Exciting, Exotic Adventure with a Strong Female Lead

After a lot of non-fiction reads lately, I was hungry for a good fictional tale. Keturah caught my eye - tropical cover, interesting name. Sugar plantations on the island of Nevis? Cool!

Keturah is the first novel in "The Sugar Baron's Daughters" series, focusing on three sisters who suddenly become heiresses of their father's estates. In this book, the an effort to preserve their heritage, Keturah, Verity, and Selah sail to the foreign, beautiful shores of Nevis and their eyes are opened to slavery, poverty, abuse, and much more that exists beyond the friendly confines of their English estate.

Keturah is an interesting character. She is a powerful, independent woman who attempts to take charge of her and her sisters' lives in a man's world (instead of giving into marriage as an attempt to live). She faces obstacles from the beginning; on the ship traveling the ocean, when they arrive at Tabletop, their family plantation, and managing their first crop of sugar.

I really enjoyed this book - it was like an exotic trip back in time (and just the escape I needed from a wintry weekend!). Everything was exciting; the sisters' sailing journey, the beauty of the shores of Nevis, the characters on the island (at Tabletop and around). I felt myself cheering for Keturah and her sisters as they fought against difficult odds--including other barons on the island.

The book had a bit of romance as well. If you enjoy that in a novel, you'll like this one even more.

Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.