Beloved Captive by Kathleen Y'Barbo - My Review

Originally Posted at Bibliophile's Retreat by Melissa Meeks

Barbour Publishing, Inc (November 1, 2008)
This was my introduction to Kathleen Y'Barbo as an author though I have worked with her in her role as Publicist for nearly a year. I fell in love with Isabelle and Emilie from nearly the first page and have added Beloved Castaway to my Wishlist as I am now "obsessed" with reading more about Isabelle than the bit readers are treated to in this book.

Emilie and Isabelle receive a letter from their father requesting a post-haste visit so he might tell them the truth of their pasts and explain his will (if he lasts till they get there). If he is unable to speak with them then his lawyer gets this oh-so-coveted task. We shortly find out that Emilie was never privy to the contents of these letters as Isabelle burnt the lot once she was aware of the news they held. We also discover that Isabelle is expecting or recently bore her first child when the summons arrive so Emilie travels with the Pastor of their local church on Fairweather Key (an old friend of her father's) back to the mainland in answer to Jean Gayarre's deathbed call. What secrets will Emilie discover when the whole truth is revealed and how will she and her "sister" respond to their true identities?

The adventure, action, romance and suspense in this story are palpable within the first few chapters and beyond. Emilie, Isabelle and their families along with the residents of tiny Fairweather Key have been scripted by a pen which breathes life into every sentence and transports readers to the lushness of the Caribbean and Florida's Key Islands. I look forward not only to reading Isabelle's story in Beloved Castaway (the previous book) but also to meeting others in the next book to come in this series. (ISBN#9781602602304, 304pp, $10.97)