Once again, Laura Frantz gives us a story that transports us to another time and place. The time is the middle of the 1700’s and the place is the Canadian shores of Acadie. Sylvie Galant’s family have lived in Acadie for decades. It is a peace loving community that strives to remain neutral in the struggle between the French and the British who both want control of the area. Sylvie is content to use her sewing skills for her community and tend her beloved apple orchard.
William Blackburn, is a notorious soldier, feared by many, who is tasked with the job of securing Acadie for the British. When he realizes that his government has mislead him about their plans for the area and it’s residents, he resigns his position and ends up in Virginia.
While some of Sylvie’s family and friends form a resistance, she and most of her family end up being forced from their home and imprisoned. She is separated from her parents and suffers a horrendous voyage on a rickety prison ship. Facing the realization that most of her family is dead, she ends up as an indentured woman in the same settlement in Virginia.
This is from the publisher’s website:
“In a land torn apart by conflict, can love mend the tattered pieces?
As 1754 is drawing to a close, tensions between the French and the British on Canada's Acadian shore are reaching a fever pitch. Seamstress Sylvie Galant and her family--French-speaking Acadians wishing to remain neutral--are caught in the middle, their land positioned between two forts flying rival flags. Amid preparations for the celebration of Noël, the talk is of unrest, coming war, and William Blackburn, the British Army Ranger raising havoc across North America's borderlands.
As summer takes hold in 1755 and British ships appear on the horizon, Sylvie encounters Blackburn, who warns her of the coming invasion. Rather than participate in the forced removal of the Acadians from their land, he resigns his commission. But that cannot save Sylvie or her kin. Relocated on a ramshackle ship to Virginia, Sylvie struggles to pick up the pieces of her life. When her path crosses once more with William's, they must work through the complex tangle of their shared, shattered past to navigate the present and forge an enduring future.”
While the first half of the book seems sad, the second half of the book speaks to overcoming hardships while still maintaining hope through faith. Sylvie and William begin to recognize their growing feelings for each other and the author does a wonderful job of taking us along on their courtship journey.
A really fun thing is that characters from another of the author’s books pop up in this book.
It is very evident that the author researches the history, customs, events and locations that help draw the reader into the story.
Her books never fail to deliver a wonderful experience.
Go HERE to learn more about Laura Frantz
