“No Safe Harbor” by Elizabeth Ludwig

It was a cold and snowy day when I began to read this latest book sent to me to review. I had never read anything by author Elizabeth Ludwig before so I was anxious to get started.
They always say the sign of a talented writer is the ability to capture the readers’ interest quickly. It took only a couple sentences before Ludwig had me hook, line and sinker.

“No Safe Harbor” is a fictional romance set in the late 1800’s which begins as Cara Hamilton arrives at Ellis Island. Cara is a young, Irish woman who has set sail from Liverpool in order to come to America in search of her brother. It takes very little time before she starts encountering several helpful people.

Douglas Healy recommends her to the boarding house of Amelia Matheson and she meets the attentive and attractive Rourke Walsh who takes the time to escort her there. Cara Hamilton is cultured, well brought up and moral and finds the surroundings of New York both rough and crude. But with her personal determination and the help of several interesting characters she sets out on her quest to find her brother.

But things (and people) are not all that they appear. There are other people also looking for her brother and the meeting with Mr. Walsh was no accident. Yet Rourke’s owns purpose becomes cloudy when he develops feelings for Cara and is torn between spying on her in the hope she will lead him to her brother and his desire to protect her from his malevolent employers.

Elizabeth Ludwig unwinds the knots of Cara’s life with an easy flow of prose and sense of intrigue. Her characters are drawn from life as well as her knowledge of human nature and the unexpected turns life takes when God is involved.
 
Ludwig seems a little light in the details and knowledge of this era in New York history but her perfect balance between romance and mystery and the steady and pleasant rhythm of her writing makes it an enjoyable read.

Elizabeth Ludwig

 
I not only recommend you read “No Safe Harbor” but suggest you pick a time when you will be undisturbed and wish to relax as you allow Elizabeth Ludwig lead you into a suspenseful yet encouraging retreat.

This is Book One in the “Edge of Freedom” series so, if you enjoy it, keep watch for Book Two.

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It rates 8 out of 10 “Secret Christian Fishies”.

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