About the Book
Two women. One shipwreck. And four centuries of secrets.
Shortly before Christmas in 2018, Tess McCarthy, after years as a hard-working English teacher who never did anything out of the ordinary, flies to Western Australia's remote Abrolhos Islands. She is in search of answers--both to the infamous Batavia shipwreck and her personal family crises.
In 1628, Saskia, an orphaned young Dutchwoman, boards Batavia with relatives, bound for a new and potentially dangerous life in the East Indies--only for her world to first collide with Aris Jansz, the ship's taciturn under surgeon.
Tess, Saskia, and Aris--their lives linked by secrets that span generations--carry the baggage of past losses and the uncertainty of their futures. And, in the most unlikely circumstances, they may find qualities that echo through faith, acceptance, and love.
A woman searching for answers in her own life finds them--and much more--in the wreckage and haunting stories of the Batavia shipwreck.
Previously published in Australia as Daughters of Batavia. (Goodreads)
My Thoughts
I picked this book to read because I knew absolutely nothing of this history of Batavia. The first few chapters had me totally interested and the set up of the characters was good. The back and forth between them was clear and well written. I just really struggled to get into the story after the first few chapters. For me, it read as a very dry plot and I found that I didn't care much about what was happening with the people in the story. It didn't captivate me and I struggled to finish reading it. The ending picks up just a bit and that was helpful. The history is interesting and it made me want to research some of it myself. If this is something that interests you with history then you will probably enjoy it. I know many others have loved this book, it simply was not for me.
Three Stars.
"I received a complimentary copy from NetGalley. All opinions are my own and I was not required to write a positive review."
No comments:
Post a Comment