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Ride the Savage Sea
Can one woman compete with the call of the wild sea?
Dreadful circumstance drove Cecily Dunstan from the familiar comforts of her beloved Scottish hill to the glittering, treacherous court of Elizabeth Regina, where secret schemes and deadly intrigues whispered down the gilded halls, and virtue went to the highest bidder.
Her stunning golden beauty was Cecily's only dowry, and even the compassionate protection of the powerful Sir Walter Raleigh could not shield her from the violent lusts of ruthless courtiers. Then, suddenly, came the the simple, surprising truth of love. A love as tender and tempestuous as Thom Caedamon himself, the darkly handsome sailor wed to the roaring ocean.
Soon, two honorable lovers shared a desperate charade of dishonor. Two proud hearts struggling to trust the passion in their flesh, a passion as strong as life itself, as mighty as the beckoning sea that was Thom's fierce joy -- and Cecily's pitiless ritual.
Dreadful circumstance drove Cecily Dunstan from the familiar comforts of her beloved Scottish hill to the glittering, treacherous court of Elizabeth Regina, where secret schemes and deadly intrigues whispered down the gilded halls, and virtue went to the highest bidder.
Her stunning golden beauty was Cecily's only dowry, and even the compassionate protection of the powerful Sir Walter Raleigh could not shield her from the violent lusts of ruthless courtiers. Then, suddenly, came the the simple, surprising truth of love. A love as tender and tempestuous as Thom Caedamon himself, the darkly handsome sailor wed to the roaring ocean.
Soon, two honorable lovers shared a desperate charade of dishonor. Two proud hearts struggling to trust the passion in their flesh, a passion as strong as life itself, as mighty as the beckoning sea that was Thom's fierce joy -- and Cecily's pitiless ritual.
436 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published June 1, 1985
41 people want to read
About the author
Mallory Burgess
16 books7 followersPseudonyms: Mary Sandra Hingston, Sandy Hingston and Catherine FitzGerald
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
July 24, 2023
I liked this book a lot, but I didn't love it. I liked Thom okay until he hit Cecily and the way he kept running away from everything made him totally untrustworthy. She moved the heavens and the earth for him and he did not deserve it.
When they met, she was seventeen and he was at least twenty years older than she. When this book was written in 1985, that was a thing and didn't bother most readers, I guess. It's always been a point of contention for me, even back then. These old perverts bed down with these teenagers, tell them they love them, build up their hopes and dreams, get them knocked up, and then they die later in life, leaving these women to be widows for years. It doesn't seem fair.
I digress.
Thom first meets Cecily at a ball and was taken with her, of course, but he does a rescue when Denys de Uvedale tries to rape her while the members of the house party are out hunting. Denys and Thom get into a bidding war for her with her brother, Owen, and Thom wins. SOLD!
Cecily is part of the queen's court and shares a room with Denys' wicked sister, Leilah, who is so mean to Cecily and is a great antagonist, as is Denys and especially Bryan Cabot, the banker from Scotland. I would say her brother, Owen, may be a villain, too. He started out genuinely caring about Cecy and here well-being, but got lost in the greed and lust of the court.
Cecily was a strong character and I liked her, but she was always chasing after Thom and putting her life at risk for a man who'd given her a fist to the face, said cruel things to her, raped her, and abandoned her. He didn't deserve even one thought from her let alone compassion or love. He wasn't worth it. His apologies lacked depth and had no meaning. His self-deprecation and whining about what a bad guy he was...well, he got that part right. That's' about the only thing he got right.
This book scores in all other areas, though. I liked Cecily and Sir Walter Raleigh and their friendship. They were closer than normal friends would be; closer enough to be more than friends, but it worked.
There was adventure, sorrow, angst, and steam, good guys and some really bad guys. Had I liked and trusted Thom, this would've been a solid five star read, but he was too old and abandoned Cecily when she needed him the most. He's a zero as a hero.
When they met, she was seventeen and he was at least twenty years older than she. When this book was written in 1985, that was a thing and didn't bother most readers, I guess. It's always been a point of contention for me, even back then. These old perverts bed down with these teenagers, tell them they love them, build up their hopes and dreams, get them knocked up, and then they die later in life, leaving these women to be widows for years. It doesn't seem fair.
I digress.
Thom first meets Cecily at a ball and was taken with her, of course, but he does a rescue when Denys de Uvedale tries to rape her while the members of the house party are out hunting. Denys and Thom get into a bidding war for her with her brother, Owen, and Thom wins. SOLD!
Cecily is part of the queen's court and shares a room with Denys' wicked sister, Leilah, who is so mean to Cecily and is a great antagonist, as is Denys and especially Bryan Cabot, the banker from Scotland. I would say her brother, Owen, may be a villain, too. He started out genuinely caring about Cecy and here well-being, but got lost in the greed and lust of the court.
Cecily was a strong character and I liked her, but she was always chasing after Thom and putting her life at risk for a man who'd given her a fist to the face, said cruel things to her, raped her, and abandoned her. He didn't deserve even one thought from her let alone compassion or love. He wasn't worth it. His apologies lacked depth and had no meaning. His self-deprecation and whining about what a bad guy he was...well, he got that part right. That's' about the only thing he got right.
This book scores in all other areas, though. I liked Cecily and Sir Walter Raleigh and their friendship. They were closer than normal friends would be; closer enough to be more than friends, but it worked.
There was adventure, sorrow, angst, and steam, good guys and some really bad guys. Had I liked and trusted Thom, this would've been a solid five star read, but he was too old and abandoned Cecily when she needed him the most. He's a zero as a hero.
November 3, 2024
Reminiscent of one of my favorite fairy tales, Lord Eaglebeak, this story of a noblewoman plunged into a whirlwind of intrigue that takes her to the Court of Queen Elizabeth I, and the docks of Dartmouth, delivers on the epic adventure of classical historical romance. While I do believe the romance between the two leads, Cecily and Thom, modern readers might find their time apart a stretch, and I do have to warn for two instances of un-heroic behavior by our hero. Points granted, though, for Sir Walter Raleigh's supporting role as a platonic friend of Cecily.
I loved how Cecily made the best of her situation and turned her skill and passion for herbalism to turn her circumstances around and in fact change the course of history. It's always a pleasure to read or in this case re-read, Burgess, and I already look forward to revisiting Cecily and Thom in the future.
I loved how Cecily made the best of her situation and turned her skill and passion for herbalism to turn her circumstances around and in fact change the course of history. It's always a pleasure to read or in this case re-read, Burgess, and I already look forward to revisiting Cecily and Thom in the future.
August 23, 2023
Useless and stupid hero. 2.5
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews