Customer Reviews

Swear by the Moon (Oeb)

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3 star:		(1)
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I stopped reading Shirlee Busbee's books years ago...I recall reading a book of hers that didn't appeal to me. Since I'm a Regency addict, I decided to try this book and I'm glad I did. The prose and pacing are powerful and you can see the hand of a masterful, experienced author. I loved the hero and heroine who were both genuinely good, likeable people. It was a fast, extremely enjoyable read. I highly recommend it.

In 1788, at seventeen Thea Garrett feels mature enough to know what she wants. So ignoring the advice of her older brother Tom, she falls for the charm of Lord Randall Hawley and elopes with him. On the trek north, she finds he turns ugly when things go wrong culminating with his raping her. Tom catches up to them, but Randall forces a dual and in the ensuing fight, he dishonorably murders his opponent. Before dying Tom kills Randall. A stunned Thea vows never again to trust a male.

A decade later American Patrick Blackburne visits his English mother. She informs him that someone is blackmailing her. She does not want any scandal caused by her to ruin the image of her fiancé. Patrick promises to see what he can do to fix her problem, but soon has one of his own when he meets and falls in love with Thea, a person he believes is a nasty pleasure seeker. Though she returns his feelings, Thea still feels guilt over her brother's death and rejects all men.

SWEAR BY THE MOON is an exciting Regency romance with an engaging, solid story line. Still readers will wonder why a teenage Thea failed to see the true colors of Randall as a bad-tempered soul even if he oozes charm to disguise his nature. His pivotal role is short so that the audience can enjoy the principal battle between Thea and Patrick. Shirlee Busbee has written a stirring historical romance starring two individuals whom the audience will like and want to see together.

Harriet Klausner

In 1798 England, eccentric Thea Garrett lives with her cousin, Modesty, in a town house in London. Having been the victim of scandal some ten years prior, Thea is content to relish her independence and has vowed never to trust a man again.

But in a private meeting with her brother-in-law, Alfred Hirst, events spiral out of control, and Thea is afraid that she might have accidentally killed Hirst. Hours later, Patrick Blackburne visits Thea at her residence, and she recognizes him as the man that saw her fleeing the scene of her ominous encounter with Hirst. Against her better judgment, Thea is forced to trust Patrick, as the two begin their search for Hirst's true killer.

Though the attraction between Thea and Patrick is very real and electric, their relationship develops very precipitously. Because their attraction lacks depth, they seem to be merely characters on paper rather than real people. Nevertheless, the mystery is fast-paced and intriguing, as Thea and Patrick face danger in their quest to uncover plots to commit murder and blackmail.

Though this work seems to fall short of Ms. Busbee's usual standards, the suspenseful element helps overcome deficiencies of the characters thereby rendering it an averagely entertaining read.

I have been a Shirlee Busbee fan for many years and I have to say this book was an unpleasant surprise. It is one of the worst books I've ever read. So many times I almost gave up on reading it. I honestly wonder if she actually wrote this one. Not like her at all.

It was not listed as a large print book. That was the second one i purchased that was not listed as large print.