With her mother’s death, Lady Charlisse
Bristol
endures years of abuse at the hands of her uncle, a person of some note
in the Anglican Church. His teachings and “instruction” destroy her
faith
in God, for how could He ever love someone as bad as her? Only one
person
might offer her the love she searches for – her father, a man she’s
never
met. She knows him only through conversations with her mother, but he
offers
Charlisse hope. Determined to find him, she books passage on a vessel
bound
for Jamaica. A vicious storm impedes her journey. She is the only one
who
survives, but life on a deserted island isn’t as appealing as one might
expect. After months of loneliness, bitten by bugs, and living in
filth,
she waits to die.
Edmund Merrick has one goal in life – to bring
Edward
the Terrible, the worst of all pirates, to justice. Edmund once served
as Edward’s second in command, but a drunken visit to a church, where
he
repented his sins and sought redemption through Christ, brought Edmund
from the brink of despair. Before he can hunt down Edward, though, he
stumbles
upon an island where a bedraggled woman, delirious with fever, stumbles
into his camp. While he nurses her to health, he realizes he must
safeguard
her from his men. What he doesn’t expect is to fall in love with
Charlisse,
and when she reveals why she has come to the Caribbean, Edmund must
decide
whether love or justice is more important.
The Redemption is a rousing pirate
adventure filled
with sea battles, chases, arrests, and betrayal. M. L. Tyndall expertly
interweaves history with fiction to create a spellbinding tale any
lover
of pirate romance will enjoy. Although there are a couple of minor
historical
errors – such as flying the Jolly Roger before it appeared – these in
no
way detract from the story. The inspirational message never intrudes,
and
the manner in which various characters find redemption makes for a
compelling
story. Once you lift the lid on this treasure chest, you will never
regret
the journey upon which you sail back to the pirate haven of Port Royal
in 1665. The Redemption is perfect for a stormy day when the
fire
crackles in the hearth and you wish only to be stranded on a tropical
island
with a handsome pirate.
Meet
M. L. Tyndall
Read an excerpt
of The Redemption
Read my review of The
Reliance
Book Review Copyright ©2006 Cindy Vallar
The Reliance
The Reliance
by M. L. Tyndall
Barbour, 2006
ISBN 978-1-59789-360-2, $9.97
Marriage agrees with Edmund Merrick, and he thanks
the
Lord every day for bringing Charlisse into his life. No longer a
pirate,
he now hunts them, and his travels take him to Porto Bello. Life is
idyllic,
until pirates – led by Henry Morgan – attack the Panamanian city and
Merrick
and Charlisse must escape the bloody onslaught. They seek refuge in a
small
Catholic church along with several orphans, but Merrick must go back to
help a friend. No sooner does he leave the church than it blows up,
killing
Charlisse and devastating Merrick. Unable to cope, he drinks himself
into
oblivion and ventures into the dangerous streets and taverns of Tortuga
in search of Morgan, whom he holds responsible for Charlisse’s death.
He
abandons his faith and makes a pact with the devil – a bloodthirsty,
demented
pirate named Collier.
Merrick’s loyal companions take his ship and sail
for
Port Royal, hoping to convince the preacher to come and save Merrick
from
himself. Instead, they encounter Charlisse – not dead, but held captive
by her husband’s arch enemy, Kent – and another captive, Lady Isabel.
After
a narrow escape, Charlisse – with Isabel in tow – joins her husband’s
crew
and assumes command. Despite not having everyone’s support, she
inflicts
severe damage to Kent’s vessel before going in search of her wayward
husband.
The night she finds him in a tavern in Tortuga, a buxom lady sits on
his
lap.
Has Charlisse lost Merrick forever? How can he
break his
pact with the devil and cease being a pirate forever? And what of Kent?
Will he truly stop hunting Charlisse, especially since Isabel has
escaped
his clutches? To learn the answers, one must read The Reliance,
the sequel to The Redemption. Ms. Tyndall adeptly interweaves
history
and romance with fiction and religion into a world peopled with nasty
pirates,
jealous men, and greedy devils. Unlike the first book, here the
inspirational
message intrudes into the story a few times, but it remains as
compelling
an adventure as the original. Her depiction of Tortuga and buccaneer
raids
on Spanish towns is spot on, and readers will find themselves peering
around
to make certain they’re still safe at home, rather than in the
seventeenth
century.
Meet
M. L. Tyndall
Read an excerpt
of The Reliance
Book Review Copyright ©2007 Cindy Vallar
Surrender the Dawn
Surrender the
Dawn
By MaryLu Tyndall
Barbour, 2011, $12.99
Trade Paperback ISBN 978-1-60260-167-3
E-book ISBN 978-1-60742-546-5
Cassandra Channing often
finds herself at odds with societal norms, and March 26, 1814, is no
different.
She wants to purchase shares in a privateering venture, but no one
takes her
seriously. Just one successful voyage would sustain her family and
prove that
women can succeed in business, rather than simply being housewives and
mothers.
The last thing she wants is to heed her mother’s wishes and marry a man
Cassandra can’t abide. But the only person who accepts her money is
Luke
Heaton, a seafaring scoundrel with a penchant for drink and gambling.
With her
family on the brink of destitution, she invests all their funds in
Heaton’s
vessel.
Luke’s an excellent seaman
and privateer, but his vices get him into trouble. The moment he saves
Cassandra from thugs, his heart is lost, but she’s a treasure he can
never
attain. No one is more surprised than he when she invests in his ship,
and her
trust compels him to strive for success. But Luke battles inner demons
and
harbors a secret that threatens to sink him.
The first voyage succeeds
beyond Cassandra’s hopes, and she sees Luke in a new light. As she
falls in
love with him, she begins to suspect that all isn’t as it appears. She
took a
big risk trusting him and to insure that he does not sabotage her
future in the
privateering trade, she becomes a stowaway. But her presence on the
schooner
endangers Luke, the crew, herself, and her country.
Centered around the British
attack on Fort McHenry*, this historical romance unfolds primarily in
Baltimore, Maryland, although there are a few scenes at sea. Placing
trust in
the Lord is a major theme, and while more intense than in some of
Tyndall’s
other books, it is never intrusive. She spins a tale of hope, betrayal,
trickery,
friendship, love, honor, guilt, and loyalty that captivates the reader
and
transports them back to witness a profound moment in American history.
Although
the final book in the Surrender to Destiny series, Surrender
the Dawn works beautifully as a stand-alone book. Those
who dare to join Cassandra and Luke on this adventure will enjoy the
journey
and the history.
*During the War of 1812, the
British considered Baltimore a nest of pirates because some of the
fastest and
most famous privateers of the war were built in the Fells Point
shipyards
there. Fort McHenry was the scene of an overnight bombardment where the
British
hoped to force an American surrender that would permit them to sail
straight
into the heart of the city. But when dawn came, the Stars and Stripes
still
flew. One of the Americans who witnessed the bombardment while on board
a
British warship was Francis Scott Key, who was so inspired by the sight
of Old
Glory still waving that he penned the poem that eventually became the
country’s
national anthem, “The Star Spangled Banner.”
Review Copyrighted ©2011 Cindy Vallar
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