Danelle Harmon’s LORD OF THE SEA –American Privateers in the War of 1812!

Set during the War of 1812 in the Caribbean, this is the story of Capt. Connor Merrick, a cavalier Yankee privateer, and Rhiannon Evans, a young British girl.

 

Rhiannon wants an adventure and so she accepts an invitation to winter at the home of Sir Graham Falconer in Barbados, who happens to be Connor’s brother-in-law. On the way, pirates attack her ship, and Connor saves her and takes her to Sir Graham’s. Intending to leave to hunt British merchant ships, Conner stays long enough to get trapped into marrying the young Rhiannon.

 

Harmon has woven an entertaining seafaring tale of divided loyalties with an American privateer whose sister is married to a British admiral. Reckless and daring, yet insecure about his ability to be his famous father’s equal, Connor takes one British prize ship after another, all this in his brother-in-law’s backyard. Meanwhile, Rhiannon, a naïve young woman in many ways, quickly grows up trying to keep up with Connor—and keep him out of trouble, an effort that is doomed to failure.

 

The descriptions of the ships and sails and all things nautical are done exceptionally well and will keep you turning pages as Connor faces pirates, battles at sea and storms. There is deep emotion, too, as Connor comes to terms with his own frailties and the strengths of others.

 

It’s been a while since I read one of Harmon’s seafaring adventures, so I was a bit lost when characters from her other books made an appearance and there were references to earlier stories. I say this only to suggest you might want to read this book as a part of the series, and in order.

 

The Heroes of the Sea series:

 

My Lady Pirate

Captain of My Heart

Master of My Dreams

   The Admiral’s Heart (Short Story)

Lord of The Sea

 

Danelle Harmon’s LORD OF THE SEA –American Privateers in the War of 1812!

Set during the War of 1812 in the Caribbean, this is the story of Capt. Connor Merrick, a cavalier Yankee privateer, and Rhiannon Evans, a young British girl.

 

Rhiannon wants an adventure and so she accepts an invitation to winter at the home of Sir Graham Falconer in Barbados, who happens to be Connor’s brother-in-law. On the way, pirates attack her ship, and Connor saves her and takes her to Sir Graham’s. Intending to leave to hunt British merchant ships, Conner stays long enough to get trapped into marrying the young Rhiannon.

 

Harmon has woven an entertaining seafaring tale of divided loyalties with an American privateer whose sister is married to a British admiral. Reckless and daring, yet insecure about his ability to be his famous father’s equal, Connor takes one British prize ship after another, all this in his brother-in-law’s backyard. Meanwhile, Rhiannon, a naïve young woman in many ways, quickly grows up trying to keep up with Connor—and keep him out of trouble, an effort that is doomed to failure.

 

The descriptions of the ships and sails and all things nautical are done exceptionally well and will keep you turning pages as Connor faces pirates, battles at sea and storms. There is deep emotion, too, as Connor comes to terms with his own frailties and the strengths of others.

 

It’s been a while since I read one of Harmon’s seafaring adventures, so I was a bit lost when characters from her other books made an appearance and there were references to earlier stories. I say this only to suggest you might want to read this book as a part of the series, and in order.

 

The Heroes of the Sea series:

 

My Lady Pirate

Captain of My Heart

Master of My Dreams

   The Admiral’s Heart (Short Story)

Lord of The Sea

 

 

Danelle Harmon’s THE WILD ONE – Exciting Georgian Romance, the 1st in a Series

It’s 1776 and Lord Gareth de Montforte is up to his usual antics as a irresponsible rake. But when he takes a bullet to thwart a stagecoach robbery, he discovers that the beautiful young woman he has rescued, Juliet Paige, his his deceased brother’s American fiancée, accompanied by her infant daughter.

 

 While Gareth’s older brother, the duke, treats Julia with indifference, Gareth is determined to do right by her and her baby. But Juliet is wary of marrying Gareth yet she has few options. Her fiancé is dead and she is alone.

