Dark Tides

At the close of the War Between the States Rachel Montgomery journeys across the Pacific to be with a man she met and knew for only ten short days, not all of them the most pleasant. Rachel first met Drew Phillips when he was a patient in the hospital she nursed at. The couple quickly bonded and in the waning days of the War Drew joined Rachel for a visit at her home. Tall, dark with a quick wit that attracted her to him, Drew proposed to Rachel. A practical woman she agreed to come to his home, visit and see if they suited. True to her promise she journeyed to San Francisco and then on to his home in Hawaii. Upon her arrival though, secrets between them come to light. Unbeknownst to Rachel, Drew is a widower, his wife having died tragically in a boating accident. Perhaps even more disconcerting is his unmentioned twin, Jordan. Identical in looks, their personalities are nothing alike, yet it is the dark and brooding Jordan who kindles the fires of passion in Rachel, not the man she journeyed across an ocean to be with. An unspoken tension brews between the men, but not only because of Rachel. Something sinister lurks in the very air around them, something may claim Rachel’s life before she can unravel the mystery of the Phillips family.

Irene Pascoe’s Dark Tides transports the reader to the Hawaiian Islands of the late nineteenth century. She paints a rich tale as the birds, flowers and other delights of the islands are in such vivid detail the reader will feel he or she is there viewing the natural beauty of the islands. Ms. Pascoe teases the sense so divinely this reviewer was sure she could smell the scent of the exquisite flowers of the islands and cunning sachets Kalani brings to Rachel’s room. She pulls at the reader’s palette with her descriptions of the tasty foods served at each meal. Ms. Pascoe has a true gift in her ability to create scenes that draw in each of the reader’s senses and make him or her feel a part of the action.

Each character is draw so completely it is easy to see each one come to life on the pages of the story. Drawing on her uniquely successful skill of writing in the first person, the reader experiences each emotion there and then with Rachel. This reviewer was unsure which brother would have won her own heart simply from how Rachel’s feelings for each were described. This reviewer is one of the first to shy away from stories told in the first person simply because so few are written well. Ms. Pascoe is amazing in how well she writes in this point of view that it must be a natural talent.

The attacks on Rachel are insidious, leaving the reader wondering, along with Rachel, if each incident is an innocent accident or some nefarious attack on her. Long after the last page is read the characters remain a force in the reader’s imagination.

There is nothing like a good Gothic romance on a rainy night when the lights flicker, casting shadows that tease the reader’s imagination. But you will not want to wait for a rainy night to dig into Dark Tides and experience the tale. If you have not tried a Pascoe novel, this is an excellent one to start with. If you think you are not a fan of Gothics, this reviewer encourages you to sample one with this incredibly well done book. Irene Pascoe’s writing is the kind you can quickly become addicted to, craving more and more.

September 2006