A review by amynbell
Toward the Sea of Freedom by Sarah Lark
5.0
It was a fortunate accident to run across this series while looking up the trees of New Zealand. While the series is named after the kauri tree, it’s actually a work of historical fiction by a German author. It's about a couple who are separated during the Irish potato famine—the man ending up imprisoned on Van Dieman’s Land in Australia and the woman ending up in the middle of the New Zealand gold rush. Throughout the book, they move both closer and farther apart from each other, and the reader keeps hoping for their reunion as much as they do.
I like how the author doesn’t sugar coat the reality of the poor at the time of the Irish potato famine. There’s an interesting interplay in this book which constantly blurs the lines between what is good and what is bad. It’s all contextual. There are many things that you might not want to do that you have to do when you and your family are hungry:
“Your mother takes sin money?” Kathleen marveled.
Michael arched his eyebrows. “Rather than burying her children.”
And when you’re comparing reasons for why you're both on a prison ship:
“I stole some bread,” she admitted. “I was hungry. And you?”
“Three sacks of grain,” said Michael. “Our whole village was hungry.”
I enjoyed the history, storyline, and characters of the novel. The author hooks the reader from the first chapter and never really lets go. There are some really harsh themes in the book, but life can sometimes be harsh. I like that the females in the novel are capable and self-sufficient despite the negative situations thrust upon them. I also love that the ending of the book is the ending that the reader needs even if it might not be the ending that the reader wants.
Whenever I’m in the mood again for historical fiction set in New Zealand, I’ll definitely pick up the next book in the series.
I like how the author doesn’t sugar coat the reality of the poor at the time of the Irish potato famine. There’s an interesting interplay in this book which constantly blurs the lines between what is good and what is bad. It’s all contextual. There are many things that you might not want to do that you have to do when you and your family are hungry:
“Your mother takes sin money?” Kathleen marveled.
Michael arched his eyebrows. “Rather than burying her children.”
And when you’re comparing reasons for why you're both on a prison ship:
“I stole some bread,” she admitted. “I was hungry. And you?”
“Three sacks of grain,” said Michael. “Our whole village was hungry.”
I enjoyed the history, storyline, and characters of the novel. The author hooks the reader from the first chapter and never really lets go. There are some really harsh themes in the book, but life can sometimes be harsh. I like that the females in the novel are capable and self-sufficient despite the negative situations thrust upon them. I also love that the ending of the book is the ending that the reader needs even if it might not be the ending that the reader wants.
Whenever I’m in the mood again for historical fiction set in New Zealand, I’ll definitely pick up the next book in the series.