Review: Between Two Shores by Jocelyn Green

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About:

The daughter of a Mohawk mother and French father in 1759 Montreal, Catherine Duval finds it is easier to remain neutral in a world that is tearing itself apart. Content to trade with both the French and the British, Catherine is pulled into the fray against her wishes when her British ex-fiance, Samuel Crane, is taken prisoner by her father. Samuel asks her to help him escape, claiming he has information that could help end the war. 

Peace appeals to Catherine, but helping the man who broke her heart does not. She delays . . . until attempts on Samuel's life convince her he's in mortal danger. Against her better judgment she helps him flee by river, using knowledge of the landscape to creep ever closer to freedom. Their time together rekindles feelings she thought long buried, and danger seems to hound their every mile. She's risked becoming a traitor by choosing a side, but will the decision cost her even more than she anticipated.

My Thoughts:

Between Two Shores was a story of bravery, loss, and heartbreak that a young Mohawk/French woman must face as all around her battles for the New World has erupted. This novel is chock full of history about the French and Indian War, specifically the Battle of Quebec, and the relations between the Native Americans, British, and the French. It was a very tense and dangerous time to live, and yet the heroine Catherine Duval embodied the free spirit of North America today.

She was a strong and capable woman, bridging the gap between the three nations that were bent on destroying each other for the coveted land. She wanted acceptance and belonging and most of all an unconditional love. She was searching for love in the wrong places -which should have been loving relationships especially with her father and unfortunately later in the perceived abandonment of her fiancé Samuel.

Throughout the story I was impressed with the way she handled the problems that arose, the love and care she generously gave to her sister, brother, Thankful, and her father. Catherine was a character that kept things close to her chest and when the pivotal point of the story came when she found out the truth of a certain matter, I felt gut punched along with her.

This was an engrossing, rich historical read. Author Green brought the past and a battle I did not know a lot about to life. Though I would have liked a different outcome, I feel thankful to have read such a novel and to have met such a character as Catherine.

I was provided a copy of this novel from the publisher. I was not required to post a positive review and all views and opinions are my own.