I'm Going on an Adventure

British and American Worlds Clash in A Dangerous Legacy, by Elizabeth Camden

Friday, November 03, 2017

Genre: Historical Fiction

My Rating: Four and a half out of five hearts ♥♥♥♥

About:

Lucy Drake's mastery of Morse code has made her a valuable asset to the American news agencies as a telegrapher. But the sudden arrival of Sir Colin Beckwith at rival British news agency Reuters puts her hard-earned livelihood at risk. Newly arrived from London, Colin is talented, handsome, and insufferably charming.

Despite their rivalry, Lucy realizes Colin's connections could be just what her family needs to turn the tide of their long legal battle over the fortune they were swindled out of forty years ago. When she negotiates an unlikely alliance with him, neither of them realizes how far the web of treachery they're wading into will take them.

Publisher's description

My Review

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and loved this introduction to Mrs. Camden as an author, as I haven't read any of her books prior to this one. The story and the plucky characters make it well worth the read, and the combination of city-smart New Yorker Lucy with refined Britain Sir Colin definitely sent a few sparks flying, and was fun to read about. Colin was as charming (and British!) as a hero ought to be, even if he did have the tendency to be a bit priggish at times. Lucy is as American as Colin is British, and is a sweet and plucky heroine - and definitely a match for Colin! Their spats were highly entertaining. Protective brother Nick (who worked in an underground "world" beneath the city) became a favorite character of mine, and I thought it was really cool to read about such a different job- Lucy's was also interesting, as the news tidbits gave you a feel of what was going on around the country (and the world) at that period in history. Plus it was just fun to see that aspect of how the news got out.

One word I'd use to describe this book would be adventure. It has a lot of adventure in it, takes you on a ride into the world of early 1900's New York and shows you that world sometimes through the eyes of a native New Yorker, sometimes through that of someone new to the city and the country. I wanted to keep reading until I came to the end (which wasn't quite as fulfilling as I'd hoped it would be. Maybe because dashing Colin still seemed to be somewhat of a jerk to me from something that had happened earlier- I'm not sure. It just felt like it was missing something). Finding out at the finish that Mrs. Camden is planning another book related to this one was also a very pleasant surprise.

Adventure, good versus evil (and also those who just have a [very] wrong view of life), a largely unknown underground system, and several daring escapades make this book one to recommend!

Note: I got this book from Bethany House Publishers in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.