I LOVE THIS BOOK!!!!! lol My uncle gave me this book years ago because he got it in the mail (forgot to send in the card)but didn't want it. Well I was captured in an instant and fasinated with the whole book. Then I lost it...don't know how but over the years I did. Then online I checked to see if it was anywhere and bingo..Amazon. Thank you very much Amazon for taking me back to that island.

This is a fabulous book! Laurie McBain writes in a style that keeps you interested from cover to cover. This book has an engaging story filled with great history, lots of exciting adventure and of course, romance of the kind you dream of. I was able to completely lose myself in this book and have read it several times.

This is the best book I have ever read. I fell in love with thedashing Valentine. Everytime I read this book I get chills down myspine.

By the day she was Lady Sabrina Verrick, exquisite belle of high society. By night she was a criminal, Bonni Charlie, the lawless highwayman whose notoriety rang the length and breadth of the 18th century England.

Wounded and on the run, hunted like an animal through the night, Sabrina's wild career drove her at last into the power of one man who was not afriad to tame her. Brutal, arrogant, he would hurt her, betray her, subdue her free spirit - but never admit that he loved her... (text refers to book's back cover)

A very enjoyable book. Action packed and sensual too. I really enjoyed reading it. One of the best. I highly recommend it.

I read this book years ago in my late teens and literally reread it over and over until it fell apart. I am now trying to obtain another copy and hope very much to find one. This story is absolutely perfect. A strong female heroine, with a lot of vitality, proves to be humorous match for the devil-may-care hero. Absolutely love the highwayman(woman) scenerio. A must read for any romantic genre lover!

A wonderful tale of a young women and her family strugling to make ends meet, when she decides to take up highway robbery. What follows is an entertaining, rich and complete story that will stay with you and make you smile for years to come. Laurie McBain is one of those authors you will collect and teasure.

This book is the second one I had the pleasure to read written by Laurie Mcbain. Being hooked by the first book I read by Laurie Mcbain (Tears of Gold)I immediately rushed to the library to see if she had written other books , that's how I found this magnificent book. The book tells the story of lady Rhea Claire Dominick , firstborn daughter of Sabrina and Lucien Dominick who are the duchess and duke of Camareigh. First you should know this is the 2nd installment in the "Moonstruck Madness" series which featured Rhea's mother Sabrina and her fateful meeting with Lucien , Rhea's father. The thing I liked the most about this books was that the hero and heroine complimented eachother perfectly. Rhea was the perfect woman for Dante , she was sweet , gentle , caring and totally innocent of the evils in the world , while Dante was worldweary and distrustful of people because in the past he was betrayed by someone he trusted above all else. But Rhea's innocence and purity of spirit somehow fascinate him , slowly he begins to fall in love with her till the point he doesn't care as much about his revenge as he wants Rhea and her love that badly. But Rhea keeps her distance confused by her feelings for Dante , captain of the Sea Dragon(a pirate ship)and a marquis in a former lifetime. If you get your hands on any of Laurie Mcbain's books , GET THEM! They're totally worth it. Oh before I forget it there's a 3rd book in this series it's called "Dark before the rising Sun" it continues the story of Rhea and Dante and is, if possible, even better than "Chance the winds of Fortune"

This wonderful book has long been out of print, but remains a favorite of mine. It is second in a trilogy of books: "Moonstruck Madness" "Chance the Winds of Fortune" and "Dark Before the Rising Sun." If you have the chance to find these wonderful books on Ebay, or in a used bookstore, get them.

Moonstruck Madness covers the life of Sabrina Verrick, the mother of the heroine, Rhea Claire, in the other two books. It is not totally necessary, but does provide background into the family's life.

Rhea Claire was a gently raised young English lady given every advantage. She is abducted and winds up on a sailing ship where she meets Dante Leighton. She manages to win the hearts of the crew, as well as Dante. They fall in love and are eventually married (after much heartbreak and problems.)

