Publisher: Entangled Publishing, LLC
Date published: August 12, 2013
ISBN:
978-1-62266-227-2
Romantic Suspense
E-Book
Reviewed by Lynne
Obtained via publisher
Lady Elizabeth York, the Earl of
Wharton’s only child, has agreed to marry Carlyle, Earl of Seymour and heir to
the Duke of Lennox, for the sake of her father, to forge an alliance between
their two powerful families. But,
unexpectedly, she finds herself attracted to Will Grey, the captain of the
guard. Filled with the power of the
ancients, her ancestors, Elizabeth knows that Will is to be hers and not
Carlyle who, her powers tell her, is not the man for her, a man who instead
fills her with dread.
When Carlyle learns of Elizabeth’s love
for Will and that he returns her love, he is furious. Anxious to secure Elizabeth’s power, to blend
it with his own darkness, he fights to maintain his right to Elizabeth, to her
detriment.
Fast forward to the future, to
Elizabeth’s descendent, Cordelia Ward, a wealthy marine archaeologist, who now
holds in her possession Elizabeth’s journal and who bears the same birthmark
Elizabeth bore.
Intent on finding Elizabeth’s treasure
that sank in 1605, with The Celestine, a treasure her parents had spent
their lives researching and seeking, Cordelia is anxious to retrieve the
jeweled dagger and celestial girdle, the source of Elizabeth’s power, as well
as Cordelia’s, that she feels rightfully belongs to her.
To Cordelia’s dismay, another treasure
seeker, with different motives, enters the picture. A seemingly self-serving threat to Cordelia,
who is anxious to restore her mother to her position as a museum curator by
finding what her father had spent most of his life pursuing.
Morgan Murphy, a gorgeous pirate, in
Cordelia’s eyes, has been led to the shark-infested waters where The
Celestine went down, seeking only to restore the wealth his family once
had, yet lost through betrayal.
Unfortunately, he unexpectedly finds himself up against an intelligent,
beautiful woman who stirs his senses and his passions.
As Cordelia and Morgan attempt to partner
themselves in finding the lost treasure, it is then they must come against the
evil forces thwarting them at every turn.
WRITTEN IN THE STARS by Sherrill
Bodine and Patricia Rosemoor is a dangerously romantic romp through two
different centuries, and into the lives of two strong, intelligent, gifted
women. Well-written, full of suspense
and unexpected plot twists, WRITTEN IN THE STARS is a story that will
keep the reader turning pages right up until the end.
From the beginning I was intrigued by our
heroine, Lady Elizabeth York. She is a
woman intent on pleasing her father by being the dutiful daughter and marrying
a man she has never met. However, I
became more empathetic when she instead finds herself attracted to a man she
cannot have because she is honor-bound to maintain the agreement her father has
made with the Duke of Lennox.
Carlyle is indeed a man you want to
dislike because of his behaviors and of his being in league with his evil
nurse, Florea. I never felt the need to
support this man who enjoys the darkness in his life and nourishes his lust for
power.
Will Grey, our hero, is, of course, the
wonderful, gorgeous man we know Elizabeth deserves and who is willing to risk
all for. Yet, he, too, is a dutiful son,
even going so far as to have married a woman he never loved and siring a son by
her.
I loved the way WRITTEN IN THE STARS
suddenly fast forwards to the present day, to the life of Elizabeth York’s
ancestor, Cordelia Ward. I’ll admit I
never saw that coming.
Lots of intrigue and conflict going on at
this stage of WRITTEN IN THE STARS, and I absolutely loved it.
By bringing in an old beau of Cordelia’s,
as a hired hand she can’t easily dismiss, Innis Foley adds just the right
amount of suspense and curiosity to WRITTEN IN THE STARS. Especially when Morgan Murphy arrives on
the scene, a man Cordelia finds herself attracted to, whether she admits to it
or not.
WRITTEN IN THE STARS is a very
heart-warming story, too, as evidenced by how each of our heros and heroines
care for their parents’ wishes in both centuries. Elizabeth and Will both were willing to
forego their personal happiness to please their fathers, and Cordelia and
Morgan are both anxious to restore what their parents’ have lost over
time. I enjoyed this aspect of the
personalities of these characters. It
adds a nice element to WRITTEN IN THE STARS that endears the reader more
to our heros and heroines.
The minor characters were unique in many
ways in WRITTEN IN THE STARS.
Innis Foley adds a great deal of conflict, not just between himself and
Morgan but between him and Cordelia as well, since she is not certain at first
which man she truly wants in her life.
The evil nurse helping Carlyle is an
interesting person, who enjoys leading Carlyle astray. Also, the couple on Cordelia’s ship, The
Evening Star, are unique as well.
Leandre is the first mate and husband to Brigitte. Brigitte, a Haitian cook who practices voodoo
behind her husband’s back, adds a great deal of conflict to WRITTEN IN THE
STARS, since Innis seems to have great trust in her abilities to help him
snag Cordelia’s heart once and for all.
WRITTEN IN THE STARS is full of
dangerous sharks, plenty of voodoo and witchcraft and other forms of magic that
make this story fraught with mystery, some spicy romance, and plenty of
conflicts to threaten our heros and heroines in this exciting tale. I greatly enjoyed reading it and learning of
what treasure seekers have to go through when diving in deep waters. Very interesting for someone who has never
gone scuba diving before.
If one is in the mood for lots of
interesting happenings, murder and mayhem, not to mention heart-tingling
romance, then WRITTEN IN THE STARS is a perfect tale to help one wile
away the hours. So kick back and settle
in for a completely dangerous, romantic yarn that will shiver your timbers to
the core, as you explore the depths of the high seas, and learn secrets that
will captivate and enthrall you...for a little while anyways.
This is an objective review and not an
endorsement of this book.
