Review

Paris 1782…

AN INNOCENT IS TAKEN

All Claire Donet knew was the world inside the convent walls in Saint-Denis. She had no idea her beloved papa was a pirate. But when he seized Simon Powell’s schooner, the English privateer decided to take the thing his enemy held most dear…her.

A BATTLE IS JOINED

The waters between France and England roil with the clashes of Claire’s father and her captor as the last year of the American Revolution rages on the sea, spies lurk in Paris and Claire’s passion for the English captain rises.

This is book is the bridge book that connects The Donet Trilogy with The Agents of the Crown Series and for those that haven’t read either this is the book to read, this is where we get to see where the Agents of the Crown story begins, and we get out first glimpse of captivating pirate Jean Donet. I really like how Walker has linked the two series with this one book it is so smart excellently done by one of the most accomplished and talented author’s around. As we have come to expect from Walker To Tame the Wind is luxuriously rich in detail and intrigue, with character’s who you are rooting for and who draw your attention from the moment you lay eye’s on them and as always I was hooked from start to finish.

When we first meet out couple Claire sneaks out of her the convent and into a ball where she meets the most beautiful man she has ever set eyes on – while up a tree of all places – she does fall head over heals for the handsome English Captain with the amber eyes, there and then, whereas he just sees her as a little girl who really should be tucked up in bed with her dolly. Simon goes back to his ship and his life as a privateer, where his life plod’s along nicely and Claire back to her convent home where after the death of her friend it is then she does some serious thinking about her future and makes the decision that she needs to be a nun because she is far too wild for her own good.

“I am not one of your crew to obey your every whim,” she raged. “I am a lady, and I will be treated as such, even by a common sailor like you!” “A lady?” Still steaming, he looked down at her bow-shaped lips, which in his anger tempted him beyond reason. If this was the only way he could dominate the girl he would see to it. He took her lips in a harsh, demanding kiss….

Years later, Privateer Captain and secret agent; Simon Powell has been at logger heads with the notorious pirate; Captain Jean Donet for years. There is a real battle of wills between Simon and Jean they are two giants of the channel both seething hatred at the other and then when Jean has the audacity to commandeer one of Simon’s ships and its crew to pass them on to the Americans – so they can be traded for American prisoners – Simon see’s red and vows that this time he will get his revenge on the Frenchman. When Simon learns that Jean Donet has a daughter hidden away in a convent, he see’s his chance to not only get his revenge on the pirate but also get his ship and men back. He decides to kidnap the daughter and hold her for ransom after all how much trouble can it be to steal away a little girl and hold her on the ship for a few days? As Simon waits for Jean Donet to make the next move in their deadly game, he and Claire are forced to spend a lot more time together – which is a like a storm in a tea cup in more ways than one. They both have volatile and explosive personalities and they are both hugely seductive, it isn’t a case of captive falling head over heals for her captor it is a very mutual thing they both feel very strong about the other the air crackles with pent up frustration and sexual tension when they are in the same room as one another – especially after one of their heated arguments, and I do like it when they are at logger heads especially with Claire as she has a heated fiery personality for a woman who insists she wants to be a nun she is has a temper and she isn’t afraid to show it.

Claire Donet has lived a good portion of her life behind the convent walls since her father left her there when she was a child claiming this would be the best place for her, so she can learn to be a proper lady until it is time for her to wed – what she doesn’t know is that her father isn’t just a member of the French aristocracy, but he is also a notorious pirate and the only reason he left her at the convent is to keep her safe. After the death of a good friend two years before, Claire has decided that she is too wild and that the best place for her is in the convent and she has decided to take orders. Her mind is made up when she finds out that her father has found her a husband, let us just say that Claire is not happy about that piece of news – but one night both hers and her father’s plans are ruined when she is kidnapped right from her bed in the middle of the night by a golden eyed scoundrel.

He looked every inch the fierce bird of prey he appeared that night in Saint-Denis… l’aigle royal, the golden eagle. She could not look away from his manly face and his powerful form. He was magnificent.

Claire Donet is just as spirited as her pirate father, she is head strong and free willed plus incredibly stubborn and let me say that she has real fire and does not take to kindly to being carted off and used as a pawn in the brutal war between the handsome Englishman and her father. There is no crying and “why me’s” with this young woman, oh, no there is shouting and throwing things plus not to mention giving a certain Captain a good right hook in his handsome face. I really like Claire she acts like the tough cookie but under all that gaelic confidence is still the little girl wanting her father’s approval wanting someone to look after her.

Simon is a brilliant Captain and a genuinely good man, he has some issues regarding his childhood and that has impacted on his life and the man he has become, it also instilled in him the need to treat his crew with the up most respect. As a Captain he is one hell of a good one, his crew respect him and to me that shows what a great leader he is. He is never happier than when he is on his ship; The Fairwinds, he knows the sea’s like he knows the back of his hand – I would even say he rivals Jean Donet on his skills at sea. I love it when Simon and Jean are battling on the channel it is like clash of the titans. They are both unbelievably enigmatic and captivating individuals who are thrown together not just by their bitter battle, but by Claire, she is stuck in the middle of the two men that mean the most to her in the whole world. On one hand she has her dutiful and protective father, who she has this beautiful bond with – Claire and Jean really do have a very loving father/daughter relationship. On the other hand, she has this new love, the charming Englishman – a man who sends her heart a flutter and who treats her with absolute respect.

With sudden clarity, Claire understood it all. Her papa did have a ship. And this man, this English captain—her golden one—was her papa’s enemy, on the opposite side of America’s war. How could she find comfort in his arms if that were true?

I think Walker has captured Claire’s inner turmoil – about having the two men whom she loves dearly at war – beautifully. To Tame the Wind is another fabulously enchanting and mind turning story from Ms Walker, it flows seamlessly from one scene to the next and one that I whole heartedly recommend and as with all of books from Agent’s of the Crown and The Donet Trilogy. This can be read as a stand alone or part of both series’, To Tame the Wind does set the reader up nicely to jump from one series to the next as I see this as the bridge between the two it is the perfect place for those that haven’t read Ms Walker’s work yet, this is the place to start.

Highly enjoyable especially for those of us who like highly detailed historicals with a satisfying storyline and flawed but honest character’s.

To Tame the Wind can be purchased at Amazon