Adventure Between the Pages: Full Steam Ahead

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Description: When love simmers between a reclusive scientist and a wealthy debutante, will they abandon ship or is it full steam ahead? Nicole Renard returns home to Galveston, Texas, to find her father deathly ill. Though she loves him, Nicole's father has always focused on what she's not. Not male. Not married. Not able to run Renard Shipping. Vowing to find a suitable husband to give her father the heir he desires before it's too late, Nicole sets out with the Renard family's greatest treasure as her dowry: the highly coveted Lafitte Dagger. But her father's rivals come after the dagger, forcing a change in Nicole's plans. After a boiler explosion aboard the Louisiana nearly took his life, Darius Thornton has been a man obsessed. He will do anything to stop even one more steamship disaster. Even if it means letting a female secretary into his secluded world. Nicole is determined not to let her odd employer scare her off with his explosive experiments, yet when respect and mutual attraction grow between them, a new fear arises. How can she acquire an heir for her father when her heart belongs to another? And when her father's rivals discover her hiding place, will she have to choose between that love and her family's legacy?

I keep expecting Witemeyer to come out with a book that I think is just okay, not amazing. Yet every time, she manages to wow me with yet another awesome story. Full Steam Ahead impressed me on so many levels: the history, the setting, the characters, and, the thing that defines every Witemeyer book and sets her above so many authors, the strong faith element.

Full Steam Ahead was a bit more… well steamy than some of Witemeyer’s other books. There were several kissing scenes in this book and, often, a book with as much kissing as this one would have gotten a star knocked off for my personal tastes, but this one maintained five stars.

I liked Nicole form the first moment I started reading about her. She is so smart and sassy, yet I was surprised that she also maintained her femininity, proving Witemeyer’s skill and ability to break the molds. Nicole was an endearing character, and I hope that Witemeyer writes a prequel about her someday.
Darius was such a heart-breaking character. His pain felt so real and his quest so understandable. He was a perfect match for Nicole. Most authors miss the mark when it comes to obsessed/broken characters. However, Darius was very life-like and lovable.

About half-way through the book, I thought that this was going to be the first Karen Witemeyer book without a strong faith element, and I was disappointed. However, just a short chapter or so later, the message hit and it hit hard. I was near tears! How she wove the threads into the story without me realizing it, I don’t know, but it was awesome.

I highly recommend this book to older girls who love historical romance, strong faith, and endearing characters.


I received this book from Bethany House in exchange for my honest review. I was under no obligation to write a positive review. The opinions in this review are entirely my own.

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2 comments

  1. I've never read anything from Karen Witemeyer before, but sounds like she might be a good author to check out sometime. Great review!

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  2. Tarissa, I would start with Stealing the Preacher. It has been my favorite so far.

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