"Another wonderful addition to the Bonner family saga set in the early American wilderness."

It is 1812 and Hannah Bonner has returned to her family's home in Paradise. But Hannah has changed. The wounds to her spirit are deeper than anyone understands, the tragedies she's witnessed and the loss of her husband and son are more than she can share with even her family.

Hannah, once a great healer, has sworn to leave all that behind her in an attempt to forget the past. But it is too much in her nature to help those in need, and so with the help of her family and the friendship of Jennet Scott, a widowed cousin of the Bonner family newly arrived from Scotland, she begins again.

Lily, Hanna's sister, a talented, hopeful artist, and Daniel, Hannah's brother and Lily's twin, are yearning to break free of the confines of Paradise. One to hone her artistic talents, the other to join forces in the war against the British. But when life outside Paradise isn't all they'd dreamed and evil threatens, it is once again the close Bonner family ties that force a dangerous, heartfelt journey to save them.

I can't begin to say enough about this next in the series of books from Sara Donati that follows the lives and adventures of the Bonner family in the Early American wilderness. What a totally awesome book! The writing is absolute poetry and the characters so detailed, so distinct that you almost forget they're fictional. If you're a newcomer to Donati's writing, I highly recommend that you start at the beginning with INTO THE WILDERNESS. You'll love watching the characters grow and learn, laughing and crying with them along the way. No quick read, but a journey to be savored.

Reviewed by Margaret Ohmes
Posted August 16, 2004

Summary

With epic sweep and breathtaking adventure, Sara Donati's bestselling saga of an Early American family's struggle for survival in the Northeast wilderness continues with the story of an indomitable woman and an unforgettable journey of redemption across a young nation threatened by the flames of war. The year is 1812 and Hannah Bonner has returned to her family's mountain cabin in Paradise. But Nathaniel and Elizabeth Bonner can see that Hannah is not the same woman as when she left. For their daughter has come home without her husband and without her son...and with a story of loss and tragedy that she can't bear to tell. Yet as Hannah resumes her duties as a gifted healer among the sick and needy, she finds that she is also slowly healing herself. Little does she realize that she is about to be called away to face her greatest challenge ever. As autumn approaches, news of the latest conflict with Britain finds the young men of Paradise—including eighteen- year-old Daniel Bonner—eager to take up arms. Against their better judgment, Nathaniel and Elizabeth must let him go, just as they must let his twin sister Lily, a stubborn beauty, pursue her independence in Montreal. But on the eve of the War of 1812, an unexpected guest arrives from Scotland: It is the Bonners' distant cousin, the newly widowed Jennet Scott of Carryckcastle. Far from home, Lily and Jennet will each learn the price of pursuing their dreams and the possibility of true love. But it's Hannah herself who must risk everything once more— this time to save Daniel, who's been taken prisoner by the British. As the distant thunder of war threatens Paradise, Hannah may learn to live—and maybe love—again in one final act of courage, duty, and sacrifice. A gifted writer, a master storyteller, and a first-rate historian, Sara Donati has written a powerful, poignant, and movingly romantic novel that chronicles the lives and adventures of a family as compelling and unforgettable as any in American fiction.