Excellent book with plenty of action to go along with the romance. Aurora, aka Rory or "Roaring Rory" was touring the world with her cousin Constance, avoiding marriage and satisfying her need for adventure. They were on the way home from Greece when their ship was attacked by Barbary pirates, and they were taken hostage. A demand for a huge ransom was sent to Rory's family. Unable to pay the ransom, Rory's father washes his hands of his troublesome daughter, but Rory's mother doesn't give up so easily. She calls upon a friend who helps her find someone to negotiate Rory's release.

Gabriel is the captain of his own life and boat. A humane gesture caused him to be booted out of the Royal Navy and disowned by his family. Since then, he made his own way in the world doing things that were both legal and illegal. He played a significant role in the previous book, Oncea Rebel, using his skills to assist in the rescue of a British woman. Now his experience along the Barbary coast is called on to rescue another woman. His memories of the coast are not good ones, and he is reluctant to accept the charge until he sees a miniature of Rory. Something about her draws him in.

I liked both Rory and Gabriel. Rory is unconventional, independent, and intelligent. Knowing that she was not ready to get married, she used an inheritance to travel the world. She and her cousin Constance use their adventures to write stories about intrepid female explorers. When they are captured by the pirates, Rory's sense of honor makes her insist that any ransom include her cousin and the crew of their ship. Rory is also practical in that she knows she must cooperate with their captors until they are ransomed. Gabriel was also fantastic. He is determined, honorable and cunning. He will do whatever he must to return Rory safely home. I loved seeing him use his experiences to get them out of trouble.

I enjoyed the development of the relationship between Rory and Gabriel. There were sparks between them from the moment they met. I was very impressed with Gabriel and the way he kept his focus in spite of Rory's state of undress. Beyond the sparks, there was also a deeper connection that was immediately apparent. I loved the way they spoke honestly of what was developing between them, and also realized that there was a chance that things would not go their way. The scenes on the ship from Algiers to Constantinople were sweet and sexy as they used the time to get to know each other. The attraction between them also grew. Gabriel's strength and honor were in full force as he resisted the pull in order to protect Rory in case everything went wrong. The resolution was exciting, and I loved how they came together at the end. There was a satisfying wrap-up with both Rory's family and Gabriel's that brought the book to a wonderful conclusion.

The story was packed full of action from beginning to end. The descriptions of the time in the two harems were vivid, and I could effortlessly picture what Rory and Constance experienced. Their fears and frustrations were easily understood. The tension mounted when Gabriel arrived to find that he had a history with Rory's captor. Malek became a slightly more sympathetic character as his reasons for the vast ransom were revealed, but his intentions remained unchanged. I was wholly invested in the story as it moved from Algiers to Constantinople. The pirate attack was vividly described and kept the tension high as they dealt with the unexpected complication. Their arrival in Constantinople was met with treachery and deceit, putting them all in extreme danger. I was on the edge of my seat as Gabriel worked from his side to effect a rescue, and Rory and the others declined to play the victim and fought back. There were exciting twists and turns and an unexpected surprise for Gabriel.

There was also a secondary romance between Constance and Gabriel's second-in-command, Jason. I enjoyed seeing the quieter and more practical Constance emerge from a bit of a shell and find a love she had given up on. I liked Jason's steadfast support of Constance and acceptance of her past. I especially enjoyed the scene as Constance sketched Jason with the goats; it was fun and sweet with an underlying simmer of attraction. ( )

Lady Aurora "Rory" Lawrence and her cousin Constance are delightfully traveling and idly authoring Gothic romances, when corsairs create a personal melodramatic adventure. Unless Rory’s parents deliver an outrageous ransom, both will be sold into a harem. Gabriel Hawkins, dismissed from the Royal Navy, disowned by his family, and now a merchant captain who has survived numerous difficult situations is their only hope. Crick nimbly connects the audience with both the audacious Rory and the more subdued Constance as they face losing their self-determination forever. While their personalities are strikingly different, both women show determination, resolve, and skill. Crick’s range is demonstrated in the uniqueness created by cadence, pitch, and accent for diverse male heroes and villains. Between moments of sprightly humour and terrifying adventure, Rory and Constance each find their true love. The third Rogues Redeemed novel merges old-school pirate and harem trope with modern social mores.

