The Rogue Pirate’s Bride By Shana Galen (The Sons of the Revolution #3)
Historical Romance
February 7, 2012
Sourcebooks

Reviewed by May

“Get. Off. Me.”
“I will. If you calm down.”
She clenched her jaw. “I’ll calm down if you get off me.”
“Mon Dieu, but you are impossible.”
“This is only the beginning.”
He shook his head. “Don’t tempt me, ma belle. I like a challenge as much as you do.”
“What challenge? If you want to kill me, then do it. I’d rather die than bear your touch a moment longer.”
He raised a brow. It was the first time a woman had ever said such to him, and it was a bit disheartening. “I think I could persuade you otherwise.”
She rolled her eyes. “I’m swooning with passion. Go ahead and try to rape me. You’ll regret it.”
Now he was truly offended. Rape her? Who the hell did she think he was? “I’m insulted cherie. I have no intention of raping you.”
She glanced down at the juncture where their bodies met, and he had the sudden realization that he was hard. He shrugged. “You’re an attractive woman. I can’t control that.”
“Get off me, pirate!”

As a young boy the marquis de Valére escaped his home in France with nothing more than his life; believing his entire family to be dead. Bastien is now more commonly known as Captain Cutlass, and he sails the seas searching for the one who killed his mentor and father-figure from when he was just a young boy with no home, family, or purpose.

Meanwhile Raeven Russell, a British Admiral’s daughter who’s been sailing the seas since the age of four, is out to kill the infamous Captain Cutlass. Her fiancé was killed by the pirate and his crew, and she will stop at nothing to avenge his death. They meet in a bar, where she announces her intentions and he is instantly intrigued by Raeven – even though she is determined to kill him.

“You’re a lying, thieving, murdering pirate. You have no sense of honor, of honesty. You –“
“I see you haven’t done your research in our absence. You still know nothing about me.”
She put her hands on her hips. “Do you have my sword?”
He thought of the object hanging in his cabin.
“Then that makes you a thief. Did you kill Captain Bowers?” She didn’t wait for an answer. “Then that makes you a murderer. Do you attack ships on the high seas, confiscate their cargo, and sell it for your own profit? Then that makes you a pirate. Do you deny all of these accusations? That makes you a liar.”

This is the third book in a trilogy about the French brothers (so obviously, his whole family is NOT dead!), and a much awaited one at that. After reading the second book I had very different expectations for how this story would go and what to anticipate. I was disappointed in the minor and passive role that Bastien’s brothers play in this story, as I expected them to have a much more active and major part.

The upside to this is that the story works very well, perhaps better, as a stand-alone novel. The majority of the tale takes place on boats and no prior reading is necessary to keep up or enjoy the book.

Oh, and I did enjoy this book – I find Galen’s characters to be both inspired and refreshing. Raeven surprised me a number of times and I was incredibly happy with how she is portrayed as a strong but feminine character. Her choices, her skill with a sword and comfort upon a pirate’s ship, not to mention her ability to pick locks and how well she knows her own mind all made me quickly fall in love with her and root for her. I do love a heroine who is kick ass!

The man reached for her again, but she punched him hard, and he rolled to the side. She leaned over him and freed the dagger with a sickening squelch. She wished she’d kept her gloves on because she was pretty certain there was some part of the man’s intestine on the hilt of the dagger, and it was slippery on her fingertips.

Bastien proves to be a perfect match for her, and is inspired by and in awe of her skills and abilities rather than being threatened by them. The conflict within him, how he fits everywhere yet nowhere made him a just right for a heroine like Raeven. He has both knowledge of what it is like to be titled and rich, but also living his entire teen and adult life aboard a ship as a privateer, and that really made him interesting.

How Raeven goes from wanting Bastien dead to wanting to be in his bed had a good flow to it. The details of her fiancé’s death, and how she gets over that was handled nicely as well. This isn’t the only conflict in the book however – the characters have figure out how to deal with the many obstacles in their course to a happily ever after.

If you are looking for a book set in early 1800’s with high sea adventure, sword fights, reunited brothers, and a very strong female lead who can wield a sword and outsmart (or fight) many men I strongly recommend this novel. I look forward to seeing what Shana Galen writes next, she is moving up onto my auto-buy list.

Grade: B+

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