Jillian Fitgerald, whose grand house had 60 rooms, grew up
together with Frankie Maguire, the kennel keeper's son, in Northern Ireland.
That she was rich and he was poor did not daunt their dreams of someday
marrying. But Jillian was headed for a privileged life and the university.
Frankie, drawn into the nationalist cause, faced a charge of murder and the dark
walls of a jail cell.
With their lives torn apart, there seemed no chance for Jillian
and Frankie. But the heart owns knowledge to which the mind is not privy.
Generations before, an Irish princess, Eleanor "Nell" Fitzgerald, her family
killed, her life in jeopardy, her beloved torn from her arms, was preparing to
reach out to another woman who shared her heritage...a woman in another century.
Now, from the court of Henry VIII to the violent streets of modern Belfast, Nell
and Jillian will become two souls joined in one courageous battle to prove that
neither prison bars nor the hands of time can stop the power of love...
Jilly had always been an innocent
and ambitious child that quickly developed a life-long crush on her ancestral family's
kennel keeper's son. She also had a privileged but lonely childhood. As a
result, she constantly craved knowledge for her endless curiosity which she unexpectedly
found in Frankie's calm guidance. From an early age, she learned to unbiasedly
appreciate the differences around her, something very rare in Northern Ireland's
1970s Protestant/Catholic mayhem. As she aged, her trust and love in
Frankie grew significantly until a fatal family accident tore them apart for
almost twenty-years. Jilly kept hope during their years of separation because
of a sacred promise made between them to wait
for each other. But, adolescent promises cannot always be kept in times of war/turmoil
and Jilly, before long, finds her life headed in a very different direction than first expected.
Throughout it all, a deeper secret
has physically haunted Jilly since childhood--the spirit of Nell, a family relative
from over 400-years in the past. Thought of as an imaginary-friend while young,
Jilly could never understand why Nell was visible only to herself and no-one
else. Nevertheless, both related ladies soon found themselves on a mission to solve
each others personal struggles since both shared the ingrained ability of
stepping through time to be the voice of wisdom in each others time of need.
The truth behind the children's symbiotic attraction to each other lay somewhere within the core of them, a remote gene that had transferred itself from generation to generation, occasionally hidden but always there, through thousands of years of Maguire and Fitzgerald ancestors, to germinate in the minds and hearts of two children who were the best of those who had gone before.
Frankie knew his limitations early
on, especially in regards to Jilly and her high-classed families expectations. As
much as he had like to dream about his future as a veterinarian graduate and a life with the girl he
shared a strong connection with, the harsh reality forced on fellow Catholics
like him quickly altered his perception. Foolishly thinking that the
law would not condemn a young boy for an accidental murder, Frankie found
himself on prison row and sliding deeper in the Irish Republic Army's activities--away
from Jilly and the marriage promise they made. Consequently, Frankie slyly adopted
a new identity, took on a more powerful role within his Catholic community,
and basically dropped off the face of the earth before being discovered by Jilly
many years later. When destiny crossed his path with Jilly years later, both
were living extremely opposite lifestyles. Thus, Frankie became torn about
overcoming the political prejudices set against them in hopes of finally being
together with Jilly--or will the deep-seated beliefs that Protestant/Catholic relationships
could never last overshadow his youthful dream?
On the flip side, Nell's
relationship struggles back in the 1500s intensifies when the Celtic warrior
Donal attempted to keep her from harms-way after her family fell apart in Tudor
England. Living in a time when women held little control over their futures,
Nell and Donal shared a bond that intensified as they become betrothed. Furthermore,
the heart wants what the heart wants no matter what the King of England may say
in the matter.
It was only natural that a child like Jilly, craving acceptance and answers and finding none, should be drawn to a boy who had both. That she was rich and he poor meant nothing. The Catholic/Protestant thing meant even less. While Jilly was impetuous, needle-sharp, and completely without prejudice, Frankie was deliberate, compassionate, and tirelessly patient...
