An invitation to the captains table

Helena embarks on a world cruise to look for romance as it is time to move on having mourned her husband for seven years. Having arrived on the ship she happens to glance at the striking Russian captain and there is an instant chemistry though they haven’t spoken.

This book had such potential at the beginning but unfortunately it just fizzled and died. Very slow going and then just left you hanging at the end.

However there were such beautiful descriptions of all the places visited on the cruise. Therefore I did feel it was more of a travelogue than a romantic novel.

Overall a very slow boring read I was just waiting for something to happen !

A disappointing 2.5/5

After being widowed 7 years earlier whilst on a cruise Helena decides to reclaim her life and find a new romance on a round the world cruise. She is immediately drawn to Captain Grigory Petrovich and what follows is a brilliant travelogue with an obsession and near stalking between the captain and Helena. Frankly if it were not for the great descriptions of the ports of the cruise I would not have managed to finish this book. It is supposed to read as a great will they won't they romance at sea but instead is repetitive and far too long. Not only this but for a widow who was devastated when her late husband cheated on her and had a child with another woman she becomes obsessed with the married captain who admits to having a child as a result of an affair! I found this to be the most unlikely scenario and also as a romantic heroine I strongly disliked her from that point. Just as you think the book is coming to an end when the captain leaves the ship and she shares dates and kisses with another passenger for the rest of the cruise leading you to think that she has maybe found love again once she gets over her silly crush. Nope she cuts poor Emile out of her life, sulks for a whole then books another world cruise on the same ship hoping to finally get her captain which she inevitably does becoming the other woman she so vehemently despised. A hard pass for me and difficult to read as struggled to engage with the character and overall too long storyline.

A fascinating story that keeps you involved from start to finish. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and found the descriptions of all th places visited to be very interesting. Definitely recommended to those readers who enjoy reading this type of book.

I enjoyed this book as it was very factual about the places that were visited on the round the world cruise. However, I found the actual romance part quite uninspiring and tended to skip through these bits as it did not hold my interest as I could not connect with the main character.

An amazing book giving so much detail about the places visited that I felt that I was there. An enormous amount of research must have gone into the details of ports, cultures, places and buildings. Coupled with a simmering romance it was a delight to read.

Oh my goodness, ever once in a while I need to read a ateamy romance and this hit the spot. It is one of those long slow burn romances and was done so very well.

Having recently lost her husband, Helen de Croy embarks on a journey around the world. Little did she know that she was about to fall madly in love with the captain, Grigory Petrovich, of the cruise ship she is traveling on. Will Helena succeed in winning the Captain's affection? Read on to discover the struggles she encounters along her trip.

Ellen's talents shine through in this novel and her extensive description of the travel destinations encountered is remarkable. Her love for storytelling is truly evident in this well-written and narrated novel.

The plot was simple and easy to understand and the characters are well described and totally relatable. For romance enthusiasts out there, I highly recommend reading this novel.

Summary: A thrilling and exciting read that is totally entertaining.

If you like slow romance then this is your kind of book. This was the slowest of slow burns. It was so well written and really cute. I loved how the author wrote about the different locations at each stop. It added an extra intrigue to the story. The part I could not get over was that there was cheating. Like a lot of cheating and that is something I try to avoid reading about.