Almost a Scandal by Elizabeth Essex

When her youngest brother refuses to do his duty and join the navy, Sally Kent does what she thinks is best--she goes in his place to keep the family honor intact.  After all, the sea is in her blood having grown up on the ship with her captain father and brothers.  She loves the adventure, the air, everything about the sea but as a female she is regulated to the land.  When she sees her childhood crush, Lieutenant David Colyear also on board she thinks her disguise is at risk.  But as time passes and no one seems the wiser, she relaxes.  Circumstances force her to reveal her true identity to Col and she is at his mercy for him not to report her and damage the Kent name.  With a war happening and a mean shipmate, how will this pair find time to discover if their feelings are true or just a moment of fancy?

Hmm, I'm a bit torn about this book.  The writing and descriptions of life on a ship were lush and really made you feel like you were there but at the same time it was a bit much for me.  It took almost half of the book for the romance to start to bloom and I would have liked that to happen much sooner, even though Col and Sally had meet years ago.  I have no problem suspending reality a bit when I read but I did have a hard time believing no one on the ship noticed Sally was female.  I feel like more would have noticed something...her voice, her hands...something.  But then again, if you are not looking for a female, you probably will not notice one.  

Anyways, back to Col and Sally and the supporting characters.  I really liked Sally, or Kent as she is referred to most of the time!  She is bold and brash and has no fear and you could just feel her love and passion for what she was doing.  She was also compassionate to all those on board from making sure they had the best food they could to helping the new lads overcome fears.  Sally was even a gem to the resident villain on board, a man who could not make lieutenant and she found a clever way to deal with him and in the process, help him.  Col was a bit arrogant but confident of his work and responsibilities.  Every man on that ship needs him and he makes sure to do everything he can to uphold that.  I found his reaction to being on land a bit humorous and was glad our couple finally could be on land and progress with their romance angle.  We get to enjoy a few battles and take downs of ships which was very grand and adventurous, but I personally would have liked a bit more romance and a bit less adventure.   The ending was sweet and and me sniffling a bit and ended in a way very appropriate for this sea loving couple.  So while I didn't love this book, I enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone looking for a very adventurous story!  Elizabeth Essex has quite a way of describing the world she is writing about and I look forward to more from her!  3 1/2 stars

I received this eARC from St. Martins Press via netgalley.com, thanks!

Reckless Brides series
 
      Dec 26th