 

Harmon does a splendid job of weaving an exciting tale packed with emotion and angst. Gareth is a loveable character who will win your heart (along with Julia’s). He is determined to make it on his own without his brother’s help even if it kills him to do it.

 

A great story, well-told. Highly recommended.

 

The de Montforte Series:

 

The Wild One

The Beloved One

The Defiant One

The Wicked One

The Wayward One

 

Danelle Harmon’s LORD OF THE SEA –American Privateers in the War of 1812!

 Set during the War of 1812 in the Caribbean, this is the story of Capt. Connor Merrick, a cavalier Yankee privateer, and Rhiannon Evans, a young British girl.

 

Rhiannon wants an adventure and so she accepts an invitation to winter at the home of Sir Graham Falconer in Barbados, who happens to be Connor’s brother-in-law. On the way, pirates attack her ship, and Connor saves her and takes her to Sir Graham’s. Intending to leave to hunt British merchant ships, Conner stays long enough to get trapped into marrying the young Rhiannon.

 

Harmon has woven an entertaining seafaring tale of divided loyalties with an American privateer whose sister is married to a British admiral. Reckless and daring, yet insecure about his ability to be his famous father’s equal, Connor takes one British prize ship after another, all this in his brother-in-law’s backyard. Meanwhile, Rhiannon, a naïve young woman in many ways, quickly grows up trying to keep up with Connor—and keep him out of trouble, an effort that is doomed to failure.

 

The descriptions of the ships and sails and all things nautical are done exceptionally well and will keep you turning pages as Connor faces pirates, battles at sea and storms. There is deep emotion, too, as Connor comes to terms with his own frailties and the strengths of others.

 

It’s been a while since I read one of Harmon’s seafaring adventures, so I was a bit lost when characters from her other books made an appearance and there were references to earlier stories. I say this only to suggest you might want to read this book as a part of the series, and in order.

 

The Heroes of the Sea series:

 

My Lady Pirate

Captain of My Heart

Master of My Dreams

   The Admiral’s Heart (Short Story)

Lord of The Sea

 

Danelle Harmon’s THE WAYWARD ONE – Revolutionary War Story with an Irish Hero

Set in 1779, this is the story of Irish Captain Ruaidri O' Devir, a commander in the American Continental Navy, selected by John Adams to sail to England and steal a new explosive formula developed by an English nobleman.

 

Lady Nerissa de Montforte, the youngest sibling in an aristocratic English family, is excited to accompany her brother to a demonstration of his new explosive invention. When her brother sends her to safety so she will not feel the device’s impact, it provides the perfect opportunity for Ruaidri to abduct her, thinking he will ransom her for the formula.

 

Having experienced the brutality of being impressed into serving the British navy, Ruaidri is contemptuous of all English and particularly the aristocracy. Nerissa finds the Irish captain both arrogant and attractive. Neither counts on falling in love, but they do and very quickly while the British Navy is searching the seas to reclaim her and do away with the Irishman.

 

This is a well-told story of second chances set against the time of America’s War of Independence. Nerissa’s fiancé jilted her and Ruaidri’s first love betrayed him with his best friend. In addition she is from wealth and title; he is from a poor Irish family. So, both carry baggage into their already problematic relationship. But Ruaidri is noble of heart, if not birth, and also a gentleman, so we want him to get the girl.

 

Harmon has included some exciting scenes of battles at sea with vivid descriptions and accurate nautical terminology. Those who love authenticity in their historical romances will appreciate her attention to detail.

 

This is book 5 in the de Montforte Brothers series and I recommend reading them I order. Also, Harmon’s various series are related and characters from one series may appear in another. From the beginning of The Wayward One, couples and characters from the earlier stories appear, some remaining to be characters in this story. If you want to understand who they are, best to begin at the beginning.

