Blackhearts

Blackhearts is by debut author Nicole Castroman and is the first book in a series of the same name.

Blackbeard the pirate was known for striking fear in the hearts of the bravest of sailors. But once he was just a young man who dreamed of leaving his rigid life behind to chase adventure in faraway lands. Nothing could stop him—until he met the one girl who would change everything.

Edward "Teach" Drummond, son of one of Bristol's richest merchants, has just returned from a year-long journey on the high seas to find his life in shambles. Betrothed to a girl he doesn’t love and sick of the high society he was born into, Teach dreams only of returning to the vast ocean he’d begun to call home. There's just one problem: convincing his father to let him leave and never come back.

Following her parents' deaths, Anne Barrett is left penniless and soon to be homeless. Though she’s barely worked a day in her life, Anne is forced to take a job as a maid in the home of Master Drummond. Lonely days stretch into weeks, and Anne longs for escape. How will she ever realize her dream of sailing to Curaçao—where her mother was born—when she's stuck in England? 

From the moment Teach and Anne meet, they set the world ablaze. Drawn to each other, they’re trapped by society and their own circumstances. Faced with an impossible choice, they must decide to chase their dreams and go, or follow their hearts and stay.

The Breakdown:
1. Castroman was another author that I had the pleasure of seeing at the Decatur Book Festival.  I loved hearing how she was inspired by Blackbeard's story and what possibly made him the pirate he was.  She was especially inspired by his ship's flag. See below:


2.  I really loved this characters of this story. Both Anne and Teach were dynamic characters and each trying to make their way in the world.  Anne who feels out of place, especially since the death of her parents, and desperately wants to find a place where she belongs.  Teach who longs to be at sea, but father wants grander things for him. They form an unlikely friendship that eventually lead to deeper feelings.

3.  This book has several interesting twist and turns to it.  Castroman kept me guessing on who could be trusted and who could not. Then there is Teach's father, who mostly seems like a cold hearted man set on advancing his place in society, but then there are moments where he seems not so bad.

To Read or Not to Read:
Read