Another fun and heartwarming romantic adventure from the expert pen of Roseanna M. White!
I can always trust Roseanna to deliver on three things: vividly crafted characters, engaging plots that deliver the perfect amount of surprises and suspense, and careful historical detail that adds to the story instead of weighing it down. And of course, she did just that with her latest installment in the Secrets of the Isles series, To Treasure an Heiress.
1906
Beth Tremayne has always been drawn to adventure. During her childhood, she fed that desire by exploring every inch of the Isles of Scilly. Now, after stumbling across an old collection of letters and a map buried on her family’s property, she’s found more adventure than she ever anticipated in the hunt for pirate treasure. But in order to discover where the clues lead, she must search alongside Lord Sheridan, a man she finds insufferable.
Sheridan has spent years pursuing whatever archaeological interests pique his imagination. And when he discovers that Beth’s search connects with one of his far-removed pirate ancestors, he can’t help getting involved. Plus, he finds her irresistible, even though she insists he stole a prized possession of hers.
As they work together following different clues and drawing closer to danger, they start to piece together a story of tragic love and piratical adventure. But which treasure will bring the greatest surprise–the one they find in each other or the one just out of their reach?
I will admit it took me a little longer to get into this story than I normally do with one of Roseanna’s books, but I’m not sure that it’s the story’s fault due to the fact that I was trying to read it during the hectic Christams season. It wasn’t often that I was able to sit and read for long stretches of time, so I think that was more the problem than anything. Because when I did have a chance to read for longer than a few minutes at a time, I did really enjoy the story. It was exciting to return to the Scillies after so thoroughly enjoying my first “trip” there in book one. I also loved seeing familiar faces (especially Mamm-wynn!) and watching some story threads continue from the first book, since this one picks up almost exactly where that one left off.
I wasn’t sure what to make of Sheridan when he was introduced in the previous book–I could kind of sympathize with Libby’s reluctance to marry him. But even with that, Beth’s initial “hatred” of him began to wear on me–I mean, just give the poor guy a break! Seeing things through Sheridan’s eyes (and hearing his hilarious inner monologue) soon won me over and I couldn’t wait for Beth to finally realize how foolish she was being. Once she warmed up to him, their witty banter and Sheridan’s relentless teasing about marriage was a hoot to read! While Sheridan hasn’t dethroned Phillip Camden as my favorite of Roseanna’s heroes, he is one of her most endearing and certainly most hilarious leading men.
As always, Roseanna’s secondary characters are just as great as her MC’s. I enjoyed Senara’s story (and isn’t that a lovely name?), and oh my goodness–Sheridan’s sisters! They were so much fun to “meet” and their personalities explain much about why Sheridan is the way he is.
I loved seeing how the treasure hunt from book one carried over into this book. Roseanna really took it up a notch and made the race to find Mucknell’s pirate treasure even more exciting. It was incredibly satisfying how everything was resolved, though it’s hard to say exactly why without giving away spoilers! I am curious to see where things will go from here–what part of Mucknell’s treasure the Tremaynes and friends will discover next and how things will finally be resolved with the dastardly Scofield’s.
If you love historical romance filled with humor, wit, and a healthy dose of adventure, then get your copies of both The Nature of a Lady AND To Treasure an Heiress. This series makes the perfect armchair travel anytime of year! 5/5 Stars.
PS: I couldn’t help but think of how AMAZING it would be to have a spinoff novella or something with Sheridan and Beth teaming up with Ara, her father, and Cam from On Wings of Devotion! Just picture it–it’s shortly after the end of WW1 and Sheridan and Ara’s father, who I imagine would make great friends, plan an expedition to South America! Cam can pilot their plane and all five of them go on this wild, hilarious adventure to find some treasure in the jungle. If you’re reading this, Roseanna, please at least consider something of the sort! LOL! ??
**I received a copy of this book for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**
