Exceptional historical that takes place primarily in Barbados in 1816.
Ms. Johnson has done a stellar job of presenting her heroine Avalina as a selective mute. Avalina wants to speak but for some reason cannot. She does, however, speak to a very few people she trusts, including Josiah Holland. Avalina became a slave. When,as a child, she survived a shipwreck she was taken into a sugar cane plantation by the evil Cyrene Hastings. She met Josiah when he and his father visited from S.Carolina to do business with Hastings. Turmoil erupted and Josiah and Avalina have to flee for their lives.
The characters are well written and the story educates about the time and customs.
I like the way Josiah is shown as a God-fearing man who had a conscience. He is compassionate and wants Avalina to be able to read and write. He also sees that she knows very little about God and tries to help her grow to recognize Jesus as her Savior.
A skillfully written book and a heartfelt story that exposed the cruelty of slavery and highlighted the fact that the Irish were also brought to the western hemisphere as slaves. Well worth the read.
*A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the author. I was not required to post a positive review. All opinions are mine alone.*5 stars and a strong faith thread
BackCover Blurb:
Avalina is a woman trapped in silence. Stolen from her home in Ireland and sold as a slave to a Barbados plantation owner, the trauma of her past has left her mute, wrapped in a prison of loneliness and isolation amid an island of beauty. Though she longs to be free from the cruelty of her overseer, her heart yearns for a greater freedom…something just beyond her grasp.
Josiah Holland has been born into a South Carolina slave-holding family but all it takes is one trip to the island of Barbados to open his eyes to the ugly cruelty that abounds beyond the confines of his plantation. With the aid of fiery abolitionist Benjamin McGee, Josiah forges a new future, fighting the very ideals he was once a part of.
When Avalina and Josiah’s lives entwine, will their spark engulf them in destruction, or ignite a revolution?
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