 

The de Montforte Brothers:

 

The Wild One

The Beloved One

The Defiant One

The Wicked One

The Wayward One

Danelle Harmon’s MASTER OF MY DREAMS – Unusual 18th Century Seafaring Romance with an Irish Heroine

 

This is part of Harmon’s Heroes of the Sea series (and the first if you’re reading them in chronological order). It begins in Ireland in 1757, but then moves to the British colonies in America (Boston) on the eve of the Revolutionary War in 1775.

 

It’s the story of Deirdre O’Devir, who as a young girl in Ireland, witnessed an English lieutenant (our hero, Christian Lord) press her brother into service in the British Navy. She vowed to her dying mother that she would kill the lieutenant and bring her brother back to Ireland. Thirteen years later, on her way to Boston to enlist the aid of her cousin who is in the British Navy, she ends up on a ship captained by the same Christian Lord she has vowed to kill.

 

All that seemed a pretty straight historical setting until I encountered Lord’s crew on the “Hell-Ship.” Captain Lord has been sent out to straighten out a crew right out of McHale’s Navy, who are committed to driving all their captains mad. Among others, there’s a Scot who wears a kilt and plays the bagpipes, and a young woman from Boston, who is hidden away by his men and aspires to be a French whore. She calls herself Delight Foley (as in delight-fully) and her one goal in life is to become the woman of the “Irish Pirate.” In the meantime, she is servicing all the crew. There’s also a marine guard who habitually sleeps at his post, and a spaniel who is having puppies in the captain’s cabin. Not your average British naval warship and not your classic historical romance. But rollicking good fun!

 

With all that, there is some great action with a battle at sea. Eventually the story settles into a very well written historical romance that gives us a glimpse of the early days of the Revolutionary War in America with the Battles of Lexington and Concord and the Minutemen. Throughout the story we experience the heroine’s love for her native Ireland. A multifaceted, worthy tale with a bit of fancy.

 

Heroes of the Sea series:

 

Captain of My Heart

Master of My Dreams

My Lady Pirate

Taken By Storm

Wicked at Heart

 

 

 

Danelle Harmon’s THE WAYWARD ONE – Revolutionary War Story with an Irish Hero

Set in 1779, this is the story of Irish Captain Ruaidri O' Devir, a commander in the American Continental Navy, selected by John Adams to sail to England and steal a new explosive formula developed by an English nobleman.

 

Lady Nerissa de Montforte, the youngest sibling in an aristocratic English family, is excited to accompany her brother to a demonstration of his new explosive invention. When her brother sends her to safety so she will not feel the device’s impact, it provides the perfect opportunity for Ruaidri to abduct her, thinking he will ransom her for the formula.

 

Having experienced the brutality of being impressed into serving the British navy, Ruaidri is contemptuous of all English and particularly the aristocracy. Nerissa finds the Irish captain both arrogant and attractive. Neither counts on falling in love, but they do and very quickly while the British Navy is searching the seas to reclaim her and do away with the Irishman.

 

This is a well-told story of second chances set against the time of America’s War of Independence. Nerissa’s fiancé jilted her and Ruaidri’s first love betrayed him with his best friend. In addition she is from wealth and title; he is from a poor Irish family. So, both carry baggage into their already problematic relationship. But Ruaidri is noble of heart, if not birth, and also a gentleman, so we want him to get the girl.

 

Harmon has included some exciting scenes of battles at sea with vivid descriptions and accurate nautical terminology. Those who love authenticity in their historical romances will appreciate her attention to detail.

 

This is book 5 in the de Montforte Brothers series and I recommend reading them I order. Also, Harmon’s various series are related and characters from one series may appear in another. From the beginning of The Wayward One, couples and characters from the earlier stories appear, some remaining to be characters in this story. If you want to understand who they are, best to begin at the beginning.

 

The de Montforte Brothers:

 

The Wild One

The Beloved One

The Defiant One

The Wicked One

The Wayward One

Danelle Harmon’s LORD OF THE SEA – Another Well-written Tale from Harmon—this one of American Privateers in the War of 1812

This is a tale set during the War of 1812 in the Caribbean in 1813. It’s the story of Capt. Connor Merrick, a cavalier Yankee privateer, and Rhiannon Evans, a young British girl.

