Sara Donati’s debut novel, Into the Wilderness, was hailed as ‘epic in scope, emotionally intense…Īn enrapturing, grand adventure’ BookPage and ‘a captivating saga…ĭefinitely the romance of the year when it comes to transcending genre boundaries’ Booklist. His name is Nathaniel Bonner, also known to the Mohawk people as ‘Between Two Lives.’ Elizabeth’s ultimate destiny, here in the heart of the wilderness, lies in the odyssey to come: trials of faith and flesh, and passion born amid Nathaniel’s own secrets and divided soul. And she meets a man different from any she has ever encountered a white man dressed like a native. It is December of 1792 when she arrives in a cold climate unlike any she has ever experienced. When Elizabeth Middleton leaves England to join her father and brother in the remote mountain village of Paradise in New York, she does so with a strong will and an unwavering purpose: to teach school. The novel revolves around the forbidden, incandescent affair of a spinster Englishwoman and an American frontiersman. From the opening page, the reader is transported to another world, swept away by the passions of two unforgettable lovers. Not since Diana Gabaldon has an author captured a time and a place and a love affair with so much mastery. And clearly demonstrate that fake news is certainly NOT a new phenomenon.This beautifully wrought, passionate novel of early America is a masterpiece of romantic fiction and the debut of a remarkable new author. It was interesting how the author mixes newspaper clippings and other documents and reports into her narrative. And the book is a skillfully-constructed mystery. All of this makes for a compelling read, all 650 pages of it.
There’s kidnapping, drug addiction, sexual abuse, mental illness, and a notorious court case. Beyond missing persons, it touches on midwives, including Anna and Sophie’s own cousin.
There are growing complexities to the case. As does a young student physician, Elise, who is being mentored by the two Savards. I don’t want to give much away but both Anna and Sophie get involved. Some are pool immigrants others are among New York’s elite. The mystery begins with Jack and his partner Oscar working on several disappearance cases - primarily young women. And the orphaned children Rosa, Lia, and Tonino make a reappearance. And there’s still plenty of prejudice against women who practice medicine. Anti-vice crusader Anthony Comstock is still obnoxiously fighting to impose his vision of decency on the city. And Sophie, newly widowed, is just returning from an extended stay in Europe. Anna is happily settled in with her police detective/husband, Jack. Cousins and doctors, Anna and Sophie Savard, are once again the central characters.
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