Customer Reviews

The Sublime and Spirited Voyage of Original Sin

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Original Sin sparkles with a well-blended combination of wit, adventure, and steamy romance. With near comedic encounters and sharp laugh-out-loud banter bordered by rollicking fight scenes, this book is indeed a page turner begging you to pore through the chapters in quick succession. The protagonists Gayle and Celia were vividly brought to life and quite likeable, making me regret when I reached the last chapter, since it meant that I had to bid farewell to their exploits. This debut novel is a promising showcase for author Colette Moody, and I'm looking forward to her next body of work.

I was starting to give up on lesbian books. This was a good book to jump back into it. One minute I'm laughing, the next I'm blushing. The sexy pirate and her captive are well written and likable. They have great chemistry and spirit. I actually even gave this one to my extremely picky wife to read and she loved it. Enjoy!

In more ways than one, seamstress Celia Pierce brings good luck to the pirate ship `Original Sin.' Taken by surprise, Celia is captured by said pirates when her fiancée, the local doctor, hides in his back office. Looking for an adventure and a way out of her engagement, Celia almost gladly allows herself to be taken. On the ship, she mistakes Gayle, the captain's daughter, as his mistress. The two women tend to the ship's wounded after a bloody battle.

Becoming enamored by Gayle, the acting captain as her father heals, Celia is happy to follow the crew on adventure after adventure. That is, until her father comes looking for her and discovers what she's been up to.

The supporting cast for this book is unquestionably necessary for the quality of the plot. The pirates, Celia's fiancée and her father, and the gypsy who gets the adventure started - all are well-written and well-placed.

In short, Celia and Gayle are outstanding characters in a very creative setting. This, Moody's first book, is a winner. With a few more books under her belt, this reader predicts Moody will easily establish herself as one of the top authors in the genre.

I can't sing enough praises for this book. It contains all that one would expect from a Bold Strokes publication - and more.

Tastefully written love story about a lesbian captain (acting captain) of a pirate ship and a damsel taken hostage to help save the lives of wounded crew memebers, including the acting captain's father.

The book contains all the elements critical to a pirate adventure, with twists and turns that constantly threaten the chances of a happy ending.

But what makes this story so enjoyable is the characters. I simply couldn't ask any more from an author.

Expectations are always important, but in this case I think they make or break one's experience of the book. The first time I read this book, I expected it to be a delightful mix of lesbian romance, adventure story, and historical fiction and I couldn't stand it. Later, I came back and read it again, thinking of it as a lighthearted, campy type of lesbian adventure story and I found it was notably better, though still problematic.

One of the things that irritated me the most in my first read-through is that Gayle and Celia, the main characters, think like modern women. For example, Celia repeatedly uses sarcasm when speaking to her fiancé and considers it a problem that he does not treat her as an equal but instead speaks down to her. Neither woman finds anything objectionable about a woman becoming a pirate captain, and while there is occasional mention of women aboard ships being bad luck, this is considered to be rubbish superstition by the women and all the positively-portrayed men. And once she and Gayle get together, Celia has no trepidation about telling other people that they are a couple.
In addition to thought patterns, the women also routinely use modern language. Gayle draws attention to the difference between being a handful and getting a handful. And the women frequently engage in modern-style quips and jokes. For example:
"Blimey," Celia cursed, wiping the perspiration from her brow with the back of her hand.
Gayle appeared amused. "You've loosened up a speck, haven't you?" she said, popping bread into her mouth.
"When you are at Rome, do as they do there," Celia replied with a swig of grog.
"And when in hell?"
"Throw another log on the fire?" --p. 62 (in my copy, anyway)
And:
"Tell me I'm misinformed, Celia," [her father] bade her. "Assure me you're as unsullied as the first days of spring."
She grasped his hands reassuringly and gazed into his eyes. "Would you settle for some time in midsummer?" she asked optimistically. "Perhaps July or August?" --p. 178

All in all, Celia and Gayle's language and views about the world strain my suspension of disbelief. They don't seem at all like 18th century women, even women in a romanticized 18th century. Rather, they seem like modern women with modern sensibilities dropped into an 18th century adventure story. If that doesn't bother you and you know to expect it here, you might really enjoy this book. But it's not my cup of tea.

There's also a bit too much man-bashing in Original Sin for me to be comfortable. All the major men in Celia's life are somewhere between well-meaning-but-ineffective and outright antagonistic toward her. For example, Celia's fiancé is a bumbling jerk who cowers in a nearby room while Celia is taken hostage. I don't think a book has to portray men negatively in order to portray women well, and I think Original Sin's negative treatment of the majority of its male characters makes it a less enjoyable novel.

I'd like to give this book 2.5 stars, but I'm willing to round up.

(Note: I also read another lesbian-romance-with-pirate-theme book not long after my first time reading this one. That one, called Branded Ann by Merry Shannon, didn't strain my suspension of disbelief and had a lot more of the historical plausibility I'd initially hoped to find in this one.)

this high seas adventure features witty banter and episodic storylines that kept me turning pages late into the night. the love scenes are tame, but the love story is real. i laughed aloud and cheered on the inside when gayle and celia victoriously completed their journey.

