 2019
When Roberta's ship is attacked, she and her maid dress up as boys so that when the pirates find them, their disguise with protect them. Unfortunately, when the captain finds them, he sees right through it. He gives her two choices, warm his bed or keep the disguise and work as a crew member. Roberta is not about to be seduced by the pirate and chooses to become one of the crew. Having grown up on a ship with her admiral father, she fits right in.
When Dominic was younger, he was kidnapped and sold into servitude. Once he gained his freedom, his only thoughts have been on the next prize to be captured. But things change when he meets Roberta. He knows that he needs to be the gentleman that he was raised to be in his previous life. But he finds himself wildly attracted to Roberta and it is taking everything in his power to not give in to his urges to seduce her.
Roberta is everything Dominic didn't realize he wanted. Can he convince her to give her heart to a notorious pirate?
I absolutely adored Roberta and Dominic's story. I loved watching the two of them interact with one another and watching Dominic be amazed by everything that Roberta accomplished on the ship. The bantering between the two of them had me laughing out loud! They really were the perfect match for one another. I throughly enjoyed this story and hope that Smith continues to pen more pirate stories!!
When Dominic was younger, he was kidnapped and sold into servitude. Once he gained his freedom, his only thoughts have been on the next prize to be captured. But things change when he meets Roberta. He knows that he needs to be the gentleman that he was raised to be in his previous life. But he finds himself wildly attracted to Roberta and it is taking everything in his power to not give in to his urges to seduce her.
Roberta is everything Dominic didn't realize he wanted. Can he convince her to give her heart to a notorious pirate?
I absolutely adored Roberta and Dominic's story. I loved watching the two of them interact with one another and watching Dominic be amazed by everything that Roberta accomplished on the ship. The bantering between the two of them had me laughing out loud! They really were the perfect match for one another. I throughly enjoyed this story and hope that Smith continues to pen more pirate stories!!
October 30, 2019
The last thing Roberta Harcourt needs is to be trapped on a ship with pirates. After she is separated from her father when their ship is attacked, Roberta finds herself the unwilling guest of sinfully handsome Captain Dominic Grey. He gives her two choices: to share his bed and maintain her life as a lady, or she can sleep on the floor of his cabin and live the life of a cabin boy until he decides to set her free. Refusing to be seduced by a pirate, she dresses in breeches and assumes duties on board his ship among the men. Dominic lost his innocence fourteen years ago when he was kidnapped and sold into indentured servitude in the West Indies. Determined to leave the painful memories of his past behind
It doesn’t matter what genre the author writes she nails it & this is no exception. An engrossing, enthralling captivating read that often had me on the edge of my seat & it also took me through a gamut of emotions, I was in bits at he end. Wonderful characters who had lots of depth, a fast paced plot that a couple of times left me breathless. I loved it & so look forward to Nicholas’ story
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read
It doesn’t matter what genre the author writes she nails it & this is no exception. An engrossing, enthralling captivating read that often had me on the edge of my seat & it also took me through a gamut of emotions, I was in bits at he end. Wonderful characters who had lots of depth, a fast paced plot that a couple of times left me breathless. I loved it & so look forward to Nicholas’ story
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read
October 30, 2019
Dominic Gray was kidnapped as a young boy and forced into servitude and piracy. His life has been hard and so is he. Trying to put the pain and suffering in the back recesses of his mind he is known by his crew for capturing and releasing the children who have been stolen and forced into the lifestyle he was forced into. When he goes after what is supposed to be a great prize on a ship he captures two young boys he suspects have been forced into servitude. When the ship Roberta Harcourt comes under attach by pirates her and her maid dress as young boys so they will not be discovered as she is the daughter of an admiral and a very valuable prize. When Dominic discovers Robbie is actually Roberta, she stirs something inside of him he has long forgotten. This was such a wonderful story! I was hooked from the beginning. I fell in love with Roberta and Dominic. Oh the ending, I had tears! Definitely moved me. Five stars, definitely recommend this one!
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