[.ca] Shadow in Hawthorn Bay (ISBN 077042886X)

Amazon.ca:
Winner of the both Canadian Library Association's Book of the Year Award and the Young Adult Book Award, Shadow in Hawthorn Bay is the second book in Janet Lunn's Hawthorn Bay trilogy, which begins with The Root Cellar and ends with The Hollow Tree. Hawthorn Bay, which plays an important role in all three novels, is based on Pleasant Bay in Ontario's Prince Edward County, where Lunn lived for more than 30 years in the farmhouse that was the setting for The Root Cellar. Shadow in Hawthorn Bay traces the overwhelmingly difficult journey that 15-year-old Mary Urquhart makes from the Highlands of Scotland to the wilderness that is just becoming Upper Canada. Mary makes the journey in part because she believes that she's heard the voice of her beloved cousin, Duncan, calling to her to come to Hawthorn Bay. Mary has "second sight" and knows that she has to leave behind all that is dear to her to come to Duncan's aid. But it's 1815 when Mary arrives, four long years since she last saw Duncan, and she discovers to her horror that Duncan is dead. Mary is a survivor, though, and she is determined to make Hawthorn Bay her home. Lunn creates a gripping portrait of pioneer life and doesn't shy away from giving readers a taste of the harshness and brutality of life in the wilderness. But she also captures the sense of magic and mystery that the landscape evoked for early settlers and that still grips many of us today. Shadow in Hawthorn Bay is part romance, part mystery, and part historical fiction, and is one of Janet Lunn's most powerful fictions for young readers. (Ages 12 and older) --Jeffrey Canton

No words can explain:
I'm 14 and I love historical Fiction! This book was so amazing I can't even start to explain how it made me feel when i was reading it. I liked it so much I cried when i was finished it. I know that sounds silly but that's how i felt. Mary had such a twisted life. In class right about the time i finished this book we started studying The Ukrainian immigrants comming to Canada and we had to do a huge project on it and this book help me so much because of how well it explained the boat ride and the life once she got there. It's a truley amazing story. my other fav books are: Gwen's story Tuck everlasting The tillerman series (Homecoming, Dicey's song etc.) you should read them :)

A Well Deserved Award Winning Historical Fiction:
I think that this is the best of the trilogy. Chronologically it takes place first so, for that reason I would recommend reading this one first. The mysticism in this story is infectious and alluring. The historical reality is poignant. The romance is present but dowplayed. The culture of the highlands becomes very personal through the main character who must bear the burden and suffering of being different from the people she finds herself living with. It's a story that captures the spirit of the early pioneers that were able to make a success of starting a new life in the Canadian wilderness as well as some that didn't. This is a great book!