Some may have picked this book for the fascinating historical account brought on by the devastation of the Jonestown flood. The era was May 31, 1889, after the catastrophic collapse of the South Fork Dam on the Little Conemmaugh River. A miraculous misfortune of this misconstruction leads to the disastrous devastation in the valley. The author was so moved by the facts of this tragedy she went to do research and wrote a book on the impact . Normally I am not into historical fiction, but this particular book's subject matter caught my eye.
The complex requirements of women's dress attire in the 1800's and the necessity to be proper in high society were the main focus for women of the day. The limitations and restraints put on women due to the garments they wore became fascinating to read and valuable in the end.
This alternating era brings rushing emotions as an adopted girl turns eighteen and begins searching for her birth family. During events, she comes across a lady in a picture with Clara Barton (of the Red Cross) who helped the people in the Jonestown flood.
A bit confusing in the beginning, the correlation between the past and present era.
Then when the characters revealed how the history was passed down through generations.
The climax towards the ending was nice it all made sense, I would have liked it to sneak in a bit sooner. The interest for me was being an adoptee myself, seeing how the author revealed the information in the plot.
I gave the story 4 stars. Great read, with the fantastic real base story with a turn of tragic events, which lead to an uprise in positive results and leverage for a community to rise again. The story could have popped a bit sooner, but overall it was solid wit great characters, and great story.
The prize for me, as some reviewers stated I never was taught nor heard about this tragic event. So, I do appreciate the author writing this great story. I honor all the people who lost loved ones, and participated in assisting all the people involved in this tragic event. Bless you.