Review of Into the Wilderness by Sara Donati, an historical fiction novel set in late 18th century New York state.
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Synopsis
December 1792, Elizabeth joins her father at his home in the New York wilderness. She plans to start a school where she can teach all the local children. Despite her determination to remain single, her father has lined up a marriage for her with the local doctor.
Instead, she falls in love with Nathaniel Bonner, known to the local Indians as ‘Between-Two-Lives’ for the way he moves between the white and red worlds. In order to save the mountain the Bonners and their Mohawk family live on, Hidden Wolf, Elizabeth tricks her father and elopes with Nathaniel. What follows is an epic battle to keep what belongs to them and regain the good opinion of the local villagers.
Review
Into the Wilderness is often compared to Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. A brief appearance by Outlander’s characters was played upon by Donati’s publicist. I agree that this book would be enjoyed by Outlander fans. However, this book stands easily on its own merits and should not be avoided because the reader doesn’t like Outlander.
I found Into the Wilderness captivating. It is definitely the kind of book that I can disappear into and escape real life. The situations that the main characters find themselves in vary hugely, as do the settings, from Albany to a Mohawk village to the middle of the forest. The descriptions are superb; I really felt like I was a witness to 18th century New York.
The characters are all layered and well developed. Elizabeth is independent, tenacious, and brilliant. Throughout the book, we see her change significantly (as anyone would, going through what she does). She leans a lot and becomes more adaptable. Nathaniel is strong, manly, and lethal, but also loyal and tender towards his family. Even the minor characters have distinct personalities.
I really enjoyed how each character speaks differently. For example, Elizabeth has a very proper way of speaking, with perfect grammar and relatively sophisticated words. Nathaniel has a more informal manner, using words like aye and ain’t. Other characters’ speech suits their personalities and their role in the village/society. This makes the characters seem much more real.
Elizabeth turned her attention to her students. “I don’t recall giving permission for you to leave your seats. Please return to them at once.”
Sheepishly, with lingering last looks toward Liam, they retreated the way they had come. Elizabeth waited until she heard the door close and heard them talking inside the classroom behind her.
“What are you doing here, Liam?”
“Nothing,” he spat, earning a smart cuff above the ear from Nathaniel. “Oooww! What was that for?”
“For your sweet manners and courteous ways,” Nathaniel said. “Remember it.” Then he looked at Elizabeth. “It ain’t the first time. I was watching today because I saw his tracks here.”
There were several places where the names of some of the characters were a bit mixed up. For example, in one scene Elizabeth is teaching school and she checks “Ian Kirby’s” slate (page 726 in my copy). It’s obviously meant to be Ian McGarrity (there is a character called Liam Kirby, but based on context, it couldn’t be him). This really annoyed me, but I’ll get over it.
Conclusion
Have you read Into the Wilderness? What did you think? Do you agree with what I’ve said about it? Let me know in the comments.
If you haven’t, it can be bought at Book Depository (they have free international shipping!).
