Because all the men in her family have left to fight in the War of 1812, Cassandra Channing must financially support her family. She desperately decides to invest the rest of the family’s money in a privateering ship captained by the town rake Luke Heaton. Because she is forced to trust someone outwardly untrustworthy, she is forced to come to grips with the fact that not everything is as it seems…and sometimes she should have more faith. This is the third book in the Surrender to Destiny trilogy, but I read it as a stand-alone book. (It works fine that way.) However, I liked it so much, I’m planning on reading the first two in the series, as well…just so I can get a complete picture of all the characters. This book is a sweet romance with an interesting historical backdrop. It definitely has a religious message, but it is never preachy. I think it was just what I needed at the moment. ( )

SURRENDER THE DAWN by MaryLu Tyndall is a inspirational historical romance and a wonderful third installment to "Surrender to Destiny" series,but can be read as a stand alone. It is set amid the War of 1812,in 1814 Baltimore,Maryland. See "Surrender the Heart",and "Surrender the Night".It is written with depth and details. The characters will not only capture your heart,they are enchanting,and engaging.It has faith,romance.love,redemptation, healing,betrayal,heartbreak,the future of a nation,liberty,a British invasion,destiny,a stuggle of attraction, adventure, suspense,danger,secrets and war. This story is about Cassandra Channing,a independent,and desperate to save her family.And Luke Heaton,a tortured soul,who spends his time drinking,gambling,the town rogue and has won a ship he wishes to get fit to sail and become a privateer. Together they will become entangled in a war,fight their growing attraction for each other,and get caught in a British invasion.This is a must read that is full of adventure,danger,secrets and the fight for liberty.This author has done it again with her passion for historical and adventurous stories.She has a art for written stories that will keep you reading all night and have in feeling as if you are indeed in the story. A keeper from beginning to end. This book was received for the purpose of review from the author and the publisher.Details can be found at Barbour Publishing. ( )

Cassandra Channing finds herself in the position of caring for her mother and sisters. She has money to invest but no one will allow to because she's a woman. Left with little choice she aligns herself with Captain Luke Heaton, privateer, also know as the town rogue. Luke enjoys gambling and the taste of rum to bury the ghosts that seem to haunt him. In a game of piquet he wins a ship that needs repairs but then loses the money needed to repair it. He's delighted when Cassandra offers to invest in his ship. He can finally work closely with the woman he has always loved from afar. Cassandra has strong feelings toward Luke but is apprehensive about trusting him. Her friend Noah Brenin assures her that Luke is a good man. When circumstances arise that cause Cassandra to question what Luke is really up she gets involved in way more than she bargained for.

Surrender the Dawn is the story I have waited for. We first met Luke Heaton in Surrender the Heart when his position was Noah's first mate. I admit I was drawn in by his roguish way and have been waiting for his story. I was not disappointed! Though rough around the edges he definitely won my heart. I totally enjoyed the banter between Cassandra and Luke. I sometimes wanted to shake Cassandra for her 'quick-to-think-the-worst' attitude. But I know I can be guilty of that as well. The theme running through the story is 'whatever happens to us, be it good or bad, is for our best interest and that God is good ALL the time'. A great thing to remember in our troubled times. One thing I always appreciate about MaryLu's writing is the amount of research she does. I love the way she brings history to life in a living breathing story. In this particular installment there is a special appearance of someone famous on the ship toward the end of the book which I thought was a really neat touch. Great job MaryLu! This is the third book in the Surrender to Destiny Series. It can be read as a stand alone but I would definitely recommend you start with book one, Surrender the Heart, then book 2, Surrender the Night for a much richer reading experience. A thank you goes to the author and publisher for this complimentary copy for my review. ( )

As it states in the beginning of this book, MaryLu's "passion is to write page-turning, romantic adventures that not only entertain but expose Christians to their full potential in Christ", and this book totally lives up to this! I have never been disappointed in reading any of this author's books. This story can be read as a stand alone, but I highly recommend you don't just read this story, but start with books 1 and 2 first, because she ties in the characters from the other books so well in this story and you will be glad you read the other books first. There is action, adventure, romance and high seas battles that will keep you interested and turning the pages until the very end.

Cassandra Channing is trying to hold her family together during the War of 1812 (her father and brothers are gone and she is trying to support her mother and two younger sisters). She takes all the money she owns and buys into the privateer ship that the town rogue, Luke Heaton has won while gambling. Cassandra doesn't exactly trust Luke and Luke does have his problems, but he is a man of his word. The problem with Luke is, he doesn't believe he is any good, especially for the lovely Cassandra (who has a temper and a mind of her own, with very little fear or forethought to her actions). So the drama begins with these two characters and it is quite an adventure. I think the theme or lesson I took from this story was captured by the author with these words from one of the characters in this adventure, "I have seen God's destiny in action. His plans are good. . . . They don't always make sense at the time, but in the end they are always good." Both Cassandra and Luke will come to see the answer to these questions in their life . . "Was life merely just happenstance? Just a thread of chaotic events? Or were there reasons for everything that happened? A plan? A purpose?" Another good job by MaryLu Tyndall!
(And I loved the picture of Dexter, the dog, at the end of the book; exactly how I had him pictured in my mind!)

This was a series that is well worth your time for some high seas adventure and lots of romantic challenges. I want to thank the author and Barbour Publishing for sending me this book for review. I am very grateful, but it did not in any way influence my 4 star review. ( )