Nora Roberts – Heart of the Sea

The third book in the Gallaghers of Ardmore series, published December 1, 2000. I so love this cover, it is really enchanting, and fitting the story.



Darcy Gallagher has always believed in the pull of fate, the magic of legend … and the importance of money. She longs to find a rich man who will sweep her away – into a world filled with glamour and adventure, and the exotic life that is her destiny…
A wealthy businessman with Irish blood, Trevor Magee has come to Ardmore to build a theater – and uncover the secrets hidden in his family’s past. He thought he had given up on love long ago, but Darcy Gallagher tempts him like no woman ever has. She’s gorgeous, intelligent, and she knows what she wants – and he’s more than willing to give it to her. But as their mutual attraction flares into passion, they look into their hearts – and find out what happen when you truly believe …


Sometimes, I really am in the mood for a sweet romance. A Nora Roberts book is the perfect choice for that. This trilogy has a little bit extra though. If you add Carrick, a Prince of the Faeries, and his thwarted love story, and a ghost named Gwen to the mix, you are in for a lovely story.
Not going to repeat their story though, for that you have to read my reviews of the first two books in this lovely trilogy, called Jewels from the Sun and Tears from the Moon. Jewels and riches and glamour and passion he offered his love, and all she wanted was his heart…

Now it is time for the curse Carrick placed on himself and his lady love to be broken. Two couples have fallen in love already, Darcy Gallagher’s brothers. And now it is time for the third lovestory to unfold, for mortals to learn the real desires of their hearts, even when they don’t believe themselves capable of falling in love, of destiny, of faith.

Darcy wants to be rich, to travel, to bathe in luxury. She is very pretty and has an incredible voice, and she knows how to wind a man around her finger. If she enters a relationship, or flirts with a man, she is the one in charge, and everything happens on her terms. For now, she is working as a waitress in the bar named Gallaghers which she owns together with her two brothers. Aidan mans the bar, and Sean does all the kitchen work. He is a genius behind the stove, serving traditional Irish fare. With the new theater being build next to the pub, business will be even more brisk than usual, and Darcy really needs some help with the waittressing.

Darcy has just spend a week in Paris, something she has been saving money for, for a long time, and she enjoyed it very much. The elegance, the food, the museums, the shopping. She totally did not mind being alone. She loves going places, seeing new things. And now she is back home, in her rooms above the pub, when she is rudely awakened by the noise from the construction site. Going to her window, her eye falls on a very handsome men working with the concrete. What she doesn’t know is, he could be just the rich man she has been dreaming off.

Trevor Magee is a successful business man back in America, but his roots are Irish. His grandparents came from Ardmore, and he is curious about their background. They never were warm and loving parents nor grandparents, and he is lucky his own parents are all that and more. They support him, but never spoiled him, and he had to learn the building business from the ground up. Meaning, he can build a house by himself. He loves the process, and working a sweat, creating. Lately, he has been spending too much time in boardroom meetings. And when he sees a gorgeous darkhaired woman in the upstairs window, he is intrigued by her.

Trevor Magee has hired Brenna O‘Toole and her father as contractors to do the job, and he sure does not regret it. They are hard workers, and very good at what they do, and they know all the locals. Of course, hiring locals is a smart thing to do as well. There are even some distant cousins of Trev in his crew.

When Trev and Darcy first meet, and she agrees to go for a walk with him, Darcy has no idea who he is. She makes no secret of her wanting a rich man, to keep her in luxury, and is angry when she finds out later. She is also realistic, and she goes after what she wants. And for now, she wants Trev Magee. They both have never been really in love before. Trevor was engaged once, and he really wanted to love his fiancé, but in the end he just couldn’t and he was relieved when she broke it off herself.

A fling with Darcy for while he is in Ireland is just a thing for the moment; the passion between them flares high. And if she likes luxury so much, he sure can afford to give her some. Like a trip to London, while he has some business there, she can go shop or sightseeing. Darcy accepts, and has to rush to get a few other ladies to fall in for her in the pub. She is not about to let this chance go away. But she really is flabbergasted by the luxury way of travel, and of Trevor’s house in London. He even has a butler and a housekeeper! Their first lovescenes are very good. But their trip is cut short when Mick O’Toole falls from the roof of the new theater, and ends up in the hospital. Darcy is needed to be strong for Brenna, who has to be strong for the rest of her family, and Trevor needs to get back to supervise the work. But they both see a different site of the other, caring and loving for others.

Trevor is staying in the same cottage that Jude owns, and that Sean lived in in the previous book, when he finally fell for Brenna. And yes, he does encounter Gwen and Carrick, and doesn’t want to believe in them, nor in destiny. Will he make the same mistakes that Carrick has made, or will Darcy beat some sense in him after all?


I loved this third book, and closed it with tears running down my cheeks. I had forgotten the ending, but it was sooo good! I already liked Darcy, how she is bickering with her brothers, her bossy ways, but she has such a big heart, even though she doesn’t knows it herself. And Trevor Magee is sure the hero she needs, and not just because he is rich. I loved the bits with his parents, and with Carrick. He doesn’t keep that secret from Darcy, he just is too stubborn to risk his heart. Thinking to lure Darcy with money and a grand life.

Perhaps I have spoiled too much already, but I hope not. If you like your contemporary romances with a dash of the paranormal, books that can make you smile and cry, you really should read this trilogy. I think it is awesome. Lovely. Sweet. Just good.

There are many secondary characters, but the one I liked best, is old mister Riley. 101 years, with scores of great-great-grandchildren around him. Still spry and cunning, and enjoying his whiskey.

9 stars.