A Turn of the Tide: A Victorian time-travel pirate romance

Kelley Armstrong

Oct 2022 · A Stitch in Time Book 3 · KLA Fricke Inc

About this ebook

In Thorne Manor there is one locked door. Behind it lies a portal to the twenty-first century, and nothing is going to stop Miranda Hastings from stepping through. After all, she is a Victorian writer of risqué pirate adventures—traveling to the future would be the greatest adventure of them all. 

When Miranda goes through, though, she lands in Georgian England…and in the path of Nicolas Dupuis, a privateer accused of piracy. Sheltered by locals, Nico is repaying their kindness by being their “pirate Robin Hood,” stealing from a corrupt lord and fencing smuggled goods on the village’s behalf.

Miranda embraces Nico’s cause, only to discover there’s more to it than he realizes. Miranda has the second sight, and there are ghosts at play here. The recently deceased former lord is desperate to stop his son from destroying his beloved village. Then there’s the ghost of Nico’s cabin boy, who he thought safe in a neighboring city. Miranda and Nico must solve the mystery of the boy’s death while keeping one step ahead of the hangman.

It may not be the escapade Miranda imagined, but it is about to be the adventure of a lifetime.

Ratings and reviews

I loved the first two books in the series and A turn of the tide was just as good! Miranda, Rosalind's sister goes through the stitch expecting to show up in the future but somehow winds up in the past...and meets the man who she has seen as a ghost in her time. I loved the pairing of Miranda and Nico! They have great chemistry together and I love their interactions with each other! While this book can be read as a stand alone, I definitely suggest reading them in order.

I love Kelley Armstrong's work, and with the Stitch in Time series as my current favourite it left my hopes and expectations very high for this third installment. To say the least, I was not at all disappointed! A few chapters in I realized that this book has everything I could possibly want in one place - pirates, time travel, ghosts, murder, adventure, mystery, and an epic love story... quickly moving onto my pile of favourites to be read over and over again with other much loved tales like The Princess Bride. I've already read it twice! I was worried about shifting to new characters yet again, having loved Bronwyn & William and Rosalind & August so much that I hated to part with them, but Miranda & Nico pulled me right in and were an excellent addition to the series. I am amazed by how Kelley can write each character with such distinct personalities yet have them all fit collectively into a story without feeling like they're forced. They all shine on their own while flowing together to make me feel like I am right there and part of the action. Honestly I can't decide which of the characters I want to revisit most in the next full length book, but luckily I don't have to choose with the holiday novella Ghosts and Garland featuring Miranda & Nico coming out in November!

I must admit, I was a bit skeptical going into this book. I mean, really, how many ways can Ms. Armstrong tell a time-travel, mystery, romance/ghost story? Turns out, it's at least three. While I'm not sure I can say I liked it better than book one, this installment definitely made me gasp, squeal, laugh, and generally explode with absolute delight in a way book two didn't. (Don't get me wrong, I loved Rosalind's story as well, but I had a harder time getting into the romance and mystery). I absolutely loved Miranda's story, though. Not only was she an amazing protagonist (confident, snarky, plus-sized, 19th century woman secretly making a living penning romance/adventure novels?? yes please), Nico was a great love interest. Sure, he may have verged on too good to be true at times, but a charming, attractive French pirate Robin Hood is just too good to resist. The chemistry was electric, and the romance was well-balanced with the action-packed plotline. All that to say, this book was a great time. It was just such a fun read, and while it may not be one you can really think too much about (time travel ripple effects are of no concern in this world), it's a charming, fun, romantic, fast-paced adventure with a good dose of humor and a hint of spooky ghostliness. This series is definitely one of my favorite comfort reads, as it's always sure to put a smile on my face and allow a few moments of escapism into a delightful romance. I received a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Huge thank you to the author!

About the author

Kelley Armstrong believes experience is the best teacher, though she’s been told this shouldn’t apply to writing her murder scenes. To craft her books, she has studied aikido, archery and fencing. She sucks at all of them. She has also crawled through very shallow cave systems and climbed half a mountain before chickening out. She is however an expert coffee drinker and a true connoisseur of chocolate-chip cookies.

Armstrong is the author of the Rockton thriller series, standalone thrillers beginning with Wherever She Goes, and the Royal Guide to Monster Slaying middle-grade fantasy series. Past works include the Otherworld urban fantasy series, the Cainsville gothic mystery series, the Nadia Stafford thriller trilogy, the Darkest Powers & Darkness Rising teen paranormal series and the Age of Legends teen fantasy series.