Aquavit is Book One in The Aquamarine Sea Series by Karen Stensgaard. Stressed by the closure of her audit consulting business and a disastrous blind date with Charlie, widow Kat Jensen unwinds with a bottle of Aquavit known as the “water of life”. The bottle’s image inspires her to take a cruise on an old-time clipper and she makes the arrangements. Kat also dates Greg, an older man, and Matteo, an Italian stud, but feels pressured by both who vie for her attention. Charlie also wants a second chance yet Kat wonders if he can be trusted. How she misses her husband whose ashes are to be returned to Denmark. Kat can’t wait to start the adventurous cruise despite the clipper’s specific rules and her friends’ warnings of impending danger.

I was filled with a yearning to sail on this clipper as well, although a few rules made me hesitate. Aquavit is a novel that will touch the hearts of anyone who reads it. Kat is a woman who misses the comfort zone she had with her husband. She has an urge to break out of her standard routine and try something new. I guess we all experience this at times. The character development and scenes are impressive and well planned. Karen Stensgaard shows her writing strength in all areas of this beautiful, exciting story and the excerpt from Blueness, Book Two. The Aquamarine Sea Series is filled with romance, adventure, and a bit of danger to hold your interest.

Kat Jensen is stressed and all she wants is to get away from New York. Her audit consulting business is closing and she has a lot of time on her hands before she can start a new job hunt. The Scandinavian aquavit — a liquor dating from the 15th century and which also means “the water of life” — gives her a fresh idea. She wants a cruise on board the sailing ship pictured on the bottle of the aquavit. Having the idea of an adventure at sea and actually sailing away are two different realities because Kat has many issues to handle, including the men she is dating and frightening omens, her personal worries, and disturbing revelations when she finally arrives in Copenhagen where she intends to board the cruise ship. Can she muster the guts to embark on this once-in-a-lifetime adventure?

Aquavit (The Aquamarine Sea Series) by Karen Stensgaard is an interesting story that explores travel and one woman’s struggle with her choices, especially when it comes to where she wants to be and who she wants to be with. The story is told in the protagonist’s own words, in a first-person narrative voice that pulls the reader in right from the start. It begins with a strong premise. Kat is going out of business and doesn’t seem to be enjoying life in New York, plus she has issues with her romantic life. The reader encounters a character who does not seem to know clearly what she wants to do with her life. The author explores the internal fears and preoccupations of the protagonist brilliantly and allows readers to feel the vagaries of her heart and inner world. Aquavit (The Aquamarine Sea Series) has an international setting that is clearly depicted in the beautiful descriptions. I enjoyed the well-crafted dialogues, the richly developed characters, and the realism that permeates the narrative.