Gifts from the Sea [Mass Market Paperback]

Refusing to believe in Richard's death, Rachel doesn't welcome the attraction that she feels for Jared, a big gruff, hairy man so unlike her blonde husband. As Jared recovers in her parents' cabin, he loses his heart to Belle, Rachel's precocious five-year-old daughter. Though incensed that Jared rents her husband's cabin from her family, Rachel can no longer deny her attraction to the handsome captain who has opened his heart to her daughter. Their relationship would be such a sure thing if only Rachel could let go of Richard. Will she be able to let go of the past before it is too late?

Full of intense emotion and love scenes set among the tempestuous background of the sea, Ms. Goodger's captivating writing is at its best. And the unanswered questions behind Richard's death add a pleasing element of mystery to this tale. And for those romance readers, who devour romantic tension, prepare for a literal feast as this read thrives on romantic adversity. Though the tension in this read proves to hold the reader's interest, the only drawback is that Rachel and Jared's constantly thinking that the other does not love them gets a little overcooked. However, this is definitely a read to be savored again and again-a keeper.

Sea Captain Jared Mitchell has wanted to die ever since he blamed himself for the accidental deaths of his wife and daughter. Unable to cope, he tries a strange suicide by commanding his whaling crew maroon him in the sea. The ocean fails to listen to his plea; so on a cold autumn day, Rachel finds the whaleboat containing the half-dead Jared. She and her family nurse Jared back to health. Jared falls in love with Rachel who begins to reciprocate, but she feels guilty because she still believes Richard is coming home.

GIFTS FROM THE SEA is an insightful American romance that is excellent when it concentrates on a second chance at love though closure from the previous relationship has not occurred. When the novel meanders into unnecessary subplots, it loses some of its wallop. Jared is a compassionate hero while Rachel is more difficult to accept because her marriage was not a happy one so why one wonders why she loyally clings to a memory. Still when Jane Goodger keeps the love story of the lead couple front and center, readers receive a wonderful historical romance.

Harriet Klausner

Refusing to believe in Richard's death, Rachel doesn't welcome the attraction that she feels for Jared, a big gruff, hairy man so unlike her blonde husband. As Jared recovers in her parents' cabin, he loses his heart to Belle, Rachel's precocious five-year-old daughter. Though incensed that Jared rents her husband's cabin from her family, Rachel can no longer deny her attraction to the handsome captain who has opened his heart to her daughter. Their relationship would be such a sure thing if only Rachel could let go of Richard. Will she be able to let go of the past before it is too late?

Full of intense emotion and love scenes set among the tempestuous background of the sea, Ms. Goodger's captivating writing is at its best. And the unanswered questions behind Richard's death add a pleasing element of mystery to this tale. And for those romance readers, who devour romantic tension, prepare for a literal feast as this read thrives on romantic adversity. Though the tension in this read proves to hold the reader's interest, the only drawback is that Rachel and Jared's constantly thinking that the other does not love them gets a little overcooked. However, this is definitely a read to be savored again and again-a keeper.