Ransome’s Crossing by Kaye Dacus is the second book in The Ransome Trilogy. I took it with me on my vacation to Colorado and loved it! I hadn’t read the first book so I wondered if I would have a hard time jumping into it, but there was no problem. Kaye seemlessly wove in information from the previous book so that you knew what was going on.

Here’s the back cover copy:

In order to get to her secret fiance in jamaica, Charlotte Ransome must disguise herself as Charles Lott, a midshipman who joins the crew of one of the ships in a convoy led by her brother-Commodore William Ransome. Unknown to her, First Lieutenant Ned Cochrane, also in Ransome’s convoy, has set his heart on Charlotte after meeting her briefly in Portsmouth. But because he is about to leave for a year of duty in the Caribbean, he despairs of finding her unmarried when he returns home.

During the transatlantic journey, an attack on the conveoy throws Ned and “Midshipman Lott” together. Through unsure as to whether he should let Charlotte know he sees through her ruse, Ned decides to keep her secret…and hopes to eventually win her love. However, Charlotte soon discovers that losing her heart to the handsome lieutenant is not the only danger she faces on this Atlantic crossing.

My thoughts:

What I loved about this book is the adventurous spirit of Charlotte. She is one tough gal who is courageous enough to risk her reputation (this is the Regency era, you know) and even her life to work among sailors in the midst of war. While a bit misguided in her quest to reunite with her fiance, she does what she does with honor and determination. She is amazing in this book!

I love how Ned secretly longs for Charlotte and she slowly begins to long for him. It is a slow and beautiful dance Kaye orchestrates between the two and I was routing for them from the get-go.

I will warn you though…there is a HUGE cliff hanger at the end of the book that made me jump up from my seat and gasp in….well, I suppose frustration. Frustration in that I will have to wait until next summer to continue the story!!!! Oops, pardon my exclamation points. But Kaye, really?????  I’m on the edge of my seat in anticipation….and I’m sure that was your intention. 🙂

Because I won the first AND second book in a blog contest, I am giving away my reviewer copy from the publisher to a lucky person who comments and leaves their email address. (Remember to leave it in a spam-free way).

If you can’t wait to win a copy, you may go HERE to purchase Ransome’s Crossing.
If you would like to visit Kaye’s site to find out more about her books or to browse through her great Writing Tips and Resources, go HERE.