Fans of current romance may remember the dark days of the 1970s where the hero raped and pillaged the heroine and the only sort of chemistry was nasty and out of sorts. The heroine was always headstrong and usually a pirate or something. Upon reading these books, I could never figure out why the hero and heroine had not just killed each other. They never seemed to particularly like each other, much less love each other. Laurie McBain changed all that. Rhea Claire was a sweet gentle heroine, who was truly likeable. She and Dante truly had problems and obstacles to overcome, but it was clear to the readers they truly liked each other.

Dark Before the Rising Sun continues the story of Rhea Claire and Dante's marriage. Dante has problems with his past which must be overcome. You must read "Chance the Winds of Fortune" before beginning this book or it will make no sense.

Do yourself a favor if you read romances and find these wonderful books. Laurie McBain has not gotten the credit she richly deserves for being one of the pioneers of the early historical romance. Read these books, as well as her others to see why she was such a wonderful writer.

This is the third book that started with Moonstruck Madness followed by Chances the Winds of Fortune. This book starts out with Rhea and Dante returning to England. And the couple starting their new life together at his estate where he reclaims his title. Great reading...this book keeps you interested. Rhea's devotion and love to Dante and his to hers is just beautifully written. Plus their is a surprise ending.

Tears of Gold is a great romance that will truly touch your heart. I remeber finding it at a flea market years ago and grabbing it so i could try out romance books. well tears of gold has definately got me hooked on romance!its a great read, the only negative thing i can say about this book is that i didnt really "feel" Nicholas as a character, i thought laurie mcbain could have done more to make him more alive. but other than that i highly recommend the book. you guys should also try reading Kathleen E Woodiwiss, and Rosemary Rogers two of the finest romance book authors, in my opinion

Tears of Gold is one of the first romance novels I read when I was a teenager, and is still a standard I hold up to more modern books. I think I read the entire book in less than a weekend, and proceded to re-read it several times (I still have my origanal copy!). I loved Mara and Nicholas, as well as the other characters. Even after all these years, I can recall stunning scenes forever frozen in my imagination (the jelly scene just sizzled!). The ending was a great tear-jerker. Twenty years later, I would still recommend this book for anyone who enjoys romance.

All great books transcend their genre, and "Tears of Gold" is no exception. It's an excellent romance novel, but it's also an excellent novel, period. I usually balk at the unrealistic plots and over-the-top prose of romance novels, but Laurie McBain does a great job with "Tears of Gold." It's the first romance novel I read, and I've never read a better one. It's about Mara O'Flynn, a beautiful Irish actress who is pursued halfway around the world by Nicholas Chantale, a handsome Creole adventurer. The novel follows them from California at the time of the gold rush to San Francisco to New Orleans. It's a long novel, but you'll be swept along by the rich, vivid settings and the thrilling plot. Also, Laurie McBain is the only romance writer I've read who can describe the beauty of her protagonists without resorting to cliche or overdoing the flowery words. For me, she is the gold standard in romance novels--not that I've read many besides this one. But even hard-core romance enthusiasts won't fail to be moved by the last few chapters of the book, which lead up to a most satisfying ending, and will jerk more than a few tears. I know I cried every time I read this book. It's a masterpiece.

This book has small print and 678 pages. I read the first 100 pages and quit. Such tedious details of boring conversations, etc. No wonder the author filled 678 pages. She has a talent for details, UNNECESSARY DETAILS! WAS BORING!

It is a long story but it is a good love story. Since I have already read the book many times, I do skip the beginning pages when I re-read the book. It is a bit detailed in the beginning but it sets up the characters for a new reader. It is worth more than .01 .. it's worth at least as much as today's prices if not more. The story takes the main characters through the civil war and than to the west with a bit of mystery. One of my all time favorite writers .. I have two copies of this book (in case I lose one)! Her other books are good too .. try Tears of Gold and Moonstruck Madness.

