FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE GIRL WHO CAME HOME AND THE GIRL FROM THE SAVOY COMES A NOVEL INSPIRED BY THE EXTRAORDINARY STORY OF A REMARKABLE YOUNG WOMAN.
Synopsis
“They call me a heroine, but I am not deserving of such accolades. I am just an ordinary young woman who did her duty.”
1838: Northumberland, England. Longstone Lighthouse on the Farne Islands has been Grace Darling’s home for all of her twenty-two years. When she and her father rescue shipwreck survivors in a furious storm, Grace becomes celebrated throughout England, the subject of poems, ballads, and plays. But far more precious than her unsought fame is the friendship that develops between Grace and a visiting artist. Just as George Emmerson captures Grace with his brushes, she in turn captures his heart.
1938: Newport, Rhode Island. Nineteen-years-old and pregnant, Matilda Emmerson has been sent away from Ireland in disgrace. She is to stay with Harriet, a reclusive relative and assistant lighthouse keeper, until her baby is born. A discarded, half-finished portrait opens a window into Matilda’s family history. As a deadly hurricane approaches, two women, living a century apart, will be linked forever by their instinctive acts of courage and love.
Purchase Links
Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2E9qfBs
Indiebound: https://bit.ly/2C1LtOS
HarperCollins: https://bit.ly/2OmkLUs
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Hazel Gaynor is a New York Times bestselling, award-winning historical novelist, who lives in County Kildare, Ireland with her husband and two children. Her 2014 debut historical novel The Girl Who Came Home—A Novel of the Titanic hit the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists, and went on to win the 2015 Historical Novel of the Year award from the Romantic Novelists’ Association in London. Her second novel A Memory of Violets, was also a New York Times bestseller, and her third, The Girl from The Savoy was an Irish Times and Globe & Mail bestseller, and finalist for the 2016 Irish Book Awards. Her releases in 2017 – The Cottingley Secret and Last Christmas in Paris (co-written with Heather Webb) both hit the Canadian Globe & Mail bestseller list.
All Hazel’s novels have been received to critical-acclaim and have been translated into eight foreign languages to date. Hazel is represented by Michelle Brower at Aevitas Creative, New York.
REVIEW
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Title: The Lighthouse Keeper's Daughter
Series: Standalone
Author: Hazel Gaynor
Release date: October 9, 2018
Cliffhanger: No
Publisher: William Morrow
Like a curious child pushing open doors to rooms they are forbidden to enter, I tug on the distant threads that connect me to them, determined to unravel the tangled knots of the past so that I can find the place where their story ends, and mine begins.
This was my very first Hazel Gaynor book, and I absolutely loved her writing style. A lot of historical fiction begins a bit dry and takes time to engage me, but Gaynor's storytelling feels effortless from the start. Her immersive seaside landscapes are brought to life in vivid detail, from the briny air to the white capped waves crashing on the shore. As these two women leave their footprints on the sand, you walk right beside them as their courage and strength are challenged. The story is told in two timelines, one hundred years apart. The biggest draw was the female centric duo-plotline, highlighting women living in very different time periods but connected through common life experiences. Love, loss, and finding your path in life.
In 1838, we are introduced to Grace Darling, a real life heroine who lived at Longstone Lighthouse in England with her family. Gaynor blends fact and fiction seamlessly, creating a hint of a mysterious romance underneath the story of her heroic rescue. When the S.S. Forfarshire wrecks during a bad storm, Grace and her father succeed in a daring rescue that lands her in every newspaper immediately afterwards. We experience her range of emotions through this troubling attention, none of which are happy. She is a humble woman who revels in the simplicity of her life, in the solitude and duty that comes with running the lighthouse with her father. The devastation and loss of the survivors haunt her, most especially Sarah, the woman who suffered more loss than any human should ever have to endure. Through Sarah, a surprising kinship is discovered which will test the direction she has chosen for her life.
1938 tells the story of Matilda Emmerson, a young woman sent to a distant relative's home in Rhode Island after finding herself pregnant, unwed, and disgraced. In the first few transitions to her POV, I was a little resentful of having to leave Grace's pages, but eventually I was equally invested in both. Matilda's story was increasingly investing as she not only uncovered her ties to the past, but uncovered truths long buried that would eventually rock her to her core. Matilda was a woman who was simply looking for love and attention in the wrong places after being ignored and stifled by her parents. She'd never felt acceptance or knew what it was like to be seen. She never felt as if she had the freedom to express herself, but prickly Harriet gives her a safe place to start choosing a life on her own terms. I really enjoyed seeing their relationship grow, especially as Harriet's own heartbreak is revealed. Their relationship is a rocky one that needs a lot of patience and care. In the end, they found something together that they each so desperately needed. Love, family, and purpose.
This book gently takes you through a lot of heartbreaks. Even though there was quite a bit of loss, it somehow never felt depressing. Gaynor conveys it in a way that felt inspiring and empowering. Highlighting the resilience of the human spirit, and honoring the many women who have been brave enough to fill such a dangerous profession. She skillfully twined both timelines together in a way that made the fictional aspects feel organic with the history. For some reason, it didn't make me as emotional as I would have expected, and I couldn't really pinpoint why. However, I was fascinated to learn more about Grace Darling, and I fell in love with the author's beautiful way with words. I look forward to reading more from her in the future.
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