Phinea Michael Button is an orphan girl with no prospect for marriage. In 1775, that's presumed to be a horrible fate, but Fin just doesn't see it that way. She longs to escape the orphanage, and the harsh woman who runs it. Little does she know that events are about to conspire against her to allow her all the adventure she could ever possible want.

The British are trying to keep the colonies from rebelling, and her loyalties to freedom get her in trouble with the Redcoats. A series of events follow which led Fin away from the only family she's ever known onto the decks of a ship desperately in need of hard working men. That she's a girl never crosses their mind and before long she has found a second family.

What happens when she is forced to choose between the safety of her two families? Loyalties and love are tested by the end of this novel, the first of two. Although it is not a cliff hanger, there are a lot of loose ends that readers will want to see answered in book two.

There is a subtle Christian message throughout the text; however, there is also harsh and dark scenes of violence which may not be suitable for the very young.

The characters are wonderfully formed and I enjoyed following each of them as events forced them to change to meet the future.

I was unaware of the Christian message when I began reading, so I was pulled out of the text by the overt Christian themes that popped up along the way.

If you know ahead of time they are there I'm sure they won't be a problem. I loved the book, even though I had to readjust my thinking from time to time to integrate the 'message'.

Grab the second one immediately...but it's not out yet.

Hopeful, strong, entertained.

Is a master word-smith! The prologue alone had me ready to give the book a high rating. Read it, you'll see.

I enjoy strong writing. The author obviously put a lot of thought into each and every word placed on the page. The plot is well paced, the events realistic and the characters are fully developed.

It might be a bit preachy to non-Christians.

This would be an excellent book club selection! I think there are enough themes to explore for an entire class, actually.

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Created Jan 12, 2010 at 10:16am • Submit your own review...