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Mia has
been dating Miles for three years and he hasn’t dropped any hints about
popping
the question. She thinks that he is absolutely wonderful, but questions
whether
or not he feels the same way about her. When the opportunity arises for
them to
take a cruise on THE CHOCOLATE SHIP, an African American cruise liner,
she
jumps at the opportunity. Their relationship is either going to prosper
or
suffer from their little getaway. Especially when Miles realizes that
Mr.
Harrison, the owner of the ship, has his eye on Mia. The maiden voyage
of THE
CHOCOLATE SHIP could turn out to be quite interesting.
Mia’s best
friend Bianca is a single mother who desperately needs a break. She
buys
tickets for herself and her son on the ship. She immediately meets Mr.
Tall,
Dark and Handsome, the problem with that is he also very mysterious and
secretive. Will he turn out to be all that she was hoping for, or just
another
disappointment?
With an
array of characters that rivals any comedy show, THE CHOCOLATE SHIP is
an
amusing, yet serious look at several couples and their relationships
aboard a
cruise to the Caribbean. I appreciated the
frankness and
the wittiness of the characters, as well as the smart and humorous
dialogue
that Ms. Monteilh writes for them. During the cruise, relationships
will become
cemented or ripped apart, things don’t always go as planned, and what
goes at
sea will stay at sea. There were enough twists and turns in the novel
to keep
it interesting and keep the reader guessing while reading on. The
ending will
leave you a little disgruntled and the plot thickens up until that
startling
ending. I couldn’t believe it ended like it did. I felt uneasy, as if
there should
be more to it, and it should be a little smoother. Be a passenger on
THE
CHOCOLATE SHIP as they set sail, changing lives and relationships
forever…
Reviewed by Ansley
Velarde for The
Road to Romance
August 16, 2004
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