5 stars This book really sold me on Seamus and Grace’s love for one another, especially compared to the first book in the series. I enjoyed Discerning Grace enough that I requested an ARC of this one, but I have to admit I was surprised by the improvement in writing and storytelling in this one. Some descriptions were so cleverly worded and vivid that I have to mention them. Truly, this book did much to inform my vision of what this time period (1830s) was really like in a sometimes stomach-churning manner. “A bubble of mucous and blood inflated from one of his nostrils. It popped, and the red glob dribbled over his lips and down his chin.” “She cackled bawdily, her rotting teeth spraying a reek of curled milk and tumorous disease that smacked him back a step.” “...the heat beat down on Seamus like a despotic tyrant with a fiery flail.” “...a lace curtain the colour of tobacco spit, and a moth-eaten rug.” When a fat dead person was kicked: “The kick ricocheted across the body, the excess flesh wobbling like a whale carcass on the shore being pounded by the surf.” In the first book, I was totally convinced of the love between Seamus and Grace, but this book left no doubt that they shared a bond that was incredibly strong. When Grace was pregnant, Seamus said a prayer asking God to look after her and the babe and it was so touching because he was so earnest. In fact, if I had to say one thing about Seamus’ love for Grace, it would be that it was earnest. There was something very pure and not quite innocent about their love for one another. It was probably this unadulterated love they had for one another that made me feel for them when they experienced losses. I did actually get choked up on a couple of occasions as their pain was on display. One of the things I really enjoy about Emma Lombard’s writing is all of the new things I learn while reading. Whether it was archaic medical terminology like “wandering womb” or the meaning of “tow rag” or even just insults like “sphincter worm,” I find I am constantly exposed to new things. In addition, she uses language appropriate for the time which I found refreshing because it’s not often you get to use words like merkin or menhir. August 5, 2021
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Elizabeth J ConnorWriter. Editor. Proofreader. Archives
September 2022
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