The year is 1775 and America and Great Britain are teetering on the brink of war. A naval battle between British and Rebel forces is waging in Boston Harbor for control of incoming supplies. The Rebel Pirate is the second book in Donna Thorland’s Renegades of the Revolution series but don’t worry; you don’t have to read the first book to understand what’s going on.
Our heroine, Sarah Ward, is the spirited daughter of a notorious pirate and fiercely loyal to her family. All she wants in life is to sail the seas and leave her past behind, but the guilt of being jilted by her ex-fiancé, wealthy Rebel troublemaker, Micah Wild, and losing financial stability for her father and her younger brother is keeping her behind. Micah’s betrayal didn’t end at marrying Sarah’s best friend: he tricked the Wards into smuggling a chest of Rebel gold on their ship, The Charming Sally. This is where the handsome officer comes in.
Captain James Sparhawk’s mission as a commander in the British Navy is to seize Rebel privateer ships and confiscate its cargo. Sarah and Sparhawk meet when he boards the Sally and circumstances lead to him becoming her prisoner. They connect instantly, but Sarah’s determination to keep her family afloat, whatever the personal cost, and Sparhawk’s quest for a private justice are just a few of the issues they’ll face.
Although The Rebel Pirate can be read as a stand-alone novel, there are a few recurring characters. The first are your historical power-players, such as British Generals Gage and Gates and Rebel leaders, Israel Putnam and Dr. Joseph Warren. The one fictional character that carried over from Thorland’s first Renegades novel, The Turncoat, is the fierce Rebel spy, Angela Ferrers, known as The Merry Widow. She is a dangerous and scheming woman, feared by men on both sides, and is definitely one of the most interesting characters in the book.
The book is not a dry history, but a story of family ties in a tumultuous period where relations were everything. You’ll find Sarah to be a strong and stubborn woman carrying the weight of her family’s survival on her shoulders. Sparhawk, on the other hand, is looking to avenge the destruction of his family. And all of this takes place on the cusp of America’s fight for independence.
A spy-thriller with romance set on the sea during one of America’s deadliest times – this book has it all!
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