The Raven Saint

This is the 3rd book in MaryLu Tyndall's Charles Towne Belles series and it is an outstanding book! I loved it from cover to cover. MaryLu Tyndall has a knack for making her reader part of the action. She makes you feel as if you are standing on the deck of the ship with the sea spray wetting your face. Her characters are real people. She is not afraid to tackle the issue of spiritual warfare, either, which is rare in Christian fiction. I applaud her for this because spiritual warfare is quite real for the believer. Rafe Dubois is a wonderful hero to Grace Wescott's heroine as well. We get a brief reunion with the other two sisters, Faith and Hope, in the epilogue. There is another sister, Charity, and I do hope Ms. Tyndall features her in a future book. I love these ladies and hate to say goodbye to them. This is a wonderful book with a very deep spiritual element to it that a lot of Christian writers do not include in their books. I dearly loved and and I always snatch this writer's books off the shelves as soon as I see one.

I'm so glad I got this book and it was my first book of 2010. What a way to start the year! I love MaryLu Tyndall and this series so much, but the saying "saved the best for last" really fit this book well for many reasons. Not the least of which is the dashing mercenary captain, Rafe Dubois. I loved his character. In full disclosure, it didn't hurt that the author let it slip she pictured Rafe looking like Orlando Bloom in the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. I ask you, what's not to love there? lol Seriously, this book tackled an issue a lot of Christian fiction doesn't. Sometimes believers are the problem. Sometimes we're the ones needing fixing~ for a whole lot of things. Grace isn't a bad person, but she has become more than a little judgmental and it's hurting her relationships with friends and family, and ultimately, it doesn't please God. How she comes to that revelation and deals with it is both realistic, tender and at times somewhat funny. Add to that a serious and passionate attraction to a man she is certain has to be evil incarnate ~ and poor Grace has quite the journey. Rafe is a complex character in his own right. He doesn't want to be attracted to Grace any more than she wants him and yet... he can't seem to keep his thoughts from her. She is nothing like he expected her to be. Will he be able to hand her over to the Don knowing she isn't who he thought she was? Plus, just like the rest of the books in the series, there are plenty of other surprises and danger in store for the whole crew. The romance in this book sizzled like yummy bacon on a Saturday morning. Every character reached out and grabbed your heart in their own way. MaryLu Tyndall captured not only Rafe and Grace, but colorful characters like Father Alers ~ a crewman who had once been a Jesuit but had given up his faith, Thorn ~ Rafe's first mate and a man who seems as out of place on the ship as Grace, but is determined to remain, and who can leave out Spyglass? That's Rafe's cat who becomes more enamored with Grace than Rafe and saves her from trouble. This is a wonderful romance, filled with the action and adventure we've come to expect from this author.

THE RAVEN SAINT is fantastic! The third in the Charles Towne Belle series, MaryLu Tyndall continues to wow me with her adventure-filled romances. Grace Westcott had spent her life serving God. From feeding the poor and tending to the needy, to doing all she can to impress upon her sisters the need to live a life worthy of God. When kidnapped by the French mercenary, Rafe DuBois, Grace clings to her faith, even when she finds out DuBois intends on selling her to a Spanish Don. Confident God has allowed her captivity in order to save those aboard DuBois' ship, she expounds to the crew that happiness cannot be found in money or debauchery, but only in the saving grace of Jesus Christ. When her proselytizing falls on deaf ears and her fate seems unavoidable, she questions why the God she has served with her whole heart would allow her life to come to such an end. But what she struggles with even more is her growing attraction to the reprehensible Captain DuBois. Captain DuBois has never dabbled in the trade of innocent flesh. But with a hefty purse as his reward for turning over Grace Westcott to a Spanish Don, he will be able to build a hospital for the poor, make good on a promise to a friend, and have vengeance on the man who killed his mother. With all that the selling of Grace Westcott will bring him, then why is it he finds himself drawn to the woman of conviction? THE RAVEN SAINT is a wonderful combination of suspense, wit, adventure, intrigue, self-examination, and love. Only MaryLu Tyndall could bring the likes of Grace Westcott and Rafe Dubois together in a believable and rewarding story.

Betrayed! Kidnapped! Grace Westcott finds herself aboard a pirate ship. And not for just any reason but to be sold as common cargo to her father's enemy. Come what may, she is determined to hold onto her faith, even if that means resisting the handsome, volatile Capitaine Rafe Dubois. Searching for God's purpose in her dire circumstances, Grace discovers much more. Monsieur Rafe Dubois, is a French Privateer, who enjoys ruffling the feathers of his newest property "mon petit chou pieuse" (little pious cabbage) After being hurt by his father, he has no use for God or His so called followers. Sparks fly and the battle of whits ensues as Rafe and Grace meet their match, each one trying to bend the other to his own will. Embracing adventure, action, betrayal and love on the high seas, The Raven Saint will keep you reading from the first sentence to the last leaving you with a smile on your face and sigh in your heart.

Pious Grace Westcott, the youngest of the Westcott sisters, has devoted her life to helping the poor and living a moral life. She spends her days in her home city of Charleston, South Carolina helping the impoverished residents by donating food, caring for the sick, and helping orphans find homes. So when she is kidnapped by Captain Rafe Dubois, a French mercenary, she struggles to understand what purpose God has in allowing this to happen to her. Captain Rafe Dubois is a man without faith. He has kidnapped Grace so he can sell her to a Spanish don and use the money to help build a hospital for the poor, in order to fufill a promise he made. He should care nothing for Grace, she is simply a means to an end for him. So he finds himself confused by his feelings about her. And Grace is confused by her mixed feelings towards her captor as well. How can she feel anything for a man who took her away from everything she had? The Raven Saint is a romantic and exciting story of love, adventure, history, and faith. Grace and Rafe are a completely mismatched pair yet their love story was very sweet and in the end believable. If you love a good pirate romance be sure to give this book a try. It is the third in a series about the Westcott sisters, but the story in this book works as a stand-alone novel if you haven't read the previous two books. Disclosure: Review copy provided by publisher.