The Redemption review and pirate poem contest!

The Redemption By M.L. Tyndall / Barbour Publishing

Welcome! After you've read my review and the Q & A with MaryLu Tyndall, please enter my contest! Post a pirate-y poem less than 100 words in the comment section for a chance to win a free copy of The Redemption! The winner will be placed in the drawing for the grand prize: two tickets to see Dead Man's Chest!

Fans of romance, historicals, or Caribbean pirate lore will love this tale. Set to release soon after the movie Dead Man’s Chest, it contains familiar pirate-y elements such as sword fighting, shipwrecks, hangings, cannons and swarthy sea-faring men. Not to mention a fair lady in distress who is taken captive by the most handsome pirate she’s ever seen. Weave in faith, hope, perseverance, and yes, redemption, and you’ve got an action-packed yet heart-warming story.

Charlisse Bristol runs away from an abusive uncle in search of a father she’s not sure is even alive. She will brave any obstacle to feel his loving arms around her just once. But when the merchant vessel that carries her is destroyed in a storm, she finds herself shipwrecked on a small island alone for weeks.

Just when she has lost hope of rescue, a band of pirates arrives and makes camp on shore. She sees no alternative but to sneak in unnoticed in hopes of satiating her empty stomach. Her plan foiled, she is captured and brought to the captain of the ship, Edmund Merrick. But all is not as it seems. Merrick may be rough around the edges, but his honor won’t allow Charlisse any harm. In fact, he resolves to protect her until she can find her father.

Can Charlisse see past Merrick’s seemingly horrid occupation to the heart? Will she be able to put the past behind her and accept what her search yields? Where will she ultimately find love in the sea of deceit that surrounds her?

My hat goes off to MaryLu Tyndall for causing me to enjoy a romance novel. I can’t remember the last time I’ve read one, as I prefer supernatural and high suspense thrillers. But my fascination with the Pirates of the Caribbean proved to heighten my enjoyment of this novel. It is well-written, interesting, and carries a fresh twist to the conventional pirate story.

(Q&A with MaryLu Tyndall:)

1.) Tell us a bit about the story.

My story begins with a horrific storm at sea in which Lady Charlisse Bristol becomes shipwrecked on an island. She has run away from an abusive uncle in London and sailed to the Caribbean in search of a father she has never known. After weeks of combating the elements, her salvation comes in the form of a band of pirates and their fiercely handsome leader, Edmund Merrick.

Captain Merrick has only recently given his life to God and turned his back on a life of piracy to become a privateer. While battling his attraction to this winsome lady and learning to walk a more godly path, he offers to help Charlisse on her quest-until he discovers her father is none other than Edward the Terror, the cruellest pirate on the Caribbean. Edmund must find a way to win this lady's love while shielding her from his lecherous crew and working to bring her father to justice.

2.) What sparked the idea to write about pirates?

I've always had an obsession for pirates-those swashbuckling heroes who roamed the wild Caribbean seas in their tall ships. The Golden Age of Piracy was such an adventurous and romantic time in our history, and having grown up in that part of the world-south Florida-it grabbed my interest at an early age. What sparked the idea for the novel, however, was the Disney movie, Pirates of the Caribbean. After I saw it several times with my daughter, I had a desire to write about pirates that wouldn't go away. Why do the evil pirates get to have all the fun? Why not write about a Christian pirate?

3.) As you researched this subject, what most surprised you?

The biggest surprise for me was discovering that not all pirates were vicious thieves and murderers. Many, in fact, were commissioned by their countries during times of war to disturb merchant shipping lines and fleet movements, and in general to play havoc with their enemies. In fact, one of the most notorious pirate captains, Henry Morgan, commanded his own fleet of pirate ships, called the Brethren of the Coast, whose sole purpose was to raid Spanish ships and towns in the Caribbean. He was eventually knighted by King Charles II of England and became the governor of Jamaica. These facts aided my story a great deal as many of these pirates, who turned privateers, had strong religious convictions.

4.) How long did it take to write your first novel?

I began writing The Redemption in the Fall of 2003, but it was slow going at first. I was working full time as a software engineer, not to mention my responsibilities at home as wife and mother. I'm sure many of you can relate. There just doesn't seem to be enough hours in the day! Consequently, I did not complete the novel until early Spring 2005, yet I still didn't feel it was ready. I hadn't written in a while and needed some counsel, so I hired two editors to go through my manuscript, and I entered four contests for the feedback. I made the final cut in two of those contests and felt encouraged, but I must admit, I learned a great deal more from my editors. By the end of Spring 2005, I had polished the manuscript the best I could and went looking for an agent. God's timing is always perfect. I was laid off from my job of fifteen years the same month my agent took me on as a client and began submitting The Redemption. By September of that same year, I had a contract in hand from Barbour for the entire three book series!

5.) How long must we wait for the sequel?

Not long! The second book in the series, The Reliance, will be released in January 2007, and the third book, The Restitution, will be out in stores, June, 2007. As you can tell, I've been very busy!