I don't usually read historical novels but this one had good reviews so I thought I'd give it a try. It's a fun story with interesting characters. There is a fair amount of suspension of belief in the reading, as another reviewer notes the historical references (and language) aren't true to the period, but the characters and dialogue make up for it. Celia in particular was a hoot and I was actually happy to see that she wasn't the usual cowering damsel in distress type. This is the first of Moody's books that I've read, but I'll try the others based on this one.

This is not the first book I've read from this author, but reading one of her later books encouraged me to check out her earlier novels. And while other reviewers have accurately stated that there may be some rough edges in points, these patches are few and far between, and not that grating in any case. I may not have even mentioned them if others hadn't, because it's nothing specific. Transitions and pacing, perhaps. For truly, I was thoroughly entertained throughout this novel, particulary with the author's playful use of language, both in emphasizing the setting and time period, and in setting the tone for her alternately formidable, hilarious and endearing protagonists. This story contains a delightful mix of bawdiness, violence and loving emotion.

It's difficult to avoid cliches in this lesbian romance genre alone, not to mention throwing in a pirate story on top of that, but astoundingly this author manages to avoid pretty much every one. She introduced interesting characters, and they stood on their own merits, rather than merely becoming props. There's not a terrible amount of depth to the storytelling, overall. No profound ruminations on what it means to be human or to confront one's true self. But there's also nothing wrong with a novel that's just really fun to read. I got frustrated when some things kept going wrong midway through the end, but by then I trusted this author enough to relax and enjoy the journey.

Strong protagonists, good chemistry, witty banter, and a way of framing things so you get a vivid picture of this world they inhabit, its dangers and delights, and the motivations of its various denizens. A perfect vacation/beach book that may be worth another read when I'm in the mood to scratch the "fun adventure" itch.

The Sublime and Spirited Voyage of Original Sin is an adventurous romp around the Caribbean in a ship with pirates and a captured wench, taking prizes and eventually looking for hidden treasure, with some double crossing thrown in for fun. What more could you ask for?

The book isn't perfect, and Moody's writing has a few rough edges here and there. But at times her writing becomes elegant and she displays a wonderful sense of humor in some of her descriptions and dialogue.

The story is well-paced, with lots of action, drama, suspense, and romantic interludes. The characters are interesting and well-developed, though I think more background for Celia should have been given at the beginning to better explain her reactions once she's captured. Even the lesser characters give a strong sense of who they are with very little description.

The story takes the Original Sin to several islands and ports of call. Thrown in is a lot of attention to detail of ships, sailing, and how pirates operated. I usually do relatively long reviews, but I can't really think of anything else to say. I bought this book a year ago and have already read it twice, and thoroughly enjoyed it both times. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a good lesbian pirate yarn.

Kindle Note: The ebook can be purchased on the publisher's website. The ebook edition is very well done.

Gayle Malvern finds herself thrust into the position of captain of the pirate ship Original Sin when her father "Madman" Malvern is wounded in a battle. When she sends members of her crew ashore to find a doctor, the coward hides while his fiancée Celia Pierce, the town seamstress, is kidnapped instead. For superstitious pirates who aren't used to having one woman aboard, the idea of two is really dangerous for both women. Celia is assured by Gayle that as soon as possible she'll be put off in a safe port and returned to her family, so she decides to make the best of the situation and treat is as a lark. She's drawn into a world of adventure, slave-traders, rival pirates, unscrupulous sea captains and frightening battles. She loves it. Celia never expected to have so many experiences in her life and she finds it quite exciting. She also begins to find Gayle quite exciting and comes to understand why she was never really interested in her boring future husband. As she and Gayle become closer, Celia begins to think of herself less as a captive and more as a member of the crew. Gayle comes to realize that spending the rest of her life at sea isn't very appealing, but having a life with Celia is, if she can find a way to get them out of the pirate life without anyone hunting for them. Not easy to do when you command one of the most infamous ships in the Caribbean Sea.

Collette Moody injects a lot of humor into this book and intersperses it with terrific adventure scenes. Her characters are interesting, even the ones the reader won't particularly like. These are scoundrels with hearts more than just scoundrels. The reader will feel the tightrope that Gayle has to walk in order to keep her male crew happy and protect herself and yet not become as ruthless as pirate captains are usually portrayed. Celia is the prize in the story though. She's an unusual mixture of wisdom, naivete and earthiness. Her character grows the most and is the most entertaining as she goes from the meek daughter accepting a marriage she doesn't want to a woman willing to knock another one out cold to shut her up and keep her away from Gayle. It's almost too bad the women abandon the sea and settle down. There is a real feeling that there was a lot more fun and adventure in them.

This is a quick, entertaining and fun story to read and well worth setting aside a couple of hours to enjoy it.