KIRKUS REVIEW

THE MEASURE OF ELLA by Toni Bird Jones
A compelling, fast-paced thrill ride. Jones’ debut novel tells the story of a woman who finds herself on a criminal adventure on the open waters of the Caribbean.

Ella Morgan is ready to move on. Her father died a year ago, leaving her without any parents, but she’s about to realize her dream of opening her own restaurant in the Florida Keys, far away from her childhood home in New England. She just needs a little help. She was counting on money from selling her father’s tugboat, which turns out to be junk. And just before finding this out, she hears that Davis, the drug runner that she’s been seeing, has been killed by pirates during a raid. Seeing no other choice, she accepts an offer from Rich, her fellow sailor, to help him pull off a drug run of his own.

Ella goes on to battle storms, startling betrayals, pirates, and her own conscience— but she eventually finds herself more than willing to torch a boat in the name of revenge. She also discovers that Davis had some secrets, as do other people around her. Jones knows how to hook readers and keep the action flowing. In the very first scene, for example, she shows how capable Ella is and how treacherous sailing can be when a client’s son is nearly lost in rough waters.

The prose is detailed but straightforward, as in this passage, during the protagonist’s first tussle with pirates: “Ella faced south toward the sound of the approaching boat and slipped her hand into her pocket, gripping the cold metal of the gun, trying to suppress the panic running through her and anxiously scanning the pitch black sea.” The text sometimes gets bogged down by sailing jargon, but it’s definitely something that Jones knows a lot about, having delivered boats herself.

The Measure of Ella is not just a murder mystery or the story of a young woman's journey, but a rare breed of seafaring adventure whose nautical roots embrace a young woman's life changes. Women who look for strong, believable female protagonists and blends of seafaring adventure with personal growth will relish The Measure of Ella for its intrigue, its ethical conundrums, and its realistic protagonist whose life choices propel her into dangerous waters.

D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer

The Measure of Ella — Ella Morgan is a sailor crewing on deliveries in the Caribbean. She has a good heart, a dashing boyfriend, and a dream-in-process of owning her own seafood restaurant. It all goes to pieces in a hurry after her father dies and her boyfriend is shot dead in a smuggling scheme gone bad. Against everything she's ever been taught, Ella agrees to do a drug run with a skipper she trusts. Until that goes south, too. For us, the measure of good fiction is how long past our bedtime it keeps us up. On that count, The Measure of Ella had us bleary-eyed (in a good way) for several mornings in a row.

Vigilant Reader Rating Five stars out of five
My Impressions: Excellent sea story with smuggling, murder, and betrayal
Title – The Measure of Ella
Author – Toni Bird Jones
Genre – Action/Adventure, Thriller

Ella Morgan counted on funds from the sale of her dead father’s tugboat to make her dream of opening her own restaurant a reality. She is devastated to learn the boat has fallen into extreme disrepair during her father’s last years and is now worthless.

She has served as the ship’s cook and deck hand on boats being delivered to their owners. Along with the news of her evaporated inheritance, she learns Davis her lover had been murdered by pirates as he was sailing a boat back to the U.S while smuggling drugs.

Unfortunately for Ella, she is naive and trusting and doesn’t recognize the danger of the people she had made friends with. When Rich queries her about joining him on a drug run, she adamantly refuses. But then she has second thoughts; her dream of owing an upscale restaurant causes her to ignore the danger and agree to make the drug run.

Ella quickly learns the dangers involved in multimillion dollar drug smuggling and glimpses the extreme betrayal committed by people she thought were no threat.
The accounts of the crew’s experiences during major storms are well written and exciting.

The editing and sentence structure are excellent with only minor issues.
Character Development is clear and detailed.
The story’s plot is detailed and weaves the writer’s past experience and research into a gripping, action filled tale.

Michael Chapman, cinematographer, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull
“A page-turning thriller set in the murky underworld of the Caribbean. The sailing life is beautifully rendered. A must for all who wish to enter an exciting new environment for an adventure."