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on Dawn on a Distant Shore (Wilderness, #2)
Sara Donati It was a rare gift she had, this ability to look ahead, through the loss and heartache, beyond the hardship, to see so clearly the possibilities that waited for them.
If they could be strong, if they could persevere,
Once again, I was glued to the pages, Not sure if it was the story itself or the performance of the narrator, maybe the combination of the two.
Either way, I flew through it, I had my doubts at first that Donati could make this sequel as compelling as the first book.
Well she certainly did an excellent job sustaining my interest, Looking forward to booksitelinkLake in the Clouds! Where can I start Into the Wilderness Wildernesswas already trying waaaay too hard to muster up the wherewithal to have the literary/iconic impact of Diana Gabaldon's Outlander, but now, to make matters far worse and unnecessarily complicated not unlike book one Sara Donati contrives the action to get the Bonner family to SCOTLAND.
Of course she does. She wants to be Diana Gabaldon,
Suddenly "Granny Cora" who in book one, remember, is supposed to be based on Madeleine Stowe in the film The Last of the Mohicans, a girl raised in England, mind you, not Scotland, and who came to the American colonies as a very young woman not to mention that she is slender, darkhaired, and darkeyed is remembered by Hannah Bonner as a fair, robust, blueeyed, very Scottish elderly lady.
That's the first of many WTF moments in this train wreck of a sequel,
I get it, There was almost nowhere to go after Into the Wilderness but the Outlander series is still going, therefore SD had to keep this series going, and so, let's see.
. . how can Nathaniel Bonner channel Jamie Fraser even more, . . let's see we'll pretend that his "da" Dan'l Bonner, or Daniel Day Lewis is the longlost descendant of a Scottish earl.
Oh, my gosh! Then EVERYONE can wear tartan and talk like Jamie Fraser and be bonny, Let's sort of gloss over the inanity of how the Scottish connection to the family was made and how they found the reclusive Dan'l in rural upstate New York, because it's really full of ginormous plot holes.
. . but maybe no one will notice because Nathaniel and Elizabeth now have a lot of uninspired married sex.
. .
But, by gosh, SD gets the family to Scotland after an unnecessarily circuitous journey during which we meet a bunch of flat, forgettable secondary characters.
So let's focus on how the whole story is so Scottish now! And full of "intrigue" and "mystery" and attempts on main characters' lives.
. . all while managing to remain incredibly boring overall,
Just no. This book is so bad, Done now with this series, I had hopes that this second novel would have been filled with corrections of the past sins of it's predecessor, only to find that it had plenty of sins on it's own.
The plot was enjoyable enough it had twists and turns that weren't quite believable but I was able to swallow them well enough.
The problem I had with it was while the first novel in the series had moments of laughable satirical drama, the drama in this sequel was lacking in any realistic solutions.
If you have the upper hand, the sense, the determination as well as the loaded gun, why are you acquiescing to the bad guy all the time Just shoot the fucker for god's sake.
And please justify to me why you are using a puffin as a bat and the bird lives through this abuse And what's with the plethora of degenerative skin diseases that have no name
Along with that, the book is terribly edited.
No spelling errors but lack of attention to the scene, It's daytime that automatically turns to nighttime, There's heavy rain that is referred to as drizzle, Two month old babies that act more likeyear oryear olds, The list goes on and on to make you wonder how this ever passed the editor's desk,
With all that being said, I did enjoy what they went through except for the silly lack of honest reaction and the contrived relationship ties.
About a third of the book was from Hannah's perspective and I enjoyed that just fine, I've read the reviews for the next novel and I think I'm done with this series, I don't have any hopes that the writing will get any better and I don't really care for what happens to the characters in the next book.
Overall: eh shrugs, Read the reviews and don't waste you time or money with purchase is my recommendation, update at end
Following up on my "rejoice, fans of Diana Gabaldon" review, I now urge you all to sit down with a proper cup of strong tea.
Chai, if you have it, It's time for a reality check,
My previous wholehearted "two thumbs up" for Sara Donati's "Into the Wilderness" the precursor to this book still stands.
I was thrilled to find the second novel in my local Half Price Books for a measley,. "Dawn on a Distant Shore" terrible title follows our Claireesque heroine traipsing across the sea to a "distant shore" on a grand adventure with her husband.
Adventure Mais oui, my friends, Romance Well they're married now. Suspense Not so much. Historical perspective Eh. Good story telling and plot twists Definitely,
Standing on its own, "DOADS" is pretty good, But comparing to Donati's previous work, and of course, in comparison with Gabaldon's ability to carry her characters forward in several thick books, "DOADS" is just a little above the soso mark.
But if I come across book three, I'll definitely pick it up for another go,
Update July: Thank you for the positive/validating comments on this review, I feel I need to update since I have completed the entire series since writing this review, It's absolutely one of my "go to" recommendations for anyone looking for historical fiction with an epic span.
Please don't let this review keep you from continuing on with the series it's truly one of the top series I've found in this genre.
My heart is still pounding, What a rush. Wonderful sequel. Loved every page. I'm actually re reading this series, I have so missed the characters, especially the feisty freedwoman friend of the Bonners, Curiosity Freeman, The setting is lates in the frontier of New York, but the Bonner family get sucked up in a complicated plot that takes them to Canada and eventually Scotland, against their will.
It was a little wordy at times, but Sara is an amazing writer and definitely did her research of the history of the times.
One of the reasons I love this series so much is its inclusive theme with African Americans a free family who is close to the Bonners and Nathaniel's mixed daughter half white/half Mohawk Hannah.
They are a unique ensemble and I'm going to continue reading, Since I enjoyed the first book in this series, Into the Wilderness, I'm not sure why it took me so long to pick up the second book.
