Discerning Grace (The White Sails Series Book 1)

Book excerpt: Slow-burn historical women’s fiction with a splash of romance—think: the love child of books like Bridgerton mixed with Pirates of the Caribbean. As the first full-length novel in The White Sails Series, DISCERNING GRACE captures the spirit of an independent woman whose feminine lens blows the ordered patriarchal decks of a 19th century tall ship to smithereens. Wilful Grace Baxter, will not marry old Lord Silverton with his salivary incontinence and dead-mouse stink. Discovering she is a pawn in an arrangement between slobbery Silverton and her calculating father, Grace is devastated when Silverton reveals his true callous nature. Refusing this fate, Grace resolves to stow away. Heading to the docks, disguised as a lad to ease her escape, she encounters smooth-talking naval recruiter, Gilly, who lures her aboard HMS Discerning with promises of freedom and exploration in South America. When Grace's big mouth lands her bare-bottomed over a cannon for insubordination, her identity is exposed. The captain wants her back in London but his orders, to chart the icy archipelago of Tierra del Fuego, forbid it. Lieutenant Seamus Fitzwilliam gallantly offers to take Grace off the fretting captain's hands by placing her under his protection. Grace must now win over the crew she betrayed with her secret, while managing her feelings towards her taciturn protector, whose obstinate chivalry stifles her new-found independence. But when Grace disregards Lieutenant Fitzwilliam's warnings about the dangers of the unexplored archipelago, it costs a friend his life and she realises she is not as free as she believes. DISCERNING GRACE is historical women's fiction that will appeal to fans of Claire Fraser from Outlander and Demelza Poldark from Poldark—in other words, fans of feisty historical female leads. It is a B.R.A.G.Medallion Honoree. The White Sails Series complete collection box set features one sassy heroine aboard a ship full of sailors. Prepare for historical romance full of strong alpha males with a trace of vulnerability, superstitious sailors, epic sea adventures that take you from the cobbled streets of London to a tall ship setting, and ultimately a happy ending. If you love a man in uniform, strong women who don’t like being told what to do, fated mates, and happily-ever-afters, hop aboard the boxset of The White Sails Series: - Discerning Grace - Grace on the Horizon - Grace Arising - Christmas at Gilly Downs Also available as audiobooks narrated by Siobhan Waring.