When a fourth-grade classroom of school children spend the night aboard a refurbished nineteenth century merchant brig in Dana Point, California, one of them disappears in the night. After a three-month fruitless investigation, the distraught parents are led to private investigator, Cara Edwards, who relies on her sixth sense as much her common sense to solve a case. But when her psychic connection to the lost boy draws her back to 1833 California, she must find a way to bring them both back to the future. Captain Blake Masters has sailed the oceans of the world for nearly twenty years, never once looking back on his dark childhood memories. When Cara enters his life and opens the door to his forgotten past, can he trust her psychic insight to lead him on an uncharted course toward a destiny of love and compassion?

“A wonderful time-travel romance filled with adventure and page-turning suspense. Don’t miss it.”- Kristin Hannah, New York Times bestselling author.

Bell, Book & Candle: "...one of the best books I've read in a long time. Fantastic!!"

Under the Covers: "...exciting, believeable, finely crafted, and has a hero and heroine worth cheering for..."

Old Book Barn Gazette: "...If you don't read this book, you'll be missing out on an opportunity of a lifetime!"

Rendezvous Reviews: "...the spirited tale between this exceptional couple is loaded with sensuality... [An] ingenious slant on time-travel, combined with the paranormal, makes this book complex, full of riveting emotions, historically vibrant, and a magnetic read that pulls the reader in. The spellbinding ending is just the frosting on the top."

RT BOOK REVIEWS: ★★★★½ Don’t pick up this book unless you plan to stay up all night: [Gillian Doyle writing as] Susan Leslie Liepitz draws you in deep with characters so real they might come knocking at your door. Though she’d never characterize herself as such, Cara Edwards is a psychic detective. During a period reenactment, a ten-year-old boy disappears on a restored 19th-century sailing ship and the boy’s father turns to Cara. Fearing the media frenzy, Cara at first refuses to help but finds herself fighting off physical pain until she agrees to use her powers. Having taken the case, she tries another reenactment.
On the Mystic, as Cara prepares for her turn at watch, the wall near her bunk opens. She enters the portal and walks through to 1833—still aboard the ship—where a storm is brewing. The command to “batten down the hatches” comes too late and Cara and Captain Blake Masters, a guest on the 1833 Mystic, are washed ashore. When Blake realizes Cara—even dressed as she is—is no young boy, he goes along with her tale of a young widow in search of her son. He is a true hero—very human in spite of being handsome; compassionate yet practical; and realistically frustrating at times. Gillian Doyle chooses words exquisitely in her sensual prose. The transitions in time are plausible and the author’s take on how people perceive life after death touches the heart. This is a mystical story, woven well. Everything about it strokes the senses, giving the imagination a curl-your-toes workout.