Great characters and a great time. We loved the heros and the supporting ones who made this a book to read again and again

This was a good book, and in fact one of the first romances I ever read. But neither character was too likeable I believe. He was an arrogant dictator far too used to getting his own way, and used Elysia quite cruelly often without feeling very remorseful until the end, and even then I don't feel he fully apologized for all. Elysia was often too stubborn to the point where she would cut off her nose to spite her face. In any event, I felt the two were well-matched, and seldom did Alex say or do anything that he didn't pay for in the long run, thanks to Elysia. Some things he said and did in revenge could have been unforgiveable, but in his defense, often he didn't realize that some of the things Elysia did was in protection of her own brother, instead of a lover as Alex thought. But romance did triumph in the end, and I certainly did feel the romance. A marginal recommendation.
Cyndi

I quite enjoyed this book, however, Alex was not quite "sorry" enough about what he had done, which in my opinion is very appalling and almost unforgivable. Elysia was too forgiving anyway, and for a woman who was supposed to have spirit, she should have been extremely angry at least for a couple more days! It is my belief that when it comes to romance, suffering has to go through several stages of "pain and suffering" before the problem is ever solved. In other words, Elysia should have had the chance to give Alex as much grief as he gave her. Aunt Agatha should have played more into the book and she was a perfect enemy to gain revenge upon. The plot was really interesting although it was a little too predictable, which seems to be consistent with most of the romance novels I've read lately.

This is another of those first historical romances that I read when I was a teenager. I recently re-read it to see if it still holds up. I think it does and is even better than some of what is being written today.

OK, Alex is the epitomy of the selfish manipulative rogue. Everything he does is for a selfish purpose. But you slowly start to realize that deep down, he does have some redeeming qualities that have just been in hibernation for years. Spending all his time in "the ton" with all the useless aristocrats has jaded him to the point that the only person he has any tender feeling for is his younger brother Peter who he has basically raised. You also learn that he had to take on some serious responsibilities at a very young age with the death of their parents. Alex sees little to respect in most of the people he meets and so it takes some time for him to see what Elysia can offer him. He can't believe she's for real and yes, he does use her for his own ends.

Elysia is an orphan. Her parents are dead and her brother, who is in the Royal Navy, is missing and presumed dead. She has no one and is living with an evil aunt who makes her work for her keep. Elysia finally has enough of this abuse and packs up her meager belongings and sets off to London to try and make a better life for herself. Along the way she stops at an inn and meets up with Alex. They immediately argue and disagree over life and love and sparks fly. When they are caught in a "scandalous" situation created by another guest (who hates and wants revenge on Alex for a past wrong) Alex ruthlessly manipulates Elysia into marrying him as her only option to emerge from the scandal unscathed. Alex figures on marrying Elysia, taking her to his country estate in Cornwall and basically dumping her there and forgetting about her (except of course, she'll have to provide an heir at some point).

But Alex does not immediately return to London and as time passes, he starts to see what she is all about. She's good, kind, sweet, loyal - things that Alex had thought didn't exist, or not genuinely, anyway. And he is uncomfortable with the things he is starting to feel for his wife and wonders if she is feeling the same. He tests her by trying to make her jealous with his former mistress. He rages when he mistakenly believes that Elysia is having an affair and breaks one of the few keepsakes Elysia had from her late parents (I cried at that scene!).

Alex lashes out because Elysia awakens in him feelings he thought himself incapable of and that he believes are not returned. Feelings that he tries to deny, but ultimately, he has to admit that he loves her, that he's used her unmercifully and has to beg her forgiveness or lose her. So, OK to some it may seem like I'm letting Alex off too easy, but hey, I liked him even being a jerk! You just knew instinctively that there was more to him.

Then there's the smugglers, spies for Napoleon, and deadly traitors in their midst making things all the more dangerous.

I realize this book is likely hard to find, being so old, but give it a try and see what you think. You might like it as much as I did.