Monday, May 24, 2010

The Rebellion of Jane Clarke-Sally Gunning

The Rebellion of Jane Clarke
Sally Gunning
Morrow, Jun 1 2010, $24.99
ISBN: 9780061782145

In 1769 in Satucket on Cape Cod, twenty-two years old Jane Clarke rejects marriage to the loyalist Phinnie Paine chosen by her father. Outraged by his daughter’s disobedience, he exiles her to take care of her elderly great-aunt Gill in Boston.

Jane enjoys the independence of not residing under her father’s tyrannical thumb and being near the British Custom House, she meets some of the leaders demanding representation in parliament. She becomes friends with Henry Knox and through her brother meets John Adams. As the men she meets become increasingly frustrated with the British efforts to restrain Bostonians, she fears violence will happen as she realizes those fomenting revolt are not interested in truths that detract from their argument of throwing the British out. Finally her premonition turns true when several protestors are killed at what the rebelling colonists call the Boston Massacre.

The Rebellion of Jane Clark is a super historical thriller that through the heroine’s eyes focuses on key participants and others caught in the dispute in the days just prior to the American Revolution. The story line is fast-paced from the moment Jane is exiled to Boston and never slows down; yet enables readers to witness how divided the Massachusetts colonists were re revolt vs. allegiance. Sally Gunning’s terrific tale brings to life the prime time players, their impact on others, and life in Boston as rebellion is on the minds of every citizen; with families divided between for, against, and neutral

Harriet Klausner

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