SURRENDER THE DAWN by MaryLu Tyndall

Cassandra Channing finds herself in the position of caring for her mother and sisters. She has money to invest but no one will allow to because she's a woman. Left with little choice she aligns herself with Captain Luke Heaton, privateer, also know as the town rogue. Luke enjoys gambling and the taste of rum to bury the ghosts that seem to haunt him. In a game of piquet he wins a ship that needs repairs but then loses the money needed to repair it. He's delighted when Cassandra offers to invest in his ship. He can finally work closely with the woman he has always loved from afar. Cassandra has strong feelings toward Luke but is apprehensive about trusting him. Her friend Noah Brenin assures her that Luke is a good man. When circumstances arise that cause Cassandra to question what Luke is really up to she gets involved in way more than she bargained for.

Surrender the Dawn is the story I have waited for. We first met Luke Heaton in Surrender the Heart when his position was Noah's first mate. I admit I was drawn in by his roguish way and have been waiting for his story. I was not disappointed! Though rough around the edges he definitely won my heart. I totally enjoyed the banter between Cassandra and Luke. I sometimes wanted to shake Cassandra for her 'quick-to-think-the-worst' attitude. But I know I can be guilty of that as well. The theme running through the story is 'whatever happens to us, be it good or bad, is for our best interest and that God is good ALL the time'. A great thing to remember in our troubled times. One thing I always appreciate about MaryLu's writing is the amount of research she does. I love the way she brings history to life in a living breathing story. In this particular installment there is a special appearance of someone famous on the ship toward the end of the book which I thought was a really neat touch. Great job MaryLu! This is the third book in the Surrender to Destiny Series. It can be read as a stand alone but I would definitely recommend you start with book one, Surrender the Heart, then book 2, Surrender the Night for a much richer reading experience. A thank you goes to the author and publisher for this complimentary copy for my review.