Harcourt’s Mountain

Elaine
Dodge
Genre: 
Historical

Silver Birch Landing, BC is teeming with excitement. The bride ship has arrived and lonely miners, trappers, and homesteaders scrabble to get a good look at the fresh pickings. Luke Harcourt can’t be bothered with such things but when one delicate creature—who stands out from the rest of the tarts—is on the verge of being sent to the local brothel, he suddenly hears himself call out a bid.

Hope Booker can barely remember her name. She wakes up on the bride ship and can’t recall who she is or where she’s from. She only knows she’s got a nasty goose egg on the back of her head and is sold, like a piece of property, to an absolute stranger. But when Luke swears not to touch her, she’s suddenly willing to live with this intriguing man amongst the Indians, trappers, and bears. And as her admiration for him grows, she finds she may not want him to keep his promise after all.

 “Harcourt’s Mountain” offers the harrowing adventures of 1867’s British Columbia with refreshing dual perspectives and engaging descriptions. Dodge remains true to her characters and their “voices” throughout—encouraging the reader to feel emotionally connected to the story. A bit of an awkward transition seems to divide the book in two, giving a feeling of ending and starting again in a different direction but the level of dedication and amount of research devoted to this novel are amazing, especially from an author from another continent!

Sofia St. Angeles