Across the Star-Kissed Sea ~ Review

Across the Star-Kissed Sea

(Proper Romance ~ Regency)

By Arlem Hawks

This book is a sequel/companion to Georgana's Secret. But if you haven't read it, that is not a problem, as this book is told from the perspectives of May Byam and Elias Doswell, who were not in the previous book. That being said, this was another lovely Regency read with a naval theme. 

May Byam needs a job, and respectable employment for ladies is difficult to come by. She makes haste to apply when she sees an advertisement for a lady's maid/companion on a naval ship. There is a wee misunderstanding of her purpose for boarding the ship. This misunderstanding results in a less-than-favorable first impression of Elias Doswell, who happens to be the ship chaplain.

Life in the navy is not Elias Doswell's ideal, but he is fleeing a broken heart—not his first. When some off-hand remarks are made, Elias fears for May and her need for any employment available. His embarrassment could not be any worse, and now he's made an enemy out of the young lady the captain's wife just hired.

May hopes to fulfill her late cousin's dream of serving, though she will never be the seafarer he or her uncle was. However, when she learns who her employer is, she begins to regret her decision, but she's given her word and refuses to break it. Her knowledge has prepared her, but her experience is all from the stories she was told, not firsthand.

This was an excellent read set in the Regency era. It is a book of new beginnings, second chances, and facing fears, all within the confines of a ship. The path before May and Elias is uncertain, much like the sea they sail. With the threat of sea battles with the French, danger draws ever closer. But the greatest danger may be to their hearts if they can't get beyond their pasts.

I was provided a complimentary copy of this book with no expectations but that I provide my honest opinion. All thoughts expressed are my own. 

About the Book:

When May becomes a lady’s maid at sea, she’s hoping for an innocent adventure 

but instead must navigate rough waters, deadly combat, and unexpected love.

Mediterranean Sea, 1811

May Byam grew up following her father to his work at the ropemaking factory and listening to her uncle’s tales of life aboard a Royal Navy ship. After tragedy and scandal shatter her family, May is desperate to escape the shame that follows her. Despite her mother’s pleadings against it, May signs on as a lady’s maid to the young wife of a naval captain. If she’s going to run, she may as well do it in honor of her late uncle and cousin and where there is food, shelter, and perhaps even adventure. But the frosty reception she receives from the ship’s clergyman makes her feel far from welcome.

Heartbroken young Chaplain Elias Doswell returns to a harsh life at sea, but preaching to disinterested sailors isn’t the escape he’d hoped for—until a captivating young woman boards the ship. However, a case of mistaken identity ensures that he starts off on the wrong foot with the newly hired lady’s maid, who clearly wants nothing to do with him. But the close quarters of the ship forces the pair together, and May begins to see a side of the handsome clergyman she didn’t expect. As they struggle to navigate their deepening feelings, the danger of war with the French looms on the horizon, threatening their lives—and their love.