From New York Times bestselling author Kristina McMorris comes an ambitious and heartrending story of immigrants, deception, and second chances.
On a cold night in October 1937, searchlights cut through the darkness around Alcatraz. A prison guard’s only daughter—one of the youngest civilians who lives on the island—has gone missing. Tending the warden’s greenhouse, convicted bank robber Tommy Capello waits anxiously. Only he knows the truth about the little girl’s whereabouts, and that both of their lives depend on the search’s outcome.
Almost two decades earlier and thousands of miles away, a young boy named Shanley Keagan ekes out a living as an aspiring vaudevillian in Dublin pubs. Talented and shrewd, Shan dreams of shedding his dingy existence and finding his real father in America. The chance finally comes to cross the Atlantic, but when tragedy strikes, Shan must summon all his ingenuity to forge a new life in a volatile and foreign world.
Skillfully weaving these two stories, Kristina McMorris delivers a compelling novel that moves from Ireland to New York to San Francisco Bay. As her finely crafted characters discover the true nature of loyalty, sacrifice, and betrayal, they are forced to confront the lies we tell—and believe—in order to survive.
My Thoughts on Edge of Lost by Kristina McMorris
Shanley Keagan is a young boy living in Dublin with his alcoholic uncle. His mother had died and he doesn’t know who his father is other than he is from America. His uncle has little Shanley work in pubs that will have him as a vaudevillian. He earns a bit of money and usually gets a free meal for his efforts.
Eventually Shanley gets on a boat heading for America and is taken in by an Italian family and takes on the name Tommy Capello. A lot happens during this time however, eventually Tommy ends up at the notorious, Alcatraz Prison. Is he really guilty of the crime he is convicted of and will he get out? You will have to read the book to find out!
I started rooting for Shanley/ Tommy from the first chapter. He has a zest for life that is contagious and is very talented. He doesn’t want to be a burden to anyone yet loves his new Italian family and learns how to fit in.
It is clear to me that Kristina McMorris really did her research on both Ireland and American in the era. Her writing is poetic and makes the story come alive. This book would make an excellent movie if it were to land in the right hands! In fact, it came alive and made me feel like I was watching a movie. Sometimes I even felt like I was in it!
I love books about the immigrant experience and this is one I can highly recommend. It has catapulted into my top 5 in the genre! If you love historical fiction books about the immigrant experience. Life on Alcatraz as both a inmate, worker, and family living on the Island is also riveting. ‘The Edge of Lost’ is a must read!
I received the ebook edition for my honest opinion.
5/5
About Edge of Lost by Kristina McMorris
KRISTINA MCMORRIS is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author and the recipient of more than twenty national literary awards, as well as a nomination for the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, RWA’s RITA® Award, and a Goodreads Choice Award for Best Historical Fiction. Inspired by true personal and historical accounts. Her works of fiction have been published by Kensington Books, Penguin Random House, and HarperCollins.
The Edge of Lost is her fourth novel, following the widely praised Letters from Home, Bridge of Scarlet Leaves, and The Pieces We Keep. Additionally, her novellas are featured in the anthologies A Winter Wonderland and Grand Central. Prior to her writing career, Kristina hosted weekly TV shows since age nine, including an Emmy® Award-winning program, and has been named one of Portland’s “40 Under 40” by The Business Journal. She lives with her husband and two sons in the Pacific Northwest, where she is working on her next novel. For more, visit www.KristinaMcMorris.com