No Safe Harbor by Elizabeth Ludwig - REVIEWED

About the Book: (from Bethany House)

New York City, 1897

She came to America searching for her brother. Instead all she's found is a web of danger.

Cara Hamilton had thought her brother to be dead. Now, clutching his letter, she leaves Ireland for America, desperate to find him. Her search leads her to a houseful of curious strangers, and one man who claims to be a friend--Rourke Walsh. Despite her brother's warning, Cara trusts Rourke, revealing her purpose in coming to New York.

 

She's then thrust into a world of subterfuge, veiled threats, and attempted murder, including political revolutionaries from the homeland out for revenge. Her questions guide her ever nearer to locating her brother--but they also bring her closer to destruction as those who want to kill him track her footsteps.

 

With her faith in tatters, all hope flees. Will her brother finally surface? Can he save Cara from the truth about Rourke... a man she's grown to love?

My Thoughts:

“It’ll be alright, lass.  God’s help is nearer than the door” (p. 22 – advise from Cara’s mother)

“Trust no one.  Speak to no one.”  ( p. 42 - advice from Cara’s father)

Cara Hamilton’s parents gave her very different advice, never dreaming that she would be left alone to travel from her homeland of Ireland to the shores of the United States in search of her brother – someone she thought to be already dead.  Although the US was founded by people seeking religious freedom, our society quickly established its own set of prejudice as different nationalities flocked to its shores.  All people groups brought their own set of prejudice’s’ and Cara lands in the midst of all of it.  It is not a position I’d want to be in!

Right away, her fear of the unknown and her trusting nature puts her in the path of some unsavory characters. She barely survives through the last half of the book – many times escaping danger by a mere hair’s breadth.  Throughout the story she builds friendships and rediscovers a faith that she had long laid aside.  By the time she finds herself in real and imminent danger, her faith is strong enough to withstand the storm, no matter the outcome.

Elizabeth Ludwig has taken an Irish group – the Fenians – and built a story of intrigue and suspense in the framework of Ellis Island in 1897.  I had no idea such a group existed, and my curiosity was piqued. This story is built carefully and accurately, and the elements of human prejudice and its war against faith is told in living color by a host of unique characters.  I am happy to recommend this story to you! It will keep you reading long after light’s out!  

Go HERE to read an excerpt from the novel!

About the Author:

Elizabeth Ludwig is an award-winning author and an accomplished speaker and teacher. Her historical novel Love Finds You in Calico, California earned four stars fromRomantic Times. She is the owner and editor of the popular literary blog The Borrowed Book. Along with her husband and two children, Elizabeth makes her home in Orange, Texas. Learn more atwww.elizabethludwig.com.