Date published August 2008
ISBN 978-0-8439-6133-1
Historical Romance
Mass Market Paperback
Reviewed by Gina
Hoping to save the people from Dragon Caern from a fate worse than death, or at a minimum the plundering of their lands, Jacqueline Wren dons the disguise of a boy and sets out to take down the new owner of the keep. What she doesn’t count on is the skill of Gabriel Drake or the assistance of his first mate, Mr. Meriwether. When the waylayer is waylaid she is in for the surprise of her life.
When Gabriel Drake fled the family home years before it was not, as many thought, to recover from a broken heart, rather it was to prevent committing murder on his fiancé and former best friend. Embarking on a naval career before long he was taken captive and had the choice of becoming a pirate or death. After years of wrecking havoc on the high seas he returns home to find his father and older brother have died, leaving him heir to Dragon Caern. Not exactly the life he would have chosen for himself, but with the king’s pardon in his hand, returning to the high seas will not serve. As the indomitable Mistress Wren reminds him, his people need him.
In turn, he learns he not only needs, but cares deeply for Jacqueline Wren. As they uncover the secrets of the keep, they find themselves drawn to each other, yet theirs is a love that cannot be. If Gabriel is to save his ancestral home he must marry for money. With neither title nor money, Jacqueline cannot be part of that future. Knowing they cannot have a life together, Jacqueline flees the keep and runs to her mother’s doorstep seeking solace and aid. When Gabriel follows her he runs headlong into his doom because should he set foot in London it is on pain of death.
Emily Bryan found made a fan of me with her first book of this series, DISTRACTING THE DUCHESS. With the ability to turn a phrase and entice the reader DISTRACTING THE DUCHESS was a funny, titillating and enthralling read. While PLEASURING THE PIRATE is a totally fun and lighthearted read, it falls a bit short of DISTRACTING THE DUCHESS, at least until the last quarter of the book. It is in those last pages Ms. Bryan’s innate talent comes to the fore in a showcase of how she can weave a web of intrigue and a tapestry of emotion that keeps her reader spell bound.
The first part of the book is sweet with enjoyable characters, especially Mrs. B and Mr. Meriwether. Those two definitely deserve their own story which would no doubt showcase Ms. Bryan’s gift for story telling on yet another level. While not a fan of children, especially precocious ones in books, the Drake nieces are a delight. Another series of books I’d love to read is what happens with these five girls as adults when they embark on their own matrimonial journeys—with flashbacks of the imps they were as children. I particularly loved their playacting scenes and Daisy is definitely destined for a spy of the first water.
While at times, through the beginning of the book, I wondered where the entertaining Ms. Bryan had gone, she rewards her readers with a more than satisfying ending. The sirens call of the sea and how it plays into Gabriel’s life is so well done. I eagerly await Ms. Bryan’s next installment. With her knack for storytelling it is sure to be a winner.
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