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"Watchkeeper offers elements of mystery and adventure"

Gwendolyn had high hopes of a second honeymoon when she planned a getaway weekend in Charleston, S.C. with her husband, Roger. But Roger had other ideas for the weekend, as Gwen finds out when he presents her with divorce papers. Roger has an accident in the shower that leads to his death before Gwen has signed the papers. Gwen, a practicing witch, has seen necromancy performed by her grandmother, but she has cast this particular spell herself. When she does, it isn't Roger who comes back into the body though, but the legendary gentleman pirate, Stede Bonnet, who hadn't reached the "other side" after his hanging 300 years ago. Stede gets ready to leave when his archrival Blackbeard appears and threatens the soul of Gwen's grandmother if Stede doesn't let him have the body.

As she begins to fall for Stede, Gwen realizes she never truly loved Roger or she would have given herself wholly to him. Stede, a consummate womanizer, never wanted one woman enough to marry her. The two plan to see if there is any way to return Bonnet to the body, so they can be together. Blackbeard has other plans, and Gwen's grandmother's soul lies in the balance.

Debra Glass has created an intriguing story in Watchkeeper. A skeptic at heart, and perhaps I've just never experienced instant love, I had to suspend some disbelief in order to get past Stede and Gwen falling for each other so quickly. Anyone fascinated with pirates and/or history will enjoy the story, which also offers elements of mystery and adventure as well. Glass's descriptions of Charleston make one want to hop on a plane to experience the city oneself.

Glass paced the novel quite well although in some places the sex overshadowed the story, and I wanted to get back to the plot. She writes stimulating sex scenes, but sometimes less is really more. With her difficult past and dependence on Roger make Gwen an interesting character, she didn't have the depth I like to see in heroines. Stede, too, lacked a fullness of character, although he came alive for me more than Gwen. Glass has a clean, crisp writing style and her dialogue rings true. Fans of historical paranormal romance will enjoy this story.

Reviewed by Katherine Petersen
Posted January 12, 2009

When Gwendolyn Wyse booked a room at a bed and breakfast in romantic Charleston, South Carolina, she'd hoped to rekindle the flame in her cold, unresponsive husband. What she didn't expect were divorce papers — or her husband's untimely death.

Shocked and desperate, Gwen relies on her background as a witch and her knowledge of magic, invoking the rite of twilight to bring her husband's soul back from the dead. But nothing prepares her for the swashbuckling spirit who answers her call — Stede Bonnet, the gentleman pirate who died on that very spot three centuries prior and who now possesses her husband's body.

Stede offers Gwen all the passion she never had with her husband. But when the pirate lays claim to her heart, Gwen must choose between the man she loves and the demands of Stede's mortal enemy, a villainous spirit with the power to take away everything Gwen holds most dear — including her pirate lover.

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