March TBR Challenge---Historical Novel
This book takes place in the American west just before the start of the Civil War.
Tom and Sarah were childhood sweethearts who shared one night together before Tom left home to make his fortune in the gold fields. By the time Sarah realized that she was pregnant Tom was presumed dead. When his older brother Samuel offered to marry her Sarah felt she had no choice. It was not until years later that Sarah discovered that Tom was still alive and by then it was too late for them to be together. Sarah and Samuel's marriage was not a happy one, but she was content raising her daughter Lucie until Samuel decided that the family should move west. First Samuel died of cholera and then the wagon train was attacked and Lucie was taken captive by the Sioux. Sarah is still angry with Tom for not letting her know that he was alive, but she has no option but to find him and ask for his help to save their daughter.
Because Samuel lied to him Tom believes that Sarah knew he was alive and abandoned him to marry his brother. He has never gotten over his sense of betrayal or the guilt he feels over the death of his younger brother, who followed him west. He lives alone and doesn't expect that to change. Finding out that he has a daughter is a shock, but Tom is determined to save Lucie. He can't face the idea of disappointing Sarah again and desperately wants a chance to have a family. To make that happen he and Sarah will have to overcome the pain of their past while fighting not only hostile Indians but also the uncaring US Army and the unforgiving landscape.
This was definitely not a lighthearted book. Tom & Sarah are both so unhappy and their pain is palpable throughout the story. They both have reason to be angry with Samuel but he's dead so they aren't able to confront him or get any answers about what he did. Tom feels guilty for just about everything he's ever done, but mostly for the death of his brother Hyatt. If he fails to save his daughter it will confirm every negative thing he thinks about himself. Sarah has had her whole life turned upside down more than once and losing her daughter may be more than she can handle.
This book proves that there really is an exception to every rule. The plot has elements of two tropes that I dislike---the Secret Baby and the Big Misunderstanding. I was able to accept them in this story partially because communication was so difficult at that time and Samuel's interference played a big part in Tom & Sarah's mistaken assumptions, but mainly because Ms. Kernan simply wrote characters that I found convincing.
My only complaint about the book was that I wanted more of the story. I was interested to know what happened to the secondary characters after this story ended and Ms Kernan doesn't seem to have written any follow-up.
Grade: A
Because I'm sort of burnt out on historicals the only other one I pulled from my TBR this month was Untamed by Pamela Clare, which I also enjoyed.
No comments:
Post a Comment