The Girl Who Came Home - A Titanic Novel by Hazel GaynorMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Today is the 100th anniversary of the day that the Titanic set sail. Earlier this week I began reading Hazel Gaynor's wonderful book "The Girl Who Came Home", one of three Titanic related novels I have stored on my Kindle to be enjoyed this week. The other two will be hard pressed to surpass this one.
The Girl Who Came Home is written from the perspective of Maggie Murphy who we meet as a 17 year old on the morning of April 10, 1912 in the fictional town of Ballysheen preparing to embark on her journey to America on the great ship Titanic. The story is told as a series of vignettes from the perspectives of herself, "Lucky" Harry the ship's 3rd class steward, and others who were aboard. It is intertwined with the story of her great-grandaughter, Grace, who she confides in for the first time in 70 years that she was aboard the Titanic and that she survived one of the greatest maritime disasters in history before or since.
The novel will appeal to those who enjoy memoir (it is written somewhat in that style though fictional), historical fiction and historical romance. It is a beautifully written, respectful telling of the story of Titanic from a personal perspective. It honors the memory of a group from County Mayo, Ireland known as the "Addergoole Fourteen" whose true story inspired this telling. Irish freelance journalist and blogger Hazel Gaynor has set herself a high standard in this her first novel and I look forward to reading more from her in the future.
View all my reviews
No comments:
Post a Comment