With the ship’s captain dead in Melbourne, Australia, Alice Packard thinks the worst has happened, until she learns the crew has deserted her husband’s ship in favor of the goldfields. Only one old man, Gypsy Deak, sticks by her, but Gypsy alone can’t raise a crew from the depleted population. In desperation, Alice turns to the only source of plentiful workers: the women of Melbourne. In a bold … bold move, she and Gypsy empty a brothel, promising the escaped women a new life. Her all-woman (save one) crew put their backs and hearts into the voyage, but Alice finds training her sailors much harder than she expected. Her faith is tested to the limit. With a cargo to sell, angry bordello and tavern owners in pursuit, pirates to evade, and a mysterious stowaway, the seafaring women of the Vera B. find their escape in question.
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The Seafaring Women of the Vera B explores the idea that a group of uninitiated women can sail an ocean-going vessel during the 1800s. I was skeptical at first, but I enjoy this author’s books, so thought I’d give the book a try. Well-written, the plot follows the female captain who gets creative trying to staff her empty ship. Her husband is dead, but she has no time to grieve since she has to deliver their cargo. Tough to do when the sailors have all abandoned ship to pan for gold. Her second-in-command is skeptical when she fills the jobs with a bunch of women, but he doesn’t count on the motivation, grit, and determination of these women, some of whom aren’t much older than girls. They make lots of mistakes and run into all kinds of problems on the open sea, which makes for an exciting read. There is a bit of violence (there are pirates after all) which I wasn’t crazy about, but that’s just my preference. With many characters it might be easy to get confused, but each one is complex and unique, making them easy to remember. I enjoyed the fact that I learned a lot about the era and sailing without the information being dry.
Showed women as being brave and capable of doing the unexpected. Great!
This is the first book I have read by Susan Page Davis where she co-wrote with her son James Davis. It was a little difficult to get into with all the nautical terminology. I did find it interesting and continued reading it. I must say it is well written and the characters develop along the way.
Alice Packard looses her husband to illness and his crew to the goldfields in Melbourne, Australia. She is left with one old crewman, Gypsy, and is forced to search out a new crew. She turns to the women of the night who wish to escape their miserable existence and leave Australia altogether. While he holds some reservations, Gypsy, agrees to train these women to be sailors.
Their journey to England and America is fraught with multiple perils, but these women have learned to work together and persevere. They come up against angry bordello and tavern owners in pursuit, pirates and a mysterious stowaway. What will become of the seafaring women of the Vera B? Who is this mysterious stowaway and is he/she going to be trouble? Will the ladies parish at the hands of pirates or learn to work together and overcome adversity? Read for yourself and see. Enjoy!
I received a copy of this book from the author without expectation of a positive review. I voluntarily review this book and the opinions are purely my own.
This book has everything you would expect from a seafaring adventure. Pirates, stowaways, and a crew of women. I love the premise of the book that has the women signing on as sailors to escape and make a better life for themselves. I could not put this book down.