Hope From the Ocean by P.S. Bartlett

Rated 5 STARS

Patrick and Dillon are two orphaned boys who are saved from a life of poverty by their Uncle Dan, the patriarch of a large, loving family.  The boys are accepted as part of the family and Dillon thrives as he learns about horses and studies lessons and  becomes an integral part of the family.

Patrick does not make the adjustment well.  Since he is older his memories of his own mother and the memories of the terrible life they were forced to live made it difficult to adjust to this new family.  He was cooperative but didn’t feel part of things.  He did his chores and came to the table but bonded with no one except  the youngest, who reminded him of a younger Dillon who had depended on him so much and shown his love for Patrick so blatantly.

Patrick finally has to leave the family and runs off to Dublin to catch a ship and go on an adventure.

We then meet Owen Whelan who has come from Ireland with his mother.  They love and adore one another and they go to live with Rachel’s sister, Kathryn.  Owen meets and falls in love for the first time and goes to school to study with a vengeance and gets a place at University at only 16.

As time passes, Owen becomes a doctor, his mother passes away and his Aunt Kathryn invites and old friend and her family to come and visit them and Owen’ life is changed forever.

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I usually don’t like to read a prequel after I’ve read the actual original book.  This however was an exception to the rule.  Once again, I was intrigued by the story of Owen and his life before I met him in Fireflies.  He is a good and kind gentleman, a doctor that everyone dreams of having.  He is dedicated to his work and his family in equal measures.

His mother is so supportive and kind.  She is intriguing too because she is keeping a secret with Owen and one that is hers exclusively.

Aunt Kathryn started out as kind of a harridan but as her family stays with her she mellows in spite of her drunken husband who was a bit of a villain.  Dell tried to throw his weight around but once Owen and his mother arrived, they were able to thwart him.

Owen’s first love, Raina, was a German immigrant who was their housekeeper but she was more than she appeared and the author made her innocent and naïve yet not ridiculous.  She was just a young girl who had a sad story.

Owen meets his match when he meets Sarah, the daughter of the family who Kathryn invites to visit from Ireland.  I don’t want to tell to much about her as it was so much fun to read about their courtship.

Once again, Bartlett caught my fancy with an enthralling family story and a whimsy that she seems to be particularly adept at writing.  I highly recommend this book to one and all.