Surgeon’s Mate

Collison’s second novel in the Patricia MacPherson Nautical Adventure series (after Barbados Bound) is both a stirring historical adventure and timely commentary on gender inequality. The story picks up in October 1762 aboard the English Navy frigate Richmond on a mission from Barbados to Havana, where Patricia Kelley has assumed the identity of her dead husband’s deceased nephew, Patrick, in order to be one of two surgeon’s mates, a position off limits to women. Ship’s gunner Brian Dalton is the only person who knows the truth, which, along with their romance, they must keep a secret if she wants to achieve her goal of becoming a surgeon. The story builds anticipation as Patricia and Brian may finally have an opportunity to be together once the ship docks in New York, but a jealous shipmate could ruin everything. Patricia is a winning heroine—a fiery, savvy, independent young woman struggling to have both love and a career while maintaining her integrity—and Collison adds plenty of action and drama while taking the reader “crashing through choppy seas.” Series fans won’t be disappointed. (Self-published)