I picked this up long enough ago that when I waded into late eighteenth century Ireland, I had no idea what I was getting into. My formal history of that time and place is so lacking that most of the names (including Robert Emmet’s) were unfamiliar, and all the events came as a complete surprise to me.
I was impressed with Ms. Browne’s rich characterization and her ability to make the world come alive as if it were happening right now. The language and thinking patterns of the characters felt a touch modern to me, but I was impressed with the story-telling and the way Ms. Browne infused such a dark story with an underlying sense of undying hope.
At some point, I’ll probably go pick up the others in this series.