Cate of the Lost Colony [REVIEW]

Title: Cate of the Lost Colony 
Author: Lisa Klein 
Pages: 336

Lady Catherine is one of Queen Elizabeth's favorite court maidens—until her forbidden romance with Sir Walter Ralegh is discovered. In a bitter twist of irony, the jealous queen banishes Cate to Ralegh's colony of Roanoke, in the New World. Ralegh pledges to come for Cate, but as the months stretch out, Cate begins to doubt his promise and his love. Instead it is Manteo, a Croatoan Indian, whom the colonists—and Cate—increasingly turn to. Yet just as Cate's longings for England and Ralegh fade and she discovers a new love in Manteo, Ralegh will finally set sail for the New World.

Seamlessly weaving together fact with fiction, Lisa Klein's newest historical drama is an engrossing tale of adventure and forbidden love—kindled by one of the most famous mysteries in American history: the fate of the settlers at Roanoke, who disappeared without a trace forty years before the Pilgrims would set foot in Plymouth.

I loved this book at first. A lot of people said they found the first part boring, but I found it interesting. But many things seemed to bug me about this book.

I hated Queen Elizabeth I. I love love – she hated it. Nobody was allowed to be in love or have a beau except her – and she didn’t even really have one! She was flirting with guys less than half her age, but Heaven forbids a young girl found someone who caught her fancy.

I like Ralegh a bit. He was noble, honest, but power-hunger. I don’t think he really loved Cate. He loved what she could give him. But if you know about Ralegh, you’ll know that not everything works out.

I didn’t know anything about the Lost Colony. This book made me research it and I am very intrigued by it. What really happened to them all? I like to think they found their way like in the book.

This book was actually boring after the first part. You think going to an uncivilized land would be exciting – not in this book. There were many times when I wanted to site down the book and never pick it up again, but I had to finish what I started.

There was no romance in the book. It clearly implies that it is on the back, but the first actual kiss for Cate took place 300-some pages in! There was absolutely no connection between Cate and Ralegh. She claims she loved him, but I couldn’t buy it.

I rate this: 2 ½ stars.