Flight of the Earls - A Review

With her family's farm about to fail due to the potato famine, Clare Hanely, her brother Seamus, and a friend set sail for New York. The trip across the ocean is perilous and Clare hopes things will be better in America. Once there, the three soon find that work is hard to find and they are just as poor as they were in Ireland. When they find an unexpected benefactor in the form of a ghost from Clare's past, their fortunes appear to have changed. But even this unexpected benefactor is keeping secrets. Secrets that if found out can be very dangerous for Clare and her companions. Will danger cause them to be separated again?

This is the first book I've ever read by this author. I'm a sucker for pretty much anything Irish. I'll admit that this book took me a while to get into. It started off slow, and it felt that it took them forever to cross the Atlantic and get to New York. Most of the chapters were very descriptive, though short. I did find myself frequently skimming more than reading at points. But I will also say that I loved Clare. I didn't think I'd like her at first, but as the book went on and she went through such hardships, she grew on me to the point that I loved her.

The book was very researched and I felt that I could experience the potato famine with the farmers or the harshness of New York with the immigrants. I don't think I've ever read something that dealt with the potato famine, and while I have a basic understanding of the history, particularly as it relates to immigrants, I've never actually read about how widespread the famine was and the devastation that it caused.

I am looking forward to reading the second book in this series.

I received the Kindle version of this book from B & H Publishers via NetGalley for the purpose of reviewing. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to fans of Irish history, Cathy Gohlhe, historical fiction, Laura Frantz,

Rating - 4 stars

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