Skillfully crafted with well-drawn characters and evocative settings, this is escapist fiction that feels more literary. It does seem half-baked at times, as Behrens creates too many inconclusive narrative threads, but I appreciate how immersive his storytelling is. Behrens exemplifies one approach to writing fiction as a sort of wish-fulfillment, creating an alternate life where things are better, the people are more beautiful and more interesting, with just enough drama to justify a plot. ( )

Sweeping family saga covering the 1900s to 1960s. Joseph O’Brien is the eldest son of a large Irish family who has settled in the wilderness of Quebec. The narrative covers Joe’s life story as he endures abuse at the hands of his stepfather, leaves home, marries, has children of his own, and eventually becomes a successful railroad executive. Joe’s life contains many setbacks, tragedies, and addictions. The story is told from the perspectives of Joe and his wife, Iseult.

I have mixed feelings about this book. On the positive side, the author’s writing style is atmospheric. I enjoyed the descriptions of the landscapes, moving from Quebec to British Colombia to California to Maine. Where it did not work as well for me was in “character management.” It starts off with a large Irish Catholic family, but characters are killed off or otherwise disappear from the narrative, sometimes with no explanation. It is more the story of a marriage, and its ups and downs. The historical elements remain largely in the background. Personally, I like a bit more history in my historical fiction – and there is so much potential here, since it covers the time period of tumultuous events of the early twentieth century, such as the Great Depression, WWI, and WWII. ( )

4.5 to 4.75 stars if that were possible. This book was wholly satisfying. It was rich in detail and the language was beautiful. The story of the O'Brien family told throughout the years was enthralling and kept my attention rapt throughout. The characters were masterfully developed and came to life fully; I was invested in all of them, cared deeply for them and could not wait to turn the page to see what would happen next. This is a true saga with all of the accompanying joy and sorrow that one would expect. Most excellent read and I highly recommend. ( )

This is a story about two generations in a family. The O'Brien brothers and sisters grew up in the Pontiac region of Quebec from the turn of the 20th century to the early 60s. This is apparently a sequel to an earlier book where the first O'Briens arrived in Canada but it isn't reliant on that so much that you couldn't pick this up and enjoy it.

The main character is Joe O'Brien, the oldest brother. The children lose their mother to illness and have to deal with a stepfather who is an alcoholic. Two of the brothers, Joe and Grattan are the characters that continue through the story. The sisters are sent off to a convent and a third brother is sent to be a priest and we really don't see much of them again. Joe starts a business on the family property when he's only a teenager and builds up his businesses over the decades into a huge construction and engineering company. He meets Iseault in Venice, California. They marry and move to northern BC where Joe has a contract to build part of the Canadian Railway through the Rockies. This is the story of their life and family, their marraige which breaks down into bits several times. This is the story of their children's lives as well, and Grattan and his wife and daughter, through WWI, the depression and into WWII and beyond.

The book is really well written and the characters of Joe and Iseault are very well developed, more so than the others because the book is from their points of view. It was easy to follow the various characters in both generations, something that's not always easy to do depending on the complexity of the writing but this author is very smooth with that. You really get a good sense of what life was like in Canada both in the remote rural areas of the mountains and in Montreal during the first half of the 20th century. Good characters, good dialogue. A good read. ( )