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Coral Morgan knew what a brothel was. Her mother owned one, but had had the foresight to raise Coral outside of that life. However, Coral was mistaken for one of her mother’s girls and branded by a ruthless and wicked man, Sidney Layton, who was going to offer her virginity to the highest bidder. Coral barely escapes with her life but not before Layton takes her mother’s life. She takes on the identity of a dead girl, Lilly Malone, which she comes across in her flight from Layton’s goons. But could assuming this new identity be more disastrous than a life as Layton’s whore?
Luke McDade has been leading the Church of True Believers wagon train to Canaan for years. When the handmaiden they’ve been waiting for finally shows up, she’s not like any handmaiden he’s ever encountered. Lilly Malone claims she’s a newer member of the cult but Luke’s watchful eyes know better. There’s something about Lilly that intrigues him and he’s not going to let it rest until he gets to the bottom of the mystery that is Lilly.
Becoming the handmaiden Lilly might have gotten Coral away from Layton’s clutches, but it landed her in a pit of snakes. The Church of True Believers is a cult that takes fornication to a new level. Will she escape one life of debauchery only to unwittingly stumble into another? Or will Luke see through her façade to the woman she really is and save her from a lifetime of sexual slavery?
A wonderful story set in historical America, CANAAN will intrigue you from page one. Coral and Luke’s relationship is one to savor as they peel away each other’s defenses and find love. But Coral and Luke’s is not just a single story, Barri Bryan has added a wide cast of secondary characters that complement Coral and Luke’s storyline. I especially enjoyed the diversity of the characters and Barri Bryan meeting head on the touchy subject of slavery. CANAAN is not one to miss!
Reviewed by Tina Burns
for The Road to Romance
September 14, 2004
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