Boon's Bookcase

The Girl from Ballymor

by

Kathleen McGurl

REVIEW

What would you sacrifice for your children?

Ballymor, Ireland, 1847

As famine grips the country Kitty McCarthy is left widowed and alone. Fighting to keep her

two remaining children alive against all odds, Kitty must decide how far she will go to save

her family.

Present day

Arriving in Ballymor, Maria is researching her ancestor, Victorian artist Michael McCarthy –

and his beloved mother, the mysterious Kitty who disappeared without a trace.

Running from her future, it’s not only answers about the past that Maria hopes to find in

Ireland. As her search brings her closer to the truth about Kitty’s fate, Maria must make the

biggest decision of her life.

About Kathleen McGurl

Kathleen McGurl lives near the sea in Bournemouth, with her husband, sons and cats. She began her writing career creating short stories, then she got side tracked onto family history research. She has always been fascinated by the past, the ways in which the past can influence the present, and enjoys exploring these links in her novels.

Review

Maria is heading to Ireland to try and trace her family history. Her ancestors, the McCarthy family, were trying to survive the potato famine in the 1800's and Kitty is left to try and feed her children before it's too late. Her eldest son, Michael, spens his days looking for work to help his mother feed his siblings.

This is a book where the chapters alternate from 1847 onwards back to the present day and meet up at the end!! I love these style of books as you just can't help reading another chapter, just to see how it all comes together!!

The author obviously researched thoroughly the potato famine and her attention to detail with regards to accents, places and the history of Ireland is exceptional.

This book brought a little tear to my eye because of what Kitty had to sacrifice for her children and how the poor people of Ireland suffered during that period and the struggle of trying to find enough food to feed your children. 

I really enjoyed this book and loved the cover! I will definitely love to read other novels from this author.

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