However, now that I've read it, I don't think I missed much by waiting, This novel just misses some vital spark for me, I also felt a lack of connection to the characters, The fact that I plowed my way through most of this book and then decided to bring other reading material with me on my vacation says it all.
I didn't dislike the book, but it was just OK and I wanted something more captivating in my suitcase.
Dawn is slow to get started and full of so many characters introduced in rapid succession that I had a hard time remembering who they all were.
Although frequently compared to Diana Gabaldon, Ms, Donati lacks Ms. Gabaldon's skill with character development, Many of the characters in this book never really come alive, with a few exceptions such as Jennet.
A bit of a nitpicky point, but I found the overuse of the phrase "to take one's measure" to be a small source of irritation, as was the babies' frequent squeaking.
Mice squeak, rusty door hinges squeak, but babies usually squeal, gurgle, or coo,
I also found the plot to be rather contrived, The Earl of Carryk has disowned his daughter and is desperate to find a male heir so that a rival clan doesn't inherit his estate after he dies.
Hawkeye and his descendents are the Earl's heirs, Carryk sends his agent, Moncrief, to America to bring the Bonners to Scotland, Moncrief goes to rather ridiculous lengths dependent on luck to manipulate the Bonner family into coming to Scotland, only to resort to kidnapping when all else fails.
Such a man would more likely just have kidnapped his victims and dispensed with all of the other silliness, including his own jail stay with the Bonners.
On a positive note, I enjoyed the Bonners's stay in Scotland and I thought the author did a nice job capturing the dialect.
The scenes on board the ships were also wellwritten in that the settings came across as very realistic and gave me a sense of actually being on board.
The ending was tied up conveniently, complete with a red bow, with everyone getting pretty much what he or she deserved.
Settler Elizabeth Bonner must cross the frozen wilderness of New York State in the winter ofin a desperate bid to save her husband from being hanged as an American spy, in the exciting sequel to Into the Wilderness.
I was so excited to read this second book of this series, having loved the first book so very much.
I was not disappointed with this one! I was recommended this series because I loved the Outlander series.
The first book was ok, and interested me enough to read the sequel,
This book was not as good as the first one, and the first one wasnt great.
I never became very attached to the characters, they didn't seem to have much depth and didn't seem real to me.
The story was silly. The last quarter of the book takes place in Scotland, and all the Scottish characters' dialogue is written phonetically.
It was annoying to read, and very distracting from the story,
If you loved Into the Wilderness, then try Dawn on a Distant Shore, If you thought the first book was "meh" then you're not missing anything if you don't read this one.
Sara Donatis sequel to her praised Wilderness Series opens where the prior book left off, with the protagonist Elizabeth in labor and her Mohican husband Nathaniel at odds as to whether they should take the Scottish Land title as a blessing or be done with it altogether.
This predicament he decides to leave to his father Hawkeye, in which they are unfortunately brought the sobering news that he has been apprehended on his visit to Montreal over suspicions that he has obtained and hidden Tory gold that the English government claims as their own.
Hawkeye is being held with another younger Mohawk named Otter whom we met in the first novel, and it is here that the book finally picks up strength as it carries the reader through a suspenseful journey of Nathaniel and his two Scottish compatriots from the first novel rushing to their aid and hopeful release from captivity.
Donati has created a bit more depth and understanding to each of her characters in this novel, with a rather distinct focus being given to some of the side and minor characters of the previous book, such as their young daughter Hannah, and allowing for more contrast and appeal than just featuring the relationship of Elizabeth and Nathaniel.
Touching on that note, the reader will still find the couples dialogue all too intimate and forced, with far too many witty quips, banter, and romantic notions on both of their endswhich to put it quite bluntly just feels cheesy and awkward.
The title references large themes of hope and change with the titular characters wandering from the confines and comfort of their land known as Paradise in New York, to the unknown ports of Canada and ship bound passages to Scotland.
Similar to the first book, Donati uses a broad range of historical icons throughout the Bonner familys journeywith the HMS Leopard ofinfamy making a casual appearancePhilip Schuyler whom the Bonners were previously acquainted with, and the prickly yet familyoriented Sir Guy Carleton, also known as Lord Dorchester Governor of Lower Canada, and his wife Lady Dorchester, whom instantly takes a liking to Elizabeth as a mother in need:
Lady Dorchester gave a very unladylike snort.
“She is a suspect”
“Her husband is, ”
Elizabeth was so relieved at this unexpected ally that she might have laughed out loud to see the governors plans so neatly turned on ear.
“Exactly!” Lady Dorchester advanced a step toward the governor, “Her husband. She has not committed any crime, ” Her gaze dared him to contradict her,
She took Elizabeth by the arm, “My dear, we must have patience with them, for they are merely men, after all, Most excellent men, it is true, but men nonetheless, We will send you back to the Isis, my dear, but first you must have dry boots, and this cloakyou must be chilled through.
”
This sequel differs from the first novel in the sense that it fails to deliver in the second half and keep the excitement in time for a grand finale.
Instead, Dawn on a Distant Shore starts with lots of promise up to twothirds of the way in, yet somehow flounders out upon their reaching Scotland.
The captivating imagery and consistency in the flow of the narrative are all still present, but it is somewhat lacking in its appeal for drama with the everencumbering and seemingly inevitable setbacks.
The books finale comes to a rapid close with all major plot points being pieced together almost too conveniently, leading the reader to wonder how or why the long term turmoil between Lord Carryck and his exiled daughter Isabel ever needed to take place in the first place, nor why indeed it took the Bonner family to come across a whole ocean in order to sort out this familial discrepancy.
Donatis epilogue wraps the story up in reminding the reader of the world that seemed so far away back in New York and easily sets the narrative for another sequel, while a helpful cast of characters, family tree, and maps in the beginning are useful for periodic reference and evaluation.
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