Melode lives among the Saints but with her mysterious past, she’s never been one of them. Believing that she’s found love, naïve Mel boards a boat to America, where the congregation seeks land to call their own. The journey holds a rough awakening for Melode and she is cast off onto an island barren of all but birds, a place befitting a Sinner. Among harsh circumstances Mel discovers who she is in light of such a judgment and what she will do to prove her worth.

I chose this novel for the Reading Through Time Group’s April read, the theme being religion. Honestly, there’s very little established religion here but there is much about faith, discovery and identity. Beahrs always puts such detail in his work, it’s easy to drown yourself in Melode’s surroundings. The austerity of those early settlements, the desperation and suspicion of the frontier, comes through clear.

I thought I would find it easy to identify with Mel, being the outsider in the group (a very common device among novelists) but once she was on the ship, I lost touch with her. By the middle of the book I wasn’t sure who she was any more and later I was just looking forward to the end. The character transforms from needy girl into independent woman and I should have applauded her but I just wanted to be done with her tale.

Beahrs does not use quotation marks and in a few places I struggled to determine if something was said aloud or who said what. Generally, it wasn’t much of a problem but I thought I’d mention it as it does bother some readers. ( )