I began this story expecting more
of a time-travel adventure, but come out of it enjoying a sweet budding romance
that started at a young age and continued into adulthood. The overall tale was
gripping and emotionally heart-breaking but also fascinating with presenting
how fickle fate can be. No matter how much Frankie and Jilly may have chosen to
pull away from each other at a young age, they were always drawn back
together...eventually. Moreover, the Irish chaos created around them only
intensified their eventually union while any attempts of avoidance as adults in
creating anything more was as good as meaningless in the reader's eyes--who
could easily witness the internal struggle both went through throughout the
story. Additionally, the supernatural aspect of Nell and Jilly being each
others spirit guide was out-of-the-ordinary but ultimately feel flat for me. Neither
really contributed very much to the others story and could have easily been
cut out all-together without much of a difference throughout the general tale. All in all,
if you are an historical fiction fan that takes pleasure in endless romances
full of tension and turmoil, you will like Baker's book. Enjoy!
Review: Goodreads | Barnes & Noble | Shelfari | LibraryThing | Amazon
Likes: How both Jilly and
Frankie stayed true to each other in their own ways. I will not go into details
her because of spoilers, but it was still charming overall.
Dislikes: The two stories (i.e.
Jilly/Frankie and Nell/Donal) did not really complement each other as I
had hoped. I would have enjoyed more similarities between the two tales and,
sadly, about half way through the book they were no longer created as parallel
point-of-views but instead as two separate entities. To me, it felt almost as if
Jilly's story eclipsed everything else in the book and that Nell's tale was not
really needed to complete the story--almost like her life narrative was only there
for filler and would have been much better as a prequel.
Chapter One/Paragraph One: In Jillian's mind, Francis Maguire would forever be associated with the
pungent, woolly smell of wet dog. It never occurred to her that it was the
slightest bit unusual for the closed-in world of the Kildare kennel to evoke
images of a boy's callused palm and defined calf muscles, of his thin,
sun-browned hand and rich, healing voice, of black hair and winter-gray eyes,
of warmth and giving and all that she'd known of acceptance and compassion and
sharing. Considering the privileged circumstance of Jilly's birth and the underprivileged
one of Frankie's, the way she felt was beyond unusual. It was extraordinary.
Favorite { Scene, Character or Setting }: Scene
Leaving her lemonade untouched, Jilly turned to stare out over the storm, showing him only her profile. "Do you think our lives will be any different, Frankie?"
Struck by the maturity of her question, he
started at her, noticing for the first time the way the morning light outlines
the delicate edge of her cheek and chin, the shape of her nose, and the pure
clean line of her throat. He remembered the she was only thirteen, and a wave
of color swept across his face.
Turning away, he considered her question.
"Maybe not so different, but at least we'll have hope for somethin'
better. That's more than we have now."
Slowly, she turned to look at him with
that new maturity he had never noticed before. "What could be better than
this?" She waved her arm to encompass their surroundings.
"For me, this is the exception,"
he said, keeping his gaze averted. "You wouldn't know about that."
"It's not always life this for me,
either, Frankie. Would you care to change places and see?"
"Don't be ridiculous."
"Answer the question. Would you want to
go home to my family, to Terrence, my mother, and my father?"
"Perhaps not Terrence," he said,
attempting a note of levity.
"I didn't think so."
She stood and walked toward the stream to
dip her feet. Frankie couldn't take his eyes off the slender curves of her bare
legs under the rolled-up overalls or the way her body dipped in at the waist
and flared slightly at her hips. Christ, what was the matter with him? This was
Jilly. She was a schoolgirl, and he was nearly seventeen. There were plenty of
girls in the village for what he had in mind, even more in Belfast. His spirits
lifted.
Tomorrow, Monday, was the day he would
leave. By Wednesday, his examinations would be over, and he would have seven
days to himself, seven days of freedom, of pubs and films, of Guinness and
music, seven days of museums and theater, of shops and craic and women. Sheer heaven to one who measured the success of
his entertainment by the size of the crowds in Kilvara on market day. Tomorrow,
he would have forgotten all about his sudden fascination with a tomboy with too
many freckles, a girl who though fishing for trout was the best life had to
offer, a girl he had no business noticing in the first place.
In Northern Ireland, Getting Past the Troubles: Article
Makes me wonder what I would think about the book. I might add this one to the TBR. Great review.
ReplyDeleteBeth ^_^
http://sweetbooksnstuff.blogspot.com/
It's a fun book. Hope you enjoy it.
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