Lord of the Privateers

Starred review from December 5, 2016
In this enthralling Regency romance (the satisfying finale to the Adventurers’ Quartet, after The Daredevil Snared), Capt. Royd Frobisher balances intrigue and adventure on the high seas with his newly rediscovered feelings for his former love, Isobel Carmody Carmichael, who divulges a secret she has kept from him for eight years. Royd, the fourth of the seafaring Frobisher brothers, must leave Aberdeen, Scotland, to play his part in the quest to free the captured slaves—including Isobel’s cousin—in West Africa’s Freetown. Laurens’s deft interweaving of backstory through characters’ thoughts and dialogue makes this series installment work as a standalone novel. (New readers will also appreciate the maps and dramatis personae at the front of the book.) Royd and Isobel’s early relationship is immediately introduced in a prologue that gets the story off to a fast start. The alluring characters are fully actualized through actions that convey nuances of their personalities, such as the bonds among the four brothers. Isobel and Royd both love and respect the sea, and their headstrong natures are contrasted well with their growing affection. The fast-moving narrative, emotionally weighty plot, and appealing cast make for a dynamic and heartwarming read.

November 1, 2016
The oldest brother of a grand British family finishes what his brothers started.The first Frobisher brother discovered an illegal diamond mine, the second tried to learn more, the third got swept up by it--and now it is up to Royd Frobisher, the eldest of the clan, to lead the mission that will free its captives and bring the perpetrators to justice. Just as he receives his orders and prepares his ships for Freetown, a woman he's tried desperately to forget sweeps back into his life, asking to go with him. Isobel Carmichael and Royd were childhood friends who were handfasted eight years ago, then torn apart when a secret mission kept him away through most of their year promised to each other. Isobel has her own reasons for tagging along, as does their son, Duncan--a surprise stowaway and totally unknown to Royd. Their revived chemistry is instant and fierce and held back only by their broken hearts and life-threatening mission. In the final volume of The Adventurers Quartet, many plotlines require wrapping up, and this detracts at times from Isobel and Royd's second chance at love. Between a complicated rescue scheme and social intrigues, much of the book is devoted to adventure and justice rather than romance. When the plot turns to love, their relationship is steamy and sophisticated, and it's delightful to see all four couples reach their final happy endings together as the quartet ends. Readers looking for more focus on romance may be disappointed, and those who haven't read the first three will be confused--but faithful readers will love this story and its four plotlines as they come to an appropriately grand ending. A sweeping end to an exploratory historical romance quartet.

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December 1, 2016
There is simply no way that Isobel Carmichael is going to let Royd Frobisher sail off to West Africa on a rescue mission without her. Isobel's cousin, Katherine Fortescue, has disappeared from Freetown, and come hell or high water, Isobel is going with Royd to find Katherine and bring her back home. So even though it has been eight years since Royd failed to follow through on their handfasting ceremony and marry her, Isobel is determined to stick like glue to him until their mission is completed. Of course, all the time the two must spend together could very well end up mending the rift that exists between them, or it could permanently extinguish any embers of love they might have for one another. Laurens successfully brings her Adventurers Quartet, following The Daredevil Snared (2016), to a resounding conclusion. The broad literary canvas, swashbuckling adventures, dangerous intrigue, and steamy romance of these novels are rare treats for readers who miss those old-school historical romances by Shirlee Busbee and Katherine Woodiwiss.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)