Rhiannon wants an adventure and so she accepts an invitation to winter at the home of Sir Graham Falconer in Barbados, who happens to be Connor’s brother-in-law. On the way, pirates attack her ship, and Connor saves her and takes her to Sir Graham’s. Intending to leave to hunt British merchant ships, Conner stays long enough to get trapped into marrying the young Rhiannon.

Harmon has woven an entertaining seafaring tale of divided loyalties with an American privateer whose sister is married to a British admiral. Reckless and daring, yet insecure about his ability to be his famous father’s equal, Connor takes one British prize ship after another, all this in his brother-in-law’s backyard. Meanwhile, Rhiannon, a naïve young woman in many ways, quickly grows up trying to keep up with Connor—and keep him out of trouble, an effort that is doomed to failure.

The descriptions of the ships and sails and all things nautical are done exceptionally well and will keep you turning pages as Connor faces pirates, battles at sea and storms. There is deep emotion, too, as Connor comes to terms with his own frailties and the strengths of others.

It’s been a while since I read one of Harmon’s seafaring adventures, so I was a bit lost when characters from her other books made an appearance and there were references to earlier stories. I say this only to suggest you might want to read this book as a part of the series, and in order.

The Heroes of the Sea series:

My Lady Pirate

Captain of My Heart

Master of My Dreams

   The Admiral’s Heart (Short Story)

Lord of The Sea

Danelle Harmon’s PIRATE IN MY ARMS – The Pirate and the Puritan Find Love

Set in Massachusetts in 1715-16, this is the story of Maria Hallett, a 15-year-old innocent who—through a mistaken assumption—is deflowered by Captain Samuel Bellamy, an adventurer who sails into Maria’s puritanical town looking for financial backers for a treasure-hunting scheme.

After ruining Maria, Sam thinks to marry her by her aunt, unaware of what happened, won’t have it. Sam sails away to seek a fortune with the thought the money might convince her aunt to let them marry. When he returns a year later, he is changed. He has become the notorious pirate “Black Sam”.

Based on the true story of the pirate ship Whydah and an old Cape Cod legend about two ill-fated lovers, this was Harmon’s debut novel, first published in 1992, now updated and re-edited.

The story is well written and the dialog lively. There is action aplenty, including swordfights and a violent storm aboard Sam’s ship. Maria is an admirable heroine, handling the adversity life has thrown her with courage, but she wants nothing to do with piracy and harps on Sam about it continuously even though she had wanted to marry him. Sam never gives up, taking command of his life as well as his crew. Shifting points of view and the narrator’s additions make it an unusual read.

If you like a pirate romance with real pirates, including Blackbeard, you’ll find it in this story. An unlikely couple come together through very difficult circumstances!

Danelle Harmon’s THE WAYWARD ONE – Revolutionary War Story with an Irish Hero

Set in 1779, this is the story of Irish Captain Ruaidri O' Devir, a commander in the American Continental Navy, selected by John Adams to sail to England and steal a new explosive formula developed by an English nobleman.

Lady Nerissa de Montforte, the youngest sibling in an aristocratic English family, is excited to accompany her brother to a demonstration of his new explosive invention. When her brother sends her to safety so she will not feel the device’s impact, it provides the perfect opportunity for Ruaidri to abduct her, thinking he will ransom her for the formula.

Having experienced the brutality of being impressed into serving the British navy, Ruaidri is contemptuous of all English and particularly the aristocracy. Nerissa finds the Irish captain both arrogant and attractive. Neither counts on falling in love, but they do and very quickly while the British Navy is searching the seas to reclaim her and do away with the Irishman.

