The Famine Orphans by Patricia Falvey

The potato famine sent thousands of young women from Ireland to Australia for a new life.

They were told it was going to be a better life, but was it?  They seemed more than slaves as they traveled to what really wasn't better living conditions.

THE FAMINE ORPHANS is based on a true event.  It was part of the Earl Grey Scheme that took place in 1848.

We follow the main character Kate as she is left an orphan along with other fourteen to nineteen-year-old girls and sent on one of the many ships.

The trip was grueling and disheartening for all the women as they tried to adapt to the ship's movement and as they learned how to be good domestic servants.

The descriptive writing takes you everywhere with the characters and has you feeling their every emotion.  I can't even imagine being on that ship and then waiting for what would happen when they arrived after three months.

What was it really like once the women arrived?   

What was it like for Kate after she married and moved to a barren and isolated area.

Enjoy the history lesson, the friendships that resulted, Kate's journey, and the descriptions of beautiful Australia. 

An enjoyable read that was stay with you and have you cheering for the characters.   5/5

Thank you to the publisher for a copy of this book.  All opinions are my own.