To Treasure an Heiress by Roseanna M White
The Secrets of the Isles Book Two
Review copy from the publishers as apart of the launch team
My rating: 5 out of 5 Stars
About the Book:
Beth Tremayne has always been drawn to adventure. During her childhood, she fed that desire by exploring every inch of the Isles of Scilly. As an adolescent, she dreamed of love in London’s ballrooms. Now, stumbling across an old map on her family’s property, she’s found more adventure than she ever craved in the hunt for pirate treasure. Unfortunately, Beth can’t escape the attentions of her family’s guest, Lord Sheridan.
Sheridan has spent years pursuing whatever archaeological interests caught his imagination. And when he discovers that Beth’s search connects with one of his favorite pirates of history, he can’t help getting involved. Plus, he finds her irresistible, even though she insists he stole a prized possession of hers.
As they work together following different clues and drawing closer to danger, they start to piece together a story of tragic love and piratical adventure. But the true surprise is the treasure they discover in each other.
My Thoughts:
Oh was this a good one. To Treasure An Heiress is a book to be savored, and thoroughly enjoyed – which I gladly did. When reading the first book (The Nature of a Lady), I was looking forward to reading Beth’s story, but also vastly curious about getting to know Lord Sheridan better. And oh did we get to know him better! I loved his character, honestly. His wit and banter – both internal and external – was absolutely delightful, and I was just charmed by the whole story.I loved his and Beth’s relationship; it was certainly not friendly at first! But their exchanges were great.The plot was excellent as always, but really it was the characters that won it over for me. Beth and Sheridan were so different from each other yet shared a love of adventures and mystery, and they each were so rich in character strength on their own, not to mention as a pair as well. I really liked Serena’s side story as well – she had a part near the end that had me tearing up, and its message really hit home for me and was one I very much needed to hear. So that being said, the faith strand was handled beautifully, and so poignantly. Ainsely was such a stalwart and honestly good character as well, and his faith was encouraging. Really, I enjoyed every second of this book, loved following along on their pirate-treasure-seeking-adventure, and look forward to the next book in this series (though I’m not sure it will top my love for Sheridan and Beth, haha. They really were spectacular!).
More Quotes:
“Even if you have upset her…sometimes we need to be upset. Sometimes that’s the only thing that will convince us to let down our walls and allow someone in. Or even to turn to God.”
“And sometimes it builds the walls higher.”
“Yes, sometimes. But my valet – he’s rather wise when it comes to such things – would say that every time we make a mess of things, every time we take a wrong step, it’s just an opportunity for the Lord to meet us in an unexpected way. He would say that if you really care for her, and if she’s hurting, then the best thing you could possibly do is put her in God’s hands and just pray that He’ll give you the honor of being one of the people He uses to heal her.”
“I want to be. I always want to be one of the people He uses, but especially this time. I’m just afraid I’ve ruined it.”
Sheridan sighed. “I’m always afraid I’ve ruined it, every time I open my mouth. But God is bigger than our mistakes, I’m told. In fact, I’m fairly certain my wise valet would say that the best thing we can ever be is a willing instrument in His hand. That we ought to stop worrying that our every word is wrong and instead let the Master Craftsman wield us however He will. There may be stray chisel marks, the times we slip. But He’ll still set the stone where it belongs. We just need to remember our loves are a monument to Him, not to ourselves.”
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“How strange were regrets. So many things she hated, yet without them, things she loved would never have been.”
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“It was a reminder to me of what His salvation really means. I think…I think too often we compare our souls and our sins to a grass stain. We think that His sacrifice is sufficient to knock off the clumps and blades clinging to the outside of us, but not quite strong enough to get rid of the stain in the fabric. But we’re not fabric, Senara. We are pearls.” He reached for her hand, turned it over, and set the pearl onto her palm. This time she didn’t argue. Just looked at it, gleaming so brilliantly. White and clean and beautiful. “I realize I risk preaching here like his lordship always accuses me of, but it must be said. He makes us with great worth. Creates us that way intrinsically. Our sins, our bad choices, perhaps they coat us like mud. But the mud cannot take away the value He instilled in us. Mud does not make a pearl any less valuable. If it did, then why would Jesus have deemed us worthy of the sacrifice of His life? But He loves us, as does the Father. Because we are valuable. And the blood of Christ, when it washes us clean, fully restores us to what He created us to be. A pearl cannot be stained. No matter how many centuries it sits in the mud, wash it in a bit of water and it’s gleaming again.”
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Thanks to the publisher and author for a copy of the book. I was not required to write a positive review; all views expressed are entirely my own.
Sharon J. Mondragón writes about the place where kindness and courage meet. Her debut novel, The Unlikely Yarn of the Dragon Lady (originally titled The Heavenly Hugs Prayer Shawl Ministry) was the 2017 winner of the American Christian Fiction Writers Genesis award in the Short Novel Category, and she has also been recognized by The Saturday Evening Post where her short story, “I’ll Be Home for Christmas,” was an Honorable Mention Awardee in the 2014 their Great American Fiction Contest.
Gods Peculiar Treasure Rae 