This is a well-told story of second chances set against the time of America’s War of Independence. Nerissa’s fiancé jilted her and Ruaidri’s first love betrayed him with his best friend. In addition she is from wealth and title; he is from a poor Irish family. So, both carry baggage into their already problematic relationship. But Ruaidri is noble of heart, if not birth, and also a gentleman, so we want him to get the girl.

Harmon has included some exciting scenes of battles at sea with vivid descriptions and accurate nautical terminology. Those who love authenticity in their historical romances will appreciate her attention to detail.

This is book 5 in the de Montforte Brothers series and I recommend reading them in order. Harmon’s various series are related and characters from one series may appear in another. From the beginning of The Wayward One, couples and characters from the earlier stories appear, some remaining to be characters in this story. If you want to understand who they are, best to begin at the beginning.

The de Montforte Brothers:

The Wild One

The Beloved One

The Defiant One

The Wicked One

The Wayward One

Danelle Harmon’s CAPTAIN of MY HEART – An Unusual Tale of American Privateers in the Revolutionary War

This is part of Harmon’s Heroes of the Sea series and chronologically follows Master of My Dreams. It begins in 1775 on the eve of the War of Independence. Brendan Merrick, just promoted to Flag Captain in the Royal Navy, is shot, the victim of a fellow officer’s jealousy. Three years later, in 1778, the half Irish naval architect and rising young officer has defected to the American side to become a privateer, taking his former crew with him.

Brendan is on his way to Ashton Shipyard in Newburyport, Massachusetts to have a schooner built for him when an encounter with his former nemesis leaves him thrust overboard again, but this time he is rescued by the shipbuilder’s son, Matthew Ashton. Laid up with a head injury, Brendan meets Matt’s sister, Mira Ashton, dressed in mud-soaked boy’s clothes and carrying one of her many rescued cats.

Brendan is a bit like the absent minded professor when it comes to being a ship’s captain, brilliant but distracted by plans for his ship going through his head. Still, his crew loves him and he is a worthy strategist in battle. Mira is instantly taken with him as he is with her. To observe his prowess as a captain, Mira disguises herself as a boy and steals onto his ship as a gunner. His crew, loving the jest, aids her deceit.

Harmon has certainly done her homework when it comes to ships of the era, though you might have to look up a few nautical terms as there are dozens you will not be familiar with sprinkled throughout. Her characters are richly drawn. She is wonderfully gifted with words and describes the action scenes beautifully. As with Master of My Dreams, there is humor and whimsy here making it a less serious, though nevertheless enjoyable, historical romance.

If you love an unusual privateer romance, I recommend it.

Heroes of the Sea series:

Captain of My Heart

Master of My Dreams

My Lady Pirate

Taken By Storm

Wicked at Heart

Danelle Harmon’s PIRATE IN MY ARMS – The Pirate and the Puritan Find Love

Set in Massachusetts in 1715-16, this is the story of Maria Hallett, a 15-year-old innocent who—through a mistaken assumption—is deflowered by Captain Samuel Bellamy, an adventurer who sails into Maria’s puritanical town looking for financial backers for a treasure-hunting scheme.

After ruining Maria, Sam thinks to marry her by her aunt, unaware of what happened, won’t have it. Sam sails away to seek a fortune with the thought the money might convince her aunt to let them marry. When he returns a year later, he is changed. He has become the notorious pirate “Black Sam”.

Based on the true story of the pirate ship Whydah and an old Cape Cod legend about two ill-fated lovers, this was Harmon’s debut novel, first published in 1992, now updated and re-edited.

The story is well written and the dialog lively. There is action aplenty, including swordfights and a violent storm aboard Sam’s ship. Maria is an admirable heroine, handling the adversity life has thrown her with courage, but she wants nothing to do with piracy and harps on Sam about it continuously even though she had wanted to marry him. Sam never gives up, taking command of his life as well as his crew. Shifting points of view and the narrator’s additions make it an unusual read.

If you like a pirate romance with real pirates, including Blackbeard, you’ll find it in this story. An unlikely couple come together through very difficult circumstances!