The improved review was published in Booklist March 15, 2019 issue. ( )

Series: Rogues Redeemed #3
Publication Date: 9/25/18

When I saw this was a Mary Jo Putney book I just had to read it. Now, I have to admit that I should have read the description more carefully and I really didn’t care for any of the characters. It took me three days to read the book because I kept putting it down and only reluctantly picked it up again. I won’t say much about the story itself in this review because if you read the book blurb, you pretty much know the story. What I’ll talk about is the characters and why I did/didn’t like them.

My least favorite character in the book is Rory’s father. He’s only mentioned a couple of times – but – well – he supposedly loves her. If he loves her, how can he NOT at least make an effort to come up with the ransom to save her? He doesn’t even look at options or speak to friends – nothing – just decides he can’t come up with the money and she’s in trouble she made and he washes his hands of it. Say what! His wife can come up with half the ransom by selling her jewels and borrowing from friends – yet he cannot contribute anything. He had enough money to come up with a dowry for Constance at the end, but he couldn’t contribute to his daughter’s ransom. Then, at the end he hugs Rory, welcomes her home and all is right with the world. No way!

My next least favorite is Gabriel’s grandfather. Supposedly he was redeemed at the end – but not to me. He sent his grandson into the Royal Navy at twelve years of age and at eighteen, his grandfather disowned him, kicked him out of his house and told him that it would have been better if he had died in battle. Then, when Gabriel is captured and enslaved by Barbary Pirates, he refuses to pay a very modest ransom to save him. Fast forward twelve years when Gabriel has managed to rescue Rory and they are engaged – she wants Gabriel to mend his relationship with his grandfather. So – what is one of the first thing the old reprobate says? “I suppose that only a scandalous girl would accept you.” Later, “I couldn’t bear that you threw that away to save the life of a young man who was a nobody.” Then he proceeds to tell Gabriel that he is welcome because he is now the heir to the barony as his two cousins have died. Grandfather is much older and frailer now and this is supposed to redeem him. I don’t think so. I have to wonder what kind of reception Gabriel and Rory would have gotten if the two cousins hadn’t died and if Gabriel wasn’t now the heir.

Rory, Constance, Gabriel and Jason – I liked all of them okay, but they all seemed so blasé about the possibility of Rory and Constance ending up in a harem. There wasn’t any late night plotting sessions about how to best Gurkan and save Malek’s family without risking Rory and Constance. Nothing. I can assure you that if someone I loved was in that kind of danger, I would NOT be quite so laid back as they were.

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"I requested and received this e-book at no cost to me and volunteered to read it; my review is my honest opinion and given without any influence by the author or publisher." ( )

I received an ARC of this book to read through NetGalley in exchange for a fair review. Once A Scoundrel is the third book in Mary Jo Putney’s Rogues Redeemed series. This book can be read as a stand-alone but I do recommend reading all the books because ... simply ... they are marvellous. Mary Jo Putney excels at writing strong heroines who are adventurous without being TSTL and in this book she gives us two such wonderful heroines. The main story is about Lady Aurora (Rory) Lawrence and Captain Gabriel Hawkins, the secondary story is about Constance Hollings, Rory’s cousin and companion and Jason Landers the first mate on Gabriel Hawkins ship. Rory and Constance were returning from Greece when their ship was captured by corsairs and now they and the crew of the ship are being held for an impossibly large ransom. Gabriel Hawkins, Captain/Owner of a very fast ship and having had some experience with the corsairs in the area where the women are being held is charged with negotiating their release.
Adventure, Evil Villains, Dashing Heroes, Intrepid Heroines, Daring Rescues, cute baby goats, and True Love ... this book has it all. More sweet than steamy. Publishing Date September 25, 2018. #OnceAScoundrel #NetGalley ( )

Usually I just love Putney's books but this one left me lukewarm. The first two thirds were slow and the last third, which had some action actually went by too fast and the rescue was quite unbelievable. I also didn't care too much for the heroine -- just perfect in a modern woman. While I know intellectually that a very few women in this period were adventurers, Aurora just seemed like too much. Not only was she beautiful, spirited, kind, warm, etc., she was also a talented and imaginative writer, I did like the hero and some of the other characters. I had a hard time pushing to the end in this one -- I started reading another book in between and then I was able to go back to it and finish it. The end actually had some suspense in it, but much too briefly. ( )