She smiled, and James felt his heart turn.

Lt. James Trevenen spent 5yrs marooned on an island.
Susannah Park married below her station, had her husband die before she even gave birth, and has been ostracized ever since.

Maybe because I recently read one of her books, this felt like a Balogh with some Milan. Y'all, the tongue-in-cheek humor and wit is top notch here. This is also told mostly from the hero's pov, which helped to give it a fresh spin.

"Maybe it's this way, son---when we have no choice, we may as well be brave."

James has PTSD from what he had to do to survive and thinks he is haunted by another survivor of the original shipwreck. James' story of survival is spread out throughout the story until we get the ultimate grizzly details of how he became the lone survivor. It's rough, disturbing, and courageous stuff to read and I enjoyed how the author didn't shy away from James' emotions. He was a hero who was witty, courageous, strong, utterly capable, and kind; he's a sexy one.

Susannah plays a little bit of second fiddle to James but her calm, vulnerable, and solid demeanor made her a perfect complement to him. Her family dynamics were a secondary character that wonderfully filled this story with even more emotions and relationship nuances. I'm also not the biggest fan of children in stories but Susannah's son Noah was a fun character and their relationship and the one that develops between Noah and James was delightful.

The romance between James and Susannah started off as smoke that slowly but surely was tended into a sparking burning pleasing fire. They were such a lovely engaging couple to follow along with. The wit provides a lighter tone while James feeling haunted and Susannah coming back from scandal with society and her family (Susannah and her sister's relationship brought a tear to my eye at the end) provide the heavier emotional load. The secondary characters here add a lot and show how much a story can be enhanced when giving attention to the details. This was a refreshing, engaging, and just plain lovely story.

As she stood watching, he turned and blew her a kiss. You're a rascal, she thought. ( )

Beau was stranded on a desert island, and finally rescued by missionaries & brought back the England. Now he's to receive a medal for his story about hermit crabs, and a local family pawns him off on another family with an eligible daughter. Neither has an intention of marrying, but are thrown together by circumstances ( )

Another great Carla Kelly love story! And unlike many romances, the story is told primarily from the hero's point of view. James is haunted by his experiences after being shipwrecked and stranded five years on a deserted island. He studied the native crabs on the island, wrote a treatise, and now has returned to London to be awarded a medal by the royal society.

Through a series of humorous adventures, he becomes known in society as Beau Crusoe, and all of London wants his company. He, however, would rather spend time with Susannah Park, his London host's goddaughter. That host is in ill health and has fobbed off James on Susannah's family. (And here the real-life renowned botanist Sir Joseph Banks plays a major role.)

Both James and Susannah are damaged, yet both are brave, resilient, and full of good humor. The secondary characters are deftly drawn, and each one serves a definite purpose in the overall plot.

This is a beautiful love story between two very real people. Highly recommended. ( )

http://reneereads.blogspot.com/2007/04/beau-crusoe-by-carla-kelly.html ( )

I adore Carla Kelly's books, in general ... but WHAT THE HELL WAS SHE THINKING???

All I can assume is that she had a drunken bet with someone, that she could sell the most tasteless book imaginable and STILL find a publisher. And if that really happened, then more power to her. ( )