Two lonely souls at the edge of the world – #HistoricalRomance #ReviewTuesday #Giveaway

Blurb

Unsure of his real past or name, Finn O’Connor thinks he was born in Ireland and taken from his mother as a baby by a gypsy woman. As a toddler, an English woman then took him to London. About ten he fled to join a gang of boys who survived by their wits on the streets. Five years later, he was arrested for a minor crime and transported to The Colony of New South Wales for a 10-year term. In 1846 as transporting of criminals neared an end in NSW, he was moved to the infamous penitentiary at Port Arthur in Van Diemen’s Land.

On the day Finn received his papers of freedom an accidental meeting brought him into contact with 20-year-old Esther Blythe. Born in Surrey, England, genteel Esther is kind and caring. As a 4-year-old her parents brought her to Van Diemen’s Land where her Papa, a doctor, took on the task of providing medical aid to the prisoners at the Port Arthur Penitentiary and its surrounding area. Sadly, both parents were killed in an accident, leaving Esther with no option but to work as a governess/nursemaid.

For reasons that even she did not comprehend, Esther took the ex-convict under her wing when they met outside the penitentiary hospital. Could be she saw a fellow lonely soul who simply wanted someone to have faith in him. Life seems to take a turn for perhaps the better from then on, but will these two lonely people overcome many obstacles to find the happiness they seek together as they face an uncertain future.

Excerpt

“Pleased to meet you, Esther.” With a feeling he had drifted into some strange other world, he added, “I go by Finn O’Connor.” The Finn part was probably fact. As for his surname, he had no idea who had called him that somewhere along the way in his growing years, but he kept it as a way to prove that he was born in Ireland. As the horse began to trot, he asked, “You said your Pa was a medical man—is he not one anymore?”

“Sadly, for me, my dear Papa, along with my Mama, was killed just last year when the carriage they were in overturned after hitting a rock.”

“Oh, I am sorry to hear that. It must have been awful for you. Are you alone now or do you have siblings?”

After a deep sigh, she admitted, “It was the worst time of my life—and no I have no brothers or sisters. That of course is why I am employed as companion of sorts to the girl in need of the medication I was sent to collect. It’s a shame, but she is currently a sickly child and has a nasty cough.”

“So, you not only lost your parents, you also lost your home?” Although he had never known what it was to have a real family, nonetheless a place somewhere near Finn’s heart ached for this young girl who had hers snatched away so cruelly.

Without answering that, she gestured ahead to where a cottage surrounded by a few trees sat atop a slight knoll. “We have arrived,” she said as she pulled up a short distance from a gate in the fence surrounding the garden. “Say little to my mistress, but let me explain to her that you are looking for employment.” Finn nodded, still feeling as if he was in the middle of some strange dream. “Please wait here while I go and fetch you something more presentable to wear. I suppose you realise that you look far worse than a farmer’s scarecrow in those filthy rags.” The look of scorn she sent to his trousers made him realise such if her words had not.

As she walked off, he scratched at his head, knowing at least his hair and body were now clean after the nights’ stay in the infirmary. Was there no end to the oddness of this female? Where on earth would she find clothing for him? Surely not from her employer’s wardrobe?

Review by Lisabet Sarai

He calls himself Finn O’Connor, but that’s just because he’s been told he came from Ireland. Orphaned, abandoned, abused, thrown onto the streets of London to make his way as part of a gang of child thieves, Finn was eventually arrested and sent to the Port Arthur prison colony in Tasmania. Now he has completed his ten year sentence, but his future looks dark. Barely educated, with no money and no connections, how will he survive?

Lovely and genteel, Esther Blythe is also alone in the world. Still dealing with the pain of losing her beloved parents in an accident, she has more financial resources than Finn as well as a kind heart and an independent spirit. When Finn assists her after a fall in the street, she offers him a lifeline in the form of possible employment with the family for whom she works as a nanny. Common sense suggests she shouldn’t trust an ex-convict about whom she knows nothing. However, her intuition urges her to give the strong, good-looking young man a chance to prove his worth.

To Finn, she seems an angel sent to rescue him from impending disaster. He’s powerfully drawn to her, but how can he expect a cultured young woman like Esther to care for a piece of Irish trash?

A Troubled Heart chronicles the efforts and misadventures of Finn and Esther as they try to build a life in mid-nineteenth-century Tasmania. From a murderous mad woman to a corrupt gold-digging dandy, the two deal with a variety of challenges. As they grow closer, they come to value, respect and love one another, eventually deciding to marry. Even as a societally-sanctioned couple, however, they must battle against forces that could easily tear them apart.

I enjoyed A Troubled Heart, due to its unusual setting and background as well as its sympathetic characters. I don’t think I’ve ever read a novel set in historical Tasmania. Ms. McGill paints a picture of a fairly harsh life in a society on the frontiers of the contemporary world. I don’t have enough background to evaluate whether her portrayal is accurate, but it felt real.

Meanwhile, Esther and Finn are such fundamentally good people that you can’t help hoping for them to succeed together. They’re not without flaws: Esther is overly trusting, which Finn can be a bit of a hot-head. At one point in the book, even after they’ve wed, they are forced apart by their weaknesses. Of course since this is a romance, you know they’ll find one another and reconcile, but the situation is quite tense for a while.

I found the pacing and prose in A Troubled Heart less satisfactory. Though the plot includes a number of negative occurrences, the tone felt too even. The exposition is very direct and matter-of-fact, with little in the way of artfulness, suspense or conflict. I did not get a strong sense of a narrative arc, events building toward a crisis and resolution.

Finn’s and Esther’s relationship, likewise, seems to lack passion. Their decision to wed (at Esther’s suggestion) is more of a practical step than driven by intense emotion. They’re attracted to one another, but that attraction is secondary. One tends to read romance at least partially to experience the breathless excitement of new love. This book was a bit disappointing for me in that regard.

All in all, though, A Troubled Heart is worth reading. In a genre rife with cookie-cutter plots and brazenly manipulative tropes, it offers originality and sincerity.

About the Author

Award winning author Tricia McGill spent her early days in London, England, and moved to Australia many years ago, settling near Melbourne. The youngest in a large, loving family she was surrounded by avid readers, who encouraged her to read from an early age. Is it any wonder she became a writer. Although her published works cross sub-genres, romance is always at their heart.

Tricia’s love of animals has always shown up in her books. Tricia devotes as much time and money as she can spare to supporting worldwide conservation groups and is passionate about supporting those who do all they can to preserve our wildlife for future generations. She also volunteers for a local community group that helps disabled adults and children to connect to the internet with provided computer equipment.

A Troubled Heart Purchase link : https://books2read.com/A-Troubled-Heart

Tricia McGill Website: http://www.triciamcgill.com

On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Australian-Author-Tricia-McGill-192885847937078/

Tricia McGill will be awarding a randomly drawn winner a $10 Amazon/BN GC.

 

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