What a fascinating story! I found it to be one of those very difficult-to-put-down novels, and was disgruntled when I had to do just that to do life. Based on a true-life story that harkened back to the 1600's, a ship named Batavia enroute to Batavia (present day Jakarta, Indonesia), sailed from Amsterdam, Holland. It got shipwrecked on the Houtman Abrolhos Islands. Then a whole horror story happened!
This historical narrative runs along a two time frame setting from 1628 and the "present" day. The two dovetail as Saskia experiences the nightmare of events whilst Tess 'digs' them up and discovers the history. Several of the book's characters named were actual, true-to-life characters that helped shape the tale as it unfolded. My favorite character was Aris.
Besides the actual history parts of the story, I appreciated the faith-based injections as well as the sweet romance that wafted its fragrances, softly, in threads throughout. In my opinion, this has been a great way to become more aware of events from history despite the horrendousness thereof, and the people of those times and places can be remembered once again.
~ Eunice C., Reviewer/Blogger ~
August 2026
Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
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