ORDER A COPY: The Turncoat: Renegades of the Revolution
Publisher: NAL
Publishing Date: March 5, 2013
Paperback: 368 pages
Rating: DNF
They are lovers on opposite sides of a brutal war, with everything at stake and no possibility of retreat. They can trust no one—especially not each other.
Major Lord Peter Tremayne is the last man rebel bluestocking Kate Grey should fall in love with, but when the handsome British viscount commandeers her home, Kate throws caution to the wind and responds to his seduction. She is on the verge of surrender when a spy in her own household seizes the opportunity to steal the military dispatches Tremayne carries, ensuring his disgrace—and implicating Kate in high treason. Painfully awakened to the risks of war, Kate determines to put duty ahead of desire, and offers General Washington her services as an undercover agent in the City of Brotherly Love.
Months later, having narrowly escaped court martial and hanging, Tremayne returns to decadent, British-occupied Philadelphia with no stomach for his current assignment—to capture the woman he believes betrayed him. Nor does he relish the glittering entertainments being held for General Howe’s idle officers. Worse, the glamorous woman in the midst of this social whirl, the fiancée of his own dissolute cousin, is none other than Kate Grey herself. And so begins their dangerous dance, between passion and patriotism, between certain death and the promise of a brave new future together.
Kate Grey is a Quaker. Her father was once an important officer during the French/Indian war. When he is asked to return to duty at the side of Gen. George Washington, he leaves his daughter and their farm in the care of her “Aunt.” An aunt who turns out to be a very successful spy, code named The Widow, who has come to the farm to destroy Gen. Howe by stealing the plans that he is carrying for the British army. Only it is not Gen. Howe who arrives, but Major Peter Tremayne.
The very plain Kate has caught then attention of Maj. Tremayne. Unfortunately for Kate when the Widow steals the plans that the Major is carrying, Kate needs to escape the farm as well before she is held responsible for their loss.
Major Tremayne just survives his court martial and he has been brought to Philadelphia with a task that will redeem his honor. Find the spy known as The Widow who is still secreting information to Gen. Washington and the rebels.
THOUGHTS:
This story sounded very interesting to me and after I saw a youtube commercial for it, I knew I wanted to read it. Unfortunately I just wasn’t enjoying the characters. I read about 150 pages and then ended up putting my reader aside for two days. Now if I am not reading for two days, something is wrong. I gave the story another few chapters, but it just wasn’t drawing me in.
It seemed to be following actual battles from the revolutionary war, and if you know your history, I am sure if you would enjoy this more than I did.
I was under the impression that Peter and Kate spent time together and fell in love, except that they were on opposite sides of the revolution.
It was more that Peter’s unit stopped at the biggest house in the neighborhood to rest, which was Kate’s house and Peter barely noticed Kate until she started discussing the war and strategies with some passion. Now Peter decided Kate would do quite well to warm his bed for the night. He seemed to have no concern that she was a simple and unwed Quaker girl. He took something from her and wouldn’t return it to her unless she left her door unlocked that night. One of his own officers tried to intervene on behalf of Kate, and Peter simply knocked him out of the way.
Although Peter is called away to check on a burning farmhouse, and their whole interaction comes down to one stolen kiss, it appears that it is enough to keep Peter from turning Kate in during his court martial and he does not turn her in as a spy upon his return to Philadelphia. He wants in her bed to buy his silence, even though she is now engaged to his cousin. A position she is using to collect information and pass on to The Widow. She is engaged to this officer who had no problems pillaging locals farms and not raping, but coercing with threats of arrest and burning homes, the local women to have sex with him and his officers. Peter is now above that kind of action, although that was just what he was doing to Kate not too long ago.
I just couldn’t get into this story. I didn’t enjoy the characters and in the almost 200 pages I read, I just didn’t feel any romance. Although I can count on one hand the number of books I abandoned without finishing, it comes down to having too long a TBR list to force